Top 10 Scariest Movies of ALL TIME


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well, MSN posted today, the Top 10 Scariest Movies of ALL TIME..

was wondering if you agree with this list.. and what movies should have been on the list. For one, I would say The Ring should have been in there..

10. "Eraserhead" (1977)

David Lynch's cult classic is the closest thing to being stuck in a nightmare: Not much makes sense, but you get the feeling that nothing is quite right. Lynch employs dinners that walk off the plate, eerie silences that become deafening and an infant that makes Rosemary's baby seem cute and cuddly. So chilling it's damn near unwatchable.

9. "The Exorcist" (1973)

The real terror of "The Exorcist" may not involve Satan and possession, but the helplessness of a parent trying to save a child. Of course, a ton of harrowing special effects and director William Friedkin's somber respect for the supernatural subject matter doesn't hurt either. It's horror for grown-ups.

8. "Halloween" (1978)

John Carpenter's film is blamed for the rash of slasher films that destroyed the genre in the '80s, but "Halloween" possesses a style and intensity that most of its copycats lack. From the opening sequence -- when we see through the eyes of little boy Michael Myers as he stalks and murders his sister -- onward, the film relies on suspense rather than sensationalism. Our fear is caused by what might happen rather than actual events, as Carpenter spends a good amount of time in darkness, making us see things that may or may not be there.

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7. "Don't Look Now" (1973)

Donald Sutherland and Julie Christie head to Venice to forget the tragic accidental death of their child. However, it's impossible to forget when the dead child keeps reappearing. Nicolas Roeg's labyrinthine film is rich in dreamlike atmosphere and works on a purely psychological level: It disorients, frustrates and builds to a horrible climax, reminding that tragedy can never be forgotten ... and neither can this film.

6. "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre" (1974)

A group of annoying teens make a wrong turn on a road trip through Texas and encounter the most dysfunctional family imaginable. It's a teen exploitation flick shot like a documentary. Wonderfully grim, mean and inhumane, director Tobe Hooper's debut doesn't spill much blood, instead opting to giddily, relentlessly torture and chase its audience (much like Leatherface treats his victims) for 80 minutes. It feels like days.

5. "Nightmare on Elm Street" (1984)

Before dream-killer Freddy Krueger became a quipping pop-culture reference, he represented the most twisted monster unleashed on the public since Halloween's Michael Myers. Seeking vengeance by slicing and dicing the children of the parents who murdered him, Freddy scared the hell out of Cineplex audiences. His on-screen entrance remains terrifying, as does much of director Wes Craven's surreal, smart and shocking masterpiece.

4. "Suspiria" (1977)

"Suspiria" is a full-on sensory assault by Italian horror master Dario Argento, the cinematic equivalent of an anxiety attack. A poor American ballet student arrives in Europe and Argento berates her with weather, grisly murders, a possible coven of witches, his virtuosic camera, and possible the freakiest score ever conceived (by the director himself). The plot barely makes sense, so just let it terrorize you.

3. "Night of the Living Dead" (1968)

A group of kids get trapped inside a farm house by an endless stream of flesh-eating zombies. Sounds silly, but director George Romero takes his simple premise and redefines the genre with a shoestring budget. The amount of sadistic gore, the claustrophobic tension, the rising levels of hysteria and an increasingly deflated awareness that a happy ending is impossible make this a nasty classic. There is no hope here, only suffocating terror.

2. Repulsion (1965)

Director Roman Polanski did more horror afterward, with "Rosemary's Baby" and "The Tenant," but this -- a menacing, nightmarish profile of one woman's descent into madness -- may be his most realized effort. Catherine Denueve embodies sexual repression as a young woman left alone in her apartment -- and to her deluded fantasies -- for the weekend. The film is nearly silent, creating a mounting mood of dread. Try watching it alone with the lights off and see how long you last.

1. "Psycho" (1960)

Alfred Hitchcock's blueprint for contemporary horror: More than just a film, "Psycho" was a cultural slap in the face. Censors wanted to ban it, while screaming audiences couldn't get enough of it. Hitch employs all of his tricks -- shifting audience sympathies, killing off the main character halfway through the film and a ton of macabre humor -- but more importantly he makes the horror internal. Norman Bates isn't a monster in the classic sense; he suggests that the greatest evil can lurk beneath the quietest, most pleasant surface.

Source: MSN ENTERTAINMENT

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wow, there must be a lot of pussies over at msn.

Don't get me wrong, some of those are good movies, but I wouldn't call them scary.

Edited by virtorio
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Well I don't think freddy or halloween movies should be on there to be honest, they were more campy than scary.

I agree with the Exorcist although I think it should be closer to the front definately before Night of the living dead, which wasn't really scary at all.

And I think Jaws should be up there, it was scary as hell even though it wasn't a traditiional horror movie.

The Ring is definately better suited than Halloween, Nightmare on Elm Street, or Night of the Living Dead.

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The Exorcist #9?? what in the ****ing **** are they talking about. Out of that list, of the ones i've seen, that's the only one that scared me (well not really) but it was kind of disturbing. I've seen most of those and none of them are even remotely scary, but it doesn't mean there not good. Atleast Dario Argento is on that list, he's a ****ing genius.

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remember guys, movies like psycho may not be scary today, but youve got to remember the time period in which they were released.. and while it may have lost some of its luster, anyone i know that sees the old b&w version of psycho for the first time, myself included, gets a little nervous the next few showers they take...

nightmare on elm street deserves to be on the list, i guess i can live with halloween being on there..

the exorcist was rated a lot higher in a poll a few years back.. i heard that when it was released in 73, that people were running from the theater screaming.. but im not sure how valid those reports are.

as for the ring, while it was kinda scary, look at this list of movies and look 30 years down the road and think whether or not it can be included in a list like that.. i think the whole killer video tape concept was just too silly for a lot of people to really embrace it as a legitimate horror movie

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what would your list be like then?

To tell you the truth, I couldn't think of a list if I tried. No movie has yet to "scare" me. Some movies scared me as a child, but now they have no effect, so I couldn't say they were one of the scariest movies I've ever seen. Some movies make me jump, but it quicky wears off.

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Scary stuff...especially in the theater on opening night.

Silence of the Lambs (scares the hell out of every girl I know)

Alien

Aliens

Jaws

I remember when Alien hit the theaters. People in my area talked more about that movie than Jaws.

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Oh yeah Alien was pretty freaky as well, but since it was in space and about Aliens it wasn't as scary to me as Psycho or Jaws.

Jaws made me afraid of water, Alien made me afraid to get on a spaceship. Well I bath everyday so the afraid of water thing was a big deal, but since I'm not an astronaut the fear of spaceships hasn't really affected me.

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just my opinions on those listed:

10. "Eraserhead" (1977)

not a scary movie...more like the weirdest...but we spent WEEKS discussing it and trying to figure it out

9. "The Exorcist" (1973)

dunno about this one...i was in 6th grade when it came out and mom wouldn't let me see it...she said i could read the book and i could see the movie if i understood the book...the book bored me and i lost interest in the movie

8. "Halloween" (1978)

uh....never saw it :blush:

7. "Don't Look Now" (1973)

never saw it

6. "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre" (1974)

this movie scared the **** out of me...i still watch it with my hands over my eyes

5. "Nightmare on Elm Street" (1984)

cool and definitely scary

4. "Suspiria" (1977)

i was seriously let down by this after hearing all the hype...not scary....very boring

3. "Night of the Living Dead" (1968)

true horror done by the master

2. Repulsion (1965)

i DID watch this one night with the lights out....i wasn't impressed but i still wish i looked like catherine deneuve

1. "Psycho" (1960)

hitchcock's masterpiece....creepy, tony perkins is brilliant, heck of a scary basement scene....i've got tingles just thinking about it

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i don't agree with it being the scariest movies of all time...!!! those are probably the scariest movies in the US or other western countries, cuz no asian movies were considered. I think Asian scary movies are much more scarier than the western ones...

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MY list, in no particular order:

texas chainsaw massacre

night of the living dead

psycho

freaks

dracula

the mummy (hammer version)

pit and the pendulum

invasion of the body snatchers

the thing (both versions)

tarantula

them!

alien

Edited by aem4162
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Depends on what I call scary, to me a scary movie is something like the ring or the 6th sense, the chilling type. not blood & gore body count movies.

I thought the exorcist was funny :cool: "**** her in the ass!"

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I agree with the Exorcist although I think it should be closer to the front definately before Night of the living dead, which wasn't really scary at all.

I'd definitely have to agree with that. Night of the Living dead was far from scary. Even in that time period it could not have been scarier or more disturbing than Exorcist. That movie and the ones after it were just zombie flicks.

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the excorsit!!!! that movie was soooooooooooooooooooooooooooo boring.

one movie that did scare me when i was little.. (not on the list) was CHUCKY 1 and 2.. the third one was funny.

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Most gore fest movies aren't scary at all. Just used for shock.

The Thing, Alien, The Shining and Jaws belongs on that list more then the majority of them imo. I would say Event Horizon as well but the ending sucked.

Edited by ANova
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