Thirst

Even though I got my start writing about horror by creating a blog called Horror's Not Dead, I don't jive with the idea that good horror is becoming an endangered species. Sure, who is actually making and delivering good horror is always in a state of flux, but considering the sheer crop of films to choose from is constantly on the rise, there will always be gems to found. Now before getting to the list proper, let's explain my own personal criteria for what qualifies as a 2009 film.

Basically, what matters is if the film was given its widest release during the course of the year. For example, despite being first shown publicly years ago, I consider Trick 'r Treat an eligible title, as 2009 finally found it going wide (albeit straight-to-video). Daybreakers, on the other hand, played a few festivals in 2009 but will not have its wide release until 2010. Conversely, most people in America won't see [REC] 2 until 2010 or beyond, but it went wide in its native Spain in 2009, thus it is eligible. Make sense? On to the show!

10. Paranormal Activity
I went back and forth on excluding Paranormal Activity from my Top 10 list because, really, it didn't do much for me in the scare department. I found it pulse pounding to watch for the first time, but it has scarcely popped into my brain since then. However, I do remain in awe of what Oren Peli accomplished with a mere $15,000. I have a lot of respect for the process that goes into engineering any thrill ride, so to speak, so even if it didn't severely impact me, it still commands a placement.

9. Thirst (my review)
Chan-wook Park's Thirst is, hands down, not only the best vampire film of the year, but I'd put it in league with another similarly atypical fang-set film, Let the Right One In. It's not particularly scary, but it is a deft, engrossing blend of lust and violence that gets back to the eroticism of the vampire that no film (or TV show) has properly explored in years. If you're feeling burned out on vampires these days, and that would be perfectly understandable, at least put this in your Must Watch queue simply because it's another brilliant film from the mind of the man who gave the world Oldboy.

If you haven't seen Mark Hartley's unbelievably cool documentary Not Quite Hollywood, shut your laptops or rip your Ethernet chord out of the wall and go rent it right this damn minute! It is a perfectly-crafted celebration of cult cinema from the land down under and if it doesn't get you excited to be a horrorphile, I have a number of rom-coms I could recommend to you. This film exemplifies exactly why I moved across the country to Austin: to be immersed in cult films. While the spirit of the film is one of shameless appreciation of trash genre films, it is incontrovertible that a number of the titles in the horror section of the documentary offer more than just a so-bad-it's-good quality. So I decided to write up today's triple play of Aussie horror in the hopes that if you haven't seen these films, you'll seek them out and give them a shot.

Thirst, directed by Park Chan-Wook, 2009

After bowing in limited release in late July, Park Chan-Wook's latest has finally made it to my neck of the woods, and although I've already reviewed it elsewhere, let me put a bit more plainly how I felt about the acclaimed director's take on the vampire genre.

At the very least, it's interesting, but more often than not, it's little more. When Park starts out concerned about how our priest protagonist (Kang-ho Song, very good at internalizing his guilt) will keep his newfound blood-sucking tendencies in check, it's a nimble and unpredictable little morality play. When Kang-ho re-unites with a childhood friend, it's a passionate and peculiar little romance. But beyond that, the plotting takes a turn towards self-destructive junkie-love turf and is never quite as engaging for it.

Thoughout, Chung-hoon Chung's cinematography proves lovely, and Park doesn't shy away from especially juicy sound work when the time comes for it, but for all the technical prowess on display, Thirst isn't as dramatically complete an outing for Park as his Vengeance Trilogy, JSA: Joint Security Area or I'm a Cyborg.... For running 2 hours and 15 minutes, it doesn't drag so much as ramble, and while it's bound to hold the interest of those already interested, I struggle to think that it's ultimately much more than the sum of its (body) parts.

Thanks to Fantastic Fest, I was lucky enough to catch a screening of Thirst earlier in the week. The more I think about Chan-wook Park's latest film, the more I'm jonesing to see it again. It's smart, whimsical, charming, barbarous, daring, sexy and incredibly bloody. It's also a Korean film with English subtitles, which makes finding it at a US box office slightly harder than sighting a yeti. As with all things mythological, the Internet is here to help. Just below the official synopsis you will find a list of all the US theaters that, as of now, will be showcasing the first obvious contender for 'Best Horror Film of 2009'.

From Focus Feature's website:
"Sang-hyun (played by top Korean star Song Kang-ho, of The Host) is a priest who cherishes life; so much so, that he selflessly volunteers for a secret vaccine development project meant to eradicate a deadly virus. But the virus takes the priest, and a blood transfusion is urgently ordered up for him. The blood he receives is infected, so Sang-hyun lives – but now exists as a vampire. Struggling with his newfound carnal desire for blood, Sang-hyun's faith is further strained when a childhood friend's wife, Tae-ju (Kim Ok-vin), comes to him asking for his help in escaping her life. Sang-hyun soon plunges into a world of sensual pleasures, finding himself on intimate terms with the Seven Deadly Sins."

Must Love Death, Directed by Andreas Schaap, 2009
Sometimes a movie is so out there it evades description, but I'll give it a shot: Must Love Death is a German made, English language horror comedy about a down on his luck singer who, after experiencing back-to-back heartbreaks, agrees to a suicide pact with three strangers that turns out to be less a pact and more a round robin game of 'let's torture this poor schmuck'.

Despite a second half that will make you squirm between giggles, I'm hesitant to even call Andreas Schaap's film a horror movie. If anything, it's a jet black romantic comedy, but as the title implies it's also a movie only for people who love the morbid side of life. I didn't fall head over heels, but there is no denying how unique of genre bender it is. It's certainly a film to keep on your radar as it begins to globe trot to various festivals.

Nature's Grave (AKA Long Weekend), Directed by Jamie Blanks, 2009
I haven't seen Long Weekend, Colin Eggleston's original 1974 Ozploitation film about a couple who venture into the wild for a few days only to discover that Mother Nature's creatures great and small don't take kindly to their intrusion, so I can't speak as to how different Jamie Blanks' update on the film is. However, I imagine it can't be too different considering the screenwriter Everett De Roche can be found over at IMDb stating, "I wrote both the original and the remake, and yes, Director Jamie Blanks insisted on a verbatum version, although I was able to insert a few more spooky bits."

An adoring girl, a cute boy, and a swooping leap off a building? Gee, you'd almost think that the new clip for Thirst -- available at Dread Central -- is some kind of cheap Twilight knock-off -- until you remember that the director is Park Chan-wook. Park is, of course, the mastermind behind Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance, Oldboy, and Lady Vengeance, a trilogy of violent, disturbing films that make him perfectly suited for a tale of a priest turned vampire.

Yup, no matter how cute he might look, Sang-hyun (the great Song Kang-ho, from The Host and The Good, the Bad, and the Weird) is a bloodthirsty creature of the night. And he's none too happy about it. As detailed by Darcy Paquet in his review at ScreenDaily, Sang-hyun contracts a deadly disease in Africa, receives a blood transfusion, and is revived. But the only way to deal with the lingering symptoms of the disease is for him to drink human blood. The adoring girl (Kim Ok-vin) is actually a woman stuck in a loveless marriage who imagines that Sang-hyun is the answer to her long-suppressed desires. I can only hope that the movie will live up to my expectations.

Park will be appearing in person at San Diego Comic-Con tonight for a panel on the film in Hall H, from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Thirst opens in selected theaters on July 31.

After a long flight on my part and a far longer drive for both of us, Scott Weinberg and I have finally arrived in Montréal for the FanTasia International Film Festival (their thirteenth, our first). The genre-heavy festival lasts for nearly three weeks; alas, we've but one to spare, so without much further ado, here's a look at what I've seen already and what I hope to see before Scott tips his own hand with a title or two to recommend.

Of the features playing, I can highly recommend Michael Paul Stephenson's Troll 2 doc, Best Worst Movie; the Aussie revenge thriller, The Horseman (not to be confused with the barely-seen Dennis Quaid vehicle,Horsemen); and Paul Solet's beautifully bloody baby horror, Grace. Those looking for something a bit stranger might end up being a bit more fond of Black and The Immaculate Conception of Little Dizzle than I was, though I also seemed more easily pleased by the Nazi zombies of Dead Snow than most, so I guess it all balances out. My enthusiasm for the ultra-kitschy likes of Alien Trespass and Lesbian Vampire Killers, not to mention the admittedly boundary-pushing Deadgirl, is all a bit less than what's already been mentioned, so let's just leave those at that.