Boo! Top 10 Horror Films for Halloween
A great horror film will live with you for a long time – itwill survive the ever increasing desensitized viewers that are currently awashin blood and gore. A great horror film will strike you at a core level thatcannot be touched like any other; they will make you squirm in your seat, theywill make you turn the lights on because you see movement in the dark shadowsand they will (sometimes) have you question your beliefs. More importantly, agood horror film will stand the test of time and scare you despite repeatedviewings! I have many favorites, but the following list of 10 score high markson all of the criteria listed above!
10. ‘The Shining’ – Stanley Kubrick’s adaptation of StephenKing’s novel has become a tag line more than a horror movie (‘Here’s Johnny!’).But with its haunting score, lush atmosphere and a simply terrifyingperformance by Jack Nicholson, this story of a family’s descent into madness isa case study of how you make a horror film into art!
9. ‘The TexasChainsaw Massacre (1974)’ – Tobe Hooper’s disturbing vision of the real liferitual murders committed by Ed Gein; ‘Chainsaw’ was shot with a grainy, lowbudget look that made it seem like a documentary rather than a piece offiction. With little to no blood, Hooper was able to convey a snuff film feelwithout actually showing the gore. I dare you to look at a small town farmhouse the same way again.
8. ‘Halloween (1978)’– John Carpenter has been blamed for starting the ‘slasher flick’ craze withthis simply terrifying tale of a relentless serial killer hell bent (literally)on revenge. The difference, Carpenter’s film is filled with intensity andsuspense; he does not rely on gore to make his point, rather the build up and stalkingof Michael Myers causes us to be afraid of what might happen, not by what ishappening.
7. ‘The Silence of the Lambs’ – As Dr Hannibal Lecter,Anthony Hopkins is the seductive, sick and twisted serial killer that everyoneloved to hate. And he did most of this without ever having to step foot out ofhis maximum security prison cell. Jodi Foster as the FBI trainee ClariceStarling is perfectly cast as the helpless lamb caught in Lecter’s web. Hopkinsdid more with scene chewing lines and subversive looks than any actor has todate. Chilling.
6. ‘A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)’ – John Carpenter makesthe list again creating yet another character that will haunt you (that isuntil you see ANY of the next 6 or so iterations) into your dreams, literally!Freddy Krueger is the vengeance seeking janitor who stalks the children of thepeople who murdered him, in their dreams! His initial entrance still can makeyou jump!
5. ‘Jaws’ – Steven Spielberg’s first big screen movieremains one of the highest grossing horror films on record. When the film wasfirst released – beaches even in Chicago (a lake!) saw a significant drop inattendance. Now that is a film with power! With its heart pumping score andmurky visuals, ‘Jaws’ remains as pulse pounding now as it was then.
4. ‘Night of the Living Dead (1968) – George Romero inventedthe Zombie genre on a shoe string budget with a film that raised the level ofhysteria to 11! Often imitated but never duplicated there hasn’t been a betterzombie film until the new AMC series ‘The Walking Dead’.
3. ‘The Omen’ – Richard Donner’s horrifying tale of thebirth of the anti-Christ will forever scare parents, both old and new; relyingmore on fears generated internally by the audience, Donner serves up visionsthat will forever live with you and question that misbehaving child in a wholenew way!
2. ‘The Exorcist’ – William Friedkin’s masterpiece; it willstay with you long after any viewing! Something jumping at you from off camerawill make you jump; but the disturbing images and feelings generated by ‘TheExorcist’ will stay with you for a very long time. Not only does this filmquestion the very existence of God, but it has the disturbing courage to putSatan into the body of a 12 year old girl. Throwing all of our insecurities tolight, ‘The Exorcist’ is a film that horrifies on many different levels.
1. ‘Psycho (1960)’ – Alfred Hitchcock practically set thestage for modern horror films. Rated X when it was originally released,‘Psycho’ was a censor’s nightmare but a film that audiences could not getenough of. Hitchcock pulled out all of the stops, inventive camera work, ascore that will chill you to the bone, courageous direction (as in killing offa major star ¼ of the way into the film) and a central character that washorrifying in his shear every man quality. Norman Bates wasn’t a monster that we could easily see; his evil wasinternal, suggesting that an evil like that could rest within any of us.
Happy Halloween!! Bwahahahahahaha!!