Horror films are having their moment right now. It’s been a massive year for the genre, with huge releases such as 28 Years Later and Sinners being met with critical acclaim and an epic return from the Final Destination franchise. However, not every release has been met with the same reception. More recently, I Know What You Did Last Summer received mixed reviews along with M3GAN 2.0. But, thankfully, we’ll always have the classics to fall back on when we are in the mood to be frightened out of our skin. Rotten Tomatoes, the movie reviewing platform, has compiled a list of the 10 Scariest Horror Movies Ever for us to choose from. Here are the winners, ranked from 10 to 1.
10. IT (2017)
The clown based horror flick is an American supernatural horror film directed by Andy Muschietti and written by Chase Palmer, Cary Fukunaga, and Gary Dauberman. It is the first of a two-part adaptation of the novel by Stephen King. It’s synopsis reads: “Seven young outcasts in Derry, Maine, are about to face their worst nightmare – an ancient, shape-shifting evil that emerges from the sewer every 27 years to prey on the town’s children. Banding together over the course of one horrifying summer, the friends must overcome their own personal fears to battle the murderous, bloodthirsty clown known as Pennywise.”
9. Insidious (2010)
Insidious was directed and co-edited by James Wan, written by Leigh Whannell, and stars Patrick Wilson, Rose Byrne, and Barbara Hershey. It is the first installment in the Insidious franchise. The film’s synopsis reads: “Parents take drastic measures when it seems their new home is haunted and their comatose son is possessed by a malevolent entity.”
8. Sinister (2012)
Sinister is a 2012 horror film directed by Scott Derrickson, and co-written with C. Robert Cargill. It stars Ethan Hawke, Juliet Rylance, Fred Thompson, James Ransone, Clare Foley, Michael Hall D’Addario, and Vincent D’Onofrio. Sinister’s synopsis reads: “True-crime writer Ellison Oswald (Hawke) is in a slump; he hasn’t had a best seller in more than 10 years and is becoming increasingly desperate for a hit. So, when he discovers the existence of a snuff film showing the deaths of a family, he vows to solve the mystery. He moves his own family into the victims’ home and gets to work. However, when old film footage and other clues hint at the presence of a supernatural force, Ellison learns that living in the house may be fatal.”
7. Halloween (1978)
Halloween is an indie slasher film directed and scored by John Carpenter, who co-wrote it with its producer Debra Hill. It stars Donald Pleasence, Jamie Lee Curtis (in her film debut), P. J. Soles, and Nancy Loomis. The film’s synopsis reads: “On a cold Halloween night in 1963, six year old Michael Myers brutally murdered his 17-year-old sister, Judith. He was sentenced and locked away for 15 years. But on October 30, 1978, while being transferred for a court date, a 21-year-old Michael Myers steals a car and escapes Smith’s Grove. He returns to his quiet hometown of Haddonfield, Illinois, where he looks for his next victims.”
6. The Ring (2002)
The Ring is a supernatural psychological horror film directed by Gore Verbinski and written by Ehren Kruger. It stars Naomi Watts, Martin Henderson, Brian Cox and David Dorfman. The story is: “It sounds like just another urban legend – a videotape filled with nightmarish images leads to a phone call foretelling the viewer’s death in exactly seven days. Newspaper reporter Rachel Keller (Watts) is skeptical of the story until four teenagers all die mysteriously exactly one week after watching just such a tape. Allowing her investigative curiosity to get the better of her, Rachel tracks down the video and watches it. Now she has just seven days to unravel the mystery.”
5. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)
American indie horror film, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, was produced, co-composed, and directed by Tobe Hooper, who co-wrote it with Kim Henkel. The film stars Marilyn Burns, Paul A. Partain, Edwin Neal, Jim Siedow, and Gunnar Hansen. The film was marketed as being based on true events, particularly on the crimes of murderer Ed Gein, but it is largely fictional. “The Texas Chain Saw Massacre tells the story of five friends travelling through rural Texas who encounter a family of cannibalistic murderers. The group falls victim to the deranged Sawyer family, including the iconic Leatherface, who wields a chainsaw.”
4. The Shining (1980)
This psychological horror was directed by Stanley Kubrick and was based on the novel written by Stephen King. The film stars Jack Nicholson, Shelley Duvall, Danny Lloyd, and Scatman Crothers. It depicts the descent into insanity and the synopsis reads: “Jack Torrance (Nicholson) becomes winter caretaker at the isolated Overlook Hotel in Colorado, hoping to cure his writer’s block. He settles in along with his wife, Wendy (Duvall), and his son, Danny (Lloyd), who is plagued by psychic premonitions. As Jack’s writing goes nowhere and Danny’s visions become more disturbing, Jack discovers the hotel’s dark secrets and begins to unravel into a homicidal maniac hell-bent on terrorising his family.”
3. The Conjuring (2013)
The Conjuring is a supernatural horror film directed by James Wan and written by Chad Hayes and Carey W. Hayes. It is the inaugural film in The Conjuring Universe franchise and it stars Vera Farmiga Patrick Wilson Ron Livingston Lili Taylor. The Conjuring’s synopsis reads: “In 1970, paranormal investigators and demonologists Lorraine (Farmiga) and Ed (Wilson) Warren are summoned to the home of Carolyn (Taylor) and Roger (Livingston) Perron. The Perrons and their five daughters have recently moved into a secluded farmhouse, where a supernatural presence has made itself known. Though the manifestations are relatively benign at first, events soon escalate in horrifying fashion, especially after the Warrens discover the house’s macabre history.”
2. Hereditary (2018)
The supernatural psychological horror drama film was written and directed by Ari Aster in his feature directorial debut. Starring Toni Collette, Alex Wolff, Milly Shapiro, Ann Dowd, and Gabriel Byrne, the film’s synopsis reads: “When the matriarch of the Graham family passes away, her daughter and grandchildren begin to unravel cryptic and increasingly terrifying secrets about their ancestry, trying to outrun the sinister fate they have inherited.”
1. The Exorcist (1973)
The Exorcist is a supernatural horror film directed by William Friedkin from a screenplay by William Peter Blatty, based on his 1971 novel. The film stars Ellen Burstyn, Max von Sydow, Jason Miller, and Linda Blair. The Exorcist’s synopsis reads: “This tale of an exorcism is based loosely on actual events. When young Regan (Blair) starts acting odd – levitating, speaking in tongues – her worried mother (Burstyn) seeks medical help, only to hit a dead end. A local priest (Jason Miller), however, thinks the girl may be seized by the devil. The priest makes a request to perform an exorcism, and the church sends in an expert (Sydow) to help with the difficult job.”