Perhaps the title was not so scary. Its a working title for my latest screenplay I am writing. Its about a deranged person who escapes from a mental hospital and finds that normal people scare him just as much as he scares the normal people. So, in the spirit of Halloween, I decided to lay down what I believe to be the scariest movies of all time. Well, I don't know about scariest of all time because there are gonna be movies that I will remember later on and say "Oh yeah!". Needless to say, these are certinaly films that have made me flinch unexpectedly and that were uncomfortable in an exciting, scary kinda way. So, here it is:

10) Blair Witch Project - When I saw this in the theaters, word of mouth was fresh and little else was known about it (to my mind). I was a little shaking puppy leaving the theater afterwards. I was astounded, scared, curious and a little dizzy. But I do know that I had seen a scary movie. Mostly because it appeared real and no questions were being answered. To me that is scary. But this film has since been spoofed so much that it falls into to "this-movie-is-so-cliche" movie bin that no one takes it seriously anymore. Too bad the sequel helped that problem. Incidentally, when I got home I went on the internet to find out more. It helped serve the realism (although I did have my doubts). Check it out here.

9) Cannibal Holocaust - A movie that serves as a precursor to the Blair Witch. The film of a film. This one is not scary in the same way, however, seems just as realistic. This film was shut down for a time to investigate if real cannibalism was happening, also that if animals were killed during the shooting. I believe some were. But before you even get to that, you will be treated to a truly mesmerizing and disgusting film. Director Ruggero Deodato will certainly have you guessing as to how much is real and how much is staged. Similarly, this film has a website designed to propogate the myth. Check it out here (at the time it seems to be down).

 

8) Texas Chainsaw Massacre -This movie weirded me out. It is not scary until the end. For a good portion of the film it is relatively boring with, by and large, unappealing characters. But once we are introduced to Leatherface, the movie suddenly becomes entirely different and terrifying! The clip of him slamming the metal door has always been a creepy one. It sort of said "Stay out!" to me. If this film was shot on 35mm, it probably would not be a very good movie. In fact, it might be more boring and less realistic. The graininess of the 16mm made it appear documentary-like, even amateurish. After 25 years, this movie still makes an impact on those that watch it the first time and is remembered quite well afterwards.

 

7) Repulsion - Roman Polanski's first English film is close to a masterpiece of cinema as psychological art. Keeping one confined to small spaces (especially the audience) really gives a sense of, not just isolation, but captivity. In this case, star Catherine Deneuve as Carol is captured by her past and is reliving it in tragic detail. Heartbreaking at times, but always scary. Watching someone break down mentally on the screen right in front of you is haunting and trying on the nerves. Highly reccomended!

 

6) Mulholland Drive - This is not really a horror movie. Its not even a movie you would watch on the Halloween occasion. But Lynch's bizzareness always transcends the weird and straight into frightning. The images that Lynch comes up with are frightening in that, they are from our nightmares. Faces that are unpleasant to look at. Locations that are not quite defined or have darkened corners, strange noises off in the distance, and people speaking in a language that makes you a foreigner. The spookiness of it all is that everything is uncertain, anything is permissable, and small people, once again, rule the land.

 

5) Ringu/The Ring - I put both the Japanese and the American remake as the same item because I felt they are both scary for the same reason. Some might argue the Japanese version is better because it makes more sense, or tells a better story, or whathaveyou. But the issue comes down to scariness, and to me, the atmosphere was virtually the same in both films, particuarly "The Video". Bizarre and distubing images that have no connection to each other makes for an unsettling experience. And then there was the horse.

 

4) Prince of Darkness - This is Carpenter's scariest film. Halloween, while being a great film has lost its luster over the years. I hesitate to say it has been relegated to the slasher genre, but its pretty close at this point. Prince of Darkness on the other hand was a close choice over In the Mouth of Madness. I chose this one because it is fresher in my mind. Prince of Darkness looks at evil in a new way, that does not involve a traditional devil or satan, but certainly involves evil. Conveniently at a church. The sequences of the dripping plasma from floor to ceiling, and the mirror that one can go into. The crawling flesh of zombies that circle the area. All good stuff. Carpenter is on top of his game in this one!

 

3) The Passion of the Christ - No, this is not a mistake. This is truly a scary film to watch. Ok, its not scary in the traditional "horror" or "halloween" sense, but still remains a scary, disturbing film, regardless of its intention. Watching someone get beaten for 2 hours straight is tough to watch, I don't care who it is. Some found this downright disgusting, others were upset by it, and others more were inspired. I will say more about this later. Needless to say, I think this movie qualifies for a scary film.

 

2) The Shining - I hope this one is not too predictable for a list like this. But lets face it, there is no one else who has made a scarier, creepier film (well, there is one, thats why this is number two). But, if someone were to propose to make a scary movie, I would turn to Kubrick. He is the one to take something seemingly old hat and make it brand new again. Jack Nicholson is now almost parodied even by his own acting from this film. The brevity of a huge hotel with no one but ghosts is scary. Add a dash of a child on the verge of a psychotic break, an emotionally unstable wife, and a recovering alcoholic and presto, you have a horror movie. Seriously - one cannot point out a single thing that makes this movie one of the creepiest movies of all time, but it is undeniably true!

 

1) The Exorcist - Ok, so this is the one that is scarier than the Shining. Yes, it is true. And I agree, its a close call, don't get me wrong, Kubrick is my Cinematic Redeemer, but this is the movie that has me on pins and needles every time. I am continually fascinated and petrified by it. I love the feeling that it's unsettling and nervy. That Friedkin made such magnificent use of sound to exploit the demonic noises turns this film inside out. The most notable effect is that the movie is scary for its sounds more than its images. When this movie was released back in 1973, some found it downright disgusting, others were upset by it, and others more were inspired by the film. Yeah, pretty much the same response as The Passion. True story. Coincidence? Kinda scary if you think about it. (citation)
Check out the poll in the forum to see what others think is the scariest movie of all time.