The Exorcist scared the bejesus out of me when I was a kid. It’s still strong stuff, even today. But, as an adult, Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s Pulse truly got under my skin. And I’ll throw in a good word for Eden Lake. Very good movie. I watched it a while back and it blew me away. I had no expectations going in, but it immediately drew me in. And as much as the ending pissed me off, it was perfect. And chilling.
The original ‘The Haunting’ which I saw recently for the first time at aged 32 and it scared the hell out of me, 100 times scarier than most films that come out nowadays and try to be scary.
The Exorcist too I have terrible troubling watching, some people laugh but I was 12 when I first saw it, horrific experience!
L’Arrivée d’un train à La Ciotat. Truly terrifying.
Yeah I totally thought I was gonna get run over by the thing. Thank goodness I jumped out of the way in time!
—DiB
I still find The Thing both scary and creepy as hell. Nothing has really managed to scare me in the same way since.
the first freddy movie.
The House On Haunted Hill
The Haunting (both films the original versions)
Halloween
Carnival of Souls
Let’s Scare Jessica To Death
Halloween and Eraserhead
Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me is the single most terrifying film I’ve ever sat through. Not that many films truly scare me, but a few others that have kept me up at night include: The Exorcist, Let’s Scare Jessica To Death, The Shining, Repulsion, Carnival of Souls and Inland Empire.
ERASERHEAD
or
Satyricon
Eraserhead
Blair Witch Project
Martyrs (I’m surprised no one has mentioned this one yet)
hannah takes the stairs
i think this is difficult, because horror movies are so much scarier when you’re a kid. when i was a kid, i was afraid that freddy krueger was under my bed at night. i thought that poltergeist was the scariest thing i had ever seen when i was staying in a hotel with my sister when i was 6 (my parents were in the room next door, i didn’t realize at the time but they must have been fucking). i begged her to change the channel but she refused and i cried.
but when you’re an adult, you know that it’s just a movie. and for that reason, i think a creepy atmosphere that’s within reason is much scarier to an adult, while a monster movie is much scarier to a child. such as lost highway, mulholland dr and inland empire by david lynch. i think he’s the only director that scares me as an adult
special mention: suspiria creeped the hell out of me. also, don’t look now by nick roeg creeped me out because nothing really happens till the very end, so the entire time you’re mind is making up all sorts of scary things that MIGHT happen in the next scene
1984
Calvaire. It makes me feel like I’m watching someone’s nightmare.
the shining scared the hell out of me when i was a kid but i loved it and i still do
BURNT OFFERING.
ITIM (RITES OF MAY).
SALEM’S LOT.
LOST HIGHWAY.
Jodine
. . . and man bites dog