Horror movies make monsters of us all - don’t they?
Well, not really - but in many ways, it doesn’t exactly matter which form the concept of horror
takes - because as the old adage goes - fear is in the eye of the beholder.
For some of you - the giant spider Shelob from Lord of the Rings will be the most horrifying
thing you’ve ever seen - or perhaps for the thalassophobes amongst us Bruce the Shark
from the Jaws franchise.
However, there are some legendary monsters of horror fandom that transcend the realm
of just fear and phobias - who’ve managed to carve out their own terrifying existence
in a category all of their own - horrifying us all, in equal measure.
Well, let’s take a look.
Hello horror fans - what’s going on, and once again, welcome back to the scariest channel
on YouTube, Top 5 Scary Videos.
As per usual, I’ll be your horror host Jack Finch - as today, we curiously take a look
at the Top 5 Scariest Horror Movie Monsters.
Roll the clip.
For the curious amongst you, that clip was from 1988’s Pumpkinhead - written and directed
by Stan Winston - and it leads us to a very important point.
In no way shape or form is this list ever going to please everyone - there are just
far too many incredibly horror monsters that make the grade.
Although, we’re going to limit ourselves with the term *monsters* by taking it literally
in the non-human sense - so that means no Leatherface, no Mike Myers - you get the picture.
Kicking off at Number 5 - The Crawlers, The Descent
And you might think - hey, what the hell - not these guys.
But bare with me - because the horrifying subterranean crawlers from Neil Marshall’s
2005 claustrophobic-horror The Descent, were in fact much more iconic than you may have
first thought - because rather than being a mashed-up recycled horror creation, built
up from parts laid out in the previous decades of cinema - The Crawlers were terrifying because
they were - most importantly - original.
And Neil Marshall went to great lengths to making sure his claustrophobia inducing creatures
were perfectly at home in their environment.
Because there’s nothing more terrifying than being hunted by a hungry creature that
can see in the dark - whilst in a pitch-black cave system without a glow-stick, right?
As Marshall stated, the Crawlers were partly inspired by Tolkien's Gollum - as well as
the pale skinned vampiric Reapers from Blade 2 - but they’re also far, far more terrifying
- because of their evolutionary implication.
The team behind The Descent had the intention of creating The Crawlers as a primal species
that had evolved underground over thousands of years.
Something almost human, alien in a sense but also familiar - that also wants to rip your
heart out with its bare teeth.
Yeah.
No thanks.
Coming in at Number 4 - The Cenobites, Hellraiser
And I say the Cenobites, because I do mean all of them - and after all, this is a pluralistic
list, right?
Semantics.
And also, we just can’t begin to talk about horror movie monsters without talking about
their underappreciated weirdo darlings.
Although the Hellraiser franchise makes a clear point that the Order of the Gash are
demons to some, angels to others - there’s no denying the fact that Pinhead and his brood
were absolutely horrifying when they first made their entrance in Clive Barker’s Hellraiser.
I mean, for the most part - you only need to take a look at them - because come on man.
They’re terrifying.
As Clive Barker’s franchise explores, The Cenobites are a group of extra dimensional
beings that hail from a dimension of Hell, who can only reach Earth’s reality through
a schism in time and space - activated by a series of unearthly artifacts, one of which
is the infamous Lament Configuration.
However, there is one particular extra-dimensional-hell monster that appears in Hellraiser that takes
the cake.
The Engineer, which may or may not be a cenobite - because no one knows exactly what it is,
although it’s a horrifying homunculus of hell - and that’s enough of a reason for
me to be horrified by it.
Swinging in at Number 3 - Freddy Krueger, A Nightmare On Elm Street
And while I astutely made the point that Leatherface and The Shape wouldn’t be appearing on this
list because of their humanity - or lack thereof - Robert Englund’s foul mouthed finger slashing,
dream stalking demon - definitely stakes his claim here, because he’s the reborn hell-spawn
of Dream Demons - and stylish hat aside, he’s definitely not a human.
One two, Freddy’s coming for you - and for many of us, Mr. Krueger was perhaps our earliest
and most horrifying brush with horror.
There was something about A Nightmare On Elm Street that just seemed to strike a chord
with young people, and whether it was the haunting melody that followed him - or the
fact that he had a penchant of inducing teenage insomnia - there’s no denying the fact that
he made his four-pointed mark on horror as an icon of monstrosity.
And well - it gets worse.
Because while Freddy is literally the stuff of nightmares in the physical world - when
he gets you in his dream realm - well, that’s the end of that, isn’t it.
How do you even begin to combat a creature that can take on any nightmarish form, can
slip through walls - turn himself into a wall, can reap your soul and stick it in his stomach
- and is literally unkillable in his domain.
In fact, the only way you can defeat him - is if you show no fear, as he has no power over
those who aren’t afraid of him.
Yeah, that’s a pretty tough bout, I reckon.
Next up at Number 2 - The Xenomorph, Alien
If you’re asking me - Ridley Scott’s 1979 masterpiece, Alien, is perhaps one of the
greatest horror films ever made - and the reason that it’s so incredibly terrifying,
is because we rarely ever see the thing that makes it so fear inducing.
The Xenomorph.
The intangible alien species that stalks the crew of the Nostromo - for no other reason
other than it’s own survival.
There are many, many different levels of fear that the xenomorph manages to capture.
For one, it’s the perfect apex predator - evolutionary designed to stalk, kill - and
eat any other creature stupid enough to cross it’s path.
And then there’s the whole reproduction thing - and the psychological fear of male
pregnancy.
Yeah, John Hurt managed to capture that pretty damn well, didn’t he.
The Xenomorph is terrifying because of its gestation period, which is quite a feat in
itself, isn’t it?
I’m scared of this creature because of how it reproduces.
Xenomorphs start in a bizarre, bulbous alien egg - secreted by a Xenomorph Queen, that
then opens up and releases a Facehugger.
Yeah - those damn things - that then launch themselves onto your face, and impregnate
you with an endoparasitic larva.
That then eats you from the inside out - bursts out of your chest in a horrifying moment of
gore and indigestion - and ouila - Xenomorph.
Yeah.
Literally the stuff of nightmares.
And finally - coming in at our Number 1 spot - Pennywise the Clown, IT.
And this time it’s personal - because while the Xenomorph very rightly takes the number
two spot - the number one spot is left for the most horrific horror movie monster of
them all.
Pennywise the Clown.
Because damn that demonic balloon touting psychopath back to the Todash Darkness that
it was spawned from.
Although Bill Skarsgard's cinematic depiction of Pennywise is a horrifying attempt in it’s
own right, I’m exclusively saving this one for Tim Curry’s version - because seriously,
the 90’s TV movie version of IT truly is the stuff of childhood nightmare.
I’m not going to beat about the bush, Pennywise instilled in me - as well as many others - a
lifelong distrust for red-nosed, wide-trousered childrens entertainers.
Pennywise - also known as IT - is an ancient, eldritch monster that was spawned in a cosmic
void dimension outside the regions of known space, known as the Macroverse - a function
which has spat forth some of Stephen King’s most horrifying entities.
But let’s skirt around the fictional origins of this monster - because you only need to
watch the 1990’s TV-movie version of IT to realise what the true face of fear looks
like.
It can take any form - but of course for us, it has to take the form of a horrifying demonic
clown - feasting on the poor children of Derry, Maine - pulling them down into its sewer - where
they can all float together for eternity.
Yeah, I’m done.
That’s enough Pennywise for now.
Well - there we have it horror fans, our Top 5 Scariest Horror Movie Monsters - I know
that there’s many more where that came from - so why don’t you let us know your best
picks in the comment section down below.
Before we depart from today’s video - let’s take a quick look at some of your more entertaining
edifications from over the past few days.
First up - Kei Owada says --
Why do you always seem to be pulling some mysterious switch with your hand gestures?
-- Hmm..
Well.
Kei Owada, I’m afraid that you already know to much.
-- Well.. on that unfortunate note, unfortunately horror fans that’s all we’ve got time
for in today’s video - cheers for sticking around all the way until the end.
If you were a fan of this video, make sure to hit that thumbs up button - as well as
that subscribe bell, and we’ll be seeing you in the next one.
As per usual, I’ve been your horror host Jack Finch - you’ve been watching Top 5
Scary Videos - and until next time, you take it easy.