5. Scream
A brilliant deconstruction of slasher movies directed by a titan of the genre, Wes Craven's Scream revived the slowly dying horror sub-genre and made winking meta-commentary a staple of modern horror. Scream gets its comedic mileage from subverting the slasher cliches that had grown stale and rote ever since Halloween inspired an avalanche of imitators back in 1978. Kevin Williamson (famed creator of Dawson's Creek) broke new ground with a screenplay that had its characters not only realize they populated a slasher movie but use their knowledge of slasher tropes to survive the killing spree. Williamson's innovation quickly led to its own annoying cliche: now ever slasher film is obliged to include a winking meta-reference to the fact it's a slasher film even if it's not appropriate to the style or tone of the movie itself. However, we can't fault scream for the sins of its progeny and there are many laughs to be had for slasher fans. Wes even gives his signature slasher franchise, A Nightmare on Elm Street, a ribbing for going on longer than it should have. Scream does what all horror comedies should; it satirizes horror while also being a genuinely great example of a horror movie. A must see treat for horror buffs!