These are my ten absolute favorite horror movies, for various reasons I'll explain below. They do go in an order, so I'll start with number ten and work my way down to my number one favorite, loved-over-all-the-others horror movie.
10. The Cell (2000)
For those who aren't familiar (I wouldn't be surprised, everybody I mention it to gives me a blank stare), The Cell is about a social worker named Catherine (Jennifer Lopez) who has helped develop a new, still experimental technology that makes it possible to enter the mind of a comatose person. She and the others on her team are using the technology to help coax coma patients back to life. The movie takes a turn for the sinister when Agent Novak (Vince Vaughn) of the FBI approaches Catherine with a request- enter the mind of serial killer Carl Stargher (Vincent D'Onofrio), who has fallen into a coma, and help the FBI retrieve the location of his final victim, information they didn't get out of Stargher before his coma. It seems very simple, but once Catherine agrees and enters Stargher's mind, it all implodes.
This is more of a thriller than an outright horror, but it's still worth watching. Jennifer Lopez gives a fairly good performance, and isn't the worst thing about the film (that would be Vince Vaughn). The reason this movie makes my top ten is because of these:
9. The Shining (1980)
This one is a classic, but that isn't necessarily why it's on my list. It has its jump-scare moments, sure, but it's not on my list for that, either. The Shining always terrifies me with only one thing, and it's constant throughout the entire movie: |
| Him. I mean him. |
And this:
That is horrifying, right there. That frightens me more than any other part in the entire movie, including the elevator of blood, the creepy twin girls, or the decomposing woman in the bathroom. Kubrick made a good call in choosing Nicholson for the lead, because I have nightmares about that face. Oh, and this one:
Just make it stop. Please.
8. Hannibal Rising (2007)
Full disclosure- I've never seen Red Dragon or Hannibal. I've only ever seen Silence of the Lambs and this movie- Hannibal Rising. Another admission- The first time I watched it was only because the actor playing Hannibal (Gaspard Ulliel) is HOT. Very attractive. And I'm shallow enough to notice it. BUT, as a lover of horror and thriller movies, and as someone who holds a special place in their heart for Silence of the Lambs, I was also curious how this mostly-French-films actor would compare to the Academy award-winning and chilling performance of Sir Anthony Hopkins (a wonderful actor). |
| Just wanted to drive home how attractive this face is |
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| This looks like the face of someone who wouldn't be stable enough to stand trial |
7. Jeepers Creepers (2001)
Is this song ruined for anybody else? Because I can't listen to it anymore. I had to remove it from my iTunes. And it was a good song.Anyway, with this movie, it's just sort of... everything. The makeup on The Creeper is high up there (props to the artists), along with the use of the 1938 song that lends the movie its title. The ending (I won't spoil it) is scary as all-get-out, and the fact that it leaves it open to a sequel (of which there is one) is worse. I couldn't find any really good stills from it, but that isn't really a bad thing. I still recommend watching it, even though it frightens me every time, because that's a good quality in a movie.
6. The Hills Have Eyes (2006)
This is the remake of the original Wes Craven film, which was made back in 1977. That one is freaky, too, but this one has a little more to it, in my opinion. It's gory and downright disgusting at times, but that makes it a great film. What I love/hate most about it is the makeup for the Jupiter Clan.
It makes me cringe. I honestly can't look directly at the screen when any of the mutant cannibals are on. I really can't. They're awful. Even Ruby, the only member of the Jupiter Clan who doesn't rape or murder is difficult to look at:
5. Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)
The original Texas Chainsaw Massacre was a damn good movie. It was scary and kept my heart racing. The dinner scene, where poor Sally is tormented by Leatherface and his family gave me nightmares about being in the same situation. And then I found out that it was as brutal to film as it was to watch, in an article from Cracked.com
Apparently, the dinner scene was filmed in the middle of summer in Texas, with temperatures outside apparently reaching 110 degrees. They filmed for 27 hours straight in that dining room, and all the windows were blocked to keep out the light. To add to that, all that head cheese on the table was real, and while it was there to serve as props, it made the room smell like rot and carcass.
No one had to have enjoyed that, but it got worse. Gunnar Hansen, the actor who played Leatherface, had to wear a heavy leather mask during the entirety of filming, and it couldn't be washed due to the risk of continuity errors (since there were makeup and stains on it). Poor Hansen was basically suffering in his own personal oven. Apparently, he got so confused from the heat, he thought he really had to kill Marilyn Burns (Sally), as he explains here:
Ever since I learned this piece of information, I've found this movie even more horrifying. It's hard not to be scared by a movie where even the actors aren't sure if they're acting or not.
4. The Cabin in the Woods (2011)
I can't be professional sounding when I talk about this movie. It's just impossible. This movie kicked ass. I never saw it coming. I'm not giving away any plot details, because it would just ruin everything. All you need to know isn't like many other horror movies- maybe even any. At least, in my opinion. You'll think you know what's happening, but you have no idea. Bravo, Joss Whedon. You succeeded, although you probably could've done it without putting every minor character from Buffy or Angel into your film. But we'll let that go.
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| She hasn't aged at all. Well, this is depressing. |
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| "Shouldn't I be killing vampires right now?" |
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| "I'm Andrew! ... I mean, 'I'm the intern!'" |
Hilariously enough, all of them are playing characters who are basically exactly like their characters in Whedon's previous work. That's one of my only criticisms about this movie, and it extends farther than these three. The entire plot does seem like it could be an episode of Buffy: The Vampire Slayer or Angel, but because it instead is a movie with all new main characters, better special effects, and a twist ending (learn something from this, M. Night Shyamalan), it works. I give it four stars, a definite recommend, and two thumbs way up to Whedon and his team.
3. The Crazies (2010)
I had no idea that The Crazies was a remake the first time I saw it. I just thought it was a new kind of horror movie. It certainly terrified me- the thought that your own neighbors could just go crazy and become psychopaths? Yeah, I'm not okay with that. I already dislike most of my neighbors. But it was also a good movie because I felt the fear the characters felt. When Judy (Radha Mitchell) is strapped to the hospital bed (SPOILER ALERT), and the infected man is going through the ward stabbing all the women with a pitchfork, and she's just freaking out, I was just as terrified.
Worse, when the group is trapped in the car wash, I about die. I'm very claustrophobic, and can't even go through the car wash in my home town. They have to send someone in for me (they're really nice about it, actually). So watching the group go through the automated car wash, while Crazies are also in there trying to kill them is nothing short of torture for me. I usually skip over it.
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| This is my nightmare |
2. The Evil Dead II (1987)
I am a HUGE Evil Dead series fan. HUGE. I own all three movies on DVD. I've seen them thousands of times. I have a framed Evil Dead poster that I'm in love with. I have the soundtrack for the original Broadway version of Evil Dead: The Musical, and saw a production of it at my local theater. Heck, if I ever had a son, he might have the unfortunateness of being named Ashley and being nicknamed Ash.
That being said, I think Evil Dead 2 is better than the original. I think it might be the only case in which I prefer a sequel over its predecessor. It's not like the two are entirely dissimilar. They have the same basic plot structure (which leads me to wonder if Ash got amnesia from his first trip up to the cabin), and the same antagonist- the Candarians. But what I think makes Evil Dead 2 better is that it focuses more on Ash, and making him the hero of the film trilogy. This movie molds Ash into the real badass he needs to be to defeat the demons, and does so in hilarious ways.
The man cuts his hand of with a chainsaw. I mean, that butcher knife was right there. He could've used that. But instead, he's so insane that he decides to use a chainsaw. But, of course, that just makes it awesome. And then there's this scene:
That both terrifies me and cracks me up. I don't know whether to hide in fear or roll on the floor in hilarity. And it all leads to the moment when Ash has enough and undergoes the transformation into hero:
That, ladies and gents, is one hell of an arm.
1. The People Under the Stairs (1991)
The People Under the Stairs is a Wes Craven film, and one of my first horror movies. It started my life-long love of Wes Craven pictures, my devoted adoration of horror movies, and probably also my insomnia. It's an excellent movie that does a great job of confusing you as to who exactly you should be scared of. The plot is different (I still haven't found another quite like it), the makeup and effects are wonderful, and the actors do a hell of a job. It also has a man in a gimp suit, which is what it seems like a lot of people remember it for:
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| It should be noted that I think I was about 13 when I saw this, and had no clue what was going on here |
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| Okay, maybe adorable is a loose term. I was 13. |
