"Super Castlevania IV" VS "Symphony of the Night"

I love video games, of that there is no secret. Another thing that isn't much of a secret is my love for one franchise in particular: "Castlevania". Since I was a kid with my NES, the "Castlevania" franchise has been a staple in my life, and through the years as the series would evolve (and in some cases, de-evolve), my love for it stayed forever the same.

That being said, I recently got into a debate with someone about what the best game in the whole series is. For a majority of gamers, the clear favorite seems to be "Castlevania: Symphony of the Night", which is a more than worthy choice. For me personally though, and feel free to call me out on this, my all time favorite in the franchise is "Super Castlevania IV".

Yes, you read that right.

Even though both games are part of the same franchise, both are quite different in their own ways. So, I'm going to analyze these two ball-breaking classics for your reading enjoyment. And if you don't know how to read, that's fine too.

"Super Castlevania IV" was released in 1991 as an early title for the then new Super NES. A 16-bit remake of the original NES "Castlevania", this game completely re-worked a lot of the flaws (or charms) of the original games. The awkward jumping mechanics and stair climbing pains in the ass were gone. Instead of only being able to fire your whip in front of you, you could now whip in 8 different directions. In essence, the control was absolutely perfect, which is about the only time in the history of ever you can say that about a fucking "Castlevania" game. Not to mention the fact that the game as a whole is a beautiful sight. It was designed to show off just what the Super NES could do graphically, and it succeeded wonderfully. Every so often I still pop this game in, whether it be the actual Super NES cartridge or the Virtual Console version on my Wii-U. This game is a classic and I always find myself going back to it.

"Castlevania: Symphony of the Night" was released in 1997 for the PS1, and is a direct sequel to the PC Engine "Castlevania: Rondo of Blood" (which was ported over here to the Super NES as "Castlevania: Dracula X"). Instead of playing as one of the Belmont's, you play as Dracula's so Alucard, most notably a playable character from "Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse". Also gone from this installment is the traditional whip-wielding action (until you unlock Richter Belmont that is) which has been replaced by a platforming, RPG-ish "Metroid"-style of gameplay. Now this game was a massive hit when originally released, and helped set the stage for nearly every "Castlevania" game to come after it to adopt the same style, especially ones on portable systems. The hype here is real though, "Symphony of the Night" is an amazing game and truly timeless, but as much as people tend to love it, I've always preferred "Super Castlevania IV" over it for a variety of reasons.

From a personal standpoint, I've never been much of an RPG fan. Don't get me wrong, I've played my share of RPGs and games with RPG elements, but it's rare that I stick with one all throughout that holds my interest. It's also rare for me to want to dedicate that much time and effort and energy into a game as well, whether it was back then or even now. That being said, I did enjoy playing through "Symphony of the Night" and uncovering all the secrets and shitting my pants when the castle was flipped upside down. The boss fights were epic and the voice acting is beautifully awful. That being said, and I'll probably get called out here for being lazy, but navigating through the castle and finding and equipping various items, etc., always seemed kind of troublesome to me. Maybe that's more reflective of the kind of gamer I am as opposed to the game's mechanics, but I digress. "Symphony of the Night" always made me feel like there were ways to cheat a little bit to get around the game and come out on top without requiring too much skill like the "Castlevania" games of the past.

"Super Castlevania IV" on the other hand, has none of that shit. That game is a tried and true whip-wielding action blast that makes you rely on your reflexes and your wits to get through the game. Not to mention the fact that the whole game doesn't take place in the castle (in all honesty, when games in this series take place exclusively in the castle, it puts me off; I miss the graveyards and haunted forests) and really wonderfully illustrates some amazingly gothic environments, which adds to the game's creepiness factor.

To close things up, it's really just personal preference that I prefer "Super Castlevania IV" over "Symphony of the Night". Both games are wonderful and beautiful examples of the franchise at its absolute best. You really can't go wrong with either, and if you've never played either game, or any of the classic "Castlevania" games of years before, you done fucked up and missed out on some of the most just plain awesome, and frequently frustrating, video games to ever see the light of day.

Remembering Christopher Lee

I've always had a lot of love for Christopher Lee. My earliest memory of him I think was his bit part in "Gremlins 2" as the asshole mad scientist that tries to experiment on Gizmo and instead meets a nasty end. After that, I remember seeing him the hilariously awful "Howling II: Your Sister is a Werewolf" on HBO or Cinemax...granted the only reason I really remember that movie is because I was a kid and I saw glorious boobs on display, but that's another story.

Anyway, it was when I got a bit older that I discovered the wonderful world of Hammer horror. Though he was most famous for playing Dracula in a slew of films (beginning with the legendary "Horror of Dracula"), Lee had also played the Frankenstein monster in "Curse of Frankenstein" and even as an undead mummy in "The Mummy"; both of which also from Hammer. Lee didn't stop there though, he did many, many horror productions in the years to come, which would lead to solidifying a legacy that very damn few could ever come close to touching. I mean just think about all the films, other than horror, that Lee was and would be involved in in the years that would follow: "Horror Express", "To the Devil a Daughter", "The Wicker Man", "The Last Unicorn", "The Man with the Golden Gun", "Brides of Fu Manchu", "Sherlock Holmes", "The Gorgon", "1941", "Corpse Bride", plus the "Lord of the Rings" and "The Hobbit" franchises, and the latter two "Star Wars" prequels.

The man could do anything.

In his real life, Lee was a soldier, a Nazi hunter (!), and an all around bad motherfucker. He crafted a heavy metal album in his 80s (!!), and is considered one of the classiest actors to ever grace the horror industry, alongside Vincent Price, and his frequent co-star and best pal Peter Cushing. Now all three have left this mortal coil. There's no more living horror screen legends that could be on par with these men.

I could gush about Lee all damn day if I wanted to, but I won't. Hearing about his death early this morning admittedly fucked me up. Maybe it's because I have such long memories of him from my youth that it feels like another part of the past has bitten the dust, or maybe it's because a true icon of film history has passed away. I really can't say which for certain to be totally honest.

No matter what, Christopher Lee led a great and long life that many of us would and should be envious of. The horror world, the film industry, and the planet as a whole is a worse place without Lee's presence. That being said, his legend and legacy lives on in film, and the reach and impact he's had throughout the decades will likely never come close to being touched by anyone else.

Rest in peace good sir, you deserve it.

The Top 10 Pre-1960s Horror Movies

The horror genre in film has been around practically as long as film itself has existed. Since the silent film era, the horror film has been a mainstay, with the period of the mid-1920s to right before 1960 marking the era of somewhat "classy" horror. I call it classy because a number of horror films from this era made huge bank (for their time), were surefire box office draws, and usually featured headliners such as Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi, Lon Chaney, Vincent Price, Christopher Lee, and Peter Cushing among others. This was when the horror genre seemingly wasn't looked at with as much disdain as it would be in the near future, which kind of marks this era for horror fans as golden age.

So I've managed to compile a list of what I consider the ten best horror films from this pre-1960 era. I know that many purists certainly won't agree with this, and this was terribly difficult to put together considering what all I left off of here. Classic films that didn't make the cut included "The Wolfman", "House on Haunted Hill", "The Mummy", "Frankenstein", "White Zombie", "Invasion of the Body Snatchers", and "Freaks". I also originally intended on including "King Kong" and "Gojira" (aka "Godzilla") on this list, but upon further examination, I decided against it because both of those films are more towards the adventure genre than horror.

Anyway, let's get on with the list. Try not to lynch me after please.



10. THE OLD DARK HOUSE (1932)
Director: James Whale
Starring: Boris Karloff, Charles Laughton, Gloria Stuart

Helmed by the man that brought "Frankenstein" to the big screen, "The Old Dark House" is one of the most terribly underrated films of the era. The story revolves around a group of Welsh travellers seeking shelter during a violent rainstorm, and are taken in by the Femm family in their expansive mansion. It doesn't take too long to figure that there is something seriously wrong with the Femm's, as well as with their mute manservant Morgan (Karloff, who proves here he can be scary and tragic without the Frankenstein monster make up) in particular. Spooky, claustrophobic, and loaded with wonderful atmosphere, "The Old Dark House" is a hidden gem of the era that deserves your attention.



9. THE BLOB (1958)
Director: Irvin S. Yeaworth Jr.
Starring: Steve McQueen, Aneta Corsaut, Earl Rowe

What's the first thing you hear during this film's opening credits? That theme song. That wonderfully hysterical, fucking, theme song. I swear it's a thing of beauty. Anyway, "The Blob" is memorable for a lot of reasons, and not just because Steve fucking McQueen was 27 years old and playing a teenager, but because it's a super enjoyable creature-feature that featured some special effects that were ahead of its time. "The Blob" also has a special place in my heart because it was filmed in Phoenixville, PA. I was born there, and though I didn't live in that exact same area before I departed for Philadelphia years later, for years all I would hear from various neighbors, etc. was that "they made that Blob movie here in the 50s. Steve McQueen was here before he got famous". Call it for the sake of...well, call it whatever you want. I enjoy "The Blob" regardless. Not to mention I enjoy going to the Colonial in Phoenixville every summer for BlobFest. How many movies from this era can say that they inspired an annual celebration/festival in its name?



8. THE THING FROM ANOTHER WORLD (1951)
Director: Howard Hawks (uncredited), Christian Nyby
Starring: James Arness, Kenneth Tobey, Margaret Sheridan

I could talk about this film and everything associated with it for hours. Based on the short story "Who Goes There?", "The Thing From Another World" revolves around a United States Air Force crew along with some scientists in the Arctic that recover a flying saucer and its frozen pilot that have crash landed into the ice. Once dug up and thawed out, the alien being begins wreacking havoc, and the body count rises. Suspenseful and thoroughly entertaining throughout, "The Thing From Another World" isn't perfect by any stretch of the imagination (with a few noticable continuity errors peppered throughout the production), but for its time it has plenty of heart and imagination. This was one of the earliest horror films I ever saw in my youth, so it has a special place in my heart. That, along with its 1982 remake from John Carpenter, which is a classic in its own right, and one of those rare cases where the remake is better than the original.



7. THE ISLAND OF LOST SOULS (1932)
Director: Erle C. Kenton
Starring: Charles Laughton, Richard Arlen, Bela Lugosi

One of the most criminally underrated films of its era, "The Island of Lost Souls" has, in the decades since its release, been reclassified as a classic of the genre. The first film adaptation of H.G. Wells' "The Island of Dr. Moreau", this take on his work wasn't looked upon too well by Wells, critics, or audiences, mostly due to the fact that much of Wells' philosophical musings were overshadowed by the surprisingly visceral horror elements. That aside, "The Island of Lost Souls" is a true piece of art. The makeup effects are good for their time, and the cast is brilliant, in particular genre veteran Charles Laughton as the manical Doctor. The film was released on Blu-ray and DVD from Criterion a year or two ago, which in itself pretty much helps solidify its status as a classic of the genre.



6. HORROR OF DRACULA (1958)
Director: Terrence Fisher
Starring: Christopher Lee, Peter Cushing, Michael Gough

Known just as "Dracula" everywhere else except for the United States, "Horror of Dracula" is the first of the Dracula series from Hammer Films. The legendary British horror studio that churned out numerous beloved genre films for decades, this film took Bram Stoker's novel and ran with it. It's barely faithful to the novel in all honesty, but its gothic atmosphere, beautiful set design, and the perfect casting of genre heavyweights Christopher Lee as Dracula and Peter Cushing as Van Helsing is the icing on the cake. Lee would play Dracula many more times throughout his career, becoming almost as iconic in the role as...well, someone we'll get to later. Anyway, "Horror of Dracula" is my personal favorite Dracula movie, and no I'm not just saying that because this was the first Dracula film to show blood and tits in full color glory.



5. THE CABINET OF DR. CALIGARI (1920)
Director: Robert Wiene
Starring: Conrad Veidt, Werner Krauss, Lil Dagover

One of two films that symbolize German expressionism at its finest (we'll get to the other one soon enough), "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari" is a thing of beauty. Dr. Caligari is a mad hypnotist that uses a man to commit brutal murders. There's much more to the story than that, but revealing more would be doing a disservice. Bold, brilliant, and with one of the very first uses of the "twist ending" in cinema history, "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari" isn't just one of the finest silent horror films ever, it's one of the greatest silent films ever, period. It's also public domain, meaning you have no reason not to see it.



4. HOUSE OF WAX (1953)
Director: Andre de Toth
Starring: Vincent Price, Frank Lovejoy, Charles Bronson

The first color 3D film to be seen nationwide, the classic "House of Wax" sees horror icon Vincent Price at his best. A remake of a 1933 film, "House of Wax" revolves around a talented wax sculptor with some super shady secrets. Chances are you already know without possibly ever actually having seen the film...that's how much of an impact this has had on the horror genre and film in general overall. Price is wonderful; managing to switch from charming and suave to totally fucking creepy with the flick of a switch.



3. NOSFERATU (1922)
Director: F.W. Murnau
Starring: Max Schreck, Gustav von Wangenheim, Greta Schroder

Remember what I said earlier about German expressionism when talking about "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari"? All of that applies to "Nosferatu". When the rights to make an adaptation of "Dracula" couldn't be secured, director F.W. Murnau decided to make an "unauthorized" adaptation of Bram Stoker's novel. Stoker's family sued, and every copy of the film was ordered to be destroyed, yet somehow one print of the film survived. I'm totally serious about that. Read up on the history of the film, you'll shit yourself in astonishment. Anyway, "Nosferatu" follows a lot of the same plot points that "Dracula" laid out, but it's the gorgeous cinematography and the foreboding atmosphere that really make it the classic that it is. To this day, almost a full century later, "Nosferatu" is still haunting.



2. BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN (1935)
Director: James Whale
Starring: Boris Karloff, Colin Clive, Elsa Lanchester

This was difficult. It was almost a toss up between "Bride of Frankenstein" and its 1931 predecessor "Frankenstein", but for me, the sequel wins out. Picking up where the first film left off, The Monster demands his creator to make him a bride. Eventually Doctor Frankenstein complies, and things don't end up going well for anyone really. While it has its share of camp compared to the first film, "Bride of Frankenstein" has much more subtext in terms of being a religious allegory (and not in a positive light), something that was a no-no in this era of Hollywood. Ballsy and ahead of its time, "Bride of Frankenstein" is one of the best films of the classic Universal Monsters lineup...but there's one film from that family that manages to outshine it just a bit...



1. DRACULA (1931)
Director: Tod Browing
Starring: Bela Lugosi, Helen Chandler, David Manners

What can I really say about "Dracula" that hasn't been said about a million fucking times already? Not much honestly. Out of all the classic Universal Monsters films from this era, and the horror films of this era in general, none have had the long-standing impact that "Dracula" has. What makes me say that? Just think about Count fucking Dracula right now. Think about him in your head. What does he look like? Does he look like Christopher Lee? Or Frank Langella? Or Gary Oldman? No, no, and fuck no. When you think of Dracula, you think of Bela Lugosi. It's the classic look that became forever associated with Bram Stoker's character. Those eyes. That voice. The hypnotic performance that Lugosi gives. There hasn't been an iconic performance of Dracula, and perhaps any other movie monster, in all of film history. Boris "Frankenstein" Karloff comes close, but it's Lugosi that makes "Dracula" as memorable as it is. Sure, Tod Browning's direction and the overall atmosphere help make it as epic as it is, but again, it all comes back to Lugosi. All of that combined helps make "Dracula" the best film of this era.


So that's my top 10 horror films pre-1960. Agree? Disagree? Have little to no idea what the fuck I'm talking about? That's okay, some of you may be wondering if I know what the fuck I'm talking about. Regardless, you should check out these films if you've never caught them before. You'll be glad that you did.