Making Light of the Darkness

Horror Films - Honorable Mentions

Some other horror films that didn’t make my list but still deserve to be brought up. In no particular order -

Dawn of the Dead (1978)
Poltergeist 1 & 2
Phantasm
Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)
Halloween
Isle of the Dead
Burnt Offerings
Salem’s Lot

SarahN’s Top Ten Horror Films

#10: The Sixth Sense (1999)

Say what you will about M. Night Shyamalan, this movie is still a classic. It’s also very moving on top of scary.

#9: Ju-on: The Curse (2000)

The original, straight to video release of Ju-on that I actually thought was very unnerving. It’s rated R and for good reason, it has MUCH more adult themes than any theatrical or PG-13 American versions that followed…and it’s just creepier. Sure, it has a less of a budget, but I preferred the ghost girl’s realistic crawl down the stairs as opposed to her silly, bone-popping one. It is especially recommended if you have never seen any of the Grudge movies.

#8: Night of the Living Dead (1990)

Honestly? I like the 1990 Tom Savini remake of Night of the Living Dead more than the original, it gave me a lot more nightmares. I also thought the movie dragged less than the original and the zombie makeup was just awesome. Don’t get me wrong though, the original still started it all.

#7: The Evil Dead & Evil Dead 2 (1981/1987)

Okay, cheated a little bit. Both are good for similar AND different reasons. The Evil Dead is a classic to me because of how utterly gorey and insane it is, and Evil Dead 2 was more of a black comedy with scary mixed in. SO…both get the same spot.

#6: Demons AKA Dèmoni (1985)

A Dario Argento film. If you like the original Evil Dead, you’ll probably like Demons. I couldn’t finish this movie the first time I saw it because of how brutal it was, so it earned a spot ahead of Evil Dead. The movie itself is VERY campy as hell and awkwardly dubbed, but in the end, it’s worth it for the tension and unrelenting violence the demons bring.

#5: The Thing (1982)

Makeup effects, tension and horror at it’s finest. ‘Nuff said.

#4: The Exorcist (1973)

Another no-brainer. This movie scares me less now that I’ve seen it like a billion times on television, but the impact it left still remains.

#3: The Shining (1980)

Psychological horror, insane Jack Nicholson and creepy ghosts. This movie also embodies my biggest rule with psychological and ghost horror : the less we know about why this is happening, the scarier it is. Also atmosphere and camera work be good.

#2: Pet Sematary (1989)

What scared me the most about this movie wasn’t the killer toddler or the deformed sister (not that they helped or anything), it was the horror of loss. This movie is grit defined, and at the very least will leave you with a very upleasant feeling for a few days the first time you see it. Sometimes dead is better.

#1: The Exorcist III: Legion (1990)

Had a tough time deciding between this and Pet Sematary, but just had to go with this one because it’s the one I remember having the biggest long term effect on me after seeing it. Seriously, I must’ve had trouble sleeping for a month. I can never really explain what it is about this movie that still gives me a creepy feeling to this day, even after seeing it so many times. I don’t think it’s a perfect movie, as there is some imagery that is a bit awkward/funny and the film drags a bit in the middle, but it just has a lot of atmosphere and some ridiculously disturbing dialogue. To me, it’s just horror done right.

So that is my horror list, think what you will of it. If I happen to remember something I’ve forgotten, this list is liable to change a bit.

Image credits: frankensteinshammer, serpent-kiss, 80shorroraddiction, cenobites-, nun-final, thegirlcalledjanedoe, hair0nfire, misterfurter, endlesslydead, also the Ju-on pic is from some forum so I don’t know who took that screen.

My Favorites

I’m trying to avoid doing too much reblogging of just anything here since this was meant for mainly art, but would you guys be interested in seeing some of my favorite things? Like maybe reblogging my top favorite films (of certain genres perhaps, no doubt would start with horror), favorite shows, favorite foods, favorite animals, ect?