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Top 100 Horror Movies
Every fan plays the game... what's the best movie of all time, the second best, and did my favorite make it into the "Top 100"? Fantastic Press proudly launches an exciting new series of gift books that colorfully explore popular motion picture genres, reviewing and ranking the best each genre has to offer. With imaginative, full-color layouts and a sense of spirited fun, each book in this custom-designed series begins with coverage of Movie #100, then suspensefully "ascends" to the Number One choice! Along the way, avid readers are treated to rare photos and posters, priceless information, and never-before published cultural artifacts. For the first Fantastic Press offering, it's horror against horror in the ultimate scary movie match-up. Screenwriter/film historian Gary (Pumpkinhead) Gerani presents and evaluates the cinema's most celebrated shockers, from silent classics to today's gleefully audacious gorefests. This super-colorful overview contains over 600 rare visuals, and features a brand-new introduction by celebrated horror movie director Roger Corman.
- GenresHorrorNonfiction
192 pages, Paperback
First published October 18, 2010
About the author
Gary Gerani
73 books12 followersGary Gerani is a screenwriter, author, noted film and TV historian, and children's product developer.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
February 2, 2025
The Last Heartbreak Hipster Review
Gary Gerani has compiled his subjective ranking of what he considers the greatest, most influential horror movies of the last hundred years. As with any compilation like this, subjectivity is the most important thing to keep in consideration. "So this asshole doesn’t think that films is good enough? Well, shit, fuck this book!! One star!! Annoying GIF of some dickhead tearing his hair out and crying).
Lucky for my millions of followers, I’m not that fucking stupid. I’m also drunk right now, so I’m sorry for swearing. Effing, let’s get this review out of the way. I’m listening to Blink 182’s last album on Spotify and drinking tea, sobering up before I go to bed and dream about being cooked upon a sheet of metal laid across a scorching patch of desert.
Gary Gerani obviously loves his horror movies. So hey, we have something in common. His enthusiasm and appreciation for the genre is what makes this list-cum-review book endearing and fun. I ain’t gonna complain and say "this guy shits me" ... like I did with bloody David Gritten on Halliwell’s Fucking Movies That Matter, where the dipshit neglected to mention Jurassic Park - (like, who remembers that, you fuckin’) - as well as denouncing Forrest Gump and Jaws. Now see here, old boy: If you wanna have a go at Forrest, go ahead; you wouldn’t be the first one. But don’t you fucking say shit about Jaws. Oh, you think it’s boring? Then go watch Sharknado, you impatient git, you. Effing, David Gritten pissed me off. According to him, Home Alone 3 was more imprinted into cinematic history than Spielberg’s dinosaur epic that revolutionised - (for better or worse) - the way blockbusters were made from that point onwards.
Gerani isn’t here to criticise films. He just wants to pay respect to his particular favourites. Nothing wrong with that.
Gernani gets so excited, in fact, that he often forgets how to spell certain words. Often I would read a character’s name … only to find it written differently later on.
(“Wait, is it Dracula or Drocular?”).
(“We were talking about Frankenstein. What’s all this shit about Finklestein’s Bride?”).
("Rosemary’s Baby preceded Friedkin’s Catholic epic, The Abortionist by three years”. Wait, what?).
(Steven Spielberg surprised the world with his road-thriller Duel, but nobody expected his terrifying follow up, Jews, which is about an omnipresent threat that looms upon a white American community, destroying businesses and turning citizens against each other).
And so there’s ME, pacing up and down the driveway, four o’clock in the morning, mumbling aggressively how I’m gonna rip my goddamned teeth out, if I can't pay attention to what I’m reading. After paying some bewildered passerby to “curb stomp” me ... losing most, if not all, of my teeth ... I then continued the book in my hospital bed. Only to find that it wasn’t my brain at all !!
Gary Gerani is just the king of typos ...
I was like this guy. 'Cept I had no pearly whites.
But let’s be serious now. This book has - (you may have guessed) - one hundred chapters, dedicated respectively to one particular film. They span between the early twentieth and twenty-first century. I believe the earliest film selected was Nosferatu (1922); a silent film that is actually, surprisingly, scary. The latest one would probably be Sweeney Todd (2007); one I haven’t personally seen yet, though I always thought that was considered more of a black comedy.
I guess I can’t take fault with what this man considers his favourite horrors, but I did notice how many of his choices were films before or specifically around the early 1960’s. Since this old bastard grew up with those films, it’s perfectly understandable. But it still could not help the asshole in me getting agitated - (to the point where I nearly consulted the doctor) - when he consistently mentioned films I have never heard of, and continuously omitted films I truly think deserved to be on this list.
Doctor Thefuckisitthistime prescribed 200 milligrams of Idoane Givashitt and told me to find a girlfriend.
The sonofa lists such modern greats such as The Sixth Sense, 28 Days Later and The Blair Witch Project. It’s not as if he doesn’t know about this genre's more recent outputs. Even his selections within the 1970’s - 90’s period - (where my favourites hail from) - was debatable.
I was kind of disappointed that he didn’t mention things like Salem’s Lot, one of the greatest vampire films, by horror protégé, Tobe Hooper (who directed Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Poltergeist; both included in this book).
There’s The Changeling by Peter Medak, starring George C. Scott, which I think is the creepiest “haunted house” film ever made, which has been criminally underrated and forgotten by modern audiences in lieu of over-the-top shit like Paranormal Activity and The Conjuring.
I think Deliverance deserved at least an "honourable mention”.
Gore Verbinksi’s The Ring was unjustly rejected by most, on account of it being a Hollywood remake of a renowned Japanese flick. (This does get an honourable mention, but I think it earns more than that. Whether you like it or not, you can’t deny it’s influential. Like how my endless dreams of being meticulously chainsawed by Ukrainians will be influential on my eventual suicide. I dare you to watch that shit again and then say it hasn’t been ripped off countless times by all mainstream horrors ever since).
I am actually mortified - (well, okay, let’s not exaggerate; but I am very surprised) - that Rob Reiner’s masterful adaptation of Stephen King’s Misery isn’t in here. That’s just ridiculous. If you’re gonna mention gorno shit like Hostel, fucking mention one of the most tension-dripping “smart” horror films of all time as well. Shit.
I understand that not everyone loves What Lies Beneath and The Others, but I happen to love both, and believe at least the latter should be better respected.
Gernai - (you see what I did?) - actually mentioned a few Australian horrors. (Picnic at Hanging Rock is one I’m particularly interested in seeking out). And while I wasn’t overly impressed with The Babbadook, there is another, mostly unknown Aussie film which I think is one of the creepiest ghost movies to slip beneath the radar. The film I speak of is Lake Mungo. Anyone who misses the days of slow and subtle ghost stories: I implore you to find this film and watch it with an open mind. It’s magnificent and so very unsettling.
And shit, I better stop now. I’ll just list a few more personal favourites I would have thought about including. If I was Giovetti's editor or some shit. Here goes the last few I can think of right now.
The Descent. Let Me In. The Amityville Horror. Jurassic Park - (shut up, it’s scary!!). Shamalamadingdong's infamously loved-or-hated Signs. 50 Shades Of Grey. Since some black comedies are included, American Psycho. Pet Sematary, of course. And I better not forget Cujo. Then there’s some other great modern films, like Black Swan and - (though it’s flawed with James Wan’s jump-scare bullshit) - the first Insidious.
The first and second Paranormal Activity were actually pretty great; it’s just the stupid sequels that ruined the whole thing. As The Exorcist is probably my favourite horror film, it stands to reason that I hate almost every other exorcism movie. None of them can compare to Friedkin and Blatty’s masterpiece. But some films of this genre are still worthy of recognition; stuff like The Exorcism of Emily Rose and The Last Exorcism (barring the stupid, cliched ending). I saw a film called The Innkeepers that was definitely worth seeing. And I also really liked Anti-Christ by Lars von Trier.
And although it’s plagued with the same overdone crap that most modern horrors are, The Taking Of Deborah Logan is worth at least one viewing.
Oh shit, I almost forgot Sam Raimi’s The Gift and Drag Me To Hell. And though it’s half terrible, I’d be lying if I didn’t include the original adaptation of Stephen King's It. Goofy AF, but still a memorable film, especially if you watched in your childhood.
And, well ... I know there’s plenty more I could mention, but I realise this stopped being a review some paragraphs ago. I’ll shut up now.
I'm officially going to hang myself.
Thank you to anyone that read and liked my reviews. Tell my ex-girlfriend I’m sorry and I never meant to hurt her the way I did, and that if I wake up in Hell, things will still be less unbearable than living without her by my side.
Gary Gerani has compiled his subjective ranking of what he considers the greatest, most influential horror movies of the last hundred years. As with any compilation like this, subjectivity is the most important thing to keep in consideration. "So this asshole doesn’t think that films is good enough? Well, shit, fuck this book!! One star!! Annoying GIF of some dickhead tearing his hair out and crying).
Lucky for my millions of followers, I’m not that fucking stupid. I’m also drunk right now, so I’m sorry for swearing. Effing, let’s get this review out of the way. I’m listening to Blink 182’s last album on Spotify and drinking tea, sobering up before I go to bed and dream about being cooked upon a sheet of metal laid across a scorching patch of desert.
Gary Gerani obviously loves his horror movies. So hey, we have something in common. His enthusiasm and appreciation for the genre is what makes this list-cum-review book endearing and fun. I ain’t gonna complain and say "this guy shits me" ... like I did with bloody David Gritten on Halliwell’s Fucking Movies That Matter, where the dipshit neglected to mention Jurassic Park - (like, who remembers that, you fuckin’) - as well as denouncing Forrest Gump and Jaws. Now see here, old boy: If you wanna have a go at Forrest, go ahead; you wouldn’t be the first one. But don’t you fucking say shit about Jaws. Oh, you think it’s boring? Then go watch Sharknado, you impatient git, you. Effing, David Gritten pissed me off. According to him, Home Alone 3 was more imprinted into cinematic history than Spielberg’s dinosaur epic that revolutionised - (for better or worse) - the way blockbusters were made from that point onwards.
Gerani isn’t here to criticise films. He just wants to pay respect to his particular favourites. Nothing wrong with that.
Gernani gets so excited, in fact, that he often forgets how to spell certain words. Often I would read a character’s name … only to find it written differently later on.
(“Wait, is it Dracula or Drocular?”).
(“We were talking about Frankenstein. What’s all this shit about Finklestein’s Bride?”).
("Rosemary’s Baby preceded Friedkin’s Catholic epic, The Abortionist by three years”. Wait, what?).
(Steven Spielberg surprised the world with his road-thriller Duel, but nobody expected his terrifying follow up, Jews, which is about an omnipresent threat that looms upon a white American community, destroying businesses and turning citizens against each other).
And so there’s ME, pacing up and down the driveway, four o’clock in the morning, mumbling aggressively how I’m gonna rip my goddamned teeth out, if I can't pay attention to what I’m reading. After paying some bewildered passerby to “curb stomp” me ... losing most, if not all, of my teeth ... I then continued the book in my hospital bed. Only to find that it wasn’t my brain at all !!
Gary Gerani is just the king of typos ...
I was like this guy. 'Cept I had no pearly whites.
But let’s be serious now. This book has - (you may have guessed) - one hundred chapters, dedicated respectively to one particular film. They span between the early twentieth and twenty-first century. I believe the earliest film selected was Nosferatu (1922); a silent film that is actually, surprisingly, scary. The latest one would probably be Sweeney Todd (2007); one I haven’t personally seen yet, though I always thought that was considered more of a black comedy.
I guess I can’t take fault with what this man considers his favourite horrors, but I did notice how many of his choices were films before or specifically around the early 1960’s. Since this old bastard grew up with those films, it’s perfectly understandable. But it still could not help the asshole in me getting agitated - (to the point where I nearly consulted the doctor) - when he consistently mentioned films I have never heard of, and continuously omitted films I truly think deserved to be on this list.
Doctor Thefuckisitthistime prescribed 200 milligrams of Idoane Givashitt and told me to find a girlfriend.
The sonofa lists such modern greats such as The Sixth Sense, 28 Days Later and The Blair Witch Project. It’s not as if he doesn’t know about this genre's more recent outputs. Even his selections within the 1970’s - 90’s period - (where my favourites hail from) - was debatable.
I was kind of disappointed that he didn’t mention things like Salem’s Lot, one of the greatest vampire films, by horror protégé, Tobe Hooper (who directed Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Poltergeist; both included in this book).
There’s The Changeling by Peter Medak, starring George C. Scott, which I think is the creepiest “haunted house” film ever made, which has been criminally underrated and forgotten by modern audiences in lieu of over-the-top shit like Paranormal Activity and The Conjuring.
I think Deliverance deserved at least an "honourable mention”.
Gore Verbinksi’s The Ring was unjustly rejected by most, on account of it being a Hollywood remake of a renowned Japanese flick. (This does get an honourable mention, but I think it earns more than that. Whether you like it or not, you can’t deny it’s influential. Like how my endless dreams of being meticulously chainsawed by Ukrainians will be influential on my eventual suicide. I dare you to watch that shit again and then say it hasn’t been ripped off countless times by all mainstream horrors ever since).
I am actually mortified - (well, okay, let’s not exaggerate; but I am very surprised) - that Rob Reiner’s masterful adaptation of Stephen King’s Misery isn’t in here. That’s just ridiculous. If you’re gonna mention gorno shit like Hostel, fucking mention one of the most tension-dripping “smart” horror films of all time as well. Shit.
I understand that not everyone loves What Lies Beneath and The Others, but I happen to love both, and believe at least the latter should be better respected.
Gernai - (you see what I did?) - actually mentioned a few Australian horrors. (Picnic at Hanging Rock is one I’m particularly interested in seeking out). And while I wasn’t overly impressed with The Babbadook, there is another, mostly unknown Aussie film which I think is one of the creepiest ghost movies to slip beneath the radar. The film I speak of is Lake Mungo. Anyone who misses the days of slow and subtle ghost stories: I implore you to find this film and watch it with an open mind. It’s magnificent and so very unsettling.
And shit, I better stop now. I’ll just list a few more personal favourites I would have thought about including. If I was Giovetti's editor or some shit. Here goes the last few I can think of right now.
The Descent. Let Me In. The Amityville Horror. Jurassic Park - (shut up, it’s scary!!). Shamalamadingdong's infamously loved-or-hated Signs. 50 Shades Of Grey. Since some black comedies are included, American Psycho. Pet Sematary, of course. And I better not forget Cujo. Then there’s some other great modern films, like Black Swan and - (though it’s flawed with James Wan’s jump-scare bullshit) - the first Insidious.
The first and second Paranormal Activity were actually pretty great; it’s just the stupid sequels that ruined the whole thing. As The Exorcist is probably my favourite horror film, it stands to reason that I hate almost every other exorcism movie. None of them can compare to Friedkin and Blatty’s masterpiece. But some films of this genre are still worthy of recognition; stuff like The Exorcism of Emily Rose and The Last Exorcism (barring the stupid, cliched ending). I saw a film called The Innkeepers that was definitely worth seeing. And I also really liked Anti-Christ by Lars von Trier.
And although it’s plagued with the same overdone crap that most modern horrors are, The Taking Of Deborah Logan is worth at least one viewing.
Oh shit, I almost forgot Sam Raimi’s The Gift and Drag Me To Hell. And though it’s half terrible, I’d be lying if I didn’t include the original adaptation of Stephen King's It. Goofy AF, but still a memorable film, especially if you watched in your childhood.
And, well ... I know there’s plenty more I could mention, but I realise this stopped being a review some paragraphs ago. I’ll shut up now.
I'm officially going to hang myself.
Thank you to anyone that read and liked my reviews. Tell my ex-girlfriend I’m sorry and I never meant to hurt her the way I did, and that if I wake up in Hell, things will still be less unbearable than living without her by my side.
January 29, 2026
In my edition there was a copy/paste issue where several movies contained the description from the entry on House of Dark Shadows, so the following movies didn’t receive their own description/details:
It’s Alive (p16)
The Abominable Dr. Phibes (p18)
Saw (p22)
Fright Night (p35)
From Dusk Till Dawn (p36)
Let the Right One In (p42)
The Last House on the Left (p43)
Suspiria (p48)
The Evil Dead (p49)
The Devil’s Backbone (p57)
Hellraiser (p58)
Re-Animator (p60)
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (p68)
The Brood (p82)
The Blair Witch Project (p102)
Sweeney Todd (p112)
The Golem (p145)
…and that’s just really sad
It’s Alive (p16)
The Abominable Dr. Phibes (p18)
Saw (p22)
Fright Night (p35)
From Dusk Till Dawn (p36)
Let the Right One In (p42)
The Last House on the Left (p43)
Suspiria (p48)
The Evil Dead (p49)
The Devil’s Backbone (p57)
Hellraiser (p58)
Re-Animator (p60)
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (p68)
The Brood (p82)
The Blair Witch Project (p102)
Sweeney Todd (p112)
The Golem (p145)
…and that’s just really sad
June 20, 2023
The plot summaries and "why it's important" sections for the movies are super dry, and full of spoilers. Not only do they not sell the movie properly, they also ruin it along the way. I switched to just flipping through and looking at the pictures... But those show spoilers also.
August 11, 2022
A questionable list.
January 20, 2019
This book is a countdown of the authors 100 favourite horror movies. As a horror buff, I love dipping into books like these and with it's lavish layout, this one is a treat to read.
It's stuffed with little facts (I learnt a lot of good horror related pub quiz trivia) and high quality images of lots of screen captures and movie posters. Admittedly, the design of the books feels a bit corny and even tacky at times, but that is part of the appeal for me; this is a book about (for the most part) B-movies after all!
Any book that seeks to order things by quality though is bound to narrow it's appeal because the chances of the author's taste aligning with that of the whole readership is low. I, personally, felt like the author had too much reverence for the 'golden oldies'. Lots of modern classics like 'Halloween' and 'Texas Chainsaw Massacre' get very little attention compared to old black-and-white movie 'Doctor X' which, in my opinion, was quite boring to read about. It all boils down to personal preference.
One thing the author did that many horror historians like to do it ignore the past 15 years of cinema. As far as I recall there were no movies from the 2000s in this book and very few from the 1990s. I suppose it would just be nice to try to see more a complete timeline of horror represented in this book. Nevertheless, my criticisms boil down to personal preference and t was a still a fun read for a horror fan!
It's stuffed with little facts (I learnt a lot of good horror related pub quiz trivia) and high quality images of lots of screen captures and movie posters. Admittedly, the design of the books feels a bit corny and even tacky at times, but that is part of the appeal for me; this is a book about (for the most part) B-movies after all!
Any book that seeks to order things by quality though is bound to narrow it's appeal because the chances of the author's taste aligning with that of the whole readership is low. I, personally, felt like the author had too much reverence for the 'golden oldies'. Lots of modern classics like 'Halloween' and 'Texas Chainsaw Massacre' get very little attention compared to old black-and-white movie 'Doctor X' which, in my opinion, was quite boring to read about. It all boils down to personal preference.
One thing the author did that many horror historians like to do it ignore the past 15 years of cinema. As far as I recall there were no movies from the 2000s in this book and very few from the 1990s. I suppose it would just be nice to try to see more a complete timeline of horror represented in this book. Nevertheless, my criticisms boil down to personal preference and t was a still a fun read for a horror fan!
July 16, 2014
Four stars for the great, consistent layout and awesome pictures. This book was clearly a labor of love and that kind of passion comes through. Personally though (and of course a list like this is going to be personal) I stopped flipping through after I saw the way over the top positive reviews of Saw and Sweeney Todd. Those are two movies that frustrated me so much because they had all the elements, they had the actors, they had the budget, they had the intelligence behind it, but they just didn't come together. They lacked that je ne sais quoi that I can't put my finger on. I feel the same way above Cabin in the Woods. Give me something like the Roost or even that terrible Evil Dead remake -- at least there's some heart there. So anyway, not for me, but if this hits your horror sweet spot it would make a great trivia resource.
June 21, 2012
Although a very cool comic book/graphic novel design with loads of pictures in it, this list is severely flawed in its ranking. How is The Shining in the seventies, as well as Halloween?? Also some notable omissions can be noticed as well. There is a lot of favoritism to the Hammer Horror movies, as many of them are in the top 20. Some probably deserve it, others do not. Oh well, at least The Exorcist was in the top 2.
January 24, 2021
This book, along with Top 100 Sci-Fi Movies, are great genre references. This one follows the same format with stunning photos, reproductions of each movie's theater poster, run times, aspect ratios and other info that is certain to send genre buffs into orbit. Gerani supports his ratings with some great opinions and informs with actor/director info and plot summaries. The design and quality of the glossy pages are top notch, too. This is worth every penny!
September 27, 2011
nice to know that I've seen almost all of these movies... I disagree with a couple films that were chosen as I think they ignored several foreign films but then I didn't write the book... I was also surprised with how many were early films in the genre...
October 16, 2013
While i liked the layout of the book and found it more digestible than other "best of" books, I was a little disappointed by the lopsided focus on pre-70s films. I wish the author had given greater consideration to modern horror.
October 2, 2010
Advanced reader copy. My middle school students are going to love this!
May 12, 2013
While I don't agree with his choice for #1, this is still a good book, and for me has proven useful, as there are a good number of movies listed that I've never seen (and now am finding on Netflix).
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews