To celebrate
Halloween 2013 here are my top 200 horror films. This is an admittedly idiosyncratic
list, so I will explain a little about my taste:
Horror is
one of my favorite genres, but I often find I have little in common with most other
fans. With a few exceptions, I don’t much care for American slasher movies or
comedy-horror. I don’t think horror films should be given a free pass on acting
and writing. I tend to disdain sequels and remakes, and rarely bother seeing
them even if I like the original. I find popular blockbuster horror films
largely stale and rote, with too much reliance on formula and cliche. I think
shock cinema and torture porn are largely hollow and pointless (real shock, in
my opinion, is about violating expectations and denying gratification, not just
showing revolting images). I'm uncomfortable with the latent
one-upmanship in the horror community that values senseless gore, sadism and
cruelty and I dislike that cultivating a jaded tolerance to that sort of thing
is considered a badge of honor.
What I do
like is psychological horror, atmosphere, surprises (including a good twist, if
it makes sense), really dark or ambitious themes, strong visuals and sound
design, moral complexity, originality, uncompromising endings, characters who
don’t behave like idiots for the convenience of the plot and explorations of
fear and death that function on multiple levels, dissecting individual and
socio-cultural anxieties simultaneously. I like both dreamlike surrealism that
scares me by providing a glimpse of the otherworldly or unknown and disturbing
realism that scares me by confronting me with actual possibilities and hard
truths. I genuinely enjoy the physical sensation of terror and I want a good horror films to frighten me
(just like I want comedies to make me laugh and sad movies to make me cry), so
I don’t consciously resist my emotional reactions. I actually quite enjoy discerningly-deployed
practical and digital special effects (and even a healthy smattering of gore),
as long as they don’t smother the screenplay. I’m quite fond of art-horror and
foreign horror, especially gialli (though they have their own set of conventions). Though
I think it is a lesser form of greatness, I occasionally enjoy campiness and
cheesiness, but the so-bad-its-good thing usually only works for me when there
is quite a bit of (often misguided) talent underneath.
So with all
that in mind, let’s get back to the list. It’s got a lot of weird things on it.
You may disagree with my rather generous definition of ‘horror’ as it includes
multiple documentaries, musicals and martial arts films. Even I'm not sure of
the ordering. But if you find yourself agreeing with the titles you recognize,
you’ll have fun catching up on the one’s you don’t.
For the
record, I don’t consider anything on this list filler. I like everything here
(though some I haven’t seen in a long time). There are several times as many
films that didn’t make the cut, so any movie that made it earned its spot and just
because a movie didn’t make it doesn’t mean I’m not a fan.
I enforced a
rule of only one film per series (including reboots), which is why you won’t
see Aliens, Frankenstein, Cat People, Dawn of the Dead or Inferno.
If you are
wondering about the absence of ‘classics’ like Halloween, Friday the 13th
(which is anyway a remake of the superior Italian Twitch of the Death Nerve),
Dracula, Birds, Amityville Horror, Phantasm, The Blob, The Omen or The Wicker
Man, the answer is that they didn’t make the cut.
If you think
I’ve forgotten something or need to track a title down, put your
recommendations in the comments section.
And now the
list…
- Possession (1981) France
- Cremator, The (1969) Slovakia
- Deep Red (1975) Italy
- Silence of the Lambs (1991)
- Se7en (1995)
- Mulholland Dr. (2001)
- Diabolical / Diabolique (1955) France
- Picnic at Hanging Rock (1975) Australia
- Videodrome (1983) Canada
- Eraserhead (1977)
- Don't Look Now (1973) UK
- Pan's Labyrinth (2006) Spain
- Saragossa Manuscript, The (1965) Poland
- Shining, The (1980)
- Vanishing, The (1988) Netherlands
- House / Hausu (1977) Japan
- White Ribbon, The (2009) Austria
- Alien (1979)
- Phenomena (1985) Italy
- Gravity (2013)
- Boxer's Omen (1983) Hong Kong
- Peeping Tom (1960) UK
- Sixth Sense, The (1999)
- Vinyan (2008) France
- Memories of Murder (2003) South Korea
- Thing, The (1982)
- Death Laid an Egg (1968) Italy
- Ring, The (2002)
- Others, The (2001) Spain
- What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962)
- Threads (1984) UK
- Descent, The (2005) UK
- Psycho (1960)
- Suspiria (1977) Italy
- Exorcist, The (1973)
- Bride of Frankenstein (1935)
- Orphanage, The (2008) Spain
- Innocents, The (1961) UK
- Targets (1968)
- Night of the Hunter, The (1955)
- Face of Another, The (1966) Japan
- Valerie and Her Week of Wonders (1970) Czech Rep.
- Lost Highway (1997)
- Lunacy (2005) Czech Rep.
- Scream (1996)
- Trouble Every Day (2001) France
- Cabin in the Woods (2011)
- Cure (1997) Japan
- Rocky Horror Picture Show, The (1975)
- Repulsion (1965) UK
- Chinese Ghost Story, A (1987) Hong Kong
- Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007)
- Cloverfield (2008)
- Nosferatu, Symphony of the Night (1922) Germany
- Shout, The (1978) UK
- Jaws (1975)
- Holy Blood (Santa Sangre) (1989) Mexico
- Fourth Man, The (1983) Netherlands
- Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance (2002) South Korea
- Paranormal Activity (2007)
- Shallow Grave (1994) UK
- Dead Ringers (1988) Canada
- Unknown, The (1927)
- Re-Animator (1985)
- Blue Velvet (1986)
- Devil-Doll, The (1936)
- Murder to the Tune of Seven Black Notes / The Psychic (1977) Italy
- King Kong (1933)
- Night of the Living Dead (1968)
- Battle Royale (2000) Japan
- Faust (1994) Czech Rep.
- Hourglass Sanatorium, The (1973) Poland
- War Game, The (1965) UK
- Nightmare on Elm Street, A (1984)
- Man Who Laughs, The (1928)
- Mr. Vampire (1985) Hong Kong
- Paranoiac (1963) UK
- Blair Witch Project, The (1999)
- Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956)
- Heavenly Creatures (1994) New Zealand
- Pitfall (1962) Japan
- Buried (2010) Spain
- Bird with the Crystal Plumage, The (1970) Italy
- Tingler, The (1959)
- Southern Comfort (1981)
- Save the Green Planet! (2003) South Korea
- Texas Chainsaw Massacre, The (1974)
- Finishing School, The / House that Screamed, The (1969) Spain
- 28 Days Later... (2002) UK
- Gozu (Cowhead) (2003) Japan
- Eyes without a Face (1960) France
- Triangle (2009) UK
- Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, The (1920) Germany
- Rosemary's Baby (1968)
- Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer (1986)
- Gemini (1999) Japan
- Devils, The (1971) UK
- Picture of Dorian Gray, The (1945)
- Hell (1960) Japan
- Dr. Jekyll and His Women (1981) France
- Carnival of Souls (1962)
- Saw (2004)
- Devil's Backbone, The (2001) Spain
- Paperhouse (1988) UK
- Phantom of the Opera, The (1925)
- Cube (1997) Canada
- Them! (1954)
- Strange Vice of Mrs Wardh, The (1971) Italy
- Tucker & Dale vs. Evil (2009)
- Careful (1992) Canada
- Cache (Hidden) (2005) France
- Stage Fright (1987) Italy
- Martin (1978)
- Nightbreed (1990) Canada
- Beetlejuice (1988)
- Freaks (1932)
- Collector, The (1965) UK
- Deliverance (1972)
- Curse of the Cat People (1944)
- Open Water (2003)
- Theater of Blood (1973) UK
- Red Queen Kills Seven Times, The (1972) Italy
- Honeymoon Killers, The (1969)
- Ghostbusters (1986)
- Testament (1983)
- Shaun of the Dead (2004) UK
- Poltergeist (1982)
- Severance (2006) UK
- Host, The (2006) South Korea
- Return of the Living Dead, The (1985)
- Phase IV (1974) UK
- Frailty (2001)
- Fists in the Pocket (1965) Italy
- Sunshine (2007) UK
- Tenebre (Unsane) (1982) Italy
- Dead Alive (1992) New Zealand
- Amer (2009) Belgium
- Hellraiser (1987) UK
- Horror of Dracula, The (1958) UK
- [REC] (2007) Spain
- Brain that Wouldn't Die, The (1962)
- Kwaidan (1964) Japan
- Blood and Black Lace (1964) Italy
- Last Wave, The (1977) Australia
- Brood, The (1979) Canada
- Machinist, The (2003)
- Black Belly of the Tarantula (1971) Italy
- Creature from the Black Lagoon, The (1954)
- Legend of Hell House, The (1973) UK
- Man Bites Dog (1991) Belgium
- Killing Kind, The (1973)
- Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1932)
- American Psycho (2000)
- Haunting, The (1963) UK
- Cemetery Man (1996) Italy
- Cell, The (2000)
- Bad Seed, The (1956)
- Your Vice Is a Locked Room and Only I Have the Key (1973) Italy
- Predator (1987)
- Blade (1998)
- Ghostwatch (1992) UK
- Seventh Victim, The (1943)
- Shadow of the Vampire (2000)
- Stepford Wives, The (1975)
- Deep Blue Sea (1999)
- Twitch of the Death Nerve (1971) Italy
- Kingdom (1994) Denmark
- Carrie (1976)
- Splice (2009) Canada
- Vampires in Havana (1985) Cuba
- Angst (1983) Austria
- I Walked with a Zombie (1943)
- Matango: Attack of the Mushroom People (1963) Japan
- Queen of Spades, The (1949) UK
- Misery (1990)
- Bucket of Blood, A (1959)
- In the Mouth of Madness (1994)
- Unbreakable (2000)
- Hour of the Wolf (1968) Sweden
- Fly, The (1986) Canada
- Case of the Scorpion's Tail, The (1971) Italy
- Arcana (1972) Italy
- Masque of the Red Death, The (1964)
- Evil Dead II (1987)
- Black Sunday (1960) Italy
- Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust (2000) Japan
- Devil and Daniel Webster, The (1941)
- Event Horizon (1997) UK
- Hellstrom Chronicle, The (1971)
- Angel Heart (1987)
- Crawling Eye, The / The Trollenberg Terror (1958) UK
- Faust (1926) Germany
- Troll Hunter, The (2010) Norway
- Cronos (1993) Mexico
- Incubus (1965)
- God Told Me To (1976)
- Onibaba (1964) Japan
- Thesis (1996) Spain
- Ginger Snaps (2000) Canada
- Tale of Two Sisters, A (2003) South Korea
