Top 25 Horror Movies of the 1970s

Here is a list of the Top 25 Horror movies of the 1970s.  The Horror Syndicate’s panel of horror fans voted on a lot of movies from each decade.  These are the top 25 from the 1970s.  These films were judged in five different categories on a scale of 1 to 10 and the scores were added up and put in the order from 25 to 1.  The number 25 movie has the lowest score, where 1 has the highest.

This list is going to be a yearly list and if you think we missed something, please let us know.  We are always looking for ways to improve our lists.  Maybe next year you can be on the panel to judge.

The 1970s were a big decade for horror movies, between Grindhouse features and most of top 10 type classics, it was a decade of change.  It seems every decade offers something a little different.  The 1930s and 40s we saw a lot of classic monsters and Gothic style movies.  The 1950s were the Atomic age of horror, bleeding into the 1960s.  The 1960s were a mixed bag, we had the Atomic age, Gothic Horror thanks to Hammers, Thrillers like Psycho and the birth of the new age with films like Rosemary’s Baby and Night of the Living Dead.

The 1970s gave us something kind of different.  We saw Italian Giallos pick up their pace, Gorey horror movies pop up and the Slasher genre’s birth.

So let us dig right in to this list.  Don’t forget to let us know.  We do have two other lists for you to check out.

All of our lists

Top 15 Horror Films of the 1990s

25. The Wicker Man (1973)

wickerman

24. It’s Alive (1974)

its-alive-baby

23. The Dunwich Horror (1970)

Dunwich-Horror

22. The Town That Dreaded Sundown (1976)

 

DVD_the-town-that-dreaded-sundown_t658

21. Bay of Blood (1971)

Bava_7

20. The Last House on the Left (1972)lasthouseleft-b

 

19. Salem’s Lot (1979)

11

18. Alice, Sweet Alice (1976)

alice-sweet-alice-remake

17. The Brood (1979)

TITLE: BROOD, THE ¥ PERS: HINDS, CINDY ¥ YEAR: 1979 ¥ DIR: CRONENBERG, DAVID ¥ REF: BRO023AL ¥ CREDIT: [ THE KOBAL COLLECTION / NEW WORLD ]

16. The Hills Have Eyes (1977)

the-hills-have-eyes-part-ii

15. Black Christmas (1974)

black-christmas-pic-3

14. Deep Red (1975)

deep-red

13. The Amityville Horror (1979)

Amityville-Horror-The-1979-DI

12. Phantasm (1979)

phantasm5-1

11. Zombi 2 (1979)

zombi2-eyesplinter

10. Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978)

16539

9. Suspiria (1977)

suspiria-photo-52021fa69d731

8. Carrie (1976)

carrie-1976-5

7. The Omen (1976)

omen1

6. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)

TCSM-4

5. Dawn of the Dead (1978)

dawnofthedead3

4. Halloween (1978)

halloween-1978-michael-meyers

3. The Exorcist (1973)

exorcist-blair-armsspread-700x300

2. Jaws (1975)

lead_960

1.Alien (1979)

Alien-xenomorph

So, what do you think of this list?  What did we miss?  Where do these rank in the Top 100 of All-time?  Let us know on Facebook or Twitter.

 

About Ray Marek III 699 Articles
I have been watching horror films since I was 6 years old. The story, one Saturday night, my mom and I were watching movies and she fell asleep on the couch. We had the channel set on HBO and the movie we were watching ended and the next one, A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy’s Revenge. This was some time in 1986. I watched then entire film, I was sitting on the edge of my seat. When my mom woke, she asked me what just ended and I told her, “Freddy”. That was all I talked about for weeks and finally she broke down and rented more horror films for me. She rented, the Texas Chainsaw Massacre part 2, Re-Animator, Friday the 13th VI: Jason Lives and Halloween II. I watched all and fell in love with horror films forever. 5 Horror Films to Watch Inferno (1980) A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) The Beyond (1981) Friday the 13th VI: Jason Lives (1986) Horror of Dracula (1958)