101 Classic Horror Movies List (Bonus Content)
Info:
- Bela Lugosi was a famous horror actor, best known for Dracula movie 1931.
- Vincent Price was also a known horror actor.
- Frankenstein is a famous horror film about a monster.
- Some classic horror films have been restored like The Old Dark House
- Divide horror movies into sub genres
- Georges Méliès had a fine involvement in the early development of cinema.
Classiest Horror Films:
- The Haunted House (1908)
- the Merry Frolics of Satan
- Jekyll and Mr Hyde
- FRANKENSTEIN
- The Student of Prague
- The Avenging Conscience
- The Haunted Castle
- The Devil in a Convent
- Les Trésors de satan
Sub-genres:
Comedy & drama
Fantasy, Sci-fi, Monster
Psy, Thriller, Slasher, Mystery
Supernatural
Vampire & Zombie
Oldest Classic Horror Films:
In this post, we are going to have a look at 101 classic horror films, released in the 20th century. Most movies belong to early and mid-20th century; just a few that were released in the late 1900s are housed in the list.
I have divided this comprehensive list into multiple sub-genre parts of horror to make things look organized. It will also help you to choose a horror subgenre film quickly. So, if you are a fan of “Supernatural” films only then you may skip to that section directly.
Also, as we all know the fact that the word “classic cinema” is a symbol and a representative of quality filmmaking that has been praised for years and in the present generation too. Hence, you may have heard about many horror films listed here that include Bela Lugosi starred Dracula and Boris Karloff’s Frankenstein.
I believe that classic films are something to celebrate and learn. The audience of such films can have an idea about the evolution of scary characters, on-screen effects and concepts. Even there are several horror films of very early 1900s that may make you laugh, but such films belong to the heritage of scary films.
Our list comprises true classic horrors; films that are worthy to watch till now and were released a long time ago. IMDB ratings, nearness to the genre, concept and age, all were considered before picking up the 101 films. There were several good horror-classics from worldwide cinema but they were missed to be in the list because of no different concept.
101 Classic Horror Movies You Should Watch
So now let’s go through for what we all are here. As I have mentioned earlier; I have categorized the 101 films into 5 different sections and each section consists of 2-4 subgenres related to each other or have a match with another. There is a total of 12 subgenres of horror in all the sections.
Only “Supernatural” sub-genre has its private space in the list, as it is considered the main sub-genre for scary films.
Comedy, drama-HorrorFilms: There are total of9 movies that relate to the subgenres of comedy and drama. “An American Werewolf in London” is one such iconic humor film here; creating effective comedy in a horror film is among the most strenuous task for any director.
Monster, Sci-fi, Fantasy: All the horror films that are conceptualized on an artificial and larger than life world are housed here. Some films are a mix of 2 subgenres such as “The Curse of Frankenstein” which is a sci-fi film where there is a monster terrifying others. Another film which I would like to mention is Ridley Scott’s first Alien franchise’s film “Alien”, the film is purely based on science fiction only.
Psychological, Thriller, Slasher, Mystery: I am personally a huge fan of such horror films; I enjoy them the most. Suspicious and unexpected elements in a horror film create a perfect terror among viewers.
So, this section contains pure madness, surprises and lots of blood. You will find mentally unstable killers with some knife in their hands who are eager to stab it into their victims.
One fascinating film that I have picked for this section is “The Birds” (1963). I personally loved the idea of the film. It is shown that how a flock of crows can also make people feel scared.
Supernatural: Here comes the dedicated section for horror’s most common genre “Supernatural”. Films that display and are conceptualized on the powers that are beyond the real world have their place in this section. So, all the ghosts, witches and priests are waiting for you below 😉
As many of you can smell that “The Exorcist” is in this list. It is the most iconic film of the Supernatural genre. People still love to discuss about it on forums and the film gets covered on web platforms constantly, just like here. Actually, the film is more than a classic; it belongs to the category of cult films.
Vampire & Zombie: We have gone through Mood and Setting subgenres of horror so far. But now we will discuss about genre by character; I don’t have much idea if such genre officially exists or not. But, the characters, Vampires and Zombies have played a pivotal role in horror cinema, hence they deserve it. And, who can forget Bela Lugosi’s Dracula (1931).
Most Classic Horror Movies: Films that Every Movie Fan Should be Aware about (Bonus Content)
Classic cinema also refers to old age along with quality; hence I have gathered a list of horror films, made in the late 1800’s and in very early 1900’s (the year 1900 to 1920). That was the period when the process of developing films was evolving. There used to be new inventions and camera tricks.
Horror films in this list may not scare you but these are the earliest horror films that you should know about. It will be definitely a cool experience for you.
Most films are shorts, as there were 2-15 min of films made in that time period mostly. Also, many films were recorded at a single angle, like a stage play. There are films by Georges Méliès in this quick list, a French director, actor and a film developer who had a great contribution in the evolvement of cinema.
The Haunted House (1908): It is a French film whose highlight is stop-motion animation; the film shows it really well and deserves an applaud for implementing it over 100 years ago.
Story: Three visitors walk into a house where they are welcomed by a witch through the window. She begins the fun and harasses them in a fun way.
The Merry Frolics of Satan (1906): Here comes the first film of Georges Méliès in this list. The film is also known by the name “The Four Hundred Tricks of the Devil”.
I think that it would be a hand colored film or it was colored later; if anyone knows exactly then do mention it in the comments.
Story: William Crackford, an engineer approaches to a well-known alchemist named Alcofrisbas. Crackford asks Alcofrisbas to create something in which he can roam around the world. Alcofrisbas creates a few magic pills for him to get Crackford’s desire completed. However, it is found that Crackford’s soul has been transferred into an evil.
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1912): This is a really interesting film if we consider the time of its release. It is all about a doctor who turns into a monster.
Story: Dr. Jekyll does a successful experiment on himself where becomes a monster and gets back to normal. However, after doing such repeatedly, he loses his control over the things and can’t help himself to be in the normal state.
Frankenstein (1910): Frankenstein’s monster is among the most popular characters in fiction work. The film was the first adaption of Mary Shelley’s novel by the same name.
Story: Victor Frankenstein leaves home to study medical science. After completing the college, he wants to create a human being that would be perfect. However, his experiment gives birth to an ugly looking monster.
The Student of Prague (1913): I have found the concept of this film most fascinating. Being a film of the year 1913, the film doesn’t seem outdated. It is among the initial full length feature films.
Story: A young student is blessed by the company of a wizard who is committed to make his life full of prosperity. But later the student encounters with the consequences.
The Avenging Conscience (1914): The film is created by the legendary filmmaker D. W. Griffith who is the father of modern and American cinema. The film follows a simple story of a love affair and murder.
The Haunted Castle (1896): Another film by French filmmaker Georges Méliès, released in the year 1896, the period when movies begun to be made for a commercial audience. The Haunted Castle has a few different names too that include “The Devil’s Castle”.
It shows a magician with physic abilities who makes different characters appear in a castle.
The Devil in a Convent (1899): This 3 min Georges Méliès’ film is housed with some cool effects that were done in the year 1899 exceptionally well.
Story: A crackbrained evil appears in a church after the priest leaves the place. He brings all of his mates and they begin to have a fun blast. Soon the church people come and make them leave.
The Treasures of Satan (1902): It is similar to most Georges Méliès’ and initial horror movies, captured from a single stage play camera angle.
Story: In a castle, an evil hide the wealth of a man into a strongbox. When the man comes in and opens the box, all his wealth turns into several girls who begin to hunt him. Later the evil arrives at the place and makes the man captured into the strongbox.
So these were the nine very early classic horrors that allow viewers to have the cinema experience which is around 100 years old. I personally feel fantastic when I watch such films; I hope you too feel such.
Here comes THE END of another comprehensive post. I have curated this list to share with you such films that make you feel the art of cinema; especially the quick list of 9 films we have just covered.
Additionally, as this is a new movie blog; I would love to know about your experience. Do you guys really like what my friend and I share with you? Do comment on your experience below.