With Halloween creeping around the corner, students have unmasked the top five scariest movies that have made them scream.
After polling 78 people, students voted “The Ring” as the No. 1 scariest movie with “Halloween” following close behind. The spot for third place was tied between the “Paranormal Activity” series and “The Hills Have Eyes 2.” In fourth place is “When a Stranger Calls” and last, but certainly not least, is “Strangers.”
John Hawkins, a junior communication major from Payson, agrees that “The Ring” and “Halloween” are two of the top scariest movies.
“I like the concept of ‘The Ring’ because it’s a little bit out there, and ‘Halloween’ [is] just a classic,” Hawkins said. “How can you not go with a classic? It’s been around for years.”
Michael Seery, a sophomore communication major from Eaton, Colo., said he is a big fan of scary movies. He likes the classic scary movies like “Halloween” because the stories are so uniquely written and filmed.
“I like a little bit of excitement in my life,” said Amit Parmar, a junior business major from Los Angeles. “It’s a lot of fun watching scary movies. I have fun getting scared.”
But what is it that makes a scary movie scary?
“I think it’s the mind ones, the ones that mess with your head and the ones that can seem like they actually happen,” said Marissa Kuhn, a sophomore communication major from Phoenix.
Kahryn Harris, a junior dental hygiene major from Highland, agrees scary movies with real stories are the most terrifying.
“‘The Haunting in Connecticut’ creeped me out because it was real,” Harris said.
Kreigh Carter, a junior communication major from Kanab, said the most frightening films are those where the plot can actually happen. He said killers in ’80s movies simply aren’t so scary.
“There’s tons of exorcism movies,” Carter said. “People are worried about the apocalypse and more worried about religion.”
And with all the hype of the Mayan calendar coming to an end, possibly bringing the end of the world, it’s no wonder that realistic horror movies are so scary. However, not all scary movies have to be all gloom and doom.
“One of my favorite ones is ‘Stay Alive’ because they win in the end,” said Danyelle Strehlow, a senior biology and secondary education major from St. George. “I like scary movies where the good guys win.”
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