Odd request: Order these four horror movies.

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Victim of The Night
Although I'm very happy with the way this thread's going, I admit I didn't expect Saw to get this much slack. It was one of my favorites from the first time I saw it last year...
I thought Saw had its moments but I don't think it belongs in the conversation with either of the Craven films and is significantly lower than even The Conjuring (which I find enjoyable enough but not classic like the other two).



Maybe it's the trait I noticed. I grew up with a lot of cop shows during my preteen years. I noticed that Saw was directed like one of those shows and had the same appreciation for clever twists. Too many horror movies are predictable, so Saw was a breath of fresh air.



Saw might have been a decent short film had it stuck to the characters in the room, but any time it's about to build tension it cuts to the awful procedural stuff, with Danny Glover giving what's likely the worst performance of his career. It's a hideous movie to look at, which might have worked if it were only set in that crappy looking room, but makes the thriller elements intolerable.*


The Conjuring is very well crafted (and I think this movie inspired horror movies over the last decade to really up their game), but its deferential approach can't compete with the conceptual novelty of the Craven films, which are also underrated in terms of craft. I've heard Nightmare likened to an American Fulci film, and while I don't think it's quite as extreme (and is certainly more commercially palatable in its style), there's something to be said about its attempt to imbue the concrete pleasures of the slasher movie with a truly irrational threat. (Freddy in the original feels less like a coherent character than a loose assemblage of horrific imagery.) I also think that despite the movie not feeling especially dreamlike, he actually nails a certain quality about them. Dreams don't feel like dreams when you're in them.



Saw might have been a decent short film had it stuck to the characters in the room, but any time it's about to build tension it cuts to the awful procedural stuff, with Danny Glover giving what's likely the worst performance of his career. It's a hideous movie to look at, which might have worked if it were only set in that crappy looking room, but makes the thriller elements intolerable.
yessssss
When I read the premise of the film I thought it was going to be some experimental, two-actors-in-one-set kind of thing. It's not the movie's fault that I went in expecting something cooler, but that has colored my opinion of it to this day. Pretty sure I've never seen a sequel.
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Saw might have been a decent short film had it stuck to the characters in the room, but any time it's about to build tension it cuts to the awful procedural stuff, with Danny Glover giving what's likely the worst performance of his career. It's a hideous movie to look at, which might have worked if it were only set in that crappy looking room, but makes the thriller elements intolerable.*


The Conjuring is very well crafted (and I think this movie inspired horror movies over the last decade to really up their game), but its deferential approach can't compete with the conceptual novelty of the Craven films, which are also underrated in terms of craft. I've heard Nightmare likened to an American Fulci film, and while I don't think it's quite as extreme (and is certainly more commercially palatable in its style), there's something to be said about its attempt to imbue the concrete pleasures of the slasher movie with a truly irrational threat. (Freddy in the original feels less like a coherent character than a loose assemblage of horrific imagery.) I also think that despite the movie not feeling especially dreamlike, he actually nails a certain quality about them. Dreams don't feel like dreams when you're in them.
There's a 90% chance I'll bring up Fulci in any given post.*



*raspy Danny Glover voice*


"I'm gonna kill you, you sssssssick assssssshole!"



I only answer even requests.
There are FOUR movies - surely that qualifies as an 'even request'?

Anyway, for me:
A Nightmare on Elm Street
Scream
The Conjuring
Saw



Victim of The Night
Saw might have been a decent short film had it stuck to the characters in the room, but any time it's about to build tension it cuts to the awful procedural stuff, with Danny Glover giving what's likely the worst performance of his career. It's a hideous movie to look at, which might have worked if it were only set in that crappy looking room, but makes the thriller elements intolerable.*
I agree that the procedural stuff did not play well and the movie was really at its strongest in the one room. The rest does kinda seem like filler or just not good movie.



Now there's an interesting take.
I'm well-known for my strong dislike towards Scream, It's a prime example of everything that's wrong in American horror. And it's not meta enough to realize it's just another stinking teen horror.



I've not seen The Conjuring, but Scream and NOES are horror classics (IMO) and streets ahead of Saw. I thought Saw was OK, but I've only seen the first two (Saw 3 times, Saw 2 twice) so its not been 'polluted' by the sequels for me.
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Victim of The Night
I'm well-known for my strong dislike towards Scream, It's a prime example of everything that's wrong in American horror. And it's not meta enough to realize it's just another stinking teen horror.
Hmm... I can't say I agree with you, but it sounds like you've already considered it quite a bit so I won't try to change your mind either.



Capitalizing on my previous "monster vs. slasher" thread, here we have two classic horror directors who's two most iconic movies each feature either on or the other. Wes Craven has A Nightmare on Elm Street and Scream (let's be honest. Freddie's a slasher but he's a ghost) and James Wan has Saw and The Conjuring. Order these four from best to worst.
Nightmare
Saw
Conjuring
Scream

Nightmare 2
Scream 2
Conjuring 2
Saw 2