Horror is my favorite genre of film. When its working properly, I believe it creates the greatest interaction between the audience and the cinematic medium, forcing us to examine every inch of the frame, to notice everything, so that we can try to see whats coming. At the same time, I realize that not all horror is great art, and sometimes its enough to just throw as much blood as you can at the screen, make sure everyones having a good time, and call it a day. I dont know if its possible to determine a single, best ever horror film. One mans horror may be anothers comedy. What scares us is often rooted in our personal experiences, so while those of us that love horror have no problem agreeing on a favorite genre, picking a favorite film can be much trickier. But I do think its possible to list the films that are most essential to the genre, which is what I will try to do here. These are the films that must be seen, because of their greatness, their impact, their legacy, and the way they toy with and expand the genre. They are the films that every horror fan should know. Because this list is purely my own creation, it will (obviously) reflect my own tastes and determinations on what is and isnt horror. There will be omissions of films that many may find horrifying that I think are primarily adventure or action films (Jaws, Aliens), and I will shy away from many older films that, while entertaining and important in their own right, arent as vital to the genre as many of its more recent offspring (for example, Bela Lugosi & Vincent Price's many trips through the genre). Ive cheated a bit in ranking some films along with their remakes or immediate sequels (if worthy) to fit two films into a single entry. As for the order of the films, again, purely subjective, so feel free to tell me what films should be where, what Ive forgotten, and where Ive gone crazy. My intention here is to be less a brick layer than a gardener. In the end, maybe it is a best of list, but a fluid one at best. Ive also tried to avoid as many spoilers as I can. Many of these are probably past the statute of spolier-limitations anyway, but proceed with caution. Here are the fifty most essential horror films of all time...