![[BEST & WORST 11] Lauren Taylors List of the Best Horror Films of 2011!](/photosizer/upload/2011_BestAndWorst.jpg "[BEST & WORST 11] Lauren Taylors List of the Best Horror Films of 2011!")
I really like to make lists. I do top 5′s and top 10′s regularly on my tumblr. If I were to say what would top the Best New Things of 2011 list, it would be becoming a contributor on this site. So, when I was invited to take part in our Best/Worst of 2011, I got very excited. While I didn’t see as many films as I would’ve liked this year, 5 were definitely worthy of being labeled “the best”. READ MORE
![Dickson121511 [BEST & WORST 11] The 7 Biggest Surprises of the Year!](http://www.bloody-disgusting.com/photosizer/upload/Dickson121511.jpg "[BEST & WORST 11] The 7 Biggest Surprises of the Year!")
Oh hey, I didn’t see you there!
2011 was an eventful year – tectonic shifts are moving through the industry in terms of distribution methods, audience demand, and the staggeringly precipitous drop off in quality of studio releases.
When I sat down to write this piece I didn’t want to make a laundry list of complaints (or praise), but rather a collection of stuff – good or bad – that genuinely surprised me at the time. Even if much of it does make sense now.
Also, I’m not sure whether this particular piece is getting published before or after my Best Posters & Worst Trailers lists – but both of those were written beforehand and mention Red State.
Why do I bring this up? Because this editorial contains my final word on Kevin Smith and his Red State shenanigans. Sure, I reserve the right to speak up if there’s something else to contribute to the conversation – but I’m making a vow to wash the taste of Kevin Smith (2011 Edition) out of my mouth. That means that – after this article – I’m giving him a clean slate. I’d like to be pleasantly surprised by him after an unpleasant 2011.
Hit the jump to check it out! READ MORE
Mildly improving on the previous year, 2011 was still a letdown from the “golden” years of 2007-2009, with few future classics and even fewer box office hits that would keep the studios interested in producing movies for us horror fans. Unsurprisingly, all but two of the films on my list were barely released in theaters (if at all), even though some were crowd-pleasers that could have packed a multiplex theater had their distributors had any faith in them. Yet Creature gets 1500 screens. I don’t get it. On a more positive note, however, all but one of the films on this list are original properties – not remakes/sequels or based on comics/books. Hell, even a number of my “Worst” list are technically original – a good sign that we’re moving away from the dependence on “known property” movies and back into original territory.
Anyway, here’s my top 10 of 2011. As always, this is my opinion – you might have loved The Thing and I’m glad you did – I found it too plot hole ridden and populated with vague characters to ever get truly engaged by it (looked nice, though). You probably won’t agree with every choice, but just remember that my liking a movie you hated or not choosing one that you loved doesn’t necessarily mean I enjoy having sex with members of my family and/or animals – let’s keep those comments respectful. Also, unlike some of the other B-D writers, I only include films that were commercially released in the US in 2011. Festival films, movies that just hit DVD this year after theatrical release in 2010, and films that have been released overseas but not here (insert annual Mandy Lane joke here) are not eligible.
Of course, the first ten comments will be “FUCK YOU!” or “Where is (movie that came out in 2009)?” anyway, so why I bother making that disclaimer is beyond me.
Happy new year! READ MORE
As I mentioned in my “Best of” list, this wasn’t exactly a banner year for horror, and thus it was a lot easier finding 10 stinkers than 10 flicks that will continue to find audiences for years to come. Indeed, many of the films below are disposable, worthless efforts (to use the term loosely) that were cynically produced in order to cash in on a craze, fill in a gap on a studio’s slate, or (in at least one case) merely extend a property’s lease on life. Others… I have no idea why they exist, unless “Giving BC a headache” is something that folks actually set out to do. If so: mission accomplished, and out of nearly 400 horror movies, these 10 were the ones that made me wish I had absolutely no interest in the genre in the first place. READ MORE
This was a great year for horror movies. But really, how is this different from any other year? Other than a brief period in the early 90s, every year has been a great year for horror cinema. Journalists have been predicting the “death of horror” since I was an 11-year-old reading Charles L. Grant anthologies, and the cynicism continues to this day. According to writers and bloggers, any year now, at any moment, horror is going to suddenly disappear in a huff of black smoke, the end of the genre, gone forever.
Except the readers of this Bloody-Disgusting know that will never happen. Horror is perpetual, it always has an audience, and unlike Meg Ryan or TGIF sitcoms or leg warmers, horror will never, ever go away. Of my five years writing for Bloody-disgusting, this the easiest Top 10 list I’ve ever compiled. There were just so many good movies to choose from. Whether or not you agree with the following list, let’s raise our glasses to one agreed upon fact: 2011 was a great year for horror. READ MORE
If I were to compile an honest list of the truly awful films I watched in 2011, it would be dominated by the homemade screeners we critics receive on a weekly basis. But it’s no fun ripping on bad movies nobody is ever going to see, so I’ve chosen to focus on bigger releases, giving a pass to the shittier efforts that have crossed my path this year.
In short, I’ve definitely seen worst DVDs in 2011 than the five listed below. But trust me, you don’t want to hear about those. READ MORE
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