1001 movies to see before you die.....

Okay, so watched CLOVERFIELD again tonight for like the third or fourth time and decided it was high time I started something I have had in the back of my head for a while now.....okay, okay I know I am a bit behind with my 1001 Books And Authors To Read Before You Die list but this should be much simpler as many of the movies on my list I won't need to re-watch to know if they should really be there and we should get through this list a hell of a lot quicker!

Number (1) has to be of course CLOVERFIELD; a modern monster movie for today's generation!

Shot in a Blair Witch shaky camera style, the movie follows a group of friends attending a party for their pal, Rob, who is going to work in Japan. The first twenty minutes or so (of this 75 min movie) are fairly slow, setting up the characters as one of the friends, Hug, films testimonials from some of the guests and attempts to document the party. Then there is a massive tremor and all the lights go out!

Heading to the roof, the guests witness several kinds of explosions going on in the Manhattan area where they are situated. When shrapnel and debris starts hitting the roof, the guests panic and all descend to street level...where all manner of Hell is busting loose!! Suddenly something huge comes bouncing through the streets causing widespread devastation everywhere it hits.....and it is not until several seconds later, as the camera pans round, that you realise that this is the head of the Statue Of Liberty! What follows is a tense and action-packed sequence of events as Rob and his friends attempt to get across the city to Midtown where his girlfriend, Beth, is trapped! It is a nightmare journey and, with Hug filming, we get to go with the friends every step of the way.....

I love everything about this film; the authentic camera work, the action, the way you never really get to see the monster in proper close-up! It is a proper modern-day classic piece of cinema and though there are those who absolutely hate it, I think it is one of my two favourite horror movies of all-time!!

So, what is number (2) ? Well it simply has to be {REC}; a Spanish film about a television journalist and her camera man who are following a Fire Engine around for a late-night documentary. Called out to an Apartment building where an old lady has been trapped, the pair first get an inkling something is wrong when the old lady attacks the Firemen and a local Police Officer when they go to her aid. Pretty soon, the whole building has been sealed off and no one is allowed in or out. Quickly it becomes apparent that there has been an outbreak of some kind of deadly infection.....and it is starting to spread!! The reporter and her camera man are trapped....and so are the rest of the inhabitants! Their only chance of survival ~ trying to find somewhere to hide!!!

Rec is another short movie filmed in the shaky camera style of Blair Witch. though it is slightly less than Cloverfield because, here, the camera man is supposed to be a professional. Much of it is shot in the dark and it has subtitles but don't let that put you off as this is a nasty, nasty, NASTY film that left my heart racing the first time I watched it! It wasn't so much that I was scared as it was the Adrenaline rushing through me when I watched this but one thing is certain, it is a long time since a film did that to me!!! Like Cloverfield again, it is a relentless roller-coaster ride and definitely one of the greatest horrors of all time! I cannot praise {REC} enough!

There is a sequel, that goes into more detail about the infection and, although still good, does not quite match up to the terror of the original because you have more of an idea what is going on second time around. There is also two other films due ({REC} GENESIS and {REC} APOCALIPSIS) due to be released that will tie off the story. I look forward to them with baited breath because {REC} remains one of the scariest movies I have ever seen!