We horror fans just love a good old-fashioned, gory slasher film, don’t we? Though opinions differ as to which was the “first” slasher, it seems like most agree they popped in the 1970s, with films such as Black Christmas, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre and Halloween leading the pack.
For the purposes of this particular list, we are sticking with the “bloodiest” and best, so we are leaving out both Black Christmas and Halloween. Even though both of these excellent films belong on a best slashers list, neither included much blood, so we acknowledge their service to the industry, but restrict them from this list.
With that done, let’s move on and give you our top ten list of scary, bloody slashers.
10. The Burning (1981)
Although this 1981 film was clearly riding the coat tails of Friday the 13th, it’s a pretty decent movie. The plotline is typical of horror movies set at a summer camp, dealing with Cropsy, the cranky camp caretaker. A group of campers decide to play a prank on him one night, and end up accidentally causing his cabin to catch on fire. As a result, he is severely burned, and hospitalized.
Five years later, he is released, and goes on a killing rampage, ending up at Camp Stonewater. As you might guess, he starts to kill off the counsellors at the camp. What makes The Burning stand out from the crowd is the cast of actors, which includes very early performances by Jason Alexander (Seinfeld), Fisher Stevens (Short Circuit) and Holly Hunter (Raising Arizona). Their acting games are on point, but we also care about them, something that is lacking in many paint-by-the-numbers slashers. These counsellors are genuinely concerned about the kids they are overseeing, and willing to risk their lives to save them.
Creative and clever kills abound, and this film stands the test of time. The Burning is streaming on Tubi.
9. High Tension (2005)
Generally considered to be part of the French Extremity group of films, High Tension (AKA Switchblade Romance) was one of director Alexandre Aja’s earliest efforts, and was very graphic and disturbing for its time. Though the US release included plenty of cuts from the original French version, it was still pretty strong stuff for 2005.
College friends Marie and Alex travel to visit Alex’s parents during a school break, and that night the house is invaded by a brutal killer. He graphically slaughters Alex’s parents (and more disturbingly her much younger brother) before abducting her, and Marie, who has been hiding, secretly follows him to rescue her friend.
This killer will stop at nothing to keep Alex in his grasp, and the body count rises as he and Marie play a deadly game of cat and mouse, while one heck of a twist plays out.
High Tension is streaming on Plex.
8. Tourist Trap (1979)
This nasty little gem was released in 1979, during the heyday of slashers, and features a bat**it crazy, incredibly creepy scene within the first ten minutes. A group of friends on a road trip are sidelined by a flat tire, and Woody sets off on foot to find a gas station. He finds one, but soon regrets it when he becomes trapped in a back room filled with creepy mannequins. Objects start flying around the room, eventually causing him great bodily harm.
The rest of the group end up at a tourist trap (thus, the film’s title) consisting of animated wax figures and operated by kindly (but also weird) Mr. Slausen (Chuck Connors). Tourist Trap features some very effective goose-bump raising scenes involving mannequins, along with some great bloody kills and a crazy storyline, and is a largely unsung slasher.
Tourist Trap is currently streaming on Tubi.
7. A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)
An iconic slasher flick released in 1984, A Nightmare on Elm Street was one of the first films released by New Line Cinema. Most horror fans know it, but many may have forgotten that the first ANOES is genuinely scary. As the sequels began to arrive, they relied more on campy material (such as Freddy’s puns and quips), but there are several chilling scenes in the original.
Consider the scene when Nancy is nodding off in class, and sees her dead friend Tina’s body in a body bag, being dragged down the school hallways and leaving a trail of blood behind. Tina’s death scene features some great special effects for the time period, as does Glen’s.
We all know the plotline by now: A group of teens begin having bad dreams about a badly scarred man wearing a striped sweater and sporting knives for fingers. But these dreams are very real, and Freddy Krueger can somehow step into their sleeping subconscious and kill them.
A Nightmare on Elm Street is available to rent on a number of streaming platforms, including YouTube and Prime.
6. My Bloody Valentine (1981)
The late 70s and early 80s were definitely the golden age of violent slashers, and this 1981 Canadian horror movie was one of the best. So bloody and brutal were many of the kills, nine minutes had to be cut before its release in the US.
In the mining town of Valentine Bluffs, the annual Valentine dance has been reinstated after 20 years. That’s when a tunnel explosion caused a collapse, trapping several miners. Only one of them survived (guess what he ate to sustain himself), and the trauma he suffered caused him to begin murdering people, leaving a note that if they ever held the dance again, he would return to kill more.
Of course, a group of crazy kids decide to move the Valentine’s party into the mines, and bloody chaos ensues. My Bloody Valentine has plenty of gruesome kills, including human heart removal, and is a fun, gory watch.
My Bloody Valentine can be streamed on Pluto TV or rented on multiple streaming platforms.
5. You're Next (2011)
This home invasion/slasher mashup was shot in four weeks on a slim budget of $1 million, and proved that you don’t need a huge amount of money to shoot a very effective fun and action-packed horror movie. Once the action starts up, it doesn’t stop until the ending (which is also pretty epic).
A somewhat dysfunctional family gets together at their vacation home, with the adult “kids” bringing along their significant others. During a very tense dinner at the home, a group of intruders wearing animal masks launch a sudden attack, shooting arrows at them. As the family members try to stay alive, and it turns out one of the significant others has survival training.
This is another violent, bloody film, bolstered by the character of survivalist Erin, who puts quite a hurtin’ on the intruders. There is also a pretty great twist, and an appearance by horror icon Barbara Crampton.
You’re Next can be rented on streaming platforms including YouTube and Apple TV.
4. Sinister (2012)
This 2012 Scott Derrickson film was a huge financial success, filmed on a $3 million budget and grossing $87 million.
True crime writer Ellison moves his wife and two kids into a home without telling them that it was the site of a gruesome family murder. When tooling around in the attic, Ellison finds several super 8 film reels (labelled as home movies) and a projector. Upon watching the films, he discovers they are basically snuff films depicting some very upsetting murders of families (including children). Instead of reporting the films to the authorities, he keeps them a secret, and his mental health begins to suffer.
You know how I have described several of the films on this list as “fun”? Yeah, Sinister is decidedly NOT a fun horror movie. It’s dark and bleak, mostly due to the realistic home movie films Ellison watches. There are also some awesome scenes involving ghostly children that Ellison can’t see and a horrifying figure known as “Mr. Boogie.”
Sinister is available on MovieSphere.
3. Psycho (1960)
Released in 1960, Alfred Hitchock’s most iconic horror film may not truly be considered “bloody” (it was filmed in black and white), but I am including it mainly due to the infamous shower scene. Although the blood is not red, it is present, and that scene remains one of the most intense, brutal onscreen killings in horror.
Psycho is a master class in storytelling, building suspense, and inducing goosebumps.
Norman Bates operates a roadside motel, and lives in a large imposing home that overlooks the establishment with his mother. When Marion Crane stays at the Bates Motel after stealing a large amount of cash from her employer, she is subsequently stabbed to death in the shower.
Shortly thereafter, a private detective tracks Marion to the motel, followed by Marion’s sister Lila and boyfriend Sam. Norman steadfastly denies knowing anything about Marion’s whereabouts, but soon enough his story begins to unravel as the death count grows.
Psycho is currently streaming on Netflix.
2. Scream (1996)
When Scream released in December of 1996, nobody expected it to become a huge success (they were wrong). It wasn’t considered a good idea to release a slasher movie during the holidays, but Scream ended up grossing more than $173 million on a $15 million budget. It broke the norms in several different ways, including killing of its biggest star (Drew Barrymore) in the first 15 minutes of its run time.
While violent and bloody, it also included a lot of self-referential humor, which was not the usual MO of slasher movies at the time. But staying outside of the box worked magic for Scream, which featured a great whodunnit storyline, solid actors and characters we were rooting for, and young, hip humor. It was a brilliant move to make the discussion of horror tropes an integral part of the story too.
The plot is simple enough: A masked killer is calling people on the phone and taunting them before viciously slaughtering carefully chosen victims. With most of the victims/potential victims being teenagers, they of course respond by planning a big party, which is like the county fair for “Ghostface.”
Scream is available to stream on Max.
1. The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974)
Is it super bloody? No. But most who have watched this 1974 horror masterpiece probably look back on the experience and think it was. The subject matter certainly bloody enough, and the death scenes were uncomfortably shocking (especially for its time).
With themes of grave robbing and cannibalism, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre has earned its #1 place at the table when it comes to violent, bloody slasher films.
A group of friends travelling in a van make the mistake of picking up a hitchhiker, who turns out to be a bit crazy. When they finally get rid of him, they end making another ill-advised decision: let’s explore this old house in the middle of nowhere.
That’s where the group meets Leatherface and his highly dysfunctional family. This film is a harrowing watch, with that blasted chainsaw getting whipped out unexpectedly at every turn. As the body count grows, poor Sally is the last woman standing, and while she does make it out alive, we know without a doubt that her sanity may not have been so lucky.
It’s a disturbing story that feels dirty and gritty throughout, and it will stick with you for a while after watching it.
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre can be streamed on Tubi, Plex and Amazon Prime.