Well, would you look at that? It's almost Halloween again. But before you have to fill up the candy bowl and set the plastic cauldron of dry ice out on the porch, your good friends at RT have taken the time to refresh our list of the best horror movies of all time!
What makes a horror movie? The definition is open to interpretation, but if it made a sizeable portion of its audience scream, jump involuntarily, or dive for the covers, then you'll probably find it on this list. (Notable exception: The Hottie and the Nottie.) We've assembled all the usual suspects -- Freddy, Dracula, that cat with the leathery face -- and, as always, have taken care to add a few choices you may not expect.
As you'll know if you've read any of our previous lists, each entry has 20 reviews or more to back up its inclusion here, and the final rankings were devised using a weighted system that takes into account both the movies' Tomatometers and number of reviews.
Now that we've established the parameters and laid out the ground rules, there's nothing left to do but start the scariest countdown of the year!
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Inam u. writes: on Oct 30 2008 08:46 PM ok this time in our University they showed on Halloween. Silence of the Lambs REC High Tension Everybody loves Mandy Lane. Inside Seven (Reply to this) |
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bat_brew writes: on Oct 30 2008 11:02 PM Why exorcise the Exorcist from the list? The title of the list, %u201C50 Best Horror Movies", is misleading. It would have been better off called %u201CList of Highest RT Rated Movies . . . Thought to be Scary by Insipid Snobs%u201D. (Reply to this) |
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shaolin74 writes: on Oct 31 2008 01:57 AM WHY are all of you getting UPSET?? This is a CRITICS list. There are a plethora of old movies thats these "CRITICS" reviewed after they WERE TOLD they were classics 20 years later. CRITICS are POLITICIANS. You tell them something works and they sell their souls. Think about it!!! Most of these reviews were written 20 years after the movie came out. Click on the reviews & see when they were written. Perfect example: When HALLOWEEN came out....it was bashed & ripped apart by CRITICS. (Sorry I'm OLD) If there was a TOMATOMETER back then, Halloween would've gotten below 20%. Nowadays every CRITIC loves it, its a classic. Besides that...REAL HORROR MOVIES are always ripped apart by critics. If you want real reviews go to DREADCENTRAL. A real assessment. I dont work there but a great site for horror fiends like me. (Reply to this) |
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Reddy writes: on Oct 31 2008 05:38 AM Whoever did this list blew it big time. I can't imagine a list of the greatest horror movies without "The Exorcist" in the top 5, let alone left off the list ENTIRELY? Insane. And what about "Friday the 13th" or "An American Werewolf in London"? Get it together, be better. (Reply to this) |
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spitting into the wind writes: on Oct 31 2008 08:45 AM On a site that continues to put together some of the worst movie lists I have ever seen, this could possibly be the worst of the worst. Congratulations. You have reached the nadir of film lists.This site is truly collapsing under its egotistical self importance. Where is The Omen, The Exorcist, Audition or OldBoy for that matter? This list contains more comedies and melodramas than actual horrors. Whatever about the ancient "classics", Shaun of the Dead is a comedy and in no way can be construed as a horror. Pathetic list from a site that is a pale shadow of its former self. (Reply to this) |
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Unruly writes: on Oct 31 2008 10:44 AM Seriously. Whoever made this list has got to be about 70 years old. (Reply to this) |
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halimali writes: on Oct 31 2008 11:39 AM oh how come Exorcist is missing??? It has to be in the Top 5. There is also The Others which is about ghosts and very nicely made. (Reply to this) |
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halimali writes: on Oct 31 2008 11:40 AM oh how come Exorcist is missing??? It has to be in the Top 5. There is also The Others which is about ghosts and very nicely made. (Reply to this) |
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Jason K. writes: on Oct 31 2008 12:03 PM In reply to this comment (#2102547) To TheHonestMarine...That was a bizzarre post. I don't understand. I hate Starbucks as much as the next guy, but what are you talking about? (Reply to this) |
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Jason K. writes: on Oct 31 2008 12:10 PM In reply to this comment (#2104103) Shaolin74...totally agree. That's why this list sucks. I know I'm repeating myself here, but Halloween is a classic. I don't care about reviews, or what happened in '78 (although it is interesting that critics panned it back then. I guess because it was a "horror" film.) All I know is that Halloween is one of the best films I've ever seen, and how it didn't wind up in the Top Ten of a HORROR list is beyond me. Especially when it routinely shows up in Best FILMS of All Time lists. (Reply to this) |
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stinkyfish75 writes: on Oct 31 2008 12:44 PM I think most everyone is in agreement that the list is complete garbage. But have you asked yourself why? Websites, Magazines, Newpapers routinely create lists and invariably they are controversail. Why? Because it creates "BUZZ". Because they are usually so ridiculous, it literally begs you to log-on and leave a comment and debate the validity of the list or poll. If they were to put out a list that everyone is in agreement with, nobody would be talking about it. Everyone would just be commenting "great list", "nice list" or something to that effect. Its all about getting people excited/interested/mad enough to care. I know ive log on a couple of times now just to read what everyone is writing. (Reply to this) |
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David C. writes: on Oct 31 2008 12:58 PM In reply to this comment (#2092734) I'm no expert, but I think the list is ordered by the movies tomatometer. Although, after the list is made, the tomatometer may change, but it's order on the list doesn't. So in short, who made this list? Everybody! (Reply to this) |
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David C. writes: on Oct 31 2008 12:59 PM In reply to this comment (#2092734) Seriousky, why is everybody blaming RT? It's the users fault if you don't like it. I don't like it either...but I don't care. (Reply to this) |
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Che Che writes: on Oct 31 2008 02:33 PM Show Jason's face from Friday the 13th but it's not even on the list? And what's with the bloody Jim Carrey? Again, not on the list? This was a total rip off, just for ad-soaked web hits. If they're going to suck us in they could do us the favor of not insulting out intelligence by teasing us on. @ $$ holes. King Kong doesn't belong at the top, its cultural relevance has faded in the 21st century, even after Sept 11th, OK? The Exorcist was painfully missing, along with The Thing, and Scream. Those were culturally defining horror films across 2 - 3 generations. Get with the program! Remember, *many* horror films were/are panned by critics only to become cultural phenomena. Some of these films weren't reviewed by RT Top Critics until decades later so of course they may have high scores - retro brown nosing. (Reply to this) |
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Che Che writes: on Oct 31 2008 02:38 PM In reply to this comment (#2104955) David C. - they're weighted by published critics, not popular opinion. That's why you often see lowly rated films films that could be highly rated among a dedicated fan base, or the public at large, voting with their $$$. Believe you me, all the readers at Rotten Tomatoes voted King Kong first, not by a long shot - that's strictly the "critics" call. (Reply to this) |
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Che Che writes: on Oct 31 2008 02:51 PM In reply to this comment (#2105018) Oops, that's Mike Meyers from Halloween, isn't it? But still, I expected to see Friday the 13th and talk about Jason! Hell, he has a name that's instantly recognizable to Gen X and they rebooted the series with Jason X two decades later! Now that I think about it, this list seems more geared to inspire people to buy Halloween costumes than the merits and popularity of horror films. (Reply to this) |
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stevo666 writes: on Oct 31 2008 03:07 PM In reply to this comment (#2105018) Che Che, that is most certainly not a blood soaked Jim Carey, but rather a blood soaked Bruce Campbell AKA the old spice guy, AKA the spiderman guy, AKA Ash Williams form Evil Dead, Evil Dead II, and Army of Darnkess. Two films out of the trilogy are actually on the list and are more deserving than most of the films on it, although IMHO only the original Evil Dead truly deserves to be there. (Reply to this) |
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stevo666 writes: on Oct 31 2008 03:09 PM Oh and not to mention the truly bizarre, yet ultra cool Bubba Ho-Tep (Reply to this) |
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Ivankafka writes: on Oct 31 2008 03:39 PM It's a critics list, so I don't undertand why people are getting so upset. There is a difference bewteen "most popular" horror films and "best" horror films. Some of the lists people have done on here contain some of the most popular but not necessarily the best horror films. My list would be similar but would contain a few of my personal favourites. I enjoy them for other reasons than just it's overall horror quality. They wouldn't make the top 50 but they would make my top 50 favourites. There is a difference. The most popular car isn't necessarily the best car. (Reply to this) |
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pablo c. writes: on Oct 31 2008 09:23 PM What an absurd list! King Kong a horror movie? and the best of all????? and movies like Night of the Hunter, Aliens, Shaun of the Dead, Eraserhead or Jaws consider as finest horror??? lousy movies like Near Dark & Fright Night in top 50??? and absolute masterpieces of genuine horror like The Exorcist, The Shining, The Omen, or more recent ones like The Descent, Dark Water, The Ring, none of them are at the top 50???? cmon guys, the best you can do is forget this crap list and do a truly horror movie list!!!! (Reply to this) |
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