Horror remains one of the most popular and profitable genres for a lot of reasons, perhaps most notably because it really makes viewers react. The best of the genre aren’t really something you watch so much as something you experience, ideally something you endure and survive with a theatrical audience.
From the silent era through classic Hollywood to New Hollywood and beyond, the 20th century gave audiences iconic, legendary horror pictures that pushed boundaries and provoked conversation (sometimes even hysteria), with many of the best from the genre remaining classics to this day. The following arethe most purely rewatchable horror pictures of the 20th century.To be clear, this isn’t a definitive ranking by artistic merits and overall quality (though it’s easy to designate all of these titles as essential, great horror films), rather a ranking by how many times horror diehards or even casual fans can watch them, over and over.
10’The Exorcist' (1973)
Directed by William Friedkin
Based on the novel by adapting screenwriterWilliam Peter Blattyhimself,William Friedkin’s supernatural thriller about a possession in Georgetown is generally regarded as the finest and most impactful horror picture ever made.As it’s also become one of the most parodied and referenced movies ever as well,some modern viewers aren’t fully aware of just how shocking and traumatizing it was for viewers in 1973.
For all its heaviness, andThe Exorcistis a heavy film—as powerful a meditation of good and evil as has ever been filmed—it’s certainly rewatchable for the filmmaking craft that holds up beautifully a half century on. The special effects still look pretty seamless, andThe Exorcisthas one of the best and most innovative sound designs (Oscar-winning) this side of the originalStar Wars. Friedkin himself, known for his merciless candor and self-deprecation, has gone on record saying he thinksThe Exorcistis as close to perfect as a film can be.
The Exorcist
When a young girl is possessed by a mysterious entity, her mother seeks the help of two Catholic priests to save her life.
9’The Texas Chain Saw Massacre' (1974)
Directed by Tobe Hooper
Here’s a hot take, maybe.Tobe Hooper’s originalThe Texas Chain Saw Massacrehas retained its shock value better than any classic horror film, even better thanThe Exorcist. To be clear,The Exorcistis still the final word in horror and the absolute zenith of the genre, butTexas Chain Saw, which Hooper originally, hilariously thought would pass with a PG rating (it had to be trimmed to avoid an X), is arguably even more disarmingly disturbing and reactionary when viewed these days.
Most recently emulated to exquisitely artistic effect inTi West’sX, the sweltering low-fi thriller, about youths at the mercy of the cannibal Sawyer clan, is a marvel of no-budget attention to detail. The story behind the guerrilla filmmaking here is immortalized in Leatherface actorGunnar Hansen’s terrific bookChain Saw Confidential: How We Made the World’s Most Notorious Horror Movie. Here is a genre film that was shocking but not fully appreciated by critics in its day.Its reputation, and infamy, only grow as time goes by.
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre
A group of friends traveling through rural Texas encounter a family of deranged cannibals, including the terrifying Leatherface. As they explore an old homestead, they are systematically hunted down in gruesome ways. The film culminates in a harrowing chase and a desperate escape attempt by the last survivor, Sally, who narrowly evades the murderous Leatherface.
8’Psycho' (1960)
Directed by Alfred Hitchcock
Here’s the oldest film on this list (it’s nearly 65 years old), and it’s really as simple as this: Every other film on this list either would not exist without it, or at the very least would be in some way different. It is that influential, the grandpops of modern shock cinema. Andit holds up like gangbusters as film history, filmmaking how-to—and pure, thrilling entertainment.The entire runtime is as carefully composed as the iconic shower scene that is undeniably the centerpiece.
Psychois a movie that broke all the rules. From the shocking casting ofAnthony Perkinsas the murderous motel manager Norman Bates to the death of our heroine at the midway point to the then-shocking onscreen depiction of a toilet, it was an act of aggression upon the censors.There’s never been a more impressive feat of film direction thanPsycho; it’s still frightening, still able to affect the heart rate.
A Phoenix secretary embezzles $40,000 from her employer’s client, goes on the run and checks into a remote motel run by a young man under the domination of his mother.
7’Jaws' (1975)
Directed by Steven Spielberg
At one point in time the highest-grossing motion picture ever made,Steven Spielberg’s sophomore feature and international breakthrough blurs the line between thriller, horror and adventure film. But it’s absolutely a red-blooded (not to mention toothy) horror picture.Its slow-burn genre-blending thrills arguably remain unmatched nearly a half-century later.
AdaptingPeter Benchley’s novel about three men on a manhunt—er, sharkhunt—for a great white terrorizing New England (with a script co-written by Benchley himself), Spielberg insisted upon a much more explosive (literally, explosive) ending that’s a far cry from the silent ending that worked so well on the page.Jawsisa slow-burn, character-focused thriller with shocks and tension that still jolt and grip.
When a killer shark unleashes chaos on a beach community off Cape Cod, it’s up to a local sheriff, a marine biologist, and an old seafarer to hunt the beast down.
6’Carrie' (1976)
Directed by Brian De Palma
As far asStephen Kinggenre adaptations go, it’s safe to sayThe Shiningis king. Here’s the thing:Carrieis pretty much every bit as great asThe Shiningand even more entertaining.LikeThe Shining, it has formidable replay value as pure storytelling, and as a showcase of perfect filmmaking in every department.
At the peak of his powers as a voice of New Hollywood amidst peers likeGeorge LucasandMartin Scorsese,Brian De Palmahad a vision for King’s tale of high school torment and vengeance down to the exact budget.His muscular, flashy but never distracting steady hand complements uniformly vibrant, tender and darkly comical performances. De Palma makes a bold stylistic choice in virtually every scene here, but there’s always a reason. Compare this timeless landmark with the limp 2002 and 2013 adaptations (the latter of which used the same script) andit’s basically an entire course in film school.
Carrie White, a shy, friendless teenage girl who is sheltered by her domineering, religious mother, unleashes her telekinetic powers after being humiliated by her classmates at her senior prom.
5’The Silence of the Lambs' (1991)
Directed by Jonathan Demme
Jonathan Demme’s humanist, breathtaking masterwork fromTed Tally’s bestseller is many things: it’s a police procedural, arguably the best psychological thriller ever made… and a horror movie. Much of its allure is rooted in classical Gothic. Despite its grim and violent subject matter (or, honestly perhaps because of it in some cases), it’s a movie that’s never stopped being popular and beloved.
A lot of horror movies, perhaps especially ones rooted in our real world and not the supernatural, leave you feeling drained and beat up, maybe even unhappy. For a story heavy on serial killers,The Silence of Lambsis an oddly upbeat (not to mention heart-pounding) experience.Aside from the undeniable charm (and oh hell, fun) that erudite Hannibal Lecter (Anthony Hopkins) brings to the table, a key factor for that is the hero’s journey of Clarice Starling (Jodie Foster). The lambs being silenced is literally her personal, internal triumph.
The Silence of the Lambs
A young F.B.I. cadet must receive the help of an incarcerated and manipulative cannibal killer to help catch another serial killer, a madman who skins his victims.
4’Scream' (1996)
Directed by Wes Craven
There are few movies in any genre as purely pleasurable asWes Craven’s 1996 meta landmarkScream. The first slasher movie of note where the characters were savvy in slasher tropes remains an irresistible blend of snarky observation and pure, savage, even celebratory terror. Pulitzer Prize winnerRoger Eberthad a phrase he’d use pretty frequently: bruised forearm movie. A movie that made you grip the arm of your date. That’s what this is; it’s one of the best.
Opening with the humorously then bone-chillingly self-aware stalking ofDrew Barrymore’s Casey Becker, then concluding with the explosive “longest night in horror history” that set a record for fake blood on a set,Screamis a horror lover’s dream.Its entertainment value and innovation are so remarkable that this is also a movie that transcends the genre as essential viewing for all film fans, even those who insist they don’t do horror.It’s an exorbitant, gleefully exhausting amount of fun.
A year after the murder of her mother, a teenage girl is terrorized by a masked killer who targets her and her friends by using scary movies as part of a deadly game.
3’The Shining' (1980)
Directed by Stanley Kubrick
The more times you watchStanley Kubrick’s aggressively scary horror masterpiece, the more its layers of genius become undeniable.Loosely based on Stephen King’s book about an isolated writer’s descent into alcoholism and other violence of the mind and body, the labyrinthine film is itself the subject of an uneven but compulsively entertaining documentary,Room 237.
Sometimes it’s easy to forget the deafeningmehthat metThe Shiningin 1980 (Ebert gave it two stars) in its time, before that gave way to universal acclaim (Ebert added it to his “Great Movies” companion in 2006). Atmospheric in the extreme and known most forJack Nicholson’s most iconic starring turn,The Shiningisan enveloping experience with seemingly infinite replay value.
The Shining
A family heads to an isolated hotel for the winter where a sinister presence influences the father into violence, while his psychic son sees horrific forebodings from both past and future.
2’Aliens' (1986)
Directed by James Cameron
In addition to being one of the best-looking movies across all genres,Ridley Scott’s 1979 originalAlienis just perfect, from script to execution. It’sthe best haunted house movie ever made, with the added bonus that it’s on a spaceship. The exhilarating action/horror hybridAliensis just as good only it’s even more re-playable. There’s never been a better film to watch with an audience.Over two hours and change, Sigourney Weaver’s Ellen Ripley evolves, believably, into the biggest badass in genre history. It raises the pulse.
Weaver is so good here, in fact, that she became one of few actors in the Academy’s history to be Oscar-nominated for horror.James Cameron’s underrated writing and very rated technical craft support a streamlined arc thatcouldn’t possibly be more gripping, more gratifying.
Decades after surviving the Nostromo incident, Ellen Ripley is sent out to re-establish contact with a terraforming colony but finds herself battling the Alien Queen and her offspring.
1’Halloween' (1978)
Directed by John Carpenter
In so many ways outwardly a direct descendant ofPsycho(hell, the lead is a descendant of that film’s lead),John Carpenter’sHalloweenhas aged just as well as the Hitchcock andHoward Hawksmovies that inspired it. As much as any film in existence,Halloweenis drunk in love with movies and the craft of movie-making. Its raw, low-fi yet dazzling craftsmanship only gets better as the modern industry leans harder into the bloated $300 million blockbuster that often just looks and feels like expensive gas.
The slasher formula it generated, and the idea of a boogeyman lurking around suburbia, would go on to be run into the ground, butHalloweenis a timeless exercise in the art of suspense.Aside from one classroom scene where people talk about fate, there’s no subtext here whatsoever.It’s simply the ultimate popcorn horror movie, a merciless rollercoaster that is designed solely to generate an emotional, physiological response.WhenHalloweenis over, you’re exhilarated. Who the hell wouldn’t want to experience that over and over?
Fifteen years after murdering his sister on Halloween night 1963, Michael Myers escapes from a mental hospital and returns to the small town of Haddonfield, Illinois to kill again.
