Influential Movies

John Carpenter deserves a special mention before proceeding with the list, because I found myself revisiting many of his films during the summer that I wrote the bulk of the lyrics on Ashes. I also (re)watched the entire Halloween franchise, which put me in the headspace to work on Ecstasies. These films have probably been more influential to me than anything, even though my music isn't at all a direct response to them. His music has been important to me, too.

I don't have a page for television, and I don't follow a lot of shows, but I grew up watching Are You Afraid of the Dark?, Batman: The Animated Series, Freaky Stories, Gargoyles, Goosebumps, and other spooky programs.

Sometimes I watch Public Domain movies courtesy of the Internet Archive.

Anyway, on with the list...

  • Trainspotting, dir. Danny Boyle (1996)
  • Hamlet, dir. Kenneth Branagh (1996)
  • Dracula, dir. Tod Browning (1931)
  • Batman Returns, dir. Tim Burton (1992)
  • House on Haunted Hill, dir. William Castle (1959)
  • The Handmaiden, dir. Park Chan-Wook (2016)
  • The Orphic Trilogy, dir. Jean Cocteau (1930, 1950, 1959)
  • Rumble Fish, dir. Francis Ford Coppola (1983)
  • The Virgin Suicides, dir. Sofia Coppola (1999)
  • Control, dir. Anton Corbijn (2007)
  • Naked Lunch, dir. David Cronenberg (1991)
  • Y tu mamá también, dir. Alfonso Cuarón (2001)
  • The Passion of Joan of Arc, dir. Carl Theodor Dreyer (1928)
  • The VVitch, dir. Robert Eggers (2015)
  • The Exorcist, dir. William Friedkin (1973)
  • Pierrot le Fou, dir. Jean-Luc Godard (1965)
  • Suspiria, dir. Luca Guadagnino (2018)
  • Carnival of Souls, dir. Herk Harvey (1962)
  • Nosferatu the Vampyr, dir. Werner Herzog (1979)
  • The Warriors, dir. Walter Hill (1979)
  • The Secret Garden, dir. Agnieszka Holland (1993)
  • Biutiful, dir. Alejandro González Iñárritu (2010)
  • Heavenly Creatures, dir. Peter Jackson (1994)
  • Interview With the Vampire, dir. Neil Jordan (1994)
  • In the Mood For Love, dir. Wong Kar-wai (2000)
  • On the Waterfront, dir. Elia Kazan (1954)
  • Donnie Darko, dir. Richard Kelly (2001)
  • Eyes Wide Shut, dir. Stanley Kubrick (1999)
  • Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me, dir. David Lynch (1992)
  • The Thin Red Line, dir. Terence Malick (1998)
  • Girl, Interrupted, dir. James Mangold (1999)
  • The City of the Dead, dir. John Moxley (1960)
  • Blade, dir. Stephen Norrington (1998)
  • The Red Shoes, dir. Michael Powell & Emeric Pressburger (1948)
  • Drive, dir. Nicolas Winding Refn (2011)
  • The Man Who Fell to Earth, dir. Nicolas Roeg (1976)
  • Night of the Living Dead, dir. George A. Romero (1968)
  • Cool Hand Luke, dir. Stuart Rosenberg (1967)
  • The Lost Boys, dir. Joel Schumacher (1987)
  • Taxi Driver, dir. Martin Scorsese (1976)
  • Blade Runner, dir. Ridley Scott (1982)
  • Elvira: Mistress of the Dark, dir. James Signorelli (1988)
  • Stalker, dir. Andrei Tarkovsky (1979)
  • Good Will Hunting, dir. Gus Van Sant (1997)
  • Cléo de 5 à 7, dir. Agnès Varda (1962)
  • Dead Poets Society, dir. Peter Weir (1989)

Last revised 2025-08-19

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