I have taken a break with these weekly articles, but I wanted to return to writing these if only to show love for you horror fiends out there! Enjoy!
As a lot of you may know, I am infatuated with the horror genre! Although, I find that a lot of horror films only get seen and make money these days if they are remakes, never-ending franchises, or filled with a cast of talentless hacks who often wind up on the cover of Us Weekly. It seems like it’s all about making a commercial product, rather than making inventive, scary, and creative films.
So I thought I would start a blog every week on my recommendations of horror films that deserve to be seen. Feel free to comment on your own suggestions!
There are certain types of horror movies that I just can’t get enough of. Those would be the horror anthologies. These films usually tell 3-4 scary stories and are perfect for people with ADD. :P ‘Creepshow,’ ‘Tales from the Darkside: The Movie,’ and the popular series ‘Tales from the Crypt’ are usually the first ones to comes to mind for horror fans. My favorite however, is 1995’s ‘Tales from the Hood.’ (Don’t laugh!)
Sure, the title doesn’t say much about the film and it could be the reason why some avoided the movie all together. The word “hood” usually repels horror fans. (‘Remember ‘Leprechaun in the Hood?’) However, this movie has more substance and horror than most horror films I have seen lately.
The film begins in; you guessed it…the hood. Three young thugs arrive at an old funeral home to buy drugs that a creepy and peculiar funeral director (played brilliantly by Clarence Williams III) has found. The three men are eager to get (how they so eloquently put it) “the sh*t.” (Don’t worry! The funeral director makes sure they get “the sh*t. In fact, he makes sure they’re knee deep in “the sh*t” by the end of the film. :P) However, the funeral director takes his time and guides them through the house first, telling the stories of how the dead people in the caskets at the funeral home met their maker.
It has surprised me that writer/director/actor Rusty Cundieff has not been more prominent in filmmaking since ‘Tales from the Hood.’ The man was able to make an anthology film very few have done, and that is he made the stories about real life issues. The most interesting part of this film is that it’s not the supernatural element that scares you the most, it’s the portions of the real-life horror that the director displays. The film delves into and conveys horrible issues such as police brutality, domestic abuse, racism, and black on black crimes. It was as if the supernatural elements (zombies, killer dolls, and monsters) were put into the film to actually relieve the viewer from feeling disturbed and uncomfortable.
Each story has a lesson, and even though every villain meets their comeuppances in the film, Rusty Cundieff also makes sure to get a bleak message across to the audience in each story, and lets you know that these are every day problems and justice doesn’t always prevail.
Also, a great part about this movie is that there are many unpredictable twists and turns. One of the most clever twists was displayed in the second segment, “Boys do get bruised.” (Which the writer/director stars in as teacher) The take on the classic “monster coming into a helpless child’s room at night” scenario was very thought provoking. Despite the fact that the last segment, ‘Hard Core Convert’ was the weakest and least compelling of the stories, (due to it being a blatant rip-off of ‘Clockwork Orange’.) it provided a final surprise twist for the viewers when they learn why this was the last story the funeral director chose to tell the three young thugs.
After watching ‘Tales from the Hood’ recently, I was happy to know that the film still holds up against the hands of time. It is a movie that has imitated, yet never duplicated. (Take the atrocious ‘Snoop Dogg’s Hood of Horrors’ for example. YEESH!) In my opinion, it was the last decent anthology horror film released in theatres. Come on Rusty! Make ‘Tales from the Hood 2’ already!! :P Watch this with friends for a guaranteed enjoyable viewing experience!
(P.S. If you won’t take my word for it, check out my friend and movie blog reader, Jay Clarke’s reaction to this film (after making him watch it) on his brand new horror blog site. He was probably the most skeptical person I know when it came to watching this film.)
