The Best Classic Horror Films Of All Time, Ranked By Critics

Topline

These iconic films—chosen by the American Film Institute and ranked by combining Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic scores—have terrified and thrilled audiences going back 90 years.

Key Facts

The Top 10 Films

No. 1: “Psycho” (1960): 96% Rotten Tomatoes, 97% Metacritic

The classic Alfred Hitchcock film centering on an encounter between proprietor Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins) and on-the-run embezzler Marion Crane (Janet Leigh) debuted to mixed reviews—The New York Times initially considered it “a blot on an honorable career” for Hitchcock—but is now considered one of the greatest films of all time and a fundamental film in the horror genre. The British Film Institute’s Sight & Sound magazine named Psycho the 31st greatest film of all time in 2022 based on a poll of 1,639 critics. Martin Scorsese considers Psycho among the scariest films, and Variety named Psycho the greatest film of all time in December. The film’s shower scene is considered one of the most famous scenes in cinema and spawned a documentary about its creation, 78/52: Hitchcock’s Shower Scene (2017), a reference to the 78 camera setups and 52 cuts used in the scene.

No. 2: “Rosemary’s Baby” (1968): 96% Rotten Tomatoes, 96% Metacritic

Roman Polanski’s Rosemary’s Baby, starring Mia Farrow as a pregnant newlywed who moves into a New York City apartment next to suspicious neighbors, brought Ira Levin’s hit novel of the same name to the screen in 1968. The film’s depiction of paranoia and the occult has had a lasting impact on the horror genre, with many modern horror directors looking to Rosemary’s Baby as inspiration. The Guardian ranked the film as the second-greatest horror movie of all time in 2010, and it was selected for preservation in the National Film Registry in 2014.

No. 3: “King Kong” (1933): 96% Rotten Tomatoes, 92% Metacritic

King Kong is famous for its titular ape-like villain, who has been recreated in many remakes and adaptations, as well as its use of special effects and stop-motion, which were considered groundbreaking for the time period.

No. 4: “Alien” (1979): 98% Rotten Tomatoes, 89% Metacritic

Deep in space, the crew aboard a starship responds to a distress signal from a nearby spacecraft—but terror ensues when an alien species invades their ship. Ridley Scott’s film, starring Sigourney Weaver and Tom Skerritt, was praised for blending the science fiction and horror genres and was ranked by the AFI as one of the greatest science fiction films of all time. The film became the first in a franchise, including Aliens (1986), directed by James Cameron, and Alien 3 (1992), directed by David Fincher.

No. 5: “Jaws” (1975): 97% Rotten Tomatoes, 87% Metacritic

Once the highest-grossing movie of all time, Jaws’s hugely successful June 1975 wide release redefined the summer blockbuster and influenced how studios choose to release and market films. The film follows the hunt to kill a great white shark who has attacked tourists on a New England beach. Directed by Steven Spielberg, the most commercially successful director of all time, Jaws won three Oscars for best editing, score and sound and was nominated for best picture.

No. 6: “The Birds” (1963): 94% Rotten Tomatoes, 90% Metacritic

Another Hitchcock classic, The Birds is loosely based on Daphne du Maurier’s 1952 short story of the same name and follows a series of unexplained bird attacks on residents of Bodega Bay, California. The film’s use of special effects and sound effects were considered innovative and influential for modern horror filmmakers.

No. 7: “The Silence of the Lambs” (1991): 95% Rotten Tomatoes, 86% Metacritic

The only winner of the Best Picture Academy Award to be considered a horror film, The Silence of the Lambs is one of just three films to sweep the ceremony’s top five awards: Best Picture, Director, Actor, Actress and Screenplay. Jodie Foster stars as an FBI trainee who, in pursuit of a serial killer, interviews imprisoned psychiatrist and killer Hannibal Lecter (Anthony Hopkins) for insight.

No. 8: “Carrie” (1976): 93% Rotten Tomatoes, 86% Metacritic

An adaptation of Stephen King’s hit novel, Carrie stars Sissy Spacek as a teenage girl who is mocked at school and abused by her mother but develops supernatural powers. Spacek and Piper Laurie, who played Carrie’s mother, were both nominated for Academy Awards for their performances. The film is known for its famous prom scene, and it spawned several remakes and a sequel, most of which were poorly reviewed.

No. 9: “The Exorcist” (1973): 84% Rotten Tomatoes, 81% Metacritic

The Exorcist stars Ellen Burstyn as a concerned mother who seeks help for her daughter who exhibits strange behavior, eventually turning to a priest who believes she may be possessed by the devil. The film became a cultural phenomenon that reportedly scared some viewers into fainting or vomiting in the movie theater. Some areas banned the film from playing, and others attempted to do so, including Boston, often because of religious objections or for fear of its impact on children. The film is also famous for its purported “curse”—some cast and crew, or relatives of people involved with the film, were injured or died during or after production.

No. 10: “The Shining” (1980): 82% Rotten Tomatoes, 66% Metacritic

Another adaptation of a classic Stephen King novel, The Shining follows Jack Nicholson as a writer who becomes the caretaker of a hotel, descending into insanity as he faces writers’ block and his son is plagued by psychic visions. The film, directed by Stanley Kubrick, has had a lasting influence on the horror genre and was ranked the 88th greatest film of all time by the British Film Institute’s Sight & Sound poll in 2022.

Other Frequently Searched Horror Films

“Night of the Living Dead” (1968): 96% Rotten Tomatoes, 89% Metacritic

The film follows a group of people trapped in a rural farmhouse who are hunted by a group of undead creatures. Though the film does not name these creatures as zombies, Night of the Living Dead is considered among the first and most influential zombie films. The film spawned a six-film franchise, all directed by George A. Romero, and a 1990 remake written by Romero.

“Halloween” (1978): 96% Rotten Tomatoes, 87% Metacritic

The first in a franchise that would span 13 films, Halloween stars Jamie Lee Curtis as Laurie Strode, a teenager stalked by escaped mental patient Michael Myers. Its $300,000 budget was considered very low, but it has grossed more than $47 million at the domestic box office and is credited with influencing the slasher film genre. Curtis most recently returned for a trilogy of films—Halloween (2018), Halloween Kills (2021) and Halloween Ends (2022)—reprising her role as Laurie for the final time.

“Texas Chain Saw Massacre” (1974): 88% Rotten Tomatoes, 87% Metacritic

Produced on a small budget of just $140,000, Texas Chain Saw Massacre follows a group of friends visiting an old farmhouse as they are hunted one by one by a crazed family living next door. The film became the first in a nine-film franchise, including the most recent installment, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, which was released in 2022 to negative reviews. The film is considered influential in the slasher genre, popularizing low-budget independent horror films and tropes like masked killers.

“Nosferatu” (1922): 97% Rotten Tomatoes

An unofficial adaptation of Bram Stoker’s 1897 novel Dracula, Nosferatu is a fundamental film in the vampire genre. The film retains many of the characters from the novel with different names, though the Stoker family did not give permission for the novel to be adapted. After his death, the Stoker family sued and a court ordered the film to be destroyed, though copies have persisted.

Key Background

The Rotten Tomatoes critics score, known as the Tomatometer, is the percentage of critics who have given the film a positive review. A movie with at least 60% positive reviews is given a fresh tomato, while those with a score of less than 60% are given a splat. Metacritic calculates a weighted average of critics’ reviews, assigning different weights to each critic and publication, depending on importance or quality. Scores are displayed in green, yellow or red—indicating favorable, mixed or unfavorable reviews—and films with a score of at least 81% are designated as “must-see.” Both Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic track user ratings and allow users to write reviews, though these are displayed separately from critics’ scores.

Further Reading

AFI’s 100 Years…100 Thrills (American Film Institute)

The 10 Best Romantic Comedies Of All Time (Forbes)