We hear the song Circle of Life from «The Lion King», and our heart melts. But as soon as we hear John Carpenter's cult soundtrack from «Halloween», goosebumps run down our spine, and young Jamie Lee Curtis appears before our eyes. We recall which ho...
If you've watched some of the major cult horror franchises, like «» or «A Nightmare on Elm Street» — the ones that laid down certain genre templates and traditions — you'll recognize their musical themes from the first chords. And it's not just because the soundtracks are particularly melodic or scary. It's because these melodies have become independent works, separate from the film, a legacy of mass pop culture. Some people use these tracks without even knowing which movie they're from, while others choose this music to once again pay homage to the cult cinema that pioneered the slasher genre.
This year marks 45 years since John Carpenter's cult slasher «Halloween». Over this time, the bloodthirsty maniac Michael Myers has become a brand, and the first film has spawned sequels. Over
Open materialOn the eve of the scariest holiday of the year, Halloween, we recall horror franchises that gave us unforgettable soundtracks. Truly unforgettable, because we remember them when editing (scary) videos on social media, choosing an outfit for an All Saints' Eve party, or watching horror movies, preparing to see rivers of blood on screen.
Psycho (1960)
No collection of cult horrors can do without the films of Alfred Hitchcock — the trendsetter in the horror genre. It was he who said that cinema is life with all the boring parts cut out. And he successfully cut out tedious everyday moments and saccharine romance, replacing them with scenes of violence, surveillance, raging crows, and watching someone go insane.
And the famous sharp sounds that accompanied each murder in «Psycho» — that's something that stays with us forever. They were composed by Bernard Herrmann. It was to this «melody» that the first «scream queen» Janet Leigh died on screen — the mother of Jamie Lee Curtis, who later inherited her mother's horror talent.
Halloween (1978-2022)
Maniacs come in different types. Some kill out of revenge, some slash due to unexpressed childhood dreams, some butcher because it's fun, some prefer to flay victims because they're crazy and why not. And sometimes you don't choose to be a maniac; some dark force chooses you, possesses you, and makes you live forever. And now Jamie Lee Curtis has aged, spending almost the entire film lying in a hospital while her relatives take the heat, and you, as Michael Myers, have to stay perpetually energetic and active throughout the franchise.
But no matter how many years the maniac Myers has lived, and whatever fate ultimately befell his mystical essence (his fate was revealed in 2022), John Carpenter's soundtrack will live forever. This tense electro-melody every time makes you inwardly brace for another knife swing and impending violence for violence's sake, that is, the appearance of Michael Myers' mask.
On October 14, the film «Halloween Ends» premiered in foreign theaters and on the streaming service Peacock — a new installment of the cult slasher franchise. The third film by David G
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Friday the 13th (1980-2009)
«Friday the 13th» is another film from the many released in the 80s and 90s where teenagers were the main characters (and victims). And if you happened to watch it in your youth when you still went to summer camps, you might have been guaranteed a couple of nightmares (just like «Final Destination» once gave viewers a «love» for dentists and amusement rides). Or if you're a long-time fan of Kevin Bacon, then Sean Cunningham's creation particularly delighted you with shots of the actor in his prime. Though only in the first film from 1980.
What else did the «Friday the 13th» franchise give us? The unforgettable mask of Jason Voorhees! And of course the mystical echo-soundtrack, which sounds like something from voodoo cult rituals. The author of the famous ki-ki-ki, ma-ma-ma (in which I personally insistently hear chi-chi-chi, ha-ha-ha) was Harry Manfredini. And actually it decodes as kill-kill-kill, mom-mom-mom.
A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984-2010)
Actually, you don't have to watch Freddy Krueger slice up young Johnny Depp and the rest of the 80s, 90s, etc. youth to remember the famous nursery rhyme from this film. Because it's very catchy. , who with his «Nightmare» brought horrors into the realm of the unconscious, set new rules of the game. According to them, Freddy appeared at specific moments — namely in dreams, and often accompanied his appearance with a nursery rhyme. For the sake of pomp, of course, because even supernatural maniacs are not strangers to things like pride, arrogance, and a desire to stand out from the crowd of killers.
Evil has never felt so close, and horror movies themselves have never looked so smart. And all thanks to the master of horror Wes Craven, who three times made a horror revolution. Let's rememb
Open materialBut it doesn't matter what motives Krueger had. The main thing is that now you'll want to repeat this nursery rhyme constantly. So don't thank us.
One, two — Freddy's coming for you
Three, four — better lock your door
Five, six — grab your crucifix
Seven, eight — gonna stay up late
Nine, ten — never sleep again...
Saw (2004-...)
Even if you're not a fan of torture porn, which is elevated to an absolute in this franchise. And you don't relate to the moral that everyone has a choice: either cut off your hand and survive, or die in the name of your own lies. You've still heard something about «Saw», and most likely seen the terrifying doll that appears every time to pronounce judgment on the next victim.
In 2004, James Wan (who had not yet created «The Conjuring» and «Insidious» and didn't know that he would bear the burden of sorrow from «Aquaman» in DC) presented the world with the first rather modest and intimate film within the «Saw» universe. Two heroes, handcuffed to different elements in a room, confessed to each other to avoid sawing off their bones. It turned out that the idea of atoning for sins through physical suffering attracted audiences to theaters like a magnet. And as a result, in 2023 we get the 10th installment, in which we already explore the psychological traumas of the main maniac (who, according to the main plot, died long ago, but that's not really an important spoiler).
But it seems that the franchise was most famous for its main melody, written by Charlie Clouser — the track to which heroes usually cut/slash/gouge something off themselves or die because they didn't have the strength to overcome physical pain for forgiveness. Well, if you forget that once Linkin Park's lead singer Chester Bennington starred in «Saw», and the entire fan base of the band went to the cinema for him.
Resident Evil (2002-2016)
After Milla Jovovich played in «The Fifth Element», married and divorced Luc Besson, then played Joan of Arc for him, she finally ended up in the caring hands of Paul W.S. Anderson. The actress auditioned for the role of Alice for the film adaptation of the video game «Resident Evil» (and met her future husband, but that's still early), which Anderson was directing. At that time, they didn't suspect that a happy marriage, three children, and a total of 6 films about fighting zombies awaited them.
The first part of «Resident Evil», released in 2002, is perhaps . At that moment, it was an example of a decent zombie action movie, where the dead appeared due to medical experiments, not by the will of God or other spirits. The film came out in an era when people around the world breathed a sigh of relief because nuclear war didn't happen, and AI remained under human control (despite the predictions of «Terminator» and «The Matrix»). But they tensed up due to news about ghostly biolabs where experiments were conducted on people. Therefore, viewers especially enjoyed watching how the main heroine deftly dealt with the living dead, punished evil pharmacists, and gave everyone their due. Even those who criticized the film for deviating from the video game canon agreed that the work was done well.
This year, the «Resident Evil» film universe celebrates its 20th anniversary: in 2002, the first film adaptation based on the popular game Resident Evil starring Milla Jovovich was released. Let's remember
Open materialLet's not recall where Paul W.S. Anderson went further, and what the «Resident Evil» franchise turned into. Instead, let's remember that very main musical theme to which the heroes always descended/broke in/blew up/did something else with the representatives of the evil Umbrella corporation, responsible for the mass infection and zombie apocalypse. The original track, by the way, was written by Marilyn Manson.
Horrors are not only mass violence and cruelty on screen, which allow viewers to experience strong fear but in a safe environment (and thus become braver, as Mike Flanagan bequeathed in one interview). Horror films are also an important part of pop culture. They are loved to be quoted, parodied, and, of course, elements from horrors are used in life, such as music and costumes.
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