Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: Scariest Movie (Scenes)

This is topic Scariest Movie (Scenes) in forum Film-Yak at Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE.

To visit this topic, use this URL:
https://ft-forum.com/ft/cgi-bin/ubb/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=8;t=002638

Posted by Ron Keillor (Member # 1790) on 10-27-2003, 03:22 AM:

quote:
Shining tops screen horrors
Actor Jack Nicholson's cry of "Here's Johnny" as he axes his way through a door in pursuit of his wife is the most terrifying screen moment of all time, according to a poll.
The scene in Stanley Kubrick's The Shining topped a poll for a Channel 4 special on The 100 Scariest Moments on TV and film.

It beat classic terror scenes such as the head-spinning scene in the 1973 horror film The Exorcist and the moment a severed head tumbles from a hole in a boat in Steven Spielberg's Jaws.

A run down of the top 50 scenes was shown by Channel 4 on Sunday night.

Viewers voted for their top scene over a number of weeks after a shortlist was drawn up by a panel of experts.

Two of the scenes are from once-banned "video nasties", The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974) and The Evil Dead (1981) .

They were both chosen for their overall effect rather than specific moments.

The oldest film in the list is the notorious shower scene from Alfred Hitchcock's groundbreaking film Psycho, which dates back to 1960 and was in 11th spot.
The most recent entry, in 18th position, is the scene of fleeing zombies in UK hit 28 Days Later, directed by Danny Boyle.

The scene in The Shining has become one of cinema's iconic images and Nicholson is said to have ad-libbed the famous line.

The film is based on a Stephen King novel of the same name and established Nicholson as an actor for crazed roles.

Horror films remain one of the most popular film genres - a remake of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre recently topped the US box office.

The show's producer Mark Murray said: "The top 10 is full of images which have now entered pop culture history.

"Anyone who has seen Jaws will never feel the same way again about dipping their toe into the ocean.

"And the winning 'Here's Johnny' scene from The Shining has become one of the most iconic screen images of all time, spoofed by other films and countless TV shows over the years."

The 10 top scary moments are:

1. The Shining (1980) - Jack Nicholson chops through the door and shouts "Here's Johnny!"
2. The Exorcist (1973) - Possessed girl's rotating head and projectile vomit
3. Jaws (1975) - Severed head falls from boat
4. Alien (1979) - Alien bursts out of John Hurt's chest
5. The Blair Witch Project (1999) - Heather Donahue in tears in the woods
6. Ring (1998) - Sadako crawls through the television
7. Halloween (1978) - Serial killer Michael's face appears behind Jamie Lee Curtis in a house full of dead bodies
8. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974) - Leatherface's general reign of terror
9. The Omen (1976) - Oscar-winning eerie music score
10. A Nightmare On Elm Street (1984) - First appearance of horror icon Freddy Krueger

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/entertainment/film/3215471.stm

Published: 2003/10/27 00:46:52 GMT

Posted by Michael Schaffer (Member # 1204) on 10-27-2003, 03:52 AM:

The scariest movie moment ever for me was of course the cellar scene at the end of "Silence Of The Lambs". That was also about the only film which I left shaking with nervousness for a couple of minutes.
All the moments above are essentially booscare moments.

Posted by Bruce McGee (Member # 131) on 10-27-2003, 07:18 AM:

Ever seen the movie "The Uninvited" (1940)?

The film is dark anyway, but the first time that the ghost appears at the top of the stairs gives me the creeps every time I see it.

Posted by Mike Blakesley (Member # 26) on 10-27-2003, 12:41 PM:

Personally I thought the moment in Jaws where Roy Scheider says "I'll give you slow-ahead...why don't you come down here and chum some of this shit?" and then the shark lunges out of the water (for the first time) was scarier than the head-drop scene. When Hooper was poking around under that boat, you just KNEW something was gonna happen, where the shark-lunge was totally unexpected.

My favorite horror movie "jump scene" is from "Carrie" (1976) where Carrie's hand pops out of the ground and grabs Amy Irving.

Posted by Phil Hill (Member # 371) on 10-27-2003, 01:19 PM:

For me it's gotta be the whole movie "The Mothman Prophecies". I watched it the other night and had to turn on EVERY frickin' light in my house.

Even so, my goose-bumps had goose-bumps! YIKES!

>>> Phil

Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 10-27-2003, 08:47 PM:

"Jaws" was indeed a very scary movie (and one of my all time favorites). But the one that always got me was the incident in the beginning where the skinny dipping girl gets attacked. I think one of the things that made it so scary was you couldn't see the shark in that darkness and were left to imagine what might have been down there. To add to the tension, the fellow who intended to skinny dip with the girl was passed out on the beach --so she had no help at all and was all alone when the attack happend.

Here's another one that freaked me out when I saw it: that scene in "Poltergeist" where the guy runs into the bathroom after taking a bite of a maggot infested chicken drumstick. He proceeds to tear his face off. Very very disturbing.

Posted by Greg Mueller (Member # 17) on 10-27-2003, 09:09 PM:

There's a couple that use elements of horror and scaryness and tension, rather than visual stuff.

The 1963 version of The Haunting... You never see a ghost but oh baby is it scary. This film doesn't play much anymore around here, but when it does, you can't get near the theater

Alien....There's actually not much screen time for the creature, but talk about tension. Excellent directing

Posted by Steve Kraus (Member # 476) on 10-27-2003, 09:35 PM:

It's only a brief scare but the bit with emaciated corpse of the mother at the end of Psycho and Norman Bates coming after them.

Posted by Paul Mayer (Member # 355) on 10-28-2003, 12:09 AM:

My favorite after all these years: The Innocents (1961). The scene with Deborah Kerr playing hide-and-seek...

Posted by Darryl Spicer (Member # 711) on 10-28-2003, 12:20 AM:

Actually the movie that scared me the most was I believe a Made for t.v. film, at least that is where I saw it, called The Bugs.

It was about the bugs that came up from the ground after an earthquake. They had the ability to start fires. A scientist tried cross breading them with some other species, I can't remember what, and all hell started to break loose. The gained knowledge and could spell words on the walls just buy linning up. It was freaky.

Posted by Michael Schaffer (Member # 1204) on 10-28-2003, 12:45 AM:

quote:
To add to the tension, the fellow who intended to skinny dip with the girl was passed out on the beach --so she had no help at all and was all alone when the attack happend.

What could he have done if he hadn`t passed out?

Posted by Darryl Spicer (Member # 711) on 10-28-2003, 01:39 AM:

Hey, did you know that chick in the beginning of Jaws had Dandruff..............They found her head and shoulders on the beach. [Big Grin]

Posted by Hillary Charles (Member # 769) on 10-28-2003, 07:45 AM:

Head and Shoulders! LOL!

I did read that Spielberg used the same actress to spoof the "JAWS" skinny-dipping scene in "1941," with the Japanese sub.

For me, it's the original "Invasion of the Body Snatchers." No horror scenes to speak of, but overall scary as hell. Incredible filmmaking. The more "normal" things are, they scarier they seem! Always must check the basement for pods. The remake was cool with Kevin McCarthy apparently still screaming, "They're here, already!" In that movie, the dog with the human face really got to me and still freaks me out.

Posted by German Marin (Member # 918) on 10-28-2003, 12:19 PM:

"The Others"
When the little children were into the closet and suddenly the old woman appears!
It seems in the movie that all the dead are really alive.

Posted by Chris Hipp (Member # 1788) on 10-28-2003, 04:08 PM:

The mothman prophecies was pretty freaky, but I didnt get scared.

That dog from invasion of the body snatchers was chilling, but the best scene was when donald sutherland was beating in the head of one of his doubles.

Posted by Hillary Charles (Member # 769) on 10-28-2003, 04:18 PM:

That was another magic moment in the 1978 "Invasion..." For me, the dog scene was made weirder with that (banjo?) music. One of the Simpsons Halloween episodes included that scene.

Posted by Mike Blakesley (Member # 26) on 10-28-2003, 10:09 PM:

I think the movie that "creeps me out" the most is Hitchcock's "The Birds." Mostly because there is NO happy ending and NO explanation for what happens. Every time I see a whole lot of birds sitting on a wire, I think of that movie.

The "score" of the movie is also very haunting. (No music -- just bird sounds.)

Posted by Steven Privett (Member # 718) on 10-28-2003, 11:01 PM:

What's scary is I was just having this conversation today.

"Trilogy Of Terror" was awfully scary. My parents let me watch that at tender young age. With Karen black and that little Zulu doll.

"Willy Wonka and the Chocolate factory" The scene where they are going through that tunnel. One moment they are laughing and enjoying chocolate rivers and candy. The next, they are being scared for their lives in a psychodelic tunnel as Willy rants a chilling poem. I found a wav file of that poem online. You should too.

Posted by Phil Hill (Member # 371) on 10-28-2003, 11:09 PM:

Steven, great choice! Whenever I see Karen Black (Jason's sister ---they look alike) in a film, I think of that short! VERY well done!

>>> Phil

Posted by Christian Appelt (Member # 1067) on 10-31-2003, 07:55 PM:

Two movies come to my mind that scared me so much as a youngster that I couldn`t watch them any longer:

1. SOLARIS by Andrej Tarkowskij - nothing offensive, but the idea that the whole planet was a kind of brain sending ghosts to that lonely astronaut created an unbelievable claustrophobic tension for me - would like to see it in a theatre again.

2. NIGHT OF THE DEMON - when Dana Andrews searchs the mansion of the film´s villain, he descends a stairway into the hall, and just when he is out of frame, a hand grabs the bannister in that wide-angle shot - I jumped out of my seat even this year while watching the DVD... [Eek!]

That POLTERGEIST kitchen scene which Bobby Henderson mentioned is one of my favourites, too. [Big Grin]

Posted by Jesse August (Member # 1798) on 10-31-2003, 08:30 PM:

How about the scene from Deliverance when Ned Beatty squeals like a pig for the mountain man? Just kidding, the only thing to scare me is my new photo to your left. I knew it looked creepy, but not that creepy. I will have to submit something a little more suitable. [beer]

Jesse

Posted by Dennis Benjamin (Member # 1137) on 10-31-2003, 10:36 PM:

I remember the movie "The First Power" scaring the heck out of me when I was starting off as a projectionist.......

(It was with Lou Diamond Phillips)

Posted by Dave Williams (Member # 299) on 11-01-2003, 07:34 AM:

The Ring freaks the hell out of me, just thinking about it.

I too remember The Bugs, freaky show.

I loved Soylent Green... "its made of people"

or in the future simpsons world "soylent green, now with more girls".

Dave

Posted by Don Bruechert (Member # 1538) on 11-01-2003, 08:52 AM:

Are you guys sure "The Bugs" wasn't actually "They Live"?? I have seen the movie you speak of several times, but I thought the movie was called "They Live", and I think the word they write on the wall is "We Live".

Anyway... I have been to a lot of horror movies, and even some regular ones, and usually the only thing that freaks me out is what I call the jump scenes. Take the movie "The Bone Collector" for example... Denzel Washington is doing his whole speaking in quiet tones bit, and suddenly the SWAT team arrives and the door of the truck bangs open. That one can still get me even when I know its coming... Things like that I like, but they are more startling than scary.

I have enver seen Jaws in the theater. I remember when it came here that summer - it had to have been in the theater for at least 2 months here, but I never went to see it because I thought it was stupid (Junior High School). I have since seen it many times and think its a good movie, but Deep Blue Sea is better.

I think the only horror movie that officially creeped me out was the original Nightmare on Elm Street. I think I had the willies for 2 weeks after that one. 6th row center in the theater, sitting behind a group of girls I didn't even know, but they were passing the bottle and sharing. I think if I hadn't have been have tanked when I saw it I really would have been messed up. It came it a time where just about every horror movie on the planet had a "been there, done that" kind of thing going. It was a totally new concept, and I clearly remember that by the end of the movie we didn't know if we were awake or asleep - the first couple times they made that metal-on-metal kind of fingernails on the chalkboard sound was good enough for goosebumps. I had gone to the late show, and I remember when I got home that night and was fumbling to put the key in the lock, the neighbor's dog moved or something and its chain jingled... All the hair stood up on the back of my neck and I had goosebumps the size of trucks! Noises in the dark like that bothered me for at least a week after that. Of course all the sequels suffered from "been there, done that" syndrome, and you pretty much knew what was going to happen the whole time... they didn't make them any scarier, just grosser.... to me, gross is not scary.

I know that Rachel was terrified of Willie WOnka as a child (I think her brother forced her to watch it) and I still can't get her to watch it today...

Posted by Pravin Ratnam (Member # 1417) on 11-02-2003, 09:48 PM:

The scene in the Twilight Zone(original series) where the human guy realizes what "How to serve Man" really means.

Posted by William Hooper (Member # 71) on 11-03-2003, 01:53 AM:

I'll go with The Innocents & The Uninvited. Two movies that just creep you out.

Posted by Rachel Gilardi (Member # 1016) on 11-03-2003, 10:21 PM:

quote:
I know that Rachel was terrified of Willie WOnka as a child (I think her brother forced her to watch it) and I still can't get her to watch it today...

Thanks, I really appreciate you telling everyone that! [fu]

But yep, now that its out...that would be #1.

Posted by John Pytlak (Member # 331) on 11-03-2003, 10:30 PM:

For a small child, films depicting loss of a parent or pet can be very upsetting. Titles that come to mind are "Bambi", "The Lion King", and "Old Yeller". These films can make an audience of children cry during the scenes of loss.

Posted by Jason Black (Member # 684) on 11-03-2003, 10:32 PM:

I'm thinking Children of the Corn. Something about that Malakai (sp?) fella creeped me out.

I can't really think of a flick that's ever really scared me too bad..

And, just for the record, my sister is Katie.. not Karen.. close but no cookie.. [Smile]

Posted by Aldo Baez (Member # 790) on 11-04-2003, 01:03 AM:

When I was with my girlfriend a few years back when the exorcist was re-released I decided to watch it with her after we had closed..

It was about 3am when we started it in a dark totally empty theatre and surrounding streets. Man that was scary (it was the first time watching it for both of us.) The part in the re-release where they had the face on the cupboard nearly made me pee my pants. After the movie was over we pretty much ran out of the booth and theatre.