10 Most Ingenious Special FX In Horror Movie History

9. The Severed Arm - Evil Dead (2013)

Evil Dead Mia
Sony Pictures

70,000 gallons of fake blood with 50,000 on the last sequence alone - that's a LOT of fake blood. Now, this 2013 remake deserves its place here, precisely because of its old school approach, something all too rare in contemporary horror. Taking an entirely 'in camera' approach, Evil Dead is unique amongst its modern peers as most directors tend to fall back on CGI as it's cheaper and faster.

No such corner cutting here - according to director Fede Alvarez, there are virtually no computer graphics used in the film, except those used as a blending tool, Christopher Nolan style.

Amongst the numerous examples of graphic body horror, highlights include Mia slicing her tongue straight down the middle with a box cutter and Eric being used as a pin cushion (the poor guy is stabbed repeatedly in the face and eye with a hypodermic needle, he's then pierced multiple times with a nail gun and still survives - until later).

The absolute gnarliest effect though, has to go to Natalie, who in an homage to Evil Dead II, decides to sever her infected left arm with an electric carving knife. As the blade saws through her flesh, she's sprayed with claret but it doesn't stop there. David watches in horror as her arm, now hanging off by a flap of skin, drops to the floor. Horrifically ingenious and an effect that deserves an accolade - there aren't that many modern horrors that display this level of commitment.

Contributor
Contributor

A lifelong aficionado of horror films and Gothic novels with literary delusions of grandeur...