What does anyone think is/are the scariest movie(s) out there?

 

All the big critics websites talk about the fairly obvious ones - the exorcist, the shining, the omen. Now classic as these are...they aren't really my thing. I'm more into what you might call psychological horror...where you have really creepy images working properly with fancy camerawork and such. For example, I liked the first 30 seconds or so of "Shrooms" (the rest of that film was rubbish though)...um, The Ring...annoyingly I can't think of any others but there are many more. Wasn't so keen on Blair Witch though - probably because I expected it to be totally scary and if you approach it like that then it just isn't. Other really scary stuff...that Cradle level in Thief 3(?) which is the same kind of idea, and the kind of fear you get in Silent Hill. Not like ultra-gory, but blood in the right place and lots of suggestive creepy stuff (TVs on static, flickering lights, manequins doing odd things...)

 

Anyway, thats a bit of a rant - does anyone have any suggestions for films I might like based on all that?

From what you have described I would say:

The Grudge

Pulse

Dark Water

One Missed Call

 

 

Scream is my favourite scary movie but its not that scary its just really good

All the big critics websites talk about the fairly obvious ones - the exorcist, the shining, the omen. Now classic as these are...they aren't really my thing. I'm more into what you might call psychological horror...where you have really creepy images working properly with fancy camerawork and such.

I'm not sure your definition of "psychological horror" and mine (or the rest of the world's!) are the same! All the classics you pointed-out are "psychological horrors"?!!! What classification would you give something like Hitchcock's "the Birds"?

 

Anyway! I'd have to say, despite being a big fan of "psychological horrors" - the scariest film I've ever seen would have to be Poltergeist. Now, I was young when I saw it and this was cutting-edge special effects back in the day, and it scared the poop out of me - this was when TV's weren't 24 hours and there was nothing scarier than waking up in a dark room, the only light coming from the hissing static of the TV which, if you looked at for a while did really look like ghostly faces were trying to communicate and the static would change and "follow" you if you got close. Then there's a scary evil clown that just disappears and then goes under the bed - its cold dead eyes and fixed malevolent grin (clowns are scary). Then the portal to the other side was in the bedroom cupboard - everyone's scared of the light around bedroom doors! A scary tree in a lightening storm at night, a mass grave filling with mud that sucks you down into their deathly hands - like trying to run in a nightmare....

 

 

Scary!!!!

Hello

 

When I was much younger, I watched the poltergeist episode of the Waltons and it freaked me out for years

 

Rob

When I was little, my brother made me watch an episode of "V".

Freaked me out for years.

Hello

 

When I was much younger, I watched the poltergeist episode of the Waltons and it freaked me out for years

 

Rob

 

I accidentally watched part of a Waltons episode once and the same happened!

 

<aside>

On an aside, I love your new avatar Helen - very Tim Burton! Are you vying for top-spot in any up-coming avatar comp?!

</aside>

<aside>

On an aside, I love your new avatar Helen - very Tim Burton! Are you vying for top-spot in any up-coming avatar comp?!

</aside>

 

<hijack>

I changed it because my old one made me look fat (also because I wasn't happy with it. Trust me, there will be loads more different ones, as I get bored quick)

</hijack>

I haven't been scared by any films since I was about 12. The only thing that has scared me since then was the Blair Witch Project, anything to do with the supernatural or satanic stuff really scares me.

Psychological horror as in...creeps you out rather than grossing you out. But yeah, a lot of people would class rather more subtle dark films as psychological horror. Point taken.

 

Anyway, good suggestions - will add to rental list!

 

On that note, has anyone ever seen R-Point? THATS a creepy film.

I would thoroughly recommend REC. (The period is a part of the title), it's a Spanish zombie horror, it's done really well and actually scared me at some points. I am a bit of a zombie nut though .

I love horror movies!! I don't like slasher movies thatmuch, too close to the bone and they're more harrowing than horrifying. The scariest films for me are always ghost flicks.

 

So, my scariest?

 

The Exorcist - doesn't get you when you're watching it, it's later when you can hear the plumbing sorting itself out.

The Grudge - Japanese version. Makes Ring look like a Disney flick.

The Orphanage. This film is ace!! Sat and watched it in the cinema, loads of annoying lads in the front row making jokes etc. etc. - by the end they'd pulled their jumpers up their eyes. There's one bit near the end of the movie where the whole cinema had jumped out of their seats.

The Changeling - again, another bump in the night fest.

Also - there's a great TV series called "A Haunting" on Discovery Science that has some proper scary moments in it - although it does seem to have a heavy religious undertone. I've had some sleepless nights after watching that.

 

Those are the ones that actually scare me. The ones below are just ones I like.

 

Of the slasher movies I've watched and liked:

Wolf Creek - that is one of the bleakest films I've ever seen. Truly disturbing.

Them (not the crazy ant movies this one: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0465203/) based on a true story

Eden Lake, also pretty harsh.

 

Creature features? Gotta be Alien. I divide the population of the world into those who prefer Alien, and those who prefer Aliens. The latter are fools.

 

Zombies? First place to Evil Dead 2 - this film is practically perfect IMO. Day of the Dead (remake) is brill (as was the Night remake too). 28 days as well, although it's not strictly a zombie flick.

 

Vampires? Near Dark, Dance of the Vampires, 30 days of night (ace movie)

IT! With the clown who got sucked into his own head from memory.

That is very freaky when you are young, I still run away from clowns to this day (and I am 27)

 

Also in Signs when the first alien walks across the window? It is not scary but so unexpected the first time you watch the film I remember everyone jumping at the cinema premiere and then laughing as everyone was embarrassed!!

the grudge

 

one missed call

 

the eye

 

office haunted

The Shining, First time I saw it i nearly couldn't sleep. Scared the life out of me. (I was around 9).

Pet Cemetary, easily

the grudge

 

one missed call

 

the eye

 

office haunted

 

also mirrors!

Stephen King's IT and also The Devil's Gift which freaked the bejeesuz out of me when I was younger.