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Stephen King's Danse Macabre Horror Canon

By: Dr. Shock

This list should not be taken as an endorsement of Stephen King seeing how I personally dislike his writing the main interest is in the fact of it being something of a horror canon, him choosing the horror films par excellence from the time period of 1950-1980. Below is his personal introduction to the list.

Below is a list of roughly one hundred fantasy/horror films tied together by their time and their
excellence. All were released during the period 1950-1980, and all of them seem to me to be
particularly interesting in one way or another; if I may say so without sounding like an Academy
Awards presenter, all of them have contributed something of value to the genre. You will find
my own personal favorites marked with an asterisk ( * ). Special thanks are due to Kirby
McCauley, who provided invaluable help with the list

The Abominable Dr. Phibes Robert Fuest 1971
*Alien Ridley Scott 1979
Asylum Roy Ward Baker 1972
The Bad Seed Mervyn LeRoy 1956
The Birds Alfred Hitchcock 1963
The Bird with the Crystal Plumage Dario Argento 1969
*Black Sunday Mario Bava 1961
*The Brood David Cronentberg 1979
Burnt Offerings Dan Curtis 1976
Burn Witch Burn Sidney Hayers 1962
*The Cage Walter Graumann 1961
*Carrie Brian De Palma 1976
The Conqueror Worm Michael Reeves 1968
*Creature from the Black Lagoon Jack Arnold 1954
*The Creeping Unknown Val Guest 1955
*Curse of the Demon Jacques Tourneur 1957
The Day of the Triiffids Steve Sekely 1963
*Dawn of the Dead George A. Romero 1979
The Deadly Beer Freddie Francis 1967
Deep Red Dario Argento ?
*Deliverance John Boorman 1972
*dementia-13 Francis Coppola 1963
Diabolique Henri-Georges Clouzot1955
Doctor Terror’s House of Horrors Freddie Francis 1965
Don’t Look Now Nicholas Roeg 1973
*Duel Steven Spielberg 1971
*Enemy from Space Val Guest 1957
Eraserhead David Lynch 1978
*The Exorcist William Friedkin 1973
The Exterminating Angel Luis Bunuel 1963
Eye of the Cat David Lowell Rich 1969
The Fly Kurt Neumann 1958
*Frenzy Alfred Hitchcock 1972
The Fury Brian De Palma 1978
Gorgo Eugene Lourie 1961
*Halloween John Carpenter 1978
*The Haunting Robert Wise 1963
The H-Man Inoshiro Honda 1958
Horrors of the Black Museum Arthur Crabtree 1959
Hour of the Wolf Ingmar Bergman 1967
The House that Dripped Blood Peter Duffell 1970
Hush … Hush, Sweet Charlotte Robert Aldrich 1965
*I Bury the Living Albert Band 1958
The Incredible Shrinking Man Jack Arnold 1957
*Invasion of the Body Snatchers Don Siegel 1956
Invasion of the Body Snatchers Philip Kaufman 1978
I Saw What You Did William Castle 1965
*It Came from Outer Space Jack Arnold 1953
It! The Terror from Beyond Space Edward L. Cahn 1958
*Jaws Steven Spielberg 1975
The Killer Shrews Ken Curtis 1959
Last Summer Frank Perry 1969
*Let’s Scare Jessica to Death John Hancock 1971
Macabre William Castle 1958
*Martin George A. Romero 1977
The Masque of the Red Death Roger Corman 1964
Night Must Fall Karel Reisz 1964
*The Night of the Hunter Charles Laughton 1955
*Night of the Living Dead George A. Romero 1968
Not of This Earth Roger Corman 1956
No Way to Treat a Lady Jack Smight 1968
Panic in the Year Zero Ray Milland 1962
*Picnic at Hanging Rock Peter Weir 1978
The Pit and the Pendulum Roger Corman 1961
*Psycho Alfred Hitchcock 1960
*Rabid David Cronenberg 1976
Race with the Devil Jack Starrett 1975
*Repulsion Roman Polanski 1965
*Rituals ? 1978
*Rosemary’s Baby Roman Polanski 1968
Salem’s Lot Tobe Hooper 1979
Seance on a Wet Afternoon Bryan Forties 1964
Seizure Oliver Stone 1975
*The Seventh Seal Ingmar Bergman 1956
*Sisters Brian De Palma 1973
*The Shining Stanley Kubrick 1980
The Shout Jerzy Skolimowski 1979
Someone’s Watching Me John Carpenter 1978
The Stepford Wives Bryan Forties 1975
Strait-Jacket William Castle 1964
Suddenly Last Summer Joseph L. Mankiewicz 1960
*Suspiria Dario Argento 1977
*The Texas Chainsaw Massacre Tobe Hooper 1974
*Them! Gordon Douglas 1954
They Came from Within David Cronenberg 1975
*The Thing Christian Nyby 1951
The Tomb of Ligeia Roger Corman 1965
Trilogy of Terror Dan Curtis 1975
Village of the Damned Wolf Rilla 1960
*Wait Until Dark Terence Young 1967
*What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? Robert Aldrich 1961
When Michael Calls Philip Leacock 1971
The Wicker Man Robin Hardy 1973
Willard Daniel Mann 1971
*X-the Man with the X-Ray Eyes Roger Corman 1963
X the Unknown Leslie Norman 1956

 

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