Top Five Horror Movies For Halloween

I like to watch scary movies, I always have. My problem recently is that I will sit down and start researching to find a new one, and every other synopsis is about a young family that moves into a new house and “things were not what they seemed.” I may be exaggerating, but it is really difficult to find something original in the genre lately.

So, I guess I will reminisce on some oldies. My top five scary movies of all time, in no particular order.

Before we get started, a couple of caveats. One, I am no great movie buff. I am sure all these movies stole ideas from books and older movies, but the ideas were new to me when I saw them. Two, I am purposely not going back and looking up info about these movies, so I may miss some facts, I am going by how I remember the films, even if it might not be how they truly were. Three, I am staying away, mostly, from hardcore type stuff.

Saw

The original was a classic. Anyone that tells you they know what was going to happen at the end is lying. They may have been confused by what they saw or thought something was going to happen, but that ending was out of nowhere. I know Saw didn’t invent the “torture porn” genre, but it did mainstream it. You can tell a great horror flick by how many movies copy it (or, how many sequels it gets.)

Cabin In The Woods

I took a chance on this movie at a 1.50 movie theatre in Huntsville, AL. It is your typical “kids getting attacked on a weekend vacation at a cabin in the woods” movie…until it is not. The perfect amount humor, horror and sci-fi and an ending that guaranteed there would never be a sequel.

I Spit On Your Grave (Original)

This may not be for everyone, and in fact it is not for most people I would think. Blockbuster was the first-time true horror/revenge NC-17 type movies were available to the masses, or at least to kids like me and my friends. This is low budget, but don’t let that make you think it is not something that will leave you awake at night. A true revenge movie and featuring a strong woman lead long before that was really talked about in movies. I hope my parents don’t read this, because to this day I don’t want them knowing I watched this as a kid.

The Last Man On Earth (Vincent Price Version)

Vincent Price is a hero of mine. A solid actor, a great voice and he did more to bring fine art* to the American people than anyone in history. He was a true renaissance man. This movie turned me onto Mr. Price and I own pretty much every movie starring him, all the books he wrote (even the recipe books) and even multiple items from his personal collections. Ok, back to the movie. This is a zombie flick, but it was one of the first to do it. It is based on the book “I Am Legend” and you have probably seen at least one film adaptation, as there have been many. What sets this one apart is that the ending truly leaves you thinking. It is where the Will Smith version many years later really missed its chance to be great.

Evil Dead (Bruce Freaking Campbell Version)

What can I say. Probably the most entertaining movie for the buck out there. No real twists and turns, just pure enjoyment. Bruce Campbell in this film maybe the best casting of a character of all time, in my humble opinion.

Honorable Mentions:

Psycho – The only reason it is not in the top five, is that by the time I saw it, the ideas had been copied to death and I knew what the ending was. Even so, still great.

Infinity Pool – Ok, this one is nowhere near my top five, but it is a more recent release that does have some originality to it. Just when you think, “Oh, I know where this is going,” it zigs and then you think “Oh, now I see what they are doing,” it zags on you. The name is odd, at first I thought they missed out with naming it Infinity Pool, as there is only a slight mention about a pool, but then I realized it was a play on words with the plot of the movie. Even the title zigged on me.

Final Destination- Don’t judge me on this one. I was at the movie theater by myself to see this and at the end of the movie, I realized I had been sitting on the edge of my seat the whole time. I don’t like to use the word literally, but, literally on the edge of my seat.

Let me know if you have any to add to the list, or think I am way off on any of these. I haven't been on Publish0x in awhile, so I will follow anyone that comments for this one.

* If you don't believe me, look into Vincent Price's collaboration with Sear's.  This was back when Sears did everything (I think at one point you could actually buy a house from Sears, have it delivered in pieces and put together on your lot, but, I am getting off track.) Vincent Price personally bought more original artwork than any other human in history during those years.