15 Horror Movies You Really Shouldn't Watch Alone

4. The Ring (2002)

Gore Verbinski's 2002 remake of the classic J-horror Ringu kick-started the trend of Hollywood ceaselessly remaking - and generally failing to improve upon - Asian horror flicks, but the first remains a shining example of how to remake a foreign language genre film without stripping away its soul.

Verbinski's visually lavish, restrained direction combines with a terrific Naomi Watts performance, a killer concept and a number of genuinely surprising narrative turns to make The Ring an uncommonly effective big-budget mainstream horror remake.

The sequels that followed were wretched, because of course, but the "original" is still a chilly, disturbing sit that lives up to its Japanese predecessor even if it doesn't reach quite the same highs.