Our Favorite Scary Movies

Since Halloween is on a Wednesday this year, it's very possible you'll be staying in-- all tuckered out from costume parties over the weekend. To prepare for this, we here at Alicia & Layla have compiled a list of our favorite scary movies.  These movies range from legitimately scary to hilariously campy. There are thrillers and horror movies, old and new. Let it be noted that I'm not too keen on slasher gorefests, so if you're looking for that, my apologies! I'm a wimp, I know.

Dawn of the Dead

I haven't see the original, and I probably should. But I love this movie. It's set in Milwaukee, Mekhi Pfeiffer is in it and it's a zombie movie. I feel like a zombie apocalypse would be pretty cathartic.

Scream

I think this movie was the perfect modern day scary movie for a teenage me to watch. It's funny and meta and Neve Campbell is fab as Sidney. 

Psycho

You should watch any and all Alfred Hitchcock movies. I almost suggested Rear Window instead. Anthony Perkins is perfect in this. 

The Shining

I actually caught this on TV the other day for the first time in a while and it's such a great film! Stanley Kubrick did a beautiful job adapting this from the Stephen King novel. Aesthetically, I mean. The movie isn't terribly faithful to the book, but it's still subtly and overtly terrifying.

Drag Me to Hell

This is my super campy pick. This movie is about a scary old lady cursing and terrorizing a young bank employee after denying her a loan. Warning-- it's kind of gross, but whatever, it's fun and scary. Nothing beats Alison Lohman's screaming "I got you, you old bitch!"

Funny Games

I made the mistake of watching this movie on a weekend when my roommate was out of town, and I spent three days freaking out about every noise I'd hear. It's more of a psychological thriller than a horror movie, but it's fucking terrifying, I promise. I've only seen the original Austrian version, but there's also a shot-for-shot remake that came out in 2007 and stars Naomi Watts.

                                                                      Repulsion
This movie is so fucking intense, oh my God. The fact that it has so many scenes that are shot from the perspective of the main character makes it almost too suspenseful to handle. And Catherine Deneuve is the apotheosis of flawlessness.

The Exorcist

Let me tell you exactly what's going to happen when you watch the Exorcist. You'll rent it for laughs with some friends and expect it to be full of 60s-era special effects and not even remotely scary. You'll start to get a little scared as it goes on, but you'll play it off so your friends won't make fun of you. Finally, you won't be able to suppress a scream at a particularly scary scene, and your friends WILL make fun of you, all the while totally freaking out themselves.

Carrie

Here's my pick for super campy but still totally awesome scary movie. Carrie has so many unintentionally funny moments, like the one pictured above, where our teenage protagonist gets her period for the first time and proceeds to freak the fuck out.