25 scariest movies

by steph_egan | fun finds

Booo!

In Heather’s post on Monday, she may have mistakenly (purposely?) left off one additional reason to love/hate October and more specifically, Halloween:  scary movies!

So who’s a fan of them?

The four of us are the kind that:

a. do not watch them

b. watch through our fingers… squirming and yelling and squeezing our eyes shut

We were also unanimous in our vote that we don’t like any scary movies that mimic horrible things that can actually happen in real life.  Spinning heads and zombies?  No big deal.

So without further ado, a list of the 25 scariest movies compiled by The Chicago Tribune.

Which ones have you seen??  And if your preferred movie genre is comedy, well, some of the descriptions below are pretty funny.

The Omen (1976)

An American ambassador learns that his son (which is really not his but one he picked up at the hospital) is the literal antichrist. Naturally, grisly deaths occur. Call Nanny 911

Psycho (1960)

A young woman steals $40,000 from work and takes off to start a new life. As luck would have it, her rest stop at the Bates Motel is her final one. Much blame and creepiness is experienced before the twist ending. Taking a shower and a mother’s love were never seen the same.

The Amityville Horror (1979)

Based on the true story of George Lee and Kathy Lutz, the movie follows their troubled stay at their house in Amityville. Buying the house for a steal in the fall of 1975 because of a multiple murder barely a year before, they move in to experience a series of increasingly disturbing paranormal events. Eventually they flee. George, a land surveyor, probably should of had his license revoked because the house was supposedly built on a tribal burial ground. Memo: don’t build your house on a gravesite.

Rosemary’s Baby (1968)

Rosemary and Guy Woodhouse move into a New York apartment with a bad reputation. Sounds pretty normal these days but back in the 60’s it was a rare occurrence. Soon Rosemary finds out that the tenants, as well as her husband, and probably in that order, are intent on her having a baby. The downside to this bundle of joy is that it is Satan. No happy ending here.

The Exorcist (1973)

Pea soup never looked so good! (Satan made me say that.) This movie has made the top of many critics’ list as the scariest movie of all time. A young girl is possessed by a demon and her mother calls on the help of two priests to save her soul.

Friday the 13th (1980)

A group of young counselors are working to get Camp Crystal Lake up and running for the summer. But someone isn’t too happy with the camp and one by one they are knocked off in dramatic gory ways. The big surprise ending was whom the killer turned out to be and introduced the next family member to take up the Camp Crystal cause. Go Team Voorhees!

Poltergeist (1982)

They’re Here! A suburban family is first visited by what appears to be friendly ghosts. Before anyone can say Casper, things turn nasty with a pool full of corpses, an evil tree and one of the nastiest stuffed toy clowns you’ll ever meet. Memo: don’t build your house on a gravesite.

A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)

A ghostly child murderer stalks the dreams of the kids of the lynch mob that killed him for killing kids. Ah, the Circle of Life er, Death. 

The Shining (1980)

A family spends the winter taking care of an evil hotel that makes the dad crazy, the mom really hysterical and the little boy run around at night in a frozen maze. Growing up, family time was never so fun in my house. 

Halloween (1978)

The description doesn’t do this film justice. An escaped psychotic murderer goes on a rampage while his doctor chases him through town. Well, maybe it does.

An American Werewolf in London (1981)

A Werewolf attacks two American tourists in England. One is killed and the other is mauled. The survivor, David, eventually turns into a Werewolf, wreaks terror and is visited by his gory victims for chats on how to end his curse. The best things about this film were the special effects and the fact it was the “Dr. Pepper” guy who starred in it.

The Fog (1980)

Once again, Memo: Don’t build over a gravesite. This time it’s a small Northern California fishing town that was built over an old leper colony. The town is targeted for revenge by a killer fog containing zombie-ghosts seeking retribution.

 he Blair Witch Project (1999)

A “spookimentary” based on footage found a year after the disappearance of three student filmmakers in the woods near Burkittsville, Maryland, this film had people talking about the mystery and getting sick at the dizzy handheld footage.

Saw (2004)

Jigsaw, a serial killer who sets up elaborate devices that his victims must figure out or die in, has trapped Dr. Lawrence Gordon in one of his deadly games. Dr. Gordon must figure out a way to get out in time. Hint: Saw.

The Ring (2002)

A young reporter investigates mysterious videotape that causes the death of anyone within a week of viewing it. Home viewing should be on DVD only as to avoid the VHS tape curse.

The Vanishing (1983)

The boyfriend of an abducted woman searches for her and the person who took her. He finally meets up with the abductor, who promises to reveal what has happened to her. Sandra Bullock stars and after this movie it can’t be said that she can’t act her way out of a box.

Hellraiser (1987)

A puzzle box is actually the doorway to hell in this film that introduces us to Pinhead, a scary guy with nails throughout his skull. So why isn’t he called Nailhead? Anyway, the plot revolves around Frank, who has cheated Pinhead by living through an encounter with him earlier and his brother’s cheating wife, Julia. Various people lose their skin and lives before all is set right by Frank’s niece, Kirsty.

Dawn of the Dead (1978)

Due to a slight problem of the dead rising and eating every brain in sight, two cops, a traffic reporter and his TV exec girlfriend take refuge in a shopping mall. If zombies weren’t bad enough they’re forced to battle for the food court with an evil biker gang too.

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)

A group of friends are driving on the back roads of Texas when they fall prey to a cannibalistic family, one of which is a leather-masked chainsaw-wielding maniac. This was the film that ended tourism in Texas until everybody figured out it was based on the murderer Ed Gein from Wisconsin. No word on how Wisconsin’s tourism industry is doing.

Carrie (1976)

An unpopular and picked on girl with telekinetic powers gets pushed too far on prom night and becomes a rage-filled killing machine. Nerds everywhere rejoice!

Night of the Living Dead (1968)

A group of people hides from bloodthirsty zombies in a farmhouse. Cue the farm jokes now.

Children of the Corn (1984)

Also known as When Good Vegetables Go Bad. He Who Walks Behind the Rows wants Malachi and you to sit back, relax and be scared by a bunch of creepy kids. They sacrifice the adults of Gatlin, Nebraska to the demon who lives under the corn. A kind doctor and his wife battle the evil force, free the kids and burn corn. 

The Evil Dead (1981)

Hitting the books takes on a whole new meaning for five college friends who travel to a cabin in the woods where they the find a scary book and then play a recording of incantations from the it unleashing demons who possess them one by one.

The Descent (2005)

Six female friends reunite after a tragic accident and end up trapped in a mountain cave because of a collapse. They soon find themselves being attacked by the bloodthirsty creatures (are there any other kind?) that live there. They struggle to survive the creatures and each other. Golden Girls, where are you?

The Hills Have Eyes (1977)

Made before MTV gave the Hills a whole set of other creeps, the creeps inhabiting these hills have their hungry eyes on an innocent family who had the bad luck to break down in their nuclear testing grounds of a backyard. Naturally, the family fights for their survival.

Sooo, scary movies not your thing?  How about Starbucks?  That’s not scary.  Win a giftcard here!