I am NOT a fan of blood and gore horror. I hate people hiding around corners and jumping out, or axes, or werewolves or that kind of horror.
What I love are the more ‘psychological' thrillers that cross over into horror. And I love things that *could be true in real life*.
My absolute favorite of these is The Medusa Touch. It came out in 1978 and starred Richard Burton and Lee Remick. It's the story of a man, a novelist and a telekinetic, who causes disasters simply by thinking about them. The film is eerie, and scary, and taps into the fact that we don't know half of what the brain is capable of.
I still get shivers at the final scene, but I won't give that away!
FROM IMDB
John Morlar is watching the British television broadcast when an anchorman states that American astronauts are trapped in orbit around the moon. Suddenly someone in Morlar's room picks up a figurine and strikes him on the head repeatedly. His blood splatters the television screen. A French police inspector, Brunel, arrives at Morlar's apartment to begin an investigation. At first, he thinks Morlar is dead, but soon he hears him breathe.
At the hospital, Morlar is hooked up to life support systems, one machine in particular monitors the activity of his battered brain. Brunel discovers that Morlar has been in psychological analysis because of his history of being witness to many disasters, other people's disasters. Dr. Zonfeld, Morlar's analyst, explains that Morlar's delusions had begun when he was a child.
He believed that he had caused a hated nanny's death. Morlar's childhood delusions were reinforced at a resort when he overheard his parents discussing him with disapproval. When his parents strolled on top of a cliff, Morlar watched as the family car suddenly pushed them off the cliff to their deaths.
One evening, Brunel pores over the mysteries of Morlar's diary and through his scrapbook of disastrous events. Gradually, Brunel begins to develop an opinion of what Morlar was like and begins to wonder if he is chasing a murderer or a victim.
For your chance to win a $20 Amazon Gift Card tell me about your favorite scary movie.
Don't forget to stop by the other authors taking part in the Scare Trail for your chance to win more prizes!
Angel Martinez – $25 Pride Publishing Gift Certificate
V.L. Locey – $10 Redbubble Gift Card
Jordan Castillo Price – Ebook or Audio of Reader's choice plus JCP Swag Pack
J.L. Merrow – Ebook of both newly re-released werewolf novels Camwolf & Midnight In Berlin.
Rick R. Reed – Ebook of A Demon Inside from DSP Publications
K.A. Merikan – Paperback
Charlie Richards – $20 Amazon Gift Card
Amber Kell – $20 Amazon Gift Card
Eli Easton – $20 Amazon Gift Card and a second prize of ebook copies of Gothika #1-4
Charlie Cochet – 3 x $10 Amazon Gift Cards
Meredith Russell – $10 Amazon Gift Card
Alex Jane – $10 Amazon Gift Card and Ebook from back catalogue.
Stormy Glenn – $20 Amazon Gift Card and backlist ebook.
Annabelle Jacobs – $10 Amazon Gift Card and backlist ebook
Maea
Technically it is not my favorite but it gives me a quite scare and almost did not sleep for 7 days is The RING (japanese version). But I enjoy watching Tremors series and Final Destination series.
LaineMaea@yahoo.com
Joscelyn Smith
A Haunting in Connecticut is my favorite scary movie, this family moves into this house that used to be a mortuary. Unfortunately the mortician was observed with the occult and he buried bodies in the walls if the freaking house, what makes it so scary it the fact that it’s supposed to be based on a true story.
Maea
Technically this movie is not my favorite but it gave me a quite scare and did not get enough sleep for 7 days: The RING (japanese version). Though I enjoyed watching Final Destination series and Tremors series.
LaineMaea@yahoo.com
Gabriella
Hi! Thanks for this awesome giveaway!
I’m the opposite, I hate psychological thrillers. If I have to chose I’d rather watch bloody and gory movies. But I can count on one hand the amount of scary movies I watched in my life. I’m absolutely NOT a fan! :DDDD
The worst of the worst for me was The Grudge https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0391198/?ref_=nv_sr_1
I think I was 13-14 when my sister and her best friend took me to watch it. (I never forgave them)
I hated the sounds that creature made. I’ll be honest, I didn’t actually see much of it, cuz I closed my eyes. XD
Sharon S
My favorite scary movie in The Exorcist. I remember when it came out in theaters, because I was underage and snuck in to see it. YIKES! Scared the crap outta me for weeks. 🙂
SHERYL HOWARD
Hocus Pocus is still one of my all time favorites. It’s a fun twist on a witch movie.
Laurel
I’m not a big fan of scary movies. Lol. My favorite “scary movie” is The Village. An Amish-style community lives cut off from the outside world by the woods, in which they believe dangerous creatures exist. They have an uneasy truce with the creatures – if they stay out of the woods, they are left unharmed. When one of the young villagers becomes ill, Ivy ignores the elders of the village to make and makes a trip to the next town to fetch medicine to save Lucius life after he was stabbed by Noah.
Chris Roberts
I hate scary movies. The only one I watched was when I was a kid and it was called It. Not scared of clowns but I don’t watch scary movies because of it.
Tria David
Mine was the Omen. Not the remake but the original It was scary but somewhat realistic for me.
Monique
Alfred Hitchcock Psycho. He was the master of mental horror.
Youssef
Well, I love spooky movies, and I can’t possibly say which one is my favourite but I love jeepers creepers, a nightmare on elm street, halloween and the conjuring.
amanda logan
One of my favorite scare movies is house of 1000 corpses. It’s scary and demented. But what I like most is the fact that each and everything that happyin the movie could actually be real in reality.
KP
My idea of scary is Hocus Pocus!
Madeleine
No favorite scary movie! BecUse I hate scary mocies. They scare the crap out of me.
Chris Macgregor
Like you, I don’t like gore or jump scares so I almost never watch those movies. But I did watch the movie Seven. And while i can appreciate how well done the movie was and the story was amazing, I will never get some of those images out of my head. 🙂
niki driscoll
The seventh sign. Scared the crap out of me. I could not look in a mirror for years.
LeeAnn Pratt
The original Carrie with Sissy Spacek.
Eve Rae
I don’t think I have a favourite as I avoid them. I am too much of a chicken!!
Kathy J in Ellicott City
I like you don’t really like scary movies. I do like scary books and I seem to enjoy the ones where the author has created a story that could actually be true. I am a big fan of Dean Koontz. I also really love your books.
Janine Cloud
I’m not a huge fan of the horror movie genre, but there are some classics I enjoyed. (It’s odd, but I love most of Stephen King and Dean Koontz’s novels.)
I’d probably have to go with Se7en, too, though the Seventh Sign, Carrie, Pet Semetary, and The Stand were good.
I just love Brad Pitt and he did such a good job in Se7en.
Katherine Young
Oooh, Army of Darkness definitely. It’s more campy than scary, but has some really funny lines. It’s like Monty Python and Elvis did a bad horror movie. It’s actually the third in a series. I love Ash!
Lisa
I adore scary movies! My hands down favorite is Silence of the Lambs, because it showed the scariest of all monsters are the human kind.
Thanks so much for the great giveaway!
Vicky Huntington
Not a fan of scary movies at all thanks to my sisters as a kid they scared the hell out a me at a scary movie. But if I picked just one Holloween would be it.
annmarie
I love scary movies, and one of the first I remember seeing is When a Stranger Calls.
Mary
I can’t watch scary movies. I’m a mess for months after watching anything even a bit suspenseful. The one I remember not hating the most was When a Stranger Calls
Denise
The scariest movie I’ve ever seen is The Shuttered Room. It’s unbelievably intense, and the suspense is off the charts. From IMDB: After Susannah Kelton (Carol Lynley) inherits a mill in her small New England hometown, she travels there with her husband, Mike (Gig Young). When they arrive, they are treated coldly by the villagers and are warned against entering the mill by Susannah’s gloomy Aunt Agatha (Flora Robson) and shady cousin, Ethan (Oliver Reed). When Susannah ignores the warnings and begins to investigate the mill, she learns that its attic hides a sinister family secret.
Kaity
I’m the same no horror for me but thrillers I love. I just recently saw Spilt and I thought it was very good
jan
I saw Psycho 2 when I was 15, on a first date. It scared me so much that I was shaking too hard to light a cig afterwards!
Samantha Tucker
I’m really not into scary movies but one I remember from years ago is When a Stranger Calls. It’s about a young woman who is babysitting and obviously it’s a asvsey movie so it’s nighttime. And as the title suggests a stranger calls her. The calls continue with some scary moments and then she cant find the kid she’s babysitting. She proceeds to freak tf out. Long story short the caller is in the house and there’s screaming and running and blood. Anyways I was a young teenager when I saw this movie and my first job was babysitting. So I used to be super freaked out at night when I was babysitting.
Sama Lani
Scary movies are really not my thing, but if I had to pick one it would be the Amityville movie. There is a story behind it that makes it a little more scary. You can go see that house today.
Samantha Tucker
I’m really not into scary movies but one I remember from years ago is When a Stranger Calls. It’s about a young woman who is babysitting and obviously it’s a scary movie so it’s nighttime. And as the title suggests a stranger calls her. The calls continue with some scary moments and then she cant find the kid she’s babysitting. She proceeds to freak tf out. Long story short the caller is in the house and there’s screaming and running and blood. Anyways I was a young teenager when I saw this movie and my first job was babysitting. So I used to be super freaked out at night when I was babysitting.
Kayla C
I dont watch horror movies. (Sorry) but I can tell you the scariest movie I watched as a child. Wizard of Oz. I use to run and hide when the witch came on screen. When she sends the monkeys out, my mom would have to drag me out from under the bed. It was my brothers favorite movie for a while before the tape “mysteriously” broke. (I deliberately stepped on it….hard)
Felicia Andersob
The scary movie that freaks me out the most is Chucky or really any movie with dolls that talk and move on their own. Just the thought of moving, talking and murdering dolls is scary.
Ginger Connatser
Not a big fan of scary movies. I did like Hocus Pocus.
Kylie Schultz
The movie that has stuck with me and scared me when I was little, would have to be a nightmare on elm street. At the time it done a good job of frighting me and it had good graphics. Definitely kept me awake that is for sure lol, a favourite of mine now
Michelle H.
Insidious… Scares me every time!
Kelly Gunter Atlas
I’m not a fan of what they call horror movies nowadays. Blood and gore and shock and awe just don’t do it for me. For me, mood, atmosphere, subtlety – that’s what makes for a great scary story, whether it’s a movie or a book. A slow building tension, a depth of characterization that ensures empathy, an intriguing premise that suspends disbelief in the audience to such a degree they immerse themselves in the story and experience it on a visceral level. One of my favorite scary movies is the original 1963 version of The Haunting with Julie Harris, based on Shirley Jackson’s The Haunting of Hill House. It’s a character driven story that has as much to do with the psychology of the characters, as well as the paranormal occurrences going on around them.
Samantha Rozyczko
I use to like scary movies until Texas Chainsaw Massacre. I even liked it until i got to the end and it was based on a true story and the guy wasnt caught. I was done after that. I also cant handle stuff that happens in houses. My husband is in the military which means at some point ill be home alone. So i guess i would pick a Jason movie for a favorite if i had to choose.
Samantharozyczko@gmail.com
Jen F
I agree with you about psychological thrillers over gore. The scariest movie I can remember watching is The Silence of the Lambs. I was on the edge through the entire thing.
Susan
I don’t enjoy horror or scary movies, but my favorite at Halloween is Rocky Horror Picture Show, the original. It is the first DVD I ever bought!
De
IT is one of the few I watch. I prefer mind scary. Loved an old movie called The Eyes of Laura Mars.
Deanne
Stupid phone, lol
Bobbi Topacio
I do like an scary movie once in a while but not often the one that has stuck with me over the years is Them I saw at a drive in and I had dreams about the damn thing for years. I was finally able to buy it in DVD and watch it again after I got older still was a little scary. Iwas 9 years old at the time.
Judy Stone
I hate scary movies and experience night terrors for weeks…there isn’t enough brain bleach to ever remove the blood, gore and horrific images. When I was younger (in the dark ages before streaming and YouTube), I tried not freak the hell out when friends insisted we go to the cinema and I watched The Birds 1963 (walked out into the sunshine to a flock of birds!!) , Psycho 1960 (yikes!) and Carrie 1976 with Sissy Spacek (gasp!). After that I just said no to scary movies.
My favorite scary movie is the Wizard of Oz … I’m no longer afraid of the flying monkeys.
Chibisuke
I like Asian horror.
PJ Harrison
It’s very hard to scare me. I tend to laugh at most modern…heck… all horror flick. Nosferatu, 1929, Managed it the first time I saw it. When the vampire appears for the first time, I watched an entire lecture hall jump. I did too. It was unsettling and it was scary overall. The one that rates the highest and still makes me slightly scared and nervous even though I know by now what it’s going to happen is A 1963 film called the Haunting. You never see the ghost. You never see anything horrible the entire show depends on the sounds and other effects. The actors reactions play into it also. One of the scariest things, is when the knocking thumbs down the hallway. It sounds on each door as it gets closer and closer. When it gets to the room there in it hammers loudly making the actors and you jumped. And then it goes away knocking down the hall. It comes back to the door and continues to hammer . The hammering stops and the door knob starts to turn. And then… I won’t spoil the rest. It depends on setting; it depends on the actors reactions; It depends on what scares us. I have yet to find a film that beats us for sheer nervous terror. It put you on edge. The first time I watched it I was in high school. It was on at midnight. I realized I had left something in my mother‘s room earlier that day when I was talking to her. I knew it was on the vanity by her bed. I slipped and quietly to get it so I won’t disturb her sleep. As I reached over for the item, she grabbed my arm and yelled boo. I actually was pretty close to hysteria. I started to laugh and I can’t stop and then suddenly I found myself crying and I can’t stop. It was the last time mom ever did anything like that to me. The entire thing was the set up from the film. There was that much tension created. It’s still to this day makes me extremely nervous and tense. It is as if you’re going through it with the actors.
And it’s probably why I laugh at modern films. None create that tension. When I watch them I can hear my niece (who is now a Grandmother) saying Grody with scorn. The closest was one scene at the end of Carrie. When the hand shoots up from the grave. The entire audience jumped. But it was based on one scene and one incident.
Phil J
Comes not thumbs. And for some reason the software you’re using thinks this is a duplicate of the original post. I’m assuming it’s basing it on email addresses. You might want to check that plug-in. I’m about to find out because I’m changing the spelling of my name. And I’m also using another email address I have.
PJ Harrison
Sigh. Comes down the hallway not thumbs. I have no idea why the iPad wants to correct after I tell if the other is correct. Welcome to modern horror stories: auto correct.
Donna
I do not like scary or horror movies, lol. But still left a comment.
Donna M.
I grew up with Halloween and I watch it every year, but Pet Cemetery scared me and creeped me out so much I only watched it once.
Lexy Tvv
I am not that in to Horror or thrillers. What, for me, was like a horror to watch was ” The Abys”. I forgot to eat my popcorn.. Had to throw it away after the movie..
Debra E
When I saw the original Nightmare on Elm Street when I was in HS I was afraid for days!
Zarah Robinson
I love a good scary book, but don’t watch many scary movies. But when I was a kid I saw The Woman in White. I still shiver.
LaNette
We watch the Halloween movies, but the one that probably messed with my head was. Pet cemetery I have a hard time watching that one.
Becca
Hellraiser. Open Pandora’s box and get a surprise lol. I freaking love Pinhead
Heather York
Having grown up in the whole slasher flick craze of the 80s you’d think it might be Nightmare on Elm Street or Friday the 13th(although I do love the original Halloween) but I think my favorite scary film is the 1931 Dracula with Bela Lugosi. The idea of someone so charming being so deadly scares the crap out of me, being so quiet with the ability to sneak in and no one know, being able to make someone “crave the bite” . But what really makes it my favorite is the lack of blood and gore and still be so deadly just creeps me out every time I watch it and I do watch it almost every time I come across it 😉
Tam
I’m not a big fan of real scary movies. I prefer silly ones or the old classics with Bela Lugosi. Oddly a fun Haloween movie is Ernest Scared Stupid. It even has the amazing Eartha Kitt in it. LOL
Elisheva Cohen
I’m not a horror fan, but 13 Ghosts scared the crap out of me.
Angelica
I have seen a lot of scary movies but I really don’t care for them. My favorite is The Nightmare Before Christmas. Jake the Pumkin King of Halloween town decides to take over Santa’s job and it turns into a mess.
Jasmine
I’m not a fan of scary movies but my favorites are the final destination series, Psycho, and Hocus Pocus. I will willingly watch those movies multiple times.
Jennifer Shannon
I’m not a huge scary movie fan. I can’t think of one that I’d want to watch again.
Eija Iivari
I hate scary movies and pretty much refuse to watch them. The only one I have watched for years is Blair Witch Project and that is because it’s more about stupid teenagers running in forest being stupid than being scary. =D
Elayne
I am not a fan of Halloween films,or scary films in general. But the Riddick series are frightening enough for me. Constantine is another much watched film.
bn100
Friday the 13th
Candice Clark
I’m not a fan of scary movies but I must admit that Stephen King’s the Fog was a really good movie!
Candice Clark
I hate scary movies but I must admit that Stephen King’s the Fog was a really good movie!
Amy Cain
I love Darkness Falls and The Fog(newer version) I cant do things that could be real, one movie that freaks my out is The New Daughter, I hate that movie with a passion. It’s one that gave me nightmares, which I never have with movies!
Paula S
My favorite move is Nightmare on Elm Street .
Debra G
I do not watch scary movies so I do not have a favorite, My daughters love them and I go roped into watching Leprechaun. It has stayed with me.
Pattie Boynton
I like hocus pocus too. I don’t like gore. Just a well written story
Donna
Psycho was scariest that I watched. I don’t watch horror movies today
Sherry Rivera
Mine would be Halloween. It’s a favorite of mine and my brother. It’s the whole atmosphere. Psychological thrillers are not my thing at all.
Shirley Ann Speakman
I don’t like scary movies the only ones I remember were when I was really young but did go and see was “Alien” because I love Sci Fi films and never again it scared the life out of me I’ve never seen the others!!!
Marcine
Not a fan of scary. Suspense yes, gore no. But Carrie was one that sticks in my brain.
Christina Allen
My favorite movie of recent times is Heredity. Most likely due to the slow burn and switch of genre. I thought it was a family drama and it turned out to be sheer horror.
My favorite scary movie of all time is probably Alien; the desolation of it all, the enemy in your own camp and being the last person standing … in space. SCARY!!
Mary Anne Ostroman
My favorite horror movie is a tough one because I have loved horror movies since I was a child and have so many on dvd. I am going to say one of the old black and white Frankenstein’s. While I love vampire and paranormal stories Frankenstein got me because the monster wasn’t the creature the doctor made. The monster was the doctor and his own ego. God creates, man destroys.
Cherie J.
I tend to like the classics. For scary movies, it would have to be Halloween.
Lennis
I do not like slasher flims. I like psychological thrillers. I did like The Fog. I don’t about my favorite. I just saw The Witch and that was spooky. The downfall of the family is caused by the father’s self-righteousness. The distrust, horror, and violence that follows seems inevitable. I do think it would have worked better as madness, rather than being literal, but maybe that allows me to be less frightened in an odd way.
Cathy
I’ve never seen that. I too prefer Phsycological thrillers. I saw a movie about big trucks and cars coming to life that scared me ( Doesn’t take much ) lol
cathybrockmanromance@gmail.com
Amanda
I don’t do scary movies cause I just can’t deal with it. I usually settle for Ghostbusters or Goosebumps if I want to be in the mood for Halloween.
Serena S.
I like Friday the 13th, it makes me laugh at how silly it is.
Melissa Sparks
My favorite horror movie is hard to choose. I tend to love any horror movie as long it has a plot. Some of my favorites have a lot of humor: Tremors, Slither, most of the bad SYFY channel movies (unintentionally funny I am sure), or my absolute fave Shaun of the Dead.
Elf
Unbreakable or Split, for psychological-lite horror. Constantine for paranormal-type horror. Silence of the Lambs for gross-outs and heavy psych horror. Oh my, I had forgotten Shaun of the Dead! I guess I didn’t consider that horror! I thought it was very funny.
Jodi marinich
nightmare on elm street kept me up for weeks after seeing that movie
Denise M Dechene
I’m not a fan of horror or psychological thrillers. I love monster or Dracula movies. I think the scariest movie I ever watched was Helter Skelter when I was a teenager. It scared me spitless and I still can not watch it to this day. Thanks for the awesome truth
Kate Niezgocki
I love horror movies. The new Stephen king movie “It” is one of my knew ones.
Ami
Just like I wrote at Meredith Russell’s blog, I am NOT a fan of scary/horror movies… like at all. I avoid them if possible. Having said that, I did watch The Shining all those years ago and thinking about the “twin scene” still gives me the creep!
Karen Nebauer
I love a good thriller, but hate blood and gore, too.
Thanks for the contest.
Kendra Tompkins
I do not like the scary at all. I hate it so much, I was shocked as heck that I fell in love with Doctor Who and Supernatural. Although I guess we can blame David Tennant and Jensen Ackels for that… lol
H.B.
I’ve never watched it but it might be nice to check out. I do like the Alien franchised movies. But I would watch all horror movies.
Toni
I don’t really like scary movies. My favorite movie around Halloween is probably Hocus Pocus.
Lee Todd
not really into scary movies but Poltergeist was one I saw and it freaked me out!
Amanda Viecelli
I love any and all scary movies and can’t pick a favorite so.. I’ll go with something different and say Ghost Ship or Rose Red (based on the Stephen King book). Love them. Thanks for the chance 🙂
Jeanna Massman
I liked the movie Psycho. It was so scary to me when I was young.
susana
I must recognise I love scary films, but I am such a coward that I cannot sleep afterwards. Anyway, there is this film with Anna Paquin, Darkness… I kept me awake for a whole week
LOLA
Favorite scary movie is predator. The whole scary alien that can kick ass.
Also the advanced technology, scary.
Anu
Oh I can’t watch scary movies these days, but I do remember seeing Se7en at the cinema when it came out and it was just…horrible. I have way too active an imagination to handle scary stuff
Athira
I’m not into scary movies but I liked lights out.
Lin S
I think Hocus Pocus is about as scary as I can manage
Misti
I can’t watch most really scary movies. Dolls and spirit stuff creep me out. I tried watching Lights out and stopped bc I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to sleep lol. But my favorite scary movie is
The Haunting:
This horror tale focuses on visitors to the secluded mansion of Hill House who have been called to the isolated location by Dr. David Marrow as part of a study on insomnia. However, Marrow is really investigating fear, and he plans to scare the subjects, including the introverted Nell and the seductive Theo. Unfortunately for Marrow and everyone staying at Hill House, the manor is actually haunted by an evil spirit out to torment its guests.
I used to watch Rose Red all the time but that’s technically a miniseries.
Rose Red:
A college professor and a team of psychics investigate an old abandoned house at the request of the man who has inherited it. Hoping to explain some of the mysterious deaths and disappearances on the property, the psychics stay in the mansion, but unleash a terrifying force that threatens to destroy them all.
Misti
In the Haunting Nell ends up being connected to the house.
The main character in Rose Red is an Autistic girl with psycic powers.
Ellie Vorse
I don’t really do scary movies, (I have enough trouble sleeping as it is!), but I do like Splice!
(It doesn’t scare me, except for the parts where she/he pops up unexpectedly into your face and out of nowhere)
Didi
Oh gods, I’m really not a scary movie plan. But I have to say I like “A Quiet Place” with so minimal actor/actresses and not many sound (most convos using sign language) it was quite intense.
Sharon L
I’m not a fan of scary movies either, I don’t mind watching black comedy/horrors like ‘A Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse’, ‘Black Sheep’ or ‘Sharknado’. I prefer something you can also laugh at.
Claudia
I love psychological thrillers, and my favourite is ‘Seven’, with Kubrick’s ‘The Shining’ as a close second. Blood and gore are not my first choice, but, at this time of the year? Everything goes *laughs*
Linda A.
I don’t do scary movies. The closest I come is the M. Night Shyamalan movies. “Signs”, “The Sixth Sense”, etc.