The Best Horror Movies of All Time
Horror movies have existed for more than a century. Early inspirations from before the development of film include folklore, religious beliefs and superstitions of different cultures, and the Gothic and horror literature of authors such as Edgar Allan Poe, Bram Stoker, and Mary Shelley. The best horror movies are grounded in human fears of the unknown — be it the monster lurking next door, the mysterious person behind you at the movies or even your own innate demons. Whether they're classics like Dracula or cult favorites such as Ringu, these terrifying flicks have maintained their relevance by offering a glimmer of truth beneath the bloodshed and sex. After several young people die, a reporter investigates an ancient tape that is cursed to kill anyone who watches it. She finds out that it contains the vengeful spirit of a girl who died after being thrown into a well. The film’s use of technology is a great example of techno-fear. It creates fear through the concept that something intangible can attack you in your own home, where you feel most safe. While many elements of Ringu, including its phantasmic elegance and subtle use of scare tactics were lost in Gore Verbinski’s American remake, Nakata’s original still remains an elegant horror blockbuster that redefined the genre. Easily the most talked about film at Fantastic Fest, The Human Centipede toys with controversy and promised to make viewers squirm. Unfortunately, director Tom Six fails to fully capitalise on his crazy idea. The film centres around a deranged doctor who kidnaps people and sews them together mouth to anus (you read that right). Dieter Laser plays Heiter with all the conviction of a snotty Christopher Walken cliche. Heiter’s antiseptic house and his fetishistic pleasures do little to build tension or encourage identification. Instead, Six lingers on the victims’ whimpers and cries for help, in an effort to elicit revulsion. Although it's not the first film version of Bram Stoker's vampire novel, the 1931 Dracula remains a benchmark in horror cinema. It helped create the modern image of a vampire with Bela Lugosi's hypnotic performance as the Count. His wide gestures, the way his eyes flicker to indicate hypnotic powers and the mystical glow surrounding him all became standard film tropes. Even the way he glides over deck, unaffected by the ship's thrashing movement or the roar of the storm on the soundtrack. The movie also boasts solid performances by Edward Van Sloan as Dr. Van Helsing and Dwight Frye as straight arrow John Harker, both of whom would appear again in a later Universal monster remake, Frankenstein. What separates the best horror movies from the dreck that clutters the genre is their ability to burrow into your subconscious, instilling an uneasy feeling that lasts long after you turn off the lights. That's something that Clive Barker achieved with this creepy tale of a puzzle box that opens a portal to hell, setting a standard for child actors (Linda Blair) and inspiring a host of riffs on his iconic Pinhead. Francis Ford Coppola's lavish retelling of The Exorcist set the bar for spiritual horror for decades to come. It's also a reminder that the genre can serve up thought-provoking social commentary when it needs to. Four years after the first film this sequel taps into the premise of evil feeding off of negative energy. The splintered family of the Montellis (representing the Lutz/DeFeo murder victims), with matriarch Delores trying to contain a tyrannical, violent husband, an angst-driven teenager that turns into a monster, and unexplained phenomena that include the infamous groping scene in which Burstyn peruses the attic, all add up to a movie that gets pretty ugly at times. Italian director Damiano Damiani is largely unused to the genre, but he throws everything at this sequence; a 180 degree pan, zooms, tracking shots, eerie music. It's a strong, creepy, and well-made movie.
Ringu
The Human Centipede (First Sequence)
Dracula (1931)
The Exorcist (1973)
The Exorcist II: The Possession (1982)