If you've been following along with our Instagram stories, you might have noticed we have a thing (a love/fascination/obsession) for horror movies. In the spirit of Halloween, we broke down some of our perennial favorites into random categories. Hey. Every other list has The Shining, The Exorcist, etc. We love those movies. That's not what we were going for here... we're trying to give you a little flavor of something different. In no particular order, here are our top five in the following made-up categories:
Best Introductory Horrors (If you're looking to break into the world of horror, but you're not ready sh*t yourself):
Best Buried Horrors (Mind-bendy, experimental, or creep-show oddities):
Best Comedy Horror (Our favorite movies make us laugh AND jump. Horror isn't always serious.)
Murder Party*** (this is our favorite unsung movie this year)
Best Bet You Won't Sleep Tonight Horrors (F*ck it. Even we jumped and/or got a little freaky.)
Nightmare (2015 documentary)
The Amityville Horror (1978)
Best Bloody Splatterfest Horrors (The most horrific thing about these movies is the amount of gore spilled on the screen.)
Dawn of the Dead (1978)
Evil Dead (2013)
Best Vintage Horrors (Don't discount the classics.)
Rosemary's Baby (1968)
The Fog (1980)
Evil Dead (1981) Hail to the King, Baby!
We reached out to our awesome community and asked for their favorites, too. Here's what they had to say:
"THE HAUNTING (1963, of course) is my very favorite film in the genre. It's tension-filled darkness is depicted on every level from Robert Wises' brilliant direction to the talented acting, the score, camera work, lighting, art direction are nothing shy of perfect. These ingredients over a great script based on Shirley Jackson's best fiction - a psychological and social minefield = makes it untouchable by any other." - John Pietaro, IG: @johnpietaro
"I love the ending of the original THE WICKER MAN. How motived the main character is throughout the film. Everything is subtly connected." - Dominic Loise, IG: @dominic_lives
"THE BIRDS. The plot is flimsy, I agree. But look at a bird's claw up close. They look prehistoric and menacing. Now imagine them banding together to terrorize a town. You will not look at a bunch of birds harmlessly hanging out on a wire without an involuntary shutter ever again." - Bonnie Shor, IG: @bleeshor
"I'm absolutely in love with an Australian found-footage movie called LAKE MUNGO. After a family's teen daughter drowns, her brother starts recording what may be supernatural appearances by her in their house. A psychic is brought in. Things get creepy in just the way you expect them to in such a movie, but then they take a turn. Maybe you're not watching what you thought you were watching.
But then things take a few more turns.
It never stops feeling real, never lets up with the chill that creeps up my spine. There's a scene toward the end, with someone furiously digging a hole, and then something startling which follows that . . .
And that's all I'm gonna tell you. It's one of those movies you've just gotta see for yourself. It's not big or showy, and there aren't many effects.
But it uses everything it has very effectively. If you're someone who was impressed with BLAIR WITCH PROJECT when it first came out (and who still admitted to it later) or really like the concept of the PARANORMAL ACTIVITY movies, this might be for you. It might be for you even if you didn't like those movies.
There's an element of something unanswered at the end of this film, and it leaves me a bit haunted.
It might not be my favorite, and it might not be the best, but if you open yourself to LAKE MUNGO. . . it might just stay with you." - John E. Meredith, IG: @john_e_meredith