Ammon Gilbert,
May 28, 2009
With Drag Me To Hell hitting theaters May 29, thus marking the return of Evil Dead director Sam Raimi to the horror genre, it seemed only fitting to break down the top five horror directors working today. This isn't an "all-time" list, so don't be surprised that Alfred Hitchcock or John Carpenter didn't make it. I'm not talking about one-hit wonders, or directors who have stepped into the genre once or twice either. This list features a new generation of solid horror directors, and why you should eagerly await what they have coming next.
5. Eli Roth
His debut film was Cabin Fever, a flick that went on to set the bar for gross-out horror flicks for the new generation of horror fans. He then unleashed the intensely graphic and wildly entertaining Hostel and contributed to the "torture porn" craze that infiltrated theaters for a solid two years. By the time Hostel: Part II came out, people were bored with "torture porn" and the film bombed at the box office, but not before delivering a solid throwback to horror sequels from the '70s and '80s. In 2007 he directed the ambitiously epic faux trailer Thanksgiving for the Grindhouse double-feature and totally redeemed himself. If he can make one three-minute trailer with that much style and an eye for what horror fans like, then just wait to see what he comes out with next.
4. Rob Zombie
With a name like Zombie, how could Rob not make the list? Joking aside, Rob Zombie has proven that he has the directing chops to make it in the business and deliver horror for the hardcore fans. In 2003 he introduced us to House of 1000 Corpses, and the world began to take notice of his colorfully gritty visuals and his infatuation with scary white trash and grindhouse-style horror from the 1970s. To prove it wasn't a fluke, Zombie followed Corpses with its sequel, The Devil's Rejects, a film that highlighted Zombie's ability to create disturbing content and make his audience uncomfortable. He then did the unheard of by taking on one of the most celebrated horror franchises of all time: Halloween. While many slammed Zombie for making a shot-for-shot remake of Carpenter's original, the origins of Michael and much of the beginning was all Zombie. With H2 hitting theaters this August, Zombie throws out all the other Halloween films and makes his own original entry. It takes a big man to take on Michael Myers. It takes an even bigger man to take him on again.
3. Darren Lynn Bousman
Part of the success of the Saw franchise is its determination to come out with a new entry every Halloween. Darren Lynn Bousman is the man responsible for three of the five sequels to Saw , and for better or worse, partly responsible for capturing the audience's interest enough to continue the franchise over and over again. While Saw II wasn't my cup of tea, Saw III was far superior in every way, and nicely wrapped up the series. That said, there wasn't much reason for Saw IV, but all is forgiven with Bousman's surprisingly entertaining horror rock opera Repo! The Genetic Opera. This film surprised the hell out of me with its catchy music and unique visual style, plus it's packed with enough blood and guts to satisfy the biggest horror fan. A true venture into originality and quality filmmaking.
2. Alexandre Aja
In 2003, Alexandre Aja's terrifying French film Haute Tension was unleashed upon the masses. Say what you will about the ending, the film was scary and menacing, and featured some of the bloodiest and raw death sequences ever featured in a slasher film. Naturally he followed Tension with an even grittier and more disturbing venture into horror with the remake of Wes Craven's The Hills Have Eyes. Not only did Aja's version surpass the original, it made half the country vow never to step foot in New Mexico again. Or maybe that was just me. With Mirrors, Aja went in a different direction and it paid off. While not full of high tension like his first two efforts, Mirrors featured some disgusting scenes of awesomeness, including Amy Smart ripping her own jaw in half. I can't wait to see what he has planned for us with Piranha 3D.
1. Neil Marshall
You may not know his name, but you know his movies. His first big film was the epic cult classic Dog Soldiers, about a team of mercenaries battling a pack of werewolves in the forest. While it sounds like a sci-fi movie of the week, it was delivered with such hard-hitting force that I dare you to find someone who didn't like it. Marshall decided to blow our socks off again with The Descent, a film that was so terrifyingly claustrophobic and intense that when the creepy mutant creatures show up it's almost enough to make your heart explode in terror. To wrap up Marshall's unofficial "D" trilogy, he gave us the Mad Max-esque Doomsday, a film that wasn't as intense or scary as his first two, but was entertaining just the same. With the amount of quality projects under his belt, I'll see anything Marshall makes with the knowledge that whatever it is, it'll rock my socks off.
Ammon Gilbert covers the latest in horror weekly for Film.com.
