Five Scariest Movies (plus Family Friends Chills)
John on October 31, 2008 at 3:23 pm
It’s Halloween. I’m burned out on politics. So here are the five scariest movies I’ve seen. Of course I’d love to hear your suggestions about what belongs on this list. BTW, these are not in order. They’re all really scary:
- The Exorcist – It’s not the pea soup, it’s the great directing and scary sound FX. If this movie doesn’t scare you, I’m afraid you’re already a ghoul.
- Alien – I saw this when I was 13 and I still, occasionally, have nightmares involving cramped, dank corridors full of these things. I think the second film is a better movie (how many times can the cat be a plot device!), but the first one is definitely horrifying.
- Jacob’s Ladder – The first time I watched this I was alone, at night. Not a wise move. This is just about the only film that uses the logic (or illogic) of nightmares to good dramatic effect. If you watch this with a bunch of people during the day, it’s not all that scary. Watch it alone in the dark and then tell me it doesn’t give you chills.
- Blair Witch Project – Again, it’s not the running and screaming that get you. The scene near the beginning where the little girl tries to cover her father’s mouth is better than any special effect. Brilliant. Terrifying. I’ll probably never watch this again.
- The Grudge – This movie is rated PG-13, so I’m embarrassed to say that the first 20 minutes scared the crud out of me. Once again, it’s not special effects or dismemberment that’s scary, it’s films that capture the subtle feeling of dread. Please, do not let your 13 year-old see this, unless you want them to have nightmares for weeks!
Best scary movies I’ve seen recently:
- The Ruins – Surprisingly effective horror/thriller.
Finally, if like me you have kids, check out this post of family friendly recommendations from 2006. I notice that one of the ones on my list just made Wired magazine’s list of the top 5 scary movies you’ve never seen, Curse of the Demon (1958). If you haven’t seen Curse of the Demon, it’s definitely worthwhile.
Update: Ed Morrissey and Ace have some lists going as well. Ace puts The Thing (1982) at the top of his list and I have to agree. My favortie Kurt Russell film and my favorite John Carpenter film.
Category: Movies |
My wife just bought Alien for our daughters to watch. I heard a great comment on that last year. Most horror films leave you saying to the characters, “Get out of the house, you idiot!” But with Alien that wasn’t an option, so it made it scarier.
October 31, 2008 @ 3:30 pmOne of the sacriest scenes to me was in the Rear Window. When Grace Kelly gets caught in Raymond Burr’s apartment, and then she wiggles the ring behind her and Burr looks up and sees Jimmy Stewart watching, that is Hitchcock at his best.
October 31, 2008 @ 4:43 pmRick,
I love Rear Window. One of my top 25 films of all time.
October 31, 2008 @ 7:41 pmOne of my all-time favorites is The Hitcher…the original of course, with C. Thomas Howell and Rutger Hauer. And also The Shining. And lately there has been nothing scarier on TV than primetime on MSNBC.
October 31, 2008 @ 8:09 pmThe scariest movie ever played will occur next Tuesday night when the Messiah wins the election. This is will be one of the worst things to happen in the history of our nation.
October 31, 2008 @ 9:48 pmI’m with you on Jacob’s Ladder.
October 31, 2008 @ 10:17 pmIt had a great plot and was quite effective at scaring the heck out of me. I remember when it hit one of the premium channels and they showed an extended director’s cut. Awesome.
The Ring.
October 31, 2008 @ 10:26 pmEvent Horizon.
1402.
A movie that scared me silly (because I watched it when I was way too young) was the original Rollerball. I can still conjure up the terror I felt at the idea of a sport in which everyone just understood that it was OK for players to team up and kill opponents, and that when that happened a little red light lit up next to the murdered players name on the scoreboard.
That light, strangely, was the clincher for me. It was like they’ve planned for this horrific eventuality, they have a procedure in place if someone should die, and that procedure is… to light up a little red light.
November 1, 2008 @ 1:18 pmKeith,
Rollerball is one of my favorite dystopian movies. I thought it was a fascinating study in the devaluation of humanity and human life and the elevation of the collective society and the corporations who stand to profit.
James Caan was awesome as Johnathan E, the defiant individualist who refuses to bow before the will of the corporate big wigs.
The remake they did a couple years ago was horrible. It missed all of the political and social commentary of the original.
November 1, 2008 @ 1:31 pm