This is a very good list. I'm always happy to see Ben Wheatley on one. I'd switch out The Conjuring for The Wicker Man. The top five are practically perfect choices.
Thanks so much Perry! It's funny you say that about The Conjuring because I did wrestled with the idea of choosing it over Wicker Man. "Conjuring" is obviously not as good a film as WM but I thought it was scarier, a criteria I wanted to highlight in the list.
Thanks, Sam, I appreciate the compliment. I feel like I need to write a Runner Up essay on numbers 11-20 because it killed me to leave off films like Black Christmas, The Brood, etc. And you're the second person to recommend Lake Mungo to me in the last month. I can't believe it escaped my attention as it came out when I was doing a lot of writing for Rue Morgue. On the plus side: I get to watch it for the first time! This weekend.
That's great! I'm very curious to read your thoughts. It's funny how it slipped under so many radars. I saw it at SXSW many moons ago and it got a fair bit of love, as far as I can remember, but that was the last I saw of it. I found a copy at a Blockbuster Video when they were going out of business and scarfed it up for a buck!
Incidentally, I'm grateful to Adam Nevill for giving your Substack a shout-out in his newsletter. I'm looking forward to reading all your content...first-class, all of it!
Yes, a similar fate befell Noroi: The Curse, but I think the director had enough of a name to keep the title at the periphery of the public eye long enough for it to make a comeback.
I love this list! Anytime I see "Don't Look Now" on a "best horror movies" list, I immediately dismiss it. I would personally switch out Kill List for The Wicker Man, still the supreme example of folk horror, and, in my opinion, a much scarier movie. Love seeing The Witch on here.
This is a very good list. I'm always happy to see Ben Wheatley on one. I'd switch out The Conjuring for The Wicker Man. The top five are practically perfect choices.
Thanks so much Perry! It's funny you say that about The Conjuring because I did wrestled with the idea of choosing it over Wicker Man. "Conjuring" is obviously not as good a film as WM but I thought it was scarier, a criteria I wanted to highlight in the list.
I've got a lot of time for this list...very well done. I'd shoehorn in Lake Mungo, though. The best found-footage cum ghost story ever.
Thanks, Sam, I appreciate the compliment. I feel like I need to write a Runner Up essay on numbers 11-20 because it killed me to leave off films like Black Christmas, The Brood, etc. And you're the second person to recommend Lake Mungo to me in the last month. I can't believe it escaped my attention as it came out when I was doing a lot of writing for Rue Morgue. On the plus side: I get to watch it for the first time! This weekend.
That's great! I'm very curious to read your thoughts. It's funny how it slipped under so many radars. I saw it at SXSW many moons ago and it got a fair bit of love, as far as I can remember, but that was the last I saw of it. I found a copy at a Blockbuster Video when they were going out of business and scarfed it up for a buck!
Incidentally, I'm grateful to Adam Nevill for giving your Substack a shout-out in his newsletter. I'm looking forward to reading all your content...first-class, all of it!
Yes, a similar fate befell Noroi: The Curse, but I think the director had enough of a name to keep the title at the periphery of the public eye long enough for it to make a comeback.
I love this list! Anytime I see "Don't Look Now" on a "best horror movies" list, I immediately dismiss it. I would personally switch out Kill List for The Wicker Man, still the supreme example of folk horror, and, in my opinion, a much scarier movie. Love seeing The Witch on here.
Thanks much. I do think The Wicker Man is a better film than Kill List, but is it a better HORROR film? I'm not so sure