​With the release of Rob Zombie's new film 'The Lords of Salem', we asked you to help us look back at Rob Zombie's directoral career and discover your favourite film.

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To find out what we thought of 'The Lords of Salem' click the link and read on to find out what you voted as Rob Zombie's greatest film to date.





The Haunted World of El Superbeasto





Among Rob's collective is this rare diamond. A non-horror, crude comedy that has more boobs, profanity and cheese to make 'Viz' look like the Beano. 'The Haunted World of El Superbeasto' is the brainchild of Rob Zombie and comedian Tom Papa and proves that Zombie has a sense of humour after all.





Featuring an all star cast including Rosario Dawson, Tom Papa, Paul Giamatti and Sheri Moon amongst cameos from the likes of Sid Haig, Bill Moseley, Brian Posehn and Ken Foree and more references to horror than the entirity of 'The Cabin in the Woods'.





When Dr Satan seeks to find bride number 23 he finds his eyes glued to the foul mouthed stripper, Miss Von Black (Dawson) and in her own words, "once you turn Black, you never go back... Von Black". But not before Superbeasto grasps sight of her as he attempts to save her from a Dr Satan camper than any previous incarnation.





Throw into the mix saucy sidekick Suzie X (Moon Zombie), Murray the robot (Posehn), Nazi zombies and the greatest ape since King Kong and 'THWOES' is an instant late night classic. Lude, crude and musical numbers to make you want to stay up all night, singing and dancing. 





This is not going to tick everyone's boxes and evidentally is not one of Zombie's standout films due to the subject matter and style but one thing is for sure, the Haunted world is something we need more of. We wan't more 3am films and we want more sex, laughs and Superbeasto...



 

Plot: 3

Fear: 1

Gore: 3

R3/5

Did you know: Not only are there cameo's from 'The Devil's Rejects' and Michael Myers, but also the likes of Jason, Jack Torrence, The Fly and a Xenomorph amongst others are seen throughout



What you said...

 

Kris Box via Facebook - 'El Superbeasto'... What a good film, unique in its own way. The best animated  comedy horror out there with cheeky references to Rob Zombies other films. Enjoyed it!





Halloween

When news hit out that there would be a reboot for the ‘Halloween’ franchise, the boo’s and hisses could be heard through every social network around the world. How can anyone possibly look to equal or better the benchmark horror icon by John Carpenter?

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Opinions soon changed however when Rob Zombie was attached to direct. The musician turned director had already created a cult classic with ‘House of 1000 Corpses’ and its sequel, ‘The Devils Rejects’ had smashed through cinema’s with huge success and proved that Zombie had two career paths to maintain. So what was Zombie going to bring to the franchise?

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Well, in true fashion to his previous works, there would be blood, gore and a deeper story of family bonding (or therefore lack of in this case). The original 1978 classic had relatively no gore but has remained one of the scariest horror films and stood tall as one of the originators of the now infamous slasher sub-genre. Zombie set to change this and kick-start Michael Myers into a 21st century monster and death scenes throughout the film feature neck slicing, caving heads in with a TV and rape scenes. To anyone who’s seen any of his previous films would think that Michael Myers was Otis’ brother.

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This is far from the original yet somehow, by keeping the same story (albeit some extended scenes of Michael’s time in prison) and its core characters, Michael, Dr Sam Loomis (played brilliantly by Malcolm McDowell who is enough to even rival Donald Pleasance) and Laurie Strode (Scout Taylor-Compton) ‘Halloween’ still shows signs of its former self.

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Possibly the biggest criticism for this remake is while it brings the shock and gore firmly for today’s audiences, the film is hardly a new vision as opposed to a homage and with Zombie’s character building and essence for violence, still can’t mask over that the core film is a scene for scene remake of the original. The haunting score is still present but without the tension from Carpenters version, it seems empty.

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On a positive, ‘Halloween’ has managed to remain as a film in its own right unlike the barrage of remakes which still stand in the shadow of their predecessor including ‘Friday the 13th’, ‘The Hills Have Eyes’ and ‘Texas Chainsaw Massacre’. Possibly due to the following and love for its director more than the film, but with number 2, Zombie sets the scene brilliantly with this.



Plot: 3

Fear: 2

Gore: 4​
R3/5​​
 

​Did you know: Like John Carpenter’s reference to ‘The Thing’ in the original, the film shown in the background is ‘White Zombie’, a reference to Zombie’s early career in the band White Zombie.

 

​What you said…​
 

Gary McMahon via Facebook -  My favourites are his Halloween films. Unjustly maligned.





​Halloween 2

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Assembling the same cast and starting where the last film left off albeit a dream sequence, ‘Halloween 2’ holds no memories of the franchise from here. ‘H2’ is where Zombie truly feels at home and does to Michael Myers what he did for the Firefly family with his first duet of flms.

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Scout Taylor-Compton, Malcolm McDowell and Danielle Harris all return to the screen this time fighting a monster who has no limits. The small amount of back story in the prequel now repressed as Michael goes about killing everything and everyone in his path with not one stab to the back but 1,000 as one unbeknownst nurse finds out.

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Opening up with a dream sequence that plays part bridge and part stage setting, Michael escapes once more to seek his sister Laurie to bring the family together.  This time Michael is plagued by visions of his now deceased family seeking him to kill Laurie and make the family complete again. Effectively shot and mood setting as a motive for Michael’s merciless killing spree somehow shows compassion to the Shape.

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Dr Loomis has now become an egocentric celebrity after surviving the original spree of Michael’s and while the original made him the lovable hero with cracks, the cracks have now firmly split open as he seeks to bring down Michael for his own fame and not for the good of saving others.

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The blood shed is placed ten-fold and Zombie’s original sequel allows him to do what he does best, create a world where the unbelievable is believable. Myers becomes the evil we sympathise with and the good guy, Loomis, becomes a monster himself. The same pattern seen across ‘Ho1000C’ and ‘The Devils Rejects’ and an emotion that is hard to come across and Zombie has not done this once, but twice.

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The breakdown between good and evil seen no way other than the gripping climax as Laurie sees her family and leaves the void firmly open for conclusion. A perfect closure as Zombie has admitted to having no involvement in part 3 and a decision that can be backed by his legion of fans. ‘Halloween 2’ may go overkill at times and Laurie may have become an annoying brat since part one, but Zombie confirms he is a director with a vision and one that needs not to be tampered with.



Plot: 4

Fear: 2

Gore: 4​
R4/5​
 

​Did you know: This is Danielle Harris’ fourth entry to the ‘Halloween’ franchise, equalling icon Jamie Lee Curtis.

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​What you said…​
 

Joe Salvaggio via Facebook -  I'd say ‘H2’. I loved his first Halloween seen it 5x in the theaters alone and I absolutely hated ‘H2’ when I seen it opening night, long story short I gave it 3 more shots at the $1 show lol and it got more awesome by the minute each time!!! I've never ever had that happen with a movie! Now it's like my favorite Halloween besides the original/Rob's pt 1!





​House of 1000 Corpses​
 

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The film that started it all. Rob Zombie’s cult classic was not always the brilliant classic it has become. 10 years in the making and various battles with studios including that of much loved horror staple ‘Universal’, ‘Ho1000C’ was almost never made.

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With his own persistence, and budget, it finally hit the ground and thank the heavens it did. Introducing the world to the much loved, and despised, Firefly family, a new icon in the horror genre.

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‘Ho1000C’ blends the loves of Zombie that he has shared for years in the music industry. Horror films and music. Part extended music video, part homage to the video nasty’s of the 70’s and 80’s, the influences are stamped all over it.

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But what makes this separate from the hundreds of 2nd rate copycat films is Zombies power behind a camera. From bizarre cut scenes to the superb choice in music (mostly from Zombie’s own back catalogue) and casting that has rocketed the careers of wife Sheri Moon and Rainn Wilson (‘Super’, ‘The Office’) and reignited that of Bill Moseley (‘Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2’, ‘The Tortured’) and Sid Haig (‘Spider Baby’, ‘Creature’).

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Welcoming Captain Spaulding perfectly cast with Haig and the rest of the psychotic Firefly siblings Baby (Moon-Zombie), Otis (Moseley), Mother (Karen Black) and the gentle Tiny (Matthew McGrory), the violence seen over the next 90 minutes is both sickening and near the knuckle to almost being banned.

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Unbeknownst, the Firefly family are like childs play compared to the lair that beneaths the house. Occupied by Dr. Satan and his experiments, this truly turns the film into something else, a creature feature of sorts blending sub-genre in a way unexpected. Truly a house of 1,000 reanimated corpses.

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To say this film contains scenes of graphic violence would be an understatement. ‘Ho1000C’ needs a warning of its own. It will rip you in two, spit in your guts and sew you together and keep you as a mannequin. One standout scene sees a cop find his daughter amongst other mutilated in a garage, soon begins a shootout and with Frank Ifield’s ‘I Remember You’ playing throughout, the harrowing beg for mercy ends in anything but. Marrying both Zombie’s skills as a director, not only of the narcotic violence that takes place but upon every detail from sound to make-up.

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‘…Corpses’ is both gruesome and in parts hilarious due to the fantastic script and ensemble that make this low budget film a success and puts it high amongst the ranks of the hillbilly genre that includes the likes of Tobe Hooper’s ‘Texas Chainsaw Massacre’ and Wes Craven’s ‘The Hills Have Eyes’. A flawless debut that holds charm and infinite viewing pleasure.
 

Plot: 3

Fear: 4

Gore: 5​
R5/5​
 

​Did you know: Despite being declined by Universal for fear it would be given an ‘NC-17’ (18) rating, the film was turned into a haunted house at the Universal Horror Nights 2010.
 

​What you said…​
 

Ben Anderson @horrorholic76 - 'House of 1000 Corpses' as it’s his best one yet, his other films are OK but that's the let down with them they are just OK I always hope they are going to be so much more.

Paul A Donaldson via Facebook -  Loved ‘House of 1000 Corpses’ and ‘The Devils Rejects’, but have not seen his ‘Halloween’ films and really don't fancy them. Maybe one day I'll check them out, the originals can't be beaten in my eyes, but really like the look at ‘The Lords of Salem’. He should just stick to original material instead of messing with horror classics you can't improve on perfection.





The Devil’s Rejects

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We asked and you have chosen, your greatest Rob Zombie film is ‘The Devil’s Rejects’. With its fine cast, story, unstoppable boundaries of gore and torture, it is no surprise why Zombie’s second film has set the benchmark for not only his career, but for extreme violence at the cinema.

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Continuing where ‘House of 1000 Corpses’ left off, ‘…Rejects’ opens with a bang, a police raid on the Firefly family’s home sees the vengeful brother of deceased cop Wydell who met his grissly end in part one, chasing down those responsible and looking for more than a cell to put them in. The hunters have now become the hunted in a turn of events that sees the bad guys turn sympathy seeking and the good guys turn sinister.

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The returning cast (minus Karen Black who is replaced by Leslie Easterbrook as Mother Firefly) change tone as with the style. Gone are the haberdashery cut scenes and in comes a full blown, big budgeted family drama that proves to be more brutal, more realistic and more in your face shocking than you could ever imagine from ‘House…’

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The humour is reduced to mere quips as the tension between cat and mouse gets tighter. William Forsythe as the penetrating and dark Sheriff Wydell removes any line between good and evil as his quest to seek justice for the death of his brother turns into a nemesis to reckon with for the Firefly family.

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Zombie manages to strip any recollection of its predecessor but story as this realistically shot portrayal of senseless violence and the breakdown of a family that have been in their comfort of sadistic murder for years comes to a dramatic end. The song ‘Freebird’ by Lynyrd Skynyrd has never been the same since and never have tears flowed for a film that sees face transplants, necrophilia and enough gore to keep a butcher happy. ‘Titanic’ can eat it’s heart out.

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Once again, this may be a sequel but Zombie has proved that a sequel needn’t be a reimaging or the same all over again like many other franchises’. While cutting the franchise short all but for a mini comic and additions to his animated feature ‘The Haunted World of El Superbeasto’, The Firefly family will be forever remembered for their adventures in two completely different films that play opposite yet fit so firmly together.



Plot: 4

Fear: 4

Gore: 5

R5/5

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Did you know: Dr Satan was set to return in ‘The Devil’s Rejects’ but Zombie said he felt uncomfortable having him in the film, saying that the character would seem too out of place given the drastically different tone of the two movies. A Dr. Satan scene was shot and according to Rob Zombie's commentary on the DVD, he was wounded in the opening shootout and was taken away to a hospital. A nurse (played by Rosario Dawson) checks the doctor, now in a coma, when suddenly he awakes, grabs her throat and brutally tears it open before collapsing back onto the bed and possibly dying.

 

What you said…



Gabriel Campbell @gabs1974 – (It) still has to be ‘The Devils Rejects’ just for the realism of the brutality, violence & lack of disrespect for human life. Awesome



Luke Morris @murdermaniac7 – ‘The Devil's Rejects’, cause it was more sinister and messed up, the guy is a genius in film and music



Jade @xZombiexxx6 – ‘The Devils Rejects’! The close family bond between the 'bad guys'. A nice sneak peek into the workings of a 'psychotic' family.



Paul Simpson via Facebook – ‘The Devils Rejects’ *echo* like a very dark, brought to life comic book...where you are compelled to side with the bad guys! Great, great ending too and awesome playback potential

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