10 Of The Best And Most Nightmare-Inducing Horror Films Of All Time
If you're a true horror fan, you will know that the horror genre encompasses far more than a few predictable jump-scares and a blood-curdling scream here and there. On the contrary, a good horror film will take you on an emotional and psychological roller-coaster ride and leave you in utter disbelief at what you've just watched.
In fact, what classifies a film as horror is not so much about its content as it is about the feelings it provokes from its audience. A good horror film needs to plant itself deep in a viewer's mind where it can never be forgotten.
It's not surprising that the horror genre has reached cult status with its enthusiastic following. After all, there's no experience quite like seeing a mind-blowing horror film for the first time and being genuinely shocked by its gruesomeness.
The horror genre can manifest some of our innermost real-life fears as we watch them play out in front of our eyes on the big screen. The things we watch can stay with us and haunt us for a lifetime, feeding our paranoia and the darkest part of our minds.
Whether you love a good slasher film, a spooky ghost story, or a psychological terror-fest, our list is sure to have you covered. Keep scrolling to check out ten of our favorite horror films below.
10. Alien, 1979
Directed by Ridley Scott, Alien follows the crew of a commercial spacecraft as they encounter a deadly lifeform after investigating a mysterious transmission of unknown origin.
IMDB9. The Blair Witch Project, 1999
The Blair Witch Project is an American supernatural horror film written, directed, and edited by Daniel Myrick and Eduardo Sánchez. It tells the story of three student filmmakers who hike into the Black Hills near Burkittsville, Maryland, to film a documentary about a local myth known as the Blair Witch.
IMDB8. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, 1974
Directed and produced by Tobe Hooper, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre follows a group of friends who fall victim to a family of cannibals.
IMDB7. The Thing, 1982
The Thing is an American science fiction horror film directed by John Carpenter. It tells the story of a group of American researchers in Antarctica who encounter an extraterrestrial life form that assimilates, then imitates, other organisms.
IMDB6. Possession, 1981
Possession is a psychological horror film directed by Andrzej Żuławski and written by Żuławski and Frederic Tuten. The film follows a young woman who exhibits increasingly disturbing behavior after asking her husband for a divorce.
5. The Host, 2006
Directed by Bong Joon-Ho, The Host is a Korean masterpiece that follows the story of a monster that emerges from Seoul's Han River and starts attacking people.
IMDB4. Halloween, 1978
This independent slasher film made actress Jamie Lee Curtis famous in 1978. Set in the suburban town of Haddonfield, the film tells the story of Michael Myers, who brutally stabs his older sister to death on Halloween.
IMDB3. Funny Games, 1997
This Austrian film focuses on two violent young men as they take a mother, father, and son hostage in their family vacation cabin. Directed by Michael Haneke, Funny Games spares no detail in its depiction of the family's terror.
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2. Get Out, 2017
Former sketch comedian Jordan Peele's first feature film follows a young African-American man as he visits his white girlfriend's parents. The anxiety-inducing horror features racism, hypnosis, and mind control, making it an unmissable film for any horror fan.
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1. The Shining, 1980
Stanley Kubrick's film adaptation of Stephen King's famous novel "The Shining" starred Jack Nicholson and Shelley Duvall. King initially disliked the film about a haunted hotel, but over the years, the rift between Kubrick and King has been repaired, and the film continues to be one of the greatest horrors of all time.
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What are your thoughts on our list of ten of the most nightmare-inducing horror films? Have you seen any of them, and did they terrify you as much as they did us?
As always, we would love to hear your opinions on this story. You can share your thoughts with us in the comment section.
