Way back on October 31 The Girl with the White Parasol hosted the Halloween Movie Meme – a fun questionnaire about spooky films. I didn’t discover the meme until Halloween day, when I saw it posted on Noir and Chick Flicks, and I’d already made my post for the day, so it’s appearing here a few months late. But any day is a good day for spooks, so here we go!
1. Who is your favorite movie witch?
Kim Novak as Gil in Bell, Book and Candle (1958)
2. What is the first movie you can remember being scared by?
Halloween (1978), which my sister and I rented from Blockbuster when we were probably too young to be watching it. I also screamed in the theater when my dad took me to see The Village (2004), but that’s embarrassing because it’s The Village. (In my defense, the film came out the day after my 13th birthday. I was a little wuss!)
3. Name a classic horror film that would be substantially improved by better special effects.
I can’t answer this. Part of the reason classic horror is my favorite type of horror is because the effects can be so cheesy!
4. Name your favorite Val Lewton film.
I Walked with a Zombie (1943) or The Ghost Ship (1943)
5. What movie villain or monster has the most frightening “stare-into-the-camera” moment?
My favorite will always be Anthony Perkins’ creepy smile at the end of Psycho. A stereotypical choice, but you really can’t top it.
6. What is the most irritating horror film cliche?
The “Oh, you thought he was dead? He can’t die!” never-ending circle of “Did they kill the villain?” I have a love/hate relationship with this technique. Films that use it always leave me screaming at the screen out of a mix of frustration and terror.
7. Are there any movies you refuse to watch alone?
I’ll watch anything alone… if by alone you mean with my hand covering my face and a beagle by my side.
8. Picture an old childhood nightmare of yours. Now try to adapt it to film. Can it be done?
Oh yes. I used to have a recurring nightmare of being trapped in a burning house. That would make for a very claustrophobic and disturbing horror film, haha.
9. Who’s your favorite “scream queen?”
I don’t think she can be considered a “scream queen” since she only had two credited film roles but I’m still floored by Candace Hilligoss in Carnival of Souls.
10. What is the most disappointing horror remake?
The Amityville Horror (2005). I love the original and actually had semi-high hopes for the remake when it was released, but I left the theater very disappointed.
11. We’ve all seen our share of vampires, zombies, and werewolves on film, but are there any mythical creatures or monsters out there that you think deserve more movies (i.e. golems, changelings, the Minotaur, etc.)?
There definitely need to be more horror-comedies about minotaurs.
12. Along the lines of “Scary Mary Poppins,” can you think of any non-horror flicks that could easily be adapted to fit the genre?
Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (which has probably already been done by a crafty editor, since the tunnel scene freaks so many people out in its normal form) or The Children’s Hour (because Mary is truly evil)
13. And now, just for fun, pick one movie monster or villain to be remade into a cuddly plush toy, just for you.
The obvious choice is the tingler from The Tingler, my favorite piece of horror-cheese ever produced.
The Motion Pictures 
Ha – I love that you posted this at the end of December. You have some great responses here.
Re: your dream of a burning house – I used to have the same dream all the time too, but the problem was I could never leave. I’d try to escape, then the phone would ring. Then I realized my shoes didn’t match. Then I forgot something upstairs… Whew! Glad I don’t have those dreams any more. Too stressful!
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I still have the dream sometimes, but not nearly as often as I used to. It’s been a few years since I’ve had it now. The house in the dream is a huge Victorian that doesn’t actually exist but in the dream is placed directly across from one of my elementary-aged homes, and my mom and sister are trapped inside the house as well. It is one of my two worst nightmares – the other is even worse, too bad to talk about! As much as I enjoy horror films I would be very happy to never have a nightmare again, haha.
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