Scariest Movie
Every end of October brings Halloween where we are presented with spooky imagery, creepy TV specials and of course, scary movies. A great horror movie often gives its audience feelings of uneasiness, dread, and a fear that the unexpected could happen at any moment. This tension coupled with a compelling script and interesting characters is often what leaves a mark in our minds and makes these movies so memorable (even though sometimes we'd rather forget). Love them or hate them, everyone has that one film that terrified us and still lingers with us today. We asked some people what scary movies left them tense and sleepless and why they can't forget them.
What’s the scariest movie you’ve ever watched?
Edge Suarez, 32
It’s really hard to pick the scariest movie since I’ve stopped watching scary movies. The answer to why I stopped watching scary movies is actually scarier than the answer. The last scary movie I watched was still back during college days. If I had to pick a classic that comes to mind right away it would have to be the original “IT” movie and “Candy Man” (Bloody Mary is up there as well). Those movies filled my childhood with sleepless nights and made going to the bathroom in the middle of the night a challenge. The last movie that really made my skin crawl though was “Shutter”. As an adult you’d think that it wouldn’t phase you but it does, especially since I’m a photographer like the main actor in the movie and I sometimes get shoulder problems. Well, I guess after I finish writing this, it’ll take awhile for me to get to sleep.
Marty Arnaldo, 27
The Halloween Tree
The scariest films I think are the ones you watch as a child. Things just seem more real and believable, you let your imagination run wild, and it stays with you much longer than the movie’s run time. This made-for-tv Cartoon Network classic, if watched again would surely appear tame in comparison now, but as a 5 year old watching it during Halloween in your grandmother’s spooky ancestral house in the province? Absolutely, the scariest.
KC Co, 33
The Conjuring
Why? VALAK!!!
Daisy Joyce Castillo, 30
The Exorcism of Emily Rose
The way she got possessed was really scary. I stopped watching Exorcism movies after that because it would take time for me to get over it. Until now whenever I wake up at 3am it reminds me that it is devil's time.
Anjo Tee, 30
It’s a toss up between The Exorcist or the original IT.
The exorcist because Linda Blair really scared me when I saw the movie when I was in grade 6, and the idea of having an evil spirit take control of your body was so new and scary to me at that time. The first IT is the reason why I hate clowns now. I don’t trust them and to see a clown eat a kid like me (I accidentally watched this movie with my older cousins when I was 5 or 6), was so scary because of the birthday parties I went to.
Dominic Nuesa, 34
The original Japanese production of The Ring traumatized me enough that I took out the TV from my room and left it outside for months.
Migz Reyes, 21
Scariest Movies: The Taking of Deborah Logan and As Above, So Below
I think both movies are the scariest I have seen because they offered something new to the horror genre. The storyline was original and you didn't know what was coming at every moment.
Allan Roy Odon, 31
Paranormal Activity
Because the way it was presented was so realistic. I got goosebumps and I screamed when the evil spirit was in their room and the girl was getting possessed.
Mon Go, 34
The Exorcist
Why? Because it was just too real, when I watched it back in grade school I didn't sleep for weeks.
Cath Sanidad, 38
My All-time scariest movie is the old Amityville!!!
I think because it wasn’t too heavy on the CGI which made it more natural. It made watching it even creepier. In fact even if I wanted to watch it again, I wouldn’t because I don’t want to have bad dreams again.
Nikki Ongpin, 26
Psycho
I've never been so shocked by an ending in my whole life. It felt so revolutionary for its time, chilling beyond measure.
Nia Morales, 33
Shake, Rattle and Roll
I like to kick it old school, and as corny as it sounds, I really really like the early Shake, Rattle and Roll movies. Filipino horror movies may have bad visual effects, but the thing that makes them scary is that their stories are relatable. I mean, who hasn’t played spirit of the glass growing up or heard of a friend’s friend being attacked by a manananggal or aswang because they refused to listen to their parents? I grew up thinking if it happened in shake, rattle and roll movies, then it must be true!
Niko Stefan Albano, 36
The scariest movie I've watched – also the most memorable scary movie for me – is Children of the Corn.
I honestly don't remember much about the story since I only watched it once, when I was seven or eight years old. But at that impressionable age, everything was full of possibility and potential – and in this case, the possibility was all about darkness and the potential was all about possession and being killed by little blonde kids who looked like they were my size and my age. If little kids could be this evil, who's to say my best friend wasn't a demon in disguise? Who's to say the class clown or the little quiet girl sitting in the corner wasn't planning to suck me into hell? And as the movie showed, the grown-ups were of no use. I was eight years old, and that movie showed that there might not be anyone to help me. And as eight year old imaginations are wont to do, it started running over time and working against me. Every school game, every dark corner, every little thing was a place where the satanic kids can come out to get me, and I may never be saved.
Anton Villanueva, 44
The ring or 1st Texas Chainsaw Massacre
These are my picks because you felt like someone was going to die at any point and get hacked or disappear into abyss through cinematography and editing along with the scoring of the film.
Kitkat Nerva, 32
The Babadook
I loved babadook because of it focuses mainly on its character and not about a monster. It works for me coz instead of the usual jumpscares from horror films, it has the creepy effect that makes your imagination go wild.
Monalie Trajano,49
The Sixth Sense
Because it’s about seeing ghosts and dead people and that’s creepy for me. And I love that the ending of the movie has twist.
Riana Restrivera, 25
Paranormal Activity 3
Because I got nervous in what will happen in every scene and I think I could’ve had a heart attack.
Mai Rich Ebron, 26
The scariest movie I’ve ever watched was called Sinister
The movie was so dark and disturbing, with a lot of creepy sound effects. It has a gruesome unexpected ending that some may find difficult to shake for a few nights. It shows that scary movies are not all about the jumpscares. The story gives you an eerie feeling and that’s what made it really scary.
Take Onishi, 41
Ringu
Very eerie!
Ryx Canoy, 39
Growing up I used to watch a lot of scary movies from Wes Craven & Stephen King to TV Series like Alfred Hitchcock, the Twilight Zone, Tales from the Crypt, and Tales from the Other Side.
My all time scariest movie is The Exorcist. I was in High school when I saw this and never watched it again even when the Director’s Cut came out years later!
I have other favorites like the Innkeepers, Conjuring movies, Sigaw (the Echo), 1408, A Quiet Place, and most recently Hereditary (which was really messed up).
I also enjoy scary TV series like American Horror Story and The Haunting at Hill House.
I’ve also seen a lot of bad horror movies too and set a high standard for myself. What I look for in a really good Horror movie are the storyline, the imagery of terror, uniqueness to the genre, and of course, the jumpscares.
Surprisingly, my 14 and 11 year old daughters are also into horror movies which makes it a bonding activity for us.
KC Delen, 32
Shutter back in 2004 (haha oldie)
It was the scariest movie for me. It was about a girl and her boyfriend photographer who keeps seeing a shadowy figure on the photos his boyfriend is taking. The haunting begins as they start their investigation. The back story was actually interesting and vindicable. This movie was even recreated twice, one in English and another in Hindi.
Photos property of contributors
Movie posters from IMDB, Wikipedia, Google.com, Amazon, Story Adweek, IMP Awards, Planet Stores
