102. (+61) From Dusk Till Dawn

Robert Rodriguez

1996 / USA / 108m / Col / Vampire | IMDb
George Clooney, Quentin Tarantino, Harvey Keitel, Juliette Lewis, Ernest Liu, Salma Hayek, Cheech Marin, Danny Trejo, Tom Savini, Fred Williamson

“George Clooney, in his only horror role to date, gives a ballistic performance as the gangster Seth Gecko who has to fight for his life, while Juliette Lewis, Ernest Liu, and Harvey Keitel are bittersweet as the disjointed Fuller family who have to come together and make their peace when the vampires gain the upper hand mid-way. “From Dusk Till Dawn” is that perfect party horror movie that’s infinitely rewatchable. It’s filled with quick one-liners, top notch performances, and endless laugh out loud moments that double as genuine scares. Despite the low budget, every cast member puts their A game in the film, and “From Dusk Till Dawn” remains that genuinely excellent nineties horror film that you simply can’t help but adore.” – Felix Vasquez Jr., Cinema Crazed

Genres: Vampire, Action, Black Comedy, Horror, Neo-Western, Weird West, Road Movie, Splatter, Crime, Exploitation, Supernatural Horror, Body Horror, Horror Comedy, Siege Film

104. (-29) Martyrs

Pascal Laugier

2008 / France / 99m / Col / Splatter | IMDb
Morjana Alaoui, Mylène Jampanoï, Catherine Bégin, Robert Toupin, Patricia Tulasne, Juliette Gosselin, Xavier Dolan, Louise Boisvert, Jean-Marie Moncelet, Jessie Pham

“[Martyrs is] one of the most extreme pictures ever made, one of the finest horror movies of the last decade… What begins as an archetypal genre piece soon twists and snaps in unexpected directions, its dizzying plunges down midnight-black rabbit holes keeping viewers disorientated and vulnerable… Martyrs is, according to Laugier, the “anti-Hostel”, its savagery devoid of glee and its scalpel scraping at mind and soul… a technically brilliant, emotionally resonant, uncommonly cerebral horror film that dares to bend every rule, blend every mood. The first half comprises a reeling camera, disjointed cutting and a half-glimpsed phantom… The second half is mechanical and methodical, evoking Michael Haneke’s cruel austerity yet infused with genuine tenderness.” – Jamie Graham, Total Film

Genres: Sadistic Horror, New French Extremity, Psychological Horror, Splatter, Home Invasion, Body Horror, Psychological Drama

106. (+5) The Cabin in the Woods

Drew Goddard

2011 / USA / 95m / Col / Black Comedy | IMDb
Kristen Connolly, Chris Hemsworth, Anna Hutchison, Fran Kranz, Jesse Williams, Richard Jenkins, Bradley Whitford, Brian White, Amy Acker, Tim De Zarn

“Would you like your head thoroughly messed with? Then check straight into The Cabin in the Woods, the sort of horror movie that knows all the rules, knows that you know, and knows that you know it knows. But you still don’t know what’s coming next, for while this fiendish meta-horror makes a joke of its own mechanics – so much “how”, so little “why” – it also brings both victims and torturers into an unexpected alignment, one in which chaos is guaranteed and there’s literally nowhere to run.” – Anthony Quinn, Independent

Genres: Supernatural Horror, Black Comedy, Satire, Horror Comedy, Postmodernism, Zombie, Splatter, Science Fiction, Parody, Cosmic Horror, Teen Movie

108. (+64) In the Mouth of Madness

John Carpenter

1994 / USA / 95m / Col / Psychological | IMDb
Sam Neill, Julie Carmen, Jürgen Prochnow, David Warner, John Glover, Bernie Casey, Peter Jason, Charlton Heston, Frances Bay, Wilhelm von Homburg

“Carpenter uses the abnormal to his advantage also creating a finale that is so remarkably bizarre with his use of makeup effects to create odd looking zombie characters, and his change of colors and textures; you begin to feel absorbed into the film as well. The last moments of the movie is such a head trip, it will stay in your mind for days on end when you’ll begin to wonder what was real in the film and what wasn’t and ask who has the trick been played on? The characters in the film, or the audience watching it? Hardly terrifying, but where Carpenter fails in that device he makes up for in ambitious leaps of mind-boggling and odd entertainment. His knack for change in perspective and illusion truly make this a memorable masterpiece.” – Felix Vasquez Jr., Cinema Crazed

Genres: Psychological Horror, Cosmic Horror, Supernatural Horror, Mystery, Postmodernism, Surrealism, Body Horror, Gothic Horror

110. (+50) Gremlins

Joe Dante

1984 / USA / 106m / Col / Black Comedy | IMDb
Hoyt Axton, John Louie, Keye Luke, Don Steele, Susan Burgess, Scott Brady, Arnie Moore, Corey Feldman, Harry Carey Jr., Zach Galligan

“It’s a bit of Halloween at Christmastime, as the wicked are punished while the righteous simply have the wits frightened out of them, all for our edification and amusement. That puts some of the film’s darker materials into context. Dante crafts his funhouse with care, and in order to scare us, he needs to convince us of the seriousness of the threat. The gruesome sights of gremlins buying it in the microwave or meeting the wrong end of an electric juicer shock us, but also establish the idea that these are dangerous creatures. With that in place, Dante can then temper the mayhem with his gentler instincts and give us a happy ending without diminishing from the fright-wig shocks that crop up along the way.” – Rob Vaux, Mania.com

Genres: Black Comedy, Horror, Low Fantasy, Christmas, Horror Comedy, Family, Puppetry, Slapstick, Satire, Pets, Magical Realism

112. (+83) Vargtimmen

Ingmar Bergman

AKA: Hour of the Wolf

1968 / Sweden / 90m / BW / Psychological | IMDb
Max von Sydow, Liv Ullmann, Gertrud Fridh, Georg Rydeberg, Erland Josephson, Naima Wifstrand, Ulf Johansson, Gudrun Brost, Bertil Anderberg, Ingrid Thulin

“A brilliant Gothic fantasy about an artist who has disappeared, leaving only a diary; and through that diary we move into flashback to observe a classic case history of the Bergman hero haunted by darkness, demons and the creatures of his imagination until he is destroyed by them. The tentacular growth of this obsession is handled with typical virtuosity in a dazzling flow of surrealism, expressionism and full-blooded Gothic horror… In its exploration of the nature of creativity, haunted by the problem of whether the artist possesses or is possessed by his demons, Hour of the Wolf serves as a remarkable companion-piece to Persona.” – Tom Milne, Time Out

Genres: Psychological Drama, Surrealism, Psychological Horror, Gothic, Gothic Horror, Chamber Film

114. (+2) Get Out

Jordan Peele

2017 / USA / 104m / Col / Psychological | IMDb
Daniel Kaluuya, Allison Williams, Catherine Keener, Bradley Whitford, Caleb Landry Jones, Marcus Henderson, Betty Gabriel, Lakeith Stanfield, Stephen Root, LilRel Howery

“Writer and director Peele has pulled off a masterstroke with one of the most timely and horrifying satirical takes on anxieties facing African Americans in the 21st century. If that’s not enough, it also takes aim at the horrendous slaving past that blights the country’s history… Peele’s writing is sharp and to the point. There’s not wastage in the story. It gets straight to the point – that racism in all its forms is a horror story in and of itself. While it may make some audiences uncomfortable shining a light on the subject in an entertaining way, it doesn’t lessen the impact of the ignorance. The film even has the balls to take a pop at US policing in a suitably scathing remark on how some officers go beyond their powers to target people of colour.” – Garry McConnachie, Daily Record

Genres: Psychological Horror, Satire, Mystery, Black Comedy, Psychological Thriller

116. (+22) Pet Sematary

Mary Lambert

1989 / USA / 103m / Col / Supernatural | IMDb
Dale Midkiff, Fred Gwynne, Denise Crosby, Brad Greenquist, Michael Lombard, Miko Hughes, Blaze Berdahl, Susan Blommaert, Mara Clark, Kavi Raz

“A motion picture of loss and regret, “Pet Sematary” imagines the worst in its view of the permanent disintegration of a family. Haunting, sorrowful and reverberatingly eerie, the film is also complemented by the punk-rock flair of The Ramones (who perform the title track over the end credits) and the thoroughly unsettling, gothically enhanced instrumental score by Elliot Goldenthal (2007’s “Across the Universe”). That “Pet Sematary” is as creepy as it is without bogging down in genre trappings is a rare miracle in horror circles. Director Mary Lambert trusts in the universality of her characters, their tightly drawn relationships with each other, and the insurmountable conflicts they face to carry the story forward. It is these things that most resonate—these are what we relate to and can connect with, after all—and the reason why “Pet Sematary” has endured and not been forgotten in the twenty years since its release. ” – Dustin Putman, The Movie Boy

Genres: Supernatural Horror, Pets, Psychological Horror, Gothic, Tragedy, Zombie, Family Drama, Folk Horror, Surrealism

118. (+57) Child’s Play

Tom Holland

1988 / USA / 87m / Col / Supernatural | IMDb
Catherine Hicks, Chris Sarandon, Alex Vincent, Brad Dourif, Dinah Manoff, Tommy Swerdlow, Jack Colvin, Neil Giuntoli, Juan Ramírez, Alan Wilder

“Putting a menacing spin on the childhood idea that ours toys are alive, “Child’s Play” is a character-based thriller with a particularly creepy dark streak and a rare protagonist who is barely out of kindergarten. The film’s economically incorporated special effects, a mixture of animatronics, puppetry and human stand-ins, bring Chucky to vivid life, while Catherine Hicks (later going on to star in the long-running television drama “7th Heaven”) and young Alex Vincent (in his acting debut) are always convincing as an endangered mother and son faced with an unthinkable terror. With humor taking a backseat to good, old-fashioned suspense, and a sterling climax that raises the ante on the notion of an “unstoppable” killer, “Child’s Play” is an impressive horror highlight of the late-’80s film scene.” – Dustin Putman, The Movie Boy

Genres: Supernatural Horror, Slasher, Black Comedy, Voodoo Zombie, Horror Comedy

120. (+87) Event Horizon

Paul W.S. Anderson

1997 / USA / 96m / Col / Science Fiction | IMDb
Laurence Fishburne, Sam Neill, Kathleen Quinlan, Joely Richardson, Richard T. Jones, Jack Noseworthy, Jason Isaacs, Sean Pertwee, Peter Marinker, Holley Chant

“What saves Event Horizon from becoming some hokey Amityville Horror in space is the realistic performances of the cast—including Joely Richardson (Vanessa Redgrave’s daughter) and Apollo 13’s Kathleen Quinlan—and the strong element of psychological horror built into the script by first-time screenwriter Philip Eisner. Director Paul Anderson (Mortal Kombat) knows precisely when to insert action elements to beef up the film’s terror quotient, and its atmospheric art direction and meticulous production design—which is on a par with that of the great-looking Alien films—makes the spooks-in-space idea frighteningly believable.” – Steve Newton, Georgia Straight

Genres: Science Fiction, Cosmic Horror, Supernatural Horror, Space Exploration, Splatter, Psychological Horror, Body Horror, Mystery, Techno-Horror, Haunted House

122. (-35) El orfanato

J.A. Bayona

AKA: The Orphanage

2007 / Spain / 105m / Col / Haunted House | IMDb
Belén Rueda, Fernando Cayo, Roger Príncep, Mabel Rivera, Montserrat Carulla, Andrés Gertrúdix, Edgar Vivar, óscar Casas, Mireia Renau, Georgina Avellaneda

“This is a movie whose power and emotional pitch lie in the understated: the discreet performances, the lack of special effects, the laconic script. Yes, one can quibble over an unnecessary prologue, a drawn-out séance and a sentimental final sequence, but these are minor flaws in a poignant film that looks to the past and the world beyond to illuminate the realities of the present.” – Maria M. Delgado, Sight and Sound

Genres: Haunted House, Mystery, Drama, Psychological Horror, Gothic, Gothic Horror

124. (-25) Spoorloos

George Sluizer

AKA: The Vanishing

1988 / Netherlands / 107m / Col / Mystery | IMDb
Bernard-Pierre Donnadieu, Gene Bervoets, Johanna ter Steege, Gwen Eckhaus, Bernadette Le Saché, Tania Latarjet, Lucille Glenn, Roger Souza, Caroline Appéré

“”The Vanishing” is a thriller, but in a different way than most thrillers. It is a thriller about knowledge – about what the characters know about the disappearance, and what they know about themselves. The movie was directed by George Sluizer, based on a screenplay he did with Tim Krabbe, which in turn was based on Krabbe’s novel The Golden Egg. Together they have constructed a psychological jigsaw puzzle, a plot that makes you realize how simplistic many suspense films really are. The movie advances in a tantalizing fashion, supplying information obliquely, suggesting as much as it tells, and everything leads up to a climax that is as horrifying as it is probably inevitable.” – Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

Genres: Mystery, Psychological Thriller, Psychological Drama, Crime

126. (+73) The Devils

Ken Russell

1971 / UK / 111m / Col / Psychological | IMDb
Vanessa Redgrave, Oliver Reed, Dudley Sutton, Max Adrian, Gemma Jones, Murray Melvin, Michael Gothard, Georgina Hale, Brian Murphy, Christopher Logue

“It’s a blistering, raw attack on governmental misuse and perversion of religion to achieve its own end. While it presents strikingly irreligious imagery, the film itself is not irreligious in the least. Indeed, at the height of perverted insanity of the mass exorcisms, Grandier walks into the midst of it all and says, “You have turned the house of the Lord into a circus, and its servants into clowns. You have perverted the innocent.” It is this that the film attacks, not the Church itself. Bear this in mind if you choose to tackle this remarkable—and for some, remarkably difficult—film.” – Ken Hanke, Mountain Xpress

Genres: Period Drama, Psychological Horror, Nunsploitation, Folk Horror, Black Comedy, Psychological Drama, Religious Film, Surrealism, Epidemic, Postmodernism

128. (+34) The Lost Boys

Joel Schumacher

1987 / USA / 97m / Col / Vampire | IMDb
Jason Patric, Corey Haim, Dianne Wiest, Barnard Hughes, Edward Herrmann, Kiefer Sutherland, Jami Gertz, Corey Feldman, Jamison Newlander, Brooke McCarter

“In the grand scheme of things, this is obviously just a frothy teen picture, just edgy enough in its depiction of subcultures and violence to seem more cutting-edge than condescending, and just free enough with jokes that it’s safe for non-fans of horror to come in, despite a considerable amount of blood for its presumptive target audience – then again, in the 1980s, teen films weren’t half as sanitary and washed-out as they are now. The nervy sexual undercurrent to the whole thing makes it relatively unique among most of the films in the same wheelhouse from the same time, but it’s such a small thing in the overall scheme of the movie. Still, its fleet, and it’s not nearly as stupid as “Peter Pan with vampires” could easily be, and like I said: great final line. I’m disinclined to call it anything other than well-made trash, but the key here is well-made: a breezy, fun teen genre film that’s pleasurable without being taxing.” – Tim Brayton, Antagony & Ecstasy

Genres: Vampire, Teen Movie, Horror, Comedy, Horror Comedy

130. (+20) The VVitch: A New-England Folktale

Robert Eggers

AKA: The Witch

2015 / USA / 92m / Col / Supernatural | IMDb
Anya Taylor-Joy, Ralph Ineson, Kate Dickie, Harvey Scrimshaw, Lucas Dawson, Ellie Grainger, Julian Richings, Bathsheba Garnett, Sarah Stephens

“Laying an imaginative foundation for the 1692 Salem witchcraft trials that would follow decades later, writer-director Robert Eggers’ impressive debut feature walks a tricky line between disquieting ambiguity and full-bore supernatural horror, but leaves no doubt about the dangerously oppressive hold that Christianity exerted on some dark corners of the Puritan psyche. With its formal, stylized diction and austere approach to genre, this accomplished feat of low-budget period filmmaking will have to work considerable marketing magic to translate appreciative reviews into specialty box-office success, but clearly marks Eggers as a storyteller of unusual rigor and ambition.” – Justin Chang, Variety

Genres: Supernatural Horror, Psychological Horror, Folk Horror, Family Drama, Period Drama, Psychological Drama

132. (+2) Witchfinder General

Michael Reeves

AKA: The Conqueror Worm

1968 / UK / 86m / Col / Folk | IMDb
Vincent Price, Ian Ogilvy, Rupert Davies, Hilary Heath, Robert Russell, Nicky Henson, Tony Selby, Bernard Kay, Godfrey James, Michael Beint

“Price is superb as real-life witchhunter Matthew Hopkins, who satisfies his lusts for money, power and sex under the guise of a Christian seeking to rid the world of Satan worshippers. Writer-director Michael Reeves pulls no punches with this absorbing material, and while the film (based on Ronald Bassett’s novel) fudges many of the historical facts, it’s unrelenting in its depiction of the way in which unbridled evil has the power to destroy all forms of innocence and virtue.” – Matt Brunson, Creative Loafing

Genres: Period Drama, Folk Horror, Sadistic Horror

134. (-67) Gojira

Ishirô Honda

AKA: Godzilla

1954 / Japan / 96m / BW / Monster | IMDb
Akira Takarada, Momoko Kôchi, Akihiko Hirata, Takashi Shimura, Fuyuki Murakami, Sachio Sakai, Toranosuke Ogawa, Ren Yamamoto, Hiroshi Hayashi, Takeo Oikawa

“The special effects for this re-released 1954 film by Ishiro Honda may now look a bit creaky, but the storytelling is muscular and the post-nuclear parable it offers is passionate and fascinatingly ambiguous… Godzilla wreaks devastation on Japanese cities – portrayed in such a way as explicitly to recall Hiroshima and the Allies’ bombing of Tokyo. Could it be that Godzilla gave Japan a way of confronting the carnage imaginatively, without the chagrin of military defeat? Or that Godzilla symbolises Japan’s defiant survival, and even indeed its righteous anger and its own undiminished potential for retaliatory destruction?… Either way, Godzilla’s killing looks movingly sacrificial, a renunciation of violence.” – Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian

Genres: Science Fiction, Disaster, Kaiju, Giant Monster, Drama, Horror

136. (+22) Hereditary

Ari Aster

2018 / USA / 127m / Col / Supernatural | IMDb
Alex Wolff, Gabriel Byrne, Toni Collette, Milly Shapiro, Christy Summerhays, Morgan Lund, Mallory Bechtel, Jake Brown, Harrison Nell, BriAnn Rachele

“This remarkable directorial debut from Ari Aster builds on classical horror tropes — the occult, possession, mental illness — to craft its own unique spin on terror… The finale, in which I may or may not have curled up in my chair, manages to be both terrifying and so over-the-top it allows you a shaky laugh or two. I knew Collette was a versatile performer, but I didn’t know bone-chilling shrieks were in her repertoire… All you need to know is you’re in good hands, and that this is the kind of deeply primal, psychological horror that gives the genre a good name.” – Sara Stewart, New York Post

Genres: Supernatural Horror, Psychological Horror, Psychological Drama, Family Drama, Folk Horror, Tragedy

138. (+195) Picnic at Hanging Rock

Peter Weir

1975 / Australia / 115m / Col / Mystery | IMDb
Rachel Roberts, Vivean Gray, Helen Morse, Kirsty Child, Tony Llewellyn-Jones, Jacki Weaver, Frank Gunnell, Anne-Louise Lambert, Karen Robson, Jane Vallis

“That [Weir] also refuses to answer the questions the film presses upon us is a tactical risk, but it works because he is not setting it up as a straightforward narrative. He is playing with themes and images, and only elusively with a plot. The girls that remain behind become hysterical, unable to explain what became of their friends, and there is a strong allusion to the force of nature that also exists within their pubescent bodies, as if sexual awakening can have devastating outward results — an idea exemplified when the girls are spotted barefoot in the bush from afar by a stable boy and a young English aristocrat. From their point of view, they are both angels and sirens, and when the boys follow they find no trace of them. Meanwhile, their headmistress, played with stoic force by Rachel Roberts, is determined there is a rational explanation, but no answer will be forthcoming. It is a dreamlike journey with no resolution, just fragments and suggestions, leaving an almost painful sense of longing for these lost creatures.” – Ian Nathan, Empire Magazine

140. (-37) The Uninvited

Lewis Allen

1944 / USA / 99m / BW / Haunted House | IMDb
Ray Milland, Ruth Hussey, Donald Crisp, Cornelia Otis Skinner, Dorothy Stickney, Barbara Everest, Alan Napier, Gail Russell

“There’s nothing particularly frightening about “The Uninvited.” Its thrills and chills are little frissons that tickle the imagination instead of grabbing by the throat. Instead, it has earned its honored place in the haunted house genre primarily by dint of its earnestness. Even when Rick and Pamela fire off one-liners, one never gets the sense that Allen or the screenwriters have planted tongues in cheeks. The twisty back story has its campy elements, but they’re always taken seriously and the film delivers a potent emotional payoff as a result.” – Christopher Long, Movie Metropolis

Genres: Haunted House, Mystery, Gothic HorroR

142. (+32) Hausu

Nobuhiko Ôbayashi

AKA: House

1977 / Japan / 88m / Col / Haunted House | IMDb
Kimiko Ikegami, Miki Jinbo, Kumiko Ohba, Ai Matsubara, Mieko Satô, Eriko Tanaka, Masayo Miyako, Kiyohiko Ozaki, Saho Sasazawa, Asei Kobayashi

“No summary really does House justice. And every little thing about it demands attention: from the schoolgirls themselves—precocious archetypes who go by the nicknames Gorgeous, Melody, Fantasy, Prof, Sweet, Mac, and Kung Fu—to the anything-goes flourishes of gimmick and technique, which evoke everything from silent film to children’s shows, classic surrealist cinema to Italian giallo. Obayashi crams every frame with a surplus of mad ideas, as if his background in 30-second spots demanded he never let the screen remain calm for an instant. He loves superimpositions, Day-Glo matte horizons and cotton-candy color schemes, crudely animated special effects (like amputated fingers playing a piano and a watermelon that becomes a carnivorous, high-flying human head), and jarring, jaw-dropping juxtapositions.” – Steve Dollar, Paste Magazine

Genres: Haunted House, Absurdist Comedy, Surrealism, Horror Comedy, Teen Movie, Black Comedy, Cutout Animation, Experimental, Slapstick

144. (-12) The Devil Rides Out

Terence Fisher

AKA: The Devil’s Bride

1968 / UK / 96m / Col / Supernatural | IMDb
Christopher Lee, Charles Gray, Nike Arrighi, Leon Greene, Patrick Mower, Gwen Ffrangcon Davies, Sarah Lawson, Paul Eddington, Rosalyn Landor, Russell Waters

“Over the years, this film’s reputation has grown enormously, and its cult status must be as high as any horror movie. Richard Matheson, who scripted it, was able to improve immeasurably on Dennis Wheatley’s ponderous novel, and it is consequently the best film that Fisher and Hammer ever made, an almost perfect example of the kind of thing that can happen when melodrama is achieved so completely and so imaginatively that it ceases to be melodrama at all and becomes a full-scale allegorical vision. Christopher Lee has never been better than as the grim opponent of Satanism, and the night in the pentacle during which the forces of evil mobilise an epic series of cinematic temptations rediscovers aspects of mythology which the cinema had completely overlooked.” – Time Out

Genres: Supernatural Horror, Folk Horror, Gothic Horror, Mystery

146. (-25) Paranormal Activity

Oren Peli

2007 / USA / 86m / Col / Found Footage | IMDb
Katie Featherston, Micah Sloat, Mark Fredrichs, Amber Armstrong, Ashley Palmer

“Don’t expect CGI clouds of ectoplasm: the scares here are strictly bargain-basement, even reduced-for-clearance: a chandelier swings, a shadow looms and things go bump! – and then thump!, to ensure you’re getting your money’s worth. Peli’s film revives the honourable tradition of chills-by-suggestion, whereby what we don’t see is far scarier than what we do. In fact, the very eeriest moment is a lengthy shot in which we just gaze at an empty room, and dread what will come next.” – Jonathan Romney, Independent on Sunday

Genres: Supernatural Horror, Found Footage Horror, Chamber Film, Haunted House

148. (+70) Dead Ringers

David Cronenberg

1988 / Canada / 116m / Col / Psychological | IMDb
Jeremy Irons, Geneviève Bujold, Heidi von Palleske, Barbara Gordon, Shirley Douglas, Stephen Lack, Nick Nichols, Lynne Cormack, Damir Andrei, Miriam Newhouse

“[Cronenberg] clearly understands that a small amount of medical mischief can be more unnerving than conventional grisliness. Even the film’s opening credits, which present antiquated obstetrical drawings and strange medical instruments, are enough to make audiences queasy. Who, then, will be drawn to this spectacle? Anyone with a taste for the macabre wit, the weird poignancy and the shifting notions of identity that lend ‘Dead Ringers’ such fascination. And anyone who cares to see Jeremy Irons’s seamless performance, a schizophrenic marvel, in the two title roles. Mr. Cronenberg has shaped a startling tale of physical and psychic disintegration, pivoting on the twins’ hopeless interdependence and playing havoc with the viewer’s grip on reality.” – Janet Maslin, The New York Times

150. (-84) The Thing from Another World

Christian Nyby

1951 / USA / 87m / BW / Science Fiction | IMDb
Margaret Sheridan, Kenneth Tobey, Robert Cornthwaite, Douglas Spencer, James Young, Dewey Martin, Robert Nichols, William Self, Eduard Franz, Sally Creighton

“One of the great sci-fi classics, a Hawks film in all but director credit (he produced, planned the film, supervised the shooting). The gradual build-up of tension, as a lonely group of scientists in the Antarctic discover a flying saucer and its deadly occupant, is quite superb; while The Thing itself (played by Arness) is shown sufficiently little to create real menace. As in most of Hawks’ work, the emphasis is on professionalism in a tiny, isolated community, on a love relationship evolving semi-flippant fashion into something important, and on group solidarity.” – Time Out

Genres: Science Fiction, Horror, Alien Invasion, Cosmic Horror

152. (+19) Kairo

Kiyoshi Kurosawa

AKA: Pulse

2001 / Japan / 119m / Col / J-Horror | IMDb
Haruhiko Katô, Kumiko Asô, Koyuki, Kurume Arisaka, Masatoshi Matsuo, Shinji Takeda, Jun Fubuki, Shun Sugata, Shô Aikawa, Kôji Yakusho

“Cross the “Ring” series with “Invasion of the Body Snatchers” and the result wouldn’t be far from “Pulse,” another step on the road back to the psychothriller genre by which cult Japanese helmer Kiyoshi Kurosawa first made his name overseas… Though “Pulse” has vague correspondences with Kurosawa’s more serious movies, like “Charisma,” it never strays far from its genre roots, with an ambiguous tone that oscillates between sheer psychothriller silliness and moments of haunting abstraction when time and the real world seem to momentarily freeze. Lensing by Junichiro Hayashi is a fillip throughout, with a cold, clammy patina in several scenes (such as Ryosuke and Harue in the subway) that could come from no other director.” – Derek Elley, Variety

Genres: J-Horror, Psychological Horror, Digital Horror, Post-Apocalyptic, Psychological Drama, Cosmic Horror, Hyperlink Cinema

154. (+86) Tenebre

Dario Argento

AKA: Unsane

1982 / Italy / 101m / Col / Giallo | IMDb
Anthony Franciosa, Christian Borromeo, Mirella D’Angelo, Veronica Lario, Ania Pieroni, Eva Robin’s, Carola Stagnaro, John Steiner, Lara Wendel, John Saxon

“The film synthesizes all the familiar Argento motifs (psycho killers, bloody violence, convoluted plot twists, pulse pounding music) into an almost perfect symphony of fear that overcomes many of his traditional shortcomings (credibility and characterization). The truly impressive achievement of this movie is that it is not just a collection of outrageous set pieces, tied together by an off-the-wall plot; it is a compact, tightly structured unit that attacks the viewer’s comfort zone with all the precision of a deftly wielded scalpel.” – Steve Biodrowski, Cinefantastique

Genres: Giallo, Psychological Thriller, Horror, Splatter, Crime

156. (+214) Society

Brian Yuzna

1989 / USA / 99m / Col / Body Horror | IMDb
Billy Warlock, Devin DeVasquez, Evan Richards, Ben Meyerson, Charles Lucia, Connie Danese, Patrice Jennings, Heidi Kozak, Ben Slack, David Wiley

“Ostensibly, it would seem that Society is an allegory for adolescent growth, told in the familiar mechanism of a teen’s amateur investigation and resulting contamination. Justifiably, the film recalls Scooby Doo, Blue Velvet, Salò, and even presages Eyes Wide Shut. In this case the concept is rendered in the mechanics of 80s horror and Cold War paranoia; it may be dated, but the film’s finale, scored in a reprisal of “The Blue Danube” and ample prosthetic body makeup, retains a striking ability to repulse and frighten… Society’s effectiveness as a satire is somewhat overshadowed by its shocking final scene, which is a masterpiece of prosthetic special effects.” – Rumsey Taylor, Not Coming to a Theater Near You

158. (-50) The Abominable Dr. Phibes

Robert Fuest

AKA: The Curse of Dr. Phibes

1971 / USA / 94m / Col / Black Comedy | IMDb
Vincent Price, Joseph Cotten, Hugh Griffith, Terry-Thomas, Virginia North, Peter Jeffrey, Derek Godfrey, Norman Jones, John Cater, Aubrey Woods

“The whole thing is a deadpan, blood-soaked lark, buoyed by uniformly terrific performances – I’ll admit that knowing Cotten’s role was intended for Peter Cushing makes it a lot harder to like what he’s up to in the part – and bright, contagiously weird visuals, and one of the oddest soundtracks that any “horror” movie has ever received (mostly smoky jazz and swing recordings of pop standards – and anachronistic for 1925, to boot). It may even be the quintessential Vincent Price vehicle: it is, after all, a sustained exercise in being very smart about being a very dumb B-movie, and this, applied to acting, describes nearly all of Price’s great roles (though some, like Witchfinder General and a few of the Roger Corman Poe movies, find him genuinely acting well).” – Tim Brayton, Antagony & Ecstasy

Genres: Horror, Black Comedy, Mystery, Horror Comedy, Gothic, Gothic Horror, Police Procedural

160. (-72) Haute tension

Alexandre Aja

AKA: High Tension

2003 / France / 91m / Col / Slasher | IMDb
Cécile De France, Maïwenn, Philippe Nahon, Franck Khalfoun, Andrei Finti, Oana Pellea, Marco Claudiu Pascu, Jean-Claude de Goros, Bogdan Uritescu, Gabriel Spahiu

“Director Alexandre Aja manages to create one of the most layered and suspenseful slasher films ever made since “Halloween” and while displaying often disturbing scenes of graphic violence, the film’s main point is its atmosphere and tension as these two people play a game of cat and mouse trying to outwit one another relentlessly. The film continuously runs on a loop of a pretty plot-less and utter pointless violence and gore which becomes an exercise in snuff and brutality that didn’t satisfy any need I had for a true horror movie.” – Felix Vasquez Jr., Cinema Crazed

Genres: Slasher, New French Extremity, Splatter, Home Invasion, Sadistic Horror, Psychological Horror, LGBTQ

162. (-15) Janghwa, Hongryeon

Kim Jee-woon

AKA: A Tale of Two Sisters

2003 / South Korea / 115m / Col / Psychological | IMDb
Kap-su Kim, Jung-ah Yum, Su-jeong Lim, Geun-Young Moon, Seung-bi Lee, Park Mi-Hyun

“The film’s most striking aspect is Kim’s framing, which includes a fair number of overhead shots and off-kilter angles. The art of horror filmmaking lies in defining screen space, so that audiences are led to look beyond the foreground for what might be jumping into the emptiness. With A Tale Of Two Sisters, it takes time to adjust to what Kim shows, which means the audience—and the sisters—have a hard time figuring out where the scares are coming from.” – Noel Murray, A.V. Club

Genres: Psychological Horror, K-Horror, Mystery, Psychological Thriller, Psychological Drama, Haunted House, Family Drama, Chamber Film

164. (-68) The Masque of the Red Death

Roger Corman

1964 / USA / 89m / Col / Gothic | IMDb
Vincent Price, Hazel Court, Jane Asher, David Weston, Nigel Green, Patrick Magee, Paul Whitsun-Jones, Skip Martin, Robert Brown, Julian Burton

“In one of his best villainous performances, Price displays admirable restraint, avoiding the over-the-top ham that typified his horror roles at this time, instead putting his tongue-in-cheek style in the service of his bemused character (instead of using it as a sarcastic comment on the character), and the script is sophisticated in a way that few horror films are. Corman does the best work of his career, aided by the wonderful cinematography of Nicolas Roeg. MASQUE is not only the pinnacle of Corman’s Poe films; it is also one of the best horror films ever made.” – Steve Biodrowski, Hollywood Gothique

Genres: Gothic Horror, Medieval, Epidemic, Supernatural Horror, Period Drama, Melodrama

166. (-94) The Curse of Frankenstein

Terence Fisher

1957 / UK / 82m / Col / Gothic | IMDb
Peter Cushing, Hazel Court, Robert Urquhart, Christopher Lee, Melvyn Hayes, Valerie Gaunt, Paul Hardtmuth, Noel Hood, Fred Johnson, Claude Kingston

“Frankenstein was the biggest name in horror from 1931 until 1948 when Universal’s flathead met Abbott and Costello, at which point the tragic, fearsome Monster became a laughable goon… Then Hammer Films, a small British production company, had an unexpected hit with The Quatermass Experiment (1956) and cast around for another monster. They seized on the idea of remaking the original science-gone-mad property, in bloody colour and with as much bodice-ripping and eyeball-in-a-jar action as the censors would allow… it adds dynamism and British grit to a genre that had previously tried to get by on atmospherics and mood alone. It manages to be shocking without being especially frightening, and its virtues of performance and style remain striking.” – Kim Newman, Empire

Genres: Gothic Horror, Science Fiction

168. (+114) Sleepaway Camp

Robert Hiltzik

AKA: Nightmare Vacation

1983 / USA / 84m / Col / Slasher | IMDb
Felissa Rose, Jonathan Tiersten, Karen Fields, Christopher Collet, Mike Kellin, Katherine Kamhi, Paul DeAngelo, Thomas E. van Dell, Loris Sallahian, John E. Dunn

“The combination of edgy themes, a shocking twist, appropriately nasty violence, and some humorously amateurish moments of filmmaking make Sleepaway Camp kind of fun, even though it’s by no means a great work of art. Rose, Tiersten, and Fields all give good, authentic performances, and the twist ending really is surprising. Sleepaway Camp ends with that twist, freeze-framing on an image that has become iconic to hardcore horror buffs everywhere. The movie won’t be everyone’s cup of tea, but for those with a strong interest in cinematic scares, it is most definitely a gutsy picture that deserves to be seen and discussed.” – Mike McGranaghan, Aisle Seat

Genres: Slasher, Teen Movie, Mystery, Black Comedy

170. (+72) Tetsuo

Shin’ya Tsukamoto

AKA: Tetsuo, the Iron Man

1989 / Japan / 67m / Col / Body Horror | IMDb
Tomorowo Taguchi, Kei Fujiwara, Nobu Kanaoka, Shin’ya Tsukamoto, Naomasa Musaka, Renji Ishibashi

“Though it may just seem like one big geek show gross out, Tetsuo: The Iron Man is actually a movie about revenge. It’s about man’s revenge against man, technology’s revenge against humans, nature’s revenge against technology and the neverending revenge between elements of karma and the primal forces of the universe. It’s a sick, cyclical meditation on physicality, mixing imagery both derivative and disgusting. It plays tricks with cinematic convention, drops narrative in favor of nastiness, and always manages to make sense, even if it is in its own obtuse, offensive way. It’s part comic book, part alien autopsy, and all visual violence, laced with enough wicked cinematic style to make other wannabe cyberpunks pale in comparison.” – Bill Gibron, DVDTalk

Genres: Body Horror, Surrealism, Cyberpunk, Experimental, Techno-Horror, Pixilation, Psychological Horror

172. (+19) Village of the Damned

Wolf Rilla

1960 / UK / 77m / BW / Science Fiction | IMDb
George Sanders, Barbara Shelley, Martin Stephens, Michael Gwynn, Laurence Naismith, Richard Warner, Jenny Laird, Sarah Long, Thomas Heathcote

“A modest but intelligent and extremely effective adaptation of John Wyndham’s novel The Midwich Cuckoos, about a small English village which mysteriously and inexplicably succumbs to a 24-hour trance-like sleep, after which the womenfolk all discover that they are pregnant. The alien children, strangely alike in appearance, prove to be endowed with telepathic and kinetic powers…You don’t get much explanation, and the overall plot may not withstand detailed analysis. But the atmosphere and pace are superbly handled, and the performances of the sinister, inhumanly intelligent ‘children’ never falter. The allegorical possibilities (generation gap?) are there, but they don’t get in the way.” – Time Out

Genres: Science Fiction, Mystery, Horror, Alien Invasion

174. (+24) The Hitcher

Robert Harmon

1986 / USA / 97m / Col / Thriller | IMDb
Rutger Hauer, C. Thomas Howell, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Jeffrey DeMunn, John M. Jackson, Billy Green Bush, Jack Thibeau, Armin Shimerman, Gene Davis, Jon Van Ness

“All in all, the film is bottomlessly nihilistic, which certainly accounts for the acidic reception it received in 1986 (it has since picked up a bit of a cult; you’ve no doubt picked up by now that I enthusiastically count myself a member). But it earns the nihilism, I think; for one, by casting things so clearly as a kind of dark fantasy, divorced from the actions of real people. And also, by being so utterly damn good at creating that nihilism: it is a brilliantly shot and acted film with drum-tight editing and a tetchy, synth-driven score that should sound irredeemably like the ’80s (and honestly, that’s often just how it does sound), but hits certain points where it’s sufficiently otherworldly to boost those scenes to an extra level of bleakness. Just because something isn’t nice doesn’t mean it can’t be well-made.” – Tim Brayton, Antagony & Ecstasy

Genres: Thriller, Road Movie, Crime, Action, Horror, Psychological Thriller, Neo-Western, Slasher, Weird West

176. (+75) Ravenous

Antonia Bird

1999 / UK / 101m / Col / Western | IMDb
Guy Pearce, Robert Carlyle, David Arquette, Jeremy Davies, Jeffrey Jones, John Spencer, Stephen Spinella, Neal McDonough, Joseph Runningfox, Bill Brochtrup

“From the moment Michael Nyman and Damon Albarn’s tinny, non-traditional score rises, there’s a, “Wait, did they mean to do that?” quality to the film. Ravenous doesn’t sound or look like other movies—for better and for worse. That eccentricity helps once it becomes clearer that Ravenous is meant to function as a historical/political allegory, using the “survival of the fittest” plot as an analogue to the way the U.S. gobbled up land throughout the 19th century. The movie is really about Boyd’s ethical crisis as he realizes that being a soldier—and a cannibal—means swallowing things he finds distasteful. Bird and Griffin aren’t shy about making that point; Ravenous openly declares its meaning over and over during its final half-hour. But the rest of the film is so entertainingly odd that the lack of subtlety doesn’t seem so egregious. Whatever the circumstances that led to the cast and crew of Ravenous feeling abandoned and aimless, from scene to scene, they did their best to make something distinctive.” – Noel Murray, The Dissolve

Genres: Cannibal, Revisionist Western, Thriller, Weird West, Survival, Folk Horror, War, Black Comedy, Northern

178. (-109) House of Wax

André De Toth

1953 / USA / 88m / Col / Gothic | IMDb
Vincent Price, Frank Lovejoy, Phyllis Kirk, Carolyn Jones, Paul Picerni, Roy Roberts, Angela Clarke, Paul Cavanagh, Dabbs Greer, Charles Bronson

“House of Wax is not particularly scary or suspenseful, but it is a lot of fun and effectively creates an atmosphere of dread using bright colors and shadows. One great 3-D effect has Buchinsky leaping from just under the foreground, so that it looks like he has come out of the audience. The movie also has a sense of humor, as shown by the use of the paddleball man in front of the wax museum who whacks the toy into the audience. The movie is also known as Vincent Price’s first foray into horror, for which he is now best remembered.” – Jeffrey M. Anderson, Combustible Celluloid

Genres: Horror, Crime, Gothic Horror, Black Comedy

180. (+26) Army of Darkness

Sam Raimi

1992 / USA / 81m / Col / Comedy | IMDb
Bruce Campbell, Embeth Davidtz, Marcus Gilbert, Ian Abercrombie, Richard Grove, Timothy Patrick Quill, Michael Earl Reid, Bridget Fonda, Patricia Tallman, Ted Raimi

“It would be wildly easy for this to turn into something sour and cynical, to the point where it would be almost unbearable to watch. The only reason it doesn’t is because of how much joy is going into the project: Army of Darkness is a movie’s movie, cheerfully referencing the great Jason and the Argonauts, and lingering over its vibrantly cheesy special effects with real, obvious love for the sets and monsters it evokes. I is a celebration of artifice and spooky atmospherics, refusing to take its content seriously mostly because it’s so pleased to have fun, and if that leaves it the shallowest of the Evil Dead trilogy, it is nonetheless maybe the most wholly charming.” – Tim Brayton, Antagony & Ecstasy

Genres: Fantasy, Comedy, Adventure, Medieval, Horror Comedy, Slapstick, Supernatural Horror, Sword and Sorcery, Time Travel, Black Comedy, Stop-Motion, Siege Film, Absurdist Comedy, Action, Zombie

182. (-46) The Mist

Frank Darabont

2007 / USA / 126m / Col / Monster | IMDb
Thomas Jane, Marcia Gay Harden, Laurie Holden, Andre Braugher, Toby Jones, William Sadler, Jeffrey DeMunn, Frances Sternhagen, Nathan Gamble, Alexa Davalos

“Darabont generally understands what works and what doesn’t in King’s story and makes the best of what he can – his few changes only spell out stuff that was better left deliberately vague in book form but need to be highlighted in a movie. His filmmaking choices also yield some wildly fluctuating results – the handheld camera technique and lack of musical score are strengths, the production values are solid too, but the decidedly weak CGI renders some sequences – most notably the tentacle attack in the early scenes – almost laughably bad. Its the more practical effects moments, and the vague shapes in the distance of the mist, that prove far more effective.” – Garth Franklin, Dark Horizons

Genres: Cosmic Horror, Psychological Thriller, Horror, Siege Film, Disaster, Giant Monster, Science Fiction, Psychological Horror, Supernatural Horror, Survival

184. (+49) Busanhaeng

Sang-ho Yeon

AKA: Train to Busan

2016 / South Korea / 118m / Col / Zombie | IMDb
Yoo Gong, Soo-an Kim, Yu-mi Jung, Dong-seok Ma, Woo-sik Choi, Sohee, Eui-sung Kim, Gwi-hwa Choi, Terri Doty, Jang Hyuk-Jin

“Crucially, [director] Yeon has come up with a take on zombies that is rooted deep in the genre but still feels innovative. Like Romero’s undead, these are an inescapable evil spreading across the world to offer a sly commentary on our modern society… Yeon establishes himself as a gifted action director: one mid-journey stop at an apparently deserted station turns into a terrifying set-piece that’s among the year’s best. But it’s a slow struggle through carriages full of infected people to reach a stranded loved one that really stands out… In the end, Yeon goes back to the human story and delivers a surprisingly emotional climax. It may seem like a shift of tone, but maybe family ties were the point all along.” – Helen O’Hara, Empire Magazine

Genres: Zombie, Thriller, Survival, Epidemic, Horror, Train Movie, Action, Drama, Family Drama

186. (+45) M – Eine Stadt sucht einen Mörder

Fritz Lang

AKA: M

1931 / Germany / 117m / BW / Crime | IMDb
Peter Lorre, Ellen Widmann, Inge Landgut, Otto Wernicke, Theodor Loos, Gustaf Gründgens, Friedrich Gnaß, Fritz Odemar, Paul Kemp, Theo Lingen

“Building its story on visual rhymes that are carried by dialogue that periodically turns into offscreen narration, and fusing the two great traditions of silent film–montage/ editing and camera movement/mise en scene–this astonishing movie represents an unsurpassed grand synthesis of storytelling. Lang himself correctly maintained to the end of his life that M was his best film–not so much for its formal beauty as for the social analysis that its form articulates.” – Jonathan Rosenbaum, Chicago Reader

Genres: Crime, Thriller, Straßenfilm, Police Procedural, German Expressionism, Gangster Film, Film noir

188. (+111) Prince of Darkness

John Carpenter

1987 / USA / 102m / Col / Supernatural | IMDb
Donald Pleasence, Jameson Parker, Victor Wong, Lisa Blount, Dennis Dun, Susan Blanchard, Anne Marie Howard, Ann Yen, Ken Wright, Dirk Blocker

“”Prince of Darkness,” while still the same trapped in a house formula, manages to hold up as a creepy and dread soaked horror film that Carpenter is able to direct with immense flair. Carpenter is a genius about confining stories to one setting and building an incredible narrative from it. “Prince of Darkness” garners a considerably low budget, but the terror and urgency is so present, you can’t even care. The characters are stuck in the church with no holy presence, and trapped by possessed armies of the homeless that tear anyone apart who dares to attempt escape. Meanwhile, there is no one aware they’re in this church, so they’re an island in an urban setting, along with zero hope. Much of “Prince of Darkness” is based around mounting dread and an ultimate pay off, and Carpenter builds every scene to a great crescendo.” – Felix Vasquez Jr., Cinema Crazed

Genres: Cosmic Horror, Science Fiction, Supernatural Horror, Siege Film, Mystery, Body Horror

190. (+11) No profanar el sueño de los muertos

Jorge Grau

AKA: The Living Dead at Manchester Morgue

1974 / Italy / 93m / Col / Zombie | IMDb
Cristina Galbó, Ray Lovelock, Arthur Kennedy, Aldo Massasso, Giorgio Trestini, Roberto Posse, José Lifante, Jeannine Mestre, Gengher Gatti, Fernando Hilbeck

“Even if judged on style alone, the film would be a triumph; though not much different from your typical lurching creeps, these zombies wheeze and moan like no other, a simple audio gimmick that is blatantly manipulative but absolutely creepy, not the least for its relative subtlety. Let Sleeping Corpses Lie artfully builds its atmosphere of spiritual (and social) unrest with its gliding cinematography, and the thrills pile up faster than any of its potential flaws or abandonments of logic. Though no Halloween or Carrie, this little gem is not unlike an undiscovered wine, long ripening and ready to be savored.” – Rob Humanick, Projection Booth

Genres: Zombie, Horror, Splatter

192. (+32) Cube

Vincenzo Natali

1997 / Canada / 90m / Col / Science Fiction | IMDb
Maurice Dean Wint, David Hewlett, Nicole de Boer, Nicky Guadagni, Andrew Miller, Julian Richings, Wayne Robson

“When one slows down to consider the amount of energy and planning that had to go into setting up shots and piecing them together and focusing on just the right bits of the walls to make sure that scenes would flow right, and transition from one to the other properly, Cube can only be regarded as a titanic masterpiece of resource management. That’s just about the least sexy thing you could ever praise a filmmaker for doing, but making the movie this seamless required tremendous skill and attention, and at the level of pure craftsmanship, Cube is among the most genuinely impressive low-budget films that I have ever seen.” – Tim Brayton, Antagony & Ecstasy

Genres: Science Fiction, Mystery, Psychological Thriller, Death Game, Psychological Horror, Chamber Film, Survival, Prison Film

194. (+303) Young Frankenstein

Mel Brooks

1974 / USA / 106m / Col / Comedy | IMDb
Gene Wilder, Peter Boyle, Marty Feldman, Madeline Kahn, Cloris Leachman, Teri Garr, Kenneth Mars, Richard Haydn, Liam Dunn, Danny Goldman

“It’s a silly, zizzy picture — a farce-parody of Hollywood’s mad-scientist—trying-to-be-God pictures, with Wilder as the old Baron Frankenstein’s grandson, an American professor of neurology, who takes a trip to the family castle in Transylvania. Peter Boyle is the Frankenstein monster, and Madeline Kahn is the professor’s plastic-woman fiancée, who becomes the monster’s bride. It isn’t a dialogue comedy; it’s visceral and lower. It’s what used to be called a crazy comedy, and there hasn’t been this kind of craziness on the screen in years. It’s a film to go to when your rhythm is slowed down and you’re too tired to think… You can go to see it when you can barely keep your eyes open, and come out feeling relaxed and recharged.” – Pauline Kael, New Yorker

196. (-73) Drag Me to Hell

Sam Raimi

2009 / USA / 99m / Col / Supernatural | IMDb
Alison Lohman, Justin Long, Lorna Raver, Dileep Rao, David Paymer, Adriana Barraza, Chelcie Ross, Reggie Lee, Molly Cheek, Bojana Novakovic

“As scary as the film is, it is still downright hilarious in all the right (and sometimes very wrong) ways. I fear that the more casual horror fans won’t quite get the joke; the joke of course being that the entire film is actually One. Big. Joke. Drag Me To Hell is both an old-school celebration of classic eighties horror flicks and a pitch-perfect spoof of modern-day terror-tropes, from its Danny Elfman-aping score to its Ghostbusters-esque spectres. It would all be laughable if it still weren’t so damn frightening. Raimi teases the audience like a master seducer (note one sequence featuring a pesky fly flirting with Lohman’s upper lip). Each moment is almost unwatchable for its intensity, but you’d be crazy to look away.” – Simon Miraudo, Quickflix

Genres: Supernatural Horror, Black Comedy, Horror Comedy, Gross-Out Comedy

198. (-13) The Strangers

Bryan Bertino

2008 / USA / 86m / Col / Home Invasion | IMDb
Alex Fisher, Peter Clayton-Luce, Scott Speedman, Liv Tyler, Gemma Ward, Kip Weeks, Laura Margolis, Glenn Howerton

“This premise is so simple, only a tyro writer-director like Bryan Bertino would dare pitch it. Even the similar French-Romanian movie Ils (Them) was constructed around a revelation that complicates its couple-terrorised-by-barely-seen-intruders business. This is a single idea, with only enough characterisation to force an audience to invest emotionally in the victims… an ingredient is missing – the most vicious ’70s horror films still had humour and perspective. This shows only a relentless commitment to being no fun at all, which is vaguely admirable but ultimately self-defeating. The message of ’70s horror was that straight society was crazy; the 2008 version is that other people are shit – it’s a fine distinction, but makes a depressing difference.” – Kim Newman, Empire Magazine

Genres: Horror, Home Invasion, Slasher

200. (-43) Trick ‘r Treat

Michael Dougherty

2007 / USA / 82m / Col / Anthology | IMDb
Dylan Baker, Rochelle Aytes, Quinn Lord, Lauren Lee Smith, Moneca Delain, Tahmoh Penikett, Brett Kelly, Britt McKillip, Isabelle Deluce, Jean-Luc Bilodeau

“[A] welcome addition to the post-modern meditation on the genre. An anthology at its core, but more a triumphant return to old school shivers, this unique narrative experience will instantly remind the viewer of cold Fall nights, years ago, when 31 October was a date to be reckoned with. A quasi-classic, this exceptional look at what Halloween really means is the byproduct of writer/director Michael Dougherty’s desire to craft, what he lovingly refers to, as tales of “mayhem, mystery, and mischief. Perhaps the most surprising thing about this love letter to ghosts, ghouls, and goblins is how accomplished it is. With only a few scripts under his belt (he co-wrote X2 and Superman Returns), Dougherty turns out to be as visually compelling as Tim Burton, or even Terry Gilliam.” – Bill Gibron, PopMatters

Genres: Horror, Black Comedy, Hyperlink Cinema, Halloween, Werewolf, Zombie, Supernatural Horror, Slasher, Anthology Film, Vampire