Top 10 Horror Movies Of All Time

Why do we love to be scared? From a biological standpoint being frightened initiates the flight or fight response that forces us to focus on what is most important in order to survive. Adrenaline pumps through veins, eyesight and hearing become more acute, and blood rushes from the extremities to the core. If you're not ACTUALLY in danger of losing your life, it's great fun. Enter the scary movie. We can get the same chemical fix without suffering the consequences. Think of it as the emotional equivalent of exercising. The system is taxed and then there's a catharsis.

Horror films caution us about what NOT to do. Going in the basement in the middle of the night? Picking up a hitchhiker? Entering that abandoned building? Uh, no, no and no.

Nature is always frightening. Any manner of creature can kill you (including sharks raining from the sky). Strangers can not be trusted (especially inbred backwoods folk). Avoid anything supernatural. REALLY bad things can happen. If you want to stay alive, keep within your comfort zone!

There's also nothing like a good horror movie to bring people together. We clutch to each other in the hopes of surviving. This is probably what our ancestors did when trying to escape sabertooth tigers. It's a great date night idea. Being scared together is a quick way to get to know each other.

Horror films have been around since Nosferatu was released in 1922. It's almost 100 years later. Since then, thousands of horror movies have been released. Some were horrible, many were mediocre but a select few were magnificent. Below are my picks for the top 10 horror movies of all time. Several were selected because they created horror sub-genres. Most have sequels but, unless otherwise noted, I'm only talking about the original.

Honorable mentions that did not make the list include: "Silence Of The Lambs" (Hannibal Lecter is one of the best villains EVER), "Friday The 13th" (Jason Vorhees has been making summer camp unsafe for teenagers for decades) and "Jaws" (dont go near the water).

10. Dracula- "Shock Theater" films from the 1940-50s were my first introduction to horror. Besides Dracula (the original monster), there was the Wolfman, Frankenstein, the Mummy, the Creature From The Black Lagoon, the Invisible Man and various other creatures (including giant spiders). Sure they're laughable now but to a little kid, they were super scary... and I loved them.

9. Texas Chainsaw Massacre- Released in 1974, "TCM" and was groundbreaking in its violence and extreme gore. It began the "torture porn" sub-genre. We see teenagers/young adults (usually women) terrorized and horribly mutilated by crazies. While this is my least favorite type of horror, it does have a wide audience. There are seven movies total in the franchise. Some are sequels, some are remakes.

Filmmakers ratcheted up the terror by saying the events were based on a true story. Well, technically... but not exactly. There have been no reports of deformed cannibal families running amok with chainsaws in Texas. "TCM" (and many other shows) is based on the severely disturbed Ed Gein (see Wikipedia Ed Gein). There was also a family of cannibals (the Beans) that lived in Scotland hundreds of years ago and chomped on travelers (see Wikipedia Bean Family). Thank goodness I havent run into them.

Other prominent films in this genre include: Saw, Hostel, Martyrs and Cannibal Holocaust (which is also an example of "found footage").

8. Blair Witch Project- 1999's "Blair Witch Project" began the "found footage" craze. The story is pretty hokey. Carefree kids wander into woods to investigate stories of the Blair Witch. They eventually become lost. Their mental state quickly deteriorates. Is something going on or are they driving themselves insane?

All the hype about this being a true story added to it's mystique. A "BWP" sequel entitled "Blair Witch" is due out September 17. It had previously been titled "The Woods".

Other prominent films in this genre include: Paranormal Activity, Cloverfield, V/H/S and [REC].

7. The Shining- Based on the Stephen King novel and directed by Stanley Kubrick, 1980's "The Shining" is truly iconic. Jack Nicholson hits it out of the park as an alcoholic writer who takes a job in an isolated hotel for the winter. Will wife Wendy and son Danny survive till the end of the movie? There are tons of quotes and images from this movie in popular culture including "Here's Johnny" and "Red Rum".

A film version of Stephen King's followup novel "Doctor Sleep" is currently in the works. "The Shining" is one of the few movies on this list without numerous sequels/remakes. You cant improve on perfection.

6. Scream- The original Wes Craven movie aired in 1996. Four films and a TV series (currently in it's second season) followed. See my reviews of the MTV series here-- Scream: The Series

"Scream" turned the horror genre on it's ear by making the characters self aware (not that it helped them survive any longer). It also lists the "murder rules" that govern any good horror flick. They include: Sex equals death, Dont drink or do drugs, and anyone can be killed at any time.

Craven was a very busy man who also created such classics as : "Nightmare On Elm Street", "The Hills Have Eyes" and "The People Under The Stairs". All of which are classics in their own rights.

5. Night Of The Living Dead- George A. Romero single handedly created the zombie as we know it today. No small feat. Before him, zombies were strictly of the voodoo variety.

"Night Of The Living Dead" was released in 1968. The low budget black and white film's depiction of a group of survivors hole up in a farmhouse while the undead try to break in is very effective. I remember watching it in the middle of the night as a teenager. Very scary!

Since then, there have been six other movies in the franchise. They arent really considered sequels though since none of the same characters appear. A prequel is currently in the works.

Why do we love zombies so much? Zombies cant be reasoned with. They just want to eat you. But I'll let ya in on a little secret. Zombie movies are less about the zombies and more about the survivors (who are often MUCH worse than the undead). I'm still looking forward to the zombie apocalypse though. I hope it comes soon. Remember, double tap to the head.

The gazillions of zombie movies, comics, TV shows and games that followed since "NOTLD" (including the hugely popular "The Walking Dead") owe George big time.

4. Aliens- Who knew what a success Ridley Scott had on his hands when "Alien" was released in 1979? Seven sequels followed (if you count the two "Alien vs Predator" movies and the forgettable prequel "Prometheus"). An eighth film entitled "Alien: Covenant" is currently in production.

The second "Aliens" from 1986 remains my favorite (but "Alien" is still great). While the xenomorph appeared in the original, "Mother" doesn't show up until part 2. We also get face huggers and chest busters. "Aliens" is an action packed adrenaline rush.

"Alien" spawned the "space horror" sub-genre that many have since emulated. The movie also gave us one of the best female characters of all times. Ripley is a fierce but vulnerable warrior. She'll do whatever she has to in order to survive. Sigourney Weaver is excellent in the role. Thanks to her, a generation of girls grew up believing they could kick space monster ass as well as the boys (although I'm not sure how many space monsters have asses).

3. Psycho- Alfred Hitchcock wasn't called the "master of suspense" for nothing. He knew how to scare the bejesus out of audiences with bold storytelling, creative camera work and compelling musical scores. 1960 audiences had never seen anyone like Norman Bates. And the surprise twist at the end was "to die for" (pardon the pun).

We now have six additional movies (including a shot by shot remake by Gus Van Sant). The TV series. Bates Motel on A&E will begin it's final season next year. Freddie Hightower and Vera Farmiga as Norman and Norma are completely enthralling.

Also, for those of you who dont know, in the original "Psycho" Marion Crane was played by Vivian Leigh (Jamie Lee Curtis' mother). See "Halloween" below.

Thanks to "Psycho", audiences now always suspect the quiet Mama's boy who likes taxidermy to be the murderer.

2. Halloween- This 1978 low budget movie was written and directed John Carpenter. He also created the iconic score. It stars a very young Jamie Lee Curtis. There are nine other films in the franchise (including the 2009 Rob Zombie remake). Another "Halloween" movie is currently in production. The original remains the best though.

"Halloween" is the granddaddy of all "slasher films". It has a simple formula (which by now has been replicated many times). Killer escapes from mental hospital. Killer terrorizes and murders a bunch of teenagers. Killer appears dead... but wait... he's not. "Final girl" narrowly escapes only to be terrorized another day.

Michael Myers and his hockey mask are permanent fixtures of popular culture. Check out "The Tao Of Michael Myers" for some interesting theories on why we all love and continue to revisit this movie The Tao Of Michael Myers