My top 100 (yes... you did read that right) Horror movies part 1.

Welcome back to the world of horror. Just in time for Halloween, I'd thought I'd list my top 100 horror movies in seven separate parts,  just for your pleasure/pain, depending on your preference for movie lists. So, without further rambling, here we go.

100. The cabinet of Dr . Caligari (1920).

An amazing piece of German expressionist cinema, and in my opinion the third greatest silent movie ever made. The stylized sets, the over exaggerated acting almost to the point of dancing, and the whole dream like narrative make this one of the greatest early horror films in existence.

99.The Phantom of the Opera (1925).

Another amazing silent movie, and the make up achieved by  "The man of a thousand faces" Lon Chaney, is absolutely amazing for the time, and the shot where his face is revealed near the end of the movie still remains one of the most shocking scenes in horror movie history.

98.Nosferatu (1922).

Again, German expressionist cinema comes to the forefront of horror with a movie that was in essence Dracula, but with name changes as the studio could not obtain the rights to the novel. Some of the shots in this movie have been recreated in many other films, and Max Schreck's performance as Count Orlok still chill the bones to this very day.

97.The Satanic Rites of Dracula (1973).

The third Hammer film to feature Christopher Lee as the eponymous Count Dracula, and Peter Cushing as Van Helsing. This movie is amazing and in my opinion, is Christopher Lee's greatest performance as Dracula. The film deals with a conspiracy to release the bubonic plague upon humanity once more. Who is behind the plan? Give it a watch and enjoy the hell out of this one.

96.The Curse of Frankenstein (1957).

Another Hammer film, this time with Christopher Lee taking the role of The Monster, and Peter Cushing as Baron Von Frankenstein. Hammer's first ever colour movie is simply stunning in every sense of the word. The ending should also get a mention as its ambiguity is puzzling but fits the movie perfectly.

95.Black Sunday (1960).

The story of a vampiric witch who returns two hundred years after being put to death by her brother, is an exercise in pure gothic horror. The movie is also incredibly violent for its time and showcases director Mario Bava's penchant for chilling photography and his amazing sense of the macabre.

94.The Gore Gore Girls (1972).

H.G Lewis. A name synonymous with splatter cinema brings us his most despicable, blood soaked work in The gore gore girls. The story of a murderer killing women in a strip club. That's the plot sorted out! This film is bloody beyond belief and contains all the carnage and tongue in cheek humor apparent in all of Herschell Gordon Lewis' other movies. Just check out the meat tenderizer scene for one hell of a laugh!!

93.The Deadly Spawn (1983).

An amazingly gory Sci Fi/horror movie from the early eighties. An alien creature that crash lands onto earth finds refuge in a basement of a house. Anyone who ventures down into the basement becomes lunch for the alien creature which also happens to grow at an alarming rate! Splatter galore in this warming homage to fifties B movie creature features. The ending of this movie spread a huge smile across my face. I certainly didn't expect what happened!!

92.The Fly (1958).

I absolutely loved this film as a child, and it really does have a special place in my heart. The scene where the fly with the human head (yes, consider this my first ever spoiler) screams "help me help me" when it is trapped in a spiders web, still sends shivers down my spine to this very day.

91.The Masque of the Red Death (1964).

Roger Corman, the man who can make amazing movies for practically nothing directs Vincent Price in an adaptation of Poe's story of the same name. Vincent Price plays a prince who terrorizes a small plague ridden village. An amazing film that also has satanism and many creepy moments to keep the viewer fixed to the screen watching the horror unfold. The meeting between the old woman and the red cloaked figure who hands her a white rose which is then covered in blood has stuck in my mind to this very day.

90.Prince of Darkness (1987).

The first John Carpenter movie to feature in the list, is probably the one people seem to hear of the least. Donald Pleasence plays a priest who visits a church with a professor and a group of academics that contains a vessel that seems to hold the very essence of the antichrist. This movie is also notable for having a cameo by Alice Cooper as a bicycle frame wielding hobo. A very subdued movie, the finale explodes in an apocalyptic showdown of green liquid and the attempted birth of the Anti god. (No, that wasn't a typo. Give the movie a watch, and you'll see what I mean) .

89.Society ( 1992 ) .

Brian Yuzna directed this complete headfuck of a movie. I remember seeing excerpts of it on "This is Horror" ,a VHS I purchased many years ago from a discount bookstore. Bill doesn't feel he fits in with his wealthy family or their friends, and when he is handed a tape of what sounds like his family taking part in a violent orgy, his suspicions are raised even more.But what he actually finds out may be hard for some of you to stomach. The FX in this movie are downright stomach churning and vile and the ending, although humorous, has to be one of the most disgusting things I have seen committed to celluloid.

88.Vamp ( 1986 ) .

I remember seeing this one in my local Plazza video rental store all the time as a child with the cover featuring a nude Grace Jones bathed in green light with no hair and fangs. Admittedly, the movie is more of a comedy horror, but it in no way stops it from being enjoyable and Grace Jones is truly hypnotic in her role as Katrina.

87.Scanners ( 1981 ) .

Another one from my childhood, and for one scene in particular. This was the first time I ever saw anyone's head explode. Michael Ironside is truly chilling in this movie .Strangely, it contained none of the perversity of Cronenberg's earlier movies and was structured as more of an adventure/thriller. Even so, I love this movie and the duel between Revok and Vale at the end is a horror fans dream.

86.Dellamorte dellamore ( 1994 ) .

Michele Soavi brings us his take on the zombie genre in the hilariously dead pan Dellamorte dellamore (which translates as of death of love ). Francesco Dellamorte is the caretaker of the Buffalora cemetery, and along with his sidekick Gnaghi, have to deal with the problem of the dead returning to life after seven days. The film is incredibly strange, the cinematography amazing and the humor as black as can be. One for Halloween night that's for sure!!

85.Maniac cop ( 1988 ) .

William Lustig and Larry Cohen team up to bring us the story of a killer in a cops uniform terrorizing the streets of New York city. Jack Forrest, played by the mighty Bruce Campbell is arrested as the chief suspect. Can he prove his innocence? Can the killer be stopped? This film was a favourite of mine again when I was younger and amazingly still lives up to the memories I have of it. Robert Z'dar is amazing as the title character and Bruce Campbell plays it straight and wins the audience over in this amazing mixture of horror and action.


Darkest regards......Dani.