Month: October 2022

31 Scary Movies that are 6 Degrees of Kevin Bacon: ‘The Hand that Rocks the Cradle’

Jeff Mitchell

“The Hand That Rocks The Cradle” (1992) – Director Curtis Hanson’s thriller features an unusual antagonist: a nanny.  This particular sitter, Peyton Flanders (Rebecca De Mornay) – hired by Claire and Michael Bartel (Annabella Sciorra and Matt McCoy) to help watch their two small children – is, unbeknownst to them, horribly cruel. There’s a method to Peyton’s madness and for targeting the Bartels.  With her seemingly sweet demeanor and good looks, she’s fooled them quite well. Perfecting the art of manipulation, Peyton makes small maneuvers to cause havoc at the…

31 Scary Movies that are 6 Degrees of Kevin Bacon: ‘The Last House on the Left’

Jeff Mitchell

“The Last House on the Left” (1972) – Director/co-writer Wes Craven’s sordid, low-budget slasher flick is ugly and violent.  It features the worst in our society without filter or censorship, and with his documentary-like style choices, “The Last House on the Left” successfully delivers its intended shocks. Craven’s film is certainly not for everyone, but its influence can be felt on the genre, and look to “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre” (1974) and “The Evil Dead” (1981) as prime examples. As the movie begins, life seems to be going swell for…

31 Scary Movies that are 6 Degrees of Kevin Bacon: ‘Road Games’

Jeff Mitchell

“Road Games” (1981) – A serial killer is on the loose in Western Australia, and an American truck driver (Stacy Keach) may have spotted him in Richard Franklin’s (“Psycho II” (1983)) thriller, a movie that feels like “Duel” (1971) meets “The Hitcher” (1986).  This movie’s pace doesn’t move as quickly as the said films, but Franklin gives Keach lots of screen time, as Pat Quid (Keach) delivers frequent monologues to his pet dingo, and scream queen Jamie Lee Curtis travels to the land Down Under to play a hitchhiker who…