The Orphanage
Horror movies are always a big screen treat as the very best in this genre have us on the edge of our seat.
This week sees Devil's Due hit the big screen as Tyler Gillett and Matt Bettinelli-Olpin return to the director's chair.
Over the last ten years, we have been treated to some fantastic horror films, and we take a look at some that have really stood out.
- The Orphanage
The Orphanage is one of my personal favourite horror movies of recent years, hitting the big screen back in 2008.
The movie marked the directorial debut of J.A. Bayona and he delivered an intelligent, scary, and touching horror film.
If you are tired of all of the torture porn that we have been spoon-fed in recent years, then this is the movie for you.
Bayona uses the constant sense of unease as his tool to frighten the audience, an old run down building complete with creaking staircases with a troubled past is the perfect setting to create that unsettling feeling.
The gothic technique that Bayona has brought to this movie is as beautiful as it is truly chilling. However, underneath this horror movie lies a touching tale of motherhood, love and loss - and that is something that you are never quite expecting.
- The Conjuring
The Conjuring is the most recent movie to make our list, but it really was the best film in this genre in 2013.
The movie marked the return of James Wan to the director's chair as he told the true story of paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren and one of their cases.
The Conjuring is a good old-fashioned horror that uses creaking doors, bumps in the night and a provocative score to have you on the edge of your seat.
Wan builds and builds the atmosphere as every scene and moment just racks up the tension until every creak and door banging will send a shiver down your spine.
The Conjuring is masterfully crafted as Wan shows how to make a truly fantastic horror movie; there is not a graphic scene of slasher moment in sight.
- Let The Right One In
Let The Right One In has since had an American remake since it hit the big screen in 2009, but this remains the best of the two films.
Directed by Tomas Alfredson, the film follows a lonely and bullied young boy who finds friendship with a peculiar young girl.
Let The Right One In was a movie that really reinvigorated the tired vampire genre, to deliver something that is intelligent, compelling and totally unlike anything else in this genre.
Alfredson has created an eerie and unsettling film, but is as grisly as it is beautiful.
Let The Right One In was one of the stand out foreign films of 2009, and remains one of the best movies in the horror genre in recent years.
- Shaun of the Dead
We have also seen a whole host of horror/comedies in recent years, but Shaun of the Dead is the one that really does stand out.
The Edgar Wright directed film celebrates its tenth anniversary this year - yes, it really is ten years old.
Shaun of the Dead does pay homage to George Romero movies and yet it is a zombie movie in its own right - Wright and co really did put a new spin on a story that we have seen on the big screen many times.
We have seen a whole host of movies try to copy this formula, but not a single movie has got anywhere close to being as good as this.
The film was a box office smash and kicked off the exciting film relationship between Wright, Simon Pegg, and Nick Frost.
- The Woman In Black
A big screen adaptation of the popular Susan Hill novel The Woman In Black hit the big screen at the beginning of 2012.
The movie saw Daniel Radcliffe take over the central role, while James Watkins returned to the director's chair.
The Woman In Black was one of the best horror movies of 2012, as Watkins really did create this feeling of dread that hung over the entire film and was incredibly unsettling.
Like The Conjuring after it, The Woman In Black is a good old-fashioned horror movie that doesn't rely on guts and gore for scares - instead is chills you to the bone with images that are at the edge of the fame.
Watkins has delivered a movie that is dripping with unease and suspense and the way that he has shot the house has really turned it into a character in its own right.
- [REC]
[Rec] was released back in 2008 and saw Jaume Balagueró and Paco Plaza reunite in the director's chair.
The movie follows a television reporter and cameraman who follow emergency workers into a dark apartment building and are quickly locked inside with something terrifying.
I know the hand-held camera thing can be a little annoying, but [REC] really is a scary and thrilling adrenaline fuelled film.
This is a horror movie that will have you jumping out of your seat, as you never know what is just around the corner.
While I am not a big fan of the found footage/hand-held film myself, the grainy footage and night vision really did help ratch up the tension and create an eeriness from start to finish.
- Saw
Now, I know that we have had a lot of 'torture porn' movies in recent years, and while most of them are rubbish, Saw was the exception to that rule.
The movie saw James Wan in the director's chair, and he really did deliver a vicious and brutal movie - and yet it followed an interesting theme of redemption.
Saw is the film that took the horror genre in a completely new direction, as extreme violence became a staple of this genre for a few years.
However, where Saw differed from all the rest, was it delivered an intelligent script as well as one hell of an ending - seriously, one of the best film twists of all time.
Devil's Due is released 17th January.