Do you miss the feeling of fear? Lights are turned off, you are all alone at home but at the same time you feel that someone else is there. Instinctive desire to hide wins against the common sense. Well, prepare for some fear and enjoy the best horror movies ever.
1. The Exorcist; 1973
For the nowadays viewer, who gets bored easily, this movie may seem like a prelude without passion; long introduction, step by step raving evil and monotonous (but important) dialogs. But slow development is creates tension. And waiting for horror becomes as pleasurable as eating cake while on the diet. Sinful pleasure – you already know that it is better not to watch this movie but it is too late – you have already tasted the cream of the cake. There is no way back.
For viewer who is already infected with the virus from series “stupid scouts are going for a holiday” to some kind of dark forest and when they reach that remote place they decide to separate and walk in the forest one by one. And, after a few minutes the heads are flying. So, if you are like this type of scenarios this movie will probably be boring to you. Anyway, for those who are able to concentrate for more than five minutes this movie will soon become of the the favorites. The Exorcist is the godfather of all horror movies and the father of all exorcists’ movies which are constantly being made.
I am almost sure that if I had watched this movie than I was a child I would have received a moderate psychological trauma. Keep in mind that this movie was made in 1973. And it is scary. Intensive and fearful. And despite the fact that some scenes from this movie already are the property of “The most horror movies” creators, this movie doesn’t make you laugh. When the movie reaches the middle you understand that it is time to say goodbye to your sleep.
This is the movie from the times when even horror movies had scripts and bloody scenes weren’t the most important thing. You must admit that this movie belongs to the category of the classical horror movies.
When you watch The Exorcist you somehow start to believe that heathen’s hell is soften. However, those who believes in God must believe in Satan too (I don’t know why but you can’t believe just in God, it is illegal or something like this). So, this masterpiece was created because of faith.
For those who somehow have never seen any version of “Exorcism” I shortly present the plot – a teenage girl is possessed by a mysterious entity and her mother seeks help form two priests to save her daughter. Fathers Karras and Merrin spend the third act of the movie fighting back the Devil over the control of young Regan’s soul. And in doing so, Karras, a man of wavering faith throughout most of the movie, finally believes in the only true good he knows by sacrificing himself to save that little girl.
2. Psycho; 1960
Do you still remember that iconic music cue, which remains a horror classic 50 years later? So, this music sounds in this movie almost all the time. This music together with Alfred Hitchcock’s talent to frame scenes make perfect atmosphere for horror movie full of obscurity. Every cell feels that something wrong has happened.
After string Orchestra finishes playing, dialogs warn that something bad is coming closer. The master of thrillers Alfred Hitchcock uses his talent to cause stress and asks a lot of questions. Everything in this movie has a connection to upcoming disaster. Even that transparent bath’s curtain is screaming that the evil is close.
Everything that was made in Hollywood later was inspired by this movie. That’s why all self-respecting movie lovers must watch what started a genre of traditional horror movie. For instance, the mascara in motels became very popular after this movie was released. I wonder if someone who decides to stay in motel for the night sees the sun o the next day. Because it looks like everyone who decides to stay there must die.
Thank you, Hitchcock, for the invention of psychological horror thriller. By the way, this movie also has a lot of remakes. But the bike is already invented. So, just let it ride and don’t put a spoke in the wheels.
How this bike was invented? “Psycho” is the story of crazy old Norman Bates and his even crazier mother. When a young woman who is running from the law arrives at the remote Bates Motel, she becomes a victim of a knife-wielding killer. Several more victims are claimed before the killer is brought to justice and the true secret of the Bates family is revealed.
3. Alien; 1979
Maybe the devices which look fantastic in the movie have now became household appliances but despite this fact we must admit that Alien left a mark in the history of the horror’s movies. It left the bright mark which is still very much alive nowadays. The perfect alien, flawless acting and breathtaking battle for survive. This is something that must be on the list of each movie lover.
Before “Alien”, the pop culture never warned us how dark, dirty and scary the cold depths of space can be.
Director Ridley Scott adopted a “less is more” approach that later sequels sadly abandoned. Modern directors can put all the Aliens and Predators they want into their films, but none can match the sheer claustrophobic terror generated in the original “Alien”.
This new (in those times) alien Ridley Scott brought this way – after investigating an S.O.S. signal on a near-by world, the crew of an industrial spacecraft must fight for survival when a highly aggressive creature is born in the ship and begins hunting them one by one.
4. Silence of the Lambs; 1991
This movie gave us one of the screen’s all-time iconic villains and to Anthony Hopkins the role of his career. Anthony Hopkins played an intellectual maniac Hannibal Lecter in “Hannibal” and “Red dragon”.
It is hard to say whether the role of Anthony Hopkins has made this movie one of the best horror movies in the history or vice versa. In any case, this movie is so psychopathically enjoyable that when the end comes you promise yourself to watch again.
This movie makes you not only terrified but it also makes you think. The story goes like this – a young F.B.I. cadet must confide in an incarcerated and manipulative killer to receive his help in order to catch another serial killer who skins his victims.
5. Jaws; 1975
You don’t need to wait long for action in this movie. The first girl that goes into the water – the first victim in jaws. Floating limbs become rather a norm from the beginning of the movie. I don’t recommend watching this movie if you are leaving for holidays soon because it is quite possible that you will avoid water.
The panic fear of water in this movie is created in a quite simple way. You see, sharks are real. They are not boogeymen or ghosts. Sharks are real animals which exist for many years. Steven Spielberg just gives you the idea that this monstrous fish could be anywhere.
He masters this idea thanks to a little island. The citizens of this island live peaceful life until great white shark appears. When the gigantic great white shark begins to menace this small island community of Amity, a police chief, a marine scientist and stubborn fisherman set out to stop it.
6. The Shining; 1980
When the movie starts, one already gets the feeling that something will go horribly wrong soon enough. Agreeably, ghosts of two little girls show up on the screen after few minutes.
It is quite possible that if a sweet child will come to you after seeing The Shinning and will start talking with his finger you will wrench his little finger and run out to the fields screaming.
Soundtrack will bend your ears and views will make you head dizzy for sure, bringing terror into your room.
“The Shining” might just be Stephen King’s on of the most popular horror novel. This Stanley Kubrick’s adaptation for the television screen is almost certainly the most famous one. Another man who done his best in order make this movie a legend is Jack Nicolson. Surely everyone who saw this movie remembers the image of Nicholson poking his head through a doorway shouting “Here’s Johnny!”?
“The Shining” has left its mark on modern pop culture. And this mark appeared in this way – A family goes out to an isolated hotel for the winter where an evil and spiritual presence influences the father to become insanely violent, while his psychic son starts to see horrific visions from the past and the future.
7. The nightmare on Elm Street; 1984
Before watching this movie I would recommend you have a good sleep, because after watching this movie your sleep will become your biggest enemy. Horror movies usually create the feeling of terror, which (for reasons that I don’t know) you can feel best when you are ready to sleep and all lights are turned off. So, sleeping during day time became a good alternative. However, this movie steals this alternative. This movie has the purpose of not letting you sleep ever again. Sleeping both during day and night became very dangerous. In fact, not sleep but dreams are dangerous. But how to sleep without dreaming?
Sometimes we want our dreams to come true but not when crazy and thirsty for revenge Freddy Krueger is coming for you. Thanks to its excellent conceit and Craven’s talent in building tension and delivering the goods in his murder scenes this movie made the big impact for a lot of young directors. And with Freddy, Craven gave us one of the most popular, durable and recognizable movie characters of all time.
This character was created in a young girl’s head – every night Nancy dreamed the same dream – a horrible man with sharp knifes instead of hands. It turn out that her friends also dreamed the same man. This scary man step by step turned not only dreams but also their lives to nightmares.
8. The Blair Witch Project; 1999
You wait for something throughout the entire movie and in the end it looks like you waited for nothing. But where does this fear come from? This fear evolves from tension and high identification with characters. This makes the viewer a shuddering bug.
For entirely 86 minutes the idea that something more exists is put in your head and despite the fact that you didn’t see this mysterious “something” at the end of movie there is no doubt that this power of “something” truly exist.
The movie that gave birth to the whole “horror movie as faux-documentary,” that inspired such films as “Paranormal Activity”, is quite an effective scare fest. Blame the gift/curse of the shaky cam on this movie, but give it credit for delivering fear in such a way that changed the way we like to be scared… It changed the way Hollywood makes things that scare us.
The story looks simple – three film students go missing after traveling into the woods of Maryland to make a documentary about the local Blair Witch legend leaving only their footage behind.
9. The Ring; 2002
In the twenty first century movie makers came up with the idea to make people afraid of the telephone. Actually, the telephone and tape. The combination of two is just perfect.
It is worth mentioning that the bugaboo is not bad also because when you see her you understand that you don’t want to meet this lady.
You repeat to yourself that this is just a movie and that everything is not real but when the movie ends you pray that your phone does not ring.
By the way this movie is a re-make of “Ring” which was originally made in Japan. But let’s be honest, even to make a good copy you need to have talent.
The concept for “The Ring” is simple and effective. An unsuspecting viewer watches a tape full of creepy imagery and a creepier girl. One week later, they’re found dead from sinister but mysterious causes. And when our lovely heroine becomes the latest viewer, she has only days to save herself and her family from this deadly curse.
10. A Serbian film; 2010
This movie makes you angry. Brutal, violent, especially hideous and dirty. So dirty that hollow of slurry looks like clean pool.
The most interesting thing about this movie is that there isn’t any paranormal creature. The human is the most horrible and hideous creature. He is the boogeyman master.
And this movie shows that – most hideous, supernaturally violent, misshapen and rambling human’s dreams. Human is the monster which all should be afraid of.
You don’t want to watch it again and even watching it one time is not for everyone. Humans became animals to get rid of the pain of being humans and when you are watching it you want to close your eyes.
So, what so horrible is happening in the movie? An aging porn star agrees to participate in an “art film” in order to make a clean break from the business, only to discover that he has been drafted into making a pedophilia and necrophilia themed film.
