Top Ten: Films that scared Mark Kermode

Mark Kermode and Simon Mayo run down the top ten films that have scared Mark the most over the years (that aren't The Exorcist).
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[@matijailic9986]

The scariest moment I've ever seen has to be the appearance of the bum in Mulholland Drive. I'm generally not very easy to scare, but when I saw that I really jumped out of my seat. What makes it so scary is that it's taking place during daytime and something feels so off the whole time. It's almost as if you know it'll happen, but you don't want to believe it. Lynch really is the master of constructing such eerie moments. Still sends chills down my spine when I think of it.

[@mattd1659]

Matija Ilic I watched that film on a laptop in bed and when that scene happened I immediately shut the laptop and didn’t finish the film for a week. It was so unexpected I didn’t want to know what happened next

[@MidLoafCrisis]

Agreed, well put. As you say it just feels 'off' and the sound design is certainly playing a part too. Fantastic film

[@nilsgloistein5706]

Mulholland Drive is one of my all-time favourites and I have seen it about 10 times. The scene you mentioned still scares me so much that I get a sinking feeling only thinking about it. Great Great Great stuff.

[@MrLaMund]

Totally agree. What really makes the scene is the whole build up in the restaurant and his telling of the dream before he leaves. Utter genius.

[@matthewsalmon431]

🙈 horrendous😅. Never seen anything like it.

[@bananasinpyjamas3415]

I was about 10 years old when I saw The Wicker Man. I snuck downstairs to watch TV after my parents had gone to bed. I was captivated by it's music and affinity with nature. I didn't understand what was going on and when the big reveal happened I was left confused, excited and terrified. This triggered my ever increasing love for horror. Oh and that bit in Jaws where the head pops out of the hole in the sunken boat was the opitamy of a jump scare.

[@nomadchad5733]

I used to do that! But I used to put films on I wasn’t allowed to watch. I only told my parents 30 years later recently and my mum was genuinely not happy.

[@tomjohnston1220]

I laughed the whole way through it and got annoyed at the writer's ignorance of Celtic culture.

[@notreallydavid]

(late!) epitome!

[@bananasinpyjamas3415]

Parp parp parp

[@LANBritain1]

I know it was released for television but Threads (1984) still gives me nightmares to this day.

[@petehobson1054]

We watched that in RE at school! They decided to fast forward the start and get straight to the bomb! I was terrified for days! Many years later as an adult I wondered if it was as scary as I remembered. I found it on KZbin and discovered: Yes. Yes it was!

[@AchtungEnglander]

We should start a Threads recovery group. That film has scared me for 20 years. I had nightmares and suffered from Threads induced depression. I am a lot better now but it took a decision I was not comfortable with. I watched it a lot. I watched it and watched it until its impact lessened with every watch. Now I find myself if we have a nuclear war I want to die and I fine with that. I only wish it will be quick. I can now see Threads and it does not scare me.

[@MrUndersolo]

I watched that in our basement when it was shown on a public broadcasting station...and it was one of the few times I can say I was too young for it (11 or 12 in the mid-80s). “The Day After” couldn’t touch it.

[@MidLoafCrisis]

Apparently when Threads was broadcast in the USA, the savage impact of the film and the realism of it's depiction was such that... Religious communities congregated at churches, prayed and lit candles. It was a weekday evening and it created a feeling of apocalypse

[@AchtungEnglander]

@J. Melvin Did you see the error when Ruth's daughter was giving birth. I give you a hint - teeth !

[@ender26]

John Carpenter's The Thing. The idea that you can trust no one including yourself is terrifying.

[@dannyspitzer1267]

Classic

[@lucilovecraft1621]

It’s a work of art

[@christophernicolson5086]

The petri dish scene had me incoherent with terror

[@beastman.330]

It's a good film but not scary.

[@Tymbus]

@@beastman.330 It was for me, I had read the novelisation by Alan Dean Foster and had to see the film because I needed to see how they acheived the effects so I sort of knew what was coming and couldn't look at the screen! hahaha. The suspense was unbearable!

[@Jahu-qs2us]

10. Buried 0:52 9. Nosferatu 2:12 8. The Witch 4:34 7. The Descent 6:23 6. Audition 7:54 5. The Babadook 9:24 4. Onibaba 10:02 3. The Haunting 11:34 2. The Texas Chain Massacre 12:13 1. The Vanishing 13:14

[@PrinceSmith7]

Thank you so much

[@geoffjoffy]

I'm 58 years old and I first saw Salem's Lot when I was 17. I watched it recently and it still scares me, particularly the vampire kids at the window!!

[@MegaRockstar48]

Geoff Joffy couldn’t agree more, Tobe Hooper and Stephen King understand horror

[@geoffjoffy]

@@MegaRockstar48 Yeah, sad Tobe's no longer with us. :(

[@noonthumbs2644]

Those eyes... 👀

[@DadCanInJapan]

I remember watching Salem's Lot on TV down in our basement with the lights off. Unbeknown to me, my dog came down into the basement, and stood behind me. Because I was ignoring her, she barked/yelped at me. ... To this day, I still remember how that felt, and the mess I had to clean up.

[@geoffjoffy]

@@DadCanInJapan The dog was scared too.

[@MurderousSausage]

Lake Mungo is a slow burn, but has an moment in it I will never forget

[@roosterthembones4475]

Yes, I assume you mean the phone footage of the encounter the girl has at Lake Mungo. I swore loudly at that moment.

[@quiteliterallytheworst5977]

The image on the phone, right?

[@joecantdance494]

Apart from that scene though, it's a pretty forgettable movie

[@El1989_]

I watched Lake Mungo other day after hearing how great this film was numerous times. I was so disappointed. It is not a bad film and I appreciate what it is trying to do but it ended and I said out loud to myself 'Is that it?'. I slept like a baby afterwards.

[@quiteliterallytheworst5977]

Horror is subjective. If you didn't find Lake Mungo scary then you didn't. But for me it got under my skin like very few films do.

[@andy845]

"Nice" that he put Vanishing (Spoorloos) on the first place. That film definitely deserves to be mentioned. Remember seeing it few years ago after I found out that Kubrick named it as the scarriest film he had ever seen. It's a pity that the film is almost forgotten nowadays.

[@billhicks8]

Not by those of us who agree with Mark, it isn't!

[@classic3511]

It has been one of my top ten movies for many years, it's not an horror film though.

[@jajdude]

I saw it on youtube recently

[@blackgold63]

@@jajdude is it the full movie or clips?

[@jajdude]

@@blackgold63 full movie and the subtitles were decent

[@FilmIsPain]

I was first exposed to Nosferatu as a kid also, but that's cause he'd show up in Spongebob for whatever reason lol.

[@Kinghenhog39]

*Lights flicker* Nos-feratu! Nosferatu smiles

[@ghenulo]

I would think that Nosferatu would be fairly kid-friendly. There's no bad language, no sex, no nudity, and very little violence. If parents would feel comfortable letting their children watch a vampire flick, it seems that that would be the one.

[@felinefanII]

Almost 100 years old, it's still one of the best films ever made horror or otherwise.

[@l00pdigga42]

LMFAOOOO

[@kolesteele4242]

Kirk Hammett of Metallica had the staircase scene playing at his horror movie poster exhibit

[@neiladams3042]

Threads would be the scariest film I have seen, alongside the Descent and Texas Chain Saw Massacre. Truly a chilling portrayal of the aftermath of nuclear war.

[@santorini8423]

It cost £12.68 to rebuild Sheffield….

[@namakudamono]

As a teenager, I took a female classmate to watch “Audition” at our local arts cinema. That was the first and last film we saw together. My apologies Katy!

[@neil_down_south]

I went on a blind date to see Trainspotting with a Christian girl. I think the shitty blanket scene was the final straw. She didn't even speak to me afterwards. Just walked off. We met up again years later and ended up married. Ok that last bit is not true.

[@ColombianThunder]

@@neil_down_south Damn

[@briancox9357]

Audition is a truly horrific movie

[@spacejazz6272]

@@neil_down_south the blanket scene? she missed quite a lot of truly horrible stuff then

[@ongoingness]

Toy Story 2, surely!

[@rossmorton7002]

There's a Japanese saying that roughly translates to "What I thought was a ghost was just the grass." because the sound of it in the wind is so haunting.

[@spiritofthetime]

Carnival of Souls is one of those films you switch the TV onto halfway through late one night, and spend the rest of the week with its images burnt into your mind. Unsettling.

[@JR-hi9bu]

Ha when I was a little kid I used to watch that film over and over and over again good shid

[@jonhinson5701]

When I first saw Carnival of Souls , it seemed as if the movie kept switching from a dream state to a nightmare and back and forth until the end.

[@norfolkronin6307]

Brilliant film. You can see davi lynch influence.

[@sandzibar]

Not a film but Ghost Watch on BBC in the 90s freaked me out as a child. It was portrayed as a standard bbc documentary - complete with celebs - but it really wasnt.

[@marieadams3720]

Yes and the double take Pipes scene unforgettable.

[@snapsnappist4529]

Indeed. I was about 10 or 11 when it was broadcast and I was completely taken in until the credits rolled. Judging by the number of complaints they received, lot of other people were too. I doubt any mainstream TV channel would have the nerve to do something like that these days.

[@philcollins23]

oh my god yes this freaked me out so bad.i realised the other day i was 7 when i watched it.feel mad at my dad for letting me watch it at that age.

[@yeahyeahyeah0yeah]

Horrific. I was allowed to watch it as a kid as it came across like a fairly mild live ghost show and they turned it into this true to life, ghosts are real, everybody’s dead thing. I don’t think ever been as scared as I was then!

[@nisnga147]

This show was so scary!!! Remember lots of friends not at school the next day as they didnt sleep that night!

[@snapsnappist4529]

The scariest film I've ever seen is the 1984 nuclear war drama Threads. I first saw it in school in my second year modern studies class, which would make my about 13 years old at the time. I rewatched it recently and if anything, I found it more terrifying than than the first time around.

[@chrisreadman9426]

I watched Pulse (2001) a few months ago, lights out, minimized laptop window, half awake. There's something about films that urge your focus into dark spaces that really gives you the heebies.

[@thegreyinitiate3680]

Robert Eggers has expressed interest in doing a modern retelling of Nosferatu, and after seeing both The Witch and The Lighthouse, i’d totally be down for whatever he wants to do with it. Robert Pattinson screaming in unbridled terror upon seeing the light was one of the most chilling moments I’ve had in a movie in ages.

[@silent-trouble]

yeah, Robert Eggers is one of the most promising directors out there right now, imo.

[@GilbertSyndrome]

Nosferatu has been done to death. Nobody can top the Werner Herzog version, IMO.

[@matthewh.9544]

Just leave it alone.. Too many directors ruin classic movies

[@Karl-dg7rm]

It's on its way......Bill skarsgard as nosferatu

[@OFODRUMS]

Trailer is out and it looks absolutely phenomenal. I haven't been this excited for a movie since Dune.

[@TBliss88]

The Wheelers in Return To Oz would get an mention from me, terrifying creatures.

[@dickie8184]

Definitely. Return To Oz was a very creepy film. Both myself, and my wife love it though.

[@GavinLawrence747]

I used to find the bit where all the heads are in the cabinets screaming "DOOOOOOOOOROOOOOOTHY GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAALE!"

[@dickie8184]

@@GavinLawrence747 Yes, definitely. It was miles better than the first film.

[@warrenphilbert6856]

Yep! I saw it in the cinema back in 1985! Ha Ha! Great show!...✌️💥💚😷

[@mrgobshite92]

Superman 3, that scene where that woman turns into a robot, use to scared me as a kid.

[@mroctober3657]

Yes, that got me too.

[@johnrobinson6945]

Oh my god yes!! And now, the last time I saw it I just laughed hard at Superman whiskey drunk screaming in a kids face!

[@The_Prenna]

Yeah that freaked me out too

[@conflictdiamonds]

I was both scared and aroused by that scene.

[@BarkyUK]

Me too!

[@jamestottle1043]

10: Buried 9: Nosferatu 8: The Witch 7: The Descent 6: Audition 5: The Babadook 4: Onibaba 3: The Haunting (1963) 2: The Texas Chain Massacre (1974) 1: The Vanishing (1988)

[@CosmicStargoat]

Thank you. I had a hard time understanding what he said after 'Audition', and the next one, too.

[@GilbertSyndrome]

What was scary about the Witch? I mean, it's all subjective...but the Witch?

[@GilbertSyndrome]

Also, the best Nosferatu is the Werner Herzog version.

[@ronniemassart3834]

I remember watch6The Texas Chainsaw Massacre @ the drive in back in the 70's,it was wild

[@ghenulo]

I've seen over half of those. Go me!

[@arnoldsaidwhat]

“We got a brief clip of the film” Shows the end of the movie!

[@za.307]

As a kid, the window scratching scene from 'Salems Lot'. Obviously more of a TV movie, but still pretty scary for a young kid.

[@daviddee9336]

That scene stills gives me a chill and I’m not easily scared and find most horror movies easy to watch. I think because I was a kid when I saw it that it maybe takes me back to that time.

[@garyr6097]

I was scared by this film as a kid...as an adult though I found it more amusing than scary

[@rasher6290]

A masterpiece of a film,, no film scared me more or since,,, im 40 now😅

[@McScotch05]

The Descent was one of the best experiences I've ever had at the cinema. Multiple code violations by the whole audience just added to the fear frenzy that we were all enjoying.

[@CC3GROUNDZERO]

What are "code violations"?

[@MC_1993]

@@CC3GROUNDZEROright..? Were they cussing? Were they drinking ?smoking reefer?

[@skurge101]

I'd stick a vote in for 'The Innocents' like 'The Haunting' what it suggests more than what it does lingers in the mind long after the end.

[@leeetchells609]

Yes that was actually " the turn of the screw" there has been a few versions over the years. Recent one with Michelle Dockery was good.

[@Htheorphanarian]

I was just about to post that, Kubrick said the reaosn he filmed the shining was because he never felt anyone did horror right, he obviously never saw ''the innocents' as it amps up the creepiness to 10, I'd say it was scarier than the shining, well definitely a better written book origin

[@beanz6745]

Not a horror, but the "Bite the curb" scene in American History X really freaked me out

[@malcolmharris5277]

Oh, goodness, yes. I find I am simply unable to watch it. Utterly unmanned me the first time I saw it and have not been able to bring myself to watch the movie again because of it.

[@malcolmharris5277]

Oh, goodness, yes. I find I am simply unable to watch it. Utterly unmanned me the first time I saw it and have not been able to bring myself to watch the movie again because of it.

[@ricjuk]

Yes, I've only ever seen it once and will only ever see it once. It's the fact you hear his teeth on the curb...

[@PHILDEBEAST]

You know it's coming but you don't want to watch it because it's absolutely brutal but you do find yourself watching it.

[@tomburton6101]

@Bob Beelze wow Bob! You sound like a real man! 😂

[@56postoffice]

*"Buried"* is one of the best performance from Ryan Reynalds. And the ending_______ *"Eden Lake"* is a freaky film as well. The ending on that one______ooof!

[@CraigWrightStraygoat]

Good shout with Eden Lake. Tense film.

[@mochynddu723]

Stayed with me for a long time.

[@PaddySlattery]

You mean Sex and the City 2 didn't scare you?? If not, then it definitely scarred you.

[@ghenulo]

I've never seen it, nor did I see the first one. I didn't care for the show.

[@pitbull2005]

I had the same reaction with Mama Mia!

[@imandan1966]

@@ghenulo quite the sense of humor you have there

[@gordonarmstrong2208]

Eraserhead completely freaked me out. I saw it on Channel 4 when I was 14- I thought it was going to be an 80s slasher-type movie, and it was very, VERY different.

[@mike-yn3mn]

The thing. Whenever I've done a first aid course and practice chest compressions I still think about that scene!

[@dannyspitzer1267]

Yeah that's a classic. Norris' chest opens up

[@bencarlson4300]

I just watched The Vanishing because of this video and it did not disappoint... very disturbing ending to an excellent character-centered psychological thriller.

[@CMDR_Verm]

Nothing has ever frightened me as much as the Child-Catcher in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. That was, ostensibly, a kids movie. Who the hell decided that was a good idea?

[@dickie8184]

100% agree. It was on tv the other day. I'm nearly 40 and it's still extremely creepy. I think it was because growing up you were warned about talking to strangers, offering you sweets.

[@nightshade2979]

yep that face was terrifying

[@mantistoboggan5171]

don't forget that mindfuckery in willy wonka, with the train,

[@BarsimonR]

Totally agree... creeps me out to this day!

[@TSpencerT008]

I mean creepy as it is it adds to the movie and especially its memorability doesn't it? I think it was a good idea anyway.

[@colivingstone]

Dead Of Night (1945) always gets to me, especially the last segment. And I will never forget when I was a child, staying with my cousins who had gone to bed & watching the Legend Of Hell House on my own, in the dark, during a storm. Good lord that freaked me out.

[@vermilliongecko]

Room for one more inside, sir?

[@brianartillery]

'Dead Of Night' is a masterpiece. And brought to you by Ealing Films, who would later produce some of the greatest, and in some cases, darkest, film comedies ever made.

[@MatthewGClarke]

The scariest film moment that sticks in my mind is the Nazi face melting at the end of Raiders of the Lost Ark. I would have been six or seven when I first saw it - I was so disturbed I didn't watch that scene again until I was in my twenties!

[@goodial]

I'm 29 and I recently tried to watch the scene from King Kong again, where these giant bugs attack ... I still can't watch it! XD

[@MatthewGClarke]

@@goodial Man that one is really wrong, especially the way it almost starts off playfully, like "Hey, will you get off me?" and turns so quickly! Plus the score is SO dark.

[@El1989_]

It was on tv the other day and they don't cut anything out for day time watching. Watching it as an adult now it all still seems quite brutal 😂

[@matthaines9400]

I was about the same age when I saw that at the cinema. I sobbed with fear at that point and didnt sleep well for a long time after

[@PatTheBatmanFan]

Didn’t scare me. Thought it was the greatest thing I’d ever seen. Might still be.

[@ihateunicorns867]

The Descent is a film I have become obsessed with over time. Every so often I’ll rewatch it just to embrace that unsettled atmosphere and the feeling it leaves me with, and every time I do, I see new things. Recently I caught an early shot from the film where the characters are small and silhouetted and what you initially assume is one of them suddenly squats down revealing it’s one of the creatures. I also just have to say how great it is to have a film with an all-female lead cast where gender isn’t a narrative element.

[@CC3GROUNDZERO]

"gender isn’t a narrative element" -- I thought the same back when I watched it. Since then, I've read analyses which posit that the all-female cast *does* have a narrative purpose, and that those cave beasts are a stand-in for the constant dread women feel in a world where they cannot move about without the fear of getting r4p3d.

[@neilhinks5734]

Jacob's ladder..so many scenes that definitely got to me....some fleeting..some drawn out...a brilliant film.so disturbing to boot...I've never gripped a cinema seat so tightly in my life...Tim Robbins.just amazing imho.

[@Thomas_of_the_forest]

The VVitch is most definitely is a horror film Robert Eggers will say too. It just might not have been the film it was quite advertised by. Not a conventional horror, but definitely part of the genre

[@neildunford241]

Perfect soundtrack too.

[@ZeppelinBigFan]

"It's not a horror film, it's something that has much more to do with atmosphere" is such an absurd statement, and shows how far mainstream horror has fallen where people won't call it horror unless it's non-stop quiet quiet BANG!

[@Thomas_of_the_forest]

@@neildunford241 the soundtracks's creepy af

[@paulannable3734]

The Ver Vitch?

[@GilbertSyndrome]

That's nothing new, people have been deliberately avoiding having certain films be classed as Horror for decades. That being said, it felt like they just added a Witch to the movie for the sheer sake of having a Witch in the movie. The movie worked better without it.

[@rnw2739]

'The Changeling' (1980) with George C. Scott remains the most frightening film I've ever seen. Amazing not many people have heard of it. An absolutely chilling haunted house story that builds paralysing fear the more you become embroiled in the story... and the score is simply terrifying.

[@jajdude]

Love that film. I suppose it might have got greater recognition if not for The Shining coming out the same year.

[@rnw2739]

@@jajdude How 'The Shining' has garnered this reputation I will never understand. Dont get me wrong, it's a good film...but frightening?? Never.

[@CraigWrightStraygoat]

My wife !oves that film. Creepy wheelchair!

[@rnw2739]

@Neil Henderson Absolutely!! The seance sequence was terrifying ....the way the medium scribbles the 'YES' and the frantic 'HELP', 'JOHN!'....utterly petrifying. The most disturbing is the thought of what kills Captain Dewitt, when his car is found upside down in the road, windscreen smashed and him with that hideous look on his face....

[@dalegallacher7074]

The little ball bouncing down the stairs is a moment

[@DavidBeaumont]

There's a short Spanish silent film called La Cabina, which is on KZbin now, which I saw on the BBC about 30 years ago when I was about 10. It absolutely terrified me, and years later I found someone else with essentially the same experience, who had also seen it alone and been scarred by it.

[@SnakePliskin762]

i watched it as kid and found it on here a few years back,that unexpected ending terrified me

[@robtalbot8060]

The scene in the Exorcist 3 with the nurse, and the shears, and the big, quiet build up when you know something is going to happen and it still scares the crap out of you? Incredible.

[@leozam]

Rob Talbot Amazing scene. Minutes it lasts.

[@warrenphilbert6856]

An incredible third installment! Unmissable! ✌️💥😱😷💚

[@axe2grind244]

It’s the scariest part of any movie I’ve ever seen still to this day. Very underrated movie.

[@guibox3]

For me it was the blurry background of the woman crawling on the ceiling above George C Scott. That movie had some great creepy moments. THAT is what makes a movie 'scary'. A movie that makes the hair on the back of your neck stand up, your skin crawl and a feeling of unease in the pit of your stomach. Gross out movies or slasher movies may be 'horror' but not necessarily 'scary'.

[@GarysReview]

Most scared I've been watching a film is probably Rec. I was completely immersed the entire time, the last 20 minutes... I still have nightmares.

[@jonsayell1487]

Gary's Review I love rec and it totally got to me when I first saw it, fast forward a few years and we visit the mother in law in Madrid and her apartment building is just like the one in the film! No sleep that night lol

[@jonsayell1487]

Funk O'Matic good list!

[@ewancoulbeck]

It's so intense!

[@TheWaynos73]

I think the one film that truly terrified me was United 93 - a completely unnerving, harrowing piece of cinema, a real life horror film with impending dread - the fact that you know beforehand everyone on that plane is going to die as the movie starts puts the fear front and centre.

[@thielees]

“Jaws” scared the living crap out of me. I was eight and had no business in that theater. That scene where the severed head rolls into view in the hull of the ship. Jesus.

[@vandoo66]

Was 11. Same effect.

[@stephenderry9488]

I've seen that movie about 12 times. I know the scene's coming. I know what's going to happen. It still makes me jump.

[@wilyc0y0te]

I still don’t swim in the sea and I’m sure it had the same effect on many people. 😬

[@DorisDay-lw4xs]

And another thing about Jaws is that it could happen. This isn’t ghosts and ghouls or vampires. That shark doesn’t even see its victims as humans. Just lunch.

[@NoMastersNoMistress]

Barlow crashing into the Petrie's kitchen in Tobe Hooper's Salem's Lot has stuck with me for decades. Reggie Nalder channels Max Shrek in that mini series.

[@concernedspectator]

I loved seeing Texas Chainsaw Massacre up there. It's my favorite horror. I would only add that despite the name and the implied "butchery", there is almost no bloodshed whatsoever on screen. All the terror comes from the abrupt, inexplicable chaos that ensues. It is almost poetic in its self-contained senselessness and no other horror movie gets away with such a minimalist suspension of disbelief. It makes no sense until it makes complete sense and it explains nothing. Thoroughly original and memorable.

[@leonwatson79]

concernedspectator The dinner table scene is one of the most crazy things ever in a horror film.

[@concernedspectator]

@@leonwatson79 I know right. A total breakdown of sanity. It would have been so easy to mess that sequence up

[@paulh6673]

The nanny hanging herself in The Omen. I saw it when I was much too young. The expression on her face still gets to me. "This is all for you Damien". Moors scene in American Werewolf. Again, I was very young. In more recent years, only a few things here and there (parts of the Descent, Sadako jerkily climbing out of the well in the original Ring, a few moments in Blair Witch), but nothing like the things that get you as a kid. David Lynch can still manage a few freaking- yer-out moments though.

[@CS-mo7xp]

totally agree with those Omen and American Werewolf scenes... saw them both when I was about 7!

[@joeycusack8314]

This Omen scene frightened me too! That film put me off dogs for life.

[@animateangus]

Even looking at photos from Murnau's "Nosferatu" traumatised me, never mind watching the film. "The Woman in Black" TV adaptation was very effective!

[@amym6693]

I went to Wismar in Germany last year I was walking on the docks and turned round and realised the gate that the vampire carries the coffin through when he leaves the ship was right in front of me,. Nosferatu was partly filmed in wismar and the streets and locations are still there and recognisable

[@jinjagohst]

Looking forward to getting the ITV version of Woman In Black - finally released on DVD now.

[@whatsleft100]

Yes the bedroom scene !

[@collen9016]

1) the Others 2) The woman in Black 3) Sinister- leaves you empty and unsettled 4) It (90's TV version- terrified me in an excited way as a child 5) The shining (of course)

[@Thomas_of_the_forest]

Haha, love the inclusion of "that aren't the Exorcist" 😅 Honestly could always hear him talk about that movie

[@click_gaming4277]

Kermode Uncut is no more eh? This seems rather familiar in that case.

[@ChanMorgan]

I have only seen Audition once and that was almost 15 years ago. Scariest movie I've ever seen. The little sound clip you guys played here legitimately gave me goosebumps and some bad memories. Thanks guys. The Vanishing is also a fantastic pick. What a terrifying conclusion.

[@georgeclayton]

I’ve never seen it, could you explain what’s happening in that audio clip?

[@Kyoto_Ed]

@@georgeclayton kiri kiri kiri kiri....

[@terrypussypower]

The original "The Vanishing" was shown on Channel 4 back in the early 90's, and I remember watching it without having the first CLUE what was in store! And that ending freaked me out for months!

[@johna3863]

The ventriloquist segment of "Dead of Night", especially the final moment in the asylum. Stayed with me for weeks afterwards (as a ten year old)...

[@haybrym]

Great film dead of night

[@stevethomas74]

"Can't stop me, Maxwell. You're finished. FINISHED!"

[@KevMcKean]

The reveal ending of Don't Look Now froze my blood more than any other movie moment.

[@onefromthemodem]

By far the scariest film I've seen, and my favourite film of all time. The very final scene, foretold, being almost as chilling as *that* climax. An absolute masterclass in tension building, and like MK says about Babadook it's all the more powerful because you really care for the characters and the turmoil and torment they feel.

[@DorisDay-lw4xs]

@@onefromthemodemI still can’t quite get the end of DLN. Bloody creepy though. Hated The Babadook. That damn kid 🤬🤬🤬. Just STFU 😂

[@Alazoom76]

Hereditary...when Toni Collette bangs her head against the attic door like a jackhammer...chills!!!!

[@ghenulo]

LOL!

[@mikeokeeffe4692]

I was so bored this film made me laugh out of nowhere in the cinema - then because I knew I shouldn't be laughing I literally couldn't stop myself and consequently I had to leave who I was with for 5 mins because I couldn't help it and couldn't care less what happened in the movie at that poont. Plus I didnt want to ruin anyones experience. To me its simply an awful and pointless film. Melodramatic and tried too hard. I still find it amazing people got scared watching it. Thats scary to me. Chilling....

[@phoebewoodhouse293]

Mike O'Keeffe aren’t you edgy? Film is subjective.

[@mikeokeeffe4692]

@@phoebewoodhouse293 Not really but since you said it I will say.... well, arent you obvious. Read what you just replied to me - because what I said is just that - a subjective opinion. Your half mocking retort assuming any edginess whilst trying to be clever wasnt actually solicited or even correct. At all. Maybe its a pot kettle black thing, because sarcasm isnt any more becoming on you as you percieved edginess is on me. Subjective enough?

[@willthomas2310]

@@phoebewoodhouse293 Some people just have to be antagonistic about everything. They'll bait you in a long ass debate/argument, all cause they don't like your opinion on something.

[@MrSarollia]

"Event Horizon" - when they watch the video footage - and we see the captain with his hands out holding his eyes and saying ""Liberate me" ("Save me")" - yup made me stop at various times over the next few days as that image flashed across my vision..

[@TheJohnsonseviltwin]

I watched it in the cinema and this scene had me getting nauseous from the sheer horror of it.

[@PrinceBarin77]

Watching John Carpenter’s The Fog aged, approximately 9 years old. Love it now and still scares me - it’s chills were imprinted on my psyche. Same applies for Ridley Scott’s Alien 😂

[@kezzatatters2869]

I loved the Witch, I think it’s very underrated as a horror film.

[@rubaidaallen2764]

Very. Loved it too.

[@guibox3]

Really? I think it is highly overrated. A movie that tried to mush 3 different plots into one narrative and did a poor job of it.

[@PhillipWhite-uz3wu]

@@guibox3 Edgy!

[@teesman61]

I thought it was like watching paint dry......and just as scary.

[@TeZXSpectrum]

The dream in a dream sequence in American werewolf in London. Werewolf Nazis.

[@garethhanby]

That's a cheap jump scare, but it does work.

[@captaincluster316]

Managed to sneak a watch of that film when I was about 13 and this scene scared the absolute crap out of me 🤓

[@eoindaly8044]

Thought Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me wouldve made the list, Bob played by Frank Silva is a great horror creation

[@shirleymcdonald2777]

Totally agree

[@nathankennedy3927]

Crazy movie that loll

[@TheIroningSheik]

100%. What a film that was. I was not ready for how scary it was either.

[@BeccaBerneda]

I’ve yet to recover from the car scene in Hereditary.

[@hermioneziggeraut7617]

JFC, I know. And it just gets worse. That film is disturbing.

[@edancarr2305]

The last 30 mins of Hereditary messed me up

[@euanharrison7125]

Edan Carr that movie is a solid 9

[@holden6104]

I actually thought the last 30 minutes was the least terrifying thing about the film. The supernatural stuff takes a backseat to the domestic tension.

[@euanharrison7125]

Holden uch gie yir carpet sweeper a break iye

[@minkstar9021]

@asdf asdfq Stick to the wrong turn franchise, passive spectator. You have absolutely no taste, you have no right to be in a cinema.

[@samaraibegbie7054]

@@holden6104 based

[@ReclusiveDuck]

The firestorm scene from The War Game(1965) is, for me, still the most terrifying thing I've seen. The violence of the images, the incredible noise, combined with an authoritative sounding narrator made it a truly harrowing experience.

[@adeblair]

Indeed. Peter Watkins is one of our most underrated directors.

[@Deedee-ee1sg]

The Innocents/Turn of the Screw. I saw it recently and it still gave me chills!

[@andrescannell4202]

Totally agree. There's so much so scary in that film. To this day I've never been able to fathom why the movie was called The Innocents,when The Turn of The Screw is such a superb title. Still, it doesn't take anything away from the film.

[@Deedee-ee1sg]

That brilliant freeview channel Talking Pictures showed it the other night!

[@vintagebrew1057]

"The Audition' Japanese film scared me.

[@Jessamine29]

I was lucky enough to see Nosferatu at a screening with a live pianist. It's such a good film with wonderful imagery and creepy acting

[@ronbo11]

I envy you. Only on home video/DVD have I seen it.

[@efthimiakonstantinides4699]

Me too, in London!

[@brianartillery]

I saw the movie at my local arthouse cinema with a small audience. It was watched in silence, and given a huge round of applause at the end. Perfect.

[@DorisDay-lw4xs]

I saw it with a string quartet who were excellent. They were very subtle too and didn’t take away anything from the actual film.

[@aussievaliant4949]

There was a scene in The Haunting where the door slowly bowed amidst loud crashing noises. As an 11 year old, it scared the heck out of me. The memory of it remains and I am now nearly 60. Another one that grabbed me was The Norliss Tapes, and once again it was one scene that really scared me where a person goes to a window and drawers the curtain back on a dark night, and the creature is right there glaring in. For me, other good ones are The Thing, The Witch, Blair Witch Project, Alien, The Omen, The Ring.

[@edwinreid8355]

I think it was my Uncle Derek who gave me a couple of classic films for my Birthday one year, one of which was The Haunting from the early 60's. Loved it, for me it's the ultimate haunted house story.

[@larrycooper7261]

Personal one for me is "The Legend of Boggy Creek," about a Bigfoot-like creature in Fouke, Arkansas. At the time I lived about 20 miles from Fouke, and had to drive some dark country roads to get home after watching the movie. I was certain the Fouke Monster, as it was called, was going to run out of the shadows while I was driving home. At one point I took a corner too fast and went into a ditch. I damn near pissed myself trying to get back on the road!!!

[@Jdl343]

I found out about the film from watching Finding Bigfoot

[@greenmantles]

That's one of my favorite films. The cinematography is beautiful, and really establishes an eerie mood and atmosphere.

[@biggdogg99848]

Yeah man that scared the sht out of me as a kid watched when a was a bit older though and thought it was rubbish

[@colonelweird]

I'm starting to realize that every time someone mentions a really, really wild Japanese film, they must be talking about something made by Takashi Miike.

[@PatTheBatmanFan]

Hands down the scariest film I’ve ever seen is still “Deliverance”.

[@el_mal_de_ojo]

A film that I find to be massively underrated is Session 9. The entirely film just has a perverse 'energy' to it, it works brilliantly as a psychological horror film. It left me more shaken than a lot of the more in your face horror films, certainly more so than mainstream horror films of the last 2 decades.

[@andrefick2077]

I recommend Lake Mungo to anyone who does not want sleep for the mext week. THE most underrated horror film ive seen. Seriously go check it out youll thank me later

[@Skoobster1975]

Andre Fick yep, with you on that. More people should watch this

[@paysonterhune290]

Totally love Lake Mungo...its the origin of my nickname "mungie" lol

[@DorisDay-lw4xs]

Did nothing for me, Im afraid 🤷‍♂️

[@paulydonn7911]

Love a bit of Kermode and Mayo, they compliment each other really well

[@godssicario2077]

Invasion of the Body Snatchers ( 1978 ) scared me as a child , was frightened to go to sleep incase there was a pod in my room and I wouldn't be the same when I woke up. Such a great movie. One of my favourites.

[@stevethomas74]

Absolute classic and one of the best remakes ever made. I was only about 6 or so when I saw that on TV. Scared (and scarred) me for years but in that great way! :D

[@michaelgarza8271]

Utterly devestating ending. Terrifying.

[@grohlbabe]

As a child "salems lot" window scene. And reveal at end of "Dont look now". More recently "Pans Labyrinth" creature with eyeballs in its palms I mean WTF was that

[@herbieshine1312]

Yes Salem's lot when I was a kid. While watching a particularly scary bit, I can't remember which bit, my brother in law who at the time was still just my sister's boyfriend, stuck his hand through the lounge window grabbing my shoulder making a "woooooo" noise! Have never forgiven him! Having seen the series again in more recent times I can't imagine ever being scared of it.

[@barneschitown]

Yeah that window scene scared me bad as a kid. it was such a long drawn out scene too.

[@alexthomson7465]

Sales lot window scene still terrifies me

[@petermorris1898]

First time i saw Jacob's Ladder, more or less the whole film was scariest for me, but especially when he's in the tunnel after getting off the train and there's all these zombie or ghost-like people blankly staring out. Surprised that's not more recognised. The imagery and the 'what on earth is going on' aspect , i find much more frightening than something like 'Halloween', or even 'The Exorcist' where there's no mystery or confusion to it, it's just a question of buying in to the story, which, admittedly Friedkin does a good job of making you do.

[@alexthomson7465]

Yeah Jacobs ladder. Great shout! That goes beyond scary to completely disturbing for me.

[@swhib]

I remember The Entity scaring the bejesus out of me, also, the TV mini series Salem's Lot with David Soul, which I think was directed by the same guy as The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, he seemed to know what he was doing.

[@seeker5736]

Stuart Whibley . Salems lot (the original) was superb.

[@ZoidPickle]

Yup, the entity scared the Bejesus out of me.

[@Jchathe]

Agree with you about The Vanishing, Being claustrophobic myself the devastating ending left an indelible imprint on my brain.

[@asedition8847]

The Shining without a doubt....and John Carpenters The fog! I think there is something about seeing scary movies as a teenager that means they never leave you! 👻👻👻

[@MASS1866]

I agree. I saw both of these as a child and they scared the witts out of my and still do.

[@bananasinpyjamas3415]

The vanishing has had a lasting effect on me also. I am unable to allow my wife to leave my side at petrol stations, airports, motorway services. Luckily she is very understanding of this.

[@tempusfugit9796]

I was born in 66 so as a young boy in the 70's I was occasionally allowed to stay up late to watch the hammer films. Dracula '1958' with Peter cushing and Christopher Lee scared the hell out of me. I wouldn't go to bed on my own for ages.

[@razzle1964]

Happy days! Born '64, I'd beg my parents to let me stay up late on a Sat night (circa 1974, aged 10yrs old) for the Hammer dble bill on BBC2. 'Dracula: Prince of Darkness' (1966) did it for me - the butler suspends the fella over a stone tomb containing Dracula's ashes & slits his throat. Loved it & been hooked on horror ever since!

[@rory7590]

Who claimed that The Witch isn’t a real Horror movie!?! It is. Surely this is just another example of snooty critics deciding that any horror movie that elevates the genre is no longer considered a horror movie?

[@jarpyr6791]

Not enough jump scares? Definitely is a horror.

[@GilbertSyndrome]

Most critics don't like Horror as a genre, it's that simple.

[@mikeokeeffe4692]

Gilbert, Im sorry, but its not 'that simple' simply because most horror is very formulaic or jump scare based, if not sequel rammed to the point of ridiculous and parodist, so I presume thats a big part of why you may see it that way, but - most people whom like Horror can probably agree that its not a genre that cares about critics for the most part. I take issue though with your prior sub comment (above) in which you express the distaste you felt that there was even a Witch at all..... (in a film called 'The Witch') ....and that your feeling is and I quote that said Witch somehow was unnecessary, and, if Im recalling your sentiment correctly, that 'they just added the Witch in seemingly just for the sake of it' So, it appears youre also a critic whom doesnt like horror...judging by your own critique above.... unless its abstract or metaphorical rather than straight up and literal. I say so because if you take out the Witch from 'The Witch' what you effectively would get is 'The Village' meets 'The Shining' but just on a familial scale - and we know that those 2 films have been done, with differing success in terms of reception and subsequent interpretation, and to my mind all that considered, this film did true horror, in its own way, it set its own horrific tone so unflinchingly well BECAUSE of the Witch - in the first 10 minutes, so that it then makes you know watching that anything can now happen from here on in, without a doubt, brutally understated, and in such a fashion it beats them both on reflection, imho, and does so *GASP* honestly. No gimmicky jump scares, no red herrings, but still hides a twist for the audience to comprehend later on at the end. Very clever, but it was a divisive movie as far as I can gather, but to me its a frank and faithful love letter to Horror and horror stories, in short a flawless masterpiece. So, I guess Im puzzled, puzzled as to wether you're a critic, or a fan, or just someone who isnt satisfied being either-or, and instead tries to be both depending on the comment to which youre responding to. I dont understand how such a contradiction of comments can originate from the same person on the same comment section about the same film.

[@jakeram4439]

THE RETURN OF KERMODE UNCUT HYPE

[@doswillrule]

Just in case you weren't aware, he does a lot of these features in his Kermode on Film podcast!

[@stevemiddy]

The Transformers Franchise

[@stevemiddy]

@Shrek Wazowski if one likes that sort of thing.. I gave up after that. Never watched the sequels. Movies made in a vacuum.

[@kelman727]

Shrek Wazowski If you think the CGI film was the FIRST one...

[@stephenhall2980]

Bumblebee was unexpectedly great.

[@JPWalster]

I remember thinking Frailty starring Bill Paxton was pretty creepy Also, I know it's not a classic but Sinister scared the crap out of me

[@reginaldh2079]

Great video and fantastic to see you both staying safe and in good health. Great Wittertainment in containment.

[@greatpoochini1]

I think the ones that scared me the most were the ones I saw when I wasn't quite old enough to see them. Psycho, Black Narcissus, Night of the Demon, Night of the Hunter, Cape Fear. Next wave, Exorcist, Dawn of the Living Dead, TCM, Suspiria. Not so easily scared anymore, but I was nerve-wracked by The Ring and Audition.

[@cristinapolerina]

I had forgotten about Black Narcissus. I saw that when I was really young (about 5 or 6) I don’t think my parents realised it would be disturbing! I still remember the woman with the scary eyes!

[@ronbo11]

"Black Narcissus" is definitely a cinematic classic and feast for the eyes. The crazed Sister Ruth (Kathleen Byron) does not leave your memory very quickly!

[@greatpoochini1]

@@cristinapolerina I think I was about 10 or so when I saw it. It also turned upside down my expectations about how films turned out. The lead male character did not rescue the damsel, nor end up with Deborah Kerr and live happily ever. And he looked so ridiculous in his shorts and bare legs on his donkey, when I was used to Westerns where Wayne or Flynn came riding in to save the day. But seeing Sister Ruth go mad without redemption really messed my innocence and naivety up. As Ron D said, Kathleen Byron's Ruth stays with you.

[@TVAVStudios]

TCM?

[@mariemcgowan-irving6156]

"The original 'The Haunting', not the remake" every time. It's terrifying and creepy and it lives with you for a long time :)

[@VelvetMetrolink]

IMO Shirley Jackson wrote the two best opening paragraphs in history, in The Haunting and We have always lived in the castle.

[@seeker5736]

Marie McGowan-Irving . It is quite simply the best supernatural film. A small but select cast and a real chiller. I still have it on d v d and won't be letting it go any time soon, a fantastic chiller.

[@curiousworld7912]

@@VelvetMetrolink I completely agree with both. I'm glad to finally see Jackson getting some of the respect for her writing that she so much deserves.

[@lonestar6709]

Ringu (1998) for me. When Sadako comes out of that TV, is one of the scariest moments ever filmed.

[@turnipjuice2626]

The Borderlands (2013) is terrifying at times, and that ending...

[@shayZero]

Yup that ending was horrific.

[@dannydontgoin237]

Great list! Nosferatu is creepy as hell nearly 100 years later. I'm in the minority on The Descent. I thought was really suspenseful and atmospheric until the creatures showed up, then it just kind of fizzled out for me. I'm surprised The Border Lands and Session 9 didn't end up in your top ten.

[@treaclebeard]

Borderlands (incidentally on TV last night much to my delight) is scary, especially the last 15 minutes - terrifying

[@el_mal_de_ojo]

I just commented on how Session 9 stands out in my memory as a film that truly left me creeped out, to the point that I was hesitant about going anywhere dark that evening. Few films do that, but Session 9 - if you get in the correct mindset and allow it to - will get under your skin.

[@thejonner2036]

Baseball bats in the cornfield in Casino ALWAYS freaks me out.

[@ronbo11]

All great choices. Another movie that creeped me out the most was 1962's "Carnival of Souls". The entire movie was so wonderfully eerie and disorienting. There were a couple of scenes where the female protagonist gets "detached" from the world and her possessed organ playing coupled with the dance of the dead at the carnival that gave me goosebumps all over my body. I kind of figured out the trick ending, but it still kept me riveted until that end happened. Great to watch in a darkened room 'round about midnight!

[@jajdude]

Saw it recently on youtube, has some twilight zone vibes for sure

[@mcmondo]

For me, watching this classic, flawless movie late on a school night used to scare me to death and that movie is The Elephant Man. It was the only movie I watched through my fingers and the first movie ever to make me cry. For me it's the holy grail of film making as I truly believed it was shot in the 50s (I knew nothing about film back then and a credit to Lynch you might say) and for many years I had no idea what John Hurt looked like in real life until I was allowed to watch Alien for the first time. John Hurt was the first actor I admired because of his portrayal of Joseph Merrick and to this day that film is firmly cemented in my top 5 favourite movies.

[@NailBombed]

It's still Tina in the alleyway, after being jumpscared by a cat/bin lid - turning around to see Freddy Krueger with his lengthening outstretched arms, and heavily shadowed leering grin. Stayed with me for ages. The first NOES is still the best IMO.

[@LindonPBolton]

Totally agree, that scene gave me nightmares for weeks afterwards as a kid!

[@retrojoeuk]

"This, is god"

[@26michaeluk]

Yes, this.

[@craigcharlesworth1538]

Two stand out to me - the ending of the original The Fly which as an arachophobe makes me come out in a cold sweat just thinking about it. The other is The Woman in Black, the 1989 TV movie not the Hollywood remake. The feeling of abject terror I was left with by the idea that someone would intentionally isolate themselves with something so powerful and so malevolent has stayed with me since I saw it first when I was ten.

[@arianbyw3819]

The woman in black scared my daughter so much, I had to walk her home. And she has a black belt or two in martial arts!

[@whatsleft100]

Can't believe it was only shown twice on TV due to distribution disputes 😢 luckily my mum taped it to terrify me and my friends for life 😂❤. It's now on dvd

[@scipioafrica]

Watched The Vanishing in my mid teens, many decades ago, scarred for life!

[@win33adam]

The shower scene in Psycho, I'm almost 38 and I still sometimes feel vulnerable taking a shower! One of my favourite movies ever from the master of suspense.

[@AchtungEnglander]

Watership Down Threads

[@panzram31614]

"Threads" -- good choice. Nuclear apocalypse movie made during the height of the Cold War -- good luck sleeping anytime soon after viewing that one. Even its American counterpart "The Day After" had some chilling images of nuclear holocaust.

[@nisnga147]

Threads!! Horrid!

[@chrishustwayte7821]

Threads is absolutely terrifying

[@jajdude]

When I think of Watership Down I also think of Plague Dogs

[@tomwright4969]

Threads is the most disturbing film ever made. I think it's how it goes from normality to utter unflinching apocalypse. That scene in the graveyard really gets me.

[@SmartDave60]

The goat in The Witch had some human quality that was disturbing.

[@stevethomas74]

It also wrecked the dad in that movie (his name escapes me, Ralph somethingorother?). He had to be airlifted by helicopter and flown to the hospital as they were out in the middle of nowhere. I think they must have left one of the takes in that movie because the way it butts him near the end.....just, ugghhh. I'm not a fan of goats at the best of times, let alone demonic ones.

[@KathrynBea]

I went to see Audition alone for my 21st birthday; I had always wanted to see it, and as I entered the cinema, everyone looked at me because I was confidently watching this on my own. I really loved it, and it was greatly enhanced on a big screen

[@stevesm4]

Audition started so much like a comedy and then just a thriller and then like nothing I had ever seen before. Bloody terrifying. During the final scene, a man in the row in front of me laughed heartily throughout. Nervous tittering I could have understood, but he clearly thought it was hilarious.