3. The Thing (1982)
Based On: The Thing From Another World (1951) Initially criticized for being too gross and gory, The Thing has developed a deserved reputation as one of the scariest films of all-time. John Carpenter takes the fear of the unknown to its extreme as an alien life force slowly starts taking over and killing members of a research team in the Antarctic. Re-teaming with lead actor Kurt Russell (whom Carpenter worked with on Escape From New York), The Thing still finds a way to be broody and atmospheric despite the extreme amount of blood and guts. The Thing borrows a lot from horror films other than its source material, but like the rest of the movies on this list it makes the most of the genre conventions it indulges in. Horror movies should be scary, John Carpenter is really good at making scary movies, and The Thing is a supremely scary movie.