Gateway drugs for horror normies

1canon

Halloween

$325,000 into $70 million, and every slasher after it is a photocopy.

2canon

Suspiria

Barely a giallo and barely a plot. Possibly the most beautiful horror film ever shot.

3canon

Black Christmas

Predates Halloween and is scarier. The phone calls still work.

4canon

The Texas Chain Saw Massacre

Almost bloodless, and still the most upsetting film here. The heat is the horror.

5known

Deep Red

Argento's best. Goblin's score does half the work and knows it.

6known

Carnival of Souls

Made by an industrial-film director for $33,000. Genuinely haunted.

7canon

The Wicker Man

Not exploitation, filed here by shelf-adjacency. One of Britain's best films.

8cult

Long Weekend

A couple litter, and Australia decides to kill them. Excellent.