What is the scariest horror movie of all time?

[Nergal]

 

THEY have terrified teenagers for decades, turning slumber parties into nightmare parties — but what is the scariest horror movie of all time?

It’s a hard thing to judge because everybody has different fears. Some might laugh at zombies but lose the plot at clowns.

Is it the one with the best villain? The most gore? The freakiest soundtrack? Vote now and tell us.

And don’t forget to let us know if we missed out the one that still gives you nightmares.

THE SHINING

Told from the point of view of a young boy, as evil spirits at a mountain retreat take over his father. From spooky kids wandering down corridors to Jack Nicholson (the dad) smashing through the door and shouting: “Heeere’s Johnny!”, it is guaranteed to freak you out. The book is even scarier although the film will lose a little of its punch if you’ve seen The Simpsons parody of it for a Halloween special.

IT

Almost single-handedly inspired a fear of clowns. Both the 1990s miniseries and last year’s movie introduced us to Pennywise, the freaky embodiment of a town’s collective evil. Clowns in the sewers, looking to lure you down so they can tear off your arms ... seriously scary stuff. And the teeth! Don’t go there ...

A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET

Guaranteed to give nightmares because it’s about a murderer haunting the sleep of teenagers. Doze off and you’re in his world, where he can kill you in the most imaginative way possible. Because you were never sure if the teenagers were awake or asleep at any moment, the fear was constant.

THE THING

Research scientists dig up an alien that can mutate into anything, so you don’t know your best mate has become evil until he sprouts extra appendages and kills you. The scene where they are trying to revive one of their number with CPR, only for his chest to turn into a set of jaws and bite the doctor’s arms off is pretty out there.

THE FLY

Crazy scientist Jeff Goldblum invents a teleporter, only to try it drunk one night and accidentally merge with a fly. At first he gets super-strong and healthy but this is not a superhero movie. Pretty soon he’s growing weird things, bits are falling off and Geena Davis is giving birth to a pulsing maggot baby. Pass the Mortein someone.

ALIEN

In space, nobody can hear you scream. That was the tagline but you could certainly hear the screams in movie cinemas and loungerooms. An alien hatches inside one of the crew and then grows really fast and really mean. At first they hunt it and then it hunts them, popping up at the most terrifying of moments. Only Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) has a chance against it. But why, oh why does she go back to save the bloody cat?

WOLF CREEK

Hugely successful Aussie movie about a sadistic farmer who hunts backpackers. Unlike Crocodile Dundee, it’s highly unlikely Tourism Australia will want to remind people about what could be lurking in our Outback. Put John Jarratt on the map — and spread some teenagers across it.

THE EXORCIST

Yes, the revolving-head-and-green-vomit-spray scene has been endlessly mocked and replayed. But this movie about a possessed girl and the battle to free her is guaranteed to send chills up your spine — even if said spine is rotating around rapidly.

28 DAYS LATER

It takes the concept of zombies and turns them into rabid monsters, making it seem actually possible. If you think zombies are stupid, pointless and slow, then think again. These bad boys are super-fast and utterly relentless. And then we discover that some of the survivors are almost as bad. Shocks and horror abounds.

EVIL DEAD

Sure, the series later stuck its tongue firmly in its cheek and played things for laughs. But the original, which saw a bunch of teenagers unleash an evil force by reading aloud from a forbidden book in the woods, was seriously scary. The scene where the possessed trees “rape” one of the girls, who then turns into a freaky monster, is seriously wrong on so many levels.