They're coming to get you, Barbara...

Probably about a year ago now, I decided I wanted to watch all the iconic horror movies. Not necessarily the scariest, as that is totally subjective, but the iconic ones. The ones everyone has seen, or at the very least heard of. For weeks I looked for a cumulative list online only to be disappointed. All the lists I found were pretty subjective and tended to deal more with "scariest" or "best of all time" or "guaranteed to give you nightmares!".  (eyeroll) Again, not really what I was looking for. Not even the American Film Institute has a list. So, after much searching I decided I would make my own list combining elements from the ones I had read as I did notice many of the same films appearing over and over again. I also wanted to watch the originals of things that have been remade or have several films in a series. I wanted to see where it all started. Ultimately I ended up with 25 titles because that felt like a good, even number.
Why did I make this list? Purely for fun and the fact that I love Halloween. I wouldn't consider myself a horror junkie or anything like that, there are some films I have no desire to see and they are not on my list. I simply was and am really curious about why these specific films have gained such notoriety and still loved by many today. I'm about 3/4 of the way through my list, and I have noticed some trends. And since I felt like blogging and have been on a Halloween kick lately, I'm going to discuss them now, rather than when I am completely finished as I had originally planned.

• The vast majority of the iconic horror films came out in the 1970s and 1980s. The power four villains from Halloween, Nightmare on Elm Street, Friday the 13th, and Texas Chainsaw Massacre, for starters. Michael Myers, Freddy Krueger, Jason Voorhees, and Leatherface for those not familiar with horror-I find people often know the characters but not necessarily the movies they are from. (Myself included, it took me forever to remember which movies Jason is in when I was making my list.)     

• Horror movies used to show the audience a lot less. Granted, the birth of the slasher genre kind of kills this point (see what I did there?), but still. Directors relied so much more on the fear of the unknown and unseen. Personally, I LOVE this concept. I don't want to see victims literally being chopped up multiple times...I'll pass on that one. There needs to be a balance of seeing the scary and being left to imagine the scary on your own. This I think is where so many recent horror films fail-they show too much. This leads me into my next point...
• The majority of recent horror movies are forgettable. Fight me. I think the most recent one I watched came out in 2012 and I hesitantly put it on my list because I saw it on several others and was intrigued by the idea of a more psychological horror. I'm talking about The Babadook, and will discuss that one more in depth when I do a sort of review post after finishing up my list. It is a very different one and I still can't totally decide how I feel about it even though it was one of the movies I watched first. 
• There are some films that while iconic, I have no desire to see. These include Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Saw. I just don't like the idea of watching people be tortured in extremely grotesque manners for 90ish minutes. Personally, I'm okay with having these gaps in my knowledge because I know I wouldn't like them and they'd leave a bad taste in my mouth. In my mind, horror should be fun. It's fun to get scared. I love me a good villain, but I do have my limits. 
• My last point is basically going to reiterate what I just said. Scary movies are meant to be fun! People go to haunted houses and watch these movies because it's fun. So if there's a movie that you think would be too much for whatever reason, there's nothing saying you have to watch it! So far, my favorite hands down is Nightmare on Elm Street. Both because I found it to be hilarious in some of its dated-ness, but also because it was truly enjoyable. 
• Aaaand...one last thing: how scary something is will always be subjective. Certain movies it seems everyone thinks are scary I personally don't, and vice versa. I only know of one movie that seems to be heralded as universally the scariest of all time and that is The Exorcist. Is it on my list? Yes. Will I watch it? ...Honestly, I don't know. While I am extremely curious to see why this movie has this reputation, I just don't know if I can do it. Every time I think I could, I change my mind. It's never felt like a good idea, so I really can't say if I'll end up watching it or not.

Lastly, if you are interested, here is my list:

(Keep in mind I am watching originals, not remakes. They are in no particular order)

Psycho

The Exorcist

Nightmare on Elm Street

Halloween

Blair Witch Project

Poltergeist

Evil Dead

Alien

An American Werewolf in London

The Babadook

Carrie

It

Cabin in the Woods 

Night of the Living Dead

Dracula

The Thing

Silence of the Lambs

Nosferatu

The Fly

The Sixth Sense

Dawn of the Dead

Friday the 13th

Rosemary's Baby

Suspiria

The Shining

Invasion of the Body Snatchers

Hellraiser

Child's Play