Halloween is around the corner, which means for most people, is time to watch some horror to get into the spirits. But the question remains of what scary movies to watch? Here are some of the scariest and entertaining horror films to watch in the dark.
“Halloween”
“Halloween” centers on a man named Michael Myers who was sent to a mental hospital at age six for murdering his teenage sister. He then escapes on Halloween and begins to stalk a babysitter and her friends while a psychiatrist tries to stop him in the process
What makes this movie so scary is the mystery of Michael Myers. We don’t see his face and we never know his intentions the only thing know is that he’s an embodiment of evil who seems to never stay dead as you can see at the end of the movie where you think he’s gone for good with all the injuries he has, you hear him slowly breathing as the movie pans to a bunch of houses showing that he can be anywhere.
Despite containing similar elements to other movies like “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre” and “Black Christmas” that was released before, “Halloween” created a new wave of many slasher films such as “Friday the 13th” and “A Nightmare on Elm Street” and helped popularize the final girl trope of what you often see in other films after it.
Nick Castle’s portrayal of Micheal Myers has made an impact as he became one of the iconic serial killers of cinema and even though there were different actors in other films, most would always go back to the original as no one could compete with the original that left everyone in dread every time he appears.
And you can’t forget about the iconic Michael Myers theme that’s always played at someone’s house for trick or treating every year.
“The Shining”
Jack Torrance goes to the Overlook Hotel in Colorado as a caretake with his wife and son, Wendy and Danny Torrance who has obtained psychic premonition. As Jack struggles to overcome his writer block, something sinister is lurking in the hotel taking over the father as he descends into violence and terrorizing his family.
Movies before “The Shining” were just movies of vampires, monsters, and the Wolfman. Not this movie though. It was the first movie to have psychological aspects and having a villain who’s not Frankenstein but his dad. There are even some scenes such as the man dressed as a bear with another man that could depict what’s the relationship between the father and the son which leaves many disturbed.
Jack Nicholson as Jack Torrance, the father of Danny, excels in his performance as a father slowly going mad in the hotel creating one of the famous scene and line, “Here’s Johnny!”
“The Exorcist”
“The Exorcist” follows the story of the possession of the 12-year-old girl and her mother and two priests trying to rescue her.
Like “The Shining”, it was able to cover something that no other horror movie before has touched; demonic possession.
The thought of an unseen entity taking over someone and not being able to use weapons is disturbing. Especially when you slowly see the girl getting close to fully possessed and going through no normal person would go through.
It’s also one of the few films that bring in the topic of religion by having a Catholic priest as one of the major protagonists and other things.
For the role of Regan, the directors weren’t sure to get a young actress and if she would carry the film. Until they got Linda Blair who gave quite an impression when she claims she read the book and has a personality that the director was looking for.
Despite the controversies going around the time “The Exorcist” was released, Linda Blair did a fine performance of a little who was possessed by the devil and committed these horrible things.
The film has lead to other films relating to the supernatural and demons such as “The Amityville Horror” and the most recent “The Conjuring”.
Scream
A masked murderer who’s obsessed with horror movies goes on a killing spree in Woodsboro and stalking high schoolers as a teenage girl, a cop and a news reporter are trying to figure out who’s behind the mask.
What makes this movie different from other slasher movies is that the killer isn’t some entity that appears in your dreams or an embodiment of evil, but that it could be anyone as you can see in the other three sequels.
“Scream” stood out by reconstructing the genre by pointing out every cliché and subverting them making this very entertaining seeing the characters using their knowledge of horror movies to escape from another horror icon, Ghostface.
After the movies’ release, there’s been a bunch of imitating movies, including I Know What You Did Last Summer.
Neve Campbell’s portrayal of Sidney Prescott differs from other female characters in other horror movies is that she’s not a “goody-two-shoes” that others were portrayed. She’s not your typical screaming girl and actually does something throughout the film and the franchise.
“Alien”
When a ship crew receives an unknown transmission as a distress call, one of the crew members gets attacked by a mysterious lifeform that gives birth to a large being and takes them out one by one.
There’s nothing worse than being stuck in a ship with an alien with disturbing abilities and its horrifying features. Alien remains to be one of the iconic alien movies hugely known for its terrifying design and many movies have tried to copy it and tried an Alien vibe film but have failed.
Sigourney Weaver became widely known as Ripley who was the first female character in sci-fi and is one of the most significant protagonists in cinema history.
The film has what you need in a horror film; tension, suspense, the body count, and a horrifying alien that’s capable of many things.
Now you’re set to have a great horror movie night on Halloween.