Top 10 horror

Defining horror is something that pretty much nobody can do. It covers such a wide range of motifs, themes and sub genres that virtually anytime the word is mentioned in connection with something then someone else is going to say “That’s not real horror.”

Do you mean the slow creeping horror of Lovecraft? The in your face blood and guts horror of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre and the like? Or do you prefer the off the wall tension and believable horror conjured up by filmmakers like Hitchcock? The list of styles literally goes on and on. Please try to keep that in mind as I go through this list and it’s quite likely I’ve left some things I would have liked to include purely out of forgetfulness. Also these are in no particular order since I tend to reassess and change my mind constantly.

10 - The Birds. A concept that sounds so absurd that in the hands of a lesser director it might have fallen flat on its face. I think I saw this when I was about fifteen and while I had already seen films with better special effects and much more in your face terror I think this is the first movie that truly terrified me. A lot of people would argue that Psycho is the better film and it's hard to disagree so this is largely a matter of preference.

9 - Ginger Snaps. Apart from An American Werewolf in London this has to be my favourite werewolf movie. While the subtext about puberty and womanhood practically oozes out the screen, the film still manages to tell a good story and Katharine Isabelle and Emily Perkins are brilliant as the Fitzgerald sisters.

8 – Scream. Say what you like about it but whether it was an intentional satire or a postmodern horror movie Scream still stands out among modern horror movies for having memorable and likeable characters as well as one of the most iconic killers of modern times. Not to mention some genuinely great death scenes.

7 – New Nightmare. A second entry for Wes Craven here and again it’s an interesting twist on an old concept. Instead of being the character from the movies Freddy Krueger is a malign entity seeking to invade the real world. The best part of this all is that Craven really brings Freddy back to his roots as a killer and sheds the comedic aspects that became more prevalent as the series progressed. In my opinion the best of the Elm Street films. It plays a lot with the concepts of reality, dream and the supernatural in equal measures so at times you really don’t know what to believe.

6 – The Thing. Where to begin? Kurt Russell for a start is brilliant but the paranoia and tension are the stars of this film coupled with some amazing special effects. A lot of horror fans will probably argue for Halloween but for me John Carpenter is never going to top this film for real pant shitting terror and tension and it even beats Alien for the title of best sci-fi horror. It’s also possibly Kurt Russell’s best non action or comedy role.

5 – The Evil Dead 2: Dead by Dawn. Not really a lot to say here. Watching it now the effects are a bit dated but given that it was made on a very small budget it still looks better than some modern films and it’s maybe not as scary as I remember it being as a kid but it’s still a brilliant movie and when you look at the story history behind it then it becomes even more admirable because it is a movie made from a genuine love of the the genre and film making as an art form.

4 – Brain Dead/Dead Alive. Another comedy/horror and one of the goriest movies of all time. Like Evil Dead there’s not really a lot to say. The plot that exists is simply there to hurry the movie on to the next act of hilarious violence. Hugely quotable, funny and gory in equal measure.

3 – An American Werewolf in London. The second werewolf film on the list and still a milestone in makeup effects after thirty years on. I recently watched this again and forgot just how funny it was. Actually I looked up the credits on IMDB I never even realized that it’s directed by John Landis who also directed Animal House and The Blues Brothers which probably goes a long way to explaining the humour which despite being a bit slapstick at times never does so to the films detriment.

2 – Seven. If I was pushed to pick a favourite psychological horror this just beats Silence of the Lambs because of the visuals. Both are excellent films but the pay off at the end of Seven and the amazing cast just make place it a step above most other serial killer movies. Plus looking at modern franchises like Saw you can see the lasting influence that this has left on the genre. Actually maybe that isn’t a point in its favour.

1 – In the Mouth of Madness. I’m not entirely sure how well known this film is but by Bob it’s worth watching. Sam Neill stars in this brilliant homage to HP Lovecraft and other great writers of horror fiction.  At times it can be deeply unsettling and the ending despite being depressing is extremely satisfying.

As I said there are probably films I would put on here that I’ve forgotten since I haven’t watched them in a while and some like The Birds where it was a tough choice to pick just one film from the directors career since an entire list could be made just from Hitchcock and some other writers, directors and actors on this list.