Forgotten Scares: An In-depth Look at Flemish Horror Cinema

For starters, two little things about myself: a) I've been a massive horror fanatic ever since I was put in front of a TV, and b) I am a proud and patriotic Belgian. A documentary like Steve De Roover's "Forgotten Scares" is the best gift people like me could ever wish for, because words almost fail to describe how frustrating it can be to support the horror industry in this country! I intensively tracked down hundreds of extremely obscure and long-forgotten horror/cult movies from all around the world but, absurd as it may sound, the ones that were produced in my very own country often were the most difficult ones to find! I literally had to move heaven and earth to come across half-decent copies of "The Pencil Murders", "The Antwerp Killer", "The Afterman" or "Lucker" (these last two were before the special 30th Anniversary DVD-edition releases). I was ecstatic when I first heard about "Welp" (or "Cub") but even more furious about how this 2014 film got labelled in the national press as the very first Flemish horror movie ever. This simply isn't true and far too few Belgians know it! Luckily, I wasn't the only one to get upset about this, and Steve De Roover even cleverly used it as a starting point for his respectable, informative and hugely absorbing documentary.

For his "Forgotten Scares", Steve De Roover talked to every significant contributor of Flemish horror, and it's downright praiseworthy to see how he neither discriminates nor hints towards favoritism. Widely acclaimed pioneers like Harry Kümel (director of "Daughters of Darkness") and Pierre Drouot (President of the Flemish Film Association) receive just as much screen time and acknowledgement as underground and notoriously amateurish (but incredibly passionate) directors like Léon-Paul De Bruyn ("Maniac Nurses") or Rob Van Eyck ("De Aardwolf"). Connecting all the dots is Jan Verheyen; inarguably Belgium's most (and only) prominent genre expert with a bit of influence and standing in the business. Say what you want about him, but I will always have tremendous respect and sympathy for Jan Verheyen. After all, he remains the guy who hosted "Film Night Special" on TV (where I watched dozens of obscure horrors for the first time) and organized exuberant events like "Nacht van de Wansmaak" ("Night of Distaste"). Sure, he now exclusively directs commercially polished rubbish, but here in "Forgotten Scares" Verheyen also clarifies how he painfully endured that horror just isn't viable in this country. I, for one, firmly believe that a film like "Alias" lies much closer to his heart than another imbecilic "F.C. De Kampioenen" sequel, but unfortunately only the latter attracts viewers. Another admirable quality of this documentary is how De Roover remains neutral himself, and how he also never gives the opportunity to his interviewees to sneer at their colleagues. Everybody in this ridiculously small country knows that the low-budget directors despise the system of government funding, or that every attempt at making a controversial independent film becomes boycotted, but there isn't any room for insults or blames in "Forgotten Scares". Respect!

I'm so happy that Steve De Roover took on this challenging project! His love and devotion for the genre and its people simply radiates from the screen. Purely talking in terms of craftmanship, there naturally is still some room for improvement. But hey, he's still young and it was his first feature. If I take fantastic documentaries like "Not Quite Hollywood" or "Eurocrime!" as role models, for example, "Forgotten Scares" could have been slightly more vivid and flamboyant, perhaps. The structure mustn't necessarily be chronological, for instance, and why not give the word to some of those crazy special effects guys?

Fantastic documentary that covers an insightful indepth look at the history of Flemish horror but the small cult classics to the famous and successful titles. What makes the documentary so fascinating is the attention to detail in the behind the scenes and history of not just the people behind these movies but the innovative and intriguing stories of their production.

Good as a standalone documentary, but brilliant as a horror fan.

You can feel this documentary is about love for = HORROR movies in Belgium. With VHS, there are some sick Belgium horror / exploiting movies to find. Beheading and more like in the movie = NIGHTMARE 1981. Belgium created also = LUCKER !! This can be almost da same as = NEKROMANTIC from Germany !! Belgium had a cool history, but nobody notices !! At the moment, Belgium has 7 horror masters, with material never seen !! One of these 7 is so great as = LUCIO FULCI !! The MONEY !! The MONEY !! Was the problem !! 1 horror Master created = RABID GRANNIES !! And sold it to = TROMA !! They changed the movie !! Belgium doesn't want to sell again to TROMA !! We might create = RABID GRANNIES 2, But this time = The money must come to Belgium !! NO MORE STEALING !! We will use this money, to create even better movies !! OF HIGH QUALITY like the USA !!! Belgium has the stories ready, the GORE, the thriller !! The humor !!, We just need a little more money to prove our qualities !!!! WELP / CUB was starting to be a reasonable horror movie !! But it's still not enough !!! We need more money !! More recogniztion !! Belgium has the power to become = best movies of europe in the futur !! But we LACK MONEY !!

You're not gonna believe what you see :D Who knew Flanders had so much underground awesomness going on? Would watch again :)

"Forgotten scares" is a good documentary. It's a knowledgeable and useful tour along the various movies and movie projects (abandoned, half-finished or duly completed) dotting the Flemish horror landscape. Belgium being Belgium, this includes many a tale about lunatic ideas, certifiable auteurs, cynical businessmen and drunken artists. The viewer also gets a guided tour through the uniquely byzantine world of Belgian subsidies and grants. ("Our motto : if you think Dante's underworld was bad, try THIS hellhole.")

As a result the documentary has considerable amusement value, both of the voluntary and involuntary kind. If you happen to be a lawyer you can even indulge in some Schadenfreude : the documentary mentions three or four legal tangles which might have been avoided if the parties, or at least some of the parties, had had the foresight to consult a good lawyer or to draw up a decent contract.

However, I do not agree with one of the central premises of the documentary, to wit that most Flemings don't like the horror genre. On the contrary, I remain convinced that Flemings can, and will, appreciate a horror movie - on condition that it is well-made, interesting and atmospheric. Which is more than can be said about some of the cinematic abortions discussed, such as "The Antwerp killer", a work halfway between a movie and a prank. ("The Antwerp killer" was made by a young student, whose father - or so it is alleged - spent a considerable amount of money buying and destroying all copies.)

Anyway, horror fan or not, you get useful suggestions about movies to watch and, equally important, about movies not to watch.

I do hope that the maker of "Forgotten scares" will now turn his attention to the southern, French-speaking part of Belgium, which I'm sure will equal, if not surpass, Flanders in the weirdness department.