1) Psycho was influential in changing filmmaking techniques, particularly its breaking of editing conventions during the famous shower scene. 2) Nosferatu was one of the first important horror films and influenced the use of shadows and special effects to make films stand out. 3) The Exorcist shocked audiences and changed the game for makeup, bringing a new level of believability to demonic possessions.

1. TOP 10 INFLUENTIAL HORROR FILMS

2. PSYCHO
The camerawork in Psycho was the spark in changing how things
were done in many different films as a whole. The breaking of the
180 degree rule in the famous shower scene, which was originally
done to show disorientation and added to the panic and fear the
female was experiencing, was the first step to directors having the
courage to try new things.
www.youtube.com/embed/8VP5jEAP3K4

3. NOSFERATU
Nosferatu, known as one of the first important horror films, is
influential in many ways. Firstly, the scene using shadows was a
major thing at the time and influenced other directors to try their
hand at creating special effects to make their films stand out from
the rest.

4. THE EXORCIST
Back in the 1970’s, The Exorcist shocked the world. As well as
having a massive influence on culture, the influence it created for
make up was said to change the game. Dick Smith brought a level
of believability which had never before been achieved. It has
influenced both special effects and make up in all new films, with
the famous rotating head being a spanner in the works and starting
a new phase. Many demonic child films are still being produced,
with this being the original.

5. JAWS
Although Jaws wasn’t the first horror film to use a giant killing
creature, it was one of the most popular and well recognized to this
day. With the shark being the main focus point, the film does not
really dwell on the backstory of the characters, proving you can
have a horror film without the cliché characters being the same as
they always are.

6. TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre was a very low budget film that,
when finished, turned out to be very grainy, making it look like you
are watching a documentary. The film was influential in showing
you could portray reality by making a low budget film, as well as
showing that you do not need gore to show violence in a film.
Across the film there is evidence of great camerawork in some key
scenes, particularly the dinner scene. Imagery used in the film is
ghastly and ghoulish whilst being different to any other film,
however it does this without showing any more than what is
necessary.

7. HALLOWEEN
Halloween is seen as a template for big budget horror films.
Starting on an extremely low budget, it managed to start a trend of
slasher movies from the 1980’s, with the trend still around today
with popular films such as Scream. With apparently being
influenced by Psycho, Halloween was said to take this already
influential film and make it unique, creating a whole new sub-genre
of horror films. As well as this, it is one of the most successful
independent horror films of all time.

8. 28 DAYS LATER
28 days later had a massive influence on the zombie side of horror
films, with this being the first major one. It is said to have been part
of the influence for TV show ‘The Walking Dead’, however this film
reverts the usual zombie expectations, with them not rising from
the dead but reacting to a viral outbreak. Based in the UK, settings
and surroundings used in the film are popular places, maybe to
make the audience feel on edge when they are in the same places
and have reoccurring thoughts of the film. Any film does not want
you to forget about it after a day and by setting it in a popular
location, it would probably be hard to do that with this film.

9. SCREAM
Scream was the first big movie in which shown the characters in
the film were aware of how horror films are made, making jokes
about who dies first and what people say before they are killed,
and it rightly shows it afterwards. Scream was influenced by films
such as Halloween, however in itself is a very influential film doing
well independently. With various follow on films, Scream is known
about everywhere, with the famous Ghostface being a popular
halloween costume which everyone recognises.

10. BLAIR WITCH PROJECT
Although similar films with found footage had already been
produced before this, Blair Witch Project was a worldwide
phenomenon. By selling it as it was real found footage and
showing it in cinemas as a documentary, more viewers wanted to
know what all of the fuss was about. To add to this, it was the first
film to use the internet to its full advantage when promoting the
film. The film has gone on to influence films such as the numerous
Paranormal Activity movies, REC and No Cameras Allowed.

11. THE PURGE
Although The Purge is a recent film on the market, I believe it will
be influential to films which are still to be made. I feel this way as it
was one of the first major films to be set in the future, with a
reasonably believable storyline. Horror films with realistic story
lines or settings create a sense of verisimilitude which has a bigger
impact on the audience as they start thinking about if it was to
happen to them and so on. As well as this, the film shows how
even well off families with all the security in the world can still be
targeted and caught if someone really wanted to.