I used to get pissed off when magazines would compile lists like "The Greatest Records of the 80s" or "The 100 Scariest Movie Moments." I'd always find large chunks of the lists to disagree with and looked at them as little more than retarded space fillers.
At some point, though, I decided that these lists aren't going away – and they're not as evidenced by the Guardian's upcoming list of '1000 Records You Must Hear Before You Die' – so I might as well forget arguing over things like why is 'Zen Arcade' included when 'New Day Rising' is the better album.
My newfound philosophy of "what don't I know on this list" has actually helped me broaden my musical horizons and finally embrace things I've never liked, or at least didn't know I liked. Kinda like how I picked up 'Pet Sounds' and ended up becoming a Brian Wilson/Beach Boys fan.
Anyway, lists are all over the place these days. They always seem to come out during that holiday lull when people's attention spans are shorter than ever and they can't be bothered with reading a complete article.
Two of my favorites of late are a couple 'Best Fill in the Blank You've Never Seen/Heard' pieces.
First up is director Eli Roth and his list of 'The Best Horror Movies You've Never Seen.' Roth catches a lot of heat from fans (just see some of the comments below the article) but I loved CABIN FEVER, sorta dug HOSTEL and thought his faux THANKSGIVING trailer was one of the many highlights of GRINDHOUSE. Still haven't had a chance to check out HOSTEL II yet, but any movie that has a Ruggero Deodato cameo is okay in my book.
I've seen a few things on the list (TORSO, TOBY DAMNIT and NIGHTMARE CITY which I need to give another look) but his enthusiasm for stuff like WHO CAN KILL A CHILD, NIGHT TRAIN MURDERS and BEATRICE CENCI makes me want to check 'em all out.
And isn't that really what a list like this should do?
I'll be back later to write about some new music finds thanks to another of these lists...
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2 comments:
I once did a video trade with this guy who had City of the Living Dead back when I only had Gates of Hell. Instead, he sent me City of the Walking Dead, aka Nightmare City. I absolutely hated it. I still hate it. Call me a purist, but zombies don't run and they certainly don't use machine guns.
That being said, Roth's explanation of the movie is really making me want to go back and re-evaluate it because the absurdity never struck me like that.
Once again we're of the same mindset. Some guys I know really built up NIGHTMARE CITY and I was very disappointed when I saw it, but that was ages ago. Really feel I need to reassess it now.
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