Top 10 Scariest Movies (in reverse order)
In reverse order as to make an actual countdown (ignore the numbers - top is least scary, bottom is most scary). Far beyond blood, guts and jump scares, these 10 movies will haunt you long after they're over.
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- DirectorHerbert WiseStarsAdrian RawlinsBernard HeptonDavid DakerA lawyer travels to a small seaside town to settle the estate of a recently deceased woman, but soon becomes ensnared in something much more sinister.Not the modern remake. This is the hard-to-find original TV movie. It's on this list for one reason. It has one of the scariest scenes I have ever seen in any movie.
- DirectorDavid KoeppStarsKevin BaconZachary David CopeKathryn ErbeAfter being hypnotized by his sister-in-law, a man begins seeing haunting visions of a girl's ghost and a mystery begins to unfold around him.Great all around, Stir of Echoes is unsettling and scary in an non-traditional sense (pun unintended... you'll see). And you'll certainly never forget that song again...
- DirectorTi WestStarsJocelin DonahueTom NoonanMary WoronovIn 1983, financially struggling college student Samantha Hughes takes a strange babysitting job that coincides with a full lunar eclipse. She slowly realizes her clients harbor a terrifying secret, putting her life in mortal danger.Slow burn at its finest - not for the impatient and unimaginative. Director Ti West builds an immense amount of dread from seemingly innocuous scenes with a fantastic amount of style. A lost technique mastered by few.
- DirectorJean-Baptiste AndreaFabrice CanepaStarsRay WiseLin ShayeMick CainChristmas Eve. On his way to his in-laws with his family, Frank Harrington decides to try a shortcut, for the first time in 20 years. It turns out to be the biggest mistake of his life.I was shocked at how creepy this was. Overall it's not spectacular, but this is a deeply dark movie. Truly nightmarish with scenes executed far better than it's overproduced commercial competitors.
- DirectorTobe HooperStarsMarilyn BurnsEdwin NealAllen DanzigerFive friends head out to rural Texas to visit the grave of a grandfather. On the way they stumble across what appears to be a deserted house, only to discover something sinister within. Something armed with a chainsaw.Not the modern remake, and more proof that the art of atmosphere and suspense has been lost. This original is still of the slasher variety, but don't let that fool you. This one cuts into you far deeper than the surface - it's bizarre terror at its most coarse. Headcheese anyone?
- DirectorOren PeliStarsKatie FeatherstonMicah SloatMark FredrichsAfter moving into a suburban home, a couple becomes increasingly disturbed by a nightly demonic presence.A bit full of itself, Paranormal Activity knows how to instill fear the old fashioned way. It's not the first of its bread, but it proves once again that less is most often more, and in this case, chilling as hell. Good luck sleeping after watching this.
- DirectorDavid LynchStarsNaomi WattsLaura HarringJustin TherouxAfter a car wreck on Mulholland Drive renders a woman amnesiac, she and a Hollywood-hopeful search for clues and answers across Los Angeles in a twisting venture beyond dreams and reality.If anything, this David Lynch film (like most of his) will just completely weird you out. But amongst the non-linear weird there are also some petrifying scenes so cleverly and patiently executed they're like nightmares brought to life.
- DirectorTobe HooperStarsJoBeth WilliamsHeather O'RourkeCraig T. NelsonA family's home is haunted by a host of demonic ghosts.I'm not going to get into how many films have borrowed from Poltergeist - that's not what this list is about. It's worth mentioning though because it proves just how great these concepts are. While it does have some outdated effects, they're passable, and balanced by deeply disturbing subtleties. A true classic that is just as hair-rasising today.
- DirectorDaniel MyrickEduardo SánchezStarsHeather DonahueMichael C. WilliamsJoshua LeonardThree film students vanish after traveling into a Maryland forest to film a documentary on the local Blair Witch legend, leaving only their footage behind.Highly notable for several reasons, Blair Witch knows how to get under your skin. It does this by giving the darkest corners of your imagination just enough in order for them to go on a nerve-rattling rampage. Paranormal Activity followed the formula set out here well, but it still doesn't have the same level of intensity and realism. Eduardo Sanchez's first, but not last stop on this list...
- DirectorEduardo SánchezStarsGretchen LodgeJohnny LewisAlexandra HoldenNewlywed Molly moves into her deceased father's house in the countryside, where painful memories soon begin to haunt her.Unnerving. Rattling. And deeply disturbing. The scariest movie I have ever seen. The Blair Witch director once again shows little, instead choosing to let your imagination feed off the creepy hints of hell. And wow is this creepy. It's not for everyone, but that's the way the scariest movie should be. Well past the depths of your worst nightmares, the fainthearted should stay away. Prepare yourself.