What gives a horror film legendary status? It seems that the film must sustain terror in its audiences over generations, as we become increasingly desensitized, as the bar must be raised higher and higher each decade. Here are some films that passed this test:

1) The Exorcist (1973): The brilliance of this film lies not necessarily in the fact that it involves possession and Satan, but in the helplessness of a parent unable to help their child.

2) Eraserhead (1977): The stuff of nightmares. The use of silence and that damned infant puts Rosemary’s baby to shame.

3) Halloween (1978): The birth of the slasher genre began with John Carpenter’s classic. And what sets it apart from the countless others is that it relies primarily on suspense as opposed to sensationalism.

4) The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974): This film doesn’t have much in the way of gore, but the relentless suspense as Leatherface chases his victims is exhausting and exhilarating all at once.

5) Night of the Living Dead (1968): Ahead of its time on so many levels, it utilized a very small budget to make not only a terrifyingly bleak film with an equal ending, it managed to make a social statement on race relations in America.

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