4. The Beyond (1981)
Now I don't have a clue what the Beyond is about. It is in my DVD collection and I have watched it numerous times because I enjoy the sheer visual spectacle of it. But ask me to explain the plot? I have no idea. Nevertheless, this is probably Fulci's highest regarded film. It has a massive following among fans of Italian horror films and its cult grows with each passing year. As far as I can discern, renovations in an old hotel have reactivated one of the doors to hell. Out pop face eating tarantulas and reanimated corpses a go go. In the most impressive sequence in the end we are dealt guess what? Another bleak Fulci ending as the hero and heroine are trapped in some kind of nightmarish hell - a bleak wasteland covered in bodies. They go blind and fade away... Fulci deliberately set out with The Beyond to make a non linear movie about the melding between the Dead and the Living. The film is remarkably restrained for having so many zombies. There is less chowing down on corpses and more supernatural shenanigans. This is Lucio going deep folks! It is this eclectic metaphysical approach that has won the Beyond so many fans. Its dreamlike quality seems to mesmerise the viewer and induce a big thumbs up for Fulci.