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My Top 10 Scariest Films



Scariest Horror Movies

nce Halloween is upon us, and October is my personal favorite month. (I love haunted houses, costumes, and anything else that goes with Halloween) I wanted to ask my fellow bid-ers what they think is the scariest movies they have seen. Most everyone watches a horror movie during the October month, there is just something about it that peaks our interest in fear ;) I know this month I am looking forward to viting multiple haunted houses, AND checking out nister, Paranormal Activity 4, and lent Hill: Revelation 3D. Anyone with me on these??

So I am mply asking you the question, what is your favorite horror movie to watch during the Halloween season. And what are some of the films that scare you the most? Not necessarily what scares you the most now, but what had a huge effect on you at even an early age.

The following list will start from 10-1, (obviously 1 being the scariest film) then my favorite movie to watch on Halloween.

10. Halloween 1-2 220px-HalloweenII_poster.jpg

Yes I know I picked 2 movies here, but part two is just a continuation of the same night anyways! ;) The real reason I said 1 and 2 is because these are the first movies I remember watching as a kid. Not Lion King or anything “normal” but good ol’ Michael Myers. As a child, they did scare me. They were also my gateway into the horror genre, and effected my childhood completely. Instead of playing tag, my brother and I played killer =)

But I remember being in kick-your-feet suspense as Laurie is banging on the front door, trying to wake the kids. I remember the nurse being lifted with a scalpel, Laurie waiting for the elevator while Michael closes in on her, and honestly it made me scared of hospitals. It also made me paranoid when im in a neighborhood at night, why? Because he could be ANYWHERE, and the entire first movie took place in a neighborhood.

But bedes scaring me as a child, it became iconic to me. It was one of my favorite movies to watch and brings back some great memories.

9. Scream

Just so everyone knows, I was 4 when this movie came out. This was another movie that, after the initial terror and shock, became iconic to my brother and I. I remember watching this movie late one night when it first came out on VHS -.- and we had patio doors that resembled the ones in Casey’s house. Once bed time came, I was so scared to even walk by the patio doors. (I could see them as I walked to my room) It was a moment where I was genuinely terrified. Yes I was 4 but hey, I rarely get the thrill of being scared now, so I am fond of this memory…in a weird way =p

But even to this day, no horror movie has ever matched that opening scene with him terrorizing Casey. So this movie deserves to be on anyone’s list.

This movie also had one of my favorite deaths, ever. The Tatum kill, I think we acted that scene out a million times as a kid. It was just one of the coolest deaths to me, and she was my favorite character at the time.

8. The Strangers 220px-Strangersposter.jpg

This movie was very unsettling, the way they were toying with them. One of the most memorable scenes that scared everyone in my theatre (without the typical loud noise to frighten you) was when he just appeared behind her and watched her for a few moments. That really disturbed me, the fact that he was in the house with her and she had NO idea. It was also very realistic to me, it wasn’t some unkillable being coming after them. It was just regular people, (another thing that made Scream scary as well)

The other really disturbing thing, was how random it was. There was no motive, no reasoning. Just “You were home.” ‘Oh you know seemed like a good idea, I mean you guys were home. We were bored, it all worked out.’ I enjoyed how they played on the fact that the killers were able to get in and out of the house whenever they wanted. The burning phone, the moved smoke detector. It was just a very creepy movie. When I went home that night (I lived out in the country where my neighbor was more than a jog away) I was actually freaked out. Checking my doors and windows, it was a very effective movie.7. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (remake)

I was 11 when this movie came out, my brother and I decided to watch the original a few weeks before seeing this film. From the awesome trailer (that I actually love to watch, there is something about that trailer that is just epic to me) and the original film my brother decided to be LeatherFace for Halloween =p The original film was good, it made me jump a few times…and it gave me something to look forward to.

My family decided to go watch this movie Halloween night, the theatre was PACKED when I went to watch it! I forced myself to watch every bit of it, no covering my eyes, no looking away. I watched all of it, kicking my legs in suspense, jumping every time they wanted me to, dreading the noise of that damn chainsaw! (Which I still HATE to this day!) This movie was intense, and I really didn’t know who was going to die. It felt like no one was safe, the way they kill off the main guy with the first kill…and after that I wasn’t sure if Erin (Jesca Biel) was going to make it.

This film was just raw, gory, (in the best way) and terrifying. I honestly couldn’t sleep after I watched it. I would wake up moaning, from what im assuming were bad dreams. It became one of my favorite horror movies, and I still love watching it today. This was also, in my eyes, what started the remake craze. They did such a fantastic job with this that everyone thought they could recreate this level of horror. In my opinion very few remakes have came close to matching this movie.

6. The Fourth Kind

Im a little embarrassed to put this on my list, as im sure a lot of people didn’t find it scary at all. But this movie played on some fears of mine…To start off I LOVE Mila Jovovich, I think she is a very talented actress. She brings greatness to whatever role she plays. The alien theme was intriguing to me, and the “this is real” was a nice touch. Now while this movie was scary just as an Alien movie…I felt they toyed with the idea it was more than aliens. It felt a little bit like a demon, the way it was talking about God towards the ending of the movie, and some of the scenes that it was “attacking” the hypnotized people. Who knows exactly, im sure it was probably just Aliens, but what if Aliens were just another form of a demon? Or that Aliens and the devil are together on somethings? Crazy, I know =p But the things they showed in this movie were nothing short of disturbing to me. The “real” footage was an interesting addition as well.

This movie was actually very good to me, and there were moments when the hair on my arms and neck stood up. As an adult (the last four movies ive mention I was below the age of 16) I was worried to get to sleep that night.

5. The Grudge ?w=640

Oh, back to my younger years again. This was one of the choices to go see at the grand opening to the new Cinemark in my town. They had a special program going on where they chose different organizations to come and watch a movie for free. (Just the ticket, popcorn and drinks were extra) The catch was that these were movies that had been running for a while, none the less my family got tickets. So my parents went to go watch “Ray” while me and my little brother decided on The Grudge. This was the first horror movie I saw by myself, and it was the first time my brother and I were alone in a movie theatre =p Of course they were trying to show you how great the new theatre was, so the sound was way up!

I jumped, my brother hid his face behind me, and it was creepy. Honestly it was as scary as I thought “The Ring” was going to be. Sarah Michelle Gellar was great, as always. The story unfolded really well, and it had some memorable moments to it. I for one had trouble sleeping with a blanket after this. This was a very good ghost movie, that I wish would have been left as a stand alone film. I hated part two =/ It also had an effect on me because, as a child, my family moved A LOT. And the thought that one of these houses we are trying to live in could be cursed scared me. (We had actually just moved into a new house about two weeks before I watched this movie) plus moving as much as we did my odds were bound to be running out right?

4. The Amityville Horror (remake) http://i2.listal.com/image/3968/600full-the-amityville-horror-poster.jpg" class="photoborder" />

Of course my family had to see this movie the sentence, “From the producers of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre” were stained on EVERYTHING that had to do with this movie. (Yes, now im weary when seeing that written on a poster or trailer) This movie delivered, it also made me permanently horrified by the time 3:15 -.- Bastards. This remake, much like TCM, was WAY better than the original. (in my opinion) Like TCM, this movie took only the bacs of the story line and threw a lot of new things at you. It was hard trying to predict what was going to happen, because you thought you knew what was coming (from seeing the original) and it wasn’t what you expected. (sadly this trend dwindled as the remakes continued)

The scariest scene to me, was when the little boy had to pee in the middle of the night…he runs into the restroom, stares at the door, slowly makes his way to the toilet. Does his buness, eyes still on door, makes his way to the nk, tries to turn it on. Eyes still on door, finally turns around and BAM! Disturbing, blood covered bitch of a ghost is right next to him. Ung the restroom late at night after seeing that movie, was not an option.

3. The Exorcist

When the trailer came out for this movie, I just thought “wtf?” It didn’t show much (which is a good thing) just the words INDIOUS IS. I was hearing great things about it, and heard it might be the scariest movie ever. I didn’t do any research, I wouldn’t watch a trailer, I wanted to go in blind…and boy was I. From the creepy opening credits till the end I was on edge, truly terrified of this movie. They did EVERYTHING right with this to me, and I still am scared to look in the corner of my room at night. I am afraid he is going to be standing there pointing at me. They had a very good story, which a lot of horror flicks lack these days. And there wasn’t any cheap scares, if they were going to scare you it wasn’t going to be because she closed the refrigerator door and her husband was standing there. It was going to be for a fucking reason. Everything from the man appearing in the room, to the damn demon growling behind the husband in the dining room scared the shit out of me.

This is the only movie, that my friend was ever scared on. She laughed during The Exorcist, cackles in Paranormal Activity, and doesn’t think any movie is scary. This one however, made it hard to sleep for her.

Once it came on Blu-Ray I HAD to own it, if it scared me (and it doesn’t seem like it, but it is hard to scare me. Maybe not when I was younger, but once I became a certain age nothing scared me anymore. Hell I write scary stories ya know?) it would scare other people. So I showed it to my dad, surround sound cranked up and all. He was tting behind me on the couch, and when the man appeared in the room after pacing the window, my dad was on the floor and under my covers. I had never seen him move so fast in my life. =p

So this is the second scariest movie to me, ever. I can honestly say it was scarier than the Exorcist to me.

1. Paranormal Activity

Like I mention earlier, my upbringing was Pentecostal. So of course I thought of these things. What they would be like if I a demon really did want you. This movie nailed it for me, it was the most realistic film I had ever seen. I really doubt a demon will be popping up in your mirror, I mean really? Sure it’s a Hollywood scare tactic…but that’s exactly what that is. Hollywood. So many people who don’t like this movie, are usually big suckers for scares like someone standing behind you in the mirror. But like I said this is how I imagine a demonic haunting happening.

Just to be clear, this was another movie I did no research on. I watched one trailer that showed a door moving, and a sheet moving. That’s it, I heard all the buz about “demand it in your city” “if horror movies don’t scare you, try this one” blah, blah. Now being the horror fan I am, I HAD to know what the big deal about this “ghost” story was. So my friend Asma and I demanded it in our city. And on a late Thursday afternoon went to go watch it. Like the sentence above stated, I was expecting a ghost movie. I had no expectations bedes that other than this better be scary. So as things slowly happened, night after night. Things got worse to t through. Asma and I had the arm rest between us up, and were bacally in each others laps. And with every blue screen saying “Night whatever” everyone else in the theatre shifted uncomfortably.

I have never sat through a movie, with my hair standing up, my spine tingling, my eyes watering, and my heart beating out of my chest. The footprints appearing that weren’t human, the roaring, the door slamming, all of it scared me…the thought that a demon held on to a burnt picture that was though to be lost in an unexplained fire was one of the creepiest things…it all scared me, and as I thought it was coming to an end…I mean how could they keep this going? The sheets move, her leg twitches, and all of a sudden she is pulled off her bed. My jaw literally dropped, I was stunned. Then to see her drug away, it scared the SHIT out of me. I for one cant sleep in my bed now without my feet tucked in. Blanket underneath them.

Once I was home, I couldn’t stop thinking about it…of course I told my family it was amazing (because it was) and that night when it came time for me to sleep I couldn’t. I sat up in my living room with the lights on, I could see the front door, my upstairs bedroom/loft, my dads door and the back door. I sat with a bible, and a picture of my mom (she passed away when I was 16) and rocked back and forth until it was daylight.

Every noise startled me, and I honestly expected to see a shadow on my wall at any second. Or hear heavy footsteps, or a roar. I was going to race out my front door and hope for the best with my dad and brother still in the house. (shitty of me I know)

Me being so scared, which was rare at this time in my life, actually scared people around me who hadn’t seen the movie. One night after watching this movie, I was laying in my dads room. Yes, I was NEEDING to sleep at this point and 17 year old me was sleeping in his dads room. I thought I heard someone walking. The TV stand cracked and I sat up, I had the restroom light on and the restroom fan going (the sound helps me sleep) the fan turned off…and the back of the toilet screeched like someone had pushed on it. I didn’t want to wake my dad up, so I pulled the covers up and tried to ignore it. My dad, a few seconds later, began tapping me. He was whispering my name, then he said whats on my bed. At this point my eyes were watering, my heart was racing and I was sure something was going to drag one of us away. We both jumped up and nothing was there…he said he could feel as someone knelt on the bed, and nudged him till he woke up…as you can probably imagine I didn’t sleep very much for 2 weeks…and when I did the sun was usually out. I have never before, or nce felt that much terror from watching a movie. Not only was it scary watching during, but it fucked with my mind and really played with everything that scared me.

So I know a lot of people will probably disagree with my top 10, and that is exactly what im wanting. I LOVE to hear peoples opinion and personal choices so I would love seeing what really scares you. So please feel free to post what scares you the most, and your opinion on my top 10 scariest movies.

Now, I used to watch ANY of the Halloweens on Halloween. Mix in some other scary movies and I was set =) BUT a few years ago Trick or Teat came out… and while this wasn’t a very scary movie, I felt it captured everything great about Halloween. Plus i find our "spirit of Halloween" friggin adorable...as long as his mask stays on =) I also loved the anthology style, and how every story tied into the whole. Rather than just telling a bunch of separate stories to make a full length movie. So nce this film has came to DVD, I have watched it ever year nce on Halloween =) How about you? What movie do you watch to celebrate the 31st??

I also wanted to put a few movies on here that were almost in my Top 10, but didn’t make the cut.

5-Friday the 13th…I just remember watching one as a kid, and I had to leave the room 4-A Nightmare on Elm Street…Once Tina was pulled down the hall in a body bag, I turned it off. Better save it for when my parents would watch it with me 3-The Exorcism of Emily Rose…another movie that has contributed to me being terrified of the 3 o clock hour at night 2-Jeepers Creepers…I don’t know why, but something about this just scared me. Especially when I vited my family in the country 1-Paranormal Activity 2...While this didn’t have the long term effects the first one had, it was maybe even more intense to watch than the original.

The movie i am looking forward to the most this year is... I am hoping to be adding nister to my list pretty soon, i honestly believe it could be the next INDIOUS...anyone else agree??

I cant wait to hear what you guys think, if you agree disagree, let me know!
JohnCorley92 Thursday 10/11/2012 at 04:57 PM | 96976
There are some good movies on that list but I wouldn't conder any of them "scary". I'm glad you mentioned your age in the post as it clarifies for me a little better why you picked what you picked.
Rezblue Thursday 10/11/2012 at 07:53 PM | 96984
There are some good movies on that list but I wouldn't conder any of them "scary". I'm glad you mentioned your age in the post as it clarifies for me a little better why you picked what you picked.

Yeah, i wanted to make sure and state my age for some of the movies...because like you said you dont conder them scary. Most on my list i watch now and im not scared at all, =p But as a younger teenager, or even a child certain films stick with you, ya know?
JohnCorley92 Thursday 10/11/2012 at 08:00 PM | 96985
Absolutely. I hope you didn't take offense.
Rezblue Thursday 10/11/2012 at 08:11 PM | 96986
Absolutely. I hope you didn't take offense.

Oh no, not at all. I like writing opinion pieces to see what people have to say. Everyone is going to have a different view =)
JohnCorley92 Thursday 10/11/2012 at 08:24 PM | 96987
This is a good list!

I remember my first horror was Child's Play at the age 5! Then went from that to Jaws, Leprechaun, Nightmare On Elm Street, and finally at the age of 10 I saw Halloween 1 and 2 back to back on channel USA.

My mom made the mistake of letting me watching that one because although I saw the others thats what really set me off in to my horror love!

nce then I set out to start watching every 60's 70's and 80's clasc horror movies like Pyscho, all the Hellraisers, and Friday the 13th's etc etc.

I remember being 10 when Scream out on to VHS.

My friend's mother got it for Christmas (which was very odd) but she let us watch it one night over there and I couldn't get enough! I remember their patio doors with it being a big house and I was always scared.

I guess after that the next best thing ade from Scream 2 and Scream 3 I remember Blair Witch and then shortly after that were all the remakes that were always coming out.

I guess with all the remakes I don't recall anything big really getting me pumped up until Paranormal Activity series came out.

I still get scared even though I'm 25.

I get chills every now and then and still look in the back of my car when I'm out late at night lol.

Good times growing up with good horror movies!

So what am I going to watch this fall? Probably just a bunch of random movies nce I ain't got a certain setup, but Halloween series will be in there!
irish16lep Thursday 10/11/2012 at 11:20 PM | 96992
This is a good list!

I remember my first horror was Child's Play at the age 5! Then went from that to Jaws, Leprechaun, Nightmare On Elm Street, and finally at the age of 10 I saw Halloween 1 and 2 back to back on channel USA.

My mom made the mistake of letting me watching that one because although I saw the others thats what really set me off in to my horror love!

nce then I set out to start watching every 60's 70's and 80's clasc horror movies like Pyscho, all the Hellraisers, and Friday the 13th's etc etc.

I remember being 10 when Scream out on to VHS.

My friend's mother got it for Christmas (which was very odd) but she let us watch it one night over there and I couldn't get enough! I remember their patio doors with it being a big house and I was always scared.

I guess after that the next best thing ade from Scream 2 and Scream 3 I remember Blair Witch and then shortly after that were all the remakes that were always coming out.

I guess with all the remakes I don't recall anything big really getting me pumped up until Paranormal Activity series came out.

I still get scared even though I'm 25.

I get chills every now and then and still look in the back of my car when I'm out late at night lol.

Good times growing up with good horror movies!

So what am I going to watch this fall? Probably just a bunch of random movies nce I ain't got a certain setup, but Halloween series will be in there

Yeah, Childs Play was one i watched as a small child as well. Leprechaun was another ;) I too enjoyed watching all the older slasher movies. See, apparently the patio doors thing wasnt just me =p Paranormal is just that one thing my mind always flips too when i get freaked out. It will probably forever haunt me =) I will definitely be watching Halloween this October ;) Im excited to be seeing nister tomorrow! Hopefully that will be as scary as im wishing for. I dont have high hopes for Paranormal 4 and i doubt lent Hill will scare me at all. I am however going to Screams Haunted Theme Park and Cutting Edge within the next two weeks! Im stoked! My family and i LOVE Halloween, so this many scary movies coming out and Haunted Houses to go to is definitely something we live for.

It was interesting to get to read a little about your childhood, what movies you remember and everything. Its always nice to hear from you bro!
JohnCorley92 Friday 10/12/2012 at 03:21 AM | 96999