Man, it's been a rough few months for us horror fans. Whether suffering through a series of terrible theatrical releases like The Eye and Prom Night or the recent video schlock like One Missed Call and Inside, it's been hard to find anything worth watching. So, for the benefit of my fellow horror buffs out there, I figured I'd dust off some of my commentary about the very best of ignored horror over the last year.

Next time you're reaching for something new, reach for one of these:

The Deaths of Ian Stone (part of the recent 8 Films to Die For DVD set)
Produced by legendary special-effects genius Stan Winston -- and therefore possessing some pretty incredible special effects -- this is the story of a man who keeps dying, every day, over and over again. As he begins to remember the lives that came before, he must unravel the mystery of what keeps killing him and why he keeps coming back -- before the next death becomes his last. It's taut, imaginative, and unique. I'm always frustrated when I see films this good completely ignored by the studios and the mainstream. If you're a fan of horror or dark fantasy, this is one you should absolutely seek out. This is my new pass-around film, one that my friends will find themselves going home with and, I hope, end up loving as much as I do.

Black Sheep
Sometimes, just sometimes, you're gifted with a little gem of a film that is so much fun -- and has zero pretense about what it's trying to accomplish -- that you can't help but give yourself over to it. Make no mistake about it, Black Sheep is trying desperately to grasp at being Peter Jackson's Dead Alive (aka, Braindead), but the magical thing about it is that it succeeds.

Black Sheep is deliciously, diabolically and deliberately messed right the hell up. I mean, it's about killer sheep (or zombie sheep) hellbent on eating the flesh of man while a ragtag group of survivors try to escape the farm they're contained in. And if you somehow survive a zombie-sheep attack? Why, you become a Weresheep. How is this not, like, the greatest movie ever made? This movie goes great with beer and multiple friends. And yes, it is as much fun as it sounds.

Fido
It's a period piece set in the 1950s, long after the zombie wars have taken their toll on the world. Cities are fortified and zombies can be fitted with collars to pacify them -- and allowing them to be pets and servants. When a little boy gets a zombie of his own, it becomes a traditional boy-and-his-dog story, only one in which the dog eats people whenever it gets off its leash. Can the boy cover up his pet's misdeeds? The result is really funny and a very traditional, yet untraditional, film that will be loved by folks looking for a film that strays from the norm. A perfect midnight movie.

The Orphanage
This genius Spanish horror film is one of my very favorite films of last year. If I find out that we got a copy of this DVD for review and that it wasn't sent to me (because one wasn't) I'm gonna bust some heads. Then again, it's a film so good, I was going to buy it anyway, and it's worth every penny. A tearjerker of a Gothic horror masterpiece that feels more like early Spielberg than it does like producer Guillermo del Toro's style. Highly, highly, highly recommended.

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