What is the scariest movie you have ever seen?

Re: The Scariest Movie Ever!

Paige Turner said:
A lot of people—of, let's say, a certain age—were marked by a TV movie called Trilogy of Terror with Karen Black. Anybody know the one I'm talking about? With the African doll? Creepy stuff.
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Yes, Paige... Interesting film altogether, though the one with the doll was one of the best on that theme I've seen. The script was by Richard Matheson, so not too surprising, as Matheson has written some of the best horror books around.

A question, though: I hear a lot about the gore content here, but how many really find that frightening, disturbing, unsettling, eerie, creepy, scary, etc.? Or is it just the fascination with special effects and what they can do? To me, there's a big difference between the buckets of blood and body parts, and something that genuinely gets down in there and causes a tingle on your spine, something that genuinely unsettles and causes gooseflesh. I've nothing particularly against special effects (though I'll admit I've seen so many gore films that I tend to find it all very tedious these days unless it's got some other point besides gross-out), but I'd say it takes one heck of a lot more talent to actually play on the audience's emotional chords to elicit an effect than it does to pile on the prostheses.
 
Re: The Scariest Movie Ever!

j. d. worthington said:
A question, though: I hear a lot about the gore content here, but how many really find that frightening, disturbing, unsettling, eerie, creepy, scary, etc.? Or is it just the fascination with special effects and what they can do? To me, there's a big difference between the buckets of blood and body parts, and something that genuinely gets down in there and causes a tingle on your spine, something that genuinely unsettles and causes gooseflesh. I've nothing particularly against special effects (though I'll admit I've seen so many gore films that I tend to find it all very tedious these days unless it's got some other point besides gross-out), but I'd say it takes one heck of a lot more talent to actually play on the audience's emotional chords to elicit an effect than it does to pile on the prostheses.
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Have you ever read Danse Macabre by Stephen King? He explores that very subject. One of the quotes from the back of the book:

"I recognize terror as the finest emotion and so I will try to terrorize the reader. But if I find that I cannot terrify, I will try to horrify, and if I find I cannot horrify, I'll go for the gross-out."

The book focuses on horror in books, radio, TV and movies from the 50's to the 80's. It's a very fun read. :)
 
Re: The Scariest Movie Ever!

Actually, just thought of another one. Parenthood. I saw it at uni, as the fifth film in an all-night "comedy" special, so at maybe 4am. And for some reason, the combination of time, tiredness, the film itself... it scared the willies out of me about children, though I don't remember why. And I've never had children since in 10+ years of marriage. Now that's scary!!
 
Re: The Scariest Movie Ever!

When I first saw The Thing at 13 years old it scared the hell out of me. It is one of my all time favourite films. Now at 35 its not really scary as such, but it is extremely atmospheric. I still love it today.
 
Re: The Scariest Movie Ever!

I do love the blood and gore (Quite twisted like that :D ) but I would rather have the subtley scary anyday...that's why I love the first half of Poltergeist, because of the small, strange stuff that happens. I think that's more eerie than...monster trees popping through your window! It's also why I love The Shing (book) as I think I've previously explained!
 
Re: The Scariest Movie Ever!

roddglenn said:
When I first saw The Thing at 13 years old it scared the hell out of me. It is one of my all time favourite films. Now at 35 its not really scary as such, but it is extremely atmospheric. I still love it today.
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I think that's the case with many movies. The film industry, in an attempt to perpetuate itself undermines its own history. The Thing was somewhat true to the spirit of the book and had wonderful original special effects.
Since that time dozens of lesser movies with less interesting stories have used the same or more sophisticated effects and undercut the good movies. This is particularly important with a horror movie. Some of the best work well with limited special effects but a few worked well with the originality of the effects. If you see eight movies were someone's head blows up and then happen across an old copy of Scanners, you just won't appreceate the originality and the initial shock of the effect.
 
Re: The Scariest Movie Ever!

roddglenn said:
When I first saw The Thing at 13 years old it scared the hell out of me. It is one of my all time favourite films. Now at 35 its not really scary as such, but it is extremely atmospheric. I still love it today.
Click to expand...

I think that's the case with many movies. The film industry, in an attempt to perpetuate itself undermines its own history. The Thing was somewhat true to the spirit of the book and had wonderful original special effects.
Since that time dozens of lesser movies with less interesting stories have used the same or more sophisticated effects and undercut the good movies. This is particularly important with a horror movie. Some of the best work well with limited special effects but a few worked well with the originality of the effects. If you see eight movies were someone's head blows up and then happen across an old copy of Scanners, you just won't appreceate the originality and the initial shock of the effect.
 
Re: The Scariest Movie Ever!

weaveworld said:
Just for fun, what is the scariest movie ever for you! It doesn't have to be all about the good old blood and gore but also the suspense, etc. More than choice is welcome
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Definatley Crossroads Brittany Spears AAAARRRRGHHHHH . . .

seriously . . . Counting down from 6 to 1

6. The Original RING (WOW)
5. Nightmare on Elm Street. (even in this day an age the ropey effects still don't detract from this classic!!)
4. Alien/Aliens (both have the hands over ears factor.)
3. Alligator (watched this as a child, never been near a sewer since!!)
2. Pacific Heights (Michael Keeton in his best ever role)
1. The Grudge (most recently watched freeked me out!)

The Worst . . . Blair Witch 1 + 2 closley followed by Decent (Baywatch in a cave!!) :rolleyes:
 
Re: The Scariest Movie Ever!

The Grudge and ALL the rings (originals 1 and 2 and new versions 1 and 2) are brilliant. That girl is bloody freaky!!
I remember watching Alien when I was very small. And I also went on the Alien ride at American Adventure Theme Park...my, I had a strange childhood! No wonder I've turned out the way I have!
 
Re: The Scariest Movie Ever!

Marya said:
Have you ever read Danse Macabre by Stephen King? He explores that very subject. One of the quotes from the back of the book:
...
The book focuses on horror in books, radio, TV and movies from the 50's to the 80's. It's a very fun read. :)
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Oh I'm pretty sure JD has read that. No one who claims to be in any way a horror fan should be without this book, it's that freaking good! His review of Stevenson's book of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is a tour de force in itself and that's just a meager beginning to this wonderful work.
 
Re: The Scariest Movie Ever!

Night of the Lepus was hilarious! It freaked me as a small child, but my god looking back on it! It had DeForest Kelley of Star Trek fame in it too.

Scanners was a fantastic film in its day - the head exploding scene was awesome, even with the poor effects. It looks a little dated now, but still very good. Michael Ironside at his baddie best!

Another good little know horror flick that always freaked me a bit in years gone by was The Beast Must Die - a cool spin on the werewolf genre.
 
Re: The Scariest Movie Ever!

"The Shining" was pretty scary. The two little girls in particular.
 
Re: The Scariest Movie Ever!

There have been so many horror movies with the fear based on a creepy girl: the ring(s), the grudge (although the girl is older), dark water, the shining even...What do you suppose it is about little girls that frightens people so? The deceptive innocence? Whatever it is, it seems to work well in the box office.
 
Re: The Scariest Movie Ever!

Watership down – Never looked at cute fluffy bunnies in the same way ever again. That and the dark crystal – There should be a health warning on that film, do not let young children watch this film on there own!
Nothing else really scares me, though the Ring did quite a good job. Most horror is just jumps – I jump (good reflexes), that’s not scary though. Don’t like it when they do the nasty jurky ghost walking thing either now I think about it.
Books tend to scare me more than film – Like Lovecraft or Whitley Strieber.
 
Re: The Scariest Movie Ever!

Caretaker66 said:
There have been so many horror movies with the fear based on a creepy girl: the ring(s), the grudge (although the girl is older), dark water, the shining even...What do you suppose it is about little girls that frightens people so? The deceptive innocence? Whatever it is, it seems to work well in the box office.
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Well, though the current trend has been for girls, the general trend towards horror films featuring children as the menace have been a long staple, at least since the first film version of The Turn of the Screw. I think it goes beyond simple deceptive innocence, though that's certainly part of it. I think it goes to the very roots of our ambivalence about children, often unrecognized: the fact that, though we see them as purity personified, children are often vicious and cruel, and that some children -- no matter how good the parenting -- are this way throughout life; that they also represent hopes for the future, and at the same time fear of replacement by that future, the different; that we recognize in them ourselves and our "dual" (actually much more complex than that) nature; that they do not have the restraints on themselves emotionally that adults tend to have, and therefore are volatile and unpredictable at times.... and, I suspect, many other things.

After all, the "bad seed" (now, there's a classic film on the theme of a truly evil little girl... the play was even nastier, as she didn't get her comeuppance) has long been a part of literature; Ray Bradbury wrote quite a few stories using the theme, and even Saki's Conradin is quite remorseless at the death of his cousin in "Sredni Vashtar". It'd be an interesting topic for discussion here, to see what people think of the reasons why this theme has been so perennially popular with horror writers and filmmakers.
 
Re: The Scariest Movie Ever!

The scariest movie ever is "The Exorcist" because its fear is Bible-based and it came out when America was going through big changes.
 
Re: The Scariest Movie Ever!

A werewolf film i watched as a child i think it was called the wolfen?
 
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