Top Ten - Sam Costello
Three years ago, Sam Costello escaped the horror blog ghetto in order to concentrate on something far more rewarding, the creation of his horror webcomic, Split Lip. In concert with the blood-stained hands of a diverse set of like-minded and talented artists, Sam has crafted over 25 short stories of terror, each with their own uniquely macabre feel. The first print volume is available now, though why not try before you buy?
I’ve never made a Top 10 horror movies list. In fact, I usually resist this sort of thing; it’s too hard, too constricting. I’m game, though, so in creating this list, I threw out the things that make these lists tough for me: historic importance and influence, artistic value, and all kinds of other high-minded concerns.
Instead, these are my favorite horror movies, the ones I enjoy the most, that scare me the most, that have had the greatest influence on me (for tie-breakers, I did rely on influence/importance to the genre).
1. Audition
2. The Descent
3. The Ring (US)
4. The Blair Witch Project
5. A Nightmare on Elm Street
6. Martyrs
7. A Tale of Two Sisters
8. Session 9
9. Carnival of Souls
10. Le Sang des Betes
October 12th, 2009 at 7:30 pm
Audition was certainly the most excruciating horror movie made in the last 10 years, methinks…OUCH! Curious though, what was it about the US version of The Ring that grabbed your eye for the top 10 list?
October 13th, 2009 at 11:11 am
Hey Joe - I just felt the US version was scarier. With the original, I kept feeling like something terrifying was … just … about … to … happen, but never really did.
For instance, the scene where !SPOILER ALERT! Samara climbs out of the TV was so much scarier to me in the US version, even though I knew it was coming since I’d seen the Japanese version first.
I certainly felt very strange after seeing the original, which is cool, but I was almost shaking after the US one, so it got the nod from me.
December 6th, 2010 at 7:29 am
Excellent list! The Ring, The Blair Witch Project, and A Nightmare on Elm Street are three of my favorite horror films of all time, and A Tale of Two Sisters is just plain beautiful. Kudos!
January 24th, 2012 at 2:09 am
I agree that the US version of The Ring is scarier than the original. I made a similar comment on one of my own lists. Not quite sure why most horror fans prefer the original, it’s weaker in almost all aspects.