in need of some real good horror movies
The Thing
just finished watching! i absolutely loved the sfx, they were incredible. i was a bit shocked at how the previous battles with the thing were more riveting than the final one
i don’t see a lot of them myself, but i saw Hereditary when it came out and really enjoyed it! delightfully creepy.
huge fan of hereditary, my #1 fave :)
My favorite ones are, The Omen (1976), Tourist Trap (1979) and Halloween 3: Season of the Witch (1982).
Halloween III is such an outlier. I remember the first time watching it thinking that Meyers was going to eventually show and he didn’t. The only thing Halloween III and the rest of the Halloween series have in common is they take place on Halloween.
This is because the Halloween series was originally intended to be an anthology-style thing where each movie was different, and the concepts which were going to link them together would just be Halloween itself and masks. But Halloween I did so well that they brought Michael back for the sequel. When installment III time came around, they made it without Michael and the audience didn’t understand why. It also was not too well-received in general, so for part IV they brought Michael back again and called it The Return of Michael Myers.
I personally think it’s a great standalone movie, but I don’t include it in the Halloween series and my collection reflects that.
This is because the Halloween series was originally intended to be an anthology-style thing
I realize that, I watched it before Halloween IV came out, so in the moment it was a little strange it was like that. I like the movie, regardless that it doesn’t follow the format of the other films. It’s frightening, and eerie, and creepy. Good popcorn horror flick. I still would recommend!
Oculus (2013) is, despite its shortcomings, one of the best horror movies I’ve seen.
Maybe because I have siblings, maybe because I’m attracted towards occult and paranormal movies, but it was a fantastic ride from beginning to end.As a show, not a movie, the excellent Archive 81, which again is a flawed gem, but has one of the best soundtracks a horror movie could ask.
Now and then I’ll play it and it needs mere seconds to make my skin crawl.If we go a bit back, I love Night of the Hunter, not scary per modern standards, but a fantastic story that is seldom seen nowadays.
I really liked Occulus!
@massive_bereavement Yeah, Night of the Hunter is what I’d call suspense with horror elements. It definitely crosses that line into horror at a few key moments. And it’s a classic not a lot of people mention nowadays.
Another oldie that I really like is Whatever Happened to Baby Jane. It’s super campy but so creepy, and I’m not 100% on that one really being a horror movie either but it does that same kind of thing Night of the Hunter does where it veers into horror at several moments.
just watched oculus due to this recommendation, wild fucking ride. very enjoyable and unique. was glad to not see another supernatural formulaic jump-scare based ‘horror’ movie. has its flaws, but i recommend it to others.
Huzzah!
Edit:
There are other recommendations that come from the same director, from great to OK:- The haunting of Hill House
- Doctor Sleep
- Midnight Mass
- Ouija: Origin of Evil
- Before I wake
I think I’m the only person who liked Midnight Mass more than Haunting of Hill House (which I still love for the record).
My feeling is that with every new movie Mike Flanagan went further and further away from Horror into Drama.
Midnight Mass is probably his strongest drama and the most mature production of all his work. That said, it is a clear departure from horror compared with previous installments.
That’s why it is between Doctor Sleep and Ouija: OoE, not because of quality but due to the level of horror in it.
Three from the ''60s and '70s that still hold up extremely well:
- Whistle and I’ll Come to You (1967) - an excellent short, originally part of the BBC’s Omnibus series.
- The Wicker Man (1973)
- The Omen (1976)
Oooo Whistle and I’ll Come to You is a deep dive and a good call.
Then you probably enjoy Don’t Look Now (1973)?
Yes, that too. There are a good few from the same era that i considered adding, but thought that 3 would do.
While The Serpent and the Rainbow (1988) was a better acclaimed movie, I found The Believers (1987) to be one of the most frightening horror movies I’ve seen.
I had to walk home all by myself in -10 degree weather a half hour after I watched that movie. Scared the shit out of me.
EDIT
I also love The Skeleton Key (2005). Just something about voodoo and hoodoo movies that I find engaging.
one of my faves is Sinister, although I need to rewatch it since I haven’t watched it in years.
Hereditary was pretty scary/unsettling.
I loved the concept and acting on Oculus.
Also, although I haven’t watched it yet, I’ve heard Martyrs (2008) was very gory and disturbing, so if you’re into that you should check it out :ρ
Was recently really impressed by X (2022) and an old favourite of mine is The Witch (2015)
It’s not the best horror move but as found footage horror goes, “As Above So Below” was pretty good. Don’t watch if you suffer from claustrophobia.
Also Something Wicked This Way Comes.
I like kinda schlocky stuff, and I have a really hard time picking favorites, but if I HAD to pick one, it would be
Us (Jordan Peele, 2019). So well paced with a satisfying ending
Contenders (all so different)
- Prince of Darkness and The Thing (John Carpenter)
- Drag Me to Hell (Sam Raimi)
- As Above, So Below
- Let the Right One In
- Zombi 2Prince of Darkness has an incredible mood even though, objectively, it is pretty shlocky.
As Above, So Below is a super underrated movie. It really kind of scared the shit out of me lol.
I really recommend The Wailing (2016), a unique Korean horror that stayed in my thoughts for quite some time.
Alongside that, also check out The Innocents (1961) for some vintage horror, and I see Babadook (2014) hasn’t been mentioned yet, that one is also a favourite of mine.
Night of the living dead is a masterpiece.
Hellraiser (1987) is an excellent movie. The second one is also worth watching, but I don’t particularly recommend 3+.
I watched 1 & 2 recently and was impressed by the sfx in it, it was cool. I didnt really enjoy #2 as much as #1, it felt super silly, especially how Pinhead immediately switched gears at the word human lol.
My best would be the Thing (82) already mentioned here. I could highly recommend Event Horizon for some sci-fi horror.
@clitoris Not the best, but a very good and unique horror film is Society from 1989. There is one caveat with this movie: you have to watch it completely cold. Don’t read anything about it, don’t watch any trailers, don’t look at any posters or stills. Trust me on this one.
