Scary movies for a first time horror movie watcher...

[kerska]

So I'm dating this girl for about a month and she's never watched a horror movie. We're pretty much polar opposites and she's very prissy and is legitimately scared of horror movies, however after muscling through a couple of her chick flicks I've convinced her to watch a horror movie with me.

Sooo I want to do this right. I don't want to put something on that's so insanely scary that she'll never watch one with me again, but I don't want to put something gory or cheesy on that is just too ridiculous that has the same end result. I need some suggestions as to some good horror movies that aren't too over the top, but still have a good horror effect.

I was thinking of staying kinda mainstream and watching something like The Ring, but was curious if anyone else had some good recommendations...?

 

[MFB]

Start with 70's/80's and work forward basically. The older horror movies are to us - 90's/later kids - rather cheesy and we basically laugh at them so for a first timer she might be a little uneasy with them but overall she shouldn't be losing her shit like you made her watch all the Paranormal Activities back-to-back-to-back-to-back (phew!)

Cabin in the Woods might also be a good one since it's a "classic" horror flick but done in the now with actors she'll recognize and not go "Oh my look at how young Jamie Lee Curtis is!"

 

[Leuchty]

Yeah...

Watch the Ring with her and then use your cell/mobile phone to ring the house phone...

BOOM!

 

[flint757]

I know for first timers possession movies are a big no no as well as ghost movies. It seems like they freak out quite easily.

You could try a psychological thriller instead of an outright horror movie.

 

[The Grief Hole]

As gory as it is, try watching the Cronenburg remake of The Fly. There is some genuine emotion in it and the ending is actually extremely sad. That might open her up to thinking Horror movies are worth watching.......

It may aslo put her off ever wanting kids. Win/win situation.

 

[vstealth]

The ring is a pretty good first horror movie, one of the first I remember watching after not wanting to see a horror movie again after watching signs when it first came out.

 

[Marv Attaxx]

Start with the classics:
- Scream
- Nightmare on Elmstreet
- Friday the 13th
etc.

NEVER watch The Thing with a girl!!
NEVER!!!!

 

[Leuchty]

Girl with the dragon tattoo?

Not really horror though...

Or the human centipede?

 

[mcleanab]

To this day John Carpenter's THE PRINCE OF DARKNESS gives me the willies...

A little dated (80's), but not a lot of "boo!" scary moments, more sustained creepy type stuff.

 

[wankerness]

Start with the classics:
- Scream
- Nightmare on Elmstreet
- Friday the 13th
etc.

Those are kinda bad recs - Friday the 13th is pretty terrible besides the gore effects, and Scream won't make much sense to someone that hasn't seen all the movies it's referencing. Nightmare on Elm Street is DECENT but the acting and effects are REALLY bad and it would not help to make her think horror movies are any good. Everyone I know who grew up after about 1990 just laughs when they see stuff like the "Freddy with long arms" bit.

Basically I'm saying that if she's like most "KIDS THESE DAYS" she will just go OMG THIS IS SO LAAAAAAAME with anything made before about 1995. The fact you say she watches "chick flicks" further suggests this would be the case, unless you mean she watches like, Gone with the Wind and Casablanca instead of awful movies starring Jennifer Aniston or Katherine Heigl.

"Cabin in the Woods" is also not a good rec imo cause it is so loaded with references to other horror movies and a ton of the humor is dependent on knowledge of genre conventions.

"The Fly" (the 80s version) is probably my favorite horror movie but it absolutely should not be the first thing she watches if she gets grossed out easily cause it is REALLY gory even by today's standards. If you think she can handle the gore effects, then yes it's a great rec cause it's a really well-made movie with one of the extremely few romances that work in a horror movie.

It's hard to give you recs without knowing what she really likes, besides "chick flicks." Here are some with an explanation:

"The Ring" (US remake) - This is a pretty good horror movie and it doesn't have much in the way of gory bits, but if you think she'd get freaked out too easily it might be too much cause it's pretty scary by movie standards. The first time I saw it I was very stoned and when the ghost came out of the TV at the end I was like "OMG I DON'T WANT TO LOOK AT HER FACE" and freaked out.

"The Descent" - This is a very good horror movie, it has good acting and it's about a group of women with no men (which is very rare in the very very sexist world of horror movies) but it's also very scary. The first half has a ton of really creepy stuff that will mortify anyone who's scared of the dark or is claustrophobic, and the second half has a bunch of things jumping out of the dark and a lot of gore. Judge accordingly!

"Final Destination" - It's not a very good movie at all, but it's a pretty fun one and I don't think there's any way it would freak her out. It might also help to make her enjoy gruesome violence since most of it in this movie is pretty funny. Part 2 is a lot better but it wouldn't make a lot of sense without seeing the first one first, unfortunately.

Hard to say without knowing specific stuff she likes!

 

[Manurack]

Insidious.
Now that was fucking scary! She'll cuddle up to you in no time lol

 

[The Grief Hole]

To this day John Carpenter's THE PRINCE OF DARKNESS gives me the willies...

A little dated (80's), but not a lot of "boo!" scary moments, more sustained creepy type stuff.

Yes! Great movie!

 

[VBCheeseGrater]

I like "The Descent" recomendation. But no EVIL DEAD???? Classic horror movie.

Maybe not best for first timer (Evil Dead 2 might be) but you and her both MUST see Evil Dead. It's the perfect mix of campiness, gore, and shock

 

[kerska]

Maybe not best for first timer (Evil Dead 2 might be) but you and her both MUST see Evil Dead. It's the perfect mix of campiness, gore, and shock

Oh yeah trust me at some point Evil Dead will be shown, but I was thinking that would be later on after she's seen a few horror movies and kinda more understands the whole B horror/campy kind of stuff.

I'll probably start out with something like Scream or slasherish or something that's still kinda grounded in reality because like other people said, ghost/possession type stuff may be too extreme at first...anything I put on is going to freak her out, so I'm thinking if I stick with slasher/jumpy kind of stuff it may be a good start.

And for the record she's into a lot of period piece movies like 1800's Pride and Predjudice type of stuff.

 

[Manurack]

I like "The Descent" recomendation. But no EVIL DEAD???? Classic horror movie.

Maybe not best for first timer (Evil Dead 2 might be) but you and her both MUST see Evil Dead. It's the perfect mix of campiness, gore, and shock

The Descent is awesome!

And you can't go wrong with JEEPERS CREEPERS!
that movie totally scared my girlfriend lol

 

[VBCheeseGrater]

And for the record she's into a lot of period piece movies like 1800's Pride and Predjudice type of stuff.

better take her to see Lincoln then, GREAT flick!

 

[wankerness]

And for the record she's into a lot of period piece movies like 1800's Pride and Predjudice type of stuff.

If she likes English period stuff then I'd say "Woman in Black." Either the original or the remake with Harry Potter from last year are both pretty solid, the new one has a lot more horror stuff and special effects. It is loaded with jump scares, it's pretty fun and it's only a PG-13 so I don't think it would freak her out TOO much! I'd compare its tone to something like "Drag me to Hell," without the open sense of humor. Speaking of which, Drag me to Hell is another really fun one that's just a ton of jump scares and it's very fun.

Dead Alive is a great first horror movie to show someone if they aren't affected by (intentionally cartoony) gore. I had a girlfriend who was absolutely petrified by anything that had jump scares in it or suspense, but she LOVED dead alive and just laughed through the whole thing. It's pretty much the most gory movie ever, but it's like a better version of the Evil Dead 1/2. Great, great movie. I'd always recommend it over those movies even though Evil Dead 1/2 are both great too.

For slashers I still think the only really good one is the original "Halloween." It doesn't have any blood or any retardedly loud strikes on the soundtrack whenever something jumps out or anything so a lot of young people are like LOL DUMB but I think if she's not overly cynical it would be pretty effective.

 

[glassmoon0fo]

What's the goal, to make a girl like horror movies or to help this girl like YOU? Pick something scary, but with a little humor and a badass male lead she can put you in place of. Slither gets my vote, cheesy or not. Nathan Fillion is the shit.

 

[kerska]

What's the goal, to make a girl like horror movies or to help this girl like YOU?

We're a lot the same personality wise although we have very little common interests, but for whatever reason it works between us so we've been kinda taking turns showing each other stuff that we're into, and I'm into horror movies.

So I guess if there was a goal it would be to maybe warm her up to them a bit so if something good comes out into theaters I might be able to convince her to come along with me.

 

[synrgy]

While I'm suddenly hard pressed to think of specific examples, I think there are plenty of 'scary movies' out there in which nothing really happens. I'd go for something that leans closer to thriller than horror. Kind of like dipping one's toe into the deep end before diving in.

Big no-no to any of the 'torture porn' stuff like the Saw or Hostel movies, and probably an equally big no-no to the creepier ghost/supernatural stuff like The Grudge or The Ring. (The Grudge is one of my favorites, but I wouldn't suggest it to someone who's not into scary movies, yet.)

I can't believe I'm actually doing this, but I feel like in this one extremely special case, it may be worth suggesting an M. Night Shyamalan flick; either Sixth Sense or Signs. Neither are notably scary or really qualify as horror, but both have enough star-power and story to keep her interested. Mind you, I really don't care for either film in the grand scheme of things, but the trick is trying to expose her to the genre without immediately turning her off.

Maybe going with a comedy angle, you could try something like Army of Darkness?

If all else fails, go with Predator. Noone can ever go wrong watching Predator. Best movie ever.