10 Great Horror Movie Directors Of All Time (5 Classic & 5 Modern)
"Horror films don't create fear. They release it".
-Wes Craven
The following are the masters and crafters of the best movies the genre has to offer. Divided into categories you will behold what has made them household dwellers and what has made them carve their names deep into the horror panorama.
Classic: Dario Argento
Most popular one: Suspiria
Hell House recommendation: Deep Red
Underdog: Opera
Dario Argento not only can but must be considered as one of the pioneers and fathers of Giallo (subgenre that I have addressed before in the 10 Best Subgenres In Horror Movies) and in spite of this, his best and most renowned film does not even belong to that category; that is how great the Italian was.
Argento's approach to horror was elegant and extremely avant-garde. His purpose was to provide emotion and visual delight rather than accuracy or perfect execution. That is why movies like Opera, Inferno o Suspiria can be laughed at and revered and praised at the same time. In addition, his Le tre madri trilogy (Opera, Suspiria and The Mother of Tears) is for Italian horror what The Godfather is for drama.
Modern: Ti West
Most popular one: Pearl
Hell House recommendation: The Sacrament
Underdog: The House Of The Devil
Ti West's recognition and status tended to be more oriented to the cult classic purview (The Innkeepers, The House Of The Devil, The Sacrament). Once two thirds of his X trilogy were released (Pearl and X) his catalogue was hurled onto the first line of horror cinema.
His obsession for classic horror films is not only inspirational for his movies but rather palpable and executional. Take for instance The House Of The Devil or X. The essence of old and classic horror lingers on them quite noticeably. Furthermore, add his segment in V/H/S, Second Honeymoon, and you get an already extraordinary career which might get better once MaXXXine hits the theaters.
Classic: John Carpenter
Most popular one: Halloween
Hell House recommendation: The Thing
Underdog: In The Mouth Of Madness
I have previously stated my devotion to Carpenter's body of work by considering him as the greatest horror movie director of all time. "What are his credentials?" You may ask. Well, throw into the mix the best Halloween movie ever (Halloween) with perhaps the most iconic horror killer (Michael Myers) and one of the most recognizable soundtracks (composed by the man himself).
Not only that, The Thing can be brought up when discussing the best horror remake in existence. Moreover, In The Mouth Of Madness is the finest depiction of Cosmic Horror that can be found. Not to mention the impressive Halloween III: Season Of The Witch soundtrack and a couple of very decent and enjoyable movies (The Fog, They Live). The one. The only. The classic.
Modern: Jordan Peele
Most popular one: Get Out
Hell House recommendation: Nope
Underdog: Us
I am deeply grateful for the mere existence of Nope; that movie alone would have been enough to ensure Jordan Peele a spot in this list. However, the guy has delivered three of the most innovative and revered horror films not only in modern times but ever.
By addressing social issues and with creative premises, Jordan Peele gained critical and commercial success. Ask anyone the best horror movies in 2017, 2019 and 2022, years in which Get Out, Us and Nope were released respectively, and it is very likely that those three movies will top most people's list. I am curious about what he can create and direct in the future; so far he has not missed a shot. Not many directors are in the position of saying that regardless of the number of movies they have directed.
Classic: Wes Craven
Most popular one: A Nightmare On Elm Street
Hell House recommendation: The Last House On The Left
Underdog: The Serpent And The Rainbow
Wes Craven is the equivalent of Steven Spielberg for horror cinema; he has bestowed popcorn classic that gross as blockbusters and set up franchises (A Nightmare On Elm Street, Scream). Nonetheless, just like Spielberg, he knows how to get in depth to personal and nasty territory.
Due to the powerhouses that are Freddy and Ghostface's installments outstanding films like The Hills Have Eyes, The Serpent And The Rainbow or the infamous and horrifying The Last House On The Leftt, whose "It's only a movie" trailer will forever go down as one of the most iconic pieces in horror, tend to be slept on by the majority. Totally pitiful taking into consideration that that is the best part of his whole catalogue.
Modern: Ari Aster
Most popular one: Midsommar
Hell House recommendation: Hereditary
Underdog: The Strange Thing About The Johnsons
Before seeing Nope, and when Beau Is Afraid was on the works with a couple of information leakings, I was quite sure Ari Aster was the director with the highest potential in mainstream cinema. Now, after having seen both of them, a tie with Jordan Peele is in order.
In no particular way I state that Beau Is Afraid is substandard; on the contrary, the film is delightfully shot and crafted. It is also capable of conveying lots of different emotions; we get drama, comedy and horror. I mean, not even a nymphomaniac would look at a three-meter-tall penis in an atic with pleasure. Guaranteed is the fact that it will soon enough become a cult classic, a very divisive one. Oh, and it almost slipped my mind; his other two movies are Hereditary and Midsommar. Do I need to say a word about them?
Classic: Alfred Hitchcock
Most popular one: Psycho
Hell House recommendation: Vertigo
Underdog: The Birds
Not a single director in the list has the scope and influence that Hitchcock had during his directing prime; one has to be clear and state this because the greater part of people hail him as an all time great with a very solid filmography and, though true, his peaks were great and his lows were more in number and each low has within itself dozens of movies.
The so-called Master Of Suspense bestowed three of the films upon which the majority of modern and classic horror films lean: The Birds, Vertigo and Psycho. Miraculous is the fact that after more than thirty movies directed he provided the aforementioned three gems and earned the recognition he deserved during his peak years before leaning on horror. Hitchcock was revolutionary in horror cinema and that is why he is the most studied and admired movie director in the field,
Modern: Robert Eggers
Most popular one: The Witch
Hell House recommendation: The Lighthouse
Underdog: The Northman
I reminisce about seeing The Witch and leaving the theater in awe wondering if I had just seen the greatest horror movie ever. Every reviewable aspect in the movie other than the simple plot was top notch; the soundtrack is absurdly good, the leading performances are great and the atmosphere permeating the movie is dull, dense and overall very enjoyable.
Same thing can be said about his sophomore effort The Lighthouse; this psychological/cosmic horror film is one of the great releases in modern times. With The Northman he opted for covering different ground. Had he offered a regular horror movie (not that he was obligated to direct horror exclusively), he would have topped the (Un)holy trilogy of modern greats (alongside Jordan Peele and Ari Aster). He is still part of it, but I do consider that he needs to step into horror territory again in order to not lose his spot to Ti West. But that is mere and pure perception.
Classic: Sam Raimi
Most popular one: The Evil Dead 2
Hell House recommendation: The Evil Dead
Underdog: Drag Me To Hell
Sam Raimi does not possess the variety of movies that Craven or Carpenter do; he is not as influential as Hitchcock or Romero; and he is certainly not the most renowned director in this list. Why did he end up earning a main spot over other greats like Cronenberg, Romero, Hooper, Bava or Fulci? Easy answer. He has the greatest trilogy in horror history: The Evil Dead trilogy.
Beforehand I have posted and sung my praises on The Evil Dead; if the cabin in the woods plot is now a played out cliché in horror is because of Raimi's glorious and terrifying movie. The Evil Dead 2 is superior, more iconic and infinitely more quotable. It is less scary, though. And lastly, Army of Darkness was an excellent way to wrap up the trilogy on a high note. One cannot forget and underestimate a movie like Drag Me To Hell and even the ressemblances of horror in his great Spider-Man movies (the hospital scene after the first incident with Dr. Octopus, anyone?).
Modern: Karyn Kusama
Most popular one: Jennifer's Body
Hell House recommendation: The Invitation
Underdog: Her Only Living Son (segment from XX)
After being snubbed by Hollywood, Karyn Kusama did nothing but keep crafting and leading very promising and interesting movies. His catalogue might not be stacked, but number is not quality and with her that statement has been proven right.
With the likes of James Wan, Adam Wingard or Jennifer Kent Karyn manages to stand out providing very enjoyable and appealing films for both fans and critics (it was previously mentioned in the The Invitation was my favorite movie for a few years in a row, and the ever harsh Roger Ebert and some other stern critcs revered about Jennifer's Body). For these two films she was selected as one of the leader directors in the XX anthology movie. Despite the fierce competition in regard to the direction department, Kusama holds her ground and with Her Only Living Son she supplies one of the highest points in the film.
Bonus Classic: David Cronenberg
Most popular one: The Fly
Hell House recommendation: Videodrome
Underdog: Scanners
If you have ever seen or watched a movie and ended up mesmerized by the physical atrocities that you just witnessed (provided that the film is at least twenty five years old) it is very likely that the flick was directed by David Cronenberg. All people in this list can be considered masters at a specific department (e.g. Argento master of Giallo or Craven master of Slashers) but Cronenberg is the undisputed and incontrovertible master of Body Horror.
Out of all the immaculate and essential Body Horror classics, except for The Thing by John Carpenter, all of them belong to him (Scanners, Shivers, Videodrome, The Fly and even Naked Lunch, which is not a horror movie per se but can be and should be taken into consideration). His spot is more than assured when other great titles such as The Brood and The Dead Zone are thrown into the mix to showcase his vast repertoire.
Bonus Modern: James Wan
Most popular one: The Conjuring
Hell House recommendation: Saw
Underdog: Insidious
Among the many aspects that make James Wan one of the household names in horror, the most important one is that he can be considered the Wes Craven of his generation; the guy has launched the most commercially successful horror franchises in modern times (The Conjuring, Saw, Insidious).
Nonetheless, one has to be judgmental and mention that those three franchises (with the exception of The Conjuring, perhaps) lack quality and coherence as a whole. However, unassailable is the fact that the best movies from those franchises are the very first entries. Who directed those first entries? You guessed it right. Take into account the cult classic that is Dead Silence and you get the most recognizable mainstream career in horror cinema in recent times.
Honorable Mentions:
Classic:
- George A. Romero (Dawn Of The Dead, The Crazies, Night Of The Living Dead)
- Lucio Fulci (Zombi 2, E tu vivrai nel terrore! L'aldilà, Quella villa accanto al cimitero )
- Tobe Hooper (The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Poltergeist, Eaten Alive)
- James Whale (The Invisible Man, Bride Of Frankenstein, Frankenstein)
- William Friedkin (Bugs, The Exorcist)
Modern:
- Kiyoshi Kurosawa (Korei (Seance), Kairo (Pulse), Doppelganger)
- Jennifer Kent (The Babadook, The Nightingale)
- Kōji Shiraishi (Cult, Occult, Noroi: The Curse)
- Takashi Miike (Visitor Q, Audition)
- Adam Wingard (Phase I Clinical Trials (segment from V/H/S 2), You're Next, A Horrible Way To Die)
