Getting Scared with your fellow audience member when something shocking happens, or jolting together as one during a primo jump scare, is one of the great pleasures of going to the movies. And over the past few decades, the art form has figured out almost every possible way to frighten us, unnerve us, make our hair stand on us, chill us, thrill us and touch upon our most primal of fears.
We’ve gathered all of the old-school monster movies and modern serial-killer thrillers, the creature features and the slasher flicks and the canon-worthy creepfests.
Evil Dead II (1987)
Director Sam Raimi and Bruce Campbell returned to the woods after six years for Evil Dead II, which leans into the gruesome excess of the first but ups the ante to a ridiculous degree (this was the one where an eyeball flies into a person’s open mouth).
Though Evil Dead II didn’t invent splat-stick, it sure did perfect it, and went on to influence countless other comedy gross-outs. Raimi managed to chill and scare his audience plenty with stylish and over-the-top antics.
The Descent (2005)
Neil Marshall’s truly terrifying claustrophobic creature feature, ‘The Descent’. Sarah’s friends want to make her feel better after the tragic death of her family so, instead of y’know, buying her some gin, they take her on a caving trip. Unfortunately, the movie wouldn’t be on this list if the six women were there to have a heartwarming, gently comedic adventure where they all grow as people. From the moment this lot lower themselves into the darkness below the Appalachian mountains, it’s very clear that getting back out into the light again isn’t going to be likely.
The claustrophobia of The Descent is horribly real. Before you even discover what’s lurking down there – with a night vision reveal so spectacular that it goes down in jump scare history – this cave system is stone horror. The women are experienced explorers but every shot of squeezing through tiny spaces as rubble gently falls, every huge cavern only lit in one tiny corner by their flares, and every step they take further into the abyss is heart-racing stuff.
Dawn Of The Dead (1978)
George Romero created the zombie movie genre single-handedly in 1968 with Night of the Living Dead. Ten years later he refined the formula with Dawn of the Dead. Far bigger, gorier, and funnier than its predecessor, Dawn of the Dead remains Romero’s definitive work. Whereas Night featured a small cast of survivors holed up in a remote farmhouse, Dawn opens with a glimpse of a major metropolitan area falling to chaos during the zombie outbreak. It isn’t long before our four heroes are forced to leave town and barricade themselves inside a shopping mall. But as it turns out, the undead hordes still retain enough of their old selves to feel the need to shop and consume.
When Roger finally succumbs to his bite wounds, it’s a tragic moment that really drives home what our characters have lost in this world.
The Witch (2015)
Robert Eggers’ terrifying period drama follows a Puritan family after they are ejected from their colony. Screaming ‘don’t do it’ at the screen just doesn’t work as William (Ralph Ineson) takes his wife Katherine (Kate Dickie) and his five children into the deep, dark woods to survive alone on a farm. It’s not spoiling anything to say that it doesn’t go particularly well. Following Thomasin, the eldest daughter of the family played by Anya Taylor-Joy in her first credited role, we witness the tense unraveling of a dysfunctional family faced with the horrific prospect of an outside force staring out at them from the trees.
Every perfectly constructed shot of the family attempting to survive in the wilderness is cranked into fear-ville with a constantly surprising hellish score of strings and vocals. This means that when true horror eventually does hit after a torturous slow burn of tension, it’s like Eggers has masterfully wired you in for shocks and you didn’t notice. From the unnerving skip and shrill voices of the young twins to the monstrous goat known only as Black Phillip, there is unique horror lurking in The Witch that just doesn’t go away.
Get Out (2017)
Mid-20’s photographer Chris is driving out to rural New York to meet his girlfriend’s parents for the first time, but he’s a little nervous. Bubbling with resonant social commentary, layered with hard-hitting goosebumps, and sprinkled with uncompromising humor, Get Out is a modern horror masterpiece in every sense of the word.
Not content with scaring you just for its 90-minute run-time, director Jordan Peele;s grand reveal is more horrific than any jump scare could ever hope to be.
Annabelle: Creation (2017)
2017’s Annabelle: Creation, the fourth film installment in The Conjuring Universe franchise. A prequel to 2014’s Annabelle, the film tells the story of a doll-maker and his wife who, after losing their daughter in a tragic car accident, become the targets of one of the doll-maker’s possessed creations.
Upon its release, Annabelle: Creation garnered generally positive reviews from critics, who saw it as a big improvement over the first film.
The Conjuring (2013)
The original The Conjuring film not only became one of the highest-grossing horror films of all time when it was released in 2013 but also kick-started a cinematic universe that has made over $2 billion and counting. Starring Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga, the film is inspired by the supposedly true encounters of paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren and tells the story of a malevolent spirit that inhabits the recently purchased farmhouse belonging to the Perron family.
The Conjuring has received praise for its direction, cinematography, use of practical effects, and for having more depth than most modern horrors. It has been positively compared to The Exorcist and is frequently considered one of the best horror films of the twenty-first century.
It: Chapter One (2017)
The blockbuster which premiered on September 8, 2017. Like the sequel, this one was directed by Andy Muschietti and features Bill Skarsgård in the role of Pennywise the Clown, but this time, we’re treated to performances from such young actors as Sophia Lillis, Finn Wolfhard, Jaeden Lieberher, and Chosen Jacobs.
Praised for its scares, atmosphere, cinematography, and cast, It Chapter One might just be the perfect horror film. Audiences certainly thought so, and while the sequel doesn’t get enough love when watched as one long cinematic experience, the It saga is one of the best Stephen King adaptations of all time.
The Exorcist (1973)
The very first horror film to ever be nominated for Best Picture at the Academy Awards, The Exorcist. Directed by the late great William Friedkin and based on the book by William Peter Blatty (who also penned the screenplay), The Exorcist tells the terrifying tale of a little girl possessed by demons and her subsequent exorcism by two Catholic priests.
Se7en (1995)
Crafting a film centered around a dark thriller while using overt religious and “good vs. evil” themes is incredibly challenging to get right. It has been attempted countless times, but nothing compares to the chilling impact of David Fincher’s film, featuring an outstanding Brad Pitt. Despite its graphic moments, the movie smartly leaves much of the horror to the viewer’s imagination, which is precisely what makes it such a deeply disturbing experience.
Saw (2004)
The first “Saw” film established James Wan as a top-tier horror director. At first glance, “Saw” may seem like just another gore-heavy horror flick. It delves deeply into psychological themes and human nature.
It is worth noting that the original “Saw” is far less focused on gore compared to the more recent installments, which unfortunately have become more about shock value than compelling storytelling.
Hereditary (2018)
A harrowed Toni Collette leads Ari Aster’s very first (!) feature film as the mother of a grieving family. The death of her own mother has sent shockwaves through their home and, to keep this review spoiler-free, the future isn’t looking exactly, errr, bright either. Nowhere during its two-hour run time do you feel like you can stop and take a breath, or even make a guess as to what’s coming next.
It might have split cinema audiences but Hereditary is a tour de force of modern horror that will leave you reeling long after its grueling third act. We’re just not going to tell you why.
The Addams Family, 1991
The Addams Family has been a fairly famous horror film over the years. Christina Ricci gained immense popularity in the early 90s for her portrayal of the dark and gloomy goth icon Wednesday Addams.
