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Friday, October 31, 2014

Top 10 Horror Movies

Today is Halloween, so what better time than the present to rank my Top 10 favorite horror films! In general, the horror genre is not one of my favorites. All too often they are mindless gore fests or filled with cheap thrills; however, there are some horror films that rise above the rest. Due to not having seen all that many horror films, horror comedies that feature zombies and the like will be included on the list. Also, at the end I will have honorable mentions for a couple of television series in the horror genre. 




10: Zombieland
Much more a comedy than a horror film, Zombieland is a fun zombie slaying romp! Taking advantage of its quirky cast, including perfectly cast Jesse Eisenberg, Woody Harrelson, and Emma Stone, Zombieland has just as many laughs as it does entertaining zombie slaying. Plus, it has one of the best cameos of all-time.

9: Scream
More of a satire of the horror genre than a pure horror, Scream follows high school student Sidney Prescott in a small town where a murder in a mask terrorizes the town. While often more humorous than scary, Scream both parodies the tropes of the horror genre, as well as crafting a surprisingly competent mystery.

8: Perfect Blue
Do you think animation is only for children? Watch Perfect Blue and your perspective will be changed entirely. The film follows Mima, a pop-idol turned TV star, as her she slowly loses her sanity after a stalker continues to threaten her live. While more of a psychological horror mystery than straight horror, Perfect Blue is Satoshi Kon’s first feature film in what would become a prolific career as one of Japan’s best directors. In fact, Kon’s work has influenced famous director, Darren Aronofsky. Aronofsky even copied a scene from Perfect Blue in Requiem for a Dream, and even though he denies it, the similarities between Black Swam and Perfect Blue are uncanny!

7: Alien
Ridley Scott's classic horror thriller, Alien, introduced the world to who would become one of the sci-fi's most famous heroines, Ellen Ripley, played by Sigourney Weaver. Even though the thrills were diminished by my knowledge of future films, Alien's sci-fi setting and atmosphere revolutionized the genre.

6: The Cabin in the Woods
Written by the legend himself, Joss Whedon, and directed by frequent Whedon collaborator, Drew Goddard, The Cabin in the Woods is an ingenious deconstruction of the horror genre that shows how utterly ridiculous it has become in recent years. From the superb black comedy to the classic film references, The Cabin in the Woods is just the type of bodacious film that you would expect from Whedon.

With a sharp British wit and stylistic directing from Edgar Wright, Shaun of the Dead is a hilarious satire of the zombie genre. From beginning to end, Edgar Wright fills the film with his unique brand of clever humor, while still delivering likable characters and surprisingly effective zombie drama and action.

4: The Host
Not to be confused by the film based on Stephenie Meyer's novel of the same name, The Host is Korea's refreshing take on the monster horror genre. Thanks to director Bong Joon-ho for focusing more on the family drama, The Host is a cleverly comedic and thrilling film that still has more heart than just about any other monster flick ever made.

3: Silence of the Lambs
While almost more of a psychological thriller than a pure horror film, Silence of the Lambs is often listed among the best of the horror genre, and thus it deserves a spot on my list. Even though the film can be incredibly disturbing at times, it most definitely succeeds in creating plenty of nail-biting suspense, thrills, and many utterly horrific scenes. 

2: Jaws
Steven Spielberg's undeniable classic that took moviegoers by storm in 1975, Jaws is a masterpiece of film direction. Thanks to technical difficulties with the special effects, Spielberg had to resort to not showing the shark for the majority of the film, which obviously turned for the best. Jaws is the type of film that everyone needs to see at least once in their life, especially if you consider yourself a film buff.

1: Psycho
Alfred Hitchcock's original horror film that virtually launched the slasher genre, remains the pentacle of the horror genre in my eyes. From Anthony Perkins’ terrifyingly creepy performance to the infamous shower scene, Psycho is every bit as suspenseful today as it was 50 years ago. 

Honorable Mentions from Television

Doctor Who: "Blink"
If I had to chose my favorite Doctor Who episode, "Blink" would have to be my choice due to its perfectly crafted standalone story, inventive creature, and originality. As a standalone gothic horror story, "Blink" is a virtually flawless piece of fiction and the highlight of Steven Moffat’s writing career. In fact, I would almost go as far to say that Blink is my favorite episode of any television series.

Parastye
Parasyte, aka Kiseijuu, is a currently airing science fiction horror thriller about alien parasites that infect people’s brains and turn them into powerful killers. However, the parasite that infects main protagonist, Izumi, is not able to reach the brain, and thus only replaces his hand. With the assistance of his sentient hand, Migi, Izumi must survive as other parasites attempt kill him as well, while also keeping his alien hand a secret. Four episodes in, Parasyte is already a top contender for best series of the year with its superb concept and horror thrills. Apparently, there is a live-action adaptation, although I have yet to see it.

What are your favorite horror films? Please comment below and let me know!


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19 comments:

  1. Interesting choices. It's clear you're not a big horror fan as many you've picked have other elements - monster movie, comedy, sci-fi - to mitigate the more obvious horror tropes. Alien is a classic one but I've yet to see The Host. The Cabin in the Woods is a great film but not a straight horror either. Are there no horror films in the more classic tradition that you like? Have you seen the original Omen? Halloween? Salem's Lot? With your choices, I'm surprised John Carpenter's Thing didn't make it onto the list!

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    1. Yes, like I said, I have not seen many horror films. They just do not scare me at all. I get more pulse-pounding thrills out of suspense thrillers from Hitchcock. I have not seen the Omen, Halloween, or Salem's Lost. Also, I still have not seen The Thing, although I have been meaning to watch it for a while.

      -James

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    2. The orginal Omen very scary because if you believe in the Bible it could be true.

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  2. Scream is probably my favorite horror film franchise, I've seen every movie probably more times than I can count, and it'd definitely rank high on my horror film list. I've also seen Alien, which was actually the first horror film that actually made me jump (and squeal. Several times). I saw the last few minutes of Jaws (I think the only one I actually saw all the way through was....Jaws 3? Jaws 2? One of those), and I've seen bits of pieces of Psycho, mainly on TV shows. Awesome list, James. Happy Halloween!
    -Tegan

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    1. The Scream movies are a lot of fun, especially the first one. Yeah, the Jaws sequels are terrible, so I would recommend watching the original some time, and same for Psycho. Thank you Tegan!


      -James

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  3. I definitely approve of this list! 'Jaws' is brilliant and so is 'Psycho', two eternal classics that everyone should see! The only glowing omission that I would have put on here would be my all time favorite movie 'The Thing'! You should definitely check that one out if you haven't already seen it!

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    1. Thank you Matthew! The Thing is near the top of my must-watch list. I am still waiting for it to be on Netflix, Amazon Prime, or on a movie channel or something to watch it, but I still cannot find it unfortunately.

      -James

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  4. Nice list! I'm so happy I've seen everything on it (except for Parastye.)

    Zombieland was good but didn't become an immeidate favorite of mine or anything--Emma Stone was the best part for me.

    I LOVE SCREAM. The meta humor gets me every time and remembering Ghostface still scares me sometimes when I'm in the dark, lol.

    Perfect Blue was a really really good horror film!

    I loved Alien! Thank you so much for recommending it! One of my faves!

    The Cabin in the Woods was also a good horror film with more good meta humor. I like horror that can be meta. :)

    SHAUN OF THE DEAD I LOVE THAT MOVIE SO MUCH.

    The Host was a good monster movie!

    Silence of the Lambs surprised me, I didn't expect it to be as good as it was! Definitely a great thriller/horror film.

    And Jaws and Psycho, which I have only seen each once and quite awhile ago but I remember they were both quite good. :D

    Excellent list!

    ~Jamie

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    1. Thank you for commenting on each film!

      Agreed, Emma Stone was the best part of the film for me too.

      I'm glad you got me to watch Scream! :)

      And I am glad that you got me to watch Shaun of the Dead, which was amazing! :D

      Thank you Jamie!

      -James

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  6. I heard about Psycho but I've already seen Jaws and Alien, one of these features were in my list of favourites. Psycho is more of a thriller as of Jaws when you shouldn't have need to nominate them on that category. Are you sure that you haven't listed Paranormal Activity or The Conjuring in the best horror selection for that matter?

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    1. On most lists like IGN's Top Horror movie lists, they included Jaws, Alien, and Psycho, so I decided to include them. I have not seen Paranormal Activity or The Conjuring though.

      -James

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  7. Cool list! :) I haven't seen very many of the movies on the list, but I did like the ones I've seen(Alien! I also saw part of Zombieland at a girl's house). A lot of these movies look really good as well, and are on my to-watch list. And yes, Blink is definitely a really good episode of Doctor Who. I really enjoyed that one.
    One cool thing about Psycho that I learned in a film class I took once, was that it caused a bit of controversy since, before the film, a toilet had never been shown in a movie before(the way she was showering was weird, though).
    I really like shows, such as Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Supernatural, and Torchwood which are a little horror-y.

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    1. Thanks! :) I definitely recommend several of these films on the list, especially Jaws and Psycho. :)

      Wow, I knew Psycho was controversial, but I did not know that about the film. Very interesting!

      I still need to watch the Buffy shows. :)

      -James

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  8. Great list man but some big omission like Halloween, The Thing and my personal favorite The Exorcist!

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    1. I still have yet to see those films, but thanks for the comment! The Thing is one that I have been wanting to watch for a while, since it is a sci-fi classic.

      -James

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  9. I'm not at all a horror fan, but I did like Zombieland and Shaun of the Dead. The comedy helps a lot. :D And Alien and Jaws are on my to-watch list since they're classics. Blink is amazing, and may very well be the best episode of anything ever.... okay, definitely top 5. :P

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  10. I'm even less of a horror fan than you are -- I've only seen 3 on your list: "Psycho," "Scream" (because I was at a slumber party and my friends love horror, sigh), "Silence of the Lambs" (same reason as "Scream"), and "Jaws." I really don't think "Jaws" is scary, but it's definitely exciting! And horrific, with the mangled people and stuff. Of those, I've only seen "Psycho" more than once. It totally deserves your top spot!

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  11. NIce list but Shaun of the Dead is a horror movie?
    Horror is not one of my favorite genre. Athough I love one of its subsets Zombie movies. So 28 Days/Weeks would be high on my list. An American Werewolf in London is another jewel. If you have not seen the hosteltrilogy they would also be high on my list. The Devils Rejects is excellent and I also liked the Hills have eyes. My number one horror would be an absoutley true story The Grey Zone.

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