Top Ten Horror Films

The first sequel in the Hellraiser franchise centers on the character of Kirsty Cotton who in a quest to release her father, believes he has sent her a message from Hell. It is during this decision that she opens a pathway into Hell and meets again the iconic Cenobite, Pinhead. The Hellraiser series represented a change in horror films as this was not a typical slasher film, but a moody visceral look at the fine line between pleasure and pain and Hellraiser II is considered the best of the series.

Hellraiser is based off the novella Hellbound Heart by Clive Barker.

Hellraiser is a 1987 horror film that explores the themes of pain as a source of pleasure and morality under duress and fear. In this movie, evil is embodied not in the creatures from Hell called Cenobites, but more in the actions of the human's who try to manipulate this source of evil.

It is based on the critically acclaimed novella The Hellbound Heart by Clive Barker who also wrote the screenplay and directed the film. In the UK, the film is titled Clive Barker's Hellraiser.

Alien is a 1979 science fiction/horror film directed by Ridley Scott and starring Tom Skerritt, Sigourney Weaver, Veronica Cartwright, Harry Dean Stanton, John Hurt and Yaphet Kotto. When Alien came out, there were no other sci-fi/horror movies that had ever come close to the terrfiying effect of fear accomplished by the alien who pits the crew against it and themselves.

Sigourney Weaver's role of Ripley became also the first female lead who played the role of defender and protector that was usually reserved only for male characters.

Shaun of the Dead is a 2004 British romantic zombie comedy film directed by Edgar Wright, starring Simon Pegg and Nick Frost, and written by Pegg and Wright. This film is part satirical, part homage to the George Romero Dead films and is a critical and fan favorite. It is also part of a trilogy of films directed by Wright and starring Pegg. Hot Fuzz was the second in the

Shaun, a young man attempts to get some kind of focus in his life as he reconciles with his ex-girlfriend and settles his various issues with his mother and stepfather while at the same time he has to cope with an uprising of zombies that is destroying London.

Shaun of the Dead is a highly original look at the whole zombie genre of horror.

The Devil's Rejects is a 2005 exploitation horror film written and directed by Rob Zombie and is the sequel to his 2003 film House of 1000 Corpses. Considered vastly superior than the original, this movie follows the family of psychopathic killers from the previous film now on the run from a crazed lawman. What is interesting about this film is that it leads you to have sympathy for the killers while making the law man the villain of this story.

Halloween is a 2007 American horror film written, directed, and produced by Rob Zombie. After his success with The Devil's Rejects, he followed it up by making a remake/reimagining of the 1978 horror film by John Carpenter. The film stars Malcolm McDowell as Dr. Sam Loomis, Tyler Mane as the adult Michael Myers, and Scout Taylor-Compton as Laurie Strode; Daeg Faerch portrays a ten year old Michael Myers.

Rob Zombie's "reimagining" follows the same premise of the original, with Michael Myers stalking Laurie Strode and her friends on Halloween night, but Rob Zombie's version of the film goes deeper into the character's psyche as it tries to answer the question of what drove him to kill people.

Zombie wanted to only follow the first two in the series which were always considered the best of the slasher series..

Evil Dead II (also known as Evil Dead 2: Dead by Dawn) is a 1987 American cult comedy horror film. Considered a sequel to 1981's The Evil Dead, this film was actually mare of a campy remake of the original directed by Sam Raimi, written by Raimi and starred Bruce Campbell as Ash Williams.

Evil Dead II was a funny, off-beat horror film filmed in a cabin with over the top scenes of demonic possession and the undead trying to take over the living. This movie and its sequel made Ash Williams and his chain saw hand an iconic image in the world of horror films.

A Nightmare on Elm Street is a 1984 American horror film directed and written by Wes Craven, and the first film in the A Nightmare on Elm Street franchise. It brought us the familair horror monster of Freddy Krueger and is considered the better of the slasher films like Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Friday the 13th, and Halloween.

The film features John Saxon, Heather Langenkamp, Robert Englund and Johnny Depp in his feature film debut. It was set in the fictional Midwestern town of Springwood, Ohio, and the plot revolved around several teenagers being terrorized in their nightmares by the ghost of serial child murderer Freddy Krueger with his dirty hat, striped shirt and razor knife hand.

Saw is a 2004 horror film, the first installment of the Saw film series. Directed by James Wan, Saw was filmed during only eighteen days of production. This film brought a new age to horror with its dark imagery about two men chained in a locked room where they are at the mercy of the serial killer Jigsaw whose unique way of murdering his victims is by pitting their will to survive against murderous deathtraps.

Saw spawned four sequels but none ever matched the uniqueness of the original.

28 Days Later is a 2002 British post-apocalyptic science fiction/horror survival film directed by Danny Boyle and written by Alex Garland,

28 Days Later stars Cillian Murphy, Naomie Harris, Noah Huntley, Brendan Gleeson and Christopher Eccleston. and is set in the United Kingdom during the breakdown of society following the accidental release of a highly contagious virus and focuses upon the struggle of four survivors to cope with the ruination of the life they once knew. It is dark and adds a new element to the zombie genre with fast moving infected humans who are not undead but diseased with a virus which makes them enraged and hard to kill.

Similar the Resident Evil storyline but better done and acted. It has spawned a sequel called 28 Weeks Later but it is not directed by Boyle and fails to follow the formula established in the original.