My Top Ten Masters of Horror

Although I tend to think of horror movie directors as little more than the hired helm of a short term business, there are a few whose names crop up so regularly that they must be doing something right. Of course, there are many "hacks" whose names crop up just as regularly, but I'm not even going to go there.

For the purpose of this list, I'm going to give credit where it's due for being the least annoying bosses in the history of bosses, and arrange these "Masters of Horror" by the quantity and quality of their products which have entertained me over the years. Very few could ever be classed as auteurs, but make of them what you will.

By necessity, and the fact that the word "Masters" is a masculine noun, I'm going to confine my top ten to men. If you have a problem with that, get back in the kitchen!


1. John Carpenter

Halloween (1978)
The Fog (1980)
The Thing (1982)
Christine (1983)
In the Mouth of Madness (1994)

2. Wes Craven

The Hills Have Eyes (1977)

A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)

The Serpent and the Rainbow (1988)

The People Under the Stairs (1991)

3. Terence Fisher

The Curse of Frankenstein (1957)
Horror of Dracula (1958)
Frankenstein Created Woman (1967)

4. George A. Romero

Night of the Living Dead (1968)

Dawn of the Dead (1978)

Monkey Shines (1988)

5. Jacques Tourneur

Cat People (1942)
The Leopard Man (1943)
Curse of the Demon (1957)

6. Tobe Hooper

Salem's Lot (1979)

Poltergeist (1982)

Lifeforce (1985)

7. Roger Corman

Tales of Terror (1962)
The Haunted Palace (1963)
The Tomb of Ligeia (1964)

8. Lucky McKee

May (2002)

The Woods (2006)

The Woman (2011)

9. Rob Zombie

Halloween II (2009)

10. Clive Barker

Hellraiser (1987)

Agree? Disagree? I don't really care because these are my choices not yours.

Feel free to create your own "Top Ten Masters of Horror" on your own blog though.

It's Caturday! The Black Cat (2007)

If you've never seen this episode from the "Masters of Horror" TV series, now is your chance to make up for it with Anchor Bay Entertainment's YouTube channel. In case you're wondering, this is a completely free service which they have been providing for almost four years now. There are quite a few good movies on there but, since it's Caturday, it's time to get stuck in to some Edgar Allan Poe.

"The Black Cat, set in 1840 Philadelphia, has the great writer Edgar Allan Poe, struggling with alcoholism, writers block, as well as being out of ideas, short on cash, and tormented by his wife Virginia's black cat that will either destroy his life or inspire him to write one of his most famous stories."

Starring Jeffrey Combs as Edgar Allan Poe, "The Black Cat" is simply the best adaptation of the story to date. Poor Pluto (the cat not the stupid Disney dog) really goes through some horrible things so, if you're at all squeamish, you'd be better off not watching those bits. Keep with it though because there's a twist at the end which makes it all better.

As you may know, I bought a copy of this on DVD from a pawn shop only recently. I don't make a habit of buying crappy movies so you can trust my judgement.

If you want to buy your own DVD, and I highly recommend that you do for all the special features (including an audio commentary, making of documentaries, and even the script), click the picture below.

Happy Caturday!