Well, alright, maybe not so twisted -- but, then again....
In delving into horror and splatterpunk on this site. However, I feel we'd be leaving out a ton of fun if we skipped over some of the best movies. As you know, many books are turned into movies (how many mini series' and movies have come from Stephen King books?).
Anyway, when I think of psychological movies that are "horror-ish* -- the one that had an ending that stumped me or just was twisted enough that I still say "Damn, that was a great movie" -- only a small number come to mind.
Yes, there are spoilers below. How else would I explain why I thought they were great? So, if you don't want the movie ending spoiled -- just read the title, ignore the other words and move down to the next number.
What are they? Read on. Here is #5 of my top 5 (these are older, I'll hit on some newer ones after these
Yes, I know. It's really old. But, some of my favorite writers are long deceased (Edgar Allen Poe -- Fyodor Dostoevsky, etc), so why can't I enjoy an occasional really old movie?
Plot Summary from IMDB
Francis, a young man, recalls in his memory the horrible experiences he and his fiancée Jane recently went through. It is the annual fair in Holstenwall. Francis and his friend Alan visit The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, an exhibit where the mysterious doctor shows the somnambulist Cesare, and awakens him for some moments from his death-like sleep. When Alan asks Cesare about his future, Cesare answers that he will die before dawn. The next morning Alan is found dead. Francis suspects Cesare of being the murderer, and starts spying on him and Dr. Caligari. The following night Cesare is going to stab Jane in her bed, but softens when he sees the beautiful woman, and instead of committing another murder, he abducts her. Jane's father awakens because of the noise, and he and some servants follow the fleeing Cesare. When Cesare cannot outrun his pursuers anymore, he gently places Jane down on the ground, and runs away. Francis and the police investigate the caravan of Dr. Caligari, but the doctor succeeds in slipping away. Francis pursues the fleeing Dr. Caligari, and sees him disappear into a madhouse. Francis enters the madhouse, where he is sure he will find the truth behind all these mysterious events.
SPOILER - Why it's on my list:
(blurb below from IMDB)
The twist ending reveals that all of the flashback is actually Francis delusion, symbolized in the film by the distorted buildings and landscapes. Francis, Jane and Cesare are all inmates of the insane asylum, and the man he calls Caligari is the asylum director. The director, after this revelation of the sources of his patient's delusion, says that now he should be able to cure Francis.
So, this whole movie, I'm trying to decide the who. Who is doing this stuff? This movie tricked me pretty well, especially for an old movie -- who'd have thought it had it in it? This makes a lot of the newer psychological horror type movies seem pathetic...to think, this was done without all of today's knowledge and technology. Brilliant.
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