Best Performances in a Horror Film
Halloween is upon us! Let's discuss the best performances in a horror film.
Anthony Hopkins in The Silence of the Lambs
Anthony Perkins in Psycho
Deborah Kerr in The Innocents
Christian Bale in American Psycho
Donald Sutherland in Don't Look Now
Michael Rooker in Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer
Richard Johnson in The Haunting
by Anonymous | reply 233 | December 17, 2022 1:42 AM
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Florence Pugh in Midsommar
by Anonymous | reply 1 | October 9, 2022 6:13 PM
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Jamie Lee Curtis in Halloween, bitches.
Duh.
Stop ghosting the Queen.
Fuck.
Sheesh!
by Anonymous | reply 2 | October 9, 2022 6:14 PM
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Donald John Trump in Destroying America
by Anonymous | reply 3 | October 9, 2022 6:16 PM
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Nicole Kidman in The Others
by Anonymous | reply 4 | October 9, 2022 6:20 PM
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Janet Leigh's pretty darn terrific in "Psycho", too
by Anonymous | reply 5 | October 9, 2022 6:22 PM
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Ellen Burstyn - The Exorcist. She really deserved an Oscar for that.
In terms of just fun, non Oscar horror films - Heather Langenkanp - A Nightmare on Elm Street. There is something about Nancy and Heather that I have always like since I was a gayling.
by Anonymous | reply 6 | October 9, 2022 6:36 PM
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Roddy McDowell - The Legend of Hell House
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 7 | October 9, 2022 6:39 PM
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There are only three horror movies in that list; the others are thrillers because there is no supernatural element.
by Anonymous | reply 8 | October 9, 2022 7:10 PM
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Billy Zane in Dead Calm (1989, ft Nicole Kidman and Sam Neill)
by Anonymous | reply 9 | October 9, 2022 7:11 PM
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Piper Laurie and Sissy Spacek in Carrie.
by Anonymous | reply 10 | October 9, 2022 7:14 PM
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Kathy Bates Misery
Christopher Walken The Dead Zone
by Anonymous | reply 11 | October 9, 2022 7:21 PM
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Who says a “horror” film has to have supernatural in it?
by Anonymous | reply 12 | October 9, 2022 7:23 PM
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I agree. Most of these are not horror films. They are thrillers. They are suspense films. But they are not horror.
by Anonymous | reply 13 | October 9, 2022 7:29 PM
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Patty Duke in the feature movie, YOU'LL LIKE MY MOTHER. Also starring Rosemary Murphy, Richard Thomas (the same guy from The Walton's) and directed by Lamont Johnson. If you haven't seen it check it out
by Anonymous | reply 14 | October 9, 2022 7:30 PM
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R12, the term "horror" refers to an unknown and potentially inhuman entity.
A thriller asks as who is responsible.
A horror film asks us what is responsible.
Psycho straddles the two because from the start there is something uncanny/unnatural about Mrs. Bates.
by Anonymous | reply 15 | October 9, 2022 7:31 PM
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Shelly Duvall, The Shining
by Anonymous | reply 16 | October 9, 2022 7:32 PM
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I’d add Julie Harris and Claire Bloom in The Haunting
by Anonymous | reply 17 | October 9, 2022 8:10 PM
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Toni Collette in Hereditary.
by Anonymous | reply 18 | October 9, 2022 8:53 PM
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Drew Barrymore in the opening scene of Scream.
I loathe horror movies, but this was perfect.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 19 | October 9, 2022 8:56 PM
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I would say Bale in American Psycho except I dont really consider an all out horror movie, more like a very dark comedy with horror elements.
by Anonymous | reply 20 | October 9, 2022 9:10 PM
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Ugh there's an Ari Aster fan on this thread. *Puke*
by Anonymous | reply 21 | October 9, 2022 9:20 PM
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Tallulah Bankhead in Die! Die! My Darling!
by Anonymous | reply 22 | October 9, 2022 9:22 PM
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Zohra Lampert in 'Let's Scare Jessica to Death' (1971).
by Anonymous | reply 23 | October 9, 2022 9:24 PM
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Toni Colette in the Six Sense
by Anonymous | reply 24 | October 9, 2022 9:26 PM
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JoBeth Williams in Poltergeist
by Anonymous | reply 25 | October 9, 2022 9:27 PM
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R26, the only thing horror in that was her performance.
by Anonymous | reply 27 | October 9, 2022 9:28 PM
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Bette in “Baby Jane”
Anthony in “Psycho”
Ellen in “Exorcist”
Shelly in “The Shining”
Jobeth in “Poltergeist”
Jodie and and Anthony in “Silence of the Lambs”
Sheryl in “Fire Walk with Me”
by Anonymous | reply 28 | October 9, 2022 9:31 PM
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Paris Hilton in House of Wax
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 29 | October 9, 2022 9:34 PM
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Candace Hilligoss in "Carnival Of Souls". She is unforgettable in a zero-budget chiller.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 30 | October 9, 2022 9:35 PM
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Ari Aster movies are mediocre at best and rely on the talent of his leading ladies for them to succeed - Toni is incredible in Hereditary, Florence is passable-good in Midsommar.
My other picks would be....many of the straight horror Cronenberg performances. His later movies are more genre stretching and tend to be psychological surreal thrillers adjacent to David Lynch films, which I don't consider to be horror either. Even though I love me some David Lynch more than anything.
Debbie Harry in Videodrome
Cast prize for Crash
Jeff Goldblum and Geena Davis in The Fly
Samatha Eggar in The Brood
Christopher Walken in The Dead Zone
Other assorted performances: Cast prize for The Shining - one of the best acted movies I've ever seen!
Ellen Burstyn in The Exorcist
Janet Leigh and Tony Perkins in Psycho
Jamie Lee Curtis in the first Halloween
Piper Laurie and Sissy Spacek in Carrie
Deborah Kerr in The Innocents
Marilyn Burns in The Texas Chainsaw Massacre
by Anonymous | reply 31 | October 9, 2022 9:37 PM
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Mia Farrow in Rosemary's Baby. It's a crime that she wasn't even nominated for an Oscar.
by Anonymous | reply 32 | October 9, 2022 9:42 PM
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Robert Blake in 'Lost Highway' (1997).
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 34 | October 9, 2022 9:52 PM
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I think that Falconetti in The Passion of Joan of Arc gives the best performance in a horror film ever.
(Since we are being elastic with the term.)
by Anonymous | reply 35 | October 9, 2022 9:54 PM
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George C. Scott in the original Changeling (the 1980 film that has nothing to do with the Angelina Jolie movie.)
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 36 | October 9, 2022 9:58 PM
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It's a comedy. but the ensemble cast of Creepshow is amazing.
by Anonymous | reply 37 | October 9, 2022 10:24 PM
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Joan Crawford in Strait-Jacket and that's not me being facetious. Had she starred in Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte, I have no doubt that she would have delivered a powerhouse performance there as well that would have easily overshadowed Bette's OTT antics.
by Anonymous | reply 38 | October 10, 2022 3:35 AM
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Madge in
Sorry I thought it said WHORE film.
by Anonymous | reply 39 | October 10, 2022 4:29 AM
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Ed.win. Mon tan. ez. Jr. in The Data Lounge
by Anonymous | reply 40 | October 10, 2022 4:31 AM
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Elizabeth Berkley in Showgirls
by Anonymous | reply 41 | October 10, 2022 4:32 AM
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Freddie Highmore and Vera Farmiga in Bates Motel.
by Anonymous | reply 42 | October 10, 2022 4:36 AM
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G certainly scares the shit out of me when I see her face come across the big screen- no matter the “movie” she is “acting” in…..
by Anonymous | reply 43 | October 10, 2022 4:54 AM
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Isabelle Fuhrman in Orphan
Virginia Madsen and Tony Todd in Candyman
Angela Bettis in May
Essie Davis in The Babadook
Isabelle Adjani in Possession
Deneuve and Sarandon in The Hunger
The cast of The Devil's Backbone
by Anonymous | reply 44 | October 10, 2022 6:21 AM
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Tiny Tim in Blood Harvest:
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 45 | October 10, 2022 8:03 AM
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The Vanishing - the original 1988 version. So fucking scary it stays with me all these years later. It was re-made in English starring Jeff Bridges and that one is fine but this one from '88 is so much better.
by Anonymous | reply 46 | October 10, 2022 8:16 AM
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Sigourney Weaver in Alien
Chris Sarandon in Fright Night (The night club dance scene was fucking hot)
by Anonymous | reply 47 | October 10, 2022 8:38 AM
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Susan Tyrrell in Butcher, Baker, Nightmare Maker (aka Night Warning).
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 48 | October 11, 2022 3:18 PM
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Marilyn Burns in The Texas Chain Saw Massacre
Heather Donahue in The Blair Witch Project
Lin Shaye in Insidious
Barbara Hershey in The Entity
Dee Wallace in Cujo
Deborah Kerr, Martin Stephens, and Pamela Franklin in The Innocents
by Anonymous | reply 50 | October 11, 2022 3:37 PM
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Lupita Nyong'o - Us
Bill Moseley - The Devil's Rejects
Bela Lugosi - Dracula
Bill Skarsgard - It
Karen Black - Burnt Offerings
by Anonymous | reply 51 | October 11, 2022 3:42 PM
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JoBeth Williams in Poltergeist. I think she deserved an Oscar nom for that performance.
by Anonymous | reply 53 | October 11, 2022 3:48 PM
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Vincent Price in 'Theater of Blood' !!! Marvelous movie with great acting.
[italic] Vincent Price plays Lionheart, an actor who specializes in Shakespeare. But he's been getting bad reviews, and did not receive the Critics Circle award. There's only one thing to do: kill off each of the critics in a style modeled after a Shakespearean death.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 54 | October 11, 2022 3:51 PM
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Duane Jones - Night of the Living Dead
by Anonymous | reply 55 | October 11, 2022 3:53 PM
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R8 So if there are no supernatural elements it isn't horror? Would Friday the 13th, Terror Train, I Know What You Did Last Summer, The Last House on the Left, My Bloody Valentine, Scream, Sleepaway Camp, etc., not be considered horror? There's nothing supernatural in them. Unless you count Grandpa, nothing supernatural in The Texas Chainsaw Massacre either.
by Anonymous | reply 56 | October 11, 2022 4:00 PM
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Isabelle Adjani - Possession (1981)
by Anonymous | reply 59 | October 11, 2022 4:15 PM
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Alice Krige in Ghost Story
by Anonymous | reply 60 | October 11, 2022 4:23 PM
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Poor Isabelle, her life was the real horror film. She was the original Anne He He. I've read that witnesses actually saw her trying frantically to get out of her burning car. Catherine never really recovered from her death. They were very close. So much beauty in that family. Truffaut was lucky. He had both sisters at their peak beauty.
by Anonymous | reply 61 | October 11, 2022 4:25 PM
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Tim Roth and Fairuza Balk made a corny TV movie about Charles Starkweather
by Anonymous | reply 63 | October 11, 2022 4:28 PM
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Vincent Price in either of the Doctor Phibes movies.
I have never found "horror" to be particularly scary, but I love camp.
by Anonymous | reply 64 | October 11, 2022 4:28 PM
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Jessica Biel was surprisingly good in the Texas Chainsaw Massacre remake.
by Anonymous | reply 65 | October 11, 2022 5:38 PM
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Hopkins chews the scenery. Sosie Bacon is pretty good in the current Smile.
by Anonymous | reply 66 | October 11, 2022 5:45 PM
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Brad Dourif in Exorcist III
Scout Taylor-Compton in Halloween II
by Anonymous | reply 67 | October 12, 2022 12:14 AM
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Joe Spinell in Maniac. It's a disgusting exploitation movie, but he's really good in it. He actually seems invested in creating a character among all of the schlock and gore.
Second would be Dennis Christopher in Fade to Black, but I guess that's not really a horror film but more of a thriller about a loser who tries to validate himself.
by Anonymous | reply 68 | October 12, 2022 12:27 AM
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What’s supernatural about Silence of the Lambs?
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 69 | October 12, 2022 12:52 AM
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What are you gays on about with this fucking supernatural stipulation.?
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 70 | October 12, 2022 1:07 AM
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Horror is about an intensity of atmosphere that verges on the diabolical, R70. A horror film can be non-supernatural, but there must be an element of viciousness or gruesomeness that suggests something unnatural.
by Anonymous | reply 71 | October 12, 2022 1:13 AM
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Angela Lansbury in Something for Everyone which is basically a horror comedy.
by Anonymous | reply 73 | October 12, 2022 1:38 AM
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JoBeth did an incredible job in Poltergeist.
Also have to mention Anne-Marie Martin (aka Eddie Benton) as Wendy in Prom Night. She absolutely chewed up the scenery in that.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 74 | October 12, 2022 1:40 AM
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Lon Chaney Jr. and Claude Rains in the Wolfman (1941)
by Anonymous | reply 75 | October 12, 2022 1:44 AM
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Lots of great performances listed here. I’d add Mia Goth in the recently-released “Pearl”, which is a true tour-de-force performance—both unhinged and heartbreaking.
by Anonymous | reply 77 | October 12, 2022 2:14 AM
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I wasn't crazy about the film's ending, but both Annette Benning and RDJ were impressive in "In Dreams".
by Anonymous | reply 78 | October 12, 2022 2:39 AM
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R44 Angela Bettis, good choice
by Anonymous | reply 79 | October 12, 2022 2:44 AM
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Boris Karloff in "Frankenstein." He deserved an Oscar nom for that.
So did Jeff Goldblum in "The Fly."
by Anonymous | reply 81 | October 12, 2022 2:46 AM
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The true horrors in this thread are the tedious pedants splitting hairs over which films are horror and which are thrillers.
by Anonymous | reply 82 | October 12, 2022 2:46 AM
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Liz Moss the invisible man AND us. She deserved the Oscar talk for former. Also Lupita
by Anonymous | reply 83 | October 12, 2022 2:47 AM
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Angela Bettis in May is a wonderful choice. She made a great Carrie in that TV remake as well. It's a shame the rest of it was rather unmemorable.
by Anonymous | reply 84 | October 12, 2022 3:14 AM
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Daniel Kaluuya, Allison Williams and Li'l Rel Howery in GET OUT. All three brought something fresh and new to the table for a horror movie.
by Anonymous | reply 85 | October 12, 2022 3:24 AM
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Agnes Moorhead in Hush, Hush, Sweet Charlotte.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 86 | October 12, 2022 3:26 AM
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I second Lupita for US and Elisabeth Moss for THE INVISIBLE MAN. Both actresses should've been nominated. Just shows you the bias against horror movies.
by Anonymous | reply 87 | October 12, 2022 3:26 AM
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Some real hit moments by Mia Goth in "Pearl":
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 88 | October 12, 2022 3:41 AM
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Ellen Burstyn should have won Best Actress for The Exorcist.
by Anonymous | reply 89 | October 12, 2022 3:47 AM
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[quote]Angela Bettis in May is a wonderful choice. She made a great Carrie in that TV remake as well.
Bettis was terrific in Carrie. She’s my favorite of them all, (yes even over Sissy).
by Anonymous | reply 90 | October 12, 2022 3:50 AM
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[quote] Bettis was terrific in Carrie.
Uh, no. She played Carrie as a weird psychotic. An ugly weird psychotic.
by Anonymous | reply 91 | October 12, 2022 4:28 AM
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As much as I like Spacek’s performance in Carrie, I always thought it was an odd casting choice. From what I recall, the Carrie described in King’s book was fat and had mousy brown hair. Still, Spacek is not exactly conventionally attractive, so I think she was ultimately offbeat enough to work.
by Anonymous | reply 92 | October 12, 2022 4:44 AM
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Sheri Moon Zombie in The Lords of Salem
by Anonymous | reply 93 | October 12, 2022 4:50 AM
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Zelda Rubenstein in Poltergeist was a revelation.
by Anonymous | reply 94 | October 12, 2022 4:57 AM
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Aunt Lydia in Hereditary too though
by Anonymous | reply 95 | October 12, 2022 6:48 AM
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Octavia Spencer in Ma. And it's not in fashion at the moment but Portman going balls out 'Black Swan'
by Anonymous | reply 96 | October 12, 2022 6:57 AM
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R47: Sigourney, for sure, in Alien (sci fi horror). I’m also adding Veronica Cartwright in the same film. She was very effective, playing the terrified Lambert, a contrast to gutsy Ripley. Cartwright’s dying screams near the end were unforgettable.
by Anonymous | reply 97 | October 12, 2022 7:19 AM
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The whole cast of Alien was pretty much perfect.
by Anonymous | reply 98 | October 12, 2022 7:28 AM
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Boris Karloff, Ernest Thesiger and Elsa Lanchester in The Bride of Frankenstein
Hurd Hatfield, Angela Lansbury😥 and George Sanders in The Picture of Dorian Gray
Karloff in The Body Snatcher(Oscar worthy)
Frederic March in Doctor.Jekyll and Mister Hyde(March did win the Oscar for this)
Catherine Deneuve in Repulsion
by Anonymous | reply 99 | October 12, 2022 7:44 AM
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Naomi Watts in mulholland drive
by Anonymous | reply 100 | October 12, 2022 8:19 AM
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Sarah Michelle Gellar in ‘I Know What You Did Last Summer.’
by Anonymous | reply 101 | October 12, 2022 8:25 AM
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LUGOSI. What actor has ever been more associated with an iconic role? I loved Christopher Lee's Hammer Drac as well. But the accent, eyes and presence of Lugosi are still what people remember. Something as silly as The Count on Sesame Street bear this out..
by Anonymous | reply 102 | October 12, 2022 8:43 AM
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Marilyn Burns in The Texas Chainsaw Massacre . No has presented true terror on screen as realistically as her.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 103 | October 12, 2022 8:52 AM
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Miriam Hopkins in Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
by Anonymous | reply 104 | October 12, 2022 9:16 AM
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This is ridiculous, Mia Farrow gave an iconic perfomance that is still one the the best performance ever given by an actress in a leading part, she elevated the material from cheesy horror B flick to film classic that defines an era of movie making, and a golden standard for the genre, genre that wouldn't even exist without the success of that movie, that even Polanski credits Mia for. Not aknowledging that shows how biased and mysogynistic you all are, not to mention uneducated. This is really making me despise Datalounge.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 106 | October 12, 2022 10:32 AM
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She’s already been mentioned at least twice r106.
by Anonymous | reply 107 | October 12, 2022 11:00 AM
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I’ll throw in Rachel Roberts in Picnic at Hanging Rock (1975), which I consider a horror film
by Anonymous | reply 108 | October 12, 2022 11:10 AM
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Just watched the 1978 HALLOWEEN on the big screen and Jamie Lee Curtis anchors the film….the entire cast is about perfect…and the film is very simple and most of the film takes place in about 5/6 rooms in a house…so much tension created with cinematography and the music…the 2018/2021 sequels seem bloated compared to the original film….
by Anonymous | reply 109 | October 12, 2022 11:21 AM
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Ruth Gordon in "Rosemary's Baby"
One of the few Oscar-winning performances from a horror movie.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 110 | October 12, 2022 12:59 PM
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Kathleen Turner in Crimes of Passion.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 111 | October 12, 2022 1:25 PM
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[quote]Sigourney, for sure, in Alien (sci fi horror). I’m also adding Veronica Cartwright in the same film. She was very effective, playing the terrified Lambert, a contrast to gutsy Ripley. Cartwright’s dying screams near the end were unforgettable.
Sorry, r97. The Genre Monitoring Committee (posters R8 r13 r15 r71) has invalidated your post.
“Sci-fi” is already a separate, discrete film genre, and already contains within it implicit elements of the supernatural (alien species, incomprehensible rules of non terrestrial physics etc). The film Alien therefore does not fall into the “horror” genre. By crossing genre boundaries, your post has violated the terms of this thread, and will not be considered.
Furthermore, for those participants who have not yet seen the Alien film in question, your post contained spoilers, to wit, reference to “dying screams” of [unspecified].
However, the committee is delighted by your interest in the thread and will happily consider further posts following a one-month suspension.
Have a great day.
by Anonymous | reply 112 | October 12, 2022 4:00 PM
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112 posts should read MIA FARROW
by Anonymous | reply 113 | October 12, 2022 6:25 PM
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Jamie Lee Curtis in Halloween H20. There are 2 or 3 scenes that could have easily been her Oscar clips. I heard Tarantino was trying to persuade the studio to push her for a nomination.
by Anonymous | reply 114 | October 12, 2022 6:29 PM
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Terence Stamp in The Collectie (1965).
by Anonymous | reply 115 | October 12, 2022 6:36 PM
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R61 you’re confusing Isabelle Adjani with Francoise Dorleac
by Anonymous | reply 116 | October 12, 2022 6:52 PM
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Deborah Kerr The Innocents and Mia Farrow Rosemary's Baby
Both actresses are in every scene of their respective films
by Anonymous | reply 118 | October 12, 2022 9:16 PM
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Nancy Kelly in The Bad Seed
by Anonymous | reply 120 | October 13, 2022 1:45 AM
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Joey King in Conjuring 2. Unfortunately the clip is very dark, so you can't see her face (like you can in the thumbnail)
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 121 | October 13, 2022 1:49 AM
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Julie Harris in The Haunting. A superb performance. She makes Eleanor as she is in the book: deeply sympathetic, and yet also difficult, childish, and annoying.
Jo-Beth Williams in Poltergeist. She is so moving in the scene where Carol Ann walks through her, so funny when she's turned on by the ghosts moving things around at the very beginning, and, as someone on DL once pointed out, the freaked-out way she delivers the line, "The swimming pool, the SWIMMING POOL, MY GOD SHE'S IN THE SWIMMING POOL!" is so perfect that the audience is terrified even though they already know Carol Ann is definitely not in the swimming pool.
by Anonymous | reply 122 | October 13, 2022 3:13 AM
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JoBeth Williams really does hit every part of the human experience in that performance. Joy, fear, playful sexuality, heartbreak, etc. It gives her a lot to play and she finds so many nuances. I always judge performances by how much they find in a role. Can they find a laugh in an unexpected place and then turn around and make me cry 3 scenes later? If they're one-note the whole time, it typically bores me.
by Anonymous | reply 123 | October 13, 2022 3:19 AM
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Kate Dickie in "The VVitch." Amazingly sharp portrayal of an ostracized woman who comes to believe her daughter is evil and wants to kill her for it. But unlike Margaret White, she's not insane.
Toni Colette in "Hereditary." Great complex performance as a mother who is haunted by grief for her mentally challenged daughter and blames her son for it (to the point she even blurts out to him she hadn't wanted to carry him to term when she was pregnant with him).
by Anonymous | reply 124 | October 13, 2022 3:21 AM
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Another vote for Candace.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 125 | October 13, 2022 3:23 AM
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[quote] Not aknowledging that shows how biased and mysogynistic you all are, not to mention uneducated. This is really making me despise Datalounge.
Whether you meant this sincerely or as a joke, you still need to get a fucking life.
by Anonymous | reply 126 | October 13, 2022 3:26 AM
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Lorna Raver was brilliant as the campy gypsy woman in Drag Me to Hell. She didn't get enough recognition for that performance.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 127 | October 13, 2022 4:43 AM
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It was sort of a racist portrayal, R127 (not that that's on her, necessarily, but the whole movie made me cringe).
by Anonymous | reply 128 | October 13, 2022 5:11 AM
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Angie Dickinson in Dressed To Kill.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 129 | October 13, 2022 12:22 PM
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Haley Joel Osment deserves mention for The Sixth Sense. What an extraordinary performance. I just rewatched it last night. Bruce Willis was great too but I couldn't stop looking at his hair.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 130 | October 13, 2022 12:44 PM
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Sissy Spacek and Piper Laurie in Carrie give two of the greatest performances I've ever seen from anyone in any genre. Laurie is a miracle. She takes an over the top character and plays up all the camp while still keeping her grounded and like someone you feel like you could encounter in real life.
Sissy breaks your heart over and over again in the movie. Her posture, greasy hair, cheap clothes, body language, and sweet childlike voice make her appear so vulnerable throughout most of the film, but once the prom starts and she gets a glow up, everything changes and she's stunningly beautiful. I find it difficult to watch the scene where she's called up on stage and everything goes slow mo. She looks so radiant and happy and completely unaware of what's about to happen to her.
Angie Dickinson in Dressed to Kill is another great one. The entire first third of that movie is all her in just about every shot and there are so many moments where she has no dialogue and is able to keep the audience completely invested by her facial expressions and body language alone. That's real cinematic acting.
by Anonymous | reply 131 | October 13, 2022 5:15 PM
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R131, You're absolutely right about Sissy Spacek and Piper Laurie. Those are two deeply affecting and powerful performances. They have a depth and earthy realism that you just don't see in most horror movies. Their performances elevate the entire movie to the level of serious cinema. Otherwise it would be standard schlock, like almost ALL of DePalma's other movies. Blow Out and maybe The Untouchables being exceptions.
by Anonymous | reply 132 | October 14, 2022 2:17 AM
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I'm not a fan of DePalma R132, but the performances in Dressed to Kill are solid across the board, and Nancy Allen, Keith Gordon and Angie Dickenson are all little short of phenomenal.
by Anonymous | reply 133 | October 14, 2022 2:23 AM
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Mary Steenburgen playing multiple roles in “Dead Of Winter”.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 134 | October 14, 2022 2:26 AM
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The grandparents in The Visit
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 135 | October 14, 2022 2:49 AM
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De Palma might not be everyone's cup of tea, but he usually gets good performances out of his actors. Usually, any issues I have with his lesser films have little to do with his cast.
by Anonymous | reply 136 | October 14, 2022 2:54 AM
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R134 Both of them sheep voiced
by Anonymous | reply 137 | October 14, 2022 6:49 AM
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R131 Sissy disgusts me in the film. A lot of people think that.
by Anonymous | reply 138 | October 14, 2022 6:50 AM
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R140, the cast in Misery was pretty top-notch all round.
by Anonymous | reply 141 | October 14, 2022 7:29 PM
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Helen Lawson in The Exorcist as the demon Pazoozoo
by Anonymous | reply 142 | October 14, 2022 7:35 PM
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You'd better believe the cast of Misery was excellent. That film had flavah!
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 143 | October 14, 2022 7:37 PM
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Toni Collette in "Hereditary."
by Anonymous | reply 144 | October 14, 2022 7:41 PM
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A bit off topic but I am struggling to think of a time where Toni Collette didn't do an amazing job with any role. And that includes the remake of Fright Night.
by Anonymous | reply 145 | October 14, 2022 7:42 PM
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R133, "phenomenal?" Really? Dressed To Kill is a preposterous, risible thriller and the performances are mostly serviceable to decent but hardly phenomenal. Angie Dickinson does impressive work in a near silent performance, I'll grant you that, but Keith Gordon and Nancy Allen don't do anything a dozen other actors couldn't have done. Michael Caine is...Michael Caine.
by Anonymous | reply 146 | October 15, 2022 12:49 AM
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Lauren Bacall gave an Oscar-winning performance in The Fan. She even sang original songs and did choreography, all while being chased by a knife-wielding maniac.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 147 | October 15, 2022 12:58 AM
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Richard Burton in Exorcist II: The Heretic
by Anonymous | reply 149 | October 15, 2022 8:44 PM
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Poltergeist was on last night, and Jo Beth Williams was so good.
by Anonymous | reply 150 | October 16, 2022 2:07 PM
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Robert Englund in A Nightmare on Elm Street.
by Anonymous | reply 151 | October 16, 2022 2:21 PM
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Donald Pleasance in Halloween
Betsy Palmer in Friday the 13th
by Anonymous | reply 152 | October 16, 2022 3:34 PM
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David Hess in The Last House on the Left
by Anonymous | reply 153 | October 16, 2022 3:40 PM
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Harry Connick Jr. in Copycat.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 154 | October 16, 2022 3:46 PM
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Rock Hudson in SECONDS
Susannah York in Altman's IMAGES
by Anonymous | reply 155 | October 18, 2022 3:12 PM
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Diane Baker in Straight-Jacket.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 156 | October 18, 2022 3:26 PM
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Beatrice Dalle in "Inside" - a vicious and nasty french horror film from 2007
Vincent Lindon- Titane- He should have gotten a supporting Oscar nomination
JoBeth Williams- Poltergeist- Probably one of my top 20 favorite performances ever. The definition of charisma. And her an Craig T Nelson are the definition of chemistry.
And my goofy choice is Amy Steel in Friday The 13th Part 2!!! Ginny rules!!!!!!!!!!!
by Anonymous | reply 158 | October 18, 2022 4:23 PM
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Linda Blair in The Exorcist
by Anonymous | reply 159 | October 18, 2022 4:25 PM
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[quote]Toni Collette in Hereditary.
I'm glad someone mentioned this. I personally think she should have won the Oscar for that performance.
by Anonymous | reply 160 | October 18, 2022 4:27 PM
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R160 , agreed. I would have included her in my list, but I figured she was named 20 times already.
Toni Colette in The Excorcist, and frankly Toni Colette in The Sixth Sense as well- its gotten better with time as well-
(And if you ever want to be depressed but impressed- see Toni Collette in Japanese Story- amazing performance)
by Anonymous | reply 161 | October 18, 2022 4:30 PM
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Jesus Christ ^^ Hereditary (not The Exorcist)
by Anonymous | reply 162 | October 18, 2022 6:00 PM
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[quote] Linda Blair in The Exorcist
The role of Regan in "The Exorcist" was physically demanding but required little acting. And of course the voice of the demon was performed not by Blair but Mercedes McCambridge.
by Anonymous | reply 163 | October 19, 2022 1:05 AM
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[quote]The role of Regan in "The Exorcist" was physically demanding but required little acting. And of course the voice of the demon was performed not by Blair but Mercedes McCambridge.
She won The Golden Globe and has an Oscar nomination and well, you don't.
by Anonymous | reply 164 | October 19, 2022 9:25 AM
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Lance Henriksen, Pumpkinhead
John Franklin, Children of the Corn
William Marshall, Blacula
by Anonymous | reply 165 | October 19, 2022 6:38 PM
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The yellow-skinned dancer in “Dance, dammit, dancer! Dance, dammit!”
by Anonymous | reply 166 | October 19, 2022 7:02 PM
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[quote] The yellow-skinned dancer in “Dance, dammit, dancer! Dance, dammit!”
Who and why?
by Anonymous | reply 167 | October 19, 2022 10:36 PM
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[quote] She won The Golden Globe and has an Oscar nomination and well, you don't.
There have been plenty of undeserving winners of Golden Globes. And God knows there have been plenty of undeserved Oscar nominations. As for me not having a Golden Globe or Oscar nom, well, that stands to reason because I'm not an actor, you simpleton.
by Anonymous | reply 168 | October 20, 2022 2:00 AM
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Ernest Thesiger in everything he ever did.
by Anonymous | reply 169 | October 20, 2022 2:04 AM
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Including his embroidery marathons?
by Anonymous | reply 170 | October 20, 2022 2:34 AM
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Aleksei Kravchenko in Come and See. Is a war film, and a horror. It's the only horror film that made me cry at the final scene. I don't see how anyone who watches until the final scene could not cry.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 171 | November 1, 2022 5:40 AM
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Shelley Duvall in The Shining Elen Burstyn from The Exorcist Jodie Foster from Silence of the Lambs Jack Nicholson from The Shining Gary Oldman from Bram Stoker's Dracula Ralph Fiennes from Red Dragon
by Anonymous | reply 172 | November 1, 2022 5:52 AM
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Cathy Denoove was pretty much perfect in everything she did.
by Anonymous | reply 173 | November 2, 2022 4:06 AM
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Was Mia Goth mentioned for, "Pearl"? That woman was fully committed. Her 9 minute monologue and the end credits were something else.
by Anonymous | reply 174 | November 2, 2022 2:31 PM
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Hopkins and Rooker, yes.
For fuck's sake, Karloff and Lugosi in their "Frankenstein" and "Dracula" roles.
Sigourney Weaver in "Alien." (Yes, it's a horror film.)
Supporting Actor? Ernest Thesiger in "Bride of Frankenstein."
Supporting Actress? Ruth Gordon in "Rosemary's Baby," of course!
by Anonymous | reply 176 | November 4, 2022 2:46 AM
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Colton Underwood in The Bachelor
by Anonymous | reply 177 | November 4, 2022 7:00 PM
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Beanie Feldstein in Bookworm Beanie Fieldstein in that Ryan Murphy show about Monita Louinski Beanie Fieldstein in Funny Girl
by Anonymous | reply 178 | November 4, 2022 7:59 PM
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Male: Perkins without a doubt. Female: a tie between Piper Laurie and Bette Davis (Baby Jane)
by Anonymous | reply 180 | November 15, 2022 10:16 AM
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Straight-Jacket had only two good things going for it. A few short but well written and acted scenes between Diane Baker and George Kennedy and Crawford lighting a match off a photograph record for her cigarette.
by Anonymous | reply 181 | November 15, 2022 10:35 AM
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[quote] She even sang original songs
Hum, just no. I don't know what it was that she was doing, but singing it was not. Unless you go for "gorilla who's passing a kidney stone" , I don't know why anyone would make that kind of noise. My ears are still permanently damaged from the bleeding of hearing that.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 182 | November 15, 2022 10:44 AM
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I was shocked to learn that Bacall headlined not one, but two Broadway musicals and a tour of Wonderful Town.
by Anonymous | reply 183 | November 16, 2022 12:57 AM
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Lupita Nyong'o in US and a little seen Aussie zombie movie called LITTLE MONSTERS (you can see it on HULU) is a revelation. She's so good in both films in ways that are surprising. I didn't think she could do what she does in both of them.
by Anonymous | reply 184 | November 17, 2022 9:41 AM
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You know what you look like, OP, with your cheap shoes and your tired little post?
by Anonymous | reply 185 | November 17, 2022 10:01 AM
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Lapinta Negra in “My Cheeseburger! Mine!”
by Anonymous | reply 186 | November 28, 2022 10:16 PM
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Naomi Watts in Mulholland Drive (one of the all time great performances) AND The Ring.
by Anonymous | reply 187 | November 28, 2022 10:23 PM
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[Quote] She won The Golden Globe and has an Oscar nomination and well, you don't.
Nor does Mia Farrow for Rosemary's Baby
by Anonymous | reply 189 | November 28, 2022 11:00 PM
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R. Lee Ermey as sheriff hoyt in the Texas chainsaw massacre remakes 2003&2006. He was brilliant, sadistic and more terrifying than leatherface! A completely underrated performance, the best villain I've ever seen in a horror film. Honorable mentions for sissy Spacek and piper Laurie for Carrie.
by Anonymous | reply 190 | November 28, 2022 11:18 PM
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With these people? You must be mad! Wrinkly little retches!
by Anonymous | reply 191 | November 29, 2022 7:40 AM
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Jamie Lee Curtis is fantastic in Halloween H20. The film surrounding her has its problems, but her performance is excellent. She had better material to work with in H20 than the last three movies.
by Anonymous | reply 192 | November 29, 2022 6:03 PM
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I enjoyed Poltergeist when it came out but I can't watch it anymore because of the ensuing tragedies of the two fine young actresses.
by Anonymous | reply 193 | December 1, 2022 3:49 PM
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Boris Karloff in Frankenstein.
by Anonymous | reply 194 | December 1, 2022 4:02 PM
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Kevin Bacon in Hollow Man.
by Anonymous | reply 195 | December 1, 2022 4:05 PM
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Lupita Malongo in Get Out
by Anonymous | reply 198 | December 4, 2022 2:54 PM
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R190, Ermey is a great addition to this list.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 199 | December 4, 2022 3:06 PM
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When was the last time a horror film or performance has gotten an Academy Award nomination?
by Anonymous | reply 200 | December 4, 2022 3:10 PM
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[quote]she elevated the material from cheesy horror B flick to film classic that defines an era of movie making, and a golden standard for the genre, genre that wouldn't even exist without the success of that movie, that even Polanski credits Mia for.
So Mia Farrow alone did that? Didn't Ruth Gordon win an Academy Award? The movie had Ralph Bellamy, Maurice Evans, John Cassavetes. I don't care what Polanski says, I would think if another good actress had to be cast, it wouldn't have become a "cheesy horror B flick."
by Anonymous | reply 201 | December 4, 2022 3:15 PM
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R202 I don't know, I didn't see it.
by Anonymous | reply 203 | December 4, 2022 3:56 PM
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[Quote]When was the last time a horror film or performance has gotten an Academy Award nomination?
Joaquin in the Joker 2020
by Anonymous | reply 204 | December 4, 2022 6:18 PM
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Brad Dourif - Exorcist III
by Anonymous | reply 205 | December 9, 2022 4:34 PM
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Helen Lawson in “I can still hear you screaming”.
by Anonymous | reply 206 | December 10, 2022 2:18 AM
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People are falling over themselves this year for Keke Palmer in "Nope". She already won New York Film Critics Circle Awards for Best Supporting Actress, and there's the BOM BOM BOM Oscar Buzz.
by Anonymous | reply 207 | December 10, 2022 5:43 PM
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I didn't see it but I saw/heard The Joker referred to more as a psychological thriller than a horror movie.
by Anonymous | reply 208 | December 10, 2022 6:20 PM
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I had to give up watching horror films when they became such gorefests there were few surprises and shockers.
The Stepfather ((1987) NOT the sequels which I didn't see) is a masterpiece of psychological horror, suspense and terror.
The entire cast was outstanding but Terry O'Quinn's anodyne homocidal psychopath is a virtuoso performance and Jill Schoelen's suspicious stepdaughter is pitch perfect.
by Anonymous | reply 209 | December 10, 2022 6:26 PM
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Camille Keaton in the original "I Spit on Your Grave."
Jessica Harper in the original "Suspiria."
Julianne Moore in "Safe," which I think director Todd Haynes called "a horror movie of the soul."
by Anonymous | reply 211 | December 10, 2022 6:34 PM
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Demián Bichir in the television series Let the Right One In.
by Anonymous | reply 212 | December 10, 2022 9:05 PM
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Joyce Van Patten in MAME.
by Anonymous | reply 213 | December 10, 2022 9:15 PM
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Gloria Gibson as the old bitch in My Bloody Twat
by Anonymous | reply 214 | December 10, 2022 9:19 PM
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[quote]Joyce Van Patten in MAME.
Enough.
by Anonymous | reply 215 | December 10, 2022 9:59 PM
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Have to agree with R97 about Veronica Cartwright. She took a small supporting role and made it memorable. Of course, she had practice from years before, screaming in "The Birds".
May I also nominate John Malkovich in "In The Line Of Fire" and Alan Arkin in "Wait Until Dark".
by Anonymous | reply 217 | December 11, 2022 1:31 AM
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Maribel Verdú and Ivana Baquero in Pan's Labyrinth.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 218 | December 11, 2022 1:58 AM
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Heather Donahue in The Blair Witch Project
by Anonymous | reply 220 | December 11, 2022 4:58 AM
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[quote]May I also nominate John Malkovich in "In The Line Of Fire" and Alan Arkin in "Wait Until Dark".
On what planet is "In The Line Of Fire" a horror film?
by Anonymous | reply 221 | December 11, 2022 7:56 AM
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Donald Pleasence in Halloween.
by Anonymous | reply 222 | December 11, 2022 11:18 AM
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Helen Lawson in A Chorus Line
by Anonymous | reply 225 | December 11, 2022 9:18 PM
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Helen Lawson in “Not THAT hole, you idiot!”
by Anonymous | reply 226 | December 12, 2022 7:49 PM
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Tippi Hedren in "The Birds"
by Anonymous | reply 227 | December 12, 2022 8:13 PM
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Patricia Arquette in Dream Warriors.
She brought this very innocent, childlike quality to the role.
by Anonymous | reply 228 | December 12, 2022 8:33 PM
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Melanie Griffith, Meg Ryan, and Laura Flint Boyle in "The Face".
by Anonymous | reply 229 | December 15, 2022 12:58 PM
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Tibia Delvecchio in “Make mine well done”.
by Anonymous | reply 230 | December 15, 2022 11:54 PM
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I actually loved Jessica Biel in the 2003 Texas Chainsaw remake. She went way above the call of duty for that kind of underwritten final girl role.
by Anonymous | reply 231 | December 16, 2022 5:25 PM
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Tippy Hedreen in Three Clowns you’re out
by Anonymous | reply 232 | December 16, 2022 9:47 PM
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Jessica Biel was very strong and impressive in the Texas Chainsaw Massacre remake. I really didn't think she had it in her. Not quite Marilyn Burns level, but very few have come close to that level of intensity and realism.
I'd throw in Caroline Williams from Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 as well. She's very believable being terrified and fighting for her life while still having a sweet and fun-loving but "take no shit from anyone" attitude in the first part of the movie. She showed off a lot of range in that movie and was very charismatic and enjoyable to watch.
by Anonymous | reply 233 | December 17, 2022 1:42 AM
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