In Search of Darkness: 1990-1994
Hello everyone and welcome to my blog. For those who know me you know about my love for horror films so once a month, I’m going to review and discuss a scary flick. We’ll look at the classics, and some new films, and I want your suggestions on what I should review. I’ll do my best to cover all the different genres within the genre – slashers, ghosts, monsters, etc.
SPOILER ALERT! – These will be reviews so if you haven’t seen the movie you’ll want to watch it first before you read this. Let’s do this.
in search of darkness: 1990-1994
What if I suggested watching six hours of highlights from 90’s horror movies? Would that be something you’d be interested in?? Of course it would! Enter In Search of Darkness: 1990-1994. If this premise sounds familiar that’s because it is. Creator VC with David Weiner and Robin Block (the latter being a great guest on my podcast to discuss his The Thing Expanded documentary) created the Gatorade for every horror movie loving fans’ thirst with the 2019 piece In Search of Darkness. A 4 and a half hour extremely deep dive into 80’s horror – and if that weren’t enough, they made a sequel. While you need to watch those, let’s get into the 90’s.
First film on the list – Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III. While this seems like it makes no sense to choose this movie first it’s actually perfect. This isn’t a doc for casual horror fans and as you read the next few sentences you’ll get it. I enjoy TCM part 3 and so any true die-hard fan (while you may not love the film) has seen this movie. It’s gross, and dirty, and I remember watching it once while I was trying to eat dinner and realized I needed to stop one or the other. Right off the bat I’m sucked in. Also really love Exorcist III from 1990 (I seem to be a fan of part 3 in film series) and they touch on a total clunker in The Guardian. A few other favorites from that year are Misery and Jacob’s Ladder.
Between each year are these great short pieces diving into the details of the decade. The first one, What’s in a Label? Thriller vs. Horror Stigma is excellent. It specifically touches on the never-ending debate over is a film a thriller or horror – specifically The Silence of the Lambs which has vexed me for many, many years. It’s interesting to hear how a film is marketed and/or perceived can make all the difference. Horror film – meh. Thriller? - Ooooh, gotta go see it and it is worthy of winning awards. I think Cape Fear falls in this conundrum as well. The next touches on the rise of CGI – think game changing effects in Jurassic Park and T2 and being able to use AI to recreate people followed by Trash Horror: Backyard Filmmakers and Micro-Budget Madness. I enjoyed this one because of its relevancy in that moment and being a kid at that time with a camera, I could relate. VHS and other tape cameras were becoming widely available and creative folks were taking advantage. There is some pretty obscure, literally shot in a friend’s garage over a weekend stuff out there and some of it deserves to be watched. They discuss American Movie which is definitely part of the story. For someone who shoots their own passion projects, I totally get it. Terror on TV in the 90’s: Gateway to Horror is the final short. This was great. The 90’s was absolutely a fertile time for TV horror. X-Files, Twin Peaks, Freddy’s Nightmares, Goosebumps, and my favorite – Tales From The Crypt. One of my all-time favorite television shows. So highly produced using the comic source material and top-notch Producers and Directors of the era. Shows like The Walking Dead and American Horror Story probably owe a tip of the cap to these predecessors.
But back the movies! First film of 1991 is… Popcorn (honestly never seen it) Let us not forget the aforementioned Silence of the Lambs was released in 1991 – horror or thriller, right?! Puppet Master gets some exposure and I love me some People Under the Stairs and I got to learn about Sometimes They Come Back. However absent is Ghoulies 3: Ghoulies go to College. Truly a snub.
1992 has arguably the best – at least most popular – film of the decade in Bram Stoker’s Dracula. You’ve seen me swoon over this picture in written and spoken word, so you know my thoughts on that. The first flick for ’92 though is Basket Case 3! 1992 gave us Candyman, Dead Alive, and The Burning Moon. ’93 kicks off with Leprechaun and 1994 debuts with little talked about (but should be) Cronos. Favorites in the last two years are Body Bags, Hocus Pocus, Return of the Living Dead 3, Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein and comes to an end with Interview With the Vampire.
It's 6 hours of serious enjoyment that I highly recommend. Great interviews with icons like Heather Langenkamp, Tom Savini, and John Carpenter. Part nostalgia, part oh I need to add this film to my list. Thank you to Creator VC for giving me to opportunity to review this and head over to their site to get your copy - https://90shorrordoc.com
Enjoy the trailer - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tqHoFrQJyjw