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The Exorcist: Top Horror Film of All Time
A little girl rotating her head to an inhuman like position, crawling down the stairs like a deformed komodo dragon on speed, and spewing river sized amounts of green slime; what more can you ask for in a horror film?
That’s exactly what British voters thought when they voted the 1973 cult classic The Exorcist as the number 1 horror film of all time. The poll was run by entertainment provider HMV on their website during the month of September and October. 6000 people voted for what they thought was the greatest horror film ever produced.
The Exorcist, a 1973 American movie adaptation of the novel by William Peter Blatty which was published in 1971, tells the story of Regan MacNeil, a young girl who has been possessed by a demonic force. Father Lankester Merrin is bought in to try and expel the demon by means of an exorcism where he and his assistant encounter more than they bargained for. Based on a true story, The Exorcist provides viewers with non stop thrills and screams as Regan deals out a vast range of peculiar and disturbing behaviour on the way to a fantastic climax. The film was re-released in 2000 providing viewers with extra scenes, enhanced cinematography and even more scares than the original. It’s also interesting to note that The Exorcist brings with it the tag of being cursed as many strange events happened to cast and support staff during filming including a fire which destroyed all of the set bar Regan’s room and Linda Blair (the actress who played Regan) being hurt on numerous occasions. A priest was bought onto the set at various times during filming to bless the cast and set. Combine all of these “real” strange occurrences with the actual viewing of the film and you can see why it was voted in at the top spot. The Exorcist was nominated for ten Academy Awards winning two for sound, which makes the film even more exhilarating, and Film Adaptation.
Other films to make the top horror film list include Stephen King’s The Shining at number two, the original 1979 film Alien at three, Anthony Hopkins as Hannibal Lector in The Silence of the Lambs at four, and Saw at number 5.
The complete list of top horror movies for 2008:
1 The Exorcist – William Friedkin (1973)
2 The Shining – Stanley Kubrick (1980)
3 Alien – Ridley Scott (1979)
4 The Silence of the Lambs – Jonathan Demme (1991)
5 Saw – James Wan (2004)
6 Halloween – John Carpenter (1978)
7 A Nightmare on Elm Street – Wes Craven (1984)
8 Ring (Ringu) – Hideo Nakata (1998)
9 The Wicker Man – Robin Hardy (1973)
10 The Omen – Richard Donner (1976)
11 The Birds – Alfred Hitchcock (1963)
12 The Thing – John Carpenter (1982)
13 Lost Boys – Joel Schumacher (1987)
14 Dawn of the Dead – George A. Romero (1978)
15 The Texas Chainsaw Massacre – Tobe Hooper (1974)
16 Jaws – Steven Spielberg (1975)
17 The Blair Witch Project – Daniel Myrick & Eduardo Sanchez (1999)
18 An American Werewolf in London – John Landis (1981)
19 Se7en – David Fincher (1995)
20 Poltergeist – Tobe Hooper (1982)
21 The Amityville Horror. Stuart Rosenberg (1979)
22 Candyman – Bernard Rose (1992)
23 Scream – Wes Craven (1996)
24 Carrie – Brian De Palma (1976)
25 Friday the 13th – Sean S Cunningham (1980)
26 Final Destination – James Wong (2000)
27 The Evil Dead – Sam Raimi (1981)
28 Hellraiser – Clive Barker (1987)
29 Hostel – Eli Roth (2005)
30 Salem “> s Lot – Mikael Salomon (2004)
31 The Descent – Neil Marshall (2005)
32 The Hills Have Eyes – Wes Craven (1977)
33 Wolf Creek – Greg McLean (2005)
34 Misery – Rob Reiner (1991)
35 Rosemary”s Baby – Roman Polanski (1968)
36 Child’s Play – Tom Holland (1989)
37 The Orphanage – Juan Antonio Bayona (2008)
38 The Entity – Sidney J Furie (1981)
39 Nosferatu – FW Murnau (1922)
40 Night of the Living Dead – George A. Romero (1968)
41 House on Haunted Hill, William Malone (2000)
42 The Haunting, Robert Wise (1963)
43 It – Tommy Lee Wallace (1990)
44 Audition – Takashi Miike (1999)
45 The Changeling – Peter Medak (1980)
46 The Mist – Frank Darabont (2008)
47 Suspiria – Dario Argento (1977)
48 The Vanishing – George Sluizer (1993)
49 Shutter – Masayuki Ochiai (2008)
50 Planet Terror – Robert Rodriguez (2007)
(List provider: contactmusic.com)
19 Comments
I love this movie, it still scares me…lol
I love your listed movies.
I agree. I loved that movie. I like your list, although I don;t think I ever saw Planet Terror. I’ll have to check that out.
I can remember seeing The Exorcist as a kid with my big bro. I don’t know what traumatized me more, the movie, or my brother scaring the bejesus out of me while watching the movie..lol. Good one RJ. Some good movies on here, like The Orphanage.. crikey, that one still creeps me out.
I actually found the original to be more funny than horrifying. The new exorcist is much scarier.
I must disagree with Lauren here! Probably because I am a complete wuss, of course, but I found the exorcist terrifying! Maybe my parents shouldn’t have let me watch it when I was seven…..
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Yes ,it´s top horror film,,today is a good moment to remember it.
I totally agree w/ the Exorcist being the top horror film of all time. The story, the acting, the way it was shot and edited…no slasher type movies of today can compare. Even to this day, I’ve only been able to sit through it one full time…and it was during the day, and the edited version on TV. I don’t think I could watch a full length DVD of it.
I do think that the Omen, and Rosemary’s Baby should be 2nd and third, respectively.
I agree with you.
Superb list. I haven’t seen some of them. Thanks for the same. I will check it out.
Hey thanks a lot for the feedback people. I, like R J Evans, was absolutely terrified the first time I saw it. It was on the big screen when it was re-released. Didn’t sleep properly for 3 nights! Thought it was a great vote by the Brits.
I must see it!
Pedro
I used to watch a lot of horror movies and The Exorcist was one of them. It is certainly incomparable to the other horror movies. Great list.
I was scared back when it first came out. Now it’s kinda silly. Boy, how I have changed!
They ares so scary.
i love the exorcist,there is nothing scarier than linda blair’s face all possessed…her head spinning and the voice,it is giving me chills as i speak….definitley a horror classic and i agree i was scared of jack nichloson in the shining,i was a little girl(redrum)freaked me out 4 a long time!!good write….gabbi
Good job. I think “A Nightmare On Elm St.’s” a bit higher on my list though, and “Planet Terror” doesn’t make it at all.
I agree. I really like this, you should check out some of my Poetry
Top Horror Film of all time – would loved more pix – as it is a visual feast; truly ghastly. It was actually written by a devout Catholic who then felt terribly guilty for doing so.
Exellent stuff RJ – j