Spooky season is here and whether it’s trick-or-treating, parties and staying in watching a ton of slasher flicks, Halloween is an exciting time of year, but what’s really special about this holiday is the wide selection of horror movies to watch. Ghost movies, slasher flicks, monster movies or even something more paranormal, the horror genre is full of variety that speak well for the holiday season. That’s what this is list is going to be. I will rank my 10 favorite horror movies, but also ones that I think are perfect to watch this time in year. Shall we begin?

#10 AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON

Comedy and horror are genres that should never correspond together, but even the best kinds of horror movies give us a great sense of terror and tension that we find ourselves laughing with each other due to how frightening things can be. Plus, the focus of Werewolves is something that modern day horror movies need to bring back in the forefront. From director John Landis, An American Werewolf in London is a timeless and unforgettable stamp in horror that delivers on terrifying sequences, comedy and the birthstone of the incredible makeup done by the one and only Rick Baker.

#9 THE CONJURING

James Wan is, more than likely, one of the best modern horror filmmakers in the business and it’s partially because he finds a way to pay a significant homage to the classic and grand daddy horror movies, but also giving a clean and gorgeous visual texture to it. The Conjuring is Wan’s effective demonstration of finding the formula to what made some of the great horror flicks so unique (Poltergeist, The Exorcist and The Omen) and adding a modern lens to it that captures and an old school vibe with it’s production, but still feeling appropriate in the modern culture or horror. The Conjuring could be The Exorcist for a particular generation of people, and rightfully so. From the chilling vibes in the air, Joseph Bishara’s haunting score and the fine performances, The Conjuring delivers on everything properly.

#8 THE CABIN IN THE WOODS

Serving as a wonderful signature to Sam Raimi’s Evil Dead movies but also going balls to the wall with its mythology,  The Cabin in the Woods is another perfect example by blending comedy and horror together and having a blast with it. It is a bit strange at certain moments throughout the film, but the tongue and cheek nature of it made it engaging and deliriously entertaining.

#7 JAWS

Jaws is a horror movie that hardly ever gets mentioned. Yes, it changed the very nature of what a summer blockbuster can be, but something it also hauntingly succeeded at was making something more nightmarish and monstrous. Jaws isa great movie because you care about the characters and you care about the small town of Amity Island. It’s not just about the shark but when the films builds to that reveal of seeing the shark with the teases and small doses of it, it makes us reconsider on taking just one step in the ocean. Jaws is probably the kind of all summer blockbusters but it’s certainly one of the most effective monster movies.

#6 HALLOWEEN

Maybe considered as the grand daddy of the slasher flicks, theres a reason why the first Halloween movie has been able to stand the test of time for over 40 years. It brought so much to the table and it set the stage for slasher movies that followed after it. The directing from John Carpenter keeps you tensed, the movie is full of claustrophobia and a great sense of exposure and makes things even more special, the music created by John Carpenter, himself, has occupied itself as classic horror music. Halloween works for all those reasons because it’s simple.

#5 PARANORMAL ACTIVITY

We can trash and hate the Paranormal Activity movies, not necessarily for the franchise, but what the franchise then caused by creating a trend of lackluster horror movie after lackluster found footage horror movie. It is to blame for that. Nevertheless, the first Paranormal Activity movie is one of the very few modern horror movies that’s hardly ever discussed which is a damn shame. Why does this movie work and why is it so resonating? Because it’s puts horror in one place that everyone can relate with, and that’s the bedroom. We all lie down in a dark room, lights off and become perfect prey for whatever lurks in the dark. That’s what so fresh about this movie and by not showing anything happening, a found footage movie hasn’t been this stress inducing in ages.

#4 THE TEXAS CHAIN SAW MASSACRE

Audiences today will never experience what would it was like when they were first introduced The Texas Chain Saw Massacre. It’s regraded not only as one of the most influential horror movies, but also as one of the more controversial ones as well. Like Halloween, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre serves as a unique horror movie that also features strong commentary to it. The Texas Chain Saw Massacre is a grim, grotesque and out of control exploitation of horror that almost deconstructs it simultaneously. Leatherface is another iconic figure in the realm of horror, and just like every great horror movie, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre leaves you with disturbed feeling.

#3 SCREAM

What makes the first Scream so special is really taking a look at where the slasher genre was at during that time. You had already had dozens of Halloween sequels, Prom Night and a huge list of slasher flicks. Wes Craven hadn’t had a hit in sometime and there was a lot of hesitation on Scream ever succeeding because the genre had run its course. Coming out around Christmas time in 1996, Scream is one of the hallmarks of all horror. Not only is frightening and thrilling, what makes Scream work is that it’s poking fun itself by being self referential on the slasher genre, by still delivering the goods on a movie on this kind of scale. From the game changing open sequence and the epic finale, Scream is a horror movie for the ages.

#2 THE DESCENT

Every thing about The Descent feels real. It’s a creature feature in the structure of an airless and super engrossing horror adventure about a group of women who go on a cave expedition in the Appalachian mountains, only to then discover they aren’t the only thing that lurk even deeper in the darkness. The Descent is a beautifully grueling, empowering and terrific directorial effort from director Neil Marshall.

#1 THE EXORCIST

Often claimed as the greatest horror movie of all time, The Exorcist is the godfather of all horror movies. Every horror movie that has followed in its footsteps must be incredibly thankful for the impact this movie had. It serves as the essential backbone for what makes a great horror movie transcendental and unbelievably horrifying. There’s obviously great ones before it, but it stops and ends with The Exorcist.

What did you guys think? What are your favorite horror movies? Let me know in the comments below.

Happy Halloween everybody 🎃