Plot: Upon receiving reports of missing persons at Fort Spencer, a remote Army outpost on the Western frontier, Capt. John Boyd investigates. After arriving at his new post, Boyd and his regiment aid a wounded frontiersman who recounts a horrifying tale of a wagon train murdered by its supposed guide — a vicious U.S. Army colonel gone rogue. Fearing the worst, the regiment heads out into the wilderness to verify the gruesome claims.

Horror Subgenre(s): Horror Comedies, Survival Horror Films, War Horror Films, Western Horror Films

KBZ’s Take: Ravenous has an absolute bonkers turning point from period piece murder mystery to ‘demonic cannibal on the hunt’ shift. And this is where the film excels as it turns into a battle of wills between Guy Pearce and Robert Carlyle. Adding to this excellent film is the very unique soundtrack you won’t get out of your head anytime soon after watching.

Additional Lists: Best War Horror Films You Haven’t Seen #3, Top Survival Horror Films You Haven’t Seen #3

Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon

Plot: A mysterious video has been linked to a number of deaths, and when an inquisitive journalist finds the tape and views it herself, she sets in motion a chain of events that puts her own life in danger.

Horror Subgenre(s): Films About The Paranormal, Hauntings & Ghosts, Films About Urban Legends, Horror Films from Japan, World Cinema Horror Films

KBZ’s Take: Ringu is a classic horror film and is often credited with kickstarting not only the J-Horror craze but the flood of J-Horror remakes that started in the 2000’s. Ringu was remade as The Ring (2002) in the U.S. and there’s been an ongoing debate as to which is better – the original or the remake. Even if you’ve seen The Ring, we would encourage you to check out Ringu for Halloween night – it has a unique and subtle creepiness that the remake couldn’t quite capture.

Additional Lists: Top Films About Ghosts & Hauntings You Haven’t Seen – 1990’s #1

Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon

Plot: An insurance investigator begins discovering that the impact a horror writer’s books have on his fans is more than inspirational.

Horror Subgenre(s): Cosmic Horror Films, Films About Psychological Horror, Films About The Devil, Demons & Hell

KBZ’s Take: The third film in John Carpenter’s ‘Apocalypse Trilogy’, In the Mouth of Madness is one of the best psychological horror films of the decade. The film is full of very creepy visuals and an increasingly dreadful atmosphere centered around H.P. Lovecraft themes and cosmic horror. Like a good horror novel, the film slowly draws you in until it’s excellent (and shocking) finale, which is one of the best of the entire horror subgenre.

Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon

Plot: A killer known as Ghostface begins killing off teenagers, and as the body count begins rising, one girl and her friends find themselves contemplating the rules of horror films as they find themselves living in a real-life one.

Subgenre(s): Horror Comedies, Slasher Films

KBZ’s Take: Like other popular slasher film franchises, the Scream series of films has its share of the bad (Scream 3 (2000)) and the good (Scream (2022)) sequels. However, it all starts with the original film, which is the best of the franchise with its fresh satirical look at the slasher film subgenre. It’s also the film that introduced horror fans to Ghostface who has become one of the iconic slashers in horror history.

Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon

Plot: In 1960, seven pre-teen outcasts fight an evil demon who poses as a child-killing clown. Thirty years later, they reunite to stop the demon once and for all when it returns to their hometown.

Horror Subgenre(s): Films About Monsters

KBZ’s Take: Though the original film hasn’t aged well and loses momentum whenever Pennywise (Tim Curry) isn’t on-screen, it’s Curry’s moments in the film that make the film truly terrifying. Though Bill Skarsgård’s recent interpretation of Pennywise in IT (2017) and IT Chapter Two (2020) is just as scary and unnerving, Curry’s version is the one you won’t get our of your head (or eventual nightmares).

Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon

Plot: When a Sumatran rat-monkey bites Lionel Cosgrove’s mother, she’s transformed into a zombie and begins killing (and transforming) the entire town while Lionel races to keep things under control.

Horror Subgenre(s): Horror Comedies, Body Horror Films, Films About Zombies, Splatter & Gore Films

KBZ’s Take: Peter Jackson’s Braindead (aka Dead Alive) is by far one of the bloodiest and goriest films you can watch on Halloween. However, it’s also one of the funnier horror films that has some great comedic scenes balanced against some truly scary sequences. It’s not a film for the faint of heart (or those with weak stomachs), but it’s definitely a film you will never forget after seeing.

Where to Stream / Buy: YouTube

Plot: Seven years after the death of his wife, company executive Aoyama is invited to sit in on auditions for an actress. Leafing through the résumés in advance, his eye is caught by Yamazaki Asami, a striking young woman with ballet training.

Horror Subgenre(s): Body Horror Films, Psychological Horror Films, Horror Films From Japan, World Cinema Horror Films

KBZ’s Take: This is one of the horror films we always recommend to people who say they’ve seen it all or are looking for something truly demented. It’s not your typical Halloween movie night film unless you’re looking for something that’s original, shocking and increasingly hard to watch as you near the end. It’s a film that’s near the top of almost every Most Disturbing Films of All Time lists for a reason, so keep that in mind if you can gin up the courage to watch it.

Additional Lists: Top Body Horror Films You Haven’t Seen – 1990’s #1, Top World Cinema Horor Films You Haven’t Seen #4, Top Scariest Halloween Films for Adults You Haven’t Seen #6, Best Body Horror Films of All Time #13

Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon

Plot: Set fifteen years after the original film, The Exorcist III centers around the philosophical Lieutenant William F. Kinderman who is investigating a baffling series of murders around Georgetown that all contain the hallmarks of The Gemini, a deceased serial killer. It eventually leads him to a catatonic patient in a psychiatric hospital who has recently started to speak, claiming he is the The Gemini and detailing the murders, but bears a striking resemblance to Father Damien Karras.

Horror Subgenre(s): Films About Exorcism & Possession, Films About The Devil, Demons & Hell

KBZ’s Take:  Though The Exorcist (1973) has continued to rule as the scariest film of all time even after 50 years, it’s unfortunately had subpar sequels that haven’t been able to recapture the horrific scares of the original film. The Exorcist III is the only film in the franchise that comes close to matching the unsettling atmosphere of the first film and also has some very creepy sequences. If you’ve decided on an exorcist-themed movie night for Halloween, skip all the other films in the series and watch the original and its third film.

Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon

Plot: Clarice Starling is a top student at the FBI’s training academy. Jack Crawford wants Clarice to interview Dr. Hannibal Lecter, a brilliant psychiatrist who is also a violent psychopath, serving life behind bars for various acts of murder and cannibalism. Crawford believes that Lecter may have insight into a case and that Starling, as an attractive young woman, may be just the bait to draw him out.

Horror Subgenre(s): Films About Psychological Horror

KBZ’s Take: Even though Silence of the Lambs isn’t technically a horror film, Jonathan Demme’s direction and Anthony Hopkins’ portrayal of Hannibal Lecter transformed a standard serial killer investigation film into one of the best horror films of the decade. This is a film that amps up the horror elements as Clarice Starling (Jodie Foster) gets closer to both Lecter and their serial killer target, Buffalo Bill.

Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon

Plot: In 2047 a group of astronauts are sent to investigate and salvage the starship Event Horizon which disappeared mysteriously 7 years before on its maiden voyage. With its return, the crew of the Lewis and Clark discovers the real truth behind the disappearance of the Event Horizon – and something even more terrifying.

Horror Subgenre(s): Body Horror Films, Cosmic Horror Films, Films About The Devil, Demons & Hell

KBZ’s Take: Event Horizon deftly combines different horror subgenre elements from cosmic horror to philosophical themes of Hell for a unique existential horror film that’s often compared to a mashup of Alien (1979) and Hellraiser (1987). It’s also scary, bloody and has some of the most horrific sequences of the decade. This isn’t your typical Halloween movie night pick but if you’re looking for horror that will have you questioning your mortality and insignificance in the cosmos, this is your film.

Additional Lists: Best Space Horror Films #2, Best Body Horror Films of All Time #13

Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon