Cork's Triskel to present horror classics to mark Halloween
Triskel Cinema, renowned for its long-standing tradition of celebrating the Halloween season, is set to present a film series on the theme that promises to thrill audiences.
The programme starts on Thursday, October 30, and features a selection of iconic horror classics.
Chris O’Neill, Head of Cinema at the Triskel, says the venue is perfect for all things horror.
“Horror movies screening at Triskel for the Halloween season have become something of a staple. We started in 2011 by showing , and a mystery late night movie, Lucky McKee’s , and here we are, 14 years later, still going strong. The Triskel is such an interesting venue for horror films. What better place to see them than in a former church?”
This year’s programme runs for two nights, featuring two vampire classics from the 1980s and 1990s: and .
O’Neill describes as great fun and says that music plays a key role in the film.
“Starring Kiefer Sutherland, it was a success at the box office when it was originally released and has developed a cult following over the years. It’s such a fun experience with a great soundtrack. The cover of The Doors’ by Echo And The Bunnymen is a stand-out.”
Directed by Joel Schumacher, is a gleefully anarchic blend of horror, comedy, and teen rebellion - a perfect snapshot of 1980s pop culture with fangs. The film follows brothers Michael (Jason Patric) and Sam Emerson (Corey Haim), who move to the coastal California town of Santa Carla, only to discover it is crawling with vampires.
Michael falls under the spell of the enigmatic David, played with magnetic menace by Sutherland, whose leather-clad gang defines undead cool. The film also features Corey Feldman and Jamison Newlander as the vampire-hunting Frog Brothers, self-proclaimed defenders of humanity.
turned the vampire myth into a neon-lit youth fantasy. Schumacher’s stylish direction, Richard Donner’s production backing, and the “two Coreys” chemistry cemented it as a cult classic that still influences vampire cinema today.
O’Neill says seeing Bram Stoker’s Dracula on the big screen is a must. “Directed by Francis Ford Coppola, it is such a luscious audio-visual experience that it needs to be seen in the cinema, and Gary Oldman gives one of the, if not the, definitive performance of the Count.”
The film is a lavish, operatic reimagining of the classic vampire tale, blending Gothic horror with tragic romance. Oldman is mesmerising as Count Dracula, seamlessly shifting between a monstrous predator and a tormented lover. Winona Ryder plays Mina Murray, the reincarnation of Dracula’s lost wife, whose emotional connection with the Count drives the film’s haunting love story.
Keanu Reeves plays Jonathan Harker, Mina’s devoted fiancé, who is trapped in Dracula’s Transylvanian castle. Anthony Hopkins adds eccentric gravitas as Professor Van Helsing.
Coppola’s direction fills each frame with theatrical excess, featuring lavish costumes, practical effects, and in-camera tricks that evoke the surreal beauty of early cinema. Its production design and Wojciech Kilar’s sweeping score received widespread acclaim, earning Oscars for make-up, costume design, and sound editing.
For October 31, O’Neill has chosen one of the most beloved films of the spooky season, , and a film so far ahead of its time that people believed it was true,
O’Neill says John Carpenter’s original from 1978, starring Jamie Lee Curtis, is synonymous with the scary season and a classic that “still holds up after almost 50 years”.
It tells the story of Michael Myers, infamous for his brutal attacks on unsuspecting victims. This film not only established a successful franchise with 12 additional sequels but also significantly influenced the landscape of horror cinema.
The plot unfolds on Halloween night, as Myers terrorises a small town, culminating in a gripping confrontation with Laurie Strode (Lee Curtis). The film is noted for its intense suspense and thrilling narrative.
Myers’s mask and overalls have been a popular choice at costume parties since the film’s debut, highlighting its lasting impact on popular culture. Halloween achieved remarkable commercial success, grossing $70 million at the box office on a mere $300,000 budget, making it one of the most profitable independent films in cinema history.
In 1999, redefined horror and filmmaking. Directed by Daniel Myrick and Eduardo Sánchez, it follows three student filmmakers, Heather Donahue, Michael C. Williams, and Joshua Leonard, who venture into the Black Hills Forest to document a local legend known as the Blair Witch.
Shot entirely with handheld cameras, its raw, improvised style created an unsettling realism that blurred the line between fiction and reality. Its minimalist approach, combined with a groundbreaking online marketing campaign, convinced many viewers that the footage was genuine, fuelling global fascination and debate.
Made for about $60,000, it became one of the most profitable films ever, grossing over $200 million worldwide.
O’Neill describes as a game-changer. “It cost very little, made an absolute fortune, and launched the ‘found footage’ horror subgenre. Seeing it on the big screen is a different experience from DVD or streaming. Blair Witch’s fake ‘real’ footage has a credibility which makes it really effective and eerie.”
- The Triskel At Halloween season runs on October 30 and 31, see triskelartscentre.ie
