10 Best Horror Movies According to Letterboxd Users

There are numerous online platforms for tracking the films you’ve watched. Yet, among the many options Letterboxd stands out thanks to its curated lists, diaries, and watchlist. Tailored to fans first and foremost, the site has garnered a user base of movie addicts who can share or celebrate their favorite films with like-minded individuals.

If you are looking for a recommendation based on your tastes, Letterboxd is a great platform, particularly for fans of horror. We examined the highest-rated movies on the platform to provide you with a glimpse at the top ten horror movies of all time, as rated by Letterboxd users. To determine the top 10 titles, we considered genre validity, popularity, and overall score.

10

‘Diaboliques’ (1955)

Letterboxd Rating: 4.18/5

A cruel headmaster, Michel Delassalle, uses his authority to endlessly harass and mistreat both his ailing wife, Christina, and his mistress, Nicole, who is also a teacher at the school. This leads to the two conspiring to murder him and tossing his body in a pool to make it appear as if it were an accident. However, when the body does not surface, and no corpse is found, the two women start to experience a series of shocking events they believe to be tied to the murder.

A Claustrophobic Vision of Terror from France

As far as building up suspense, there are very few movies that match the brilliant escalation seen in Diaboliques, a statement that still stands true 70 years after its release. Extremely claustrophobic with a foreboding atmosphere, Diaboliques is a fully immersive viewing experience from start to finish. The movie’s shocking twist ending also makes this one enjoyable for those who have yet to experience the classic French thriller; go in knowing as little as possible if you have yet to experience this classic.

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9

‘Rosemary’s Baby’ (1968)

Letterboxd Rating: 4.21/5

Rosemary Woodhouse and her husband, Guy, after moving to New York, find a home in the affluent Bramford apartment building, which is rumored to have a dark history. Here they befriend an older couple, Minnie and Roman Castevet, who take particular interest in Rosemary’s baby. As the expectant mother unravels more about the building’s history and its residents, she learns that something sinister is going on.

Tapping Into Fears of the ’60s that Resonated Long Afterward

Rosemary’s Baby certainly struck a nerve with many viewers, a finely crafted horror story touching on deep fears around bodily autonomy, pregnancy, and control from a woman’s perspective. These themes were particularly notable during its release in the 1960s, with a growing distrust of government and authority; however, the themes still resonate today, making the movie timeless. Mia Farrow’s performance is the cherry on top of an already masterfully constructed horror film that tackles broader social issues.

8

‘The Shining’ (1980)

Letterboxd Rating: 4.23/5

The Shining

Release Date

June 13, 1980

Runtime

146 minutes

The Torrance family, consisting of Jack, Wendy, and their young son Danny, heads to the Overlook Hotel for the winter as caretakers during the off-season. Jack, a struggling writer, uses this as a means to focus on his work without distraction. Yet, as writer’s block still lingers, and he begins to see past residents of the hotel, he slowly loses his grip on reality and starts to attack his family.

Stanley Kubrick’s Horror Masterpiece

The Shining, as perfect as it is, was a box office disappointment, yet it is now considered an essential watch and an influential masterpiece. Jack Nicholson and Shelley Duvall are both brilliant in the film; the cinematography is expertly established to maintain a constant sense of unease and dread; the soundtrack is ideally crafted to make the viewer feel uncomfortable, and there has never been another film that comes close to capturing the same sense of isolation and unease. There is so much to love here; it is no surprise that the Letterboxd community fully embraces the movie.

7

‘Kwaidan’ (1964)

Letterboxd Rating: 4.23/5

Kwaidan

4.5
/5

Release Date

December 29, 1964

Runtime

183 Minutes

Director

Masaki Kobayashi

• 

• 

  Michiyo Aratama

  First Wife

An anthology film based on the works of Lafcadio Hearn, who traveled across Japan collecting folklore, Kwaidan chronicles some of the most enduring ghost stories from the country. Included is the tale of a returning samurai met with the realization that something has happened to his wife, a man’s mentor killed by a winter ghost that comes back for him years later, a blind musician tricked by the spirits, and a lord’s attendant haunted by the vision of another face in a cup of tea.

A Japanese Horror Anthology Steeped in Ancient Lore

From a Western perspective, Kwaidan is an ideal starting point for gaining a deeper understanding of the world of J-horror, showcasing the stories that shaped the country’s unique approach to the genre. Visually, the movie is a blend of picturesque beauty and otherworldly terror, as each story presents a sharp contrast between Japanese history and the supernatural. Kwaidan also garnered global praise, going on to win both the Special Jury Prize at the 1965 Cannes Film Festival and being nominated for an Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film the same year.

6

‘Alien’ (1979)

Letterboxd Rating: 4.26/5

Alien

Release Date

June 22, 1979

Runtime

117 Minutes

The commercial spaceship Nostromo is returning home with its crew on board, but is diverted due to a distress signal on a foreign planet. The crew is awakened from their cryo slumber to investigate, only to find an alien presence on the planet that appears to have wiped out all human life. After one of them is attacked by a creature inside an alien egg, they bring it back onto the ship to treat their crewmate, unaware of the terror they have now trapped themselves in.

Revolutionary Sci-fi Horror

Easily among, if not the best space horror movie of all time, Alien presented a unique and shocking vision of terror unlike anything that had come before it, and one that still resonates 45 years after its release. The sci-fi horror classic would give the world one of the most revered screen heroes of all time in Sigourney Weaver’s Ripley. Alien and landscape designs by H.R. Giger, as well as direction from Ridley Scott, give the movie a defined presence that is unreplicable.

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5

‘Cure’ (1997)

Letterboxd Rating: 4.27/5

Cure

5
/5

Release Date

December 27, 1997

Runtime

111 Minutes

Director

Kiyoshi Kurosawa

• 

  Masato Hagiwara

  Det. Kenichi Takabe

• 

  Kôji Yakusho

  Kunio Mamiya

• 

Detective Kenichi Takabe finds himself heading a bizarre investigation that sees random murders occurring across Tokyo, whose only connecting link seems to be an X carved into the bodies of the victims. Hitting a wall, Detective Takabe partners with psychologist Makoto Sakuma, and the two are soon led to a man suffering from insomnia, who seems to be able to put his violent ideas into the heads of others to make them commit murder.

A Haunting Story of Losing Control

Cure is a masterfully constructed crime mystery with heavy horror elements, which explores a seldom-explored concept in the genre: free will. This abstract concept is approached with a pervasive atmospheric unease that makes the entire film a masterclass in building suspense. Combined with a sharp visual direction, Cure is one of those films that sticks with viewers long after viewing it.

4

‘The Cremator’ (1969)

Letterboxd Rating: 4.28/5

The Cremator

Release Date

March 14, 1969

Runtime

95 Minutes

Director

Juraj Herz

• 

  Rudolf Hrusínský

  Karel Kopfrkingl

• 

  Vlasta Chramostová

  Lakmé / Dagmar

• 

• 

Karel Kopfrkingl, a crematorium worker in Prague in the 1930s, begins a slow descent into madness under the influence of Nazi ideology and a perverse Buddhist mysticism. His indoctrination leads him to start working with the Nazi party to identify Jewish people and anyone else he sees as impure. Starting with his wife, Karel seeks to release the souls of those around him to feed his warped ideology, believing he is performing a righteous service.

Dire Times Can Turn Men Into Monsters

The Cremator is a challenging film, given its subject matter. Still, it is one that has become considered historically significant in its exploration of totalitarianism and cultural/moral degradation across Europe in the 1930s. The movie has become closely associated with the horror genre, due to its blend of dark comedy and expressionist approach, which creates a disturbing and bleak atmosphere throughout. Not heavy on gore or scares, but tapping into something much more terrifying, The Creamator is a masterpiece that won’t be for everyone.

3

‘Psycho’ (1960)

Letterboxd Rating: 4.32/5

Marion Crane is one of the runaways with her boyfriend, Sam Loomis, after stealing $40,000 from her employer. On a stormy night, she stays at the Bates Motel run by Norman Bates and his mother. After her death (the infamous shower scene), Marion’s sister, along with Sam and an investigator, heads to the Motel to try to learn the truth of what happened, unaware of the absolute horror awaiting them.

Alfred Hitchcock’s Redefining of the Horror Genre

Psycho, was a movie that broke all the rules, from showing blood on screen as well as an unmarried couple sharing a bed (the horrors). Despite it being relatively tame by modern standards, the movie has endured thanks to the appreciation of what it did to push the horror genre forward. The love for the film extends beyond its influence, mind you, as Psycho is a beautifully constructed, macabre vision, tailored to cause unease from the cinematography to the score.

2

‘The Thing’ (1982)

Letterboxd Rating: 4.35/5

The Thing

Release Date

June 25, 1982

Runtime

109 minutes

• 

• 

An American research team in Antarctica accidentally invites an alien species into their quarters, one that can shape-shift to replicate its prey. Hunting in secret, the alien life form slowly takes over the crew one by one, sowing paranoia among the survivors.

John Carpenter’s Most Highly Rated Horror Film

John Carpenter’s The Thing is tailor-made for hardcore horror fans, featuring some of the best practical effects ever committed to film, as well as some truly disturbing body horror. Yet, beyond its superb practical effects in the form of gnarly transformations, the movie perfectly weaves paranoia within an eccentric crew of workers at a remote Antarctic research station. The film is iconic and is regarded as one of the best of the 80s, an absolute must-watch.

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1

‘Perfect Blue’ (1998)

Letterboxd Rating: 4.39/5

Perfect Blue

Release Date

August 5, 1997

Runtime

81 Minutes

Director

Satoshi Kon

Mima Kirigoe is leaving her longtime Japanese pop idol group to try to pursue a career as an actress. Yet, as she enters the new industry and undergoes a sharp image change, a fan of hers lashes out and starts stalking her. As Mima continues to try to carve a career for herself, dealing with internal conflict and a looming threat, the lines between fiction and reality blur.

A Psychological Nightmare

It is pretty remarkable to have an anime film top the list of highest-rated horror movies of all time, with a 4.39 average score on Letterboxd. Yet, for those who have experienced the masterpiece by director Satoshi Kon, they can speak to its validity and its ability to transcend its anime label into something much more frightening and disturbing.

Perfect Blue brilliantly blurs the lines between reality and the hallucination of its protagonist, creating some viscerally shocking and disorienting moments of terror on par with any live-action film. While anime can be a niche interest, Perfect Blue transcends the label and should undoubtedly be a top priority to check out; the fans of Letterboxd have spoken!