7. Jodie (The Amityville Horror)
Allegedly based on real-life events, this 1979 classic sees the Lutz family relocate into a Long Island home, a building that had been the site of a mass murder the previous year. After a father fails to bless the home, the family quickly begin to notice some supernatural goings-on. Black liquid oozing from the walls, a babysitter becoming inexplicably locked in the wardrobe, eerily prophetic nightmares...that sort of thing. But perhaps the creepiest of all is daughter Amy's new friend, Jodie. Just before Amy's mother, Kathy (played by Margot Kidder) checks up on her, we see inside the bedroom, where Amy is singing while sitting in a rocking chair. Opposite her is another chair, gently swaying away - but this one is empty. When Kathy opens the door, the second chair falls still and Amy scolds her for ''scaring Jodie''. Keeping the pretence of this imaginary friend,Kathy humours her daughter and stands up to close the window. There, out of the darkness (and accompanied by a rip-off of Bernard Herrmann's
Psycho score) peer two luminous red eyes. And lo, the lesson is learnt. Parents, you really ought to check whether your prospective house is built above a tribal burial ground. And if you are going to show an interest in your child's social circles, make sure you know which one's the kid next door and which one's the demonic entity that's trying to kill you.