Top Ten Horror Directors
Horror directors do not receive the credit that they are due outside of the core fans of their genre. However, the following ten horror directors have managed to breakthrough to the general public and have changed the way that we think about film. These are the top ten horror directors.
1. George A. Romero – The modern horror subgenre of zombie films would not exist if it was not for Romero’s original Living Dead films. Romero’s early work was scarier than other horror films in theaters at the time because his films offered neither a hope for redemption nor an explanation of what had gone wrong.
2. Clive Barker – Clive Barker is the only mainstream example of a horror novelist that was able to transition his own books into Hollywood films. His infamous Hellraiser characters have kept viewers awake for decades.
3. David Cronenberg – Cronenberg’s horror films are stirring and disturbing in a way that can haunt one’s mind for far longer than the typical Hollywood slasher. Some of his finest horror work (Videodrome, Dead Ringers) is also considered by many to be amongst the finest art films of the 20th century.
4. Rob Zombie – Zombie’s work might be too nihilistic for some viewers, but this director has gained a reputation for delivering well-crafted, brutal horror movies during the last 15 years.
5. Eli Roth – Roth’s Cabin Fever and Hostel are attributed with launching an entire subgenre with the world of horror films that took the basic premise of the classic slasher to a new twisted extreme.
6. Wes Craven – Craven’s more recent films may have been lackluster, but the films and characters he introduced to the horror genre earn him a place on this list. Craven is best known for the Nightmare on Elm Street slashers and the 1977 cult classic The Hills have Eyes.
7. John Carpenter – Few filmmakers have ever mastered the basic formula for a horror popcorn flick as well as John Carpenter. Films like Halloween, The Thing and Christine might not make audiences think, but his work from the 70s and 80s dominate the horror genre at the time.
8. Sam Raimi – Raimi may have branched off into other genres over the years, but he will always be best known for the unique mix of genuine horror and comedic timing that have made the Evil Dead series and Drag Me to Hell modern classics.
9. Alfred Hitchcock – Hitchcock was one of the first directors to place viewers inside the head of a horror film’s protagonist, and films like Psycho and The Birds were effective due to the intimate access we were granted to a character’s personal fears.
10. Roman Polanski – Polanski’s films are a prime example of why it is necessary to separate an artist’s work from his personal life. Polanski’s early horror films like Rosemary’s Baby and The Tenant showed audiences that some things are far scarier than monsters.
The genre of horror is about more than scaring audiences for a few cheap thrills. These ten directors are a few of the more recognizable directors that have taken themes that scare us most so that we could our fears right in the eye, and there is an inherent value in that process.
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This entry was posted on Saturday, October 2nd, 2010 at 12:48 pm and is filed under Movies. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.