Seanan McGuire (seanan_mcguire) wrote,
Seanan McGuire
seanan_mcguire
  • Mood: geeky
  • Music: Terrorvision, "Terrorvision."

46 horror movies everyone should see.

I originally made this list a while back, after reading Maxim's list of "200 Movies Everyone Should See" and discovering that their horror movies seem to have been chosen through purely arbitrary measures, largely having to do with how much gore could be splattered on the screen. That doesn't work for me all that well, being as I am not a fan of the "gore porn" sub-genre of horror. Since it's been a year and a half since then, and since that year and a half has included a lot of horror movies, I've decided to update my better, more carefully considered list. IE, "the horror movies I say everyone should see."

( We cut because we care. Also because failure to cut results in a much higher bodycount, and nobody wants that. Well. I want that. But I'll be merciful, just this once.Collapse )

***

What did I miss?
Tags: good things, horror movies, making lists, so the marilyn
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bearhand

March 3 2010, 22:08:02 UTC 7 years ago

Yes. And that's why I haven't seen Hostel or the other knock-off copy cats. I am NOT into violence porn, or violence just for the sake of violence.

seanan_mcguire

March 9 2010, 23:05:55 UTC 7 years ago

Exactly.

librarygorilla

March 3 2010, 22:23:55 UTC 7 years ago

Resident Evil - THE RED QUEEN WAS RIGHT!

"The Children.
If you have small children, do not watch this movie. If you are babysitting and the small children you're babysitting for are asleep in their beds, do not watch this movie. If you are alone in the house, do not watch this movie. Everyone else, knock yourselves out."

Is this the one where the kids get exposed to some kind of toxic gas that turns them into weird little zombie kids that hug adults and essentially, micorwave them, or the one from a year or two back?

One of them might (MIGHT) be called Beware, Children At Play

I've seen every movie on yon list, so huzzah!

librarygorilla

March 3 2010, 22:29:35 UTC 7 years ago

No, skip that, they're both The CHildren

seanan_mcguire

7 years ago

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yond_cassius

March 3 2010, 22:28:27 UTC 7 years ago

I'm very fond of the original version of the Fly, twee French bourgeois setting, Vincent Price and all, as a really scary portrait of declining relationships/scientific arrogance.

And "The Innocents", a 1960s adaptation of The Turn of The Screw is a brilliant exercise in atmosphere and how very scary Peter Wyngarde is.

seanan_mcguire

March 9 2010, 23:07:09 UTC 7 years ago

I love anything with Vincent Price. Really.

MindlessDream

6 years ago

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seanan_mcguire

6 years ago

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gorgeousgary

March 3 2010, 23:38:47 UTC 7 years ago

Amusingly, one of the Tremors sequels came up as a counter-example in the Bad Science on TV panel at Boskone. Apparently, one of the films has a shack that actually explodes in accordance with the laws of physics.

seanan_mcguire

March 9 2010, 23:07:16 UTC 7 years ago

That is AWESOME.

Deleted comment

seanan_mcguire

March 9 2010, 23:08:30 UTC 7 years ago

I shall make that list next!

lysystratae

March 4 2010, 00:31:36 UTC 7 years ago

The only one I can't agree with you on is Blair Witch; maybe because I'm not afraid of the dark? My favorite way to describe the movie to people is to have them close their eyes, while I yell 'ohmigodohmigodohmigod', and then tell them to imagine that for 2 hours. It had a whopping 2 seconds of spooky at the very end that just didn't make up for the boredom of the rest of it for me.
There was a book that came out as a tie-in that was a detective's "notes" on trying to find out what happened to the kids when they dissappeared that, if filmed as written, would have been a thousand times better. I'll have to see if I can find the title for you.

seanan_mcguire

March 9 2010, 23:08:42 UTC 7 years ago

I remember that book!

tsgeisel

March 4 2010, 00:40:18 UTC 7 years ago

You missed the entire genre of "Haunted House" movies, thereby missing a chance to include:

Poltergeist
Why are housing communities evil? They can't all be built on top of old Native American burial grounds, but, y'know...

House and House 2: The Second Story (No relation to the TV show.)
The first is a horror movie with comedic elements - George Wendt breaks the tension in a lot of ways that will have you laughing with relief...and then it starts up again. The sequel, which has *nothing* to do with the first, is a comedy with mildly horrific elements. It's not an especially good movie, but it takes any lingering edginess you might have from the first one.

And, just arbitrarily...
Killer Klowns from Outer Space
Theme song by the Dickies. Partially filmed in pre-quake Santa Cruz. Extraordinarily silly, not that you would have ever guessed from the title. Some of the best shadow puppetry you'll ever see. And more suspense than you might expect. This was built as an homage to all the 50s era horror movies, by people who know their stuff. I love it - one of my favorites. A DVD I own that I've actually *watched*. (Same with the House movies, actually.)

seanan_mcguire

March 9 2010, 23:08:53 UTC 7 years ago

Some excellent choices.

Good list

amberley

March 4 2010, 01:02:43 UTC 7 years ago

Excellent list, and I'm particularly pleased to see Night of the Comet on it. I'd add Tremors 2, 3, and 4, a rare case where the sequels were also fine.

You included Land of the Dead but not Day of the Dead? Or was Day too gory?

And really, no Near Dark? Too gory? Anti-vampire?

I'd add Paranormal Activity but perhaps you haven't seen it yet.

But I understand if you have to reserve a space in your top 50 just in case James Gunn decides to make the movie version of your book Feed.

Re: Good list

seanan_mcguire

March 9 2010, 23:09:34 UTC 7 years ago

Day wasn't too gory, it just wasn't quite up to snuff. You're right on my having totally missed Near Dark, however. And I haven't seen Paranormal Activity yet.

Re: Good list

MindlessDream

6 years ago

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dragoness_e

March 4 2010, 01:24:11 UTC 7 years ago

Near Dark was an awesome vampire movie, but not so much a horror movie as a thriller. Natural Born Killers with fangs.

I've never seen the original The Thing, but I enjoyed the re-make because it followed the original short story, which is one of the scariest scifi-horror shorts I know of ("Who goes there?" by John Campbell). Read it if you never have.

Christopher Walken in The Prophecy was a classic. That dude is scary! The angels were seriously creepy, and you get a young Vigo Mortensen, too. Aragorn has a really dark past, shall we say...
Probably one of the better entries in genre of horror based on Christian mythology and apocalyptic literature.

The original Poltergeist was seriously scary to me.

Probably could come up with more if I thought about it.

seanan_mcguire

March 9 2010, 23:09:53 UTC 7 years ago

Some excellent selections.

gothicsparrow

March 4 2010, 02:02:27 UTC 7 years ago

I have a love hate relationship with horror movies. On one hand, some of them are awesome brain-food, which I love in any medium, and most of them get their horror elements from fantasy or sci fi, which is win. On the other hand, I hate being scared, which is kind of the whole point of horror movies.

Colour me strange.

As far as what I've seen, Fredddy was awesome, but I wish I hadn't let my then-boyfriend take me to seee that Dawn of the Dead remake.

seanan_mcguire

March 10 2010, 21:54:45 UTC 7 years ago

I hate falling but love roller coasters. The human mind is a weird, weird creation.

dormouse_in_tea

March 4 2010, 03:50:30 UTC 7 years ago

I HAVE SEEN ONE OF THESE MOVIES!!!!

*does a victory lap, fists in the air*

I have seen the original The Fog. I managed to watch the entire thing all the way through!!

(I have also seen Little Shop of Horrors, but it wasn't scary, so it's not a personal TRIUMPH.)

seanan_mcguire

March 10 2010, 21:54:53 UTC 7 years ago

Woo-hoo!

rhoda_rants

March 4 2010, 04:12:35 UTC 7 years ago

Great list!! If you don't mind, I'd like to link this in a future post on my Halloween Candy community.

The Ruins is kinda on my must-watch list, but I wanna read the book first to see just how far it goes with the gross stuff.

I am a bit startled to see not one single Asian flick on here. Think what you will about Ringu and Ju-On, but you absolutely must watch A Tale of Two Sisters and Hansel and Gretel. Both Korean, both gorgeous and terrifically acted, both twisty in the end. And since you're a fan of monster movies, I highly, highly recommend The Host. You will love them, I promise.

seanan_mcguire

March 10 2010, 21:55:34 UTC 7 years ago

I don't mind at all. Also, totally read The Ruins, it's awesome.

I'm not much for the Asian horror, I'm afraid; I got turned off by way too many bad remakes. I did, however, love The Host.

misachan

March 4 2010, 04:13:06 UTC 7 years ago

I would definitely put Gremlins up there in there in the horror comedy section. That is one impressively twisted little movie. Ghostbusters, too, especially considering the influence it had on Zombieland.

Pitch Black is one of my favorite scary aliens movies. The Riddick character has taken on a life of its own, but when PB came out it was the kind of movie where you stumble out of the theater, grab the first person you meet and go, "OMG have you seen this?!" A claustrophobic monsters in the dark movie that manages to fit in questions of identity and redemption and morality along with its hungry aliens.

bearhand

March 4 2010, 06:14:11 UTC 7 years ago

I have to totally agree with your choices. Completely.

seanan_mcguire

7 years ago

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shadowsync

March 4 2010, 06:10:07 UTC 7 years ago

I'm not sure if I've seen Creepshow before but thanks to your list I'm able to catch it on OnDemand before it expires tomorrow!

seanan_mcguire

March 10 2010, 21:57:38 UTC 7 years ago

Yay!

Resident Evil 2

bearhand

March 4 2010, 06:12:18 UTC 7 years ago

This movie came out after Dodge Ball had been released. Went and saw this one with son #2, ex-wife and her husband. During the scene where the heroes and heroines were in the gym where all the dodge balls where scattered across the floor, I yelled out "If YOU can dodge a ZOMBIE!", son #2 finished, "You can DODGE a BALL!". I was elated at the round of laughter and applause that we received, especially since it was unplanned.

I was so proud of my offspring for being so quick on the comedic uptake.

Re: Resident Evil 2

seanan_mcguire

March 10 2010, 21:57:49 UTC 7 years ago

Your son kinda rules.

astromachy

March 5 2010, 03:33:57 UTC 7 years ago

I tend to like slightly offbeat horror with a firm grip on characterization. Snow White: A Tale Of Terror is weird and dramatic (Sigourney Weaver again; I reckon she's wasted on her non-horror roles!).
May is darkly funny, and has a wonderful ambiguous final scene.

Ginger Snaps is pretty much perfect.

This one is old and it looks like they did the special effects on a budget of about 50 pence, but if you can look past that, The Stone Tape is probably the best ghost story I've ever come across, film or otherwise.

ravenclawed

March 10 2010, 02:07:18 UTC 7 years ago

Snow White: A Tale Of Terror, one of the best fairy tale movies ever!

seanan_mcguire

7 years ago

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astromachy

7 years ago

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rms_butterfly

March 6 2010, 17:30:43 UTC 7 years ago

Which Little Shop of Horrors are you recommending? I've seen both, and really tend to think the original is the better movie. What do you think?

seanan_mcguire

March 10 2010, 21:58:38 UTC 7 years ago

I prefer the musical, but I've been in it several times, so I'm biased.

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seanan_mcguire

March 10 2010, 21:58:47 UTC 7 years ago

Excellent!

albertt12

November 11 2010, 11:17:34 UTC 6 years ago

Thanks for making such a nice list of horror movies. I have watched most of them. All of those are fantastic. Mostly i watch horror movies online.

seanan_mcguire

November 11 2010, 17:02:33 UTC 6 years ago

I like the theater. I'm weird that way.
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