Since I was a little kid when I watched my first horror movie on the SYFY channel with my dad on Saturday morning, I have been obsessed with horror movies. I was also the kid who, instead of receiving money from the Tooth Fairy, had movies under their pillow like Friday the 13th, A Nightmare on Elm Street, and Terminator 2: Judgment Day. I have watched numerous horror movies that fit in varying amounts of sub genres. I started this list trying to make a top ten of a certain sub genre or a top ten of a franchise, but that was not easy to do. So for my first attempt at a top ten list, I will be listing the top ten horror movies that I could watch over and over again, no matter what time of year it is. These films are some of my favorite horror films that are oddly and strangely comforting for me, reminding me of my love for horror and what made me enjoy the genre to begin with. Hopefully some see their favorites on this list or something new to try out!
10. Stay Alive (2006)
Stay Alive was one of the first horror movies I was allowed to see in theaters. The concept of not just a horror movie but one about a video game is a wonderful combination of two of my favorite things. Stay Alive is a fun concept revolving around a group of friends playing a haunted horror survival game. If you die in the game, you die in real life. The rules of the game are intriguing, and develop a short but interesting backstory on the reasoning behind the game's devilish plans. An interesting plot that moves at a reasonable pace, combined with show stealing actors such as Frankie Muniz (Malcolm in The Middle) and Jimmi Simpson (Westworld), this film always serves as a creepy yet fun 100 minutes for anyone to watch alone, but is even more fun with friends.
9. Tremors (1990)
Tremors was one of the first movies I watched on SYFY as a kid. I instantly fell in love with this prehistoric worm thriller and just had to watch its three successors (now 7 in total). Tremors, starring Kevin Bacon and Fred Ward is a fun ride from beginning to end. It is a film about a small desert town that gets more than they bargain for when large prehistoric worms (Graboids), start terrorizing the town, attempting to eat anyone who moves. A fun Dune-like Monster paired with a stellar cast makes Tremors a fun and thrilling Monster Movie that could be enjoyed by both Horror and non/Horror fans.
8. Annabelle (2014)
Yes, this is my only Conjuring Universe movie on this list. Yes, I do love The Conjuring 1 & 2, but this movie is one of the first late night premieres I attended and was one of the creepiest, most jump-scary films I have seen in theaters. Annabelle is a prequel/sidestory in the Conjuring Universe about an extremely haunted doll, terrorizing a pregnant woman and her husband. The film starts with a creepy scene of a Manson-inspired home invasion/murder, which leads to the possession of the Annabelle doll. What seems like a heartfelt gift from husband to expecting wife turns into an hour and a half of haunts and sheer terrors. While the acting is not perfect, the well timed jump scares, and creepy background figures makes for a scary watch. The Annabelle doll itself with no jumpscares is creepy enough to get its own fan base and two more eventual films. This movie is definitely not for those who do not like jump scares or scary movies in general.
7. Evil Dead (2013)
Yes I know this is not the Bruce Campbell Evil Dead, but call it a guilty pleasure. This remake was a movie that I did not think I would enjoy as much as I did. Evil Dead is about a group of friends who take their friend who is struggling with drug addiction to an isolated cabin to get her detoxed. While in said cabin, one of the members finds a book called the necronomicon and decides to read from it (I know: why would they even think to do that). After reading from the book, a demon possession takes place, infesting both our main heroine and multiple of the party. This film has a combination of great practical effects mixed with CGI, to make an eye opening mixture of creep factor, body horror, and all-out gore. Evil Dead (2013) takes what the orginal did and multiplies the amount of gore and blood used. I highly recommend this film for anyone who loves the Evil Dead franchise or gory films, but I do not recommend it for those who cannot stomach body horror or gore.
6. Dawn of the Dead (2004)
Since I was a kid and saw Night of the Living Dead and Return of the Living Dead, I have been in love and obsessed with the zombie genre. Watching this Dawn of the Dead remake fueled that obsession even more. This Dawn of the Dead remake compares to its original, in the sense of a group of strangers being stranded in a mall with a literal horde of zombies locked outside trying to get in. This film has its scares, its emotional factors, and lets not forget about the brain/flesh eating gore we all love to see in zombie movies. The acting in this movie is once again nothing worthy of an academy award but the ensemble which includes Modern Family’s Ty Burrell makes for an almost perfect ensemble of strangers, that you might be sad or happy to be eaten. While the original Dawn of the Dead is an amazing film, this Snyder cut is one to not be looked over by any hardcore zombie fan.
5. Scream (1996)
Scream is, to say it lightly, a Wes Craven Masterpiece. A film about high school friends in the 90s getting stalked and murdered one by one by a killer wearing a ghostface hallowwen costume is a s good as it gets. It is easy to say that Scream brought the Slasher genre back to life. With stellar performances from cast members such as Neve Campbell, Skeet Ulrich, Jaime Kennedy, and Matthew Lillard, this film is a must watch for any horror fan. Scream has its creep factor and jump scare combined to make for an amazing ride. Let's also not forget about the famously intense opening sequence with Drew Barrymore. This film will get you thinking of if your group of friends were being stalked, tormented and killed by some twisted slasher playing a game.
4. A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)
While we are on the road of Wes Craven Masterpieces, we cannot forget about the legendary A Nightmare on Elm Street. As mentioned previously this was a movie the tooth fairy left for me in one night as a kid. A film about teens being tormented and killed in their dreams is shocking, terrifying and intriguing all at the same time. The killer throughout the franchise Freddy Krueger is a melted face demonic figure with a nasty torn up sweater, brown fedora and a glove with knives as fingers. Freddy is both creepy and comedic at the same time. This movie plays on all of the classic 80s slasher tropes of sex, blood and gore, while also providing comic relief and cunning remarks from its main villain. I would recommend this movie anytime, as it can both creep you out, but make you laugh at the same time. If you really want to laugh make sure to watch the complete franchise, as Freddy becomes more iconic, the kills become more original and wild, and there's a lot more moments of laughter due to subtle Freddy sayings.
3. The Collector (2009)
The Collector was a film that I was not allowed to see as a kid, so I had no idea what I was getting myself into in highschool during my first watch. Talk about a movie to go blind into, but I have loved it ever since. While it generated a fun sequel, The Collector generates both terror, suspense, and gut wrenching body horror. The Collector follows a low level ex-criminal attempting to steal from an employer’s home in an attempt to repay a debt. While attempting to complete his job, our main character soon realizes he was not the first one to break in and that he is not alone. Unbenounced to him, the main character has now gotten involved in a 90 minute game of cat and mouse with a sadistic killer, who has booby trapped the entire house with the most painful and body breaking traps/horrors you can think of. Similar to Evil Dead (2013), The Collector is not a film for those that cannot handle body horror or gore, but will be a hit with those that love intense scenarios filled with both creep and numerous amounts of torture/gore.
2. Cabin in The Woods (2011)
Oh boy the Cabin in the Woods. I cannot say enough good things about this movie. Yes I had seen the trailers before going to the theaters, but boy was I not prepared for some of the best 95 minutes of my life. This film is to this day one of my favorite films of all time, and was extremely close to being first on this list. Cabin in the Woods consists of a group of friends going to vacation at what they believe to be Chris Hemsworth’s (Thor) family cabin. While in said cabin, these friends get access to a room full of objects that will lead to some form of horror. The film will go back and forth between our group of friends and those controlling the horrors from behind the scenes. With amazing references, homages, and surprise actor appearances, this movie makes for an amazing solo or group watch. Cabin in the Woods has the best combination of jokes, gore, creep and horror to make just not an amazing horror film, but a beyond amazing film. While you do need to watch many older horror films to understand a lot for the inside jokes and references, Cabin in the Woods is a very fun ride for any type of horror (or even not horror) fan.
1. Friday the 13th (1980)
As stated before, Cabin in the Woods came extremely close to being number one on this list, but it is hard to knock out the iconic Friday the 13th. This was another childhood favorite of mine that was left for me under my pillow by the tooth fairy. At the time I watched this film, I had already fallen in love with the horror genre, but this was the first slasher I had watched and instantly had me hooked. A simple movie about camp counselors being picked off by a mysterious and not seen killer, can make for a pleasing watch any time of the year. Friday the 13th has scares, practical effect gore, creeps, an amazing soundtrack/theme song, and let’s not forget the start of Kevin Bacon’s career. Friday the 13th capitalizes on the constant use of practical effects and mystery to reel you into each kill and wondering who the killer is. Now I won't give away any surprises, but this movie has an amazing twist as well. Friday the 13th film will also begin a common theme of those having sex in a horror movie will eventually die. I cannot express enough how much any horror fan, or film fan in general should see Friday the 13th. This film will create a franchise that is still beloved to this day and get crazier and crazier with every addition (spoiler: the tenth film goes into space!). Jason Vorhees and the Friday the 13th franchise is an icon for not just horror films, but halloween in general.
I hope you have enjoyed this top 10 list of horror movies I love, and could watch anywhere anytime. I am just a simple middle school teacher, who has a crazy horror movie obsession, and I hope to do more lists like these and possible film reviews in the future!
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