MeFi Horror Club #12: The Changeling

August 29, 2014 10:50 PM

This week's pick is what I think is one of the best horror movies ever, "The Changeling".

Peter Medak's 1980 haunting movie, starring George C. Scott, is for some reason not as widely known as it should be, but DirtyOldTown let me pick this week's movie, and now there's no escape. It's available on Google Play for rental, but it's also on YouTube in quite good quality. Go get profoundly creeped out now!

posted by Joakim Ziegler (7 comments total)

I rented this movie from Netflix because this comment on the blue intrigued me. It's very much about the horror of permanent loss, or perhaps the horror of having to go on without those you love.

I think the worst part is when he goes up to that room in the attic, and the way the sound effects are used to suggest rather than show.

And later, when he has his lady friend over and they're discussing it and she says something like, "I'd like to see it." OH OF COURSE YOU DO. More scariness ensues.

It feels a bit more dated than other horror movies do like, say, The Omen or The Exorcist, I don't think it's aged as well. But still some really good old-fashioned scary moments without using CGI.
posted by joseph conrad is fully awesome at 12:32 AM on August 30, 2014

We're supposed to discuss the movie itself on the Wednesday non-talk post, but I'm looking forward to it, joseph conrad is fully awesome. It's been a few years since I saw it last, and I'm curious to see how it held up. The last time I didn't think it felt dated, beyond the setting itself.
posted by Joakim Ziegler at 12:04 PM on August 30, 2014 [2 favorites]

Whoops - I had a sleepless night, got up and saw your post and commented - I didn't notice this was under "FanFare TALK".

It might be good to have a more prominent header at the top to differentiate between a "Talk" post and a "FanFare" regular post.
posted by joseph conrad is fully awesome at 9:43 PM on August 31, 2014

(but it was my mistake)
posted by joseph conrad is fully awesome at 9:43 PM on August 31, 2014

I agree, it can be hard to tell.
posted by Joakim Ziegler at 4:41 AM on September 1, 2014

This is an excellent choice. Terrific, understated, underseen film.
posted by maxsparber at 10:56 AM on September 2, 2014 [2 favorites]

One of my faves, too. I first saw this as a teenager, and I lived in the basement of my house near the furnace. After seeing this, anytime the furnace turned on at night while I was in bed I got creeped out cuz it made a noise and OMG what if its ______.
posted by Hoopo at 1:27 PM on September 3, 2014 [1 favorite]