10 Best Exploitation Films Of All Time

Not only is it a terrific exercise in knee-jerk suspense, but John Carpenter's movie has a shot at being the most influential horror movie of the last 40 years. Without it, there would be no Friday The 13th, A Nightmare On Elm Street or Scream.

Halloween isn’t a movie, it’s a machine whose purpose is to thrill audiences, and even after all these years, it still works better than any of the sequels or remakes it spawned. Drawing inspiration from everything from Touch Of Evil to the films of Mario Bava and Dario Argento, John Carpenter’s movie has no use for plotting because it’s all about cinematic technique, something the film’s imitators failed to notice. Michael Myers doesn’t need to be explained, just to step out of the darkness at key moments, accompanied by Carpenter’s memorable score.

Interestingly for a movie shot in 21 days for $325,000, no subsequent film can hold a candle to Dean Cundey’s widescreen cinematography, which is so important to the movie’s success. The suburbs have never looked spookier than they do here, even when the streets appear to be empty.