By Steven Snyder

“The Exorcist”
(1973, 122 minutes, Rated R)

Would any list of scary movies really be complete without it? “The Exorcist” has to be one of the most terrifying movies ever made, not only due to its shocking imagery but because of its depiction of a human powerless against the evil forces of the supernatural world. The story is about a girl who slowly becomes possessed by demons, and the religious authorities who fight back against a force they can neither see nor understand.

“The Shining”
(1980, 146 minutes, Rated R)

Stanley Kubrick’s horror masterpiece, “The Shining,” is one of the more patient scary movies of all time. It is an exercise in claustrophobia, locking a family of three in a snowbound hotel and waiting for someone to snap. The beginning of the film is overdone, and its outcome painfully predictable, but it is the deliriously delicious, over-the-top performance by Jack Nicholson and “The Shining’s” intense, ax-swinging, ghost-appearing climax that will leave anyone hungry for scares well satisfied.

“It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown”
(1966, 25 minutes, NR)

It may not be that funny, brilliant or scary, but Halloween just doesn’t feel right without this made-for-TV Charlie Brown special. As is true about all Brown comics and television specials, “It’s the Great Pumpkin” is about the bittersweet idealism and naivety of childhood – showing the group out trick-or-treating, and Linus waiting for the mystical Great Pumpkin to appear, all the while being mocked by his friends. Rather than targeting the bloody side of Halloween, this priceless work goes for the nostalgia, and succeeds. (If you missed its Tuesday airing on television, it is available in most video stores.)

“ Evil Dead 2: Dead By Dawn”
(1987, 85 minutes, Rated R)

You know a film is going to be different when the biggest accolade on its video case is a 3-star rating from Roger Ebert. One of the campiest horror films ever, “Evil Dead 2” takes an out-in-the-woods-with-scary-creatures approach to its most extreme. A group of friends in the woods awake the undead and when they come to attack, they are ferocious. So ferocious and preposterous, in fact, that I could not stop myself from laughing at the hysteria that unfolds. The best moment? When a zombie attacks with a chainsaw, only to have the hero force the chainsaw back over the zombie’s head, sawing her in half.

“ Poltergeist”
(1982, 114 minutes, Rated R)

The classic moment in “Poltergeist” is terrifying for the exact same reason as the fin in “Jaws.” As a young girl stares at a television screen filled with static, and talks to something behind the white noise, it becomes apparent that some unseen force is about to wreak havoc on this quiet suburban home. The scariest movies show innocent people at the whim of evil forces which cannot be seen or reasoned with. It is exactly what cannot be seen in “Poltergeist” that makes it memorable.

“ Young Frankenstein”
(1974, 108 minutes, Rated PG)

It’s pronounced “Frahn – ken - steen.” Mel Brooks’ hilarious horror spoof is filled with pratfalls, plays on words and dirty jokes. But beneath its more obvious humor is a finely-crafted, stylistic film that elevates its gags to something greater than they inherently should be. Starring the incomparable Gene Wilder and Marty Feldman, this is a comedy of timing, sophistication and sincere admiration for the genre it spends so much time mocking.

“ 28 Days Later”
(2003, 113 minutes, Rated R)

Not since “Silence of the Lambs” has a thriller so completely freaked me out. “28 Days Later,” about an Earth devastated by the spread of a deadly virus and the ensuing battles between the few survivors and the blood-thirsty “infecteds,” this is a thriller that remembers great stories always start with the characters. Shot with grainy digital video and often consumed by echoing silences, the scariest moments of “28 Days Later” do not concern the frantic zombies, but the horrific, selfish actions of desperate humans.

“ Halloween”
(1978, 101 minutes, Rated R)

Before horror films became co-opted by cheap, unimaginative filmmakers who stripped the genre of its personality, “Halloween” gave birth to the franchise of Michael Myers – a killer who just wouldn’t die. Over the course of a night, a baby sitter (Jamie Lee Curtis) attempts to survive the onslaught of Myers, who kills because, as far as I can tell, that is all he exists to do. He is an inhuman force and, thanks to director John Carpenter’s deceptive framing and camerawork, even more terrifying due to his mysteriousness.

“ Nosferatu”
(1929, 81 minutes, NR)

How about this for a compliment: “Nosferatu” is still scary 74 years after its release. The very first vampire movie, about a creature of the night and the woman he loves but who he must ultimately kill, “Nosferatu” is not only a technical achievement, but a landmark in cinematic storytelling. Yes, it has the scary creatures, images and scenarios, but it also has a haunting psychology to it. For a vampire, to love is to kill, and his penance for immortality is eternal loneliness.

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