30. The Fall of the House of Usher
Roger Corman, 1960
The first and best of the Corman/Poe/Price movies, this movie succeeds largely on the back of a truly creepy premise (courtesy of Poe) and Corman’s half-baked but still very interesting application of Freudian theory to his mis-en-scene and cinematography. It’s also the source of the infamous “burning house” footage, which you’ve seen, possibly many times, if you’ve ever come across a Corman movie made after this.
29. The Orphanage
Juan Antonio Bayona, 2007
One of the best things about The Orphanage is that, while it’s very much a ghost story, it could very possibly not be – that is to say, everything supernatural in the movie can be explained away. The very best thing about it is that it doesn’t matter. There’s a strong, tragic story that works just as well with or without the involvement of ghosts. Really, the only reason to decide for sure on an interpretation is because, depending on your personal biases, one or the other reading will make it that much more powerful.
On the other hand, if you’re not interested in having your heart torn to metaphorical shreds, the very best thing about The Orphanage is the part where they bring the psychic to the house. Brrr.
28. Invasion of the Body Snatchers
Philip Kaufman, 1978
Kaufman takes a movie that was very much of its time (50’s paranoia) and updates it to pass judgment on the alienation of the 70’s. It’s easy to imagine aliens invading a small, isolated town, but the remake shows us, very plausibly, how the invasion could work even in a bustling metropolis. It’s quite terrifying, even without any real monsters or killers (unless you count the dog with a human head). Kaufman also manages to work in a cameo from Kevin McCarthy that presents the option of viewing this as a sequel, not a remake. The invasion continues. . .
27. May
Lucky McKee, 2003
The horror at the heart of May is loneliness. Most of the movie plays out without the usual trappings of a horror film, but it’s still incredibly difficult and uncomfortable to watch. By the time the killing starts, it’s more sad than scary, and actually feels like a bit of a let-down – but the movie is redeemed by the final shot, a heartbreaking non-sequitur that is, paradoxically, the only way the movie could have ended.
26. Deep Red
Dario Argento, 1975
More of a mystery than anything else, Deep Red still contains enough brutal murders and intense, frightening setpieces to qualify for this list. The greatest thing about this movie is Argento’s ballsy decision to hand the solution to the mystery to you very early on, but in such a way that you’ll never pick up on it until it’s much too late. After my first viewing, I had to go back and make sure that he really did show me what he claimed to have shown me – and there it was. Argento’s finest hour, perhaps not as inspired as the somewhat sloppier Suspiria or Inferno, but executed with the precision and skill of a true master.
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