Top 10 Horror Movies That Have Aged Well
#10: “Psycho” (1960)
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Alfred Hitchcock is one of the greatest directors in film history, and he crafted what could be the greatest horror movie ever made. Even the fact that its iconic twists are well known does not detract from the movie’s overall quality. The plot is superbly structured, and it remains innovative and unorthodox. Its exploration of human evil remains fascinating, and of course, the performances remain uniformly excellent across the board. Anthony Perkins gives one of the all-time best villain performances, and Norman Bates remains a tantalizing bad guy. Even the black-and-white photography fails to date the movie. Instead, it adds to the foreboding atmosphere. All told, “Psycho” is as mesmerizing today as it was in 1960, which is really saying something!
#9: “Jaws” (1975)
While only in his late ‘20s, Steven Spielberg crafted the blockbuster to end all blockbusters. The concept of “Jaws” is beautifully simple - a hungry shark is terrorizing a popular tourist beach, and the local police chief hopes to stop it. The simplicity has allowed “Jaws” to remain universal - people still like beaches, and they’re still scared of sharks. Spielberg’s filmmaking has also transcended the generations, as he employs a “less is more” approach that suggests rather than shows. But even when it does come time to show, Spielberg pulls it off in magnificent fashion with some mechanical sharks. Nobody does summer blockbusters quite like Spielberg, and he solidified the notion back in 1975.
#8: “Halloween” (1978)
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With just $300,000 and a cheap Captain Kirk mask, John Carpenter changed the very trajectory of movie history. And if this movie didn’t certify him as an all-timer, (xref) then “The Thing” certainly did. Like “Jaws,” “Halloween” has a very simple premise that remains both possible and horrifying to this day - a killer escapes from a mental institution and goes on a killing spree in the sleepy community of Haddonfield, Illinois. Carpenter transcends his tiny budget and does a lot with a little, like employing the then-revolutionary technique of the Panaglide, allowing him to shoot smooth shots from Michael’s point of view. And yes, the silent Michael Myers is every bit as creepy today as he was in the late ‘70s.
#7: “An American Werewolf in London” (1981)
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Suffice to say, this is not what people were expecting from director John Landis after “Animal House” and “The Blues Brothers.” In fact, Landis had this idea long before he directed those two films, having written the script back in the late ‘60s. His passion for the project is clearly evident. It’s both horrifying and hilarious, employing that famous Landis charm while also scaring the pants off viewers with some truly mesmerizing special effects. And speaking of the Oscar-winning effects, they still look extraordinary (and extraordinarily disgusting) today. Artist Rick Baker is an undeniable genius, and his record seven Oscar wins can attest to that.
#6: “Scream” (1996)
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The slasher genre owes a major debt to “Scream.” The movie gave a much-needed jolt to the dying genre thanks to a terrifically-structured plot, an iconic villain (or two), and fresh tongue-in-cheek humor that satirized the genre with knowing winks to the audience. The movie’s famous meta tone still works well, even though it inspired dozens of copycats throughout the years. The cast is excellent, the famous twist of having two killers is still interesting, and best of all, that opening sequence still goes hard. Many movies have tried to do what “Scream” did - including its many sequels - but none have quite captured that bottled magic.
#5: “The Blair Witch Project” (1999)
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The entire found footage genre was popularized thanks to “The Blair Witch Project.” And like “Scream,” its countless imitators have been largely unable to reach its cultural-shattering heights. Regardless of what you personally think of “The Blair Witch Project,” there’s no denying a) its legacy, and b) how well it’s aged. Simplicity is the key here. We never see the titular witch, so things like visual effects haven’t had the chance to age. Furthermore, the found footage gimmick remains effective. The footage could just as easily have come from a smartphone instead of a handheld camera, and it has allowed this little movie from 1999 to transcend the major technological leaps that have occurred since its release.
#4: “Rosemary’s Baby” (1968)
While featuring Satanic cults and the spawn of the Devil, “Rosemary’s Baby” is really about the experience of protagonist Rosemary Woodhouse. The movie deals with many still-prescient themes regarding women’s liberation and personal freedoms. Rosemary is constantly gaslit and told what to do, and those around her don’t have her best interests at heart. Her agency is constantly stolen by those who want something from her - including her own husband. Of course, the movie also works extraordinarily well as a straightforward horror movie about creepy Devil worship. Filled with fantastic performances and a palpable sense of paranoia and impending doom, “Rosemary’s Baby” is a timeless classic of the genre.
#3: “Alien” (1979)
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This movie has the same premise as countless B-movies - an alien stalks the inhabitants of a spaceship and cuts them down one by one. But thanks to director Ridley Scott and his team of talented filmmakers, “Alien” far transcends its B-movie premise. The alien itself is a timeless creature, both in physical design and motive - it’s a predator, and it wants to hunt and kill. That alone will forever remain scary to us. The movie is also a masterpiece of visual design, featuring some spectacular sets, still-convincing visual effects, and the nightmarish concoctions of artist H. R. Giger. There is absolutely zero indication that this movie was made in the late ‘70s.
#2: “Night of the Living Dead” (1968)
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There’s just something about little-known directors working on shoestring budgets that generates timeless masterpieces. “Night of the Living Dead” not only started the whole zombie movie craze, but it also remains one of the scariest films in the genre’s history. The on-screen violence is shockingly graphic and macabre, and we can only imagine the terror it inspired in 1968. And while Romero would later expand his post-apocalyptic vision, we love the smaller scale of this movie. It’s both more personal and more realistic. Even after all these years and countless imitators, “Night of the Living Dead” has never been matched.
#1: “The Shining” (1980)
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Stanley Kubrick is considered one of the greatest directors ever for a reason. His seminal horror film is an undisputed classic, transcending not only years, but also the very haunted house subgenre to which it belongs. The film perfectly toes the line between surreal paranormal scares and grounded horror regarding the loss of sanity. Jack Nicholson sells his character’s descent with remarkable skill, and Shelley Duvall plays off him tremendously. The movie’s ambiguities also remain tantalizing, having generated decades’ worth of interesting debate and discussion. “The Shining” can be viewed through an academic lens or simply as a straightforward haunted house thriller. Either way, it’s a masterpiece, and it’s remained as such for decades.
