The horror movie genre is home to a lot of great films, but also some low-budget schlock,
making it hard for viewers to decide what to watch and what to skip.
Fortunately, we're here to help with a look at some of the greatest horror movies of all
time.
With brilliant performances from its cast, quotable lines, stunning cinematography, and
those unforgettable twins, The Shining is undoubtedly among the greatest horror movies
ever made.
In fact, it's an absolute masterpiece, irrespective of genre.
The film worms its way into your head with beautiful imagery and a hypnotic pace, showing
the dissolution of one man's sanity over the course of an isolated winter at the Overlook
Hotel.
It's arguably the best movie Stanley Kubrick directed, everything is so deliberate, each
frame seemingly packed with tension and mystery, that it stays fresh no matter how many times
you watch it.
The Shining continues to drive discussion and lively debate about its true meanings.
And if, for some strange reason, you haven't checked it out yet, there's something you
need to do right away...
"Go check it out!
Go check it out."
The very definition of a time-worn tale in cinema, Invasion of the Body Snatchers is
a story that has been remade over and over again.
This speaks to the strength of the premise, the feeling of being overwhelmed, of helplessness,
the feeling of no one believing you after everyone around you is replaced by evil duplicates.
"He isn't my husband.
It's someone who looks like him.
He's an imposter!"
These are scary concepts in real life, and they're put to brilliant use in the 1978 version
of the story.
The film begins at a slow burn but by the midway mark, it becomes a full-on chase sequence
in which no one can be trusted and our heroes try to stay awake, and alive, against a seemingly
unstoppable threat.
Thrilling and shocking to the final frame, it's a story that stays with you long after
the credits.
The film is anchored by an excellent cast that includes Donald Sutherland, Brooke Adams,
Leonard Nimoy, and a young Jeff Goldblum.
They're smart, unique characters that you can't help but root for, which makes it hurt
all the more when they fail.
Arguably the greatest horror movie ever made about the psychological ravages of war, Jacob's
Ladder is a quiet character study that follows Jacob Singer, a Vietnam veteran and postal
service worker, who slowly comes to believe that either his sanity or reality itself is
falling apart.
The film is notable for its many standout and influential sequences, like a long gurney
ride through a hellish hospital littered with bloody body parts, desperate patients, and
inhuman monsters gone mad.
Since its release in 1990, Jacob's Ladder has developed into a noted cult classic, lauded
for its indelible imagery and the deep melancholy at the film's core.
Jonathan Demme's 1991 masterpiece The Silence of the Lambs follows Clarice Starling, a rookie
FBI agent, as she interviews an incarcerated cannibal to catch a maniac at large.
One could argue that it's more of a psychological thriller than a straight-up horror movie,
and that's a valid perspective.
The Silence of the Lambs excels as an entry in both genres, due to pitch-perfect acting,
excellent direction, and an unpredictable plot.
First time viewers are usually drawn in by the hyped-up promise of Anthony Hopkins' Hannibal
Lecter, who's since gone on to become one of horror's greatest creations.
It's an enduring surprise that the character isn't actually the focus of the film.
Although, few find that fact to be disappointing: Jodie Foster is extraordinary as Clarice,
and Ted Levine's performance as Jame "Buffalo Bill" Gumb is unforgettable.
So whether it's considered a thriller or horror, everyone who has seen this movie can agree
on one thing…
"That was good."
Stories about The Exorcist have become the stuff of legend.
Depending on who you ask, audiences were actually getting sick and passing out, the production
was haunted, and the director violently terrorized his cast.
But none of these stories would have any weight if the actual movie wasn't any good, and it's
not just good, it's extraordinary.
Just as much about medical horror as religious horror, The Exorcist wouldn't work nearly
as well if it weren't superbly created.
An air of dread hangs over every scene and its characters are haunted, not by ghosts,
but by their own mistakes.
Regan, the possessed girl at the center of it all, is an innocent who turns into a bedridden
monster, spewing curses and bile at anyone who dares challenge the might of the Devil.
It's the possession and exorcism movie against which all others are still judged, and more
often than not, they're found wanting.
Nearly 50 years after it's initial release, The Exorcist remains a popular choice for
the greatest horror movie of all time, and a perfect, grotesque tour de force that goes
places films today would rarely dare to go.
On a list of movies about the macabre and repulsive, the fact that any entry manages
to stand out as the weirdest is definitely an achievement.
Starring Isabelle Adjani and Sam Neill, Possession is a strange and disturbing creature feature
that's ultimately about the agony of divorce.
"What's going to happen to us?"
"It's up to you."
"Then stop coming."
"Well, I have to go."
"I'll follow you."
It's unlike any other movie, horror or otherwise, characters seem to do the exact opposite of
what you would expect at every turn, and the scenes of body horror act as potent metaphors
for the loss of a child, or the pain of being betrayed.
It's hard to determine, even while you're watching it, what's supposed to be "real,"
and it makes for a fever dream of a viewing experience.
It's one of the most memorable, puzzling, and well-performed horror pieces ever made.
The Blair Witch Project is the found-footage movie that started it all, launching a thousand
copycat films that never got anywhere close to the haunted, pine-scented quality of the
original.
The forest becomes the monster in this ultra low-budget camcorder flick, where every tangle
of twigs suddenly becomes eerie and suspicious.
This pseudo-documentary follows a group of hapless young filmmakers as they circle the
wilderness, lost and increasingly certain they're being hunted.
Viewers can interpret the film in a number of ways, as a story about madness, hubris,
isolation, and distrust.
Also, at the same time, it's a classic ghost story.
The Blair Witch is an enigma that might not even be real.
It's an uncertainty that gets to the heart of what horror actually is, fear, and a sense
of helplessness, in the face of the unknown.
Rosemary's Baby has lost none of its power in the decades since its release in 1968.
A dark, suspenseful tale, the film follows a woman who has been targeted by an unlikely
Satanic cult that has sinister interests in her and her baby.
"We're your friends, Rosemary.
There's nothing to be afraid of, Rosemary.
Honestly and truly there isn't."
The movie earned Ruth Gordon an Academy Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role, and
has since become well-established as an absolute classic.
When it was released, Rosemary's Baby turned horror on its head, helping the genre mature
in ways that became clearer with every passing year.
Family, birth, uncontrollable mobs, it's all present in Rosemary's Baby, depicted with
spine-tingling honesty that lingers to this day.
Its influence can be seen in such modern films as Mother!, Hereditary, and The Babadook.
Skip the regrettable American remake and go straight for the source on this one: Let the
Right One In is a vampire flick from snowy Sweden, where boxy modern buildings and vast
sterile landscapes make the perfect setting for a story that's horrific but also kinda
sweet.
In the film, a young boy named Oskar makes friends with an unusual new neighbor who has
a mysterious background and only comes out at night, because, well, she's a bloodthirsty
vampire.
Let the Right One In is equal parts horror movie and tender, coming-of-age story.
It works on multiple levels and has interesting things to say about the loneliness of the
human condition, that is, when people aren't bursting into flames or being devoured as
a midnight snack.
An offshoot of the classic George Romero films, The Return of the Living Dead is easily one
of the most goofy and enjoyable zombie movies ever made.
It goes far into camp territory but it does so in the best possible way, and it delivers
plenty of classic and quotable moments.
"Brains!"
Following a group of young punks, whose graveyard party gets upset by a zombie uprising caused
by acid rain, The Return of the Living Dead takes a lively approach to its material that
still feels fresh, even if the hilariously dated fashion of the characters decidedly
does not.
One of the major gripes about horror films is that the characters act in unrealistic
ways, foolishly making fatally bad decisions, and in that regard, this film excels.
Everyone behaves, more or less, the way you'd think they would, freaking out and taking
ridiculous measures to defend themselves against an overwhelming threat.
They run, hide, barricade, and strategize on the fly, while failing to contain their
shock, and it's a blast to watch.
"I thought you said if we destroyed the brain, it'd die."
"It worked in the movie."
"Well, it ain't working now, Frank."
"You mean the movie lied?"
Being overly serious about this type of material is a trap that plenty of zombie movies and
TV shows fall into and it's one that this film perfectly sidesteps.
It's not a parody, just a great ride.
Since it burst onto the scene in 1979, Ridley Scott's Alien has continued to resonate with
audiences around the world because the film has so many amazing qualities.
It features an iconic female protagonist who's stronger than anybody else in the movie, there's
a profound sense of isolation, and the enemy is unlike anything that humankind has come
face-to-face with before.
The characters in Alien are also constantly under the gun, tasked with identifying their
threat, while they desperately struggle to survive against it.
Plus, unlike many other movie franchises, most of the Alien films still hold up after
all these years.
Practically all of them are filled with creativity and reinvention.
In fact, the James Cameron-directed Aliens from 1986 is a masterwork that's more than
worth rewatching right away.
"Yo!
Stop your grinnin' and drop your linen."
John Carpenter is considered the Master of Horror, and The Thing may well be his best
horror movie.
It takes creature feature elements and combines them with the who's-who paranoia of a classic
thriller.
The setting of this film is also essential for the plot here.
Carpenter plants his characters in one of the most isolated places on Earth, Antarctica,
and tasks them with surviving against an alien lifeform that can assume anyone's likeness.
It's a rich premise that combines subtle, character-based interplay with full-blown
body horror, which includes a human head scuttling around with spider legs.
"I don't know what the hell is in there but it's weird and pissed off, whatever it is."
With a cast to root for and a villain to fear, The Thing is Exhibit A in the argument for
Carpenter's primacy among horror engineers.
It's a remake that runs laps around its source material and beats any modern attempts to
do better.
Director Ari Aster claims the reason he had Annie, Hereditary's beleaguered matriarch,
build miniatures was to illustrate one of film's central ideas: That the members of
the Graham household are little more than miniatures themselves, their fates determined
by powerful forces they cannot discern.
Unfortunately for them, these forces are not benevolent.
By the time heads start rolling and they realize something sinister is afoot, it's too late:
One of the eight Kings of Hell has come to collect the healthy male host he'd been promised
by Annie's witch grandmother and her Satanic cult.
However, as is the case with many great horror movies, the real shock and terror comes from
the film's depictions of agonizing grief and the terrible things people do to protect their
loved ones.
Hereditary is easily one of the coldest, cruelest, most sinister horror movies of the 21st century.
And that's exactly why we love it.
Existing at the perfect intersection of art and schlock, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre is
a tangibly dirty, grungy movie, the kind that's probably best experienced at midnight in an
old, dark theater.
However, this disturbing journey is just as terrifying and bizarre when you take it at
home.
"It's going to be a fun trip!"
Launching sequels and a remake franchise that are by turns too loud and too trashy, the
movie that started it all is an exercise in horrifying unpleasantness.
Its characters are largely unlikable and its villains are the perfect version of incomprehensible
cruelty.
The plot, essentially about a Texas road trip that goes south fast, will remind you why
you probably shouldn't talk to strangers, pick up hitchhikers, or ask questions about
what's really going on inside the rickety old house at the edge of town.
Brutal and brilliant, this is the movie that countless otherwise forgettable slashers aspire
to be.
A meet-the-parents situation goes terribly awry in Jordan Peele's directorial debut Get
Out, which hit theaters in 2017 on the crest of a massive wave of well-deserved acclaim.
The movie follows a young couple, Rose and Chris, who are visiting for a weekend at Rose's
parents' estate, a classy enclave where the polished veneer of white liberal tolerance
turns out to be masking some deep, terrifying secrets.
"Get out."
"Sorry, man."
"Get out!"
"Yo!"
Get Out fully lives up to the hype, delivering suspense and scares while also tackling complex
racial issues with incisive wit.
If it doesn't make you scream, it'll definitely make you think.
Found footage horror was seriously revitalized with 2007's Paranormal Activity, which proved
that you don't need a gothic mansion or dilapidated cabin in the woods to make a highly effective
and haunting movie.
All the action takes place in the comfy, modern setting of a suburban home, as newlyweds Katie
and Micah learn that they're not entirely alone in their new abode.
Like The Blair Witch Project, Paranormal Activity is all about the slow burn; in the hands of
director Oren Peli, everyday occurrences like a door slamming shut or a hall light illuminating
offscreen are imbued with foreboding.
Plus, the small but convincing cast does an incredible job of making the "found footage"
premise feel very authentic.
It's universally acknowledged that Stephen King's novels and short stories make for truly
terrifying reading material.
"I'm going to scare the hell out of you."
And as movies, some of King's creations are just as powerful but, to put it kindly, there
are also some that don't quite stand the test of time.
The Mist, however, undeniably hits the mark, thanks to the deft touch of Director Frank
Darabont.
Based on King's novella of the same name, Darabont's film tells the story of a New England
town beset by unspeakable, otherworldly horrors that descend under the cover of a mysterious
mist.
The Mist is a solid monster movie, but it's scariest moments are the ones that reveal
the dark tribalism of human beings who believe they're witnessing the end of the world, and
it pulls no punches on that front.
King even famously said that Darabont's gut-wrenching twist ending for the film is the one he wishes
he'd written himself.
Wes Craven's A Nightmare on Elm Street is best known for giving us one of pop culture's
most recognizable and enduring monsters: Freddy Krueger.
"Come to Freddy."
The character has become a legendary villain and arguably the only thing that holds all
the sequels together.
Led by Robert Englund's performance as Freddy, A Nightmare on Elm Street is one of the best,
scariest, and most enjoyable horror flicks around.
It combines an amazing premise with a stellar cast and examines everything from adolescent
anxiety to mob violence.
Craven's creation of a monster that lives in your dreams but is still able to affect
your waking life was one of the most original ideas to come out of the 1980s' crop of bloody,
slasher films.
Director Robert Eggers' The Witch is a perfectly-paced portrait of one family's dissolution, cast
out of their village, at the edge of the lonesome New England woods in the early 1600s.
There's no period corniness here, the dialogue feels authentic, and the child actors, usually
a low point in movies like this, truly impress, not only with their grasp of the language,
but the maturity of their performances.
Writers often talk about the climaxes of scary films, when all the cards are finally played,
and all hell breaks loose.
The climax of this film is an emotional hell.
A lot hinges on the endings of horror movies and this one sticks the landing with a confidence
that's unearthly for a first-time feature director.
It's an unsparing picture, the very meaning of dreadful, and a modern classic.
Scream was the first film to kick off the self-aware horror trend and to this day, it's
still the best.
Director Wes Craven, who was already silver-screen royalty thanks to The Hills Have Eyes, The
People Under the Stairs, and the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise, knew exactly how
to make the perfect horror film.
"There's a formula to it.
A very simple formula!"
However, Craven outdid himself with this funny, freaky slasher flick from 1996.
From start to finish, the film subverted every trope in the book and roundly mocked horror
movies at large, while still scaring the hell out of its audience.
The then-hot young stars of the franchise, including Neve Campbell and Rose McGowan,
went on to become hugely successful in movies and television.
It's been almost 25 years since Scream first hit theaters and it still feels fresh and
fun.
The Babadook tells the story of a grieving single mother and her son, who encounter a
demonic spirit from a children's book.
It was immediately hailed as a high point of the genre, and serves as proof of the fact
that horror movies don't need jump scares or gratuitous gore.
The Babadook roots itself in far scarier stuff than that, and in so doing, becomes the kind
of film that stays with the viewer for years.
The Babadook is a monster that resists all attempts at banishment.
The harder you try to get rid of it, the more it forces its way into your life.
You can't sleep, you can't eat, you become hostile and withdrawn.
Eventually, you realize that you can never get rid of it at all, you have to learn to
coexist with the monster.
There is a strange, affecting grace to this film's narrative, which sees the Babadook
become something like an unpleasant, but tolerated house guest to the mother and son.
He is their grief for the family's missing husband and father, killed in a car accident,
overwhelming, omnipresent, and, ultimately, accepted.
Though this moral is moving, don't be fooled, The Babadook is still very much a horror movie,
and those looking to be frightened won't be disappointed.
Check out one of our newest videos right here!
Plus, even more Grunge videos about your favorite movies are coming soon.
Subscribe to our YouTube channel and hit the bell so you don't miss a single one.