Ed Hardy, Jr of Shoot the Projectionist has published the 12,893 titles that made the final nominating list for 31 Flicks that give you the Willies. Okay, it's not that many, it's actually 181, but damn that's a lot. I sent in my 31 and of course felt like I wanted to re-submit the whole damn thing once I saw the results. It's that title, Flicks that give you the Willies, that threw me off. I wasn't selecting what I thought were the best horror movies ever, or in some cases not even horror movies period, but instead movies that contained moments that creeped me out or to use Ed's words, gave me the willies. As a result, eight of my picks did not make the final cut but given how many different movies there are to vote for I imagine most people had eight or more not make the final cut. I won't bother giving you my entire 31 since 23 are on the nominating list and several are pretty obvious anyway: The Exorcist, The Brood, The Shining and so on. Instead here's the eight that were on my list that did not make the final willies cut over at Ed's with a brief explanation of why they were on my list.
1. Altered States 1980 Directed by Ken Russell and introducing the world to the slightly off-
center acting style of William Hurt (it is impossible to imagine more perfect casting in this role) Altered States has a couple of shots that gave me the willies when I first saw it and still do today. First there's the shot of the proto-human that Dr. Jessup (Hurt) has become chasing the janitor in the basement of the University. Second there's the hallucination sequence with burning bibles and the figure of the Anti-Christ on the cross, complete with a goats head of many eyes and horns. Creepy.
2. Child's Play 1988 Demonic dolls creep me out and since I couldn't do television (Ed the taskmaster and his rules) I couldn't do Talking Tina from the Twilight Zone or the Zuni fetish doll from Trilogy of Terror and since I haven't seen a lot of demonic doll movies otherwise but wanted to include one that left me with Chucky. The moment in the movie that willied me the first time I saw in 1988 was when Catherine Hicks picks up Chucky unaware and demands he talk. That's when his eyes open menacingly and boy does he talk.
3. Deliverance 1972 Directed by John Boorman and starring Ronny Cox, Jon Voight, Ned 
Beatty and Burt Reynolds this film's reputation precedes it. Which is why I was more than a bit surprised it didn't make the cut. Believe me when I tell you that backwoodsmen with shotguns forcing oral sex and fornication with logs on weekend campers gives me the willies. Shiver.
4. Doctor X 1932 I had a feeling this one wouldn't make it but I really enjoy it a lot and the synthetic skin covering Doctor X at the end is creep-a-riffic.
5. Jesus Camp 2006 This is no joke entry. In fact, it would be the only movie on the list that contains characters that actually really do scare me in everyday life. Preaching to children to become warriors to re-claim America for Christ, home schooling their children in anti-science creationist ideologies, viewing sensible, rationale people (you know, people who understand evolution, understand the founding fathers didn't claim the land for Jesus, consider George W. Bush and Richard Cheney menaces to civilization) as evil, or at the very least, the enemy. The little kid Levi who preaches at his dad's cult-house (in the movie they call it a church) about global warming being a liberal fantasy, homosexuality being evil, etc, etc, etc. This whole movie will give you the willies - Trust me.
6. Love Story 1970 Okay, this one's kind of half-joke, half-real. Ali MacGraw's character of 
Jenny is decidedly not the same character from The Getaway. She couldn't die fast enough in this movie for me. The first line of the movie tells you she's going to die, "What can you say about a twenty-five-year-old girl who died?" so when you meet her and she starts calling Ryan O'Neal "prep" every five seconds you immediately think, "Is she twenty-five yet?" Every line that comes out of her mouth in this movie gives me the willies. Making a movie like this means having to say you're sorry every day for the rest of your life.
7.Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory 1971 Little menacing men with orange faces and green hair taunting little children and their parents with "I told you so" songs after their torturous demise. And there weren't two more of 
you out there as creeped out by that as me?
8. Wizard of Oz 1939 Yes, yes I know, like the three preceding it this isn't a horror movie but the list asked for films that gave you the willies. And willies for me as a child is easily defined as blue flying monkeys that gleefully abuse tin men, lions and scarecrows while hauling off a young Kansas girl to her inevitable death at the hands of a Wicked Witch. And if that's not enough for 
you how about sinister talking trees that throw apples at you. This movie has many wonderful moments, but it is also Willie-Filled.
So that's the eight that didn't make it. I look forward to casting my vote but already feel outclassed in the horror genre by so many of the people participating who are horror junkies and know much more about it than me. Still, it should be fun and I may even learn a bit more about the genre beyond the 1980's. And Ed, if some girl named Jenny shows up at your blog calling you "prep" run for you life!
