Greetings, horror hounds! My name is Sam Kurd, and I'm here to review horror and chew bubblegum, and my bubblegum supplies are running low. I'm a budding screenwriter based in Nottingham, and one day you'll be reading reviews of movies I've written. Now if only I could channel that false bravado in meatspace... I also write short stories that I might one day be brave enough to publish.
THE FIRST HORROR BOOK I REMEMBER READING
My memory is pretty sketchy at the best of times, so questions like these are always tough! But I think it's probably either Frankenstein or Poe's Tales of Mystery and Imagination. I was a voracious reader as a kid and a fixture at all my school libraries. Those two definitely resonated and touched a nerve in my sad little soul.
THE FIRST HORROR FILM I REMEMBER WATCHING
I'm guessing Gremlins doesn't count, even though my Mum was very reluctant to let her six year old watch such a 'scary' film. I adored it, of course! I'd say Jaws is my first, which totally counts as it's an aquatic slasher film. Spielberg knows how to ramp up the tension, and the shark is as mysterious and deadly as Michael Myers or any masked killer. I did try and watch Alien at a very young and impressionable age, but my Gran was terrified and made me turn it off just as Parker found the alien's shed skin. Spoilsport.
THE GREATEST HORROR BOOK OF ALL TIME
Probably Rosemary's Baby by Ira Levin. It may be written with a light and easy touch, but it's a chiller nonetheless. The film adaptation suffers from a moment of cheesiness at a pivotal moment (“this is no dream!”) that takes me out of the film a little, but in the book everything works and fits together perfectly.
THE GREATEST HORROR FILM OF ALL TIME
This one's tough. So tough. I've changed my mind three times while writing this already. I'm going to settle on Evil Dead 2 though, because it has everything that I love: creepiness, buckets of blood, extreme silliness, fantastic visual effects. Other contenders are The Thing, Alien and Hereditary, but I'm going with Evil Dead 2. Groovy.
THE GREATEST WRITER OF ALL TIME
Terry Pratchett. Oh, sorry, you probably meant horror writer! Well, in that case, it's going to have to be Stephen King, isn't it? Sure, he's hit and miss, but when he hits he HITS. Even at his worst (Tommyknockers, anyone?) his writing is still enjoyable in itself and he knows how to send a shiver down the most stalwart of spines. Danse Macabre is still essential reading for anyone interested in the history of horror media.
THE BEST BOOK COVER OF ALL TIME
Lovecraft's Nightmare: Michael Whelan's art for 7 H.P. Lovecraft books published by Del Ray. The surreal imagery is perfect for Lovecraft, with disembodied frog-like eyes, piles of skulls and weird squat creatures everywhere. Beautiful and creepy! He also did the artwork for Meat Loaf's Bat Out of Hell II, don'tchaknow.
THE BEST FILM POSTER OF ALL TIME
Evil Dead. The rickety wooden cross. The dead leaves and branches. The terrified damsel in distress and the arm that's burst from the ground. Classic. Close runner-up is The Exorcist, with that iconic silhouette.
THE BEST BOOK / FILM I HAVE WRITTEN
My first feature script, Hen Party Massacre. It's Bridesmaids meets Friday the 13th. A bride and her hens are partying in a remote cottage when they're set upon by a masked killer and picked off one-by-one. It's not been filmed yet, but it's a good calling-card script!
THE WORST BOOK / FILM I HAVE WRITTEN
The very first short film I ever wrote, Jeremy. It's the story of a creepy stalker who uses a zombie apocalypse to get close to the girl he's obsessed with. The story itself is fine, and I stand by the killer punchline at the end, but oh god the over-reliance on narration. If I had my time again I'd take a chainsaw to it. Rest assured, I'm much better now.
THE MOST UNDERRATED FILM OF ALL TIME
I think John Carpenter's In the Mouth of Madness deserves more praise for what it was trying to do. It's one of the best Lovecraftian horror films around, dealing with the paper-thin nature of reality and sanity extremely well. A couple of the effects may be dated and the acing could use a little tightening, but it's a superb sledgehammer to the fourth wall and great fun to watch. Do you read Sutter Cane?
THE MOST UNDERRATED BOOK OF ALL TIME
I... really don't think I have an answer to this. I probably need to read more books? I'm going to use this as an opportunity to recommend Feed by Mira Grant. In a post-zombie-apocalpyse America, a band of bloggers follow a presidential candidate on tour and uncover a terrible political conspiracy. Despite its zombie-strewn setting, it's more a medical thriller than a horror, but it's great fun and has a real emotional gutpunch of an ending that'll have you buying the sequel immediately.
THE MOST UNDERRATED AUTHOR OF ALL TIME
Again, really not sure I can say with any authority. But I did see that James Herbert was a bit maligned in his early days, and so I'm going with him. Hardly unproblematic, but some of his earlier stuff is really quite scary, especially The Fog and Ghosts of Sleath.
THE BOOK / FILM THAT SACRED ME THE MOST
The last ten minutes of The Borderlands. I was rooted to the spot in wide-eyed shock as I did NOT see that horrifying end coming. A delicious thrill. Also Hereditary, Midsommar and Ju-on: The Grudge. Chilling, chilling stuff.
THE BOOK / FILM I AM WORKING ON NEXT
It's not a horror, but my next script is about a young Palestinian man living in England who learns his late father was working on a time machine in order to go back and stop Israel being founded, and is torn between honoring his father's wishes and considering the morality of altering the timeline. Heavy stuff, I know, but I think I can pull it off.
THE FIRST HORROR BOOK I REMEMBER READING
My memory is pretty sketchy at the best of times, so questions like these are always tough! But I think it's probably either Frankenstein or Poe's Tales of Mystery and Imagination. I was a voracious reader as a kid and a fixture at all my school libraries. Those two definitely resonated and touched a nerve in my sad little soul.
THE FIRST HORROR FILM I REMEMBER WATCHING
I'm guessing Gremlins doesn't count, even though my Mum was very reluctant to let her six year old watch such a 'scary' film. I adored it, of course! I'd say Jaws is my first, which totally counts as it's an aquatic slasher film. Spielberg knows how to ramp up the tension, and the shark is as mysterious and deadly as Michael Myers or any masked killer. I did try and watch Alien at a very young and impressionable age, but my Gran was terrified and made me turn it off just as Parker found the alien's shed skin. Spoilsport.
THE GREATEST HORROR BOOK OF ALL TIME
Probably Rosemary's Baby by Ira Levin. It may be written with a light and easy touch, but it's a chiller nonetheless. The film adaptation suffers from a moment of cheesiness at a pivotal moment (“this is no dream!”) that takes me out of the film a little, but in the book everything works and fits together perfectly.
THE GREATEST HORROR FILM OF ALL TIME
This one's tough. So tough. I've changed my mind three times while writing this already. I'm going to settle on Evil Dead 2 though, because it has everything that I love: creepiness, buckets of blood, extreme silliness, fantastic visual effects. Other contenders are The Thing, Alien and Hereditary, but I'm going with Evil Dead 2. Groovy.
THE GREATEST WRITER OF ALL TIME
Terry Pratchett. Oh, sorry, you probably meant horror writer! Well, in that case, it's going to have to be Stephen King, isn't it? Sure, he's hit and miss, but when he hits he HITS. Even at his worst (Tommyknockers, anyone?) his writing is still enjoyable in itself and he knows how to send a shiver down the most stalwart of spines. Danse Macabre is still essential reading for anyone interested in the history of horror media.
THE BEST BOOK COVER OF ALL TIME
Lovecraft's Nightmare: Michael Whelan's art for 7 H.P. Lovecraft books published by Del Ray. The surreal imagery is perfect for Lovecraft, with disembodied frog-like eyes, piles of skulls and weird squat creatures everywhere. Beautiful and creepy! He also did the artwork for Meat Loaf's Bat Out of Hell II, don'tchaknow.
THE BEST FILM POSTER OF ALL TIME
Evil Dead. The rickety wooden cross. The dead leaves and branches. The terrified damsel in distress and the arm that's burst from the ground. Classic. Close runner-up is The Exorcist, with that iconic silhouette.
THE BEST BOOK / FILM I HAVE WRITTEN
My first feature script, Hen Party Massacre. It's Bridesmaids meets Friday the 13th. A bride and her hens are partying in a remote cottage when they're set upon by a masked killer and picked off one-by-one. It's not been filmed yet, but it's a good calling-card script!
THE WORST BOOK / FILM I HAVE WRITTEN
The very first short film I ever wrote, Jeremy. It's the story of a creepy stalker who uses a zombie apocalypse to get close to the girl he's obsessed with. The story itself is fine, and I stand by the killer punchline at the end, but oh god the over-reliance on narration. If I had my time again I'd take a chainsaw to it. Rest assured, I'm much better now.
THE MOST UNDERRATED FILM OF ALL TIME
I think John Carpenter's In the Mouth of Madness deserves more praise for what it was trying to do. It's one of the best Lovecraftian horror films around, dealing with the paper-thin nature of reality and sanity extremely well. A couple of the effects may be dated and the acing could use a little tightening, but it's a superb sledgehammer to the fourth wall and great fun to watch. Do you read Sutter Cane?
THE MOST UNDERRATED BOOK OF ALL TIME
I... really don't think I have an answer to this. I probably need to read more books? I'm going to use this as an opportunity to recommend Feed by Mira Grant. In a post-zombie-apocalpyse America, a band of bloggers follow a presidential candidate on tour and uncover a terrible political conspiracy. Despite its zombie-strewn setting, it's more a medical thriller than a horror, but it's great fun and has a real emotional gutpunch of an ending that'll have you buying the sequel immediately.
THE MOST UNDERRATED AUTHOR OF ALL TIME
Again, really not sure I can say with any authority. But I did see that James Herbert was a bit maligned in his early days, and so I'm going with him. Hardly unproblematic, but some of his earlier stuff is really quite scary, especially The Fog and Ghosts of Sleath.
THE BOOK / FILM THAT SACRED ME THE MOST
The last ten minutes of The Borderlands. I was rooted to the spot in wide-eyed shock as I did NOT see that horrifying end coming. A delicious thrill. Also Hereditary, Midsommar and Ju-on: The Grudge. Chilling, chilling stuff.
THE BOOK / FILM I AM WORKING ON NEXT
It's not a horror, but my next script is about a young Palestinian man living in England who learns his late father was working on a time machine in order to go back and stop Israel being founded, and is torn between honoring his father's wishes and considering the morality of altering the timeline. Heavy stuff, I know, but I think I can pull it off.
