Best in Show: Horror Goes to College (Pt. II of II)

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5. Black Christmas Despite its flaws, the yuletide horror film, Black Christmas, is iconic. Even with its clunky remake, the slasher-in-a-sorority-house horror movie provided some much needed terror to a holiday so typically jolly. From terrifying phone calls to the sisters to some intense deaths scenes, Black Christmas may be a dated product, but it’s definitely worth the watch. Forewarning though, any college student that has hung around their off-campus housing during breaks probably should avoid this movie, lest they be afraid to turn the lights off at night.

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4. The Blair Witch Project/The Green Inferno What do The Blair Witch Project and Green inferno have in common? Practically nothing. One has become a legendary success, while the other remains a somewhat indie film on the fringe of popularity. But, both feature a collection of students out in the field doing the work they believe in. In The Blair Witch Project, a group of film students travel into the forest near Burkittsville, Maryland and become entrapped in a psychological prison of endless foliage and chaotic directions. Here, the students, who quickly lose the resolve to complete their project, come face to face with an impending sense of dread. In The Green Inferno, a group of social justice warriors heading to protect the rainforest and its native tribes get more than they bargained for after a plane crash. Both films capitalize on the very real blind courage propelled by youth and the dumb decisions young people make as a result. Was it a good idea to travel deep into woods in the middle of fall, with little reinforcement that'd help you be found? Probably not. Was it an equally bad idea to follow a group into unknown lands to do some dangerously grassroots protesting? Sure the intentions may have been better, but the decision is one I'm sure the characters of The Green Inferno wish they hadn't made.

3. Sorority Row 

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Sorority Row will never receive an A in class if you know what I mean. It's the type of movie that offers little depth, but makes up for it in sloshing deaths, iconic one-liners and great characters. Like Urban Legend, but far superior, Sorority Row  has such a strong ensemble it’s hard not to fall in love with this movie based on the script for the 80s flick, The House on Sorority Row. Featuring an indelible role courtesy of Carrie Fischer, who plays housemother Mrs. Crenshaw, Sorority Row piles the icing on its shallow cake.  It has amazing death sequences, a completely nutty killer and by the films end, those who knew what they were getting into will be entirely satisfied.

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3. Kristy

Like Girl House, Kristy is an easily forgotten film that really shouldn't be missed. By far one of the scarier indie films out there, the filmmakers make the most of their thinly conceptualized story following a girl hunted down on her empty campus. Like an expanded The Strangers, Kristy features incredibly tense and horrifying moments, masks that'll make you deepen into your seat and a lead character who'll win you over. This movie brings you along the entire campus that proves to be quite isolated during a Thanksgiving recess. Kristy should not go unseen. It's an action-packed thriller with plenty of scares and fierce moments to enthrall even the most desensitized viewer.

1. Scream 2 

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While the original Scream made high school students, well, scream, the follow up to the massively successful slasher, Scream 2 followed our survivors to a different locale; this time, a college campus. By far one of the best horror sequels around, Scream 2 builds the mythology of Ghostface as we meet a new killer and some new kills, all while witnessing the growth of a heroin in Sidney Prescott. Scream 2 makes full use of its expansive setting; perfectly capturing the ins-and-outs of the winding corridors, large lecture halls and basement facilities that make universities so unsettling. Scream 2 showcases just how lonely a populated campus can be- how even surrounded by peers and professors, a yell (or scream) for help, is more like a tree falling in the woods.

Best in Show: Cannibal Families (Pt. II of II)



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5. Mutants (Hills Have Eyes)

Looking specifically at the critically panned but revitalized remake, The Hills Have Eyes is the kind of gory mid-2000s horror film that had the ability to scare viewers with its unrelenting nature, even if the quality wasn't necessarily there. The mutants at the center of The Hills Have Eyes were so painstakingly prevalent growing up that everyone knew the movie and everyone was afraid of it happening to them. Even though it pushed far into the fantastical, the Hills Have Eyes felt like something that could happen to you and your friends or family, a true testament to the somewhat shallow, but effective film. 

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4. Hannibal Lecter (Silence of the Lambs)

Like We Are What We Are, the cannibal at the center of Silence of the Lambs is even scarier given his subtly. Add on the insane intelligence and trickery and Hannibal Lecter becomes one of horror's most horrifying cannibals. He's easily one of the most unsettling additions to the subgenre and even though he isn't the most physically aggressive, his ability to sweep into the minds of those he interacts with is unparalleled. Sure Buffalo Bill is scary, but the true nightmare of Silence of the Lambs is Lecter. This movie deserves extra props for all of the critical success it received on top of being a horror-thriller.

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3. The Natives (King Kong)

Say what you will about remakes and new adaptions, but the Jack Black-starring King Kong gave viewers some of the most nightmare-inducing cannibals of modern horror. When the young girl bites into Black's character's hand I literally lurched out of my seat and had bad dreams for days. There's something about the way the tribe melds in and out of their home structures that makes this group of Skull Island natives especially scary. While King Kong isn't an obvious choice for the horror genre, this movie is actually filled with plenty of terrifying parts - it helps that the opening scenes feature some truly scary cannibals.

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2. Amazonian Tribe (Green Inferno)

Directly inspired by Cannibal Holocaust, Green Inferno is a sickening film with truly scary antagonists. Following a group of social justice warriors attempting to save the rainforest, Green Inferno is a survival film that transcends into absolute chaos. After their plane goes down, the college students are captured by a previously unknown and especially lethal Amazonian tribe and things get very, very disturbing. Featuring some truly nasty scenes and blood curdling deaths, Green Inferno provides plenty of reasons for the audience to turn around and gag. Green Inferno didn't receive that warm of a reception upon release and many viewers saw it as a cheap knock-off, but it undoubtedly made a name for itself because of its splattering death scenes and crazed tribe of cannibals.

1.  The Sawyers (Texas Chainsaw Massacre)

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Perhaps the most potent and iconic of all cannibals is the Sawyer family at the center of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre franchise. Whether discussing the originals, the reboots or even the additional reboots that followed, it is undeniable that this family of rotating characters is so disturbingly unhinged that they can set fear into even the strongest horror fanatics. The Sawyers are the type of hillbillies that have little to no reason behind their actions; their lack of morals and human decency, their willingness to showcase their wrongdoings and gloat all make for horrific chaos worthy of the top spot.