

Thursday, 12 April 2018

AtoZ2018 - K is for ... #MovieMonsters #AtoZChallenge

K is for ...

I did consider doing KImmie for K, but that's a bit of an in joke from the Highlander fandom (so many of the evil Immortals' names began with K they became KImmies ;)), so I picked some other monsters instead.

Scariness Rating

The little skulls by their name are my scariness rating as to how monstrous and scary I think the creatures are when seen in their films.
  •  1 skull (not scary at all) - 5 skulls (very scary)
  •  and there is a special rating for a few - 5 red skulls (utterly terrifying)

The Kraken (Clash of the Titans)

When I was a child, Ray Harryhausen films were a staple of any holiday weekend. They always used to be on TV on Saturday afternoon at Easter or Christmas Eve and hence have a place in my heart. One of the great monsters from these movies is the Kraken.

The Kraken is a huge monster, the last of the Titans, capable of destroying a city and killing the people within it. It has four arms and immense strength and is under the command of Poseidon.

At the beginning of Clash of the Titans we see it released to rain down destruction on Argos, where King Acrisius banished his daughter Danae and new born son, Perseus, who happens to be the son of Zeus.

The Kraken is so strong that nothing made by mortal man can stop it. It is a mighty monster.

For me the original Clash of the Titans (1981) is by far the best version. When they remade it I was not impressed by the Kraken at all, or Sam Worthington ;).

Kaiju (Pacific Rim)

Kaiju are giant sea monsters from another dimension. They come in many shapes and have many weapons and humanity's only defence are giant robots called Jaegers.

These monsters stand taller than buildings and have almost impenetrable armour. They are monsters from everyone's worst nightmares.

The Kaiju are also a hive mind. They are genetically engineered monsters designed specifically to come through the Breach to destroy humanity. Over time, the more that arrive, they evolve and become even more dangerous.

Pacific Rim is a fantastic film. It has great effects, great monsters, great robots and a great cast, including Idris Elba, need I say more. It was also directed by Guillermo del Toro who is the best director of monsters out there.

Shiwan Khan (The Shadow)

Shiwan Khan (John Lone) is the baddy in the 1994 comic book movie The Shadow. He is a descendent of Genghis Khan and has his sights on word domination.

Like Lamont Cranston, Khan was a student of the Tulku, a mysterious holy man who's life's work is to rehabilitate evil men and make them warriors for good. He teaches them the ability to cloud people's minds.

Unfortunately, with Khan the Tulku failed. He uses his mental powers to control others and to carryout his plan to hold the world to ransom until they bow to  him. He is a megalomaniac and cares nothing for anyone but himself and his own goals. He kills at will and uses people as he sees fit.

If you haven't seen The Shadow, it is well worth a watch. It is 1930s comic book heroes in film form and is highly enjoyable.

Freddie Kreuger (A Nightmare on Elm Street)

Freddie Kreuger is what nightmares are made of, literally.

Once he was just a man, a child murderer released due to a technicality. Then the parents in the neighbourhood took justice into their own hands and killed him, burning the body in the furnace. But Freddy did not go quietly.

In revenge he haunts the dreams of the children of those who wronged him. He is the mast of dreams and can become anything he wishes in side them. In his normal form he already has knives for fingers, making him deadly. He feeds off his victims' fear, which makes him stronger and stronger.

Freddie Kreuger is to epitome of bad. He is evil to the core. He was evil in life and is worse in death, and no matter how many times he is defeated he just keeps coming back. He is the ultimate monster.

Q:  If you had the ability to "cloud men's minds" what would you do with it? Any K monsters I am missing?

AtoZ List of All Participants


  1. Hari OM
    HAH - no need to cloud men's minds, they do that well enough for themselves! Were it in my power, I'd be getting them to clean up after themselves. You know, rubble, blood... chemical spills...

    I immediately thought of The Kraken Awakes by John Wyndham - not quite where you were aiming - but then I saw you had the Kraken movie, so that will do. Then there has to be the Star Trek reference... Khan Noonian Singh! YAM xx

  2. The only one I have seen is Freddy Krueger (although I had my eyes closed for most of the movie). This is what happens when you are a teen at a friend's house and everyone else wants to watch the video.

  3. Men's minds seem to be clouded already. I haven't seen the movie, "The Shadow" but I have heard umpteen radio episodes of it. His laugh always seems inappropriate.


  4. I’ve only seen Clash of the Titans - I believe it was Ray H’s last film? I haven’t seen the Nightmare films, but as I recall, that actor was in V, a TV series about an invasion of alien lizards wearing human suits, as a NICE alien. In fact, a rather sweet one, who ended the series with a sweet bride who informed him their parents had arranged a marriage between them, only he’d been off helping the humans.

    K is for Robin Klein


  5. I've enjoyed the Freddy Krueger movies since they first started coming out. I went to see all of them in the theater, then later I got the boxed DVD set. The concept of the Nightmare series is so great.

    Arlee Bird
    Tossing It Out

  6. I was sure King Kong would be there, especially impressive in the recent Kong: Skull Island film :-)

  7. I've never watched A Nightmare on Elm Street, but I've always wanted to. I'm going to put it to the top if my list now.

    Kickstarts by The Wanted

  8. I'll stick with the monsters that only have one or two skulls. Melanie's Stories

  9. I'm too scared to watch Nightmare on Elm Street. I have no interest in Pacific Rim but I am sure I will see it one day. I love the original Kracken by Harryhausen. I have seen the remake and it's ok but I love the original. King Kong comes to mind and it really freaked out the people back in 1933.

  10. You're tempting me to check out The Shadow, but there's no way Freddy Kreuger is getting mileage on my eyeballs.

  11. Encountered them all and Mr Kreuger is the scariest. even if King Kong was there.

  12. Hi Tasha - I definitely would be running well away ... just not my scene - and I sincerely hope they don't find me!! Cheers Hilary

  13. Oh yes! Freddie is one of my all time favorites. No other horror monster has amused me and disturbed me in the combination that he has. To me, he never really lost his edge as just as I am laughing, he does something that chills my bones. A true legend.

  14. The Japanese word for films with huge monsters in them is kaiju (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaiju). One of those monsters is King Ghidora.

  15. Freddy is bomb, I'm amazed he didn't rank a 5. Good list!

    Song a Day
    K is for King Parrot

  16. Thanks for clarifying Freddie's backstory -- I was confused and bored for most of the movie.

    Ronel from Ronel the Mythmaker A-Z road-tripping with Everything Writerly: K is for Knowledge

