Subscribe to ListverseYour View: What is the Best Horror Movie?
- Published February 27, 2008 - 447 Comments
We all love to get frightened from time to time and as a result, some of the earliest films made were horror movies. You can be certain that every year Hollywood will bring out some new form of terror to shock us in the theaters. Sometimes they achieve their goal – other times we are left with a pile of junk. With this post we are going to uncover the best horror movie of all time.
When you give us your view, try to tell us why you have chosen the particular film, and also, as a secondary question, tell us what style of horror is best – for example, psychological horror (with little or no blood) or slasher films. Tell us why you think one is superior to the other.
What is the best horror movie ever made?
My answer is The Exorcist – My reason for this is that the film doesn’t rely on cheap bloody tricks or fright tactics to make you jump – it simply shows you a situation that makes us all afraid – the concept of the devil existing, meaning Hell existing and the fact that we may end up there for all eternity. This film had brilliant ambience, brilliant acting (which is still relevant today) and had guidance from real Catholic Priests to make sure it was at least true to the rituals portrayed. At some point I will do a top 10 Exorcist trivia list because there is some great stuff that happened behind the scenes that many people are unaware of.
February 27th, 2008 at 3:40 pm
I liked Stephen King’s It. SCARY CLOWNS…NEVER GOING TO THE CIRCUS AGAIN!!!!!!!!!!
February 27th, 2008 at 3:41 pm
My pick for the best is also the exorcist for the same reasons as Jamie had, if you ask me, phycological horror films are the best because slasher flicks make you jump and you foret it the enxt day, but phycological horror films stick with you and truly scare you.
February 27th, 2008 at 3:41 pm
That’s a toughie! Hmmm, it’s a tie. . . Alien and Jaws.
February 27th, 2008 at 3:42 pm
Night of the Living Dead…. you can’t ignore the classic
February 27th, 2008 at 3:43 pm
It would be my second pick Doris, and that movie made me terrified of clowns forever.
jfrater: did you take my idea for this or did you get several requests?
February 27th, 2008 at 3:43 pm
I’ve got a couple:
American Werewolf in London! Man! I can’t believe I saw it as a kid! I will NEVER walk on the English moors at night during a full moon! EVER!!
Alien! In space no one can hear you scream. But you could certainly feel that freshly sprayed urine getting cold in you space suit after a while…
February 27th, 2008 at 3:44 pm
Psycho – brilliant imagery and symbolism and definitely unforgettable. Also, who is not still haunted by Anthony Perkins’ performance. “…but she didn’t fool my mother.”
February 27th, 2008 at 3:45 pm
Oh, you are on the ball about that one Jamie! I am not big on horror movies I am the first to admit that, but the scene where she backward crabwalks down the stairs… oh JESUS!! I didn’t think I’d ever be able to sleep again!
February 27th, 2008 at 3:46 pm
Audition. or Hostel
February 27th, 2008 at 3:46 pm
anderi: LOL! i thought the same thing when i saw that tagline!
wahoowah: yes a classic, but it was more of a gore film and after a while you weren’t scared, but the exorcist still scares me today.
February 27th, 2008 at 3:51 pm
IT by far!
February 27th, 2008 at 3:53 pm
Psyco is definately my #2 of all-time horror movies, well heres my top 10
1)The Exorcist
2)Psyco
3)Jaws
4)Night of the Living Dead
5)The Texas Chainsaw Massacre
6)Nightmare On Elm Street
7)Friday the 13th
8)Hostel
9)The Prince of Darkness
10)Saw-the whole series (the ways of killing are just awesome to watch!)
i could watch these only in the daytime, never at night.
and my only notable mention would be The Hills Have Eyes
February 27th, 2008 at 3:54 pm
oh and IT, sorry i forgot to mention it.
February 27th, 2008 at 3:55 pm
First, before you yell at me I have seen a TONNNN of scary movies, OLD scary movies included.
BUT I like Silent Hill. I have no idea why. I think the plot was good and not confusing. The special affects were not overdone. I like the Exorcist it was pretty good and scared me a bit when I first saw it (when I was in kindergarden) but now its just something I watch when I’m bored.
February 27th, 2008 at 3:56 pm
I liked American Werewolf too.
I gotta say, at the time The Blair Witch thing was friggen creepy as hell. I even knew it was a hoax, but I was creeped out for weeks after I watch that.
And I’m an absolute sucker for the old Hammar studio Dracula stuff.
February 27th, 2008 at 3:56 pm
Plus i just noticed this (forgive me if you think im spamming!) everytime you ask someone about IT here is the usual conversation
“Dude, have you seen IT?”
“seen what?”
“IT!”
“WHAT!?!”
“The movie with the goddamn clown you tard!”
February 27th, 2008 at 3:57 pm
Night of the Living dead, the original of course. After that, either Psycho or The Evil Dead.
February 27th, 2008 at 3:57 pm
Rob Zombie’s Halloween. I just saw that for the first time a few months ago and that movie was great. A lot better than the original
It, is also a great movie.
And in the more along real life lines: Silence of the Lambs
February 27th, 2008 at 4:04 pm
Social – I was just going to come here and post about that crabwalk. Something about that just creeped me the hell out.
That said, I prefer two movies to The Exorcist. The Shining, and Halloween.
The Shining is just great for so many reasons, and the only time I’ve literally screamed out loud during a movie was when the Cook comes back, and is walking down that hallway… I won’t spoil it for anyone, but man, is that movie scary. It is also just a good film, which helps.
Halloween is my other favorite. I think it is because all Mike Myers has to do is STAND there and I get freaked out. The scene where the girls are walking home, and he is standing by the bush, then just disappears… That is a “gives me the willies” scene, there should be a picture of that scene next to “willies” in the dictionary
I can’t stand movies that go by, more blood more scary… It was cool back in the Friday the 13th days, and at least Alien has a good reason for it (an alien popping out of someone’s chest was an awesome scare), but movies like Saw and Hostel look gross and scary. Maybe I could get behind the originals as semi unique, but sequels? no thanks.
February 27th, 2008 at 4:05 pm
28 days later and 28 weeks later are kinda tied but if i had to chose one i’d say 28 weeks
February 27th, 2008 at 4:12 pm
Edit: Sorry, that should be “more gross than scary” rather than “gross and scary”
February 27th, 2008 at 4:15 pm
I liked the japanese guinea pig films; the devils experiment, flowers of flesh and blood, he never dies, mermaid in the manhole, android of notre dame & devil woman doctor. they can be a bit cheesy at times, but they have really good effects made using simple techniques.
Flowers of flesh and blood is possibly the most convincing horror movie, it was even investigated after its release, after Charlie Sheen was convinced it was a real snuff film!
ichi the killer and suicide circle (suicide club) are from japan too, and i reccommend them to people who like a bit of gore :]
February 27th, 2008 at 4:23 pm
i collect horror movies so i have a seen a lot of them, in no particular order
exorcist – many of the same reasons listed above
Dawn of the dead remake – just found it a great all around movie
28 days/weeks later – helicopter zombie seen has to be one of the most gore filled scenes in horror.
silent hill – easily one of the best videogame movie ports and pyrmaid dude is scary as hell, human skin rip was great
Texas chainsaw remake – found it quite intense and better than the original
jason goes to hell – love the twist at the end and one of the btter in the series
saw series – reivented the horror movie
village of the damned remake – loved it as a kid and quite and original movie.
soooooooo many more i susect this wont be my only post
February 27th, 2008 at 4:24 pm
“The Bride of Frankenstein” is the greatest horror movie of all time. James Whale was a genius, and Boris Karloff was a fantastic actor.
The greatest latter-day Horror film is “Halloween”—John Carpenter’s original… and ONLY the original. No sequels, no reboots.
Slasher films are NOT horror films. Slasher films are slasher films.
Horror requires an element of the supernatural. Serial killers are not supernatural (even if sometimes they seem superhuman in the movies) they are simply disgusting human monsters, and our fascination with them is indicative of a sickness in our society.
Horror doesn’t have to be gross or filled with blood… it’s about eeriness and other-worldliness… being pitched out of yourself into a nightmare world.
February 27th, 2008 at 4:27 pm
Gore has its place, but I prefer psychological. Jaws still scares the bejesus out of me, and is probably the main reason I still don’t go in the water past my knees..LOL!
Horror has always been my fave genre for movies and books, so I love all the old-school movies and find it hard to pick one I think is the best. Poltergeist has always been a favourite though. Trilogy of Terror (for making little girls scream in the middle of the night at a slumber party); The Exorcist; The Omen; the old Dracula movies…..the list goes on.
February 27th, 2008 at 4:28 pm
IT. Silent Hill. Candyman. They freaked, me out! Still to this day, “We all float down here!” Makes me shiver, and not in a good way. I am Legend may not have been horror, but I was pretty freaked after watching. And 30 days of night. And Bubba Ho-Tep
-Andrea Carlena Beauman
February 27th, 2008 at 4:30 pm
But Randall can you really have Halloween without Halloween 2?
February 27th, 2008 at 4:30 pm
the shining, night of the living dead, un chien andalou, and any frightening lynch film.
February 27th, 2008 at 4:33 pm
Mike Myers scares me too. . . especially in those Wayne’s World movies. . . *shudders
February 27th, 2008 at 4:37 pm
Alien
The Descent
Hellraiser
Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me
The Mist
“IT” was not scary, it made me giggle like a little girl.
February 27th, 2008 at 4:37 pm
anthony p:
Why the hell not?
Why do we always need sequels to everything? “Halloween” ended perfectly. Michael Myers was shot repeatedly and fell from a window. Then he was gone. What was he? Was he even really there to begin with? What monstrous nightmare has this been?
End of story. Nothing needed after. No follow-ups, no explanations. “Halloween” was complete.
Sequels can spoil a good, contained story, a good scare. Nightmares don’t have sequels.
Which is not to say that all sequels are bad–I presented a sequel as the greatest horror film of all time (Bride of Frankenstein) but that’s because it was a rare case of the sequel being better than the original.
Halloween, though, was flawless. Why do we need to try to “add” to something that’s done, flawless, needs no further elucidation?
February 27th, 2008 at 4:38 pm
i laughed at the end of night of the living dead…i wont spoil it but i wanna know if anyone else found it funny.
the exorcist the beggining when the kid gets eaten by ummmm whatever it was that ate him scared the shit out of me, to the point where i went over and over again with the slow mo
February 27th, 2008 at 4:38 pm
The end of the Blair witch project is pretty damn scary, I love the Aliens series Oh! and nobodys mentioned the original Chainsaw massacre, so drab and simple. Has anyone seen a movie called ‘May’, theres a weird one.
February 27th, 2008 at 4:41 pm
anthony p:
And anthony–I see you collect horror films… so do I. Though clearly our tastes are different. I don’t consider “Saw” or any of its sequels to be horror. They’re simply tense kill-flicks.
I’ve got a collection of horror films going back to the silent era, and up to the Universal and Hammer years, and on to things like the original “The Wicker Man” and such… and everything in between. Horror films are one of my big loves… but I’ve never been impressed by blood-and-gore films. To me, as I said—horror has to have the element of the supernatural about it. The weird, the nightmarish.
February 27th, 2008 at 4:41 pm
chucky. I havent seen too many scary movies [[well too many GOOD scary movies]] well maybe chuckies just extremely scary for me cause of an extreme fear of dolls. I dunno. But thats one movie i couldnt even get through the whole thing, and I watched it like 6 years ago and Im still scared at night haha
February 27th, 2008 at 4:44 pm
childsplay was a great horror filmed which by the end of the series was very much horror/comedy i think nightmare on elm street went a bit down the same path and then there was halloween resurection which was just a joke full stop.
I really need to stop posting now i must be starting to get to people.
February 27th, 2008 at 4:45 pm
The Exorcist terrified me as a kid. Plus I think it portrays worldwide fear, as in the devil, and we are powerless against it. “IT” was also freaky, especially the idea that nobody can see it but the kids. I also thought The Ring was visually effective in scaring us all and making us jump.
All in all I think psychological fright is way worse that anything.
February 27th, 2008 at 4:46 pm
Laure, I believe i mentioned the Chainsaw Massacre in my top 10 thank you very much
Randall: I whole heartedly agree on the sequel thing, great horror films like the exorcist were ruined by their sequels, a few good examples are Friday the 13th and A nightmare on Elm Street, Both ended perfectly on their first movie and were ruined by their way shitty sequels.
February 27th, 2008 at 4:49 pm
I wouldn’t include Chucky to all of you who mentioned it, it got ruined by its bad sequels, the only true good horror film with sequels was Saw because each sequel had a good plot and great ways of killing in each one.
February 27th, 2008 at 4:54 pm
Hey what about What Lies Beneath, I quite liked that even though it’s less “horror” and more “supernatural thriller” but still it’s on my top ten. Others are probably Ju On, I agree with Silent Hill, but also The Hills Have Eyes and, I feel this one’s under-rated, but I quite liked Last Winter, it reminded me of the novel “White” by Marie Darrieussecq. It had similarities.
February 27th, 2008 at 4:55 pm
Oooh and I almost forgot, “30 Days of Night.”
February 27th, 2008 at 4:56 pm
I love horror, I dislike slasher films. Hostel? How could that be anyone’s favorite? Even my oh so jaded teenagers thought it awful. Want graphic blood and guts? Go read crime library or watch the news. Personally I loved The Exorcist,Aliens (Ripley kicks ass), The Shining, John Carpenter’s The Thing (maybe not horror, but scary), I even have fond memories of old Vincent Price Movies; The House on Haunted Hill etc. New horror; I actually liked Silent Hill, and the one with J-Lo where she does the mind meld thing with the psycho…The Cell
Oh and the original Halloween, and the 3 part one (I know it was made for TV) with Karen Black,,,Terror Trilogy I think…
February 27th, 2008 at 4:57 pm
The Blair Witch Project
Audition
Imprint – banned episode from masters of horror
Guinea Pig: Flowers of Flesh and Blood
The Devil’s Rejects
February 27th, 2008 at 5:00 pm
I think without a doubt John Carpenter makes some of the best films that can scare the shit out of you and they are not considered a horror film, like The Thing, because you don’t know if the thing died at the end.
February 27th, 2008 at 5:00 pm
The best horror movie ever made was “Attack of the Website that Tried to Get it’s Readers to Create Content for it.”
February 27th, 2008 at 5:01 pm
Chucky? Did someone mention Chucky? Chucky . . . Yeah, Chucky should be mentioned on the same level as The Exorcist. Jeez while your at it, why don’t you just throw in The Toxic Avenger.
WTF people, this is the best horror movie, not the shittiest. Go back to your coloring book and you can have a juice box with your bowl of raisons.
February 27th, 2008 at 5:06 pm
oh bugger i forgot all about the hills have eyes, love when the guy just kinda snaps and starts killing all the mutants and everyone was clapping for the dog.
the thing was great
house of 1000 corpses was really messes up and i enjoy rob zombies style of film making.
Blairwitch scared the begesus out of me but it gave me a headache as well
February 27th, 2008 at 5:10 pm
the halloween series scared the crap out of me. when i was in fourth grade i always used to picture michael myers in my closet waiting until i fell asleep.
bucslim: the chucky movies were scary but they got worse over time like all the great horror series
by the way, the exorcist wasn’t scary at all. my mom showed it to me and my friend when we were twelve and we ended up laughing at it. as for the whole “its scary because it makes you believe in the devil” concept, i already believed in the devil so that didnt scare me at all.
February 27th, 2008 at 5:10 pm
i suppose it depends on your interpretation of horro movie and its best not scariest, silence of the lambs anybody or does that fall under thriller?
February 27th, 2008 at 5:11 pm
i suppose it depends on your interpretation of horror movie and its best not scariest, silence of the lambs anybody or does that fall under thriller?
February 27th, 2008 at 5:11 pm
Mom:
You are a woman after my own heart…
February 27th, 2008 at 5:12 pm
Silence of the Lambs is not horror. It’s a thriller.
February 27th, 2008 at 5:13 pm
Randall I agree about the sequels and haven’t watched most of them myself, however I thought that Rob Zombie’s Halloween was pretty good.
I liked that he took us back to the beginning of Micheal’s killing career, not to mention the kid that played young Mikey just freaked me out completely. On the flip side we saw a side of ol’ Mikey we never saw before, the love for his sister was brought out a lot more and made him seem a little more human, there were parts of the movie that I actually felt a little sorry for him, mostly at the beginning before he killed anyone. I will not say any more as I don’t want to spoil it for anyone and hope that I haven’t already.
I thought it was a pretty good remake and I don’t usually like those much ether.
February 27th, 2008 at 5:14 pm
I am think Cape Fear is the best horror movie ever. Some may disagree and say it’s a thriller, but I’d say Horror fits it more accurately. The acting is amazing an the suspense is INTENSE. It is psychologically frightening and when Robert DeNiro turns around as the made…! gets me every time!
February 27th, 2008 at 5:15 pm
Exorcist or Jaws.
Personal favorite, John Carpenter’s The Thing
February 27th, 2008 at 5:16 pm
Two of my favorites are Legend of Hell House and The Little Girl who Lives down the Lane
February 27th, 2008 at 5:17 pm
If anyone mentions slasher flicks that are shittier than hell one more time(that means you Chucky)Im gonna go frickin’ beserk.
February 27th, 2008 at 5:17 pm
mitchsn:i think that would be considerd a thriller but im not certain.
February 27th, 2008 at 5:20 pm
Personally, I liked The Blair Witch project.
Also, The first Nightmare on Elm Street
February 27th, 2008 at 5:23 pm
I don’t know which I would call the best. I have seen so many horror movies.
I guess it would be the one where that one person dies and the entire town goes stark crazy trying to protect themselves.
February 27th, 2008 at 5:23 pm
If only they made a scariest media outlet list, then I could put in books… Stephen King would of course dominate that list.
IT!
I’m twelve years old and I just read IT, and it scared the shit out of me, the way King made the characters was mind blowing, though the ending was kind of suckish.
February 27th, 2008 at 5:24 pm
concerned observer: what about the sequels, i thought they were shit, how bout you?
February 27th, 2008 at 5:24 pm
Codman – Here’s a good rule of thumb that I tend to live my life by:
Anything that I can pick up and punt doesn’t scare me in the least.
February 27th, 2008 at 5:25 pm
The Thing (I prefer the original version, though Carpenter’s is great) is science fiction. (Based on a great story called “Who Goes There” by John Campbell, one of the greats of early sci-fi). However, in film classes (I took many) and in every film textbook I ever read, sci-fi is considered, oddly enough, a subset of horror. Though Star Wars and the like are hardly Horror.
But again–it’s because of the nightmarish, otherwordly, eerie quality. Sci-fi films often (but certainly not always) fit this mold.
February 27th, 2008 at 5:25 pm
Csimmons- oh oops, you just post so much i pass up your comments
yea.. cape fear was scary
February 27th, 2008 at 5:25 pm
concerned observer:seen the movie? Scary as shit!
February 27th, 2008 at 5:27 pm
randall: who ever wrote that textbook must have been high, most sci-fi films aren’t even that scary.
February 27th, 2008 at 5:32 pm
csimmons:
You don’t know sci-fi films. We’re not talking Star Trek and Star Wars here.
And remember–Horror isn’t JUST about being scary. Not in a traditional sense anyway. It’s about creepiness, eeriness, otherworldiness… the nightmarish quality.
Think Alien. Or go back to the fifties and think Forbidden Planet—-not all that scary no, but weird and creepy.
I agree, it seems odd. Better to say the two genres are closely related. But if you think of Horror films based on the creepy/nightmare angle, you realize how they can be related, and how sci-fi can fit under the larger banner.
February 27th, 2008 at 5:32 pm
Bucslim; “Go back to your coloring book and you can have a juice box with your bowl of raisins.”
I am actually laughing out loud, the funniest line I have seen in a while.
Take a bow!
February 27th, 2008 at 5:32 pm
The Sixth Sense was not really scary to me as it was chilling, just gave me a weird feeling after watching it. made me turn the bedroom light on a couple of times in the middle of the night.
same with The Grudge, that one creeped me out for at least a week after i saw it. and signs had that one part with the alien walking across the screen on the news, wow not a jump out of your seat scream but definitely a stomach turner.
February 27th, 2008 at 5:33 pm
Randall:good point, i just don’t find most sci-fi scary, of course there are a select few out of those that can scare me shitless.
February 27th, 2008 at 5:36 pm
How about The Serpent and the Rainbow, i read the book it was based off of, but of course it wasnt like the movie,
Csimmons- you dont kow anything about sci-fi genre to say none of its horror, sci-fi plays on peoples emotions about the unknown.
February 27th, 2008 at 5:37 pm
Mom424: When I was getting pictures taken at my wedding, my best man said take a bow right before he hit me in the nuts. Wish I still had that picture, but I’m sure my ex-wife burned that along with everything else I owned.
I still wince whenever someone says that.
February 27th, 2008 at 5:38 pm
michelle: okay, alot of sci-fi is scary stuff, and once again, I DON’T FIND IT SCARY!
February 27th, 2008 at 5:41 pm
buclism: OMG! that is funny as hell! You should have saved it to your computer or somrthing, dats the funniest thing ive ever heard of to happen at a wedding!
February 27th, 2008 at 5:41 pm
Blaze Fielding: LOL! ANDROID OF NOTRE DAME?? I keep picturing this hunchbacked robot swinging around yelling “The bells! The bells! Beep! MMMMM! Buzz! Click!”
February 27th, 2008 at 5:43 pm
IT
I guess it because that`s only movie that ever scared me(had 6 or 7 wehn i watched it).
I remember when me and my bro wathced it on TV…we were like scared shitless …we were screaming”Mom mom there`s something scary on TV” and she was like pissed coz we waked her so she responded “Just change the damn channel idiots”
Ofc we didn`t and ofc i had nightmares
February 27th, 2008 at 5:44 pm
Yeah, I saw the movie and truth be told I thought it was funny but w.e.
Yeah, the sequels sucked ass.
LMAO Anderi
!
February 27th, 2008 at 5:45 pm
Randall; Woman after your own heart. Because we are of an age, I was born in 1962, we saw the same Movies, same TV shows, same Music (‘cept the 80’s). I remember scaring myself shitless with Night Gallery, Twilight Zone, and old Vincent Price movies when babysitting..Did you ever get up early Saturday mornings to watch Rat Patrol? Holy crap I remember the first TV showing of Oklahoma (Shirley Jones before she was Mrs. Partridge).
Bucslim; I sympathize, both for the remembered pain in your nether regions and for the evil ex-wife…
February 27th, 2008 at 5:47 pm
Well you should, sorry, im just a passionate fan of sci-fi
February 27th, 2008 at 5:48 pm
Oh yeah, I saw the Grudge 2 for my 11th birthday and I was scared shitless for weeks afterward… Like, the darkest patch of my room could… *Shivers*
We played this game called “Ghost in the Graveyard” afterwards and I made those little clicking sounds when I was it… They almost shat their pants, they were terrified lolz.
February 27th, 2008 at 5:52 pm
Mom424: you will never know the pain of getting kicked in the family jewewls and sometimes i envy girls for that reason(just when i get kicked their by my brothers), imagine it like this, its the eqivelant of taking a jackhammer to your stomach.
February 27th, 2008 at 5:57 pm
Except you also have to wrestle with the knowledge that roughly 15,000 potential children just got obliterated.
Yowch
February 27th, 2008 at 5:57 pm
Well, im signing off for the day, se yall tomorrow!
February 27th, 2008 at 5:59 pm
Csimmons; I had a doctor slip when giving me a spinal block (a needle introduced between the vertabrae, into the sheath that covers the spinal chord, for anaesthetic). It hurt so bad that my toes curled into the bottom of my feet and my fingernails left cuts in my palms. There is nothing you can ever tell me about pain. But I can still sympathize…
February 27th, 2008 at 6:00 pm
‘The Exorcist’ is really scary, but the Korean movie (of which american industry is already making a remake) ‘Tale of Two Sisters’ has a great density as it is psychological horror. I recomend it, it’s one of those movies that when it’s over you keep thinking about it over and over again, trying to really understand it.
February 27th, 2008 at 6:00 pm
Cannibal Holocaust.
It’s not really a horror movie, per se, but it’s one of the worst films I’ve seen.
February 27th, 2008 at 6:02 pm
Mom424:disregard me signing off, but GOD DAMN! that had to hurt like hell!
February 27th, 2008 at 6:03 pm
The last 5 minutes of Saw make the terrible acting almost bearable. My mouth dropped wide open when I saw the man getting up off the floor at the end of the movie. So, I have to say Saw is up there near the top for me.
February 27th, 2008 at 6:03 pm
And that’s supposed to be a good thing KK…?
February 27th, 2008 at 6:04 pm
I’m going to legally change my name to Cuntpuncher Mcclittwister…
?
I have no idea what made me say that.
February 27th, 2008 at 6:04 pm
Any here like dead baby jokes?
February 27th, 2008 at 6:06 pm
concerned observer:Dat is funnt shit right there!
February 27th, 2008 at 6:07 pm
The Eye- original Chinese version. That movie totally freaked me out. Especially when the girl was on the elevator and the ghost was standing behind her and getting closer and closer and his feet were hanging above the floor. I watched this with my mom and this scene had her going “TURN IT OFF NOW!” with her face in her hands. I wonder if I can talk her into seeing the 2008 version with me…
February 27th, 2008 at 6:07 pm
concerned observer: i don’t think so, thats creepy, where did you hear any dead baby jokes anyway?!?
February 27th, 2008 at 6:09 pm
Randall, (or Mom424) perhaps you can help me out. I remember watching a vampire film when I was a kid (prob mid – late 70’s). The only scene I can remember (cos it scared the crap out of me) was of a couple in a caravan in the woods somewhere with the curtains drawn, they hear a noise and one of them opened the curtains and there’s Drac, waiting to pounce. Any idea what movie this is from – or have I just described a cliche used in a hundred different films? I can’t even remember if it’s British or American.
February 27th, 2008 at 6:10 pm
lizzie: thats more than likely a cliche, ive seen a ton like that in tons of vampire films.
February 27th, 2008 at 6:11 pm
They are hilarious, albeit morbid:
Here’s one:
What is the difference between a dead baby and a water melon?
One’s fun to hit with a sledgehammer, the other one’s fruit.
Here’s another:
How do you turn a baby into a dog?
Pour gas over it and light a match. Woof.
Oh, and:
How do you get 100 babies into a bucket?
With a blender.
How do you get them out again?
With Doritos.
February 27th, 2008 at 6:13 pm
I have more…
February 27th, 2008 at 6:13 pm
Dat is, the most disturbing jokes ive ever heard, please, no more!
February 27th, 2008 at 6:14 pm
The Exorcist and The Haunting (the original black and white one), which I’m suprised no one has mentioned.
February 27th, 2008 at 6:14 pm
NO! For the love of god DON’T!
February 27th, 2008 at 6:15 pm
hmm…there are a lot of movies that scared me, but I’m trying to come up with some that would fit with Randall’s definition of “horror” rather than just “movies that are scary”
I suppose I should mention IT, since that is what started me on my love for Stephen King, though I wouldn’t say the movie scares me anymore. (The book still does!)
The Exorcist & The Shining are both great.
The religious-scary movies always got to me pretty good, like The Omen (original of course) & Rosemary’s Baby (which I don’t think I saw either one mentioned yet).
Blair Witch was great, Hills Have Eyes I had to stop in the middle and put in Finding Nemo, watched the rest the next day.
I thought The Ring was good as well.
I wouldn’t classify any of these as the best or my favorites either. As far as “slasher” or “psychological horror” I really like em both, but I’d say I like psychological horror better. Csimmons was right on the nose about how the slasher is good for a quick scare that you’ll forget tomorrow, that quick adrenaline rush & a jump out of your seat thing. But the scare from a psychological horror just stays with you…
February 27th, 2008 at 6:16 pm
Csimmons: Probably, but cliches have to start somewhere.
February 27th, 2008 at 6:19 pm
C’mon man, those things are better than Chuck Norris jokes lol.
February 27th, 2008 at 6:21 pm
yes, but they are just creepy!
February 27th, 2008 at 6:23 pm
They are creepy, I’ll give you that, but at least admit they’re funny.
February 27th, 2008 at 6:23 pm
Anyway, doesn’t creepy BELONG on this kind of a post?
February 27th, 2008 at 6:23 pm
okay, the bucket one was kinda funny, but they are just plain weird!
February 27th, 2008 at 6:24 pm
thats true, creepy does belong here!
February 27th, 2008 at 6:25 pm
Csimmons – so no slasher films but what about all the great ones like scream and i know what you did last summer, urban legend, ive been waiting for you, cry wolf…..the list goes on and on
February 27th, 2008 at 6:25 pm
hey if you want creepy, weird, and just plain gross, look at 2 girls 1 cup, if you are faint of heart, please don’t google it!
February 27th, 2008 at 6:27 pm
anthony p: A few good slasher films are in my top 10, but just the forst ones, not the sequels that always suck ass and ruin the story.
February 27th, 2008 at 6:27 pm
I’ve seen 2girls1cup, I laughed. It wasn’t NEARLY as bad as my friends said it would be.
You want bad, google Maggot Girl Story.
February 27th, 2008 at 6:27 pm
sorry, meant first ones.
February 27th, 2008 at 6:28 pm
How many babies does it take to paint a barn?
Dunno, depends on how hard you throw ‘em…
What sits in a corner getting smaller and smaller?
A baby combing with a potatoe peeler.
So awful and morbid. So damn catchy.
-Andrea Carlena Beauman
February 27th, 2008 at 6:28 pm
Suspiria by Dario Argento is my favourite horror.
About witches.
Very atmospheric.
February 27th, 2008 at 6:30 pm
concerned observer:i almost threw up the first time i saw it, and ive seen the maggot girl story, now for something truly painful to watch, BME pain olympics(this contains imagery of brutal nature of a mans happy place)
February 27th, 2008 at 6:30 pm
Salems Lot terrified me as a kid. I was also scared of the movie IT…..I HATE clowns…..great, now I am freaked out. lol
February 27th, 2008 at 6:32 pm
evil dead 2, the shining….. the first nightmare on elm street, eyes wide shut if thats a horror, rosemary’s baby and the poltergeist
February 27th, 2008 at 6:33 pm
IT made me creeped of clowns, i can’t see a clown without thinking “we all float down here!”
February 27th, 2008 at 6:34 pm
Any zombie movie.. ok so not any. Army of darkness made me laugh “This is my bomb stick!” is still an ongoing joke with me and my hubby. But the newer A list ones freaking rule! But im a zombie freak! Love zombies and everything they do! There is nuthing scarier then an army of the undead comeing after you, expesially when you are as weak and unexperienced with a shottie as i am! And Zombies haunt my nightmares! i dont dram of scary clowns like in IT (cuz he was just a crazy guy in a cheap clown suit) or anything else.. but zombies, expecialy Zombie dogs scare me to death! OPHH im watching 28 weeks later for the first time tonight… finally talked my hubby into leaveing the video games towatch a movie with me!
Ohh and on a side note.. why dont you ever see a Zombie cat.. not a house cat, cuz thats not really scary.. but a zombie lion or tiger or panther.. that would scare me.
February 27th, 2008 at 6:35 pm
I know, I’ve never actually seen Hatchet vs. Genitals
February 27th, 2008 at 6:36 pm
Don’t watch it! it hurts just thinking about it!
February 27th, 2008 at 6:37 pm
I always mentally picture my books, and the image from IT where Pennywise is being watched by Ben as a kid, the balloons are floating towards him even though the raging blizzard is pushing them back…
That’s one of the scariest scenes I’ve ever seen/”seen”
February 27th, 2008 at 6:37 pm
Why would anyone want to watch Genitals lose to a hatchet? dosent that just sound painfull to you men? Im a chick and it sounds very painful to me
February 27th, 2008 at 6:38 pm
What’s the difference between a Porsche and a dead baby?
I don’t have a dead baby in my garage
February 27th, 2008 at 6:38 pm
What exactly is maggot girl?
-Andrea Carlena Beauman
February 27th, 2008 at 6:38 pm
Wait, I meant I don’t have a PORSCHE in my garage…
February 27th, 2008 at 6:39 pm
alyshiaH:Men want to be the toughest, so when we say “theres no way you can watch that” we aren’t gonna chicken out, and these vids are the mmost painful to guys, thank god hatchet v.s. genitals is fake!
February 27th, 2008 at 6:39 pm
It’s a sex story about… Urg, it’s sick. Not nearly as bad as Pain Olympics those…
February 27th, 2008 at 6:40 pm
i like the first 2 halloween movies personally
February 27th, 2008 at 6:41 pm
Anrea: I don’t want to explain it, just too…ugh, just google it.
February 27th, 2008 at 6:42 pm
whats so disturbing about this maggot girl, its a story right
February 27th, 2008 at 6:42 pm
I couldnt make it past the first 30 seconds in 2 girls 1 cup… i have a really weak stomach sence having my first child. I have no neeed to ever watch someones genitals get attacked by a hatchet, real or not. but maybe thats just me. I have better things to watch on the internet, like cats running into windows repatedly trying to get the birds in the feeders…
February 27th, 2008 at 6:42 pm
TELL MEEEEE!!!!
-Andrea Carlena Beauman
February 27th, 2008 at 6:42 pm
eric: i like the first one the best, the sequels are crap, the first haloween ended perfectly, why ruin it with a sequel? espically #3, it had nothing to do with the plot.
February 27th, 2008 at 6:44 pm
Because they can make money off of the sequels. Its what hollywood dose… ruins perfectly good movies to make more money. Like why do a second Butterfly Effect (good movie BTW one of my favs)? just cuz they can. and the second one sucked.. and totaly didnt follow the original story
February 27th, 2008 at 6:44 pm
i personally don’t want to explain it, just google it, id rather not explain it on here.
February 27th, 2008 at 6:45 pm
ohhhhh k nevermind thats sick
February 27th, 2008 at 6:45 pm
Here’s the link Andrea, I’m not liable for damages
http://www.lurkmore.com/wiki/index.php?title=Maggot_Girl
February 27th, 2008 at 6:45 pm
alysiaH:I laugh at 2 girls 1 cup after watching pain olympics.
February 27th, 2008 at 6:47 pm
The Exorcist was great, but EVIL DEAD 2 is the most entertaining and probably my favorite in the horror genre. Phantasm was pretty good, too.
February 27th, 2008 at 6:48 pm
Pain Olympics?!?!? Child’s play. Pure and simple childs play.
Those 2 ladies and their singular cup? Disgrossting.
-Andrea Carlena Beauman
February 27th, 2008 at 6:48 pm
I was forced to watch it at a friends birthday party after takeing 5 jello shots.. yeah i wasnt happy. Talk about ruining a buzz. I dont get why its called porn…
February 27th, 2008 at 6:49 pm
The Shining.
February 27th, 2008 at 6:50 pm
The Shining. And if you’re gonna go Evil Dead, Army of Darkness is the best.
February 27th, 2008 at 6:50 pm
C’mon, 2girls was TAME compared to PO (Pain Olympics). At least 2girls had hot girls with hot bodies, PO has someone DESTROYING HIS BALLS WITH A FUCKING HATCHET.
February 27th, 2008 at 6:52 pm
Hot girls with hot bodys eating eachothers poop! Umm.. thats a turn off for me…
February 27th, 2008 at 6:52 pm
alyshiaH:its more horror
And here is omething i don’t get, why do i even say don’t watch it? its like a cop saying freeze, they never do.
February 27th, 2008 at 6:53 pm
concernedobserver: Don’t remind me (shudders)!
February 27th, 2008 at 6:54 pm
Cops tells me to freeze ime freezeing.. cuz im innocent, and they cant prove all the stuff im guilty for! If i tell a friend to not watch something, they know i have a good reason for it… other than my hubby… cuz hes dumb. he had to rush home and watch it. Yeah i got to clean up the puke from the bathroom…
February 27th, 2008 at 6:54 pm
alyshiaH: its a turn on for Kermit the Frog! if you’ve seen the vid on youtube, you know what im talking about.
February 27th, 2008 at 6:55 pm
yes well criminals never freeze, they should just say “Run to some alley!”
February 27th, 2008 at 6:56 pm
But hes a frog! Do they even get hard? yeah no.. didnt think so. Do real guy like that? cuz im never doing that for any guy EVER
February 27th, 2008 at 6:57 pm
Maybe if they said that the criminals would just jump in the back of the cars
February 27th, 2008 at 6:57 pm
alyshiaH: the vids meant to be comedic, and it is, plus i hope you’d never do that.
February 27th, 2008 at 6:57 pm
OMFG… I just ssaw BME PO… WTADADSJOIAGTUT(QW(&$ ACRI ( $QC#$)(WPRQ$W#OP%*(*@!_)$_%*%)*_VAC YX)#$%@)#$
HE FUCKING CUT HIS TESTIS OFF!!!! AHHH!!!!!!!! LOOK AT THAT!!!!!!!! HE DESTROYED HIS COCIK!!!! RAAHAHAHAHHA HOLY FUCKING SHIT!
February 27th, 2008 at 6:58 pm
alyshiaH:wheres the fun in that? LOL!
February 27th, 2008 at 6:59 pm
concerned observer: see my comment at #150.
February 27th, 2008 at 6:59 pm
No, we’re not generally coprophiliacs…
February 27th, 2008 at 6:59 pm
hey C.O., i thought you said you saw it?
February 27th, 2008 at 7:00 pm
Lolz, remember testosterone? It’s that little thing that makes me feel like whenever someone says something like that, they’re calling me a chicken, and I HAVE to prove them wrong.
February 27th, 2008 at 7:02 pm
I said that in advance, and I forgot to delete it. That was my reaction whilst watching it/pausing it to write.
February 27th, 2008 at 7:02 pm
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
Tell me you didn’t crap your pants as a kid when the child catcher dropped his head down to the window to see those kid.
February 27th, 2008 at 7:03 pm
ive saw it once, only once, never again.
February 27th, 2008 at 7:03 pm
unbiased: i didn’t.
February 27th, 2008 at 7:04 pm
Im pregnant with a boy right now (my second boy) and that means i have a lot of testostarone in my system as it is.. i dont walk around picking fights, and i feel no need to take on a challenge that wasnt really there to start with.
February 27th, 2008 at 7:05 pm
unbiased: i never did.. i laughed at it…
February 27th, 2008 at 7:05 pm
That’s because you have estrogen as well, and a whole lot more of that than testosterone I daresay…
February 27th, 2008 at 7:06 pm
alyshiaH: congrats on the kid, but when you reguarly have testosterone, you allways fight and never chicken out, except in russian roulette.
February 27th, 2008 at 7:06 pm
concerned:thats the awnser for sure.
February 27th, 2008 at 7:08 pm
I have a naturaly low estrogen level. And with this being my second i have the same amount of testostarone in me as a 25 year old man.
Csimmons: thanks. we didnt want tohave another one so soon, but it happens and now my hubby is counting down the days till i have this baby. 57 days left till my due date.. or is it 56…
February 27th, 2008 at 7:09 pm
alyshiaH:you can’t be sure on the duedate, its never really exact, and you really have that amount of testosterone? goddamn!
February 27th, 2008 at 7:11 pm
Yeah its what makles us moms of more than one boy Vets man! We need it to break up all the fights and keep up with the sprots stats when they get older! Theres a bunch of sciens behind it. The babys body is makeing it, and so is mine cuz my body remembers carrying my first one 2 years ago.
February 27th, 2008 at 7:11 pm
That Pain Olympics thing was dumb. I hope that stupid fuck died from infection. What a retard…
February 27th, 2008 at 7:13 pm
No, I know you have that amount of testosterone, but no matter how little, you STILL have estrogen.
Lmao on the Russian Roulette CS
February 27th, 2008 at 7:13 pm
wesley crusher: it was fake, don’t be quick to judge.
February 27th, 2008 at 7:14 pm
I’M RICK JAMES, BITCH
February 27th, 2008 at 7:15 pm
CO: If you take some vitamines you have Estrogen in you too. Some Multivitamines made just for men have it in them… dont know why but they do.
February 27th, 2008 at 7:15 pm
wesley crusher; oooookayyyyyyyyyyyyy………
February 27th, 2008 at 7:16 pm
alyshiaH:Im guessing they are just freaks.
February 27th, 2008 at 7:18 pm
absolutely and without a doubt the scariest movie ever is:
THE CHANGELING
a close second:
HENRY: PORTRAIT OF A SERIAL KILLER
February 27th, 2008 at 7:19 pm
lordcalvert:not even close to the exorcist dude.
February 27th, 2008 at 7:19 pm
in no particular order
the fly
13 ghost(the original)
the ring and ringu(both were good)
dracula
nasfuratu
frankenstien
phantasm(i am deathly afraid of mosulems cause of that movie)
and i remember being lil watching nightmare on elm street and being scared shitless, now i watch it and laugh.
February 27th, 2008 at 7:19 pm
We all love to get frightened from time to time and as a result, some of the earilest films made were horror movies. You can be certain that every year Hollywood will bring out some new form of terror to shock us in the theaters. sometimes they achieve their goal – other times we are left with a pile of junk. With this post we are going to uncover the best horror movie of all time.
When you give us your view, try to tell us why you have chosen the particular film, and also, as a secondary question, tell us what style of horror is best – for example, psychological horror (with little or no blood) or slasher films. Tell us why you think one is superior to the other.
February 27th, 2008 at 7:22 pm
Her father was a priest, cold blooded he’s dead
Hypocrite, I caught him basin, so I shot him in the head
Poured on the holy water, “Bless the dead” is what I said
Then heard the demon screamin as his body bled
Now I stole from the poor, lied on the man
Dropped the dime, he’s doin time and I don’t give a damn
We’re not really greedy, we’ll help the poor and needy
We’ll rock a show and clock some dough, then drink until we’re pretty drunk
on the freeway just the other day
I saw a fine hitch-hiker, and I wanted to play
I pulled off the road, so I could offer a ride
She said “Thanks”, I said “No thang,” and she got inside
Jivin as I was drivin, then I asked which direction
She said, “5th Ward”, I said “We’re from the same section”
Made it to her ave, she said out and said “Thanks”
I said, “Yo babe, like won’t you chill and have a couple of drinks?
We went into my house, and I filled up her glass
She drank and got drunk, that’s when I got in that ass
I banged it and banged it until my thang got sore
I said “Honey…”, she said “20″, I said, “Get out, you fuckin whore!”
She put on her clothes, headed for the door
She said, “Welcome to the disease there is no cure for”
Then she started runnin and almost got away
With no clothes I gave chase, makin sure she’d pay
Now she passed by my boy and I knew he was strapped
Red pulled out his gun and shot the bitch in her back
Bare butt-naked I headed for the car
The massacre was from Texas, so I pulled out the chainsaw
Cuttin and cuttin, he said “Bushwick, man, she’s dead”
On the news they found remains of just an arm and her head
An assassin
February 27th, 2008 at 7:22 pm
a couple more i forgot to mention
IT(the book was scarier)
the shining(same as it book was scarier)
the exorcist
February 27th, 2008 at 7:22 pm
CS: I think its a conspericy to make you all more tame. Just my opinion though…./
February 27th, 2008 at 7:23 pm
wesley crusher: WTF!?!
February 27th, 2008 at 7:24 pm
Oops. Sorry about that.
February 27th, 2008 at 7:24 pm
alyshiaH:maby it is (shes onto us….)
wesley crusher: Wtf was that poem thing?
February 27th, 2008 at 7:25 pm
I havnt found this ball hatchet video (yea.. morbid fascination) but i did come across a BME website and i really wish i hadnt, its like you really dont want to look….. but you do
February 27th, 2008 at 7:26 pm
Wesley Crusher: yeah that was about random.. and long.. have no disire to read it. And Wesley Crusher was Dr crushers son on TNG, wasnt it? Trying to prove your a geek?
February 27th, 2008 at 7:26 pm
michelle:same here.
And im going to bed, so good night people!
February 27th, 2008 at 7:27 pm
This discourse of the fourth book of the gospel is often called the “church order” discourse, but it lacks most of the considerations usually connected with church order, such as various offices in the church and the duties of each, and deals principally with the relations that must obtain among the members of the church. Beginning with the warning that greatness in the kingdom of heaven is measured not by rank or power but by childlikeness (Matthew 18:1-5), it deals with the care that the disciples must take not to cause the little ones to sin or to neglect them if they stray from the community (Matthew 18:6-14), the correction of members who sin (Matthew 18:15-18), the efficacy of the prayer of the disciples because of the presence of Jesus (Matthew 18:19-20), and the forgiveness that must be repeatedly extended to sinful members who repent (Matthew 18:21-35).
2 [1] The initiative is taken not by Jesus as in the Marcan parallel (Mark 9:33-34) but by the disciples. Kingdom of heaven: this may mean the kingdom in its fullness, i.e., after the parousia and the final judgment. But what follows about causes of sin, church discipline, and forgiveness, all dealing with the present age, suggests that the question has to do with rank also in the church, where the kingdom is manifested here and now, although only partially and by anticipation; see the notes on Matthew 3:2; 4:17.
3 [3] Become like children: the child is held up as a model for the disciples not because of any supposed innocence of children but because of their complete dependence on, and trust in, their parents. So must the disciples be, in respect to God.
4 [5] Cf Matthew 10:40.
February 27th, 2008 at 7:27 pm
CS: ohhh im on to just about every thing. Plus my hubby brings back really random info from his job. People say the most random things when they call in for tech support…
February 27th, 2008 at 7:27 pm
Talk about creepy and otherworldly — some of you guys are off the topic and into your own little universe of yuck.
Ennyhoo — I’m definitely putting “The Shining” up as #1. (And definitely Kubrick’s’ I won’t even discuss that made-for-the-
glass-tit abortion that King thought was so “true” to his story.) Having not seen it for twenty-six years, I bought it on DVD last year, and damn if the scene with Jack going into Room 317 didn’t make my blood run cold just as it did when I saw it in the theater in 1980.
Number Two Pick: “Alien.” Not just for the alien popping from the chest bit, but because H. R Giger produced a nonhuman ship, pilot, and monster that no one has really surpassed. He managed to conjure that atmosphere that Randall’s talking about.
Number Three: “The Haunting.” That was the first time the breathing-door effect was used in a movie, and scared the shit out of me at age 10. And I just loved the creepy woman caretaker, smiling ever so sweetly as she tells Julie Harris, “No one will come out here … at night … in the dark …”
February 27th, 2008 at 7:29 pm
Wesley Crusher… that is about the most random, unrelated jibberish i have ever had the unfurtanut experience to read….
February 27th, 2008 at 7:38 pm
SAW-all of them, Stephen King-any, Texas Chainsaw Masacre(sp?) but only the old one ’cause it’s soooo corny
February 27th, 2008 at 7:48 pm
It appears the “INTELLECTUAL GIANTS” (sarcasm) have taken over the latter part of this list. So much for intelligent conversation and the English language.
February 27th, 2008 at 7:59 pm
Rosemary’s Baby…the introduction with the camera flying over the city and eerie music playing is unnerving. If you haven’t seen it you really ought to.
Apparently to get noticed you have to take up space.
So there.
February 27th, 2008 at 8:01 pm
JAWS!
February 27th, 2008 at 8:03 pm
CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST….shit was disturbing to watch..
February 27th, 2008 at 8:16 pm
1) Trilogy of terror
2) Night of the living dead
3) Ghost dad
4) The color purple
5) The Exorcist
February 27th, 2008 at 8:19 pm
How has no one mentioned “Misery” yet ? Holy crap … to this day when I re-watch that I still turn away at the hobbling … seeing it once was enough to etch it into my mind FOREVER .
February 27th, 2008 at 8:19 pm
I totally agree with Randall on this one. Horror should have the supernatural element. Anything else is either Sci Fi, slasher, thriller or action. I’ve seen Jaws on here a couple times (and man do I love that movie) but I think Jaws falls firmly into action. Silence of the Lambs, likewise, is a great movie, but it is a thriller.
I know I am being really specific and nitpicky, but this list is forcing me to figure out my exact definition. I guess the hardest exclusion to justify is that of the slasher. I just don’t see human beings hurting other human beings as horror. We can at least explain why they are doing it, there IS some natural explanation. We cannot explain with our natural laws how Jack is possessed by a hotel or Myer’s invulnerability, or a demon possessing a little girl. (Well, some people might believe in demons, I don’t).
Mom – yet another Your View that finds us on the same page.
February 27th, 2008 at 8:40 pm
The original Eye, the Japanese version, as well as Audition were both excellent and are definitely the best modern horror films. The only movies that have ever really, legitimately scared me were the Shining and Phantasm. Phantasm was cheesy and kinda stupid but it scared the living shit out of me when I was like 10.
February 27th, 2008 at 8:42 pm
night of the living dead – by far!
February 27th, 2008 at 9:01 pm
POLTERGEIST… forever changed my view of what a ‘haunted house’ looks like
JAWS… haven’t gone in past my knees since
THE OTHERS… that creepy old lady in the closet…eeks!!
THE OMEN… what a sweet boy
THE SHINING… redrum
and a couple movies that I don’t know the titles…
One I remember had a scene with a maze that had razors on the walls and the people were being chased thru it by dogs
the other had creatures that lived in the dark and they would come up out of the grate to get you. I remember this woman being dragged by them and she was using a camera’s flashbulb to try to scare them away.
February 27th, 2008 at 9:16 pm
Lizzie; Caravan – what we North Americans call a camper or travel-trailer correct? Not like a covered wagon? Hmm I’m thinking. Salem’s lot maybe?(I didn’t watch it, I was 17, like I stayed home for 4 or 6 hours of TV) It is kind of a cliche..Maybe The Night Stalker? You’ll have to wait for Randall!
February 27th, 2008 at 9:18 pm
There is something to be said about the classics but the problem is that they’re old. I see the reasoning behind picking the exorcist or night of the living dead but the truth is they just don’t hold up anymore comparatively. The only classic I would consider would be Alien, that movie was so phenomenally ahead of it’s time. But as far as best ever?
Audition
A current movie that does everything the classics could and better. It’s gory beyond all possible explanation but not in a cheap gore for the sake of gore way. The story is completely unique in the horror genre and the villain is so lovable which makes her so much more effective as such. It’s a bit slow for some people ( I recommended this movie once when I worked at a coffee shop to one of our regulars and he was alarmed at the pace.) but really there isn’t a single thing that I think it needed, it’s one of the only horror movies that afterwards I’m totally satisfied.
February 27th, 2008 at 9:30 pm
The second Japanese Grudge movie: Ju-On 2, and Audition. Both are just plain creepy, and sometimes really scary. Modern American horror movies seem to be losing their touch. Child’s Play 1 was pretty scary the first time I saw it.
Anyone see High Tension?
February 27th, 2008 at 9:34 pm
Um….can Shaun of the Dead or Hot Fuzz count?
lol.
I haven’t even seen the Ring.
I get too terrified.
But Psychological Horror movies are scarier,
Zombies can always be killed in some way,
but when it’s your own mind that’s the enemy…..
what can you do?
February 27th, 2008 at 9:35 pm
Mom424: Yes ,what you would call a camper or trailer – the type that you hitch to the back of your car to tow.
I’m pretty certain it wasn’t Salem’s Lot. The movie may have been pre-1970, I just saw it mid 70’s ish. Geez, the things I watched as a kid and my parents didn’t know…..
I used to love the Night Stalker….there’s another suggestion for a top 10 list – best tv shows with a supernatural/horror theme.
February 27th, 2008 at 9:41 pm
The Exorcist was scary the first time i saw it as a little kid. but The Changeling kept me awake for weeks
February 27th, 2008 at 9:43 pm
I am not a big fan of the horror movie, but the one that kept me up many nights (long ago) was ‘WILLARD’. I don’t like rats to begin with, and this movie didn’t increase my love of the little bastards.
Great acting by bruce davison, elsa lanchester and ernest borgnine. And of course Willard and Ben.
Thanks Jamie – it’s 11:40 here on the east coast of USA and I don’t think i’m going to get any sleep tonight.
February 27th, 2008 at 10:02 pm
I thought “Wrong Turn” was decent.
February 27th, 2008 at 10:45 pm
Night of the Living Dead.
Alien.
Shutter.
Evil Dead.
Event Horizon.
February 27th, 2008 at 10:46 pm
i would have to agree that “the exorcist” is,by far,the best.i truly believe it is based on a true story like i’ve always been told,which terrifies me.
for this same reason,i would have to say another one of my all time faves is “the exorcism of emily rose.”.frightening stuff,whether it was real or epilepsy or whatever.
and mad props to “american werewolf in london.”.SWEETEST TRANSFORMATION EVER!!!
CLASSIC!!!
-d-
February 27th, 2008 at 10:47 pm
I’ve always had a soft spot for the Halloween movies, corny though they are.
Plus Nightmare on Elm Street holds a special place. I enjoy Freddy
February 27th, 2008 at 10:55 pm
Okay, long time lurker here…but since I’m a horror freak, had to chime in. I also have a film degree which means I have no business loving horror like I do. It took me nearly 20 years to overcome the snobbery that came with that piece of paper, but I am finally free!
I’m suprised there has been so much talk about what genre something goes in. To me that’s always been something for the P&A folks to worry about. If it creeps me out, it’s horror in my book. I am more of a fan of the “feels like a nightmare” flick than that of the “that could really happen” variety. So here are my fave “surreal / feels like a nightmare” flicks. I’ve never made a list of my faves, but here’s a start.
SUSPIRIA is the best of the best, IMO. (fgds – you rock!) It is a nightmare on celluloid. The plot makes very little sense, the dubbing is hideously weird (one could argue that it’s bad, but I think it adds to the nightmarish quality), but no movie has ever given me the creeps like Suspiria. The score, the colors, the lack of logic, the production design, the pace…you just have to see it to believe it. Dario Argento is one creepy freakin director. I love all of his stuff.
Others I was distubed by (although I wouldn’t call them the “best ever”, I’d call them some of the best not-so-well-known):
THEY LIVE – Paranoia about “us” and “them” in a materialistic world. And man, the way “they” move…creepy.
SUICIDE CLUB – More a comment on Japanese pop culture and suicide, but unnerving, especially the bubblegum pop music connection.
VISITOR Q – for those who’ve seen Audition, this little Takashi Miike film will make you want to scratch your eyeballs out. Most horrific of all – when it’s over you find yourself wondering whether you liked it or not. And if you did, should you have yourself committed?
NOSFERATU – Max Schreck in Murnau’s classic is so over the top horrific that the movie “Shadow of the Vampire” (about Schreck himself being a vampire) really made me wonder…
Anyway, I really need to get some sleep, but on a final note, I have to disagree with the “sequels ruin the original” sentiment. For example, I enjoyed The Exorcist. The sequels were total crap, but to me it takes nothing away from the original…just different movies that in no way affect my feelings on the first one.
Wow, my first post, and what a ramble…
February 27th, 2008 at 11:07 pm
While I thought that The Exorcist was shocking, it wasn’t terribly scary. However, even though nothing too scary happens on it, The Shining is probably the scariest movies I’ve seen.
February 27th, 2008 at 11:26 pm
The Shining has always, and will always, scare the bejesus outta me. I watch it only when there’s lots of lights on, and I need people around me, preferably my big cuddly protecting boyfriend!
February 27th, 2008 at 11:27 pm
watch shutter? i tihnk thats what its called..its thai movie about a photog..and GHOSTS!
lol
has one of the creepiest scenes in a movies ive ever seen.
February 28th, 2008 at 12:24 am
The Exorcist,IT,Candyman,All movies that involve Chuckie.Nothing creepier than a murderous doll.
February 28th, 2008 at 12:24 am
If anyone has actually compared The Shining(original) to the book they would realize that it is not nearly as scary as it should be. The remake of it, not as well known, is so much better. Fairly true to the story and much more scary.
High Tension scared the crap out of me until the ending. Weird twist.
February 28th, 2008 at 12:35 am
silent hill, the shining, silence of the lambs, Nightmare on Elm street – I have had to watch all of them sitting beside someone, because I get frights and yell (and have to cover my ears)
February 28th, 2008 at 12:36 am
Wow I got here late…lol
February 28th, 2008 at 12:42 am
SAW is definitely not the best horror movie, but the whole series is my favorite, it just blows my mind.
February 28th, 2008 at 12:56 am
Cannibal Holocaust.
February 28th, 2008 at 1:36 am
The Wicker Man – orginal version with Edward Woodward, Christopher Lee & Britt Eckland. Very creepy, and although not actually scary whilst you watch it – it sticks in your mind afterwards! It also has a brilliant soundtrack.
February 28th, 2008 at 1:49 am
1.The Exorcist
2.BLAIR WITCH PROJECT
3.AMITY VILL.
4.NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD
5.SAW
6.EVIL DEAD
7.Psycho
8.FRIDAY THE 13TH
9.NIGHTMARE AT ELM ST.
10.THE GRUDGE
February 28th, 2008 at 2:01 am
The Others – definitely.
Although there isn’t one drop of blood in the movie (at least not, you know, blood as in someone killed someone) it scared the hell outta me. The kids also – they have a certain way in the movie, in which they portrait the sickness and their lives that creped me out.
I can surely say that The Others is a masterpiece of it’s genre.
February 28th, 2008 at 2:10 am
There’s a rarely seen flick called Don’t Look Now (1973) starring Donald Sutherland and Julie Christie which, though it’s generally classified as a Thriller has an element of supernatural in it. It’s claim to fame though is the lovemaking scene between the 2 leads (rumored to be the real deal) which was considered pretty graphic for it’s’ time. The movie though is worth checking out especially for the weird and creepy backdrop of Venice and surreal soundtrack.
February 28th, 2008 at 3:37 am
I have loved movies for a LONG time, and I’m not scared by monsters, aliens, sea creatures, or dolls.
What scares ME is my fellow man.
Having said that, the scariest scene in cinema, without a doubt, is the scene where Sir Lawrence Olivier asks Dustin Hoffman, “Is It Safe?”, in Marathon Man. If you have never seen this movie, this scene alone is worth it.
As far as scary movies go, try “Hard Candy”. It stars Ellen Page of Juno. Basically, a creepy guy meets a young girl over the ‘net, and they go back to his place.
But she’s not the victim. He is.
February 28th, 2008 at 4:29 am
THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS — its not really a horror, but it scared the hell out of me.
February 28th, 2008 at 4:35 am
THE SIXTH SENSE – i found the opeing scene especially chilling
THE OTHERS – this movie mostly relies on your mind to scare you; the horror is more suggested than outright BANG in your face, which i love
February 28th, 2008 at 5:15 am
I remember the exorcist really freaked me out, and the shining was a little disturbing, aside from those most horror movie havnt done anything for me. One that did though was Legend (Will Smith), that scared me so bad I went back to see it twice! I think it was because the infected zombies grew wise and started to make traps.
Great site, I love it
February 28th, 2008 at 5:49 am
Shaun of the dead. Saw it last night. Great stuff!
February 28th, 2008 at 6:08 am
I agree with jfrater for the reasons he expressed. I think a film that can scare you without leaving a drop of blood is true horror, the best kind. It is all in the mind. But I think a good one is The Hills Have Eyes. I think it was the first film I saw where the good guys didn’t ride off into the susnet, so to speak. Even though it had supernatural elements, I think it was quite realistic. There’s not always a happy ending.
February 28th, 2008 at 6:11 am
a couple of people have mentioned it already but the horror movie that effected me the most in real life was “the blair witch project”.
at the time i saw it, it still had the mystery surrounding it as to whether or not it really happened. that coupled with the fact that no “bad guy” is ever seen and my imagination had to fill in the gaps led me to some disturbing places.
it didn’t help that for weeks after that my smart-ass roommate would quietly stand in the corner of my room facing the wall with the lights out when he knew i was about to come in.
February 28th, 2008 at 6:12 am
“it didn’t help that for weeks after that my smart-ass roommate would quietly stand in the corner of my room facing the wall with the lights out when he knew i was about to come in.”
Fuck, that was terrifying.
February 28th, 2008 at 6:15 am
Reonne, I agree about The Shining. The mini-series had the most horrific lady in room 217. I froze with terro when I first saw her.
February 28th, 2008 at 6:27 am
If you have never seen the first Evil Dead, it scared the bejeezus out of me as a kid. Made in, I believe 1983, for its time, it was pretty jarring. Evil Dead II and Army of Darkness followed in a more comedic vein, but that first fueled my nightmares for years!
February 28th, 2008 at 6:35 am
well, i always liked nightmare on elm street, because it throws out an idea that dreams can be, oh so, real. i always prefered psychological over splatter, but Saw was amasingly well plotted out, well the 2. one sucked.. but.. meh
and halloween is of course a classic to be reckoned with.
February 28th, 2008 at 6:35 am
devils rejects/house of a thousand corpses. because there are people out there like that!!!!
February 28th, 2008 at 6:55 am
Someone hit the nail on the head once when saying why they thought the Elm Street films were so scary. They said because usually, to get away from horror, you try to get to sleep. There’s nothing like lying in your darkened room, past midnight, alone, convinced some cold hand is about to reach out and freeze you with terror. Obviously, the Elm films turned that on it’s head. You didn’t want the comfort of sleep.
February 28th, 2008 at 7:36 am
Hillary vs Obama
February 28th, 2008 at 7:37 am
Mom424 #85 I too have had a spinal block. I was in Labor at the time, actually I had been in labor for about 22 hours at the time. My son did not want to come out. They gave me the spinal after trying to push him out for about an hour and a half, so they could use forceps to get him out.
Men have no idea what pain is LOL
February 28th, 2008 at 7:49 am
Stormy617; I’ve had 4 of them(c-sections), the other 3 were fine, no pain whatsoever. The ob/gyn had been up for about 50 hours when I showed up…I lived,the kid is fine, so alls well.
February 28th, 2008 at 7:59 am
the ORIGINAL Texas Chainsaw Massacre. greatest horror movie ever. (the remake was a joke…)
The Descent scared the crap out of me as well; that would be my number 2.
February 28th, 2008 at 8:08 am
I disagree with Jackie, the remake of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre was superior to the original in almost every way. That being said, the greatest horror movie ever made was, as Jamie said, “The Exorcist.” “Alien” and “Jaws” scared the pants off of me the first time I saw them. However, my personal favorite is John Carpenter’s The Thing, which despite what Mom424 thinks, *is* a horror movie.
February 28th, 2008 at 8:24 am
Yo yo yo yo yo…
Psycho, The Shining, and Silence of the Lambs. Hostel is not horror, it’s porn for psychopaths.
February 28th, 2008 at 8:35 am
TMo: I really disagree with you about the ‘porn for psychopaths’. As Eli Roth, director and writer of Hostel Part 1 and 2, has said, should be watched with a small group of friends past midnight in dark room, with everyone squirming and screaming. There’s so much snobbery about this so-called ‘torture porn’ sub-genre. It doesn’t even exist, in fact. It just a lazy title. Though are obvious attempts at cashing in on the current ‘torture porn’ craze, films like Paradise Lost and Untraceable, but what film genre doesn’t have it’s band-wagon jumpers?
February 28th, 2008 at 8:53 am
Slick; I didn’t say I didn’t think it to be, I asked a question because I wasn’t sure.
February 28th, 2008 at 8:56 am
I love horror…
Mentioned a few times already is :
John Carpenter’s The Thing
I don’t know how it wioll stand up these days though since I saw it 15 years ago…
Alien and Aliens is also amazing. I love the SAW series as well.
February 28th, 2008 at 8:59 am
Top 5:
Evil Dead II
Last House on the Left
Exorcism of Emily Rose
The original Hills Have Eyes
and a tie between The original halloween series, the Friday the 13th series, and the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre.
And for anyone that likes J-horror, Dumplings is scary as hell.
February 28th, 2008 at 9:00 am
SlickWilly: aww you thought the remake was better? It didn’t really scare me the way the first one did
February 28th, 2008 at 9:03 am
Oh yea I forgot, Any George Romero Movie other than land of the dead, especially Day of the Dead.
February 28th, 2008 at 9:32 am
Wow 24 hours since I visited and 260 +comments and 2 lists newer than this one. Thanks for the faithful updates & entertainment! I just wanted to add my 2 cents. I totally agree with The Exorcist, I think the reason it scared the poop out of me is it is based (very loosely) on a true story which I think defiantly adds to the horror.
February 28th, 2008 at 9:33 am
I can’t believe no one mentions Pet Cemetery. Gage was one of the scariest little kids in a movie ever.
February 28th, 2008 at 9:36 am
Mom424: Just poking fun. Lighten up a bit.
Jackie: Yeah, I really did. The original was probably great when it came out. I honestly appreciate older art (movies and music included) and can often see past the effect that time has had on a movie for its intrinsic worth, but I just don’t find this to be the case for horror movies. (Well….*most* horror movies. There will always be the old classics.) Even going into a horror movie with the proper mindset (which is *essential* for enjoying a horror movie; kids these days seem to go in trying to challenge themselves into not being scared, so they can go to school the next day and seem cool, saying, “aw, such-and-such a movie wasn’t scary at all!”) doesn’t always thwart my jadedness with certain ones, and my taste for cliche is often strained past the breaking point. That is what happened to me with the original TCM. It was one of the originators of the slasher genre, and one of the models for all slasher flicks to come, so cliche abounds after cliche. There are periods, particularly at the beginning, that seem to drag and drag and drag on, trying to mount some sort of suspense that all leads what is probably the only heart-stopping moment in the movie, and the only moment that i thought the old version had over the remake, which is the first murder, the sudden sledgehammer bludgeoning of the main character’s boyfriend.
The remake was darker, grittier, and more grotesque. I hate to say that I’m a product of the Hollywood generation, but for the horror genre, where the important element is feeling scared or creeped out, it is becoming increasingly hard to elicit such a response from today’s modern audiences, which is why you see Hollywood pushing the envelope of decency further and further (note the increase in so-called Torture-porn or splatter-porn flicks like Hostel, Saw, and Captivity). I feel that good horror is relevent to the audience it is targeted to, doesn’t underestimate the intelligence of its audience, and is based on psychological horror rather than disgusting violence and gore (but a nice healthy dose of the latter helps to catalyze and puntuate the former).
February 28th, 2008 at 10:02 am
To me that would be The Exorcist as well, not the director’s cut but the original one! I agree that psychological movies are much scarier than slashers.
They really get to you and mess with your mind!
I must admit I haven’t seen Hostel (yet) because of the gory cover…
February 28th, 2008 at 10:17 am
As a kid-Island of Terror with Peter Cushing
As a teenager-The Exorcist
As an adult-Any crappy “reality” shows on TV
February 28th, 2008 at 10:21 am
Amityville Horror…scares me to this day…the eyes in the window…yikes
February 28th, 2008 at 10:21 am
The Birds or any movie involving animals “taking revenge” on humans.
February 28th, 2008 at 10:22 am
Hey Slick; I would if I actually new how to use the emoticons…I am woefully lacking in skills. We have had a computer since forever. This is the first time I have ever commented or even made a post in a forum…I can do it in the forum….
February 28th, 2008 at 10:27 am
Slickwilly; I have a huge problem with my kids(excepting my eldest, but he is brilliant), they dismiss almost everything that is not “in your face” as lame. They expect instant gratification with music, movies, and life. It is the culture of our time….
Personally my imagination is far more graphic than any movie…
February 28th, 2008 at 10:37 am
Psycho, Excorcist, and the Shining.
i classify zombie and vampire movies seperate from horror movies.
if i didnt, it would be American Werewolf in London, and Night of the Living Dead
February 28th, 2008 at 10:40 am
P.S
torture and splatter movies are the worst possible thing to have ever happened to horro movies.
Gore is cool when its tounge in cheek (Peter Jackson, or Sam Raimi)
February 28th, 2008 at 10:51 am
People mentioning The Shining, Pet Sematary, IT or any other Stephen King novel – give credit where credit is due! All the books of those adaps are vastly superior, although PC has some great acting and TS great atmosphere.
They call Stephen the Master of Horror for a reason. Fuck Kubrick.
February 28th, 2008 at 11:25 am
There is alot of good horror movies. I love the Texas Chainsaw Massacre(Original), The hills have eyes, The Hell raiser series, Phyco, The Birds, IT, just to name a few.
February 28th, 2008 at 11:26 am
Mom424: I completely agree with you, which is why movies like Alien and Jaws are so scary; they force you to use your imagination until the last moments of the movie, when the monster is finally revealed. This is absolutely essential to good monster movies….the one (and best) exception being The Thing. You see the monster about 7 or 8 times throughout the course of the movie, but because the creature is a shape-shifter, each time is scarier then the last (with maybe the exception of the “head/mouth” scene….quite laughable and the one weak point of the movie) and, because of the nature of the movie, it keeps you guessing up until the very end. The problem with your younger sons is the problem most kids of the upcoming generation have. As you said, they are products of the “instant gratification” world we live in. If it is not extreme or doesn’t overtly manipulate your emotions, it’s lame and not worth anything. Kids these days need to read more books; it gives you a healthy respect for the power of your imagination.
Oh, and emoticons on the lists are made by using a combination of the colon and parenthesis brackets. A smile is a colon “:” followed by an end parenthesis “)”. The system will automatically convert it into a smiley.
“:” + “)” =
(You may already know this, and I simply may have misinterpreted your above comment. I apologize if this is the case.)
(“:” followed by a capital “D”)
February 28th, 2008 at 11:32 am
OOH….forgot all about the first two Hellraisers. Clive Barker is a master of horror, both on screen and on paper (the book Hellraiser is based on is as exquisite as the movie). The following sequeals were crap, but the first two are absolute horror gems. Along witht the original Amityville Horror (the remake was terrible). My only problem with that one was the blatant use of iodine as fake blood. The “blood running down the walls” scene during the climax comepletely removed me from the experience, as the “blood” was bright orange.
February 28th, 2008 at 11:34 am
I’d like to share something with you that i watched on TV (in the UK)as a kid, circa mid-80’s, coz it scared me on so many levels! I don’t know what the hell it was. Please bare with me, here goes:
It was a foreign kids series (from some sick bastard European country that loves to scare children) about a boy who saw his dad’s Cessna plane crash and apparently blow up, killing his father, who i guess was his only parent. This kid is so traumatized by this (as you would imagine) he no longer smiles Or laughs, apparently he has an amazing smile/laugh that everyone loves. Then this old, scary as hell, rich man turns up and makes a deal with him: Give me your smile and you will win every bet you ever make (how this all works i don’t know). Then it turns out the old man faked his dad’s death and he’s really alive. It never watched anymore coz it freaked me out so much and this is why:
1) Old rich men want your smile/laugh and will fake your dad’s death to get it and no-one (police?) can stop them!
2) Adults seem to think putting this sick sh*t on television as some form of entertainment that us kiddie-winks will enjoy whereas in reality it gives us nightmares and makes us wet the bed in sheer terror!
3) As the series was foreign, it was dubbed, badly. This made me believe that the makers of the show were trying to hide a deeper/darker secret by dubbing the dialogue. I already thought the story was f*ck*d up enough so how bad was it before they changed it?
Does anyone know what this series was called or how it ended or, more importantly, what the point/message was? I’m 30 years old and it still bothers me!!!
February 28th, 2008 at 11:39 am
SlickWilly: I’m SO glad you at least agree with me about that sledgehammer scene, that scene in particular is one of the reasons I liked the first one better.
February 28th, 2008 at 11:43 am
yeah, hellraiser!
that gave me nightmares when i first watched it (a couple of months ago)
“men are beasts, and women.. the demons of the night!”
toki wartooth
February 28th, 2008 at 11:47 am
Jackie: Oh yeah, hands down the best scene in the movie. I also have a soft spot for Leatherface’s little angry chainsaw dance in the sunset at the end of the movie. Great culmination of the lunacy that begins to spin out during the last 20 minutes of the movie. However, the remake had better make-up, a stronger script, more suspense and goes a little bit more into the background of the Leatherface and co. I particularly enjoyed how they handled it, especially in retrospect now that I’ve seen Rob Zombie’s remake of Halloween, which was god-awful in the heavy-handed way he handled Michael Myer’s childhood.
The remake of TCM did so, to a lesser extent, and so kept the focus on the victims, instead of the killer, which ended up negating the terror in Mr. Zombie’s pile of horsecrap by causing us to relate more with Michael than Laurie. Ugh….don’t even get me started on that. I was especially disappointed since I *loved* the Devil’s Rejects. (Lukewarm on House of 1000 Corpses.)
February 28th, 2008 at 11:49 am
Ha! Finally made it past Mystern in comments. Let’s hear it for #3!
February 28th, 2008 at 11:50 am
Thanks, no I really didn’t know how,,,sooo lame am I…I’m new to internet interaction. In fact I used to tease the geeks I knew, told them to go out and meet people, have real conversations….I take it all back
Who in my life am I going to talk to about “Moral absolutes in the Human Psyche” (thanks Mystern), or the “Definition of Ego” (Slick)?
Thanks again ;D
February 28th, 2008 at 11:52 am
see. what did i say? lets try again
“;D”
February 28th, 2008 at 11:55 am
I’m really surprised no one has mentioned any real classics such as Nosferatu, Horror Hotel, and Dementia 13. I should have included these in my original post…
February 28th, 2008 at 11:58 am
I guess it depends on what you mean by “best” but the only movie to every truly scare me was Jaws, I was about 8 or 9 the first time I saw it and lived in a shore resort town and the 17 year old that lived next door had my friends and I convinced it happened the next town north of us. I didn’t go in the ocean for the rest of that summer and most of the next.
February 28th, 2008 at 12:03 pm
There were some really cheesy Horror movies made in the 50’s. We used to watch them when I was really young…
anyone remember the one with the giant crab monsters? Nuclear testing site or something?
Or the one about the army ants? I still feel for the cow.
February 28th, 2008 at 12:09 pm
Mom424: You are completely correct about the cheese factor in old horror cinema, not to mention some of the nonsensical plots in some of them, but for the most part I enjoy an ol’ black n’ white to any new gorefest coming out for a dime a dozen these days. I remember fondly some classic moments in older movies that will never be topped or duplicated (be it outstanding lighting or timing resulting in brilliance) in todays cinema.
February 28th, 2008 at 12:18 pm
Mom424: I’ve seen the one with the ants, called “Them” I believe. There are some truly cheesy old horror movies (i.e. The Blob, The Deadly Mantis, The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms, It Came from Beneath the Sea, etc.) There are also some really, really good ones, like Bela Lugosi’s Dracula, Nosferatu, and the Bride of Frankenstein.
“;D” doesn’t do it I think. Try a regular mouth bracket. –>
There is also regular eyes (colon) followed by a capital “D” —>
And regular eyes followed by a capital “P” (sticking the tongue out) —>
February 28th, 2008 at 12:31 pm
Here’s a true-life horror that I found chilling:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2008/02/27/notes022708.DTL&nl=fix
February 28th, 2008 at 12:33 pm
so hard to choose! My faves are:
Saw series
Dawn of the Dead
The Exorcist
Hostel
Texas Chainsaw Massacre
February 28th, 2008 at 12:40 pm
Slick/Mom:
No, she was talking about “The Naked Jungle,” I believe, not “Them.” “Them” is one of the best sci-fi films of the 50s, and the original “ordinary animals blown up to giant size by radiation” movie–and still the best. But I don’t recall any cow in that movie–in fact, I have my own copy and am 99.9% sure there’s no cow in it. Just big fucking ants eating people.
Now, if memory serves, there WAS a scene in “The Naked Jungle” (starred Charlton Heston) about a huge colony of (ordinary sized) army ants descending upon a South American ranch, and I believe there was scene in there where the ants overwhelm a cow.
Of course, there’s also a cow eaten in another 50s classic, Jack Arnold’s “Tarantula.”
Also, for more ant fun, check out the 70s flick, “Phase IV,” about regular-sized ants who somehow gain intelligence—and outwit and destroy a group of scientists studying them in the desert. Cool and creepy movie, and disturbingly realistic.
February 28th, 2008 at 12:51 pm
Randall: You’re probably right. I’ve never seen “The Naked Jungle” and I wondered why I didn’t get the cow reference. Ha ha….just more movies about monster ants than I realized. “Them” was surprisingly fresh when I saw it, considering it was made like – what? – 50 years ago? Terrible special effects (though, I suppose, good for the time) but surprisingly not as big on the cheese factor as you’d expect from reading the box.
I’ve never heard of “Phase IV” but it sounds right up my alley. I’ll have to see if they have it on Netflix.
February 28th, 2008 at 1:04 pm
Slick:
You know, really… I wouldn’t call the SFX in “Them” terrible. We really have to start cutting film artists of the past a break… the ants in that film still look horrifyingly real to me, and the only element in which they fail is that they don’t move with the speed of real ants–but we couldn’t manage such a thing today without CGI. (or stop-motion, which would have raised the expense of “Them” hugely). And you could even argue that the ants in “Them” move so ponderously because they’re so huge. The SFX in “Them” is far and away the superior of any other “giant monster movie” ever done with the exception of the original King Kong (of course) and the films of Ray Harryhausen.
“Phase IV” is a cool film… subdued, but tense, and creepy. You get driven to the realization, at the end, that the ants are going to best the human beings and there’s little the human characters can do about it.
February 28th, 2008 at 1:08 pm
The Shining, Man. That is all.
February 28th, 2008 at 1:22 pm
Randall: You know, the more I think about it, the more the plot for “Phase IV” sounds like one of the last pieces of Crichton tripe to come out in recent years, “Prey.” Except, instead of ants they were nanobots, but otherwise, same basic premise. Way to be mediocre yet again, Mr. Crichton. Anyway, I digress.
Yes, we (read: “I”) should go easier on filmmakers of the past for the special effects, as they did the best they could given the technology they had. I think one of the reasons I enjoy the old horror flicks is because the filmmakers knew that the monsters would probably look a little hokey and unrealistic, so they made a conscious effort to make up for it by a strong plot and decent script and acting. (Of course, not to say this is rule…there are quite a few of those old movies that were just ridiculous on all fronts). Nowadays, I think filmmakers, particularly those in the horror genre, have an over-reliance on SFX to elicit a response from the audience, which has only contributed to the most recent generations jaded attitude towards horror movies….if it doesn’t have gallons of blood and buckets of guts flying across the screen, it isn’t scary.
February 28th, 2008 at 1:51 pm
ktk420:
You’re dead on the money and I’m in total agreement with you.
To Everyone Else:
I’ve made repeated comments in this thread to the effect that “slasher” films and serial killer films and the like are NOT horror.
It really comes down to this: is the definition of a “horror” film going to be broad and all-encompassing, or should it be narrowed down? Clearly I believe the latter, but let me explain to everyone why.
A lot of the kids (but not just the kids) posting here are tossing up stuff like “Saw” and “Texas Chainsaw Massacre” and the like as great horror films. Now of course I don’t agree anyway, since I find such films to be mere exploitation. But it goes beyond that. I’ve been a horror film aficianado ever since I was a little boy back in the late 60s/early 70s—my sister, who is ten years older than me, used to sit me down with her to watch “scary movies” on TV every Saturday afternoon—this is back in the day before cable TV, when all we had were the local NBC, CBS and ABC affiliates (and PBS of course, but naturally they weren’t showing horror movies). And of course, each local station had its version of the “Saturday afternoon horror show”–a cheesy, homegrown “framing” show where you’d have someone like the local weatherman or what have you dressing up as a vampire, introducing the movie or movies of the day. “Monster Movie Matinee”—that kind of thing–and so at a very young age I was exposed to all the great and godawful scary movies ever made, from the classic Universal films to all the Hammer thrillers and everything in between. Sci-fi, horror, ghost stories, thrillers… you name it.
Now…. it became obvious to me early on that there was more than one kind of film going on here–it was easy to distinguish the “sci-fi” film from everything else (though not always–for instance, how do you categorize “Invasion of the Body Snatchers?” or for that matter “Planet of the Vampires?”) but as I would thumb through the TV Guide looking for monster movies to watch, I would often wonder—why is one film called a “Thriller” and another “Action,” and another this or that? It brought me to the conclusion that, if we have different names for different genres, then there must be some subtle difference in those genres that *necessitates* the different names.
Is a ghost story a thriller? Well, usually… but not always. Is a thriller a horror film? Clearly not always. One of the best Hammer films I ever saw stuck with me for years–to the point where just a couple years ago I had to seek help in finding the name of it—I hadn’t even remembered that it was a Hammer film–and that led me to getting my own copy, once I’d identified it–the film was “Scream of Fear”–and I HEARTILY recommend it to anyone who wants to be creeped out and thrilled. It scared the piss out of me as a kid, but as an adult it doesn’t scare me so much as just creep the beejeezus out of me. At times it seems like a ghost story–at other times a thriller–and in the end it has a twist worthy of Rod Serling.
“Scream of Fear”—look it up and check it out.
But anyway—I instinctively knew this film was NOT horror. Why–I couldn’t answer. I simply knew that “horror” films had things like vampires and werewolves and mummies and other monsters in them—they were scary usually, but they were ALWAYS creepy and eerie, like having a bizarre dream with horrible things in it. I instinctively knew that the scene in “Son of Frankenstein” where the Monster (Karloff) suddenly swings silently down from a tree to grab a villager on a wagon by the throat, strangling him–I knew THAT was horror. NOT because a man was being killed and not even because HOW he was killed–but because it was done by a thing that *cannot* be—a living monster—not human, not a serial killer, but a monster. Just like when we’re kids and we’re creeped out by the thought of monsters under the bed or in the closet… monsters are a thing of the mind, something we don’t “make up” but rather are inside us from the start.
And yet the Frankenstein monster wasn’t just a killing machine. He was sympathetic. You could feel sorry for him—again, you were identifying with him–he was a monster, but he was also YOU…. you could understand the sense of being hated and outcast, and how he could respond with anger and murder–you were creeped out and empathetic all at the same time.
There was this British guy named Denis Gifford who wrote the greatest book on Horror Films I’ve ever seen (and I’ve read dozens). “A Pictorial History of Horror Films.” It’s a fantastic read. But in there, Gifford tries to define what a Horror Film IS. Now, his definition is a tad self-contradictory—but then precise definitions about such things often are… but one thing he said stuck with me. The horror film MUST have an element of the supernatural about it, and an element of the dream or nightmare. You must feel like you’ve stepped into some ghastly other-world where the dead come to life and/or monsters exist, or the supernatural intrudes upon our sense of reality.
Now…if this ISN’T what a Horror Film is, then we have to answer WHY we have designations like “Slasher Film” or “Psychological Thriller” or just plain “Thriller” and the like. Why are some movies scary, but clearly not weird or “horrific?”
I go by Gifford’s definition (though I don’t agree with all his judgements–he said, for instance, that “The Exorcist” wasn’t Horror–but I think he was simply against visceral exploitation, which The Exorcist surely was–but it also fit his other requirements. I suppose he’d argue that there isn’t really a “monster” in The Exorcist–but even this is fudging, I think.
Now I realize I’ve written another lengthy tome here… but I wanted everyone to think about this, because this subject is an old one that’s dear to me. I’m not against scary “killer” movies (though I think far too often they’re just sick and exploitative) and certainly I enjoy thrillers. But I really think “Horror” is something else. It’s John Carpenter’s “Halloween,” and “Frankenstein” and “Dracula,” and it’s “Night of the Living Dead” as well as “The Vampire Circus” and “Nosferatu” and “The Mummy.” But not “Saw” and its ilk, and not even a film I love and recommend, like “Scream of Fear.”
February 28th, 2008 at 1:52 pm
Slick:
You got it right, 100%.
February 28th, 2008 at 2:05 pm
horror movies appeal to our innermost fears
since we do not all fear the same things, we will all have different views on what is scary and what is not.
while there are certain movies that appear to transcend this barrier (exorcist, shining appear in these comments frequently) there will always be disagreements as to the “definition” of horror
its like trying to define punk rock, once you have succeeded in putting your thoughts into words, you have negated yourself and the medium you are trying to do justice
February 28th, 2008 at 2:09 pm
I think Hide and Seek is the best
It is a psychological horror, whic hare wayyy better thank slashers, because slashers are jsut a bunch of cheap thrills most of the time
dont get me wrond tho, i do like slashers
February 28th, 2008 at 2:14 pm
Oh and The Ring!
that little girl is the freakiest thing i have ever saw, im still scared of her and i havent seen the movie in years!!
February 28th, 2008 at 2:16 pm
Shit, forgot to mention “Creature of the Black Lagoon” in my list of old greats. The underwater shots are so amazingly well-done and creepy, its a wonder how they could even accomplish such a thing back then. (I believe it was due to a fantastic skin diver – the name escapes me – who could do acrobatics underwater and hold his breath up to 7 minutes at a time.)
Hmm..I would say that the Exorcist does qualify as a horror movie by Gillford’s definition. It has a monster (the demon Pazuzu [name not revealed until the laughable sequel]) and a major element of the supernatural. (In fact, I’d go so far to say that the movie bases it’s entire scare factor on the supernatural events that happen within the context of the natural.) Yes, the Exorcist was visceral and gory, at times (the crotch-stabbing incident readily comes to mind) but was also deliciously creepy, and spent a lot of time and effort to create this really unsettling atmosphere before the demon even begins to make its presence known. The horror in “The Exorcist” came, not from the events themselves (the bed jumping up and down, the crabwalk down the stairs, the voices and Regen’s physical transformation) but from the sublties and intricacies that make you feel nauseus and uneasy without even realizing it. It’s what sets you up for the money shots that keep the momentum of the film going, and *that* for me, is good, intelligent horror.
I would go so far as to suggest the first Saw movie works in much the same way, lame sequels not withstanding. The gore in the first movie is very much subdued. Unlike the sequels, it is *not* nonstop violence throughout…the horror comes much more from realizing just how fucked up the situation is, and that eventually either one man will kill the other or one man will be faced with cutting off his own foot to escape, a situation that on the face of it seems menial, but whose reality is disturbingly terrifying. You really come to identify with the main character, despite the poor casting choice, and it makes you think about what *you* would do in a similar situation. Would *you* have the balls to saw off your own foot with no anesthetic?
February 28th, 2008 at 2:17 pm
Oh man, pookyB, you do *not* want to get into it with Randall about punk rock. *Trust* me on that one.
February 28th, 2008 at 2:25 pm
Slick:
I agree about the Creature from the Black Lagoon wholeheartedly, and I agree about The Exorcist.
But Saw? Nah. To me that’s not horror, it’s suspense/thriller/sick killer film. And it’s totally visceral. Yeah, could you saw off your own foot? Sickeningly horrible to imagine… but it has no deeper or more soulful meaning beyond that.
February 28th, 2008 at 2:32 pm
I swear, why do people say some really bad slasher flicks were the best horror films? good slaher flicks got ruined by their sucky sequels that should never be reprinted. Like Halloween, perfect ending, then came halloween 2, sucked ass, Halloween 3, had nothing to do with the original plot, and the rest sucked ass completely. it is like that with other slasher flicks like Friday the 13th, nightmare on elm street, the texas chainsaw massacre, etc. thats why only the first of these films are in my top 10.
February 28th, 2008 at 2:34 pm
Randall: Yeah, but it wasn’t just the “sawing your own foot off” aspect of it. It was the way the killer wrapped the victims so far around his finger that every aspect of their perception was convoluted. The motivating factor behind the actual sawing event was the fact that if the main character didn’t kill the other man before a certain time, the main character’s family would be killed. It’s a terrifying catch-22. I see what you’re saying though….not all scary movies are horror films, and being scary is one of – but not the only – requirement of being genuine horror. I guess I can agree with this assessment of Saw. However, I *was* genuinely creeped out/sickened by it. I can appreciate a slasher/splatter picture as long as it doesn’t insult my intelligence. (Not that Saw was a good movie by any stretch…the was no point to the crazy Danny Glover character other than to catalyze the events at the climax of the film, which was just lazy writing to me, and while I am a fan of Cary Elwes in his light-hearted stuff, he was a poor, dull choice for the main character. I think it was a testament to the approach of the movie that even with acting so flat and the thoughtlessness of the script I was still drawn into it, and I am, like you, highly critical of movies.)
February 28th, 2008 at 2:34 pm
randall:I think thats the only reason saw is considered a horror film, it has bloody imagery, but it plays with your mind and has a better over-all plot than most horror films which are just blood and guts.
February 28th, 2008 at 2:45 pm
Really, I understand the attraction of at least the first Saw film. I personally found it disgusting, but yes, tense and nerve-wracking.
But there’s more to a good film than the visceral. Or… more to a *great* film than the visceral. And Saw didn’t have more than that.
I do like The Exorcist–but I don’t consider it to be “great.” It has some great *moments,* some truly creepy, scary moments…. but to me it never rises higher than the visceral either.
“Halloween,” on the other hand–remember, there’s hardly any blood *in* that movie. It wasn’t needed.
February 28th, 2008 at 2:50 pm
Randall:yes, the first holloween was indeed great, iwould put among the top 20 of all time, and saw and the exorcist were great because they played on people’s fears, like in the exorcist it played on people’s fear of the devil and how he can get control of you, which is why they are among my top 10.
February 28th, 2008 at 2:50 pm
I mean…. don’t any of you ever step back and think, after you’ve seen something like “Saw” or its sequels, or the like—don’t any of you ever step back and think, or feel, that you’ve been yanked around? That your gut feelings have been exploited?
Shouldn’t films be *more* than rollercoaster rides? That maybe every once in a while that’s *okay,* but that it’s just not enough? And that sometimes when a filmmaker takes you on a rollercoaster ride…. that you’ve been cheated? Just a little?
The funhouse is an okay thrill… but I want more out of my amusements than variations on the funhouse. I want more than to be simply shocked and have my guts wrenched around.
A lot of these movies, since the 70s—are nothing more than thrill-rides, a trip through a funhouse. That’s okay once in a while—but always and never anything more?
February 28th, 2008 at 2:53 pm
Alien, The Omen (original of course), The Thing, The Shining (still freaks me out after i’ve seen it a hundred times). Texas Chainsaw (only the original) freaks me out a bit because it seems so grainy and realistic.
I can’t think of many decent modern horror films. The Saw series is retarded, Hostel was pretty average, and the Ring was okay but a bit overrated. I thought 1408 was okay – at least it didn’t rely on gore and it actually built up a bit of atmosphere. I’m a big horror buff so i am quite opinionated.
February 28th, 2008 at 2:53 pm
Horror is my favorite genre of film and all of the obvious sub-genres. The Exorcist is definately up there. I also enjoy (in no particular order):
Nosferatu (from the 20’s)
The Mummy (Karloff)
Dracula (Lugosi)
Bram Stoker’s Dracula (Gary Oldman is my favorite actor)
Dawn of the Dead (1978)
Day of the Dead
Night of the Living Dead
American Werewolf in London
The Thing
The Shining (both Kubrick’s and the made for t.v. version)
Dead/Alive
Nekromantik 1 & 2
Suspiria
All of the early Texas Chainsaw Series
The Zombi series
Creepshow 1 & 2 (haven’t seen 3 yet)
Poltergeist
Halloween (1978)
February 28th, 2008 at 2:59 pm
ah yes, nosferatu, truly the first great horror film.
February 28th, 2008 at 3:07 pm
Randall: Absolutely, I agree with you. I’m not big on slasher/splatter pictures for just that reason. (And a lot of the big budget SFX clusterfucks that have out recently…*cough*transformers*cough*) I didn’t even particularly like “Saw,” I just thought it was altogether a bit more intelligent than your standard “twisted killer” movie. I don’t always feel cheated in such a movie, so long as my intellect is being appealed to as much as my gut emotions. Movies like “Hostel” and “Captivity” along with the disgusting, cancerous “Guinea Pig” movies to come out of Japan are totally despicable in the blatant way they present themselves. “Don’t think and be frightened…watch and be disgusted!”
I think that, as far back as the early 70’s, violence and gore became incontrovertibly linked with horror in the minds of the standard movie-going audience. (One of the most depraved movies I’ve ever seen came from the 70’s…”Cannibal Holocaust”). That being said, there have been several quality horror movies to come out since then, but they have been few and far between, and keep getting panned by the general public in favor of the blood-orgies that kids (and some less-than-brilliant adults) seem to flock to these days.
February 28th, 2008 at 3:09 pm
The first Poltergeist and 1408 are both very high quality horror movies, in my opinion, 1408 being a good recent example of horror. (Though I do have my contentions with the movie) I was actually surprised by the quality of 1408, and how depraved it turned out to be at the end, despite being virtually no gore whatsoever.
February 28th, 2008 at 3:10 pm
I think the truly great horror films are the phsycological ones that play on human emotions and fears, most of these don’t need blood and guts, just like the exorcist or “IT”.
February 28th, 2008 at 3:12 pm
slickwilly:1408 is the best horror film to come out in a while, the recent ones are just blood and guts, none really scare me, thats why a lot of the best ones were made in the pre 90’s era.
February 28th, 2008 at 3:26 pm
Csimmons: By definition, a horror movie capitalizes on our fears and appeals to our emotions. It’s part of what makes them scary. A GREAT horror movie goes above and beyond those terms, and the *art* of the horror film is attributable, really, only to those directors who set the mark for their genre and the cinematographic innovations they create. A great horror movie doesn’t even have to have a great script or great casting to be great…it’s all about atmosphere, and how the director chooses to manipulate it. (Though the aforementioned things certainly help a great deal.) There is a lot more to a great horror movie than just how they capitalize on our fears.
February 28th, 2008 at 3:28 pm
Alien(s) really scared me when I was young. Psychological/sci-fi horror movies are the worst for me. I can deal with people dying but I don’t like stuff that could be real like ghosts and such. Therefore, the first movie that jumped out at me was The Ring. I couldn’t sleep right for months after I watched that! Silent Hill is also sickeningly frightening. Exorcist is another good one but not so much because I thought it was scary as I just thought it was an excellent movie.
Hitchcock movies don’t scare me because, while they’re awesome movies, too much suspense and slow build-up kind of bores me. For some reason 28 Days Later didn’t scare me either. Saw – not scary, just gross. Jaws – not scary except thinking it could happen to me. IT – never saw it, I should!
February 28th, 2008 at 3:33 pm
slick: you are right, and the “great” ones are like you described, and the director of The Exorcist(forgot his name)did that perfectly.
February 28th, 2008 at 3:39 pm
Csimmons: William Friedkin is the director of The Exorcist. He is actually a great director, period. He just happens to be good at directing horror. (Another movie he did that is one of my personal favs is The French Connection). Friedkin, Hammer, Barker, Craven, Scott, Spielberg…all masters of their craft. It’s really because of these men that most people still have some sort of appreciation for horror today.
Now, I’m afraid, I’ve talked myself out for the day. See you all tomorrow!
February 28th, 2008 at 4:07 pm
I am so glad I mentioned the old cheesy movies; spawned more interesting discussion
Slick; I generally hate stupid slasher films; but I must admit I half-assed enjoyed Saw — the first one only — because of the manipulation and the fact that it is one of the few movies I didn’t figure out before the end. Creature from the Black Lagoon rocks, and I loved the original Frankenstein (well not really original) but the one from the fifties,,,I cried like a damn baby at the end,,,wasn’t he floating off on an ice pack or something? or maybe that was bride of f? I also was enjoyed watching Amityville Horror, scared the shit outta me, and I knew it wasn’t true…
Randall; Phase IV creeped me out way back in the day, I had actually forgotten about that ant movie. I can still conjure up creepy feelings from that Vincent Price one too; the one where there was a pit of acid in the cellar? ring any bells? How about CHUD? hah hah
I think the movie I was referring to was the Naked Jungle, pirhannas in that one too? I’ve tried to blot most references to Heston out of my memory, (he’s a dick-weed), I did too good a job. Speaking of Heston, remember Omega Man? that was not too bad either..
New horror movie that borders on exploitation that I liked was From Dusk ’till Dawn, Harvey Keitel and Juliette Lewis in the same movie, George Clooney for eye candy and the only role where Tarantino himself was believable,(although I thought he played the psychopath just a little too well, if you know what I mean) It was pretty funny as an added bonus.
February 28th, 2008 at 4:10 pm
Damn … how could I forget Evil Dead 2 but it is a more a comedy horror the same as 3 : Armies of Darkness
February 28th, 2008 at 4:10 pm
Randall (295): Exactly my point. Bravo!
BrotherMan (310): Does that include Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2? I hope not…
February 28th, 2008 at 4:13 pm
Mom424: You like Vincent Price? Ever see Last Man on Earth? I love that movie…sheer brilliance!
February 28th, 2008 at 4:24 pm
There is a really great list of the best horror movies of all time here:
http://seekler.com/lists/Best+Horror+Movies
It is voted on by a bunch of different users and you can further filter down by actors and genre.
My personal fav: The Silence of the Lambs
Might be more of a thriller, but it is execellent.
February 28th, 2008 at 4:27 pm
ktk420; I was raised on Vincent Price. I’m 45 so I was around when his movies first came on TV. Funny you should mention Last Man on Earth…I had just mentioned Omega Man, a direct rip-off I think. Yeah I remember, and House on Haunted Hill, and The House of Usher, The Fly,,The man is a classic
February 28th, 2008 at 4:35 pm
They just “remade” the Last man on Earth (in essence) with Will Smith (I Am Legand, based on the book of the same name(which I’m sure you know Last Man on Earth is also based)) Have you seen? I have not, but I heard it got dreadful reviews. While I am considerably younger than you (21 to be exact) I know fine cinema when I see it. And yes, House on Haunted Hill is excellent.
February 28th, 2008 at 4:36 pm
Concerned Observer: Is that Maggot girl a true story???? That has to be the most disgusting thing that I have ever read in my life. 2 girls 1 cup is nothing compared to that. EWWWWWW
February 28th, 2008 at 4:41 pm
Randall; thanks for the creep-out true story. The tongue thing doesn’t faze me too much. Could have bit it out herself and been scavenged, but the rest of it? Too weird; if it had been a government weapons test they would have just lied and covered it up. Wouldn’t have bothered investigating. I wonder if it was some weird ass kind of lightning? or ultra-low frequency noise? hmmmmmm
What do you think?
February 28th, 2008 at 4:53 pm
ktk420; I’ve read the same reviews, there is also one on this list. My kids (my eldest is 21) all liked it. #1 Son was less impressed than the rest of them. I’m in no hurry to see it. Omega man has a similar premise; Plague, everybody dies almost, Heston immune via experimental vaccine. Resistant mutants out to get him…
February 28th, 2008 at 6:16 pm
Slickwilly; *Cough – Transformers sucked the big one, it should have been good; the kid actor was horrible, the funny bits were forced; just crap, the only thing i liked was that some of the cars were cool – Cough*
February 28th, 2008 at 7:37 pm
My votes:
-The Silence of the Lambs (don’t tell me it’s not horror; if effing Alien is horror, Hannibal Lecter is, too)
-Last House On the Left
-Audition
-Frailty
-Psycho (traumatized as a child by this one…)
-Red Dragon
-Dahmer
Horror movies are my favorite kind, so even though I have tons of favorites, these are the ones that I think were overall amazing, not just by my standards.
February 28th, 2008 at 8:41 pm
Suspiria
February 28th, 2008 at 9:45 pm
Poltergeist…to this day I cannot watch Poltergeist if I am by myself…too terrifying. The 2nd one, although no where near as good as the first, has some seriously terrifying moments “God is in his, Holy temple…” I am a church goer and whenever that song is sung, I cringe!!!!
February 29th, 2008 at 12:15 am
too many grouprs sub-groups for me to pick one. but best title, even though the movie sucked would be “children shouldn’t play with dead things”
February 29th, 2008 at 4:21 am
I can’t decide on a best Horror movie. My real life is a horror movie.
A point about Amityville Horror, and Poltergeist is that the people couldn’t get away from the terror by running to the safety of home. Home was where the horror was happening.
[My real life horror movie has a twist. I get treated like I'm the monster.]
February 29th, 2008 at 4:58 am
Some that I have not seen mentioned here:
House of a Thousand Corpses
Candyman
Poltergiest
Amityville Horror
Dracula
13 Ghosts
The Birds
Children of the Corn
February 29th, 2008 at 6:49 am
Mom:
A woman who shares my love for cheesy old horror movies! THAT I have not yet found… they usually share my musical tastes or my taste in (other kinds of) films or art or food… but not yet my taste for the good old horror flicks. Vincent Price is one my faves too.
The movie you refer to with the vat of acid… well, my first answer is that you *must* be referring to House on Haunted Hill (the original of course)… but there’s *also* an acid bath in a much later Price film called “Scream and Scream Again,” a really weird flick made circa 1970 about duplicates of people being created to take over the world.
As for that story—I have no idea. It threw me for a loop. The only thing I can think is maybe the details have been hoked-up… the Russians have a propensity for the lurid and bizarre (check out the once-proud Pravda these days…. it reads like The Weekly World News) but then again…. who knows? Sounds like material for a great hokey sci-fi/horror movie though, like The Trollenberg Terror (aka The Crawling Eye).
I have a collection of wheezy old horror movie DVDs and VHSs that I’m quite proud of…. I hold an annual horror movie marathon at my place–last year outdoors by the lake with a scavenged digital projector and a big screen hung from an old stone pumphouse… we had a hell of a time… pun intended.
February 29th, 2008 at 7:57 am
Mom424: *cough*Transformers could have been really good. I think where Bay got off track is thinking that…well, people have been waiting for the better part of 2 decades for a live-action Transformers movie to come out…so why not focus the movie on the human characters that, honestly, no one gives a shit about. All us Transformer fans wanted to see were giant robots duking it out on the screen for 2 hours, not watching the twerp from Even Stevens see how high his voice will crack.
*Sigh* Michael Bay really needs to stop directing movies. He has got a great eye for visuals….honestly, just have him be the SFX guy, he knows what is visually exiciting. He just wouldn’t know a decent script if it walked up and kicked him in the balls. Anyway, back to horror……*cough*
February 29th, 2008 at 8:02 am
Mom424/Randall: Yeah, about the true creepy story Randall posted…my first thought was ball lightning. There have been reports of balls of lightning floating around, looking almost animate, and suddenly exploding with great force. My first thought was that they were scared from their tents by ball lightning overhead, and that perhaps another exploded and showered them with old trees…which would account for the crushed skull/rib cage. The tongue may have bee scaveneged by animals. The only thing is…ball lightning is extremely rare, and I don’t know if I ever read an account of multiple instances of ball lightning being sighted near each other around the same time. Interesting…and indeed creepy.
February 29th, 2008 at 8:14 am
Randall; FYI (In no particular order) Art; Cezanne, Van Gogh, Dali, Tom Thompson; Picasso (blue & rose), Monet, Munch (his pencil/charcoal stuff is cool), My Uncle Carl (he and My Aunt Ann instilled my love of art, I have a Picasso-like painting of my Aunt Betty that he did in my living room, His best work, you would be amazed). Don’t like Pollock for the most part, the odd one that gets to me, or Ruben, or Goya,,,,If you know about art read my New Topic thread and make me an art list please, I know nothing about it..
Books; I don’t read romance. (Danielle Steele etc). Thats it, my only criteria. Very few pictures of ripped bodices in my book collection.
Movies; I don’t do mush. I am very emotional in real-life, don’t need heartbreak in the movies too. I like weird stuff, but it must tell a story or convey a theme. Did you see Bug yet?. I like Horror/Sci Fi, action, and comedy, not so much the light stuff (harry met sally), the darker stuff, (war of the roses)or broad humor(i laugh at fart jokes), or high camp. I have an excellent imagination, Fantasy works for me, I can actually continue a story in my head..
Music; don’t like baroque, too twangy country, techno-crap, rap, (some hip hop is cool though), heavy opera (although I like the spectacle). My experience with classical music is limited; just what my relatives used to play,,,I like Vivaldi, Beethoven, Strauss, Mozart ,,,someone could do a classical list for me, I would like to know more
I like the ballet; of course my tres blue-collar (father is military, NCO), upbringing has left me woefully lacking in that department. Again my Aunt Anne and Uncle Carl to the rescue…
I’ve seen The Nutcracker Suite, Swan Lake, and Sleeping Beauty
Another list I would appreciate!
PS; I would have loved that party! What a tremendous idea, we have a cottage by the lake and it can get spooky at night without the scary movies….
By the way if you ever hear of good professor guest lecturing in Toronto……….
February 29th, 2008 at 8:19 am
Mom424: I’m pretty sure William Friedkin directed “Bug.”
February 29th, 2008 at 9:07 am
SlickWilly; Figures! Critics I read hated the movie. I thought it fascinating, and unimaginably disturbing. The descent into madness is one of my greatest fears…being unable to trust your own brain,…..eeeee
What was the movie where the guy put his victims into statues? I remember being horrified by that,(cheesy tv actor i think starred in it)?
February 29th, 2008 at 9:17 am
SlickWilly; (sorry for the double post). Why is it directors think we require something other than action in an action movie?
Just have to ruin it with some lame love interest that does nothing to move the plot along? Or some coming of age crap? He turned what should have been an epic action movie into “Made for TV Movie of the Week”. They must throw it in for their lame-ass girlfriends.
February 29th, 2008 at 9:36 am
Mom:
You’re a well-rounded person, that’s for sure.
Okay… Cezanne is my hands-down favorite artist, and I love Monet and Munch and Van Gogh… not much a Dali fan. Other loves of mine are Klimt, Klee. Manet, Gaugin, Titian, Caravaggio, Rubens… a number of the Dutch painters, and…. well they’re just too numerous to mention. Edward Hopper, Winslow Homer… Miro… Watteau is a HUGE favorite of mine… anyway, I think you’re being a tad modest when you say you “know nothing about” art.
I am myself an artist–I’ve painted for years, started drawing when I was a child… I was, for a brief time, an Art major in college. As part of that, also studied Art History. Today of course it’s just a hobby.
Books — of course no romance…. not into any genre fiction, really. I’m a modernist, but of course also love the classics of western lit… and heavily into the ancient Greeks.. as for non-fiction… science, history, art, architecture, archeology, philosophy… etc.
Movies: no mush for me either, but it’s classic and foreign cinema all the way for me. I rarely bother with new movies—I’ve been disappointed almost every time I’ve seen one. As you already know, I love the old Horror and Sci-fi stuff. Haven’t seen Bug. Comedy is big with me of course.
Music: I do love baroque, hate country, except for the old, old stuff a bit… my tastes otherwise run to the alternative, but I’m also a big pop guy—especially 60s pop. From bubblegum to punk, that’s my taste.
I actually do like the ballet also–not as big with opera. My upbringing was *not* blue-collar, but instead was… well, a bit blue-blood, you might say. My father was also military though, but his war was WWII… he was an officer, a bomber pilot.
The party is great and I’m hoping the October weather cooperates again this year… (the party wasn’t actually ON Halloween, as I’m with my kids trick-or-treating then.. we had it the weekend before). But we also do this semi-weekly, my neighbors and I—we get friends stopping by with blankets and chairs and we all sit in the yard with torches around, and play a movie… last summer it was the original version of the Producers, and Little Miss Sunshine, and… I can’t even remember. Too many of them. But yeah, it’s great with the lake right there and the moonlight on the water, and the torches going…
Toronto, huh? I have friends in Toronto…
February 29th, 2008 at 9:38 am
Slick:
My mother had a run-in with ball lightning when she was a little girl, or so she claimed. This would have been in the mid-1930s. In the middle of a storm she said this ball of glowing light came into her family’s kitchen and scared the beejeezus out of her and her sisters.
February 29th, 2008 at 9:52 am
Randall;
I should have specified with the country music; I do not listen to any new country except Hank Williams III, and he plays old style country and a punk/country hybrid. (No Shania, No Garth, etc)
My dad retired as Base Chief W/O, the highest NCO rank in the Canadian Military. I didn’t mean to imply we were totally without culture, just occupied by day to day living. There is a difference.
Rubens? I appreciate the talent, not the subject material nor the overall-overdone formality.
Watteau – I’m gonna have to go look up
My desktop is Cezanne – Still life with a Compotier.
February 29th, 2008 at 9:59 am
Mom424: I think that has a lot to do with the whole “damsel in distress” cliche that Hollywood is so fond of. The action hero has to have a reason to fight…why not throw in a love-interest to add to the conflict? For the most part, I consider movie formulas like this to be hallmarks of lazy writing. I can only think of a couple right off the top of my head without a half-assed romance in it, and even then its been so long since I’ve seen some of them that I’m still not sure. Terminator 2 comes readily to mind, as does First Blood…um…a few John Woo movies…shit, I’m stuck. Just goes to show how ingrained this subplot really is in the action genre. I love action movies, perosonally, and have always accepted the inevitable love interest as a staple of the genre, just like creepy music and unrealistically incompetent victims in horrors movies…as long as it doesn’t get in the way of the meat of the movie, I don’t mind so much.
Randall: That’s really creepy. I wonder how ball lightning is formed, and why it acts the way it does. Ball lightning is said to account for a certain proportion of supposed UFO sightnings, and I believe it, with as unsual as it is. I’ve only ever read and heard about, I’ve never actually met anyone who witnessed it. I can’t even imagine having one float in through the kitchen window…they are said to explode sometimes, so your mom was probably very lucky that it didn’t do any more damage than it did…..yeesh.
February 29th, 2008 at 10:01 am
I prefer my Rubens with thousand island dressing.
Wakka wakka wakka
(Sorry. Bad joke/spelling — “Reubans”)
February 29th, 2008 at 10:02 am
Randall/Slick;
My first thought was ball lightening (my mom had a similar experience in Belgium in the 60’s, came in through an open window during a storm, blew every single light bulb in the house), I discounted the white hair bit, only thing that will do that is bleach. Low frequency sound will cause concussive damage as well, I just have no idea what would cause frequencies that low.
February 29th, 2008 at 10:08 am
Alien
For once the monster lives up to the hype.
The other Alien movies are very good Sci-Fi flics in their own rite but the original can still raise the hair on the back of my neck just the way it did when saw it in the theatre in 1978.
February 29th, 2008 at 10:39 am
Alien, without question.
February 29th, 2008 at 10:48 am
NO WAY IS IT ALIEN!! I think that Alien is the best, appart from I am Legend.
February 29th, 2008 at 11:09 am
i hate cheesy movies about a group of teenagers that get killed by a psycho, too predictable…or the ones that are really gross like hostel or saw people just dont get that horror is not the same as blood!
the best of the horror genre are the old movies, i mean the really old ones like “Nosferatu”,”Dracula”, “The black cat”, theyre amazing because they didnt need special effects or blood to scare the hell out of you!
February 29th, 2008 at 11:38 am
I forgot about Cats with Natasha (sp) Kinski. That was pretty damn fine, and Wolfen too…
This is turning out better than the Bible list
February 29th, 2008 at 11:42 am
Slick; In Terminator the love interest was necessary to the plot. The gratuitous f*** scene was not.
Now in Pulp Fiction the f*** scene between Bruce and what’s her name was integral to the plot; ie it helped to define Bruce’s character….
Thats the difference I mean.
February 29th, 2008 at 11:43 am
the omen was scary the original and remake also misery although not a classic horror movie creeped me out
February 29th, 2008 at 11:51 am
Mom424: I said that Terminator *2* did not have a love interest. And technically the f*** scene in the first Terminator WAS intergral to the plot…it was the moment that John Connor was conceived, which is the whole reason Kyle went back in time in the first place. Not saying that some love-interests in action movies are integral to the plot, but often times this necessary connection seems forced, like they started with having the main character have a love interest and tried to figure out a way to make her into a important character.
February 29th, 2008 at 12:09 pm
Slick; I didn’t need to see it though in Terminator, his love, dedication, courage, and the inevitability of their love making was obvious in other ways, they didn’t have to show it…..
February 29th, 2008 at 12:23 pm
Mom424: Yeah, but the way modern movies are, they just don’t give the audience enough credit to be able to figure things out on their own. They have to beat you over the head with it, with often gratuitous, graphic “love” scenes. Nothing is left to the imagination anymore.
February 29th, 2008 at 12:24 pm
It works that way with horror nowadays too.
(lame segue back to topic.)
February 29th, 2008 at 12:35 pm
IT is the scariest movie by far. They showed it to us in high school as a treat for good behavior. I have not been the same every since.
February 29th, 2008 at 12:44 pm
Oh man, too many for me to pick just one. I’ve been watching horror since I was a baby and didn’t realize what I was watching. Ironically, when I was young (like 2), my dad let me stay up and watch “The Creature From the Black Lagoon” with him, then a little later my folks took me and my baby sis to see “ET” and ET scared me so badly I started crying in the theater.
As an adult I love good horror. Too bad so much of what is produced now is just junk in my opinion. One recent diamond in the rough though has been the “SAW” movies. God I love stuff like that. It’s creative and terrifying and never dull. Stuff like that and the earlier movies starring Hannibal “the cannibal” Lecter, and all of the “Hellraiser” movies are of a quality that Hollywood should at least aspire to duplicate, if not surpass. Those are my top three, since if I had to choose, it would be one of them.
February 29th, 2008 at 12:47 pm
Oh, and the “why” of it is there with the fact that I’ve grown up watching horror. I saw “Nightmare on Elm St.” and “Friday the 13th” when I was about six on HBO, back when they did cool stuff like that. I also saw many other horror movies that I can only remember scenes from, and not names. Ah, youth. These days I aspire to be a horror author, and I truly despise the cliched and stupid stuff that current writers like M. Night Shamaylan churn out. You know it’s bad when stuff like “Scary Movie” has better and potentially more terrifying scenes than the stuff that’s supposed to be real horror.
February 29th, 2008 at 1:19 pm
Mom:
Val Lewton and Jacques Tourneur’s ORIGINAL Cat People, with Simone Simon, is, I think, far better than the remake.
Lewton was a genius…. I have the entire collection of his Horror films, and it’s amazing what he did with low budgets… I Walked with a Zombie is moody and beautiful… The Bodysnatcher tense and dark… what an amazing guy Lewton was.
February 29th, 2008 at 1:48 pm
Randall; I will make the effort to seek a few of them out.
I checked out Watteau, Your blue-blood is showing.
Not really my cup of tea, but the way he flirts with light is kind of moving…Fairly sombre scene, and then you see the reflection off the lady’s bosom, or the glint of her petticoat.
or the way in an entire group of people/scenery he can pull you in/make you focus on just 2 of many,,,,I can’t really express that very well.
I’m sure that they would be even more impressive at the gallery or on my living room wall.
Cool – Thanks
February 29th, 2008 at 2:54 pm
Im gonna state my top 10 again just so we all know good horror from now on!(notice its a little revised)
10)The Hills Have Eyes
9)The prince of darkness
8)Halloween(the first and only the first)
7)Friday The 13th(once again only the first)
6)Nightmare On Elm Street(getting a trend here?)
5)The Texas Chainsaw Massacre(guess what,,, only the first!)
4)The Night of The Livivng Dead
3)IT
2)Psyco(I still shower facing the curtain just in case)
1)The Exorcist
My #3 pick last time was Jaws, but i recently saw it and would put it at #11 or 12 now, my notables would be 1408, Jaws,and Nosferatu.
February 29th, 2008 at 3:01 pm
Heres some true horror films(my top 10 last time has been re-arranged, plus the slaher flicks are the FIRST ones only, all sequels to good films suck ass)
10)The Hills Have Eyes
9)Jaws
8)Halloween
7)Friday the 13th
6)The Texas Chainsaw Massacre
5)Nightmare On Elm Street
4)The Night of The Living Dead
3)IT
2)Psyco(I shower facing the curtain thanks to this film)
1)The Exorcist
I would mention 1408, Nosferatu, and Alien in my top 20 though.
February 29th, 2008 at 3:02 pm
sorry for the double comment if it shows up, i didn’t see it when i submitted it for the first time so i typed it again.
February 29th, 2008 at 4:00 pm
I’ve seen many, many horror flicks and the only movie that “truly” scared me was John Carpenter’s The Thing. No other movie has ever captured that sense of dread and isolation as successfully as The Thing. It’s a brilliant flick that doesn’t rely on hokey graphics or gore for cheap scares (although there are a few scenes that are bit “campy” compared to todays standards, like the “crawling head” scene), instead creating a sense of fear from the surroundings of our protagonists.
February 29th, 2008 at 8:22 pm
I’m a horror movie fanatic. My husband gets sick of it, he loves ‘em too, but likes to watch comedies more often than not.
Event Horizon scared me the first time I saw it.
The Grudge is one of my favorites.
Silent Hill was good, but not really all that scary.
The Exorcist is AWSOME.
Candyman was kinda sexy.
I prefer psychological to slasher all the way. Movies like Hostel and Saw honestly make me sad. I just don’t like seeing people get hurt.
February 29th, 2008 at 10:26 pm
Rosemary’s Baby. Enough said. “Hail Satan” said by Clara from Mayberry… beat that.
February 29th, 2008 at 10:28 pm
I would say the Shining; it messes with your brain and some scenes are scary as hell ie- 2 dead girls in hallway.
February 29th, 2008 at 10:36 pm
Session 9, Silent Hill, Ju On, Eye 2 and Blair Witch.
February 29th, 2008 at 10:37 pm
Event Horizon also, nice catch souxieq.
On a side note, even as a kid I never got what was scary about The Exorcist.
February 29th, 2008 at 11:55 pm
ERASERHEAD – this film is just WRONG
March 1st, 2008 at 12:18 am
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre
The eye
The grudge
APT
March 1st, 2008 at 2:17 am
Fright Night and Silver Bullet… I love cheeeeezy!
March 1st, 2008 at 1:06 pm
The greatest horror film ever made? Leprechaun in the Hood, of course!
March 1st, 2008 at 1:10 pm
Seriously though, I’d say Nosferatu, The Shining (though not as good as the book) and The Thing are the best horror movies I’ve seen, though Nosferatu is the only one I consider even remotely scary; I don’t believe in the supernatural, so most horror movies don’t do much for me. Also, Army of Darkness and From Dusk til Dawn are great campy fun, but they’re more action/comedy than horror. And while it isn’t a movie, the episode of “The X-files” with the parasitic spiders living in peoples’ throats terrified me when I was a kid.
March 1st, 2008 at 7:43 pm
Thanks Egg!
March 1st, 2008 at 9:48 pm
“Duel” starring Dennis Hopper. The movie is scary beause: 1.) It can happen to anyone, and does everyday somewhere, 2.) You never find out what caused the road-rage, and 3.) You never see the OTHER driver! The movie keeps you on the edge of your seat!!!
March 2nd, 2008 at 5:54 am
how about a list of most disturbing films
March 2nd, 2008 at 8:42 am
Bill: i’ve seen that movie! lol i was laughing the whole time! it made it seem like he was going soooo fast when he was going like 40
but i think that Silent Hill is the best horror movie. i get fidgety around barbed wire now. and idk if you would consider Creepshow a horror movie but i like that one too.
March 2nd, 2008 at 12:18 pm
Chelsea: Creepshow was awesome! (The segment with Hal Holbrook’s dysfunctional marital situation hits close to home for me). Creepshow II was great too. We had a lake with a floating dock in the middle of it, and we’d discuss that segment with the floating blob sometimes when we were out there…good times.
March 2nd, 2008 at 1:54 pm
The Shining!!! Creepy, weird, little boy who talks to his finger, dead girls, and jack nicholson!! What else can be asked for in this life?!?!?!!?
March 3rd, 2008 at 8:34 am
Mom:
Actually, my love for Watteau also comes from my being an artist myself–he draws like a Renaissance master and every single one of his characters has this life in them, this true personality… it’s inspiring and remarkable.
March 3rd, 2008 at 8:46 am
Randall: Is your definition of a horror film based on your opinion? I’m seriously wondering.
I would assume that a horror film is just a film that induces horror onto the viewer. (with or without supernatural context) In thinking this, even slasher films can be included in the list. Hey, I may very well be wrong – but when you go into the horror section in a movie rental place, it’s not exclusive to supernatural/scary movies. Everything is included.
March 3rd, 2008 at 9:10 am
Amy:
No, my defintion of a horror film is not based on my opinion (or at least not *solely* on my opinion). Most of my argument for what a horror film is resides in my posting number 295 above, though I also made comments to this effect earlier in the thread.
Basically, the definition I recommend resides on three points:
A) As a once-upon-a-time film student in college, I know from many film historians, critics and film artists that “Horror” is viewed as a separate genre unto itself, different from “Thriller” and “Psychological Thriller” and even “Ghost Story” and “Slasher” films. So WHY is horror viewed as a separate genre? Obviously because in order for it to BE horror, there has to be certain elements in it that differentiate it from the others. Now…
B) This view is supported by, amongst others, the late film historian Denis Gifford, who I referenced earlier–his take on the horror film being that it must involve an element of the supernatural, and be dreamlike or nightmarish in its execution and content–and not be merely exploitative or frightening or thrilling–but be what he called “horrific.” And he defined “horrific” in terms hearkening back to the aforementioned “dreamlike, nightmarish” state… in other worlds, a film that pitches you OUT of reality into an otherworldly, dreamlike environment or atmosphere. A world of monsters, in other worlds… a subconscious, dream-state world.
C) All this makes sense when you consider how illogical it is to lump together such disparate films as “Saw” with, oh… say, “Rosemary’s Baby,” or “Frankenstein,” or “Dracula.” (and so on). If you think about it, these can’t ALL be “horror films.” Otherwise, why bother naming the various genres? Why bother with the distinctions?
My point is, we’re being lazy about our definitions. You say a horror film is simply one that induces horror in the viewer. Gifford anticipated this very argument—and would therefore then ask you—should the films of the Nazi death camps at the end of WWII be included in the list? Should they be called “Horror films?” They certainly induce horror in the viewer.
The mere fact that movie rental stores lump all these things together shouldn’t matter in the slightest—we don’t allow commercial venues to define these things for us–after all, due to space, some stores lump Westerns together with Spy films and Crime films in the “Action” section… should that then make us conclude that all such films are the same?
March 3rd, 2008 at 5:46 pm
top horror movies
-The Exorcist (the whole satanic aspect usually freaks me out)
-Night of the Living Dead 1968 (a classic, although the 1990 remake from Romero’s buddy Tom Savini is decent)
-Dawn of the Dead 1978 (remake is alright)
-Texas Chainsaw Massacre 1974 (the only thing good about the remake is R.Lee Ermey as the sheriff)
-American Werewolf in London (awesome movie, love the scene where he changes for the first time…great effects for that time, no computer generated sh!t)
-Alien (is there a better design of a monster in a movie? Thank you H.R.Giger)
-Evil Dead (the first one was great, a student film for Sam Raimi. To me, Part 2 was almost a comedy/horror remake of the original. And Army of Darkness was a good comedy/horror, full of some of the cheesiest one liners in movie history
)
-Hellraiser (Clive Barker’s directorial debut…some great special effects, especially the scene where Frank comes up from under the floor…again, the satanic stuff always makes me uncomfortable to begin with. You should read Barker’s ‘Books of Blood’)
-Rosemary’s Baby (talk about some questionable neighbours and a dumb ass husband)
-Shining (Kubricks – what cinematography. Not as good as the novel, but still a classic horror movie)
-Psycho (Perkins did a great job…the remake was pretty good, it was more of a tribute to the original as it was a ’shot for shot’ remake, filmed with a 1960’s style)
-Jaws (how many beaches were empty after that movie? I was even nervous to swim in a pool
lol )
-The Thing 1982 (noticed some arguments as to whether this a ‘horror’ movie or not, but I thought it was intense with all the distrust in it, and there was a ‘monster’. I havent seen the original though)
-Black Christmas 1974 (I don’t think Halloween can be mentioned and Black Christmas not be. Halloween is after all ’somewhat’ of a sequel to Black Christmas. John Carpenter asked Bob Clark (the director of Black Christmas) if he was going to make a sequel to Black Christmas. Clark said no and Carpenter asked if he were to make it, what would happen in it. Clark said it would start off the night he escapes from the mental institution….which is of course what happens in Halloween. Clark also said he was not taking credit of an entire screen play based on his small idea. But Black Christmas did influence the slasher genre; from it came Halloween, Friday the 13th, Scream, etc…it used the first person point of view of the killer which was borrowed in future slasher flicks. And in the original, there is only one scene with blood, so its not really a blood and gore type horror movie like most slasher-type horrors) sorry for the rambles in this ‘blurb’
i would also like to mention some movies i found entertaining
although some are in the horror/comedy genre:
-high tension
-dead alive
-bad taste
-cemetary man
-shivers
-the brood
-scanners
-phenomena (aka creepers)
-suspiria
-zombie (aka zombi 2)
-the changeling
-hills have eyes
-fraily
-blair witch project
-carrie
I’ll have to check out the movies mentioned by others above, such as:
-the Audition
-The Wicker Man (the original)
-the Eye
-Dracula 1931 (Lugosi)
-the Haunting 1963
Has anyone seen ‘the Carnivale of Souls’? Just curious
March 3rd, 2008 at 6:56 pm
Evil Dead 2.
The perfect horror movie.
Why?
The explanation is simple.
Because unlike other horror movies, the good guy kicks the sh*t out of the bad guy in the end. In all the other movies, that villain either doesn’t die or the protagonist lives by pure luck. But not Ash. He even gets his f*cking hand cut off. You know what he does then? replaces it with a chainsaw. The movie’s funny too, it successfully mixes tongue-in-cheek humor with pure kick ass-ness. Also, directed by Sam Raimi…anyone heard of another little work of his, Spider-man?
March 3rd, 2008 at 6:59 pm
Oh, and I can’t forget, the second best.
Gojira, the original 1954 Japanese film.
It’s not like the others…it’s actually pretty scary, because imagine if it really happened? We’d all die. All of us. Godzilla = a nuclear bomb, he can’t be stopped and he just keeps on destroying.
Look for the scene where the mother tells her child she’ll be seeing daddy soon…and then Godzilla destroys their building.
Really, look for it, buy it…it’s worth it.
March 4th, 2008 at 6:32 am
zeppelingod:
Yeah, I have a copy of “The Carnival of Souls.” Brilliant low-budget film. Still freaks me out. Love it.
And take notice everyone else—while I don’t agree with all of zeppelingod’s choices, he/she has it right—most of the films on his/her list are in keeping with this idea of *Horror* being separate and distinct from “slasher” and “psycho-thriller” and “serial killer” films. Good work, zeppelingod.
And JamesW:
Full agreement on Gojira. The difference between the original and the hacked-up American version is… well, I won’t say striking, but it gives you pause. Godzilla is still great, a classic of the genre… but Gojira is greater still.
March 5th, 2008 at 3:05 am
Zepplingod is a true god…well written and communicated. I can completely see the validity in your explanations. And RANDALL-it’s a HE.
March 5th, 2008 at 3:14 pm
Poultergeist. It didn’t need blood, it was incredibly freaky, psychologically, and with the curse attached to it it’s got that “crossing over into real life” aspect that makes horror movies even scarier.
March 6th, 2008 at 4:01 pm
SPOILER ALERT!!!! (sorry for using caps
)
I realize that Poltergeist is an old movie, but I didn’t want to ruin any of the scenes that I’m talking about in it just in case anyone reading this hasn’t seen it yet
in Poltergeist, I always remeber the part where the mom falls into the unfinished swimming pool and can’t get out. Corpses keep popping up out of the water and bumping into her. Or when the tree smashes through the son’s bedroom window and tries to eat him…messed up. And that damn clown sitting in the rocking chair…I hated that fu@#ing clown
lol
March 8th, 2008 at 12:16 pm
Cannibal Holocaust. Carnival of Souls is creepy and makes me realize that when you die you go to a carnival in Utah….that scares the shit out of me I hate that state.
March 10th, 2008 at 1:08 pm
Well I too am a HUGE Horror movie fan. I have seen alot and love alot.
My favorites are ones that made me cover my eyes (which does not happen often)
1. THE HELLRAISER movies only 1,2,3 & 4 (sorry the rest were lame) Pinhead and his crew know pain and suffering more than any other villan. # 3 has my favorite line of all time.
(Priest to running girl: My child whats the matter?
Girl: Demons there are Demons after me!!
Priest: My child there is no such thing as Demons.
Doors blow open and in walks Pinhead
Girl: Then what the f*#k is that!) Classic!!!! (Ok I may be off in the dialogue)
2. ROB ZOMBIE’S HALLOWEEN (Much scarier than the original.)
3. THE HILLS HAVE EYES (remake) I have never been so freaked out to wear I was crying for the victims like I did with this movie.
4. THE SAW MOVIES (Jigsaw..what a sick mind!!)
5. HOSTEL (The torture scenes are beyond gross Hostel 2 is even more!)
6. THE EXORSIST (Something so evil about this movie. I met Linda Blair at a convention. How can something so tiny look that evil..amazing!)
7. HOUSE OF 1000 CORPSES & DEVILS REJECTS (they were both awesome so need to be on the same level)
8. IT ( I am still terrified of Clowns to this day!)
9. THE UNNAMABLE (this eerie creature had this shreik that made my skin crawl!)
10. LAND OF THE DEAD (the remake was so gory..omg. When they rip that guy in half and eat his intestines…brutal!!
I love all horror movies and love the industry is still pumping them out!!
March 10th, 2008 at 1:14 pm
Ok I have to add one more casue I saw it last weekend…30 Days Of Night. I Love vampire movies..probably my faves but this one was messed up!! They weren’t “pretty”. They looked like bats in the faces! Just being isolated like that in the dark for a month with vampires..Creepy!!!
March 11th, 2008 at 7:19 am
The thriller movie that sticks in my mind is “Skeleton Key” with Kate Hudson. Maybe because of the unexpected twist at the end…and also because voodoo and hoodoo are real and the movie could easily be based on truth.
March 14th, 2008 at 6:04 pm
Hands down, the Exorcist is, was and always will be the scariest horror movie ever made. I am 30+ years old and still can’t watch it.
March 16th, 2008 at 3:50 pm
ToolNut knows whats up!
Not in order
1. Dawn Of The Dead
2. The Ex. Of Emily Rose
3. Saw series
4. Halloweeen
5. Texas Chainsaw Massacare: The begining
6. House Of A Thousand Corpses
7. Jeepers Creepers
8. Mothman
9. The Skeleton Key -love it
10. 30 Days of Night
11. 1408
March 17th, 2008 at 5:32 pm
Well, My brother raised me on horror films (the pupil exceded his master) I’ve seen hundreds and hundreds of horror films. I had been searching for a film that actualy scared me, I found it, The original Grudge (not the needless remake) I had to switch it off. Enough said. Other outstanding horrors include (in no order)
Prince of Darknes (John Carpenter)
Suspira
Exorcist
The Omen
May 17th, 2008 at 6:24 pm
It crawls under your skin. late at night, while laying in your bed, you feel something is in your room and your being watched with malevolent intent. A flashbulb of violent images zips through your mind. Theres nothing you can do but pull the sheets over your head and shake, all the while hoping that this action on your part has formed an impenetrable and invisible shield of some kind. “This is silly, your a rational and boring adult”, you tell yourself. “It was just a movie”!
May 22nd, 2008 at 1:25 am
Exorcist tops the list…absolutely…….
The Shining and Ringu competing….
check out films by Jaume Balaguero…..think he is a spanish director……pretty scary horror…..it is not the usual Hollywood gore fest…more psychological…
a movie based on his movie “rec” is coming out.
think it is called Quarantine
May 22nd, 2008 at 3:45 am
Randall: Have you seen any films of Balaguero.
I think he is quite good.
He directed a film called Darkness. think Anna Paquin was in that. Pretty good…satisfies all criteria of a classic horror film.. absolutely no gore, only chills.
Some of his other films are
Los sin nombre – not horror exactly, but this was the film that hooked me to him
Fragile – Calista Flockhart – Pretty creepy and good
The Nun – standard Horror stuff, but still good
rec – his take on the zombie genre, but still better than most of the crap floating around nowadays.
Hey am new to the horror stuff and am loving every bit of it..
my favourites are
1- all of balagueros movies
2- Angel Heart
3- The Shining
4- Exorcist
5- Jacob’s Ladder
6- The Others
7- The Legion (was marketed as Exorcist3, major mistake)
8- Uzumaki(a weird japanese movie, but totally different)
9- Silent Hill
10- 30 days of night
Guys,can you suggest some more films in the same vein????
May 22nd, 2008 at 5:06 am
geronimo:
No, haven’t seen any of Balaguero’s films, but thanks for the recommendation, I’ll check “Darkness” out.
May 26th, 2008 at 5:09 pm
what is the name of this movie!!!??? i have been searchin for years!!!
this is a scene!
a mom is tucking her daughter in for bed.
the mom: goodnight
the daughter: goodnight
the daughters doll: goodnight
i saw it when i was little!!! i have been lookin since!!
May 26th, 2008 at 5:38 pm
derek: how long ago did you see it?
May 27th, 2008 at 6:08 am
god, it was prolly in the early 90’s
June 7th, 2008 at 6:17 pm
Lotta responses here. It’s a tough question, too, because there are (as pointed out at the top) there are so many subtypes of horror. I’d have to go with Saw, simply because it is one of the most plausible horror movies I’ve seen. I mean, as opposed to say getting jumped by a werewolf or an undying nutjob in a goalie mask, the stuff that John pulls off is really not that far-fetched.
The Hannibal Lecter films, “Monster” and “Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer” should be up there too. After all, the most frightening things to me are the abhorrent acts so-called “normal people” in real life are capable of commiting.
June 13th, 2008 at 8:02 pm
I just saw Suspiria from Dario Argento, I have to say its up there in my list now, one of the best horror films I’ve ever seen
June 17th, 2008 at 6:43 am
“The Happening” its not really a horror movie but it is by far one of the most disturbing movies ever!!
July 1st, 2008 at 5:10 pm
Its “The shutter”, try it alone.
July 13th, 2008 at 1:57 pm
SotL, The Mist, The Happening, Sweeney Todd. Others, too, but those are on my mind ATM.
July 13th, 2008 at 2:45 pm
1960s- Psycho
1970s- The Exorcist
1980s- The Shining
1990s- the Blair Witch Project (not very scary, but still a great movie)
2000s- The Mist (it’s not that good, but there’s a lack of good horror movies lately, and this is probably at least one of the best)
Overall: The Shining
August 5th, 2008 at 7:30 pm
actually the scariest movie ever made was the exorcism of emily rose,the exorcist was actually a really good scary movie though
August 6th, 2008 at 4:28 am
1. The Exocist
2. Silence of the Lambs
3. The Shining
4. The Ring Zero: Birthday (Japanese)
5. The Blair Witch Project
* Company and The Crowd from The Ray Bradbury Theatre (TV)
August 19th, 2008 at 6:26 am
Alien and IT. God i saw them when i was 3. I have never been able to sleep safely at night since. As a result of seeing them they have had adverse phsycological effects including panphobia, being affraid of being alone and i have to sleep with the covers over my head at night
August 30th, 2008 at 10:09 am
The last horror movie. It may not be the best horror movie, but it’s cool.
August 31st, 2008 at 8:17 pm
here’s my top five:
1. Exorcist
2. The shining
3. Hell Raiser (only the first one)
4. 1408
5. Eraserhead
September 2nd, 2008 at 4:36 pm
I tend to dislike all those mainstream horrors.
Mine is [●REC]
Bottom line
Go see it. And many of you will add it to your list.
September 23rd, 2008 at 12:00 pm
I am learning english an i finished 204 recently so i can not wirte much in english.ican write about darkness and horror movies very vell.
the best horror movie I have ever seen is Bram stoker Dracula
may be you do not belive but i watched it more than 1000 time ALSO EVIL DEAD is very good too and iam waiting for dracula the year of zero i colect horror moveis since i was a kid dracula is drakness and void itself he is the srongest and the most mistrious character.
October 6th, 2008 at 1:36 am
The Ring,Pulse,Exorcist were having nice story and were very horrible
November 4th, 2008 at 1:06 pm
Session 9 – Really good creepy psychological horror and very influential on the Silent Hill games
Silent Hill – Excellent conversion from game to film
Ring/The Ring – Both the original and the remake really creeped me out silly!
Hostel – Now this is torture porn!
Saw series – Always unpredictable and enjoyable!
November 22nd, 2008 at 1:03 pm
Hello!
I was searching for a horror movie name that I saw in my childhood. That was the scariest film ever.. or so I think.
I ended up here, and want to ask you guys if you can help me with a name..
So, from what I remember form the movie. It goes like this :
A family of a husband, a wife, a daughter and a son moved in in a mansion. Obviously that house was old and haunted. There was a door which was blocked by a wall with a strange hole in it. Light could be seen through it. In the movie, the ‘villain’ was an old lady (55 – 60 years old) who was executed in the electric chair, for being a child murderer. I also recall seeing a drunken priest in that movie, and with his help, the family get the kids to safety.
Another important aspect that I remember, is an old black swan rocking chair.. which usually moved by itself making a frightening sound.
This is all that I can remember… and can’t find what movie it is anywhere. Maybe someone here can help me.
PS: It was probably filmed between 1980 and 1995, and the old-lady-child-killer was bald.
December 24th, 2008 at 4:54 am
Ok having loved horror movies since a child my list is like this
1.NIghtmare on elm street (I was a kid and now its just funny)
2.Childs Play (I had a My Buddy Doll that looked just like Chucky freaky when your a kid)
3.Jennifer (Its one of the Masters of Horror movies at walmart. For the people who don’t know its about a disfigured girl who screws this guy and eats his child neighbor and his cat)
4.Fair Hair Child (Another of the Master Of Horrors this one is kinda of like the grudge and the ring when it comes to the way kid moves)
January 10th, 2009 at 9:31 pm
thai horror movie-”Shutter”
January 18th, 2009 at 12:11 am
The Ring, the Japanese version. Not overly terrifying but that could have been the company I was with (one guy fell asleep and the other would laugh right before something supposedly scary was about to happen).
A Tale of Two Sisters. Those Koreans know how to make some scary movies… There’s an American rip on this coming out soon (The Uninvited) but considering the slew of really bad American remakes in the past, I’m not holding out much hope for this one.
And I think this was intended to be more suspense than horror, but The Devil’s Backbone scared me. Silence of the lambs was meant to be a horror film but it was less scary and more suspenseful…I’ll still add it to my list, though.
I’d mention older movies, but I think I’d have to rewatch them first. Things that scared me when I was 10 look kind of ridiculous now. It’s not just the special effects and makeup – I never realized how bad the story lines and dialogues are.
The Exorcist didn’t do it for me (I think I watched that when I was 13 or 14). I was more offended by the crassness than scared by the situation.
Vampy, I’ve seen lots of horror movies and would love to help you but your description was a bit too vague. Do you remember specific actors or perhaps what the actors looked like? It sounds very very vaguely familiar, but there are lots of stories about haunted mansions and rocking chairs that move on their own…
January 18th, 2009 at 1:01 am
Gabi- Fully agree with Tale of Two Sisters. That is one bizarre freaky movie. But it was great, scariest one I’ve seen probably. Mind you, I havent seen many scary movies.
I’m pretty depressed about the remake. Can’t stand American remakes of awesome Asian Horrors.
Another great one is the Phone, I think it’s Korean. The best acting I have ever seen from a six year old. It’s amazing. Really good movie, got me obsessed (and scared of) the Moonlight Sonata.
January 18th, 2009 at 6:09 am
I have found it. It’s called La Casa 5 aka Beyond Darkness.
The only problem now is getting it. I have searched the whole internet for a copy but only found a Spanish doubled one.
I tried buying it from Amazon (on VHS) but ended up being ripped of.
February 16th, 2009 at 5:25 pm
i think the scariest movie ive ever seen is probably the exorcism of emily rose…because its based on a true story about demon possession…and that freaks me out soo bad because i have a friend who thought he was possessed and he had to spend a really long time in a mental hospital…it was scary..
i also agree with the exorcist…the movie didnt used to scare me until my 8th grade year when i had a dream that i was sitting in an attic with my sister and some of her friends (even some friends that she met later in life that i didnt know exsisted..creepy!) and the demon from the movie (the thing with the white face and red eyes) popped up in the window and said something about satan wanting to see us or something..lol
March 23rd, 2009 at 9:34 pm
My vote is for the movie ‘The Thing’. I recently rewatched this movie with my daughter. Up until this point, she thought movies like Saw and the Grudge were scary. I told her this movie beats them all. I have never had a movie make me jump or scream so much…ever. You never knew what was coming next. The best part in this movie is when they have the survivors tied to the couch and they are testing to find out which on is The Thing….and they are all tied together when they discover that….talk about panic.
I don’t find the movies made today to be scary. They are gore fests if nothing else. Many times I am bored and can’t finish them because they are too predictable. I like the old scary movies. It’s what you didn’t see, that scared you…
April 1st, 2009 at 6:56 am
i personally love any thing with edward englend?
i love all the nightmare on elmst
and of coarse the excorcist and eden lake and any wes craven specially 2001 maniacs great!!!
i love my horrors its hard to think of a favorite coz i like loads OOH allso the screams are quite fun to watch i admit that i love any of the saw and i liked my bloody valentine ok got to get to back to work now BYE : ) xox
April 2nd, 2009 at 3:22 pm
hhhmmm… id have to say that silent hill(the whole lot was rather scary) and then it would have to be 28 days later, then dawn of the dead(remake) and the the saw series… however the 5th saw was rather crap…
April 27th, 2009 at 7:38 pm
gotta say its House of 1000 Corpses…or devils rejects… rob zombie is a horror GOD!!!
May 13th, 2009 at 3:51 pm
The Strangers
Saw
The Shining
Jacob’s Ladder
In the Mouth of Madness
The 1st Nightmare on Elmstreet
The Grudge
May 15th, 2009 at 9:49 am
The Ring……
June 9th, 2009 at 7:00 am
The Shining.
Namely becuase it is because it is unsettling and you never really find out what’s in the hotel…
June 14th, 2009 at 8:51 pm
My Bloody Valentine
It’s more stupid than scary..lol but there is ALOT of blood..hints the name..
June 26th, 2009 at 8:01 am
60’s:Psycho
70’s:The Exorcist,Halloween,Texas Chainsaw Massacre
80’s:The Shining,Friday the 13th,Nightmare on Elm Street
90’s:Scream (not scary just amazing),Candyman
2000’s:The Mist,1408,Saw
August 5th, 2009 at 8:45 am
well my fav8 are…………
The grudge
the hills have eyes
the evil dead
saw series
dracula(1992)
frailty
inside
exocist
bogeyman series(really cool)
August 26th, 2009 at 4:23 am
Had to take the kids to one of those damn Harry Potter whatever it’s called movies… if unsuitability for children and vomit-value are any indication of a horror movie experience, then that have to be at the top of the list.
August 26th, 2009 at 4:42 am
Seriously though, I thought the first Hellraiser conceived a lot of original ideas that influenced many many later movies in the horror ‘genre’. It kind of set a standard rarely so fully achieved in terms of the true nature/essence of “evil” capable within us all, and the possibilities of madness that the human mind could succumb to should sinister desires be allowed even temporary satisfaction.
Ditto, “psychological” over “slasher/gore”, for sure.
September 12th, 2009 at 9:45 am
I’ve watched many horror movies, which helps to inspire some of my tabletop roleplaying games. As far as scary, pretty much anything by Clive Barker. Not just the Hellraiser series, but the others as well. That man has real insight into the depths of evil that normal, everyday people can sink to. Stuff that can make us redefine our ideas of what is truly evil. Also, any movie where the main character does something dumb enough to turn the attention of all the monsters directly on him. Used that in a game once. Player knocked over a tin can, and all of a sudden there are over thirty sets of glowing red eyes staring at him. The guy was shivering for the rest of the night.
September 22nd, 2009 at 8:26 pm
Exorcist is psychological horror film that will ask yourself if the devil really exist and might happen to you one night if you sleep.
The confrontation between the devil and the priest is so mind blowing and challenges belief on religion.
Its an original that cannot be outdone.
October 20th, 2009 at 10:15 am
I think that some of the saw movies should be in this catogory.The choise you made waz kool but there iz nothing like saw.Saw shows humer along with killin and gore.It also is one big story of never endind death.When you can come out with 6 movies with the same name think you desearve the title of BEST HORROR MOVIE and datz a fact BOYYY!!!!!!!!!!!!!
November 17th, 2009 at 8:14 pm
Stephan King’s “The Mist”. The ending will haunt you for a long long time.