12 horror films that became classics of the genre, but are still fearful today

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

Every film deserves the attention of the viewer, and horror films have not been left out. However, in modern times it is difficult to find such paintings that would really scare us with their story, plot, or at least visual effects. To do this, we have compiled for you a list of old (and not so) paintings that really inspire a feeling of deep horror.

1. Others (2001) - dress scene

Connoisseurs of ghost films will say that The Others had everything they needed for a classic movie about them: a grim, gothic mansion with a story of untimely deaths, a girl in distress, an abundance of fog, and a cemetery conveniently located on the estate. The real mystery is why this film stands out so much from others and has a certain advantage over them. Perhaps the point is in riddles that have been unnerving from the very beginning, or in the history of pagan beliefs about death and the afterlife. With an interesting script and great acting, the thrill of this film only improved, at some point reaching its peak. And, of course, the darkest and most frightening of them was the scene with the wedding dress, which permanently secured this tape in the list of the most frightening and interesting.

2. Eraser Head (1977) - literally every second

Perhaps this is the only picture in the top that does not include a specific scene, but the entire tape as a whole. And this is exactly the film that you don't want to watch a second time. Written and directed by David Lynch, he created a rather strange plot and curious characters: a guy who has very strange neighbors, an unfamiliar girl who is being pursued by a fiend, the mother of this very girl, a strange riddle worth solving, a terribly mutated baby with strange needs and abilities, and the strangest of them all - the apartment radiator. Almost every second of this film is saturated with surreal images of a very unpleasant nature. Even the dialogues are surreal, and the music and sound effects create a sense of disorientation. Overall, this movie represents one of the worst nightmares that you definitely don't want to dream about.

3. White noise (2004) - images on the TV screen

Many viewers appreciated the message of White Noise, which stated that investigating certain paranormal phenomena, however exciting and interesting they may seem, requires special care and protective measures in order to protect themselves from their physical and psychological influence. When the main character of the film, Jonathan Rivers (Michael Keaton), with the best intentions begins to explore the phenomenon of "white noise", he does it without using any time-tested psychological remedies. In fact, Jonathan can hardly be called a scientific researcher, because at some point he is so keen on studying this phenomenon that he literally becomes like a drug addict. In the end, he finds himself embroiled in a secret crime, and realizes the whole evil plan too late, realizing that he has faced evil forces that experience real pleasure in deceiving ordinary mortals and getting into their heads. Initially, these "forces" are disguised as the faces of long-dead people. But as the plot progresses, they become bolder and angrier, and although the characters in the film do not always realize that they are around, they leave very obvious clues. The most compelling and frightening of these are the so-called “tapes” that are played on television when the characters are out of the room. An unexpected, highly provocative and convincing fear!

4. Prince of Darkness (1987) - frightening voice in a dream

Filmed and written by screenwriter and director John Carpenter about the glory of Halloween, this film has been highly anticipated in the horror genre. However, his budget turned out to be a record low, the bloody effects were sometimes very ridiculous and funny, and their argumentation often baffled the viewer, forcing them to think that this film is not really about the Antichrist, but rather about the classic zombies. However, the film still had pretty good visuals, talented artists like Donald Pleasens, the underrated Jamison Parker and the amazing Alice Cooper. More importantly, the film had a rather original and intimidating sound effect - a voice in a dream. What scared the audience the most was not even the effects and not the realization of the fact who this voice really was, but where and when it appeared, thereby forcing some people to literally lose sleep for long days.

5. Sentinel (1977) - appearance of the Legion of the damned

The Guardian was an adaptation of one of the most violent and disturbing horrors of its time. However, as is often the case, when compared to the book, he literally seemed paler. Except for one scene that shocked many, namely the appearance of the Legion of the Damned. It is difficult to say what exactly in this scene evokes a chilling feeling of horror, since today such remarks will most likely be politically incorrect. However, anyone who has seen her at least once knows that this scene literally pierced her with a vivid feeling of horror. In particular, it impressed even those who read the novel by Geoffrey Konwitz "The Guardian", and who after that were greatly impressed.

6. The Shining (1980) - Danny's meeting with the twins

Whenever it comes to the adaptation of the book "The Shining", then it is worth considering the film adaptation from Stanley Kubrick, and not the so-called mini-series, which was directly curated by Stephen King himself. Stephen's artistic and creative vision aside, calling The Shining one of the best novels he has ever written, it's worth admitting that the miniseries turned out to be a deafening failure. It was in places a very offensive, sentimental story about family and love with the theme of atonement for sins, which literally stifled the main motives in the book, which was what caught the most. And, as is often the case, film adaptations can rarely convey the overwhelming sense of horror that you experience while reading the pages of your favorite novel, and King proved this with the help of his miniseries. And many viewers will never be able to understand why he carefully tried to whiten the initially crude, harsh and sarcastic script written in the classic literary style of King, which made him famous for the sake of a boring, dull and literally "no" tale of morality. But even as the Kubrick adaptation came as a huge disappointment for King, fans were finally overjoyed. For just one reason: the movie is really damn scary. And one of the most frightening moments, according to many viewers, was the scene where Danny first meets the twins. Of course, they looked quite nice and normal. Literally two or three seconds, until Danny realized that they are not at all the cute girls they want to seem. They were full of surrealism, some kind of warped innocence and absolutely completely owned their corridor, causing goosebumps and chills on the skin.

7. The ghost of the house on the hill (1963) - banging the walls

This film was the first adaptation of one of the coolest horror novels written by Shirley Jackson and made it to the list of the greatest books of its time. Released in 1963, it fairly accurately conveyed the events from the book, although director Robert Wise seemed unable to convey the entire atmosphere and depth of horror that the author of the novel created. However, he succeeded in propelling viewers out of peace and equilibrium with frequent and unexpected banging on the walls. Since then, many directors have tried to imitate and even copy this technique in the future, but they all failed. Because this story is real, pure horror, destroying the human psyche even on the screen.

8. Fire in the sky (1993) - alien experiments on people

Many films have previously touched on the topic of alien abductions, but none of them have had such a success or create such a persistent sense of horror as this one. Based on real life events, "Fire in the Sky" brought viewers to a real torture chamber, where humanity meant nothing and was equal to zero, and the scientific and medical curiosity of aliens serves a very heartless and cruel interest. Such moments are scary to watch and quite difficult to get out of your head, even when the credits have already appeared on the screen, but this film was and remains a horror classic that should not be watched alone.

9. Sixth Sense (1999) - unexpected appearances of ghosts

According to many viewers and even critics, The Sixth Sense is one of the most successful, frightening and incredible horror films to watch. Original locations, a tense script, stunning visuals and first-class acting, including many modern stars, all this made him the number one horror movie in the early 2000s. And, of course, do not forget about the unexpected and completely unpredictable ending. The components of horror that have been present throughout the film are also worthy of credit. Many viewers were forced to flinch and break out in cold sweat from unexpected signs in various places. Sometimes suspiciously quiet, sometimes angry, they caused a feeling of irrational horror, and therefore it is not surprising that to this day this film is considered the most fascinating and popular among fans of more terrible films.

10. The Exorcist (1973) - Regan descends the stairs upside down

The first film adaptation of this film was actually more of a theatrical production, and only after a while the world saw the director's full version in which this scene appeared. And if earlier we talked about the scene where Regan, with one turn of her head, caused the desire to leave the room as soon as possible and forget this picture, then in the director's version we could appreciate something more terrible. Namely, a scene where a girl descends the stairs in a not quite correct and real pose, which is widely used today by many directors of horror films. The whole horror lay not only in this shot of the descent, but also in the fact that nothing foreshadowed such a thing. It was one of the most tranquil moments in the film, as we tuned in to watch the unhappy mother trying to carve out a moment of peace for herself. However, she only has to turn around - as Regan goes down the stairs upside down, while looking like some kind of mutated and not at all good version of Spider-Man, which caused delight and horror at the same time among all spectators.

11. Moth Man (2002) - voice on the phone

Despite the frank historical inaccuracies, "Moth Man" is one of the most frightening horror films that catch a sense of the unknown, inspired by real events. It has an ever-growing sense of anxiety, perfect for the plot, as well as amazingly realistic dialogue and amazing acting. Especially the audience singled out the game of Richard Gere, who, as a rule, is too absorbed in himself, but in this film he played better than expected of him. In any case, this film was mesmerizing enough, dragging into the abyss of its events. What really made this film truly scary is that all the characters here seem to be serious and solid, extremely ordinary people, while the story itself is completely shrouded in mystery. … Even towards the end of the film, viewers were still wondering what was actually happening on the screen. Did all the disturbing visions and mysterious revelations come from supernatural forces - angels, demons, deceased people, or even aliens, or perhaps from a person or a single group of individuals outside of space and time, which we can never understand? The most disturbing aspect of the film was the phone calls and messages from a mystical person - Indrida Kould. The voice was not only disturbing to hear, but the scientific analysis associated with the assessment of its source only increased the mystery around it and the viewer's anxiety. Definitely a scary movie to watch with a company before Halloween.

12. The Shining (1980) - Freaks in the Room

Nothing shocks viewers more than unexpected confrontation with menacing and frightening forces. In The Shining, we were anxiously rooting for poor Wendy, who was trying to protect herself and her child from her distraught husband. And while we knew - or thought we knew - the dangers to be found in the midst of the haunted Overlook Hotel, we were taken by surprise when Wendy stumbled upon a completely strange sight. Were they ghosts or demons? We can't be completely sure of what we saw on screen and what exactly made our hearts jump, but the fact that these characters were taken by surprise and seemed like a completely random find made the skin goose bumps. The sudden combination of fear, horror and disgust shocked not only the eyes, but also the psyche. This is a truly deeply disturbing scene that is found in one of the most frightening and delightful films ever.

Continuing the topic - read also about which ones have managed to take root to this day, becoming almost an integral part of the cinema.