HORROR 101 with Dr. AC: Dr. AC's 2013 Horror Wrap-up Extravaganza!

Thursday, January 2, 2014

Dr. AC's 2013 Horror Wrap-up Extravaganza!

Greetings, monster kids of all ages,

After two consecutive years of watching over 600 films, 2013 settled back down to a much more reasonable pace, clocking in with a final total of 306 features. (However, purists, it bears noting that 11 of these were double views of the same title, usually for review purposes, i.e. listening to a commentary track.) What accounted for the change in consumption? Well, the biggest factor would be a certain literary venture, the icon (and link to Amazon) for which sits proudly in the upper right hand corner of your screen. Wrestling 101 films from 101 different authors into shape was no small feat, and that’s not even factoring in the email correspondence, illustrations, and promotion that went along with it. But HIDDEN HORROR is finally tamed and out there in the world – hope you enjoy.

However, 2013 also found me reviewing higher profile releases, both at home and on the festival circuit. As a result, I felt obliged to expand my normal Fool’s Views capsule review format to something a little more “legit.” If someone is going to lay a DVD or Blu-ray on me, then I felt I should explore that baby to the fullest – ditto if someone is providing a digital screener link for a yet-to-be-released movie, then I’m one of the first on the ground giving an opinion for others to take as a guideline. And, as my scribbling grew in size, I started adding more photos and frame grabs to balance out the text, as well as linking to older reviews. I also started posting interviews with filmmakers and providing the occasional convention report. Long story short, I spent much more time writing this year than kicking back in front of the tube, with even my usual October Movie Challenge gorgefest a fraction of its former self. (The irony that I’m apologizing for watching only 300 movies is not lost on me, by the way.)

After much deliberation, I’ve assessed my horror year that was. To accommodate and acknowledge as many films as possible, I've broken them down into various categories in alphabetical order, with my top pick denoted with an asterisk. (*)

If you are curious about or want to celebrate/debate why a certain title landed in a certain category, please leave a comment and we’ll go at it. Also, if you’re interested in reading the original review – and really, who wouldn’t be? – just click on that film’s title to be taken to the corresponding blog entry. (In some cases, you'll need to scroll down to the film's entry in that week's Fool's Views installment.)

Also, here are links to several 2013 highlights that might be worth your time:

SXSW 2013
BIFFF 2013
G-FEST XX

Thanks so much for the past year of rapping and chatting - looking forward to more of the same in 2014!

TOP 20 HORROR FLICKS 2013