50 best HORROR MOVIES of all time
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20. Harry Angel (1987)
Pagan, debauched, hypnotic, symbolic, oppressive… Harry Angel is unquestionably Rourke’s best performance in my opinion. When Harry discovers the horrifying truth, and as the final credits roll against the backdrop of a noisy descending elevator – all the way down to hell – the viewer’s jaw invariably drops, stunned by the intricacy and cruelty of this grim mystery.
19. Evil Dead (1981)
The original Evil Dead is a horror that is at least extraordinary. The full-length debut of the then 22-year-old Sam Raimi was not only one of the most brutal and craziest productions of its time, but also a perfect proof that talent and determination are far more important than money. When embarking on the film’s production, Raimi had a ridiculously low budget, a few cameras, and a group of friends – he had neither experience nor the support of a professional studio. Nevertheless, he managed to bring to the screen a vision that would forever capture the imagination of genre enthusiasts. The technical shortcomings of Evil Dead were compensated by an unprecedented energy, as Raimi’s camera raced around the characters and rushed over the forest floor, simulating the attacks of the titular evil, the grotesque cackling of demon-possessed characters pierced the viewers, and the atmosphere of a dreamlike nightmare thickened with each subsequent scene. The suggestive nature of Raimi’s film compelled even Stephen King to applaud (who has since become a big fan of the series), and audiences fell in love with Bruce Campbell, who portrayed the most resilient of heroes, Ash.
18. The Blair Witch Project (1999)
Today, when this film is well-known to everyone, when the story of the Blair Witch and the filmmaking process have been described everywhere and in every way, and when practically everyone has uncle Google in their hands almost all the time and can easily check what it’s all about, perhaps the horror by Myrick & Sánchez doesn’t impress as much as it did over 20 years ago. However, I still remember my genuine fear at the sight of the interior of the Blair Witch’s hut, I remember the deep terror as I looked into Heather’s terrified eyes. And still, when I have a repeat viewing, those feelings return
17. Hellraiser (1987)
The horror of Hellraiser is intricately tied to the human body and sexuality from start to finish, and even the Cenobites, when they come for those who solve the puzzle box, are not interested in their thoughts or souls. The souls exist, but they would rather tear them apart, as Pinhead threatens in one of the scenes, than consider them valuable. Does Clive Barker’s debut have a soul? Without a doubt. Despite all the macabre pouring from the screen, it is a classic tale of the battle between good and evil, where true monsters are human beings, and the hellish messengers merely serve as arbitrators. “For some, demons, for others, angels,” as our nail-studded friend explains in one of the scenes.
16. Night of the Living Dead (1968)
Romero’s remarkable achievement lies in stripping horror of its decorative and conventional aspects, abandoning the horror that serves as entertainment, in favor of an almost traumatic experience. It’s no wonder that almost half a century ago, when Night was shown in theaters during afternoon screenings, even with the participation of children, it caused quite a stir. Its grim atmosphere and nihilistic message were derived not only from the violently explicit images of cannibalism (which was a new idea for zombies) or unjust and often random deaths, but also from the grim suggestion that horror had transcended the boundaries of its genre and the cinema screen.
15. The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974)
Forget about sequels, remakes, and reboots – the iconic classic from 1974 is one of the most skin-crawling horror sessions the genre has to offer. A pioneering slasher, in which a group of naive travelers must confront a gruesome family of sadistic cannibals, especially Leatherface, extracts the very best from the raw convention and fear of an isolated, degenerate group lurking on the periphery of our world. Shivers run down the spine just from writing about it.
14. Hereditary (2018)
Ari Aster’s spectacular debut takes old genre tropes and remixes them into a new and exciting blend. Hereditary is a dark psychological drama intertwined with horror, and simultaneously a horror embedded within a fractured family drama. Aster combines motifs of possession, haunting, occult sects, child demonism, and a few others into a captivating horror session where creative jump scares, sudden plot twists, spectacular escalations, and skillful tension-building come together seamlessly
13. Scream (1996)
Despite more than a quarter-century having passed, Scream remains an incredibly fresh, engaging, and humorous film. I have no doubt that it will remain so for eternity, because firstly, it was created by a true master of horror, Wes Craven, and secondly, it was made in the 1990s, a time when the postmodern, self-aware perspective on cinema turned many great films into timeless classics. After all, it’s hard to imagine pop culture today without the amazing prologue featuring Drew Barrymore, characters like Sidney, Gale, or Dewey, and of course, the undeniably scariest musical motif in horror history. Beyond these iconic elements, Carpenter skillfully builds tension, escalates fear, and intelligently, almost subliminally, plays with the viewer’s fear.
12. Halloween (1978)
John Carpenter’s Halloween is undoubtedly one of the most important, if not the most important, slasher in the history of cinema. And although it has spawned a trillion sequels, remakes, and reboots, the original still contains what has fired up the imagination of cinephiles worldwide for over 40 years: the iconic killer in a white mask with a knife in hand, the innocent Jamie Lee Curtis in the role of the typical girl next door, and undoubtedly the most terrifying musical motif in horror history. In addition to these iconic elements, Carpenter managed to build tension perfectly, escalate fear, and play intelligently and almost subliminally with the viewer’s fear.
11. The Conjuring (2013)
The Conjuring transports viewers back to the horror cinema of the 1970s, to the culture of storytelling, style, and what we were most afraid of back then, while adding modern scare tactics. Wan first honed his craft on the macabre Saw then moved away from gore towards a decidedly more effective, though still modest, horror in Insidious. He redefined the genre twice.
EDITORIAL team