American Cheerleader

This is it! We’re at the end of our scary movie countdown!!!

Now, these flicks may not be the freakiest or even the most popular or acclaimed of the genre, but they’re MY faves. Take a look at my horror recap and then check out what made my #1.

#20: Jaws

#19: The Last House on the Left

#18: The Faculty

#17: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning

#16: The Exorcist

#15: The Blair Witch Project

#14: Resident Evil

#13: Poltergeist

#12: Lady In White

#11: Friday the 13th

#10: April Fools Day

#9: Pet Sematary & It

#8: In the Mouth of Madness

#7: A Nightmare on Elm Street

#6: The Grudge

#5: 28 Days Later

#4: Dawn of the Dead

#3: Saw

#2: Scream

And coming in at number…

#1

Photos courtesy of Compass International Pictures

Halloween (1978)

directed by John Carpenter; starring Jamie Lee Curtis; Rated R

*This movie may not be suitable for kids under the age of 17

There are a few reasons that this movie came in #1. First of all, it’s about Halloween, DUH! It’s the night of All Hallows-Eve and that means the creepy-crawlies, ghouls and ghosts and everything else that goes bump in the night are out in full-force. Now throw in a psychopathic guy in a blank white mask and you’ve got one scary night. As an added bonus, you’ve got the original “Scream Queen” Jamie Lee Curtis playing the role of the hunted heroine. And if you look at her list of scary movie roles—Prom Night, The Fog and Terror Train, to name a few—it’s no wonder she’s at the forefront of the horror flick world. In Halloween, maniacal Michael Myers has broken out of the mental institution that has been his home ever since he murdered his sister years before on Halloween night. Now, on the anniversary of the notorious murder, Michael is heading back to his hometown to track down his other sister to finish the job he started 15 years before. Talk about sibling rivalry.

WHY IT’S SCARY: Halloween’s already a creepy night. When you throw in the fact that no one is what they seem, you start to worry that some people might take their costumes a little too seriously. You never know just what kind of evil lies under the mask…or who’s lurking around the corner.

On the outside looking in...

SCARIEST SCENE: When Jamie Lee is cornered in the closet and Michael is trying to break through the door to get at her. You can feel how trapped she is….

SCARY STORY: Although the original is by-far the best of the franchise, another notable is Halloween: H20, which stars Jamie Lee, Josh Hartnett and Michelle Williams. This one is updated in a way that you won’t hate.

FUN & FREAKY FACTS:

* This was Jamie Lee Curtis’ first film.

* The movie was shot in early spring in southern California, so the crew had to buy plastic leaves from a decorator and scatter them in their filming locations.

* Because of a tight budget, the prop department bought the cheapest mask they could get: Captain Kirk. They spray painted the face white, teased the hair and re-shaped the eye-holes to create “Michael Myers.”

* It took 21 days to shoot this movie.

* The character of Laurie Strode was named after director John Carpenter’s first girlfriend.

* The film’s budget was $320,000.

* The original title of the movie was “The Babysitter Murders.”

Beam me up, Scotty