Well, now that we're in October I'm getting in a horror movie/TV show frame of mind. Especially since I'm working on a horror-themed story for Halloween. And since I'm in a general horror frame of mind, I'm looking for good recommendations in the genre.

New stuff or classics, I'm flexible. Really just wanted to start up a general discussion of good horror.

 

Ehh. I'd rec the 1970's Texas Chainsaw Massacre after some thought. That legitimately creeped me out the first time I saw it.

 

My favorite recent horror movie is probably The Cabin in the Woods. It doesn't excel through its scariness, instead it manages to turn many things that are so common in horror movies on to their heads. It's a parody of the genre without ridiculing it and manages to stay mysterious and scary by using tropes and cliches in different ways.

Apart from that you've got the classics: Alien, The Shining, ...?

I'm not a huge horror fan to be honest. You could go for the more splatter-y movies. The first Resident Evil, the first Cube.

Gremlins.

 

Also- Evil Dead. Sequel not so much, but then for a refresher Army of Darkness is pretty fun. Loved it back in the day.

 

Crimson Peak, out this month, is looking pretty promising - Guillermo del Toro doing Gothic horror has to be a winner. Other than that, I'd second Cabin in the Woods, although I'd agree it's not that scary per se.

I tend to prefer more traditional horror than the blood and guts variety. The Orphanage is very spooky, as is the recent adaptation of Woman in Black.

 

The Descent is probably my favourite horror film. The Nietzschean transformation of the protagonist is good stuff.

Event Horizon is a great sci-fi horror film, and it might as well be the distant prequel to Warhammer 40,000.

 

Both The Descent and Cabin in the Woods are very good. I would also recommend The Ruins. It's not as good as the other two, but I do think it's a very interesting movie.

 

I watched Jacob's Ladder last night, it's a good horror/thriller movie.

 

I'd recc The Babadook. It's a slow-burning horror movie that's done well; the kid is terrifying. Also, there's Goodnight Mommy. It was released last month, but I'm not sure about global releases. Can't tell you much since I've only watched the trailer.

 

I second The Babadook. I normally stay away from horror movies, but occasionally I give in. Hell&damnation/10, will not watch again. It's terrifying.

 

Classics? Try these:

From 1978 - Invasion of the Body Snatchers

From 1982 - John Carpenter's The Thing

From 1988 - Akira by Katsuhiro Otomo

 

It Follows It is something that is transmitted sexually and when It gets you, you die. However, if you pass it on to someone else, you might just live. Loved this movie! The second part feels like a drop in quality but overall it is a nice movie.

 

Insanely good movie, I'd recommend this to anyone who wants an intelligent horror movie.


Also, Triangle. It's not a horror movie, but a Mystery / Thriller, it's really good and it only gets scary when you start thinking about the movie and it's consequences though.


I enjoyed Antichrist too, which is also an intelligent horror movie. I didn't fully understandd it when I watched it the first time (and I still don't after having watched it multiple times) but it's really good. It's an incredibly slow paced movie and there's a shit ton of dialogue in it, but damn scary and disturbing af.

 

One more- brutal and a bit obscure:

Tetsuo: The Iron Man

 

Found it on YT. I'd put it on one shelf with stuff like Begotten and Nekromantik in terms of how fucked up it is. Really... I have no words. Humans are weird.

 

1980's Cannibal Holocaust is worth watching once, but no more than that.

2011's Sanctum isn't near as good as The Abyss, but it's lack of polish and supernatural elements combine to make it scarier.

2007's Sweeny Todd, 1996's Tromeo & Juliet, 1989's Parents and 2014's Cooties are more funny than scary but still entertaining enough for a recommendation.

1996's The Craft and 1994's The Crow hold up pretty well. I like to think it's not just nostalgia that makes me like them.

1981's Scanners is more influential than it gets credit for. I almost forgot to add it to this list, but I think it might actually be the best movie about psychics I've ever seen.

Hopefully one of these scratches that itch for you.

 

I'll chip in with some recs of my own:

Fallen starring the one and only Denzel Washington. Critics disliked it and it failed at the box office, but I found it surprisingly entertaining. I don't wanna spoil it because the ending is just too good.

Pandorum. Psychological thriller/horror in space. An enjoyable mindfuck. I really liked it. Critics didn't, but what do they know?

 

I remember that movie. I rather liked it, though I found it more of a supernatural thriller than a true horror film.

Oh, I'd forgotten how much I love that movie. One thing I do love about classic 80s horror, tons of old-fashioned blood and guts with practical effects that really has a kind of visceral impact that modern CGI struggles to match. Kind of sad when the effects in the 1982 film look better than the ones in the reboot/prequel that came out a couple years ago.

 

It Follows and The Babaddok are probably the best horror movies which I have seen this year.

The Conjuring is one of the best horror movies recenty.

Exorcism of Emily Rose is always a good choice. Occulus was pretty good and it starred Karen Gillan which is always a plus.

Cabin in the Woods was fucking awesome.