Box Office Theory's Top 50 Horror Movies (2018): THE REVEAL | The countdown is complete! Full list in the first post

[WrathOfHan]

36. Bride of Frankenstein (1935) (36 points)

 

Director: James Whale

 

Screenwriter: Screenplay by William Hurlbut, Story by William Hurlbut and John L. Balderston

 

Starring: Boris Karloff, Elsa Lanchester, Colin Clive, and Valerie Hobson

 

Synopsis: Mary Shelley reveals the main characters of her novel survived: Dr. Frankenstein, goaded by an even madder scientist, builds his monster a mate.

 

Box Office: 2M

 

100% on Rotten Tomatoes

 

Submissions Received: 7

Average Position: 24^th

 

The first classic monster movie to appear on the list is Bride of Frankenstein. This film started production right after Frankenstein was a smash hit, and although it did not gross as much as the original’s 12M, it still made a massive profit for Universal. Bride of Frankenstein is considered by many to be the best classic monster movie, and without revealing what lies ahead on the list, many on the forum agree.

 

Bride of Frankenstein was a solid middle choice for most lists. It had the numbers, but the lower placements prevented this from going higher. Additionally, the next film has the same amount of points but beat this out by one list.

[WrathOfHan]

Now that I’m unemployed, I can go ham on the writeups over the next few days. Brace yourselves for tomorrow  

[Tower]

7 hours ago, WrathOfHan said:

Now that I’m unemployed, I can go ham on the writeups over the next few days. Brace yourselves for tomorrow  

Not sure if i'm supposed to have happy or sad reaction to this...

[WrathOfHan]

2 hours ago, Tower said:

Not sure if i'm supposed to have happy or sad reaction to this...

Happy. Retail is horrible.

[WrathOfHan]

35. The Haunting (1963) (36 points)

Director: Robert Wise

 

Screenwriter: Nelson Gidding

 

Starring: Julie Harris, Claire Bloom, Richard Johnson, and Russ Tamblyn

 

Synopsis: A scientist doing research on the paranormal invites two women to a haunted mansion. One of the participants soon starts losing her mind.

 

Box Office: 1.02M

 

87% on Rotten Tomatoes, 74 on Metacritic

 

Submissions Received: 8

Average Position: 27^th

 

Robert Wise was a jack of all trades. After directing musicals like West Side Story and noirs like I Want to Live!, he returned to horror with The Haunting. He teamed up with frequent collaborator Nelson Gidding to create one of the biggest cult films of the 1960s. The film’s gross came in slightly under its budget, but critics and audiences both enjoyed the film. The Haunting received praise for its production design, which gives off a claustrophobic feeling to the audience and makes the film even more intense. Over the years, The Haunting’s appreciation has grown, and director Martin Scorsese considers it to be the scariest movie ever made. If Scorsese says it’s the greatest, how can you argue with him?

 

The Haunting appeared on many lists. Although it has the second-lowest average position so far behind Hereditary’s 28th at #50, the votes for this film were pretty evenly spread out. It also helps that all the votes for this film were on lists with 25+ films compared to Hereditary which appeared on the same number of lists but was on many smaller lists with lower point values.

 

[WrathOfHan]

34. Poltergeist (1982) (37 points)

 

Directors: Tobe Hooper and Steven Spielberg

 

Screenwriters: Screenplay by Steven Spielberg, Michael Grais, and Mark Victor, Story by Steven Spielberg

 

Starring: JoBeth Williams, Craig T. Nelson, and Beatrice Straight

 

Synopsis: A family's home is haunted by a host of ghosts.

 

Box Office: 121.7M

 

86% on Rotten Tomatoes, 79 on Metacritic

 

Nominated for 3 Academy Awards

 

Submissions Received: 9

Average Position: 29^th

 

“Theeeeeey’re heeeeeeeere.” A staple of the 80s, Poltergeist is one of the most revolutionary horror films ever released. Having watched this movie right before the countdown began, I have some criticisms on the first act’s general datedness and clichés in the first act, but I’ll be damned if this movie isn’t scary. Poltergeist is a film that contains so many impressive, innovative visual effects, whether it is the closet portal in the film’s climax or the clown. When looking at some of the effects in the context of the 80s, they are outstanding, and some still hold up today like the ones I mentioned. This was a big passion project for Steven Spielberg, and his collaboration with Tobe Hooper is a great pairing, even if Spielberg ended up being the unofficial director of the film.

 

It is a little strange how the three lowest average positions right now are all films involving ghosts. Poltergeist now has the lowest average position at 29^th, but like The Haunting, its votes were evenly spread across lists even though it did not manage a top 10 vote.

 

 

 

[Kalo]

On 10/26/2018 at 6:49 PM, WrathOfHan said:

37. Black Swan (2010) (36 points)

 

Director: Darren Aronofsky

 

Screenwriters: Screenplay by Mark Heyman, Andres Heinz, and John McLaughlin, Story by Andres Heinz

 

Starring: Natalie Portman, Vincent Cassel, Mila Kunis, Barbara Hershey, and Winona Ryder ( )

 

Synopsis: A committed dancer wins the lead role in a production of Tchaikovsky's "Swan Lake" only to find herself struggling to maintain her sanity.

 

Box Office: 329.4M

 

85% on Rotten Tomatoes, 79 on Metacritic

 

Nominated for 5 Academy Awards including Best Picture, winning one for Best Actress

 

Submissions Received: 5

Average Position: 11^th

Number One Placements: 1

Top 5 Placements: 2

 

Black Swan is Darren Aronofsky’s masterpiece. This film taps into our greatest desires and fears in life and displays them in such shocking and disorienting ways. Natalie Portman gives an all-time great performance as Nina Sayers, a dancer who strives to be the best in her production of “Swan Lake.” On her quest to be the best, she slowly starts learning her weaknesses and becomes paranoid that everyone around her is a threat to her lead role. Nina’s descent into madness is harrowing to watch yet pulls you in more and more and she dives deeper into her nightmare. Portman won an Oscar for this role, and in my opinion, she is still the best winner across any acting category so far this decade. Black Swan is a film that gets under your skin as it shows the weaknesses of human nature, and it is one of my favorite films.

 

Black Swan did not receive many votes, which surprised me considering it was pretty close to being in this year’s Top 100 countdown. However, it benefitted from receiving a number one vote and a top 5 placement (the latter is mine). The next two films also received 36 points but appeared on more lists.

 

Black Swan is a great film, I guess I didn't put it because I didn't think it was technically horror.

[WrathOfHan]

33. Nosferatu (1922) (38.5 points)

 

Director: F.W. Murnau

 

Screenwriter: Henrik Galeen

 

Starring: Max Schreck, Gustav von Wangenheim, Greta Schroder, Alexander Granach, Ruth Landshoff, and Wolfhang Heinz

 

Synopsis: Vampire Count Orlok expresses interest in a new residence and real estate agent Hutter's wife.

 

Box Office: Unknown

 

97% on Rotten Tomatoes

 

Submissions Received: 8

Average Position: 22^nd

Top 5 Placements: 1

 

The original monster movie arrives on our countdown. Nosferatu was the very first on-screen appearance of Dracula despite being unauthorized by the Stoker estate. This resulted in Nosferatu supposedly being destroyed, but a few copies remained. This gave the film a cult status as the film was not easily available to see. Of course, that is not an issue today as the film has been released on various home entertainment platforms, but the copyright infringement surrounding the film shows just how easily films could be lost to history without technology to save backups. It is a good thing that Nosferatu survived because it has a gigantic influence over the horror genre. Like Dr. Caligari earlier on the list, this is a German Expressionist film that influenced many areas of filmmaking, but Nosferatu is special as it preceded Universal’s monster movies by a few years and their Dracula by nine years. Both portrayals of Dracula are iconic in their own ways, and neither have been forgotten by audiences.

 

Nosferatu was spread evenly across lists but also had a bit of passion. There were two top ten votes, another top twenty vote, and 2-3 in each of the remaining ten ranges. Is this the last early monster movie to appear on the countdown?

 

 

[WrathOfHan]

32. Candyman (1992) (40 points)

Director and Screenwriter: Bernard Rose

 

Starring: Virginia Madsen, Tony Todd, Xander Berkeley, and Kasi Lemmons

 

Synopsis: The Candyman, a murderous soul with a hook for a hand, is accidentally summoned to reality by a skeptic grad student researching the monster's myth.

 

Box Office: 25.7M

 

71% on Rotten Tomatoes

 

Submissions Received: 7

Average Position: 20^th

Top 5 Placements: 1

 

Candyman is a slasher film that has gotten a nice fanbase over the years. The movie debuted

with fine reviews from critics and ok word of mouth from audiences; it received a C+ Cinemascore. However, it achieved nearly a 5x from its opening weekend, so audiences were attracted to the film over the Halloween timeframe. Candyman is known for its gruesome scenes of violence and fits right in with the rest of Clive Barker’s adaptations (note: I just remembered I forgot to put Hellraiser on my list. Oops). I have not seen this film, but the placement on this countdown has me interested.

 

Candyman had a mixture of high placements and a decent number of votes. 5 out of 7 submissions were in the top 25, and one was a top 5 placement.

 

[WrathOfHan]

Gonna stop it here tonight. I'll leave you guys with movies that received 2 points:

 

284. The Bird with the Crystal Plumage

285. Burnt Offerings

286. Constantine

287. Dog Soldiers

288. Dracula: Prince of Darkness

289. Halloween II (1981)

290. Horror of Dracula (1958)

291. The Howling

292. A Nightmare on Elm Street 2

293. A Nightmare on Elm Street 5

294. Orphan

295. REC

296. The Shallows

297. The Spiral Staircase

[Eric Atreides]

 

 

[WrathOfHan]

13 minutes ago, CoolEric258 said:

 

 

I saw this gif when searching for one and was soooooo tempted to use it

[Eric Atreides]

Just now, WrathOfHan said:

I saw this gif when searching for one and was soooooo tempted to use it

I'm terrified of watching Nosferatu, because I feel like all I will think about while watching is Spongebob and I won't take it seriously lol

[Krissykins]

10 hours ago, WrathOfHan said:

32. Candyman (1992) (40 points)

Director and Screenwriter: Bernard Rose

 

Starring: Virginia Madsen, Tony Todd, Xander Berkeley, and Kasi Lemmons

 

Synopsis: The Candyman, a murderous soul with a hook for a hand, is accidentally summoned to reality by a skeptic grad student researching the monster's myth.

 

Box Office: 25.7M

 

71% on Rotten Tomatoes

 

Submissions Received: 7

Average Position: 20^th

Top 5 Placements: 1

 

Candyman is a slasher film that has gotten a nice fanbase over the years. The movie debuted

with fine reviews from critics and ok word of mouth from audiences; it received a C+ Cinemascore. However, it achieved nearly a 5x from its opening weekend, so audiences were attracted to the film over the Halloween timeframe. Candyman is known for its gruesome scenes of violence and fits right in with the rest of Clive Barker’s adaptations (note: I just remembered I forgot to put Hellraiser on my list. Oops). I have not seen this film, but the placement on this countdown has me interested.

 

Candyman had a mixture of high placements and a decent number of votes. 5 out of 7 submissions were in the top 25, and one was a top 5 placement.

 

Hmm I never thought of Candyman as a slasher or being remembered for its violence. 

 

Performances, score, atmosphere and dread, definitely. 

 

I’m glad it placed, I had it top 20 I think. I’d still consider it one of the scariest films. That score is just terrifying. 

[baumer]

Poltergeist is one of those classic horror films that I didn't really appreciate all that much at first....in fact, after the list was finalized, I ended up watching it again for the first time in maybe a decade.  It would have made my list after this viewing.  It, like @WrathOfHan said, is scary.  I don't remember it being that good when I saw it years ago.

 

Nosferatu has a place here for sure.  Candyman didn't make my list but I can see why it would be here.  

[baumer]

Sorry to post this here, but I'm still geeking out a bit and since this is a horror thread.....I will share this with you.  I went to my first horror convention this weekend.  Every elebrity there was cooler than anything.  So gracious with their time, so accommodating, so happy to talk horror.

 

Here's a few pictures from the weekend. 

 

     

 

 

    

 

 

Amanda Wyss, played Tina in Nightmare on Elm Street

Terry Kiser of Weekend at Bernies fame, but he was also in Friday the 13th 7

Katie Featherstone from Paranormal Activity 

and the last one is Courtney Gains who first got recognized for playing Malachai in Children of the Corn but had some really famous stuff in films like Back to the Future and Can't Buy Me Love.  He signed the CBML photo with his famous line, YOU SHIT ON MY HOUSE.

 

It was a great weekend, and Wyss has always been one of my crushes and this was a geeks dream come true.  @75Live and @kitik have been trying to get me to go to one of these for years.  So thank you to them for making me finally do it.  

 

Katie Featherstone even recorded me on her phone, she gave me five minutes to tell Jason Blum why we needed another Paranormal Activity.  She is going to send it to him and if by some small miracle, there is one, she said I'll get a "thank you" credit in the film.

[WrathOfHan]

1 minute ago, Dr Loomis baumer said:

Sorry to post this here, but I'm still geeking out a bit and since this is a horror thread.....I will share this with you.  I went to my first horror convention this weekend.  Every elebrity there was cooler than anything.  So gracious with their time, so accommodating, so happy to talk horror.

 

Here's a few pictures from the weekend. 

 

  

That's awesome! It'd be incredible if a part of BOT made it onto the big screen  

[kitik]

Candyman is such an awesome movie.

 

For all you kids who haven't seen it, watch it.

[WrathOfHan]

31. An American Werewolf in London (1981) (43 points)

 

Director and Screenwriter: John Landis

 

Starring: David Naughton, Jenny Agutter, Griffin Dunne, and John Woodvine

 

Synopsis: Two American college students on a walking tour of Britain are attacked by a werewolf that none of the locals will admit exists.

 

Box Office: 62M

 

88% on Rotten Tomatoes, 60 on Metacritic

 

Nominated and won 1 Academy Award for Best Makeup

 

Submissions Received: 8

Average Position: 23^rd

 

After directing comedy hits Animal House and The Blues Brothers, Landis turned to the horror genre but kept a bit of comedy sprinkled in. The result was An American Werewolf in London, a film that features horrific scenes and tons of dark humor throughout. This is one of the rare horror films that manages to make me scared from visuals alone. The werewolf design in the movie is downright frightening, particularly during David’s first transformation. The different types of prosthetics used in this scene are fascinating and largely the reason why this won the very first Oscar for Makeup. It’s kind of insane to think that a movie with terrifying visuals can be humorous, yet Landis manages to do it. The music choices in An American Werewolf in London are on-the-nose yet very fitting, ranging from various versions of “Blue Moon” to “Bad Moon Rising.” Max Landis could only wish to make a film as good as his father can.

 

I was pleasantly surprised by the amount of support An American Werewolf in London received. It appeared in two top tens and three more top twenty-fives.  

 

[WrathOfHan]

30. Frankenstein (1931) (44.5 points)

 

Director: James Whale

 

Screenwriters: Screenplay by Francis Edward Faragoh, Garrett Fort, Robert Florey, and John Russell, Story by John L. Balderston and Richard Schayer

 

Synopsis: An obsessed scientist assembles a living being from parts of exhumed corpses.

 

Box Office: 12M

 

100% on Rotten Tomatoes

 

Submissions Received: 8

Average Position: 18^th

Top 5 Placements: 1

 

IT’S ALIVE! Frankenstein is the last classic monster movie to make our countdown. Generally considered to be the best of the classic monster films along with its first sequel (which already appeared on the list), Frankenstein contains revolutionary makeup design and lighting. It was a massive hit with audiences and critics and adjusts to over 200M in 2018. This also kickstarted Boris Karloff’s rise to becoming a horror icon that included several characters in the franchise including the Monster and Imhotep in The Mummy.

 

Frankenstein had lots of support on lists. 7/8 lists had this in the top 25, and there were three top 10 placements.