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Could You Please Leave the Light On?Apr 02 '01 Write an essay on this topic.The Bottom Line If you only want to see one good scary movie, the Shining has to be it!! When I was growing up, my mother was into scary movies. It is a love that I, unfortunately, inherited from her. Even though horror movies terrified me, I could not resist watching people being chased across the screen by an axe-wielding psycho, or being terrorized by some hostile spirits. There were many nights where I was scared to go to sleep, and wouldn't close my eyes unless there was a light on in the room. But the fright I felt was actually kind of pleasant. The reason for that is simply that the movies were fantasy, and I could always turn them off if need be. But the thing is, I've always gotten some strange thrill from being pleasantly scared. So without further ado, here are the movies that scared me the most. 10. Stigmata(1999) The basic plot of this movie is that a club kid named Frankie is plagued by the stigmata, which, for those who are not particularly religious, are holes in the wrists that look like the wounds of Christ as he was crucified. A priest is sent from the Vatican to investigate. One of the more frightening aspects was the stigmata itself. Historically found only in highly religious people, it manifested itself on Frankie, an atheist. The movie really started to scare me when it became obvious that Frankie was possessed by something, but is it religious, or evil? As the plot unfolds, there are obvious similarities to the Exorcist, and I was extremely happy with the effects of that. Great movie, scary in a religious sort of way. 9. Scream(1996) Almost everyone has heard of the Scream movies. However, the only one that truly stands out in my mind is the first one. I saw it in the theater, and everytime someone coughed, I would jump. The basic plot is that Sydney, a teen, starts being stalked around the anniversary of her mother's murder. Soon Sydney's friends are being killed, and Sydney must find out who the killer is before it's too late. The movie is so appealing to me because it is aimed toward my generation, and it was definitely scary enough, if not a little gory at times. My favorite part was trying to find out who the killer was, before it became obvious. The ending was wonderfully surprising, and I was satisfied with the results. 8. Rosemary's Baby(1968) This movie made me extremely paranoid, and also more than a little afraid of worshippers of satan. Rosemary and her husband move into an apartment complex to begin their young lives together. Rosemary desperately wants a baby. Soon they meet their neighbors, and older couple who the husband befriends. The husband starts doing wonderfully at work. Then Rosemary becomes pregnant, and her initial joy is overshadowed when she begins to be plagued by dreams/flashbacks of being impregnated by a beast, who I always assumed was satan. The thought that a woman could be tricked into this situation, even though only on film, was most frightening to me. The chilling ending left me wondering about the fate of mother and child. 7. Hellraiser(1987) Unlike some movies on my list, this movie is the epitome of gore. It also made me frightened of puzzleboxes! Clive Barker directed this film about a box that, when solved, leads the unlucky genius straight into a painful and terrifying hell. The hell is inhabited by Cenobites, evil, deformed creatures who are ruled by the notorious Pinhead. The main story is about a man who solved the puzzle and earned his way into the hell where his flesh was torn off with little hooks and chains. All that is left of him is goo, and he seduces an ex-lover, getting him to bring victims to him so he can return to his normal state. The man must escape the clutches of the horrible Cenobites, but do we really want him to? My answer is no. The parts that were really scary were the ones where the Cenobites were involved. They, in all their deformity, stayed in my memory for a long, long time. 6. A Nightmare on Elm Street(1984) Much like my previous selection, this movie was a gore-fest. The movie is terrifying because the killer, the illustrious Freddy Krueger, kills people while they dream. The main character, Nancy, starts having dreams of a man with knives or blades for fingers, and soon all of her friends start dying. Freddy is a truly twisted fellow, killing is victims in quite imaginative, if not ingenious ways. Nancy finds out who Freddy is and willingly goes to the dreamworld to confront him. The ending isn't the greatest, but the movie is still extremely scary. 5. Poltergeist(1982) Even though I mainly watched movies about psycho killers, the thing that I was always most afraid of was ghosts. That's the reason why this movie scared me so much. A family moves into a house that, unbeknownst to them, is built on an ancient burial ground. Soon strange things start to happen, things that are supernatural. Then the 5 year old daughter, Carole Anne, is taken by evil spirits into another realm. The girl's voice rings out through the house, but she can't be found. Also, no one can enter her room. Psychics are brought in, but it seems futile, as the ghosts have a strong desire for Carole Anne and refuse to release her. I loved the effects, which were amazing for that time, and am still scared to watch to this day. 4. The Sixth Sense(1999) Once again, this movie involved ghosts, so I was terrified. I saw this movie at the theater in July, so the air conditioning was on. Unfortunately I was sitting near a vent, so the chill and breeze made the movie a little more realistic. A 9 year old boy, Cole, is plagued by visions of dead people. A child psychologist, remembering a startlingly similar case from his past, decides to help him. Things really start getting freaky when the ghosts start to come out, which is always announced by a drop in temperature which makes breath turn to vapor. Oftentimes though, the ghosts still seemed to just pop out, even though I knew they were coming. One of scariest parts to me was the one where Cole goes into his homemade tent to hide and the ghost takes the clothespins off the top, one by one. The ending is sad but beautiful, and makes the movie unforgettable. 3. Halloween(1978) A classic slasher movie, Halloween stands out as one of the scariest in my mind. One of the scariest things about it is the eerie, creepy score. It definitely adds to the film. Michael Myers is in a mental institution after murdering his teen sister when he was only a child. 15 years later, he escapes and goes after Laurie Strode, who we later learn is his half-sister. On his way to her, he kills many more of the town's teens, who are an extremely promiscuous bunch. Sam Loomis is brought in to stop him, which we are not really sure if he succeeds in doing. The end leaves the viewer hanging, which is a terrifying aspect, but one that is made up for in the second movie, since it picks up right where the first one left off. 2. The Exorcist(1973) Everyone knows the name The Exorcist. To me it is a name synonymous with terror, and ultimately, a true classic. I think that this movie is so scary because possession is something that can't be prevented. The movie is only scary though if you think that the possibility of such an occurrence is possible. A young girl is possessed,and a priest is called in to exorcise the spirit from her body. The spirit, however, is not easily persuaded to give up. It resorts to inflicting physical pain on the girl, and psychological pain on the priest. The struggle and fight is the best part, and also the scariest of course, if you don't consider the thought of possession itself. The ending is kind of sad, but it's fitting. Again, the religious tone was a creepy one, and this is an amazing movie. 1. The Shining(1980) This movie had me sleeping with the lights on for quite a long time. Once again, it involves ghosts. A family goes to stay at a huge hotel for the winter as caretakers. This is a great thing to them since it gives them a place to stay, and the opportunity for the dad to work on his novel. The only downside is that the hotel is secluded, and once the snow comes, that becomes a real problem. As time passes, the father slowly slips into madness, which, if I remember correctly, happened to another family that had stayed there during a previous winter. The whole family gets terrorized by ghosts who ultimately lead the father to hate his family and try to kill them. It's hard to believe that this all could be done by a house, but the movie makes it happen, and it makes it seem like a very real possibility. I was terrified by the woman in the bathtub, and of course when the father goes on his infamous rampage, during which he utters the familiar phrase, "Here's Johnny!!"A very scary movie that is unforgettable and equal to none other.  |
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by lindaohio by Stephen_Murray
by carstairs38
