Who says horror movies can't have a heart? As Valentine's Day draws near, I compiled this list of my personal favorite horror movies with a romantic edge for your Valentine's Day perusal. Forgive me in advance for not including the classic slasher My Bloody Valentine to this list or Bram Stoker's Dracula. Both are just way too obvious. So dim the lights, snuggle up close with that special someone and get ready to have your heart HANDED TO YOU!
1. Let the Right One In (2008). I'll forever be in awe of this beautiful and haunting Swedish film. The story centers on a bullied and alienated 12 year old boy who finds a kindred spirit in a (who knows how old) vampire trapped in a young girl's body. The film tones down the vampire mythos - without toning down the bloodshed - and focuses on the desperate and poignant relationship between the two young leads. The film is grim, inspiring, sorrowful, harrowing and, in the end, incredibly moving. A masterpiece. (I also, though less devoutly, recommend the American remake - Let Me In. Check out my full review of it here.)
2. Cemetery Man (1994). Cemetery Man is quite frankly one of the most beautifully shot, poetic and hypnotic horror films ever made. Director Michele Soavi, a protege of Dario Argento, creates a spellbinding, surrealist atmosphere and then soaks everything in gore! Rupert Everett plays a cemetery caretaker who's job is to dispatch the living dead ("returners") when they rise hungry from their graves. He is granted a brief reprieve from the loneliness of his grim profession when he begins an affair with Anna Fulchi (who plays no less than 3 different characters in the film!), only to lose her and then longingly ponder the meaning of existence. The movie's excessive bloodshed is offset by its wicked sense of humor and whimsy. It is truly a sublime nightmare.
3. Thirst (2009). Park Chan-wook (Old Boy, Stoker) is one of the most celebrated directors working today, and for good reason. His 2009 film, Thirst, finds a Catholic priest volunteering to undergo an experimental medical procedure only to die and be resurrected as a vampire by a tainted blood transfusion. Now he struggles not only with his thirst for human blood, but with the overpowering desire he feels for a young woman trapped in a bad marriage. Eventually the two embark on a blood-soaked journey. The vampire elements are grounded nicely by the honesty portrayed in the highs and lows the two confront over the course of the film and their relationship.
4. May (2002). At the core of Lucky McKee's May is the story of a desperately lonely person wanting to connect with others. At some point in all our lives we've felt the same way - the outsider, the freak, forever alone. Matters are complicated for May, however, as she's just a little...unhinged. Instead of searching for the perfect friend/mate, May decides she'd rather create her own using "all the best parts". May sports an offbeat, dark-as-hell sense of humor and a great cast, including an outstanding performance from Angela Bettis in the lead. May is a must-own.
List your own favorite horror movies with a heart in the comments section below, and have a great Valentine's Day!
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