The 101 Scariest Horror Movie Moments of All Time (2022) s01e07 Episode Script

[heartbeat pounding]
[tense music]
♪
[all screaming]
♪
[panting]
[unhinged music]
[screaming]
What makes an iconic
horror scene to me
is something that surprises you.
[growling]
- [screams]
That it's usually something
you've never seen before
[growls]
- [screams]
And hits you
in a very physical way,
rather than an intellectual way.
[screams]
It's easy to make you go, boo,
but it's not so easy
to see something
that you've never seen before
that is particularly shocking.
It's only gonna grow
more and more
challenging for
filmmakers to shock, awe,
terrify and move audiences.
Because our predecessors
have already pushed boundaries
and you could go from Whale
[screams]
All the way to Kubrick
[both scream]
Carpenter
[laughs madly]
Up into the living legends
that are working right now.
There are people
who are breaking down
and pushing boundaries
and scaring us in ways
we've never been scared before.
That's awesome.
And it's gonna get
harder and harder.
And that's good.
I think that-- that will
make for a great cinema.
♪
[water trickling]
[tense music]
"The Descent."
I love that movie.
It was a film that
was ahead of its time
because it was an
all-female cast.
And that's not something
that when the film came out,
there was a lot of that
going on.
The main character's
psychological state
is very important and she's
basically lost everything.
Like, her family is killed
at the beginning
in a car accident
And she's dealing with a lot.
- Get up.
She's gone, Sarah.
- [sobs]
♪
It's these friends
and they go on this trip
to kinda make her feel better.
How is she?
- Well, she's here.
One step at a time, eh?
♪
This is it.
They go spelunking.
And for me, you've got me there
because I'm claustrophobic
and this is all about
going into caves
and tight spaces and the like.
Incoming!
- Shit, move.
And it's open spaces at first.
Which way?
There's only one way
out of this chamber,
and that's down the pipe.
But it gets tighter
and tighter and tighter.
Growing up,
I was an avid spelunker.
When you're down there
in the dark and in the quiet,
I think in the back
of everybody's mind is,
does anyone know I'm here?
If I get lost,
will anybody find me?
[cave creaking]
Okay, fuck the rope bag.
Okay, move! Now!
Move!
[screams]
Oh, fuck!
Come on! Now!
This is not good, guys.
Can we get out of here?
Which way?
They're lost deep underground.
They're lighting a match to see
which way the wind is blowing,
and there is none.
- I don't know.
What do you mean
you don't know?
There's no breeze. It could
be any one of these tunnels.
And the way that
they're shifting between
the night vision,
where the girls are trying
to see because their
batteries are running low.
They're doing
everything they can
to try to survive and escape,
but they're trapped.
[tense music]
And they're not alone.
Is there anybody there?
Hello!
[screeches] [all scream]
They freak the hell out,
and it's just utter horror.
[all screaming]
- What the hell?
What's crazy to me is even
before the creatures show up,
it is so tense.
[grunts]
[shouts]
Juno!
No!
I'm just bathed in sweat.
[gasps]
Five minutes
into them getting
[groans]
- Holly!
It's almost like
when the monsters show up.
There's almost this
kind of sense of relief.
[shrieks] [all scream]
'Cause you're like,
okay, okay.
You're taking me out
of the real world now
and now I'm watching
horror film.
And it's great.
It's a great horror film.
♪
[shrieks]
[screams]
But if you have
claustrophobia,
you do not wanna be
in a movie theater
watching "The Descent."
♪
[groans]
Two men wake up in a really
dingy, horrible bathroom.
One of them is Leigh Whannell.
There's Cary Elwes.
[dramatic music]
And there's a corpse
or what appears
to be a corpse between them.
Dr. Gordon, every day
of your working life,
you have given people the news
that they're gonna die soon.
Now you will be
the cause of death.
Your aim in this game
is to kill Adam.
Let the game begin.
For a setup of a movie,
there's nothing better.
There's nothing simpler.
There's nothing more concrete
as to how to explore our fears.
It turns out that
it's all been engineered
as kind of a punishment
for dubious choices
in their lives and careers.
You immediately question,
what did I do
to deserve where I'm at?
What do I need to do
to overcome the situation?
[screams]
I think those are
the primary things
that "Saw"
completely dissects
Fuck!
And pushes to an extreme
as to what any human being is
capable of in any situation.
[timer ticking]
[screams]
As he's listening
to a tape that
seemingly explains everything,
why they're there,
and how they're set up,
the dead guy who's been
there the entire movie
starts to get up.
♪
And it turns out to be Jigsaw
in Tobin Bell's character
who's behind this whole thing.
I didn't see that coming
at all.
When he gets up at the end,
I just actual
fell out of my chair.
Actual stood up and
yelled at the screen.
Like, "No. Nuh-uh.
No. No!"
No!
In horror, when you are
put to the ultimate test
of endurance and
terror and stamina,
it reveals who you are.
There is no escape.
There is no hiding.
And every little
thing that you do
defines who you actually
are as a person,
because all bets are off.
You have nothing left to lose.
♪
Oh.
What are you doing?
[grunting]
[both screaming]
No! No!
[sobs]
When you leave that movie
or you're done watching
that movie, you immediately
want to be a better person
to everybody around you,
just in case you're dealing
with a psychopath.
[screams]
- Game over.
[screams]
I must remind you that
the scanning experience
is usually a painful one.
Now I'd-- I'd like you to
think of something specific.
Something personal perhaps.
All right, yes,
I have something, yes.
[tense music]
♪
There are so many moments
that define certain films,
like the exploding head
at "Scanners."
[panting]
[all scream]
A lot of people
think that "Scanners"
has the best-exploding head
in film history.
That's a thing.
People wanna have
the best-exploding head
in film history.
[laughs]
And in fact,
I said that to Tom Savini
and Tom Savini believes that
he has the best-exploding head
in film history.
[laughs]
Nevertheless, that's what
"Scanners" is known for.
[all scream]
I really can't tell you
what that movie is about
other than people's heads
exploding.
That's one of those movies
where the movie stops
in my memory, just at the head
exploded and Michael Ironside.
That's really it.
I remember the trailer
'cause it played forever
at this great grindhouse
theater in Philadelphia.
And it is just, I mean,
it's trimmed for time,
but it is the head scene.
It's the exploding head scene.
That's it.
Beginning, middle, and end.
You can see the
guy's head explode,
and I know we had to see it,
my friends and I, opening day,
and we were there.
And I think about it a lot.
It's like, why did it work
to give away that scene?
And I think it's because
if you tried to cut a trailer
that sort of told
the story of the thing,
you get lost in all these
kind of complaints.
It's a terrific story.
There's not-- not to knock it,
but it's like, oh, okay.
It's about these telepaths
and this guy and this drug
and da, blah, blah, you know,
you're like, okay.
Well, that's-- you show me
that scene absent any context,
and I'm like A,
I gotta see that scene.
B, I gotta see what else
this movie has.
And C, I need to know
what the hell's going on.
Like, why are those people
in that room?
And why is that man blowing up
another man's head?
And the movie pays off
that-- that curiosity.
That actor whose head
explodes is just--
he's really giving it his all.
He's turning red, it's great.
Michael Ironside giving
the performance of a lifetime.
It's so well done.
Like, and now I just
kinda think like,
how would I make a head explode?
Like, right?
To make a head explode,
would it ever be as awesome
as the "Scanner's"
head exploding?
You would think that
exploding heads would
become-- that you could only
do that once or twice,
but no,
we do that all the time now.
Exploding heads have become
a fairly-respected convention
of the horror genre.
[all scream]
So thank you "Scanners."
Thank you, David Cronenberg.
♪
[speaking Spanish]
[screams] [all scream]
[rock music]
"Rec," a Spanish movie,
it's the best
found footage movie
I've ever seen.
[tense music]
[speaking Spanish]
Local news station
stumbles into something
that no one can comprehend.
[yelps]
[all speaking Spanish]
[gasps]
[all screaming]
There's a building that
gets quarantine locked up
and nobody can get out.
And there's a great setup.
You can't get out and there's
a zombie infestation inside.
[gunshots]
So that's pretty
fucking dreadful.
What "Rec" does so well,
other than all the scares
and the blood bath and all
the insanity that goes through
is that as an audience,
you don't know more
than the characters.
You were on the exact
same level of information
than everybody stuck
in that building.
Finally, everyone, except
for her and the cameraman
have been turned and
they've been chased
all the way up to the top.
And so when you
get up to the roof,
you think, okay, she's safe.
She'll be able to get out.
But then they find
this mix of mad science
and Catholic imagery,
all of the newspaper clippings.
And then, of course,
they got the tape recorder,
like it's the "Evil Dead."
I'm assuming that's a nod to it
that basically explains
what was happening.
Usually, zombie movies
kind of tend to fall apart
in the third act.
People tend to remember
the early stuff in the movie,
never the third act.
[tape recorder clicks]
"Rec" found a way at the end
that suddenly made it
even more terrifying.
Because I remember when
I understood that the horror
came from God in a way and--
and had to do with an exorcism
that went wrong or some shit.
I was like, of course,
all these zombies
are just possessed.
[high-pitched screech]
[woman screams]
Then it shifts into night
vision mode on the camera.
And then, of course, you see
how the disease can manifest
with the woman in the shadows.
The build-up of that
too is amazing.
You just see nothing
at the beginning
and suddenly you see
a silhouette that crosses.
[panicked whispering]
So you can see
how well-planned it was.
To generate a silhouette
at the back of the hole
where you need to light
the background a little bit,
not too much so it's still dim,
but just enough to create
a question mark,
a dreadful feeling.
[dramatic music]
You can barely see
La Niña Medeiros,
and that's the spectacular
thing about it.
You're imagining, you're
filling in what you can see.
And it's generally
more terrifying
than what the reality is.
You immediately ha-- have
a sense that that thing
doesn't have a right mind.
It's erratic.
You don't know
what it's doing
[thunking]
- [shrieking]
But she has a-- a pickaxe in
her hand and that's terrifying.
And then you see the shape,
finally.
When she approaches enough,
you realize that
it's a abomination.
A creature that is like--
like a woman so deformed,
that became that thing.
[metal clanks]
- [screeches]
[screams]
- [shouts in Spanish]
The rawness of the-- of the
perspective, it gets you there.
It just immerses you so much.
[shrieking]
[stabbing, flesh squelching]
That scene is a masterpiece.
♪
[camera beeps]
♪
[children chattering]
Get it to Carrie!
She'll blow it!
Don't blow it.
Carrie, hit it!
[whistle blows]
[students groan]
Carrie!
- Carrie!
"Carrie" was the movie
that changed
the whole tenor and tone
of the high school movie.
You ain't shit.
Stephen King had really
made the high school
into a dark dangerous place.
all: Plug it up! Plug it up!
And it's pretty much
stayed there
for the rest of movie history.
Everything in "Carrie"
is triggered
by this incident of bullying
in the locker room
and how each girl reacts to it.
Sue Snell feels guilt for what
she did because she joined in.
Plug it up!
Nancy Allen's character is
angry because she got punished.
Oh!
- And you don't punish her.
This isn't over
by a long shot!
And Carrie, of course, goes
through this transformation
from the ugly duckling
to the beautiful person
she becomes
to the avenging demon from
hell she becomes by the end.
That image of a teenage girl
covered in blood, raging,
is such iconically
feminist horror.
She is simultaneously prey
and predator in that moment.
Trust me.
Do you trust me?
But what I think makes that
prom scene so impactful
is the way that the film begins
with another moment of a girl,
not drenched in blood,
but bleeding,
that kind of book ending
of the blood theme
from the beginning of the
locker room to the prom
is visually just masterful.
[high-pitched note]
The prom scene
is incredibly powerful.
[high-pitched note]
What I love is just
all the moving parts.
[high-pitched note]
You've got all these
extras running around.
You have effects,
you have stunts,
you've got things swinging down.
And then you're doing
all the split screen business.
It's crazy.
I mean, like,
to keep track of everything,
but De Palma is a master
and he was able to tell you
exactly what story
he wanted to tell
from what's happening
with the coach,
what's happening to these teens,
what Carrie's doing
in the moment.
It's amazing.
[electricity crackling]
- [screams]
[dramatic music]
Probably the most
famous scene in "Carrie,"
Carrie's wiped out
the senior class.
She has been murdered
by her mother.
She has murdered her mother.
- [groans]
The only person
who escaped this
was Sue Snell,
Amy Irving's character.
And so we come in and
Amy Irwin's actual mother
is on the phone playing the
character's mother explaining
like basically, yeah,
she's just sleeping,
curled up in a fetal position,
hope she gets better.
And then we go to the sequence
where Sue's walking
kind of floating through
a suburban neighborhood,
up to the charred remains
of Carrie's house.
And De Palma filmed her actually
in slo-mo and backwards.
So she's actually
walking backwards
and then they're repeating it.
So it just feels just
as dreamlike as it can get.
And then suddenly it's night
and she reaches down to put
some flowers on the grave.
And then
[dramatic music]
[screaming]
♪
No!
That is, of course,
a pivotal moment
in horror films,
much imitated
♪
[screams]
[screams]
But it was not the first time
that was done.
[tense music]
♪
No.
Ed?
The unexpected hand
popping up trope
was there before "Carrie."
But "Carrie" is the one
that everybody remembers now.
It's the one that sticks.
When it comes to style
- [screams]
Very few people
can touch De Palma.
♪
Your son, Mr. Thorn.
The son of the devil.
He will kill the unborn child.
Then he will kill your wife.
And when he is certain
to inherit all that is yours,
then, Mr. Thorn,
he will kill you.
[ominous choral music]
"The Omen" predated "Final
Destination" in some ways,
in terms of its
delicious death count
and like how people
are gonna go out.
The governess is
the start of it all.
And what I love about that
is you're actually
getting Damien as a kid
having a good time in essence.
Daddy, let me down!
You see him going on what
looks like a little train car.
You get him on
the merry-go-round
laughing with kids.
You're seeing Damien as a child
until the governess
throws it all off.
Damien.
[kids laughing]
Damien, look at me.
Damien, I love you.
Look at mommy.
Look at me, Damien.
It's all for you.
What's great about
that scene is that
it's just the pure editing--
the reaction of that.
You get the reaction of the
people who are in that room.
[screams]
You get the reaction of
Gregory Peck and Lee Remick.
You get the reaction
of the clown.
♪
And then there are these
two kids in the back,
they just look at each other.
They're like, what the hell?
The kids just stare.
They just don't understand.
That coldness of the kids
translates in the end
the theme of the movie.
What makes the movie scary,
which is
kids can be terrifying
because the whole movie
is about that.
When the governess dies,
it's like, oh,
what an awful suicide.
This is how gnarly
it's gonna get.
But then when the priest dies
[lightning crackles]
It's almost an indicator that
Richard Donner's
having fun here.
[dramatic choral music]
It's like, oh, okay, everybody
who's within Damien's radius
is gonna die in a way
that looks natural.
[explosion]
No!
And so when the priest goes,
you're like, "Oh, that's good.
What's the next one?"
♪
That is probably one
of the greatest
movie decapitations in history.
'Cause if you watch it,
they shot it with
five cameras, I think.
And they had the dummy,
and then they had the head
and they had a cable
running through
the-- the temples of the head.
So when the sheet
of glass hit perfectly,
the body fell backwards
and the head spun
and I believe there was
probably wires or cables that
operated the head so that
the head could go whur,
and land at a certain place.
Whur.
I must have watched that
a hundred times
because I was so curious
about how they did it.
The end of the story
for my obsession is
I now own that head.
So if anybody ever says,
"Do you know where
the severed head of David
Warner is from 'The Omen?'"
You're like, "Oh yeah,
Nicotero's got that."
And it's awesome.
♪
I think
"Night of the Living Dead"
is the birth of modern horror.
It was put on film in 1968,
which was a very
chaotic year in America.
Martin Luther King
was assassinated.
The country was in chaos.
And George Romero
put out this very dark
[screams]
Very pessimistic film.
[screams] No!
[dramatic music]
Johnny! Help me!
They said, good guys
aren't gonna win anymore.
The bad guys are gonna win.
And there was something about it
that at that particular time
in American history
that everyone said,
"Yeah, you know what?
You're right."
♪
It was just
guerrilla filmmaking.
And it was black and white.
And back then, if you had a TV,
it was usually black and white.
And that's how
you watch the news.
So you thought you were watching
something very realistic
because of the way George shot.
It looked like a news story.
You've got all these
characters converging
at a deserted house.
After the start of
what we now would
call the zombie apocalypse.
When Romero made
"Night of the Living Dead,"
they were only called ghouls.
They're just dead flesh
and dangerous.
And they were Shamblers,
but they were tool-bearing.
So they're slightly different
than the zombies
that we know now,
except for, of course,
they eat human flesh.
[zombies snarling]
Even in black and white
or maybe especially
because it was black and white,
the gore
in "Night of the Living Dead"
really stands out
as horrific for that era.
But you just weren't used
to black and white movies
that went that hard.
And "Night of the Living Dead"
went all the way there
and out the other side.
♪
And you had a Black man,
Duane Jones
as the lead protagonist,
trying to save these people
who had no concern for him
whatsoever.
We're locked into a safe place
and you're telling us
we gotta risk our lives
just because somebody
might need help, huh?
Yeah.
Something like that.
And yet they were
all trapped under
this claustrophobic,
continuous, frightening moment.
[gunshot]
The worst enemy
became themselves.
I'll drag you out there
and feed you to those things!
♪
So what are
the scariest moments?
Of course, probably everyone
most remembers
when he reveals that
the little girl is a ghoul.
That is the worst
because the child had been
an object of sympathy
Listen,
I got a kid down there.
Is she conscious?
- Barely.
She can't walk.
She's too weak
And care.
And she was sick.
Baby, it's mommy.
I hurt.
But like the
characters in the movie,
we didn't know what the
rules of the world were.
What's wrong with her?
How'd she get hurt?
One of those things
grabbed her.
Bit her on the arm.
[growls]
- Oh, baby.
I don't like that scene.
[whimpers]
It gets under my skin.
And I think it's because
the zombie daughter
killing her mom with a trough.
[screaming]
♪
There's something so sinister
and evil about that.
It's like picking up a weapon
and then killing your mom
as opposed to seeing
what we've seen
so much from zombie movies,
which is a loved one biting you.
♪
Next to that
would be the ending.
Because talk about
a downer ending.
So here's Duane Jones.
He's finally
survived all of this.
[gunshots]
[tense music]
♪
Let's go check out the house.
- There's something in there.
I heard a noise.
By the end of the movie,
he's just a face in a window.
All right, man.
Hit him in the head,
right between the eye.
[gunshot]
Our point-of-view character
just gets wiped away,
like he was never there.
Good shot.
Okay. He's dead.
Let's go get him.
That's another one for the fire.
I think that they were so
brave to go that direction
and to go ahead
and go to that place
that they felt was the
true place for that story
to end, and look what it did.
It really started
the whole connection
between horror and misfits.
Johnny.
You're still afraid.
Stop it now.
I mean it.
People who wanna
embrace the darkness
because they feel like
they live in darkness.
They're coming to get you,
Barbara.
♪
[demon snarls]
[dramatic music]
♪
"Exorcist III" is like
finding a sushi restaurant
in a strip mall.
[screams]
They were like,
"There's everything in this!"
You're reading
"Women's Wear Daily"?
So what? Am I supposed to give
spiritual advice in a vacuum?
It's the smiles
that keep us going.
Don't you think?
You have George C. Scott,
just unloading a great
performance, really committing.
It is not in the file.
It's not!
Why? God!
I call that showmanship.
You have this
weird dream sequence
with Fabio and Patrick Ewing.
You know, I wonder if
both of us are dreaming this.
No, Bill, I'm not dreaming.
You have a spooky old woman
crawling across the ceiling
above George C. Scott.
It's just such a surprise
how great the movie is.
There is one jump scare
in this movie
that if you just Google
"best jump scare ever,"
it's the very first one
that comes up.
I actually teach this
in my horror class
because it breaks the rules
of what we consider
a traditional jump scare.
It's always kind of
slow push-ins.
It's a lot of slow camera
movements, building tension.
[snarls]
- [screams]
Changing POV, and feeling it
from all angles.
[screams]
This character walked
towards an open door,
or something like that.
The music, it's this slow,
creeping music.
And then, you know, maybe
some sound effects coming in
and it's always
the musical swelling
♪
[screams]
- Up to this final moment.
And it's made through
all the filmic devices.
The jump scare is created
through editing
[screams]
And camera movement
- [screams]
And sound.
[chainsaw revving]
[all screaming]
And "Exorcist III"
does none of that.
I have a friend who's a great
filmmaker who says that
if you were gonna teach a class
a semester on how to direct,
he would just show the scene
in the hallway
with the nurse
in "Exorcist III."
That whole sequence
begins with two cops
are with this nurse.
I mean, there's safety,
there's comfort there.
And you have your
long wide shot.
And there's a minute before--
of suspense
as she approaches the door
where she hears a noise.
[crackling]
You're just watching
this develop.
[crackling, loud clack]
[crackling]
The fact that you jump
at the sound of ice cracking
in a glass is insane.
- [sighs]
It's the scariest ice cube
in the history of film.
God Almighty,
can't I get any sleep?
And there's the scare.
And you think that that's it.
And she goes back and the cop
is like, "You all right?"
She just says
- Yes, I'm-- I'm fine.
I'm just a little jumpy.
That's all.
- Okay.
You completely forget
what is going on.
You're just kinda sitting
there watching people
go about their jobs
for several minutes,
waiting for something
to happen to the point
where you kinda forget
you're waiting.
Now we're like at minute three
into this sequence.
You're like, okay, but,
you know, something's up.
She goes to check
the other door.
In the background,
the other cop calls him out.
We're like, ah, okay, all right.
Something's gonna happen.
And she's in the other room.
And then the other cop
comes back to get his hat
and you're like, oh, okay.
So even if something happens
and he's right there,
and then he goes again,
and you're like, ah,
but then she comes out.
You're like, oh, okay.
Well, you know,
you could help us close.
He goes off screen,
he's right there in--
in case something-- oh, my God!
[dramatic music]
Oh, my God!
As it transitions
from this stagnant shot
that we've been staring at
to several minutes
to this really fast push in.
Oh, my God!
- But somehow,
that sustainment
of literally nothing,
of no filmic devices
other than this holding shot
and letting the characters
do blocking back and forth
as she's doing rounds becomes
one of the most brilliant
jump scares ever.
It's a testament to Blatty,
who's just like,
I know that you know that I know
what's going on here and
I'm just gonna keep playing.
And he does.
And man, did it work.
The overall effect
is astonishing.
[dramatic music]
♪
Could you be a little quieter
with that thing, please?
Yeah, sure.
I'll just put it on quiet mode.
That would be good.
[saw revs]
[tense music]
All of the
"Final Destination" films
are fantastic.
There's nothing in the
rest of the horror world
compares when it comes
to this existential dread
and knowing that at any minute,
you're going to die.
You just don't know how,
and it's terrifying
'cause it's true.
We're all going to die.
We have no idea how.
Hey, whoa, whoa!
[screams]
- Look out!
The scenes are so fun.
Awesome.
Like, it's fun.
The people die in horrible,
tragic, fun ways.
The basic premise is
You can't cheat death.
There are no escapes.
The films that start with
someone who has a premonition
that causes them
and some other people
to miss their time to die.
And death comes after them.
When your number's up,
your number's up, right?
The "Final Destination 2"
opening scene
is probably the highlight
of the entire franchise.
[engine starts]
You've got all these kids
piling into the car.
They're going on a trip.
- Buckle up!
[tense music]
You know, our protagonist
and her pals.
And they're all in the car,
calling out other people
on the highway.
Look at that guy.
[scoffs]
He's drinking a beer.
You ever hear of
the ozone layer, asshole?
And you have all
these premonitions
that are happening.
students: [chanting]
Pile up! Pile up!
♪
Highway to hell
She's like
[laughs] This is bad.
Maybe I shouldn't be driving.
[truck horn blares]
[tires screech]
And you know, because you're
in a "Final Destination,"
where something really bad
is about to jump off,
and when it does,
oh, my goodness,
no one is spared.
♪
If you've ever driven behind
one of these logging trucks,
you're always afraid
that those logs
are gonna come rolling out
and mayhem is going to ensue.
And then what happens?
Exactly that.
[tires screech]
Once that first log
plows through the police car,
I mean, it's just heavy metal
all the way.
[engine revs, tires screech]
♪
[yelps]
[screams]
That's one of my favorite
openings of-- of a horror film,
'cause I'm-- I'm a fan myself.
And I-- it's not with
hubris that I say
that it's just--
I just love the way
David Ellis shot the scene.
He's no longer with us,
unfortunately,
but he was a stunt director.
- [screams]
We just kinda said
the logs fly down the freeway,
mayhem ensues.
And we knew that he would
be able to like,
just turn it into
something amazing.
Stop!
- [screams]
Watch out!
[screams]
Those are the days when
they put a lot of money
on the special effects.
That whole highway
sequence thing
took three weeks to shoot.
♪
And in terms of sort of the
madcap fun of creative death,
that is, like,
the whole backbone
of that "Final Destination"
franchise--
that scene on the road
is just absolutely
one of my favorites.
♪
[screams]
I will never drive behind
a log truck ever again,
or get on a motorcycle because
of "Final Destination 2."
I'm gonna die in some
other horrible way,
but it's not gonna
be those ways.
Because in the end,
no one can escape death.
And today may be
your day to die.
♪
It's become kind of a
popular reading of "Jaws"
to read it as a slasher.
And it has to do with
the opening sequence.
[tense music]
You encounter this couple.
Where are we going?
- Swimming.
And there's
a hilarious juxtaposition
between them where the girl
slides out of her clothes
with ease.
Meanwhile, he can't
get out of his clothes.
He's tripping over himself.
And there are these
very psychosexual
implications to what is
kind of unfolding here.
So Chrissy dives into the water
and she's swimming through
and the score starts to kick in.
[ominous music]
It's really hard to imagine
"Jaws" without that score.
I mean, I guess I wouldn't
have really known
what I would think a shark
would sound like,
but John Williams,
he captures it.
♪
That approach in darkness
under the water,
the mystery, and the horror.
We get this beautiful POV shot
with the moonlight
behind her from something
deep underneath her
as we're looking up at her.
And we're only
seeing the silhouette
of her kind of treading water.
This is absolutely
a beautiful shot.
But what we learn from that
is that there is something
down there watching her.
And we get that first hit
and then we get her breathing
as she realizes
that something's wrong.
And then all hell breaks loose.
[screaming]
They actually created
this amazing device
to kinda pull her back and forth
through the water.
That's not how sharks
actually kill, but that's okay.
It's got this
beautiful cinematic effect
of seeing her
kind of drug all around
before she finally
gets pulled under.
God, please, help!
And then it's just as quiet
as it was when she first
swam into that scene.
In a grand total
of less than four minutes,
we have been
absolutely terrified.
And we did not see a damn thing.
Anytime you are struggling
to stay above water
in a metaphysical sense
or any type of way,
you know there is danger
lurking below you
that is just ready
to feast on you.
If you make one false move
or one extra slap,
that might get its attention.
♪
[kids shouting]
And I think
that type of terror
[screams]
[gurgles]
Is something that people
100% can relate to.
It takes something
that should be fun
and relaxing and entertaining
and it turns it
completely on its head
and makes it one of the most
scary environments imaginable
♪
Because of what this creature
is and what it can do.
Those are like the fears
that "Jaws" really taps into.
You're gonna need
a bigger boat.
♪
[blade swishes]
[unhinged music]
"Scream" is the example of a
great slasher where you laugh.
Look behind you, turn around.
Behind you.
You scream.
- [screams]
You can watch that
over and over and over again
and you can quote
the entire film.
What's your
favorite scary movie?
♪
[phone rings]
The opening throws you
right on your ass.
Like we were not expecting it.
If you were gonna kill off
Drew Barrymore in a cute sweater
while she's talking
on the phone,
anything could happen
in the movie.
As soon as that phone rings
Hello?
- Hello?
Yes?
- Who is this?
There's something
unsettling about it.
Well, I think you have
the wrong number.
Do I?
- It happens.
Take it easy.
- Back then,
your house phone rang,
you answered it.
[phone rings]
You answered it no matter
who it was, 'cause you didn't
know who was on the other end.
Hello?
- It could be your mom.
It could be some guy from
school that you wanna talk to
or it could be
fucking Ghostface.
Drew Barrymore
is such a likable human
as well as a character
in the film.
And when she's on the phone,
it's playful.
It's fun.
She's gearing up to
watch a scary movie,
have a fun night in.
What's your
favorite scary movie?
"Halloween."
And then the person on the
other end of the phone,
who she thinks might be
one of her friends
just having a little fun.
They're not having fun.
You never told me your name.
Why do you wanna know my name?
'Cause I wanna know
who I'm looking at.
And they might
be playing a game,
but it's not the type of
game that you're gonna win.
I don't think so.
- Don't hang up on me.
The torturing
and the manipulating
is-- is very psychological.
Just how she's continuously
being bothered.
[phone ringing]
- Shit.
Continuously being
made uncomfortable
is very relatable.
Dial someone else, okay?
And I think it made every girl
that saw that film
just panic to get
any phone call.
Listen, asshole.
No, you listen,
you little bitch.
You hang up on me again,
I'll gut you like a fish.
When Casey is looking for
safety, but up against her
on the other side
is the blue screen
of a big box television set,
Wes knew what he was doing.
He knew he was going to get meta
with the questions
she has to answer.
Name the killer
in "Halloween."
Michael. Michael.
[sobs]
Yes, very good.
Now for the real question.
Name the killer
in "Friday the 13th."
Jason. Jason. Jason.
I'm sorry.
Jason's mother Mrs. Voorhees
was the original killer.
Jason didn't show up
until the sequel.
♪
And it turns into
cat and mouse.
Ah!
- [screams]
[grunts]
You're rooting for her
and there's a moment
where you think
she might get away,
and then Ghostface
comes up behind
and stabs her in the chest.
And then it's all over.
♪
[panting, screams]
How perfect to start a movie
where it was just bad timing.
The parents coming in,
how they just completely
missed each other by seconds.
And she was still alive.
[whimpers]
That's just brutal.
[screams]
♪
All right.
All right, come on.
Where's my beer?
[tense music]
Aren't you weird?
Well, I'm gonna call Laurie.
I wanna know where
Paul and Annie are.
This is going nowhere.
The original "Halloween" movie
is just about these girls.
These young girls who are
besieged by this killer.
There's barely a drop
of blood in that movie.
♪
Barely a drop of blood.
It's so masterfully
directed and choreographed.
[suspenseful music]
There's no personality
to Michael Myers.
Michael Myers
is a killing machine
who has escaped a madhouse
and just wants to kill
and is fixated on Laurie,
played by Jamie Lee Curtis.
We think he's just human.
And we assume he's just
human because nothing
about this film is set up
to make it play supernatural
at all.
Michael Myers is like
the shark in "Jaws."
The blackest eyes.
Like a doll's eyes.
- Nothing there.
Nothing you can reason with.
Nothing you can
communicate with.
He may as well be
a great white shark.
♪
[whimpers]
Once you get to
the place where
Jamie Lee Curtis is screaming
[screaming]
And all of her friends
are dead
[whimpering, screams]
Nothing beats that.
The moment for me
that I first realized
that I was in the hands
of a serious filmmaker
is the scene where
she backs away
and there's a closet here.
It's a combination of lighting
and the mask
and everything else,
but just Michael's face
just slowly appears
out of the shadows behind her.
♪
[screams]
- There's no trickery.
There's no effects.
There's no fake-outs.
It's just perfectly timed.
There's a moment
towards the end of the film
when Jamie Lee Curtis
has just fought Michael Myers.
She's fought for her life.
He's been trying to kill her
the whole movie,
and it came to blows,
and she has killed him.
[panting]
And she can finally relax
for a minute and breathe.
And what's great about that
scene is that it's quiet.
There's no soundtrack.
[knife clatters]
And then Michael efficiently
and with no strain whatsoever
just does a 90-degree angle
and sits up.
And then you cut.
That is the moment
when you realize
there is something more
about Michael,
that he is no ordinary man.
Just a few moments after that
when Dr. Loomis shoots him
And he falls off the balcony,
and you're like, oh, okay,
now he's really dead.
And then you look over
the balcony, and he's gone.
He got up again,
and he walked off again.
You cannot kill him.
He will always get back up,
and he will always
come and find you.
You can't kill the boogieman.
[kids scream]
Unfortunately, that trope
has been so overused now
that audiences expect it.
♪
Audiences expect the killer
to just get up again.
You could say that
the curse of coming up
with a scene that iconic
would be diminished
by all of its imitators.
Hello, Andy.
But being first in
doing a scene like that,
it-- it's enough.
Oh!
You know, it's Halloween.
I guess everyone's entitled
one good scare, huh?
♪
What makes "Alien"
so terrifying
is that it's outer space
and it's body horror.
You don't really expect it
to be body horror
when you're in outer space.
I saw it the day it opened.
It was the last day of high
school, and the movie starts.
And you know
a bunch of these actors.
You know some by name.
You know 'em all by face,
except for this one actress.
So once you realize people
are gonna start dying,
you know, she's gonna go first.
And that, of course,
is the big surprise of "Alien."
And now when you watch it,
you expect her to live
'cause she's the biggest star,
but she wasn't then.
We had no idea
who Sigourney Weaver was.
And probably of everyone
in the cast,
the one you sort of recognize
the most was John Hurt.
He was-- he was the one
who sort of felt like
there was almost a movie star
on this film.
Although they were pretty much
all character actors.
Ugh, I feel dead.
Anybody ever tell you
you look dead?
[laughter]
And while they're exploring
and trying to figure out
what's going on in this alien
planet, John Hurt's character,
Kane, gets a little too close
to these giant pods.
These sort of like egg-like
disgusting pods.
The face hugger scene for me
always worked
because of the tension.
He looks through.
We see the little
flittering movement,
and then the egg opens
and all the stuff
that's over top of it--
you know, they used like
a real cow stomach
or something over top of it.
Every single one
of those elements
gets you leaning in
'cause you wanna know more.
So you're doing the exact same
thing that John Hurt is doing.
You're leaning in
and leaning in.
♪
[clicking tongue]
Boom, quick cut.
[screeches]
And then it goes dead silent.
Those scenes are
so masterfully crafted.
[crack]
My God.
You shouldn't bring
someone with an alien object
on his face into the ship,
but then they bring him anyway.
And at some point,
the face hugger lets go
[screams]
And falls off
and is essentially dead.
And Kane comes back to life,
and he seems okay.
It's just all about
faking you out, you know?
We've already seen this
character get this horrible--
I mean, like,
whatever just happened to him,
like, he's not gonna
live through that.
And then he does,
and you're relieved.
You're like, okay,
he's gonna be okay.
Don't know
what's gonna happen next,
but he's gonna be okay.
And anyway, where are we?
- Right here.
We're on our way home.
- Yeah.
Back to the old freezerinos.
One more meal before bedtime.
I'm buying.
Hey, that's a break.
- Bedtime.
You're still very ill at ease,
but they're distracting your
focus from where it should be.
You're worried about
everybody else in that room
except for John Hurt.
And he's the one
you should be worried about.
[coughing]
What's the matter?
The food ain't that bad, baby.
[tense music]
[gags]
- Hey, what's the matter?
[grunting]
[screams]
[screams]
♪
[screeches]
- [screams]
You did not see it coming.
And then when you saw
what it was
Oh, God.
It was even more insane.
[sobbing]
This very symbolic monster,
this idea of like,
there's nothing you could do
to stop this thing
from taking you.
And you're gonna become
a host for this thing.
Obviously, the alien
is a metaphor for rape.
It's a sexual assault metaphor.
That's what everything is about.
And it's one of the reasons
why it's so disturbing.
[whimpers]
After the chest bursts
[screeches]
- [screams]
[groaning]
All bets are off.
[screams]
- [groans]
For the rest of the movie,
you think anybody can die
at any moment.
That's, like, the ultimate
compliment for any horror movie.
♪
[screams]
- Let's get out of here!
[indistinct shouting]
♪