10 scary movies to watch on Halloween – MassLive.com

Do you want to see something really scary?, Dan Aykroyd asked at the start of the big screen treatment of The Twilight Zone in 1983.

Well, if you are looking for something to watch this weekend with more chills than Adam Sandlers Hubie Halloween," here are 10 picks that wont disappoint.

Halloween (2018) In 1978, John Carpenter directed a low-budget memorable slasher flick featuring newcomer Jamie Lee Curtis being hunted by the masked psychotic Michael Myers. It inspired a string of lesser sequels and a fine remake directed by Rob Zombie in 2007. Eleven years later, Carpenter served as executive producer of this film which finds Myers on the loose again and Curtis ready to take him down. Curtis' character has been transformed over the years from a damsel in distress to the Linda Hamilton of slasher films.

Night of the Living Dead (1968) There was a time when the dead did not just walk on Sunday nights on AMC. George Romero created the whole flesh eating genre with this black and white zombie classic. Romero wrote, directed, photographed and edited the film on a shoestring budget of $114,000. It was selected by the Library of Congress for inclusion in the National Film Registry more than 20 years ago as a film deemed culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant. All true, and it is scary to boot. The movie was shot in black and white, so if you prefer your blood in living color, check out Romeros 1978 return to form in Dawn of the Dead.

Get Out (2017) Written and directed by Jordan Peele, Get Out may be the best Twilight Zone story since Rod Serling left this dimension. In the movie, a young Black photographer uncovers a disturbing secret when he meets the family of his white girlfriend in rural New York. The movie, which successfully marries suspense with biting social commentary, was nominated for four Academy Awards, including Best Picture.

The Thing (1982) Banish all thoughts of the lame 2011 prequel and check out this John Carpenter classic. Paranoia reigns in this thriller set in remote research station in Antarctica, where the monster may be lurking inside your best friend just waiting to burst out. It is based on John W. Campbell Jr.'s 1938 short story Who Goes There? It also inspired the 1951 Cold War era chiller The Thing from Another World.

Saw (2004) Cary Elwes and Leign Whannel star as two men who awake to find themselves chained in a large dilapidated bathroom, with one being ordered to kill the other or his family will die. Shot on a budget a little than $1 million, it grossed $103 million worldwide. It marked the feature debut on director James Wan.

The Silence of the Lambs (1991) Anthony Hopkins stars as the classiest serial killer committed to celluloid in Jonathan Demmes adaptation of the Thomas Harris thriller about FBI agent Clarice Starling, played by Jodie Foster, and the notorious Dr. Hannibal Lecter. Two bits of trivia: It has the distinction of being the only horror movie to win the Academy Award for Best Picture; and Foster was not the first choice for the role. Michelle Pfeiffer and Meg Ryan turned down role and the studio wouldnt go with Demmes third choice, Laura Dern.

The Exorcist (1973) Linda Blair turned heads as the possessed Regan MacNeil. Decades later, the movie is still frightening. You can repeat Campbells split pea green soup all you want, but be prepared for a sleepless night after a seeing a priest and demon battle for a young girls soul. More recent films like Paranormal Activity and The Conjuring owe a great debt to William Friedkins masterpiece. The movie inspired lesser sequels, a prequel and television reboot.

The Grudge (2004) An American remake of the Japanese horror film Ju-on." Like the original, it was directed by Japanese director Takashi Shimizu. The Grudge refers to a supernatural entity created when someone dies in a state of uncontrollable rage or sorrow. Sarah Michelle Gellar (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) stars as an exchange student who comes face to face with entity.

The Shining (1980) Stanley Kubricks adaptation of the Stephen King novel oozes evil from every frame. Writer Jack Torrance, played by the great Jack Nicholson, arrives at the remote Overlook Hotel in the Rocky Mountains seeking to become its winter caretaker. Supernatural forces and his own demons put him and his family at risk. King found fault with how the script deviated from his book, the casting of Nicholson in the lead role and the hotel location used in the shoot. In 1997, King wrote and produced a television miniseries of The Shining, which is well worth checking out.

Alien (1979) Director Ridley Scott moved the haunted house genre into outer space with this sci-fi / horror classic. One by one the crew of the Nostromo is picked off by a terrifying extraterrestrial. The movie boasts a superb cast led by newcomer Sigourney Weaver, and includes Tom Skerritt, Veronica Cartwright, John Hurt, Harry Dean Stanton, Ian Holm and Yaphet Kotto. Special kudos to Swiss artist H. R. Giger, who designed the Alien.

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10 scary movies to watch on Halloween - MassLive.com