Terrifier 3 director Damien Leone has revealed his ‘unofficial’ top five favorite horror movies.
Off the back of having directed one of the most hotly talked about horrors to have been released in 2024 – which saw nine people walk out in the opening scenes of a screening and one throw up – Damien Leone knows a thing or two about the genre.
And what better way to launch the UNILAD Ranked series ahead of Halloween than by asking the director what his top five horror movies are, although, he told UNILAD in an interview for Terrifier 3 ‘this isn’t an official list’.
5) Rosemary’s Baby (1968)
You calling up your friends to talk about ‘Rosemary’s Baby’ (Paramount Pictures)
Kicking off Leone’s ‘unofficial’ top horrors in reverse order is 1968 release Rosemary’s Baby, written and directed by Roman Polanski and produced by William Castle.
Based on Ira Levin’s 1967 novel, the film centers on couple Rosemary (Mia Farrow) and Guy Woodhouse (John Cassavetes) who move into an apartment block in New York, despite its ominous occupants and strange comings and goings.
When Rosemary falls pregnant, her suspicions about her neighbors grow and it turns out much darker forces are at play.
The film is widely regarded as ‘one of the best horror movies ever made’ – achieving an impressive Rotten Tomatoes critics’ score of 96 percent and audience score of 87 percent.
However, it’s since been tainted in light of the actions of writer-director Polanski, who was arrested for drugging and raping a 13-year-old.
He pleaded guilty to the lesser offence of unlawful sex with a minor, but fled the US for France.
4) Halloween (1978)
You when you hear a noise in the house after watching ‘Halloween’ (Compass International Pictures)
The independent slasher – advertised as John Carpenter’s Halloween – was written by John Carpenter and Debra Hill, who also produced.
And what’s more creepy than a six-year-old kid named Michael Myers (Nick Castle) deciding to brutally murder his 17-year-old sister on the night of Halloween 1963?
Myers ends up being locked away for 15 years for the crime, but ultimately manages to break free, resolving to return to his hometown to finish what he started.
Local teenager Laurie Strode (played by Scream Queen Jamie Lee Curtis) better be prepared to watch her back.
The movie turned into a franchise – consisting of a whopping 13 films – and well, it’s a cult classic for a reason, obtaining a Rotten Tomatoes critics’ score of 96 percent and audience score of 89 percent.
3) Dawn of the Dead (1978)
You preparing for a zombie apocalypse (United Film Distribution Company)
Another 1978 oldie but a goldie with some 1970s-style grey zombies added into the mix.
Written and directed by George Romero, Dawn of the Dead centers on a large-scale zombie apocalypse across the US and hones in on four survivors in particular and their battle against the odds.
The film is not only a survival story, but has been praised for providing a humorous yet bleak social commentary on the state of humanity.
So gruesome were several moments of the film they actually ended up being cut from the original UK cinema version – think along the lines of slow-motion exploding zombie heads, dismemberment, and the machine gunning of a zombie child – however by 2003, all cuts were overruled and the Blu-Ray release contained all the movie’s gory detail.
The US cut of the film was even slapped with an age rating of ‘X’ – i.e. aged 18 and over – by the Motion Picture Association of America because of just how graphic the violence is, however, the rating was rejected to help with the film’s commercial prospects – you’ve been warned.
Coming in with a strong Rotten Tomatoes critics’ score of 91 percent and audience score of 90 percent, it’s no wonder the film has been praised by many online as a ‘masterpiece’.
2) The Lost Boys (1987)
Corey Haim and Jason Patric in ‘The Lost Boys’ (Warner Bros. Inc)
From a story by Janice Fischer and James Jeremias, with writer Jeffrey Boam joining for the screenplay, The Lost Boys was directed by Joel Schumacher and produced by Harvey Bernhard.
The film centers on two teenage brothers Michael (Jason Patric) and Sam (Corey Haim) who move with their mom (Dianne Wiest) to live with their grandfather (Barnard Hughes) in northern California.
Michael ends up falling for a girl named Star (played by richest actor on the planet Jami Gertz), who’s in with a local gang of particularly bloodthirsty and sharp-toothed predators – a group which younger brother Sam’s new-found friends actively hunt.
The question is, will Michael join them or will Sam and the rest of his family be able to save him in time?
The Lost Boys may be in second place in Leone’s ‘unofficial’ top horror list, but it has lower Rotten Tomatoes score than those below it in the ranks, coming in with a still solid critics’ score of 76 percent and audience score of 85 percent.
1) JAWS (1975)
Your face when you see the shark for the first time (Universal Pictures)
In Leone’s top spot for his ‘unofficial’ list of the best horror movies of all time is none other than JAWS.
Based on the 1974 novel by Peter Benchley, the thriller was written by Benchley alongside Carl Gottlieb and directed by Steven Spielberg.
The movie gets going after a young woman is killed by a shark after skinny-dipping off an island.
Concerned for people’s safety, police chief Martin Brody (Roy Scheider) wants to close the beaches, but Mayor Larry Vaughn (Murray Hamilton) rallies against him in a bid to keep tourism going.
The story really begins to get choppy when ichthyologist Matt Hooper (Richard Dreyfuss) and ship captain Quint (Robert Shaw) join Brody on a mission to capture the shark and kill it.
Despite going well over budget and mechanical sharks ending up on the blink, the film has a near-perfect Rotten Tomatoes critics’ score of 97 percent and audience score of 90 percent.
It went on to inspire a franchise – with a total of four movies to date – alongside video games, theme park rides and a musical – and has won multiple Academy Awards, including for its score composed by the masterful maestro that is John Williams.
Even if you were born after the year 2000, it’s likely you’ll be able to hum the iconic see-sawing tuba notes from the movie even if you’ve not seen it, Williams describing them as ‘grinding away at you, just as a shark would do’ – iconic.
Nobly, Leone didn’t include any movies from the Terrifier franchise in his unofficial top five, but with an impressive Rotten Tomatoes critics’ score of 76 percent and ‘verified hot’ audience score of 87 percent – alongside a rare age ban, viewers walking out and even someone throwing up – you’ll want to try catch Terrifier 3 in cinemas before its run concludes.
UNILAD RANKED is a weekly series with a new article released every Friday.
