Scary Movies

With this week being Halloween, there are several scary movies hitting the small and big screen at the moment. I have to say I was really slow getting into scary movies/horror because as a child I had a hard time delineating between fiction and reality and so my parents in their wisdom sought to shelter me by ensuring I was never exposed to the genre while they were around.

Eventually I saw my first scary movie as part of a charity event in high school. The film was Evil Dead II and I have to say it wasn't really scary - more a lot of fun to watch with a group of high school students.

Scary movies are generally separated into two categories - horror and thriller.

Wes Craven, to me, is the king of horror. Scream and Scream 2 are my personal favourites directed by him because they have an element of fun and have wonderful scripts. Other classics directed by Wes include A Nightmare on Elm Street (featuring a very young Johnny Depp), The Hills Have Eyes and The Serpent and the Rainbow.

For horror fans, other films that are great to watch include Halloween, The Exorcist, Carrie (I have gone for the original here as I am yet to see the remake), Final Destination, Saw, The Blair Witch Project, The Purge, Children of the Corn, The Ring, Kwaidan, Marebito, Dark Water (because there should be some Japanese horrors in here), Dawn of the Dead (my preference is for the original over the remake) and  The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (either version is good).

For the schlock/comedy horror, Peter Jackson's films Bad Taste and The Frighteners are a must see.

As for thrillers, I found Copycat to be incredibly scary. Watching the film alone at 2am no doubt contributed to the experience.

Other great thrillers include:
Psycho (my preference is for the Hitchcock version although the remake is ok)
Cujo (Stephen King is a great scary writer and Cujo is one of the best conversions of one of his books to film)
The Silence of the Lambs
Event Horizon
The Shining (every list should include a Kubrick film where possible and this one is timeless)
Cape Fear (Dare I say I prefer the De Niro version to the original although both are good)
The Omen (Such a fantastic film - the trilogy is quite a good watch for those looking for a full evening/weekend's viewing)
Rosemary's Baby
The Others (Quite a good film for Nicole Kidman)

That's really it to get you started. Are there any you think I should include on the list? Let me know.