Bad Movie Logo
"A website to the detriment of good film"
Custom Search
HOMEB-MOVIE REVIEWSREADER REVIEWSFORUMINTERVIEWSUPDATESABOUT
Welcome, Guest. Please login or register.
Did you miss your activation email?
March 28, 2024, 04:50:19 AM
713324 Posts in 53055 Topics by 7725 Members
Latest Member: wibwao
Badmovies.org Forum  |  Movies  |  Good Movies  |  25 Essential horror movies « previous next »
Pages: [1] 2
Author Topic: 25 Essential horror movies  (Read 3570 times)
Rev. Powell
Global Moderator
B-Movie Kraken
****

Karma: 3100
Posts: 26769


Click on that globe for 366 Weird Movies


WWW
« on: June 24, 2022, 10:47:28 AM »

The idea comes from one of Alex's posts. He was asked to recommend horror films to a neophyte. Here are the ones I would recommend as both good and influential, or often referenced. The list includes horror/comedies. I took IMDB's user ratings as a starting point, then exercised some editorial control, and this is what I came up with (in chronological order):

THE CABINET OF DR. CALIGARI (1920) *
NOSFERATU (1922) *
FRANKENSTEIN (1931)
DRACULA (1931)
DR. JEKYLL & MR. HYDE (1931)
FREAKS (1932)
THE INVISIBLE MAN (1933)
KING KONG (1933)
THE BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN (1935)
THE INNOCENTS (1961)
KWAIDAN (1964) *
ONIBABA (1964) *
NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD (1968)
ROSEMARY'S BABY (1968)
THE EXORCIST (1973)
DAWN OF THE DEAD (1978)
HALLOWEEN (1978)
THE SHINING (1980)
THE THING (1982)
EVIL DEAD II (1987)
SHAUN OF THE DEAD (2004)
LET THE RIGHT ONE IN (2008) *
I SAW THE DEVIL (2010) *
WHAT WE DO IN THE SHADOWS (2014)
GET OUT (2017)

The asterisks are for silent or subtitled films. If the person just refuses to watch those, you can substitute

DEAD OF NIGHT (1945)
DEAD ALIVE (BRAIN DEAD) 1992
THE OTHERS (2001)
SAW (2004)
ZOMBIELAND (2009)
TUCKER AND DALE VS. EVIL (2010)

Had to leave out some great titles to narrow it down to 25. You can either make your own list or just modify mine by suggesting to swap out "x" for "y".
« Last Edit: June 24, 2022, 11:25:50 AM by Rev. Powell » Logged

I'll take you places the hand of man has not yet set foot...
Trevor
Uncle Zombie and Eminent Shitologist
B-Movie Kraken
*****

Karma: 2121
Posts: 22708



« Reply #1 on: June 24, 2022, 10:51:17 AM »

JANNIE TOTSIENS*
THE STICK
DUST DEVIL
THE HAUNTING (1963)
NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD
FRIDAY THE 13TH (1980)
HOUSE OF THE LONG SHADOWS
PSYCHO
THE BELIEVERS (1987)
EYES WITHOUT A FACE / LES YIEUX SANS VISAGE*
THE SHADOWED MIND
THE MEDUSA TOUCH
THE HITCHER (1986)
RACE WITH THE DEVIL
HALLOWEEN (1978)
THE BIRDS
PHANTASM
THE WICKER MAN (1973)
THE OMEN
HORROR EXPRESS
THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE
THE EXORCIST
SCREAM AND SCREAM AGAIN
EVENT HORIZON
WITCHFINDER GENERAL / THE CONQUEROR WORM

Some of these - like The Medusa Touch, The Believers and The Hitcher - are not really classed as horror films but those three disturbed me to the point where I was actually shaking. I have only ever seen The Hitcher once.

« Last Edit: June 25, 2022, 01:59:00 AM by Trevor » Logged

I know I can make it on my own if I try, but I'm searching for the Great Heart
To stand me by, underneath the African sky
A Great Heart to stand me by.
RCMerchant
Bela
B-Movie Kraken
*****

Karma: 0
Posts: 30423


"Charlie,we're in HELL!"-"yeah,ain't it groovy?!"


WWW
« Reply #2 on: June 24, 2022, 11:39:56 AM »

Dang. This is gonna be hard.

1. NOSFERATU (1922)
2. DRACULA (1931)
3. FRANKENSTEIN (1931)
4. the RAVEN (1934)
5. KING KONG (1933)
6. the BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN (1935)
7. MAD LOVE (1935)
8. PSYCHO (1960)
9. the HAUNTING (1963)
10. BLACK SUNDAY (1960)
11. NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD (1968)
12. ROSEMARY'S BABY (1968)
13. the EXORCIST (1973)
14. the TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE (1974)
15. LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFT (1972)
16. TOURIST TRAP (1979)
17. the SHINING (1981)
18. DAWN OF THE DEAD (1978)
19. ZOMBIE (1979)
20. DEEP RED (1975)
21. the THING (1982)
22. the EVIL DEAD (1981)
23. HALLOWEEN (1978)
24. the DEVIL'S REJECTS (2005)
25. I SAW THE DEVIL (2010)

That was hard.
Logged

"Supernatural?...perhaps. Baloney?...Perhaps not!" Bela Lugosi-the BLACK CAT (1934)
Interviewer-"Does Dracula ever end for you?
Lugosi-"No. Dracula-never ends."

Slobber, Drool, Drip!
https://www.tumblr.com/ronmerchant
Allhallowsday
B-Movie Kraken
*****

Karma: 2280
Posts: 20725


Either he's dead or my watch has stopped!


« Reply #3 on: June 24, 2022, 01:24:00 PM »

CARNIVAL OF SOULS (1962) and ALIEN (1979) are 2 that I'd include are not mentioned by anybody. 
CASTLE OF BLOOD (1964) and NOT OF THIS EARTH (1957) are two favorites I'd include.  CITY OF THE LIVING DEAD (1980)  can substitute for several from others lists.

I haven't seen these:
ONIBABA (1964)
SHAUN OF THE DEAD (2004)
LET THE RIGHT ONE IN (2008) *
I SAW THE DEVIL (2010) *
WHAT WE DO IN THE SHADOWS (2014)
GET OUT (2017)

Horror comedies to me are Comedy.   Otherwise, nice selections from all. 

Logged

If you want to view paradise . . . simply look around and view it!
RCMerchant
Bela
B-Movie Kraken
*****

Karma: 0
Posts: 30423


"Charlie,we're in HELL!"-"yeah,ain't it groovy?!"


WWW
« Reply #4 on: June 24, 2022, 01:32:22 PM »

Oh sh!t! I forgot KILL, BABY, KILL (1966)!



Small | Large
« Last Edit: June 24, 2022, 01:53:31 PM by RCMerchant » Logged

"Supernatural?...perhaps. Baloney?...Perhaps not!" Bela Lugosi-the BLACK CAT (1934)
Interviewer-"Does Dracula ever end for you?
Lugosi-"No. Dracula-never ends."

Slobber, Drool, Drip!
https://www.tumblr.com/ronmerchant
Rev. Powell
Global Moderator
B-Movie Kraken
****

Karma: 3100
Posts: 26769


Click on that globe for 366 Weird Movies


WWW
« Reply #5 on: June 24, 2022, 01:50:21 PM »

Oh sh!t! I forgot KILL, BABY, KILL (1966)!



But what would you take off your list to add that one?
Logged

I'll take you places the hand of man has not yet set foot...
RCMerchant
Bela
B-Movie Kraken
*****

Karma: 0
Posts: 30423


"Charlie,we're in HELL!"-"yeah,ain't it groovy?!"


WWW
« Reply #6 on: June 24, 2022, 02:03:12 PM »

^ Man, your making this tough!

Ok... LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFT.
Logged

"Supernatural?...perhaps. Baloney?...Perhaps not!" Bela Lugosi-the BLACK CAT (1934)
Interviewer-"Does Dracula ever end for you?
Lugosi-"No. Dracula-never ends."

Slobber, Drool, Drip!
https://www.tumblr.com/ronmerchant
Trevor
Uncle Zombie and Eminent Shitologist
B-Movie Kraken
*****

Karma: 2121
Posts: 22708



« Reply #7 on: June 25, 2022, 01:59:35 AM »

JANNIE TOTSIENS*
THE STICK
DUST DEVIL
THE HAUNTING (1963)
NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD
WHEN A STRANGER CALLS (1980)
HOUSE OF THE LONG SHADOWS
PSYCHO
THE BELIEVERS (1987)
EYES WITHOUT A FACE / LES YIEUX SANS VISAGE*
THE SHADOWED MIND
THE MEDUSA TOUCH
THE HITCHER (1986)
RACE WITH THE DEVIL
HALLOWEEN (1978)
THE BIRDS
PHANTASM
THE WICKER MAN (1973)
THE OMEN
HORROR EXPRESS
THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE
THE EXORCIST
SCREAM AND SCREAM AGAIN
EVENT HORIZON
WITCHFINDER GENERAL / THE CONQUEROR WORM

Some of these - like The Medusa Touch, The Believers and The Hitcher - are not really classed as horror films but those three disturbed me to the point where I was actually shaking. I have only ever seen The Hitcher once.



I removed SAW and replaced it with EVENT HORIZON.
« Last Edit: July 01, 2022, 05:35:27 PM by Trevor » Logged

I know I can make it on my own if I try, but I'm searching for the Great Heart
To stand me by, underneath the African sky
A Great Heart to stand me by.
bob
I survived Bucky Larson
Frightening Fanatic of Horrible Cinema
****

Karma: 732
Posts: 8911


Torgo watches you masterbate!


« Reply #8 on: June 25, 2022, 11:25:12 AM »

1 The Shining (1980)
2 The Exorcist directors cut (1973)
3 Nosferatu (1922)
4 Frankenstein (1931)
5 Halloween (1978)
6 Get Out (2017)
7 Saw (2004)
8 Jaws (1975)
9 Rosemary's Baby (1968)
10 Night of the Living Dead (1968)
11 The Omen (1976)
12 Eyes Without a Face (1960)
13 Phantasm (1979)
14 Friday the 13 (1980)
15 A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)
16 Dracula (1931)
17 Psycho (1960)
18 The Birds (1963)
19 Alien (1979)
20 The Evil Dead (1981)
21 Let the Right One In (2008)
22 King Kong (1933)
23 The Conjuring (2013)
24 The Thing (1983)
25 The Silence of the Lambs (1991)
Logged

Kubrick, Nolan, Tarantino, Wan, Iñárritu, Scorsese, Chaplin, Abrams, Wes Anderson, Gilliam, Kurosawa - the elite



I believe in the international communist conspiracy to sap and impurify all of our precious bodily fluids.
Cult_Moody_Movies
Bad Movie Lover
***

Karma: 51
Posts: 537



« Reply #9 on: June 25, 2022, 01:06:42 PM »

1. Nosferatu (1922)
2. Dracula (1931)
3. Frankenstein (1931)
4. King Kong (1933)
5. Godzilla (1954)
7. The Curse of Frankenstein (1957)
8. Horror of Dracula (1958)
9. Psycho (1960)
10. The Birds (1963)
11. Night of the Living Dead (1968)
12. The Exorcist (1973)
13. The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974)
14. Jaws (1975)
15. Halloween (1978)
16. Alien (1979)
17. The Shining (1980)
18. The Evil Dead (1981)
19. A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)
20. Re-Animator (1985)
21. The Silence of the Lambs (1991)
22. Se7en (1995) 
23. The Blair Witch Project (1999)
24. The Babadook (2014)
25. The Witch (2015)

I don't think I would call my list Essential but really "The Horror Starter Pack".
 
Logged
retrorussell
In the town of Valentine Bluffs, there are many ways to die. Take your pick.
Frightening Fanatic of Horrible Cinema
****

Karma: 1189
Posts: 9585


Hanniger! I'll be waiting in HELL for you!


« Reply #10 on: June 25, 2022, 01:35:46 PM »

In no particular order:
1. THE EXORCIST (1973)
2. HALLOWEEN (1978)
3. SUSPIRIA (1977)
4. FRIGHTMARE (1974)
5. NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET 3: DREAM WARRIORS (1987)
6. FRIDAY THE 13TH (1980)
7. FRIDAY THE 13TH PART VI: JASON LIVES (1986)
8. ZOMBIE (1979)
9. EVIL DEAD II: DEAD BY DAWN (1987)
10. INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS (1978)
11. NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD (1968)
12. DAWN OF THE DEAD (1978)
13. DAWN OF THE DEAD (2004)
14. SHAWN OF THE DEAD (2004)
15. BUTCHER, BAKER, NIGHTMARE MAKER/NIGHT WARNING (1981)
16. PSYCHO (1960)
17. THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE (1974)
18. ALIEN (1979)
19. DON'T LOOK NOW (1973)
20. JAWS (1975)
21. SILENCE OF THE LAMBS (1991)
22. THE THING (1982)
23. SE7EN (1995)
24. AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON (1981)
25. WOLFEN (1981)
Logged

"O the legend they say, on a Valentine's Day, is a curse that'll live on and on.."
pacman000
Frightening Fanatic of Horrible Cinema
****

Karma: 181
Posts: 1710


It's root beer & a candy cigar!


« Reply #11 on: June 25, 2022, 11:56:37 PM »

I’m breaking it down by decade, to make things easier:

30’s & Earlier

Dracula
Frankenstein
The Cabinet of Dr Caligari
Svengali
White Zombi
King Kong
The Invisible Man

40’s

The Wolfman

50’s

Horror of Dracula
Invasion of the Body Snatchers
The Tingler
Godzilla
The War of the Worlds
The Blob
It! The Terror From Beyond Space
Creature From the Black Lagoon
The Incredible Shrinking Man

60’s

Psycho
Night of the Living Dead
The Pit and the Pendulum
I Saw What You Did

70’s & Later

Jaws
Halloween
Alien
The Night Stalker

I want to add explanations to all of these, but it’s too late right now. Maybe Monday...
Logged

Video Game Article Archive: https://vgaa.neocities.org/
WebSiteRing, Listing Old Websites & Bible Verses since 2016! https://websitering.neocities.org/
claws
Frightening Fanatic of Horrible Cinema
****

Karma: 0
Posts: 8596


Occidentali's Karma


« Reply #12 on: June 26, 2022, 05:21:12 AM »

 1. The Silence of the Lambs (1991)
 2. Alien (1979)
 3. Psycho (1960)
 4. The Shining (1980)
 5. The Thing (1982)
 6. Jaws (1975)
 7. The Exorcist (1973)
 8. Rosemary's Baby (1968)
 9. The Phantom Carriage (1921)
 10. Freaks (1932)
 11. Dawn of the Dead (1978)
 12. Night of the Living Dead (1968)
 13. The Innocents (1961)
 14. Get Out (2017)
 15. Evil Dead II (1987)
 16. Halloween (1978)
 17. Lost Highway (1997)
 18. Duel (1971)
 19. Santa Sangre (1989)
 20. An American Werewolf in London (1981)
 21. The Wicker Man (1973)
 22. The Devil's Backbone (2001)
 23. Jacob's Ladder (1990)
 24. A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)
 25. Carrie (1976)
Logged

Is it October yet?
Rev. Powell
Global Moderator
B-Movie Kraken
****

Karma: 3100
Posts: 26769


Click on that globe for 366 Weird Movies


WWW
« Reply #13 on: June 26, 2022, 12:31:00 PM »

I decided I had to include PSYCHO (1960). I have always resisted categorizing PSYCHO as "horror" instead of "suspense," but it's too essential to leave out. Tough to decide what to swap out but I went with WHAT WE DO IN THE SHADOWS (more a comedy). New list:


THE CABINET OF DR. CALIGARI (1920) *
NOSFERATU (1922) *
FRANKENSTEIN (1931)
DRACULA (1931)
DR. JEKYLL & MR. HYDE (1931)
FREAKS (1932)
THE INVISIBLE MAN (1933)
KING KONG (1933)
THE BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN (1935)
PSYCHO (1960)
THE INNOCENTS (1961)
KWAIDAN (1964) *
ONIBABA (1964) *
NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD (1968)
ROSEMARY'S BABY (1968)
THE EXORCIST (1973)
DAWN OF THE DEAD (1978)
HALLOWEEN (1978)
THE SHINING (1980)
THE THING (1982)
EVIL DEAD II (1987)
SHAUN OF THE DEAD (2004)
LET THE RIGHT ONE IN (2008) *
I SAW THE DEVIL (2010) *
GET OUT (2017)

The asterisks are for silent or subtitled films. If the person just refuses to watch those, you can substitute

DEAD OF NIGHT (1945)
DEAD ALIVE (BRAIN DEAD) 1992
THE OTHERS (2001)
SAW (2004)
ZOMBIELAND (2009)
TUCKER AND DALE VS. EVIL (2010)
WHAT WE DO IN THE SHADOWS (2014)
Logged

I'll take you places the hand of man has not yet set foot...
RCMerchant
Bela
B-Movie Kraken
*****

Karma: 0
Posts: 30423


"Charlie,we're in HELL!"-"yeah,ain't it groovy?!"


WWW
« Reply #14 on: June 26, 2022, 12:52:15 PM »

^ There's a couple I would have listed if I could have. EYES WITHOUT A FACE is one.
WHITE ZOMBIE is another.

« Last Edit: June 26, 2022, 12:55:15 PM by RCMerchant » Logged

"Supernatural?...perhaps. Baloney?...Perhaps not!" Bela Lugosi-the BLACK CAT (1934)
Interviewer-"Does Dracula ever end for you?
Lugosi-"No. Dracula-never ends."

Slobber, Drool, Drip!
https://www.tumblr.com/ronmerchant
Pages: [1] 2
Badmovies.org Forum  |  Movies  |  Good Movies  |  25 Essential horror movies « previous next »
    Jump to:  


    RSS Feed Subscribe Subscribe by RSS
    Email Subscribe Subscribe by Email


    Popular Articles
    How To Find A Bad Movie

    The Champions of Justice

    Plan 9 from Outer Space

    Manos, The Hands of Fate

    Podcast: Todd the Convenience Store Clerk

    Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill!

    Dragonball: The Magic Begins

    Cool As Ice

    The Educational Archives: Driver's Ed

    Godzilla vs. Monster Zero

    Do you have a zombie plan?

    FROM THE BADMOVIES.ORG ARCHIVES
    ImageThe Giant Claw - Slime drop

    Earth is visited by a GIANT ANTIMATTER SPACE BUZZARD! Gawk at the amazingly bad bird puppet, or chuckle over the silly dialog. This is one of the greatest b-movies ever made.

    Lesson Learned:
    • Osmosis: os·mo·sis (oz-mo'sis, os-) n., 1. When a bird eats something.

    Subscribe to Badmovies.org and get updates by email:

    HOME B-Movie Reviews Reader Reviews Forum Interviews TV Shows Advertising Information Sideshows Links Contact

    Badmovies.org is owned and operated by Andrew Borntreger. All original content is © 1998 - 2014 by its respective author(s). Image, video, and audio files are used in accordance with the Fair Use Law, and are property of the film copyright holders. You may freely link to any page (.html or .php) on this website, but reproduction in any other form must be authorized by the copyright holder.