The 20 Best Horror Movies of All Time.

Published 7 months ago

“The Shining”, “Rosemary’s Baby”, “The Ring” and other prominent representatives of the genre.

The heyday of horror films was in the 70s and 80s, when censorship was finally abolished and special effects became more and more realistic. At that time, many horror films were released that later became classics. At the same time, slasher films were born, aimed at a younger audience.

Unfortunately, by the 90s, horror films almost died out, giving way to thrillers. The popularity of The Silence of the Lambs played a big role in this. Horror returned to the screens only after the beginning of the 21st century , slightly changing the plots to more social ones.

1. Shine

The Shining

USA, UK, 1980.
Horror, thriller, drama.
Duration: 144 minutes.
IMDb: 8.4.

Writer Jack Torrance is in a creative crisis. In order to earn extra money and at the same time take a break, he gets a job as a caretaker at the Overlook Hotel, which is closed for the winter, and moves there with his family. Jack plans to use this time to write a new novel. But soon creepy things begin to happen at the hotel.

The author of the original book, Stephen King, was dissatisfied with Stanley Kubrick's film adaptation . But still, the director managed to perfectly convey the mystical and frightening atmosphere of the hotel, which is inhabited by ghosts. Well, Jack Nicholson’s amazing performance makes the film a must-see.

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2. Alien

Alien

USA, UK, 1979.
Horror, fantasy, thriller.
Duration: 116 minutes.
IMDb: 8.4.

The Nostromo spacecraft receives a signal from the unexplored planet LV‑426. The crew members assume they are being asked for help. But soon the team encounters a creepy alien who kills the heroes one by one.

With the cult film by Ridley Scott, a whole long-term franchise about xenomorphs began , on which various directors worked. But still, the sequels are more reminiscent of dark action films. And the first film is a fantastic horror, where the heroes are hunted by a monster in a confined space.

By the way, the author initially planned to kill all the characters in the film, which would have ruled out the possibility of a continuation. But the producers opposed this move and forced him to change the ending.

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3. Something

The Thing

USA, 1982.
Horror, fantasy.
Duration: 109 minutes.
IMDb: 8.1.

Polar explorers find an alien organism in the ice of Antarctica. It soon turns out that he attacks people and is also capable of taking shape and even copying the behavior of any living creature. Now all the inhabitants of the station suspect each other, trying to figure out the monster.

John Carpenter's film is based on the 1951 film The Thing from Another World. But the remake managed to surpass the original both in terms of visual presentation and psychological tension.

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4. Rosemary's Baby

Rosemary's Baby

USA, 1968.
Horror, drama, thriller.
Duration: 137 minutes.
IMDb: 8.0.

Rosemary and Guy Woodhouse move to a prestigious area of New York. They quickly become friends with their new neighbors, and everything seems to be going well in life. But one day Rosemary has a dream about being raped by a demon. And soon the girl discovers that she is pregnant.

Director Roman Polanski approached the production of his debut film in Hollywood very scrupulously, paying attention to the smallest details in the plot. The author wanted no one to have any doubts about the realism of what was happening. As a result, the film perfectly combines the plot of a classic horror film about a satanic cult and reflects the real fear of motherhood.

5. Exorcist

The Exorcist

USA, 1973.
Horror.
Duration: 122 minutes.
IMDb: 8.0.

Actress Chris McNeil's 12-year-old daughter begins having strange seizures. Moreover, during attacks she behaves aggressively, and then begins to speak in a man’s voice and move strangely. Doctors do not find any physical problems, and then it becomes clear: the girl is possessed by the devil.

William Friedkin's film is widely considered a horror classic. The director set himself the task of scaring the viewer in every way, for which shaking scenery, creepy makeup, and a lot of special effects were used. And many considered the exorcism scene too realistic, although Max von Sydow, who played Father Merrin, said that he did not believe in evil spirits at all.

Well, the moment where the girl’s arms and legs bend has gone down in history: it was copied in dozens of horror films, and then parodied in many comedies.

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6. Jaws

Jaws

USA, 1975.
Horror, adventure.
Duration: 124 minutes.
IMDb: 8.0.

The local police sheriff discovers the remains of a girl on the shore, torn to pieces by a great white shark . The number of victims is growing every day, but the city leadership does not dare to notify residents of the danger. Then the main character teams up with a shark hunter and an oceanographer to catch the monster together.

Steven Spielberg's film created a real sensation at the box office, paying for itself tenfold and turning the term "blockbuster" into an independent genre. And it’s all the more surprising that this is a story about a huge monster devouring people.

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7. Night of the Living Dead

Night of the Living Dead

USA, 1968.
Horror.
Duration: 96 minutes.
IMDb: 7.9.

Barbara comes with her brother to her father's grave. And right at the cemetery they are attacked by a creepy man in rags. The girl manages to escape, and soon finds herself in a house where several more strangers have gathered. And an invasion of the living dead begins around.

The film by first-time director George Romero was the first story to show zombies in the form we are familiar with today - previously this term was attributed only to voodoo magic. Interestingly, Romero himself did not use it.

The film has many sequels and remakes, and the idea of mindless living dead, who are primarily dangerous due to their numbers, has entered popular culture.

8. Halloween

Halloween

USA, 1978.
Horror, thriller.
Duration: 101 minutes.
IMDb: 7.8.

Michael Myers has been institutionalized since childhood because he killed his sister. But one day, the already grown-up criminal escapes, puts on a white mask and begins to terrorize a group of teenagers.

John Carpenter's original work gave rise to a whole wave of slashers - horror films where a masked maniac hunts teenagers. Such paintings even became a symbol of the eighties. And " Halloween " itself eventually turned into one of the longest-running horror franchises in history. In 2018, the next part was released, which continued the events of the very first film, ignoring the sequels.

9. Texas Chainsaw Massacre

The Texas Chain Saw Massacre

USA, 1974.
Horror.
Duration: 83 minutes.
IMDb: 7.5.

The girl Sally and her friends go to Texas to visit her grandfather's grave. On the way, they end up on a farm where a very strange family lives, working in a slaughterhouse. Guests are invited to dinner, but it turns out that the owners are not averse to hunting people.

“The Texas Chainsaw Massacre” became the main prototype of all slasher films, anticipating both “Halloween” and other prominent representatives of the genre. Today, the first part may seem simple, although there are quite a few dark scenes in it.

But the film also has many sequels, and in 2017 a prequel was released about the origin of the main villain, nicknamed Leatherface. By the way, this character has a real prototype - the maniac Ed Gin.

10. Omen

The Omen

USA, UK, 1976.
Horror.
Duration: 111 minutes.
IMDb: 7.5.

The wife of American diplomat Robert Thorne gives birth to a stillborn child. Her husband decides not to tell his wife the sad news and takes another baby instead. The child, who was named Damien, grows up in the family as if it were his own. But in fact, his soul is cursed from birth. After all, Damien is the Antichrist.

And another classic horror film that embodies the idea of fear of children. The contrast between the angelic face of the young actor and his sinister actions really caught the viewer's attention. The film had two more successful sequels, which told about Damien's adolescence and adulthood.

But the restart of the story of the same name failed, although the film’s advertising campaign was built very cleverly, releasing the film on 06/06/2006.

11. A Nightmare on Elm Street

A Nightmare on Elm Street

USA, 1984.
Horror.
Duration: 92 minutes.
IMDb: 7.5.

High school students at one of the schools begin to have the same dream: they are being pursued by the disfigured maniac Freddy Krueger with metal knives on his glove. And the worst thing is that those whom he killed in a dream die in reality. The heroes are trying to find out where this ghost came from. But for this they need to stay awake.

One of the most recognizable screen maniacs was created by director Wes Craven, and over the years the image of Freddy Krueger has become firmly entrenched in pop culture. Everyone knows his constant attributes: a red and green sweater, a hat, a burnt face and a glove with claws.

It is ironic that in the late nineties, when the horror genre was experiencing a serious decline, the same Craven made the film “Scream,” in which he deconstructed the slasher genre and showed all the stereotypes of such films.

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12. Fly

The Fly

USA, UK, Canada, 1986.
Horror, fantasy, drama.
Duration: 96 minutes.
IMDb: 7.5.

Scientist Seth Brundle creates a teleportation device. After several successful experiments with objects and animals, he decides to try the invention on himself. But at the moment of teleportation, a fly flies into the device. Because of this accident, Seth gradually turns into a huge insect.

And again a remake that surpassed the original in quality and popularity. The fact is that the master of the body horror genre, David Cronenberg, took on the task of filming it. He managed to show the mutations of the human body in a very vivid and unpleasant way. Moreover, he turned a really creepy and cruel plot into a good drama.

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13. Spell

The Conjuring

USA, 2013.
Horror, thriller, detective.
Duration: 113 minutes.
IMDb: 7.5.

Spouses Ed and Lorraine Warren are experienced exorcists. They drive ghosts out of houses and also give lectures about otherworldly forces. But one day they have to face such a strong evil that not only the inhabitants of the cursed home are in danger, but also the spouses themselves.

This film was directed by James Wan, the creator of another famous horror franchise, Insidious. He took as a basis the memoirs of the real Lorraine Warren, who claims that all these events actually happened. The result was an excellent horror film with many scary scenes, which later turned into an entire franchise with spin-offs like Annabelle.

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14. Carrie

Carrie

USA, 1976.
Horror.
Duration: 98 minutes.
IMDb: 7.4.

A quiet and timid schoolgirl, Carrie, is constantly intimidated by her fanatical religious mother and bullied by her peers. Aggression accumulates inside her, which suddenly manifests itself in supernatural abilities. Meanwhile, her classmates want to prank her once again right at the prom.

The film adaptation of Stephen King's debut novel by the famous Brian De Palma cemented the book's popularity and stimulated many other directors to pay attention to the writer's work. The secret to the story's success is simple: King took a familiar story about bullying at school and turned it into a mystical horror. Well, Palma only managed to perfectly adapt all this.

The film's tagline: "If The Exorcist made you wince, Carrie will make you scream." And this is not an exaggeration: at first many spectators were seriously frightened by the terrible bloody scene at the school.

15. Suspiria

Suspiria

Italy, 1977.
Horror, drama.
Duration: 98 minutes.
IMDb: 7.4.

Young American ballerina Susie Bannion goes to Germany to study at a famous dance school. Soon, girls begin to die mysteriously there. And then Susie realizes that the school has become the site of a witches' coven.

Dario Argento is a recognized master of the giallo genre, combining crime thriller, explicit scenes and cruelty. But in Suspiria he went further, combining dark mysticism with a beautiful musical film.

And in 2018, a remake of this film of the same name was released. The new version turned out to be more ambiguous and even philosophical. Although there are also plenty of beautiful and scary scenes in it.

16. Invasion of the Body Snatchers

Invasion of the Body Snatchers

USA, 1978.
Science fiction, thriller, horror.
Duration: 115 minutes.
IMDb: 7.4.

Alien plants appear in an American town. Gradually they turn into absolutely exact copies of people and take the place of the originals. The only difference is that the aliens are completely emotionless.

The classic film of the same name was released in 1955, when the United States was experiencing hysteria about foreign spies. Then the film set the fashion for the story of an alien invasion.

The 1978 remake turned out to be even more interesting than the original. The unusual plot was supplemented by a horror atmosphere and creepy scenes of spears appearing from cocoons. And the gloomy ending of the film has gone down in history as one of the most ominous scenes.

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17. Poltergeist

Poltergeist

USA, 1982.
Horror, thriller.
Duration: 114 minutes.
IMDb: 7.3.

The Freeling family moves into a new house, where strange things soon begin to happen: objects move on their own, and equipment turns on. Then the tree outside the window tries to kidnap the Freelings' son, and while the parents are rescuing him, their daughter disappears.

The creator of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Tobe Hooper, years later released another cult horror film, only now in a completely different style. Based on a script by Steven Spielberg, the story has become one of the best examples of haunted house horror.

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18. Call

Ringu

Japan, 1998.
Horror, thriller, detective.
Duration: 96 minutes.
IMDb: 7.3.

There is a legend among teenagers about a creepy videotape. As soon as someone watches the recording, the phone rings in his house, and a week later he dies. And after the mysterious death of his niece, reporter Reiko Asakawa decides to understand the origin of this tape.

It was this film that gave us a creepy girl with black hair crawling out of the TV. First she turned into one of the most famous and frightening images, and then into the object of many parodies.

The popularity of the original film was noticed in Hollywood, and three years later they released their own version of the film in the United States. Interestingly, the sequel to the American version was later directed by the director of the Japanese original, Hideo Nakata.

19. The Babadook

The Babadook

Australia, Canada, 2014.
Horror, mysticism.
Duration: 93 minutes.
IMDb: 6.8.

Amelia, who has lost her husband, brings her young son Sam a children's book called The Babadook . But the monster from history becomes real. It possesses the heroine and tries to kill the child.

Australian actress Jennifer Kent, in her directorial debut, managed to talk about the deep experiences of a single mother. Therefore, if you watch the film carefully, you can see not only cool jump scares, but also the woman’s expression of grief for her deceased husband. And the ending hints that it’s still not possible to completely get rid of secret fears—they can only be controlled.

20. Witch

The VVitch: A New‑England Folktale

USA, UK, Canada, Brazil, 2015.
Horror.
Duration: 93 minutes.
IMDb: 6.8.

The action takes place in the 17th century. William and Katherine's family are expelled from the settlement. She and her four children set up a home near the forest, but a witch steals their newborn child. The family blames the eldest daughter Thomasin for all the troubles, who did not keep track of her brother, and this becomes the beginning of even greater troubles.

First-time director Robert Eggers tried to film the entire film as naturalistically as possible: most of the shots here are shown in natural light in rather pale colors. And in fact, the meaning of the picture is not at all about witchcraft. What is much more frightening is that each hero hides something even from his loved ones.