Suspect's Top 50 Horror Films

30

Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter (1984)



Three Times Before You Have Felt The Terror, Known The Madness, Lived The Horror. But This Is The One You've Been Screaming For.

Probably my favourite Friday film and the introduction of Tommy Jarvis. This friday flick has memorable kills, just the right amount of horror and camp and Crispin Glover.

Without a doubt, among the best in the series.

29

The Mist (2007)



Fear Changes Everything

Wow, when I first watched this my jaw was on the floor from that depressing ending. Darabont agreed to make the film with Dimension only under the condition that no matter what, they wouldn't change the scripted ending. They agreed.

I think it took balls to make that ending and I applaud Darabont for doing it. I would advise people to watch this film as he originally intended it, which would be in black and white. It adds to the b-movie feel, makes the mist seem even more menacing and the poor cgi creatures less funny.

28

IT(1990)



Your every fear - all in one deadly enemy

My wife (yup, I get to say that now) refuses to watch this film based on her Coulrophobia. I first saw this when I was a kid and Pennywise terrified the crap out of me...he still does.

Tim Curry rocked it as Pennywise, as he usually does when he disappears under make-up for a role.

The giant spider at the end is a little lame, but the fear this movie has instilled in people is undeniable.

27

Session 9 (2001)



Fear Is A Place.

Hmm, all three of these films deal with fear and all three seem to nail it in different aspects. Session 9's fear comes from the atmosphere that abandoned mental asylum.

Shot on digital, it brings a different look and feel to a traditional horror film. Obviously for budget reasons, but I wonder how the film would have looked and felt had it been shot on film?

Slow building tension and fear produces amazing results. This film isn't about being in your face, it's about making you feel uncomfortable.

26

The Changeling (1980)



...an experience beyond total fear.

I watched this film based on a recommendation from a Mofo user. For the LIFE of me, I can't remember who it was, I wanna say Miss Vicky, but it could have been someone else, it was definitely female. It was most likely in my one a day movie review thread as well, but I'm too busy to go looking.

But damn, thanks for that recommendation. This Canadian haunting flick is scary and so well done. Haunted house flicks today pale in comparison. They rely on the same old trick of someone walking past the camera and with heightened music. This film goes a different route, a scarier one.

Other than the laughable opening sequence where he can't open a phone booth door, this film is great.

25

The Conjuring (2013)



"Based on the true case files of the Warrens"

James Wan is an excellent director who knows the horror genre inside and out. He expertly crafts a tense and suspenseful haunted house flick with The Conjuring. Again, the best scary films build the terror slowly and this film does it in spades.

The wife was terrified from the trailer for crying out loud. The clapping game, which is an excellent use of sound for the terror, had her hiding under the covers.

24

The Descent (2005)



When you're trapped 2 miles underground there are many ways to lose your mind...Claustrophobia. Disorientation. Isolation. Paranoia. Terror.

Neil Marshall's underground horror flick is frightening. Without a doubt, one of the scariest films of the last ten years.

The film is extremely claustrophobic and Marshall uses this to his advantage to create suspense and holds off on seeing the "crawlers" until late in the film.

Marshall is one of my favourite directors and I eagerly look forward to everything he does.

23

Black Christmas (1974)



If this movie doesn't make your skin crawl... It's on TOO TIGHT

One of the first horror films I got on DVD. A tepid remake came out in 2006 and took the story in a weird route, but this classic Canadian horror film is the one to see.

One of the original "slasher" films that predates Halloween by four years. Am I weird that I watch this every year around Christmas time?

22

Night of the Living Dead (1990)



There IS a fate worse than death.

Make-up guru Tom Savini tackles the iconic horror zombie film with great affect. I seem to be in the minority when I prefer the remake over the original.

When people talk about great zombie films, they include Dawn of the Dead, the original Night of the Living Dead and a few others. Yet this one never gets mentioned, which is a shame because it is entertaining!!!

21

Halloween (1978)



The night HE came home...

Carpenter's slasher film inspired countless others to follow in its footsteps. Stalking babysitters, a masked giant of a man, a giant butcher knife. Seems terrifying.

Carpenter loves to score his films, and Halloween is one of the best horror scores out there. I don't know what else to add that anyone already hasn't on these boards.