Posted on by

How to scale video editing with an AI storytelling partner

How to scale video editing with an AI storytelling partner

“Videodrome”

Oh man. Videodrome.

It wouldn’t be an SFX best-of list without a nod to David Cronenburg, the great-grandfather of horror films himself. In most cases, when you watch any of his films, you can expect that some sort of body deformation or head explosion will occur in some of the sickest and most creative set pieces that hit the screen.

It was a difficult decision as to which of his babies to include on the list, but I made up my mind Videodrome Simply because I think it got under my skin the most out of everything I saw. I mean, between a television becoming flesh and James Woods literally inserting a VHS tape into his torso, Videodrome has it all, baby!

Special makeup effects artist Rick Baker says it best when he says, “We have to do some pretty disgusting things in this movie.”

See also: The fly (one of my absolute favorites and a masterclass in SFX in its own right)

“Terrifier” (franchise)

The leap from classics to modernity terrifier The franchise has made a name for itself with its shamelessly gonzo slapstick splattercore ethos. With horror 3 Opening this weekend and chasing to blow out the tent pole Joker: Folie a Deux, It’s fair to say that Art the Clown has earned his place in the big leagues of the slasher family.

Given More terrible It originally made a name for itself precisely because of its over-the-top practical effects, but I feel like it’s made a name for itself among the greats of culturally relevant SFX icons.

See also: In a violent nature (another modern slasher with a shameless penchant for practical kills)

“Evil Dead II”

Sam Raimi caused a stir in the independent horror sector with his certified classic. evil Dead. As if that wasn’t enough, he did it again, with a kind of remake, a kind of reinterpretation of evil Dead, Evil Dead II

Writers Raimi and Scott Spiegel have famously said that their approach to their sequel was essentially “what if we did the first one, but bigger and funnier,” and they certainly achieved that in spades. And what’s bigger and funnier? More practical effects, baby. Between Ash’s hand-to-hand combat and Claymation Deadites, the in-camera mastery continues to inspire filmmakers today.

It’s groovy.

See also: evil Dead (2013) (Fede Alverez went all-out with his brutal remake and it makes it arguably the scariest evil Dead ever done)

“The Substance”

The substance

Mubi

Do I need to say more than “Monstro Elisasue”?

I will, because Coralie Fargeat certainly doesn’t hold back in the lead-up to her tortured creation. Between the procedural body horror of Margaret Qualley crawling out of Demi Moore’s back to an unfortunate dream sequence involving a chicken leg, The substance is an uncompromising, practical body horror masterpiece.

Further information about the creation of Monstro Elisasue can be found here vulture Super cool SFX breakdown here.

See also: Company (This probably deserves its own space for its meat-mixing orgy scene, but we’ll leave it here to add in for some nice “satirical comedy in body horror” orgy.)

“Re-Animator”

Re-Animator is one of those films that I couldn’t stop thinking about for weeks when I first saw it. What starts out as an innocently cheesy Lovecraft adaptation quickly turns into one of the most fucked up films I’ve ever seen.

I wouldn’t consider it Re-Animator One of my favorites ever, but without a doubt one of the craziest. It’s a little out of my comfort zone to put some of these set pieces into words, so I’ll leave it to you to see for yourself if you haven’t already. Still, it’s on the list because it implemented its practical effects against persistent anxiety impeccably well.

There is one of the best arguments for the dead staying dead.

See also: Color from space (a great Lovecraft double feature. A family that rides together gets the meat together)

“The Blob” (1988)

The blob is, I dare say, a perfect film. Practical effects are more or less the catalyst for this remake of a (also very good) classic, which is wonderfully highlighted by its heavy reliance on practicalities.

If after checking out you still feel like going to a phone booth or the hospital… good luck, kid.

See also: The stuff (a perfect double feature. Blobs and stuff? Give me a better pairing)

“The Thing” (1982)

If this list was ordered in a specific order, The thing Maybe he’s the best of all time. The title of the video above says it all – the effects are insane and the amount of work and artistry that went into creating this world is a masterclass in how to use practical effects to elevate your film to elite status .

What’s more, it’s also an amazing film that takes the idea of ​​”Hell is other people” to elegant, shape-shifting extremes.

See also: you live (While it’s not so much about practical effects, the creature design itself earns its keep as a great Carpenter variant with lots of practical effects. Plus, it rules – bubblegum or not)

“Nightmare on Elm Street”

Nobody achieves practical effects like Freddy.

Freddy Krueger’s character design is one of the most iconic looks of all slasher villains – can we think of a better example of a slasher villain with a classically elegant look who doesn’t wear a mask?

Over and beyond Nightmare on Elm Street has the brilliant advantage of dream logic, into which pretty much everything the filmmaker (in this case our guy Wes Craven) thinks of fits. It’s a playground of creativity that the entire franchise utilizes beautifully, but the first one is so good that it sets the standard for how to use practical effects to create an enduring classic with some of the most intricate practical set pieces the there are.

Hell, Wes designed an entire rotating set to show a scene where he pours blood on his final girl in her bedroom. If that’s not badass filmmaking, I don’t know what is. Even if it’s almost an electrician’s worst nightmare (if you don’t know what I mean, see above).

See also: Chainsaw massacre in Texas (Considering that Leatherface and Freddy Krueger are guys who are damn well suited to each other, this pairing is a given. Texas chainsaw (It’s also considered one of the scariest films of all time, thanks to the practical flair that Tobe Hooper added to the entire Sawyer family room.)

“Sleepaway Camp”

Top 10 horror films with the best practical effects

Sleeping camp

UFDC

Sleeping camp is one of those horror films that got lost in the shuffle during the slasher boom and rightly so gets more and more attention as time goes on. Aside from the crazy twist ending (which is also one of the best jump scares of all time), Sleeping camp is a film that wears its love of horror on its sleeve through practical effects. That’s why we love it.

If you want to learn more about how it all came about, check out this great breakdown.

If you’re reading this, Angela, please don’t follow me next time I go camping.

See also: pieces (a lesser known slasher that changes the “Gnarly” to “Gnarly”)

The “Alien” franchise

Foreigner

film-grab.com

The Foreigner Franchise is one of the most consistently well-made and expertly crafted franchises on the market – and a big part of that is thanks to (and thanks to) its reliance on practical effects. The world building, the horror, everything. Foreigner is an all-time classic, and the quality of HR Geiger’s concepts implemented through practical effects shows its lasting impression.

See also: Event horizon (Hell in Space? It’s practically made Hell in Space)

Honorable Mentions

scanner

film-grab.com

Look, there’s a lot of good stuff out there – we can’t hit it all.

Creating an intuitive top 10 list sometimes requires making difficult decisions and leaving out some gems. From wild head explosions to elegant, practical depictions of hell itself, here are some great examples of professional practical effects that are more than worth your time.

Without further ado…

Possession: Are we talking about the demonic tentacle monster in the room?

Pan maze: There’s a guy with eyes in his hands.

House of the devil: Maybe a bit far-fetched, but with the Greta headshot and the blood moon ritual, it’s worth it.

X Trilogy: Every entry has at least one moment worthy of SFX prestige.

Scanner: The ultimate head explosion.

Talk to me: When they say smash up heads, they mean it.

Insane : Goopy slasher goodness.

Eraser : Nothing says parental existentialism like this strange baby.

Curiosity: This one has good head booms And Wooden monsters.

Abagail : Radio Silence really goes for high concept horror fun here and it’s a blast.

Barbarian: A spooky creature design for the ages.

Friday the 13th: When Jason hits, he hits.

The house that Jack built: There’s a lot of good stuff here, but the ending really takes the cake.

American Werewolf in London: The best werewolf transformation out there, the Landis family be damned.

night race: There’s so much going on in this movie and everything looks amazing.

Love lies bleeding:Two words: “Dave Franco”

From the afterlife: The ultimate practical effect face

Comment on anything we forgot to mention… Or otherwise (maybe we’ll even add it to the honorable mentions list)!