Worst2First: My Top Ten Horror Franchises
Worst2First:
My Top Ten Horror Franchises
Here are my personal top ten horror franchises, worst2first...
**THERE WILL BE NO SPOILERS!**
#10
Final Destination
Total Movies: 5
Best: Final Destination
Worst: The Final Destination
What makes the "Final Destination" franchise stand out from the others on this list (besides one) is that the killer is what is not seen: Death itself. The premise is this: in each film, someone has a premonition of mass death, and stops it from happening. This doesn't sit well with Death, who proceeds to kill its intended victims one-by-one in the most grotesque, unique, and sometimes totally nonsensical ways. There's something to be said about the silent killer that cannot be stopped, and who can really stop Death? The first one is the best because it introduces us to the concept that we can never really cheat death, plus the opening airplane crash is epic (although the second's highway disaster gives it a run for its money). The worst is the fourth film - just called "The Final Destination" - because it lacks any decent characters and the concept was old and stale by that point, but it turned around for the fifth. The series also features several famous actors including Tony "Candyman" Todd, Devon Sawa, Ali Larter, Kerr Smith, Seann William Scott, AJ Cook, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Ryan Merriman, Bobby Campo, Nick Zano, Nicholas D'Agostino, Emma Bell, Courtney Vance and David Koechner.
#9
Phantasm
Total Movies: 5
Best: Phantasm
Worst: Phantasm: Ravager
This film series - directed by the great Don Coscarelli - has a rather unique premise: a mortician steals bodies and sends them to an alternate world where they're reduced in size and made into slaves. It's about as insane as it sounds, but it actually works thanks to the outrageous talents of the late, great Agnus Scrimm as The Tall Man - the evil without a name. The first film is easily the best, because it introduces the concept, gives birth to The Tall Man and his protagonists - Mike, Joey, and everyone's lovable ice cream man Reggie. "Ravager" is the worst because it's the only film not directed by Coscarelli, and lacks the magic and charm of the others.
#8
Child's Play
Total Movies: 7
Best: Child's Play
Worst: Seed of Chucky
In the 80s, there was no other name that instilled fear in every parent and child than Chucky - a doll possessed by the soul of a sadistic killer. This pint-sized terror spread carnage and death everywhere he went, and was truly terrifying because he was disguised as an innocent doll. The first three films firmly established Chucky as a relentless killing machine - until "Bride of Chucky." They decided to take a more comedic route with the killer, giving him a killer wife doll and incorporating more slapstick than screams. This culminated in the worst film in the franchise - "Seed of Chucky" - where Chucky and his wife have a baby, who is tormented over wanting to be a regular boy...er doll...and following in his parents' murderous footsteps. The series got back on track with "Curse of Chucky," making him once again an unforgiving terror, but we can't forget that terrible bump in the road that was "Bride" and "Seed." The series featured Brad Dourif (who was also Wormtongue in "The Lord of the Rings") as the voice of Chucky throughout the series, and also starred such famous actors as Christine Elise, Greg Germann, Jennifer Tilly, Katherine Heigl, Alexis Arquette, John Ritter, Kathy Najimy, Billy Boyd (who voiced Chucky's son, and also appeared in "The Lord of the Rings"), Redman, and Dourif's own daughter Fiona.
#7
The Conjuring
Total Films: 4
Best: The Conjuring
Worst: Annabelle
Ed and Lorraine Warren are well-known demonologists who investigated some of the most famous events in paranormal history, including the Amityville Horror. Their stories were put to film, with Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga starring as the couple, and the result was a franchise that's downright terrifying and filled with tremendous performances. Their adventures brought them to a witch's curse in the first "Conjuring" and all the way to Enfield, England, to investigate the famed Enfield Poltergeist in the second. The first was the best simply because it was unnerving, unrelenting and a fresh stab in the arm for the horror genre. The second is equally amazing, but it's the spinoff "Annabelle" that suffered. A full-length film centering on a ten-minute mention in the first film, "Annabelle" centered on a doll that the Warrens took after their previous owners experienced paranormal events with it. The spin-off is typical, by-the-book, and bland - but the prequel "Creation" can be placed right up there with the other "Conjuring" films. There's still more to be explored, as other spin-offs including the Nun and the the Crooked Man are in the works, as is another "Conjuring" film.
#6
Alien
Total Films: 8
Best: Aliens
Worst: Alien vs. Predator: Requiem
Ridley Scott re-invented space terror with his "Alien" franchise, and introduced cinema to one of its first female heroines in Ripley. The series follows people in space who come into contact with an alien species that can spit acid and kill at a moment's notice. While the first is very well-known (especially for THAT final scene), it's James Cameron's "Aliens" that, to me, is easily the best. It firmly established Sigourney Weaver's Ripley as the next action heroine, and was absolutely terrifying. The franchise took a bit of a nosedive when it combined with Predator to make two films, the worst of all being the second outing called "Alien vs. Predator: Requiem," because they didn't really add anything new to their mythos, and included totally unforgettable characters. Scott then introduced a prequel series, starting with "Prometheus," that gives a deeper insight into who the aliens really are and where they came from.
#5
Hellraiser
Total Movies: 9
Best: Hellraiser II
Worst: Hellraiser: Revelations
Doug Bradley's Pinhead is one of the most iconic horror movie villains of all time, and some don't even consider him a bad guy. He's unique in the horror franchise because he's neither mute (like Jason or Michael), nor does he offer biting social commentary (such as Freddy or Chucky), but rather he's an intellectual, philosophical being who is there to torture those who deserve it, those who dare open the Lament Configuration - a puzzle box that fulfills the owner's most craven desires, at the cost of their soul. Pinhead is the leader of the Cenobites, and they're all totally terrifying looking, grotesque beings who inflict punishment. The series had its ups and downs, with the second being the best because of the effects and how it delved into the Cenobite world. The worst was easily "Revelations," because it didn't include Doug Bradley, and Pinhead was reduced to a mere second-rate character. The franchise was also the first for an actor named Henry Cavill, who went on be Superman in the new DC Cinematic Universe.
#4
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre
Total Movies: 8
Best: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre
Worst: Texas Chainsaw 3D
There's a reason some people never want to set foot in Texas: for some it's the sweltering heat, for others it's the threat of immigrants, but others are fearful because of a man named Leatherface. The series is based loosely off the true-life killer Ed Gein, who would wear his victims' skin as his own, and centers on the looming, deadly presence of the chainsaw wielding maniac and his equally insane family. The first film was a revolutionary film of its time, and its true-life motif freaked out moviegoers in droves. There's been a few not-so-great sequels, but "Texas Chainsaw 3D" takes the cake for worst, because of its unrelatable characters, and portraying Leatherface as an anti-hero. The film also went into the remake territory thanks to Michael Bay, but nothing compares to Tobe Hooper's original. The series featured a lot of famous stars, including Dennis Hopper, Bill Moseley, Ken Foree, Viggo Mortensen, Matthew McConaughey, Renee Zellweger, Jessica Biel, Mike Vogel, Eric Balfour, R. Lee Ermey, Jordana Brewster, Matt Bomer, Scott Eastwood and Alexandria Daddario.Worst: Texas Chainsaw 3D
#3
A Nightmare on Elm Street
Total Films: 9
Best: New Nightmare
Worst: A Nightmare on Elm Street (2010)
Director Wes Craven read an article about a young boy in Indonesia who complained to his parents about having nightmares, and one night they find him dead, but the boy was healthy. To this day, no one knows what killed him, but Craven drew this inspiration for his own nightmare, Freddy Krueger. He created Freddy from a series of traumas from his childhood (Freddy was the name of a kid who bullied him, and his fedora hat was worn because a drunken man wore one during his childhood and freaked him out), scientific facts (his red and green sweater was done so because scientifically it's hard for the human eye to recognize those particular shades side by side), and our worst fears: a killer who can enter our dreams and kill us in our sleep. Robert Englund epitomized Freddy, portraying him as a vile, unrelenting killer, but also with a sarcastic wit and social commentary that made him a bit endearing. When they killed Freddy off in "Freddy's Dead," Craven brought him back in "New Nightmare," which was a rich blend of real and fiction, a terrific filming achievement that paid homage to the original and still brought on the scares. In 2010, they decided to reboot the franchise without Robert Englund, and the results were disastrous to say the least, even with acclaimed actor Jackie Earle Hayley wearing the glove. The series also featured a long-awaited pairing with Jason Voorhees, but even that was lackluster. Still, along with Englund and Haley, the franchise featured a lot of heavy hitters including Johnny Depp (in his first feature film), Heather Langenkamp, Patricia Arquette, Laurence Fishburne, Breckin Meyer, Tom Arnold, Roseanne Barr, Alice Cooper, Kelly Rowland, Jason Ritter, Chris Marquette, Kellan Lutz, Kyle Gallner, Katie Cassidy, Thomas Dekker and two-time Oscar nominee Rooney Mara.
#2
Halloween
Total Films: 10
Best: Halloween
Worst: Halloween III
John Carpenter is one of horror's most iconic directors, and his crowning achievement is easily bringing to life Michael Myers, a name that's now synonymous with Halloween as well as giving birth to the 80s slasher films. The white-masked killer has slashed his way through several films, in search of his blood family to kill them, and has one of the best soundtracks in horror history. While the first film introduced us to Myers and serves as the best of the bunch due to its slow burn pacing and exciting climax, the third film is the worst because it has absolutely nothing to do with Michael Myers. Rob Zombie then went on to create his own take on Myers with his own franchise, but even those pale in comparison to Carpenter's first two iconic films. The series featured Jamie Lee Curtis as the object of Michael Myers' intentions, but also featured Danielle Harris, Paul Rudd, Michelle Williams, Josh Hartnett, LL Cool J, Janet Leigh, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Adam Arkin, Busta Rhymes, Tyra Banks, Ryan Merriman, Thomas Ian Nicholas, Katee Sackhoff, Sean Patrick Thomas, Malcolm McDowell, Scout Taylor-Compton and Sheri Moon Zombie.
#1
Friday the 13th
Total Films: 12
Best: Friday the 13th
Worst: Friday the 13th Part V: A New Beginning
Summer camp will never be the same again. In the late 70s, a small, independent film called "Friday the 13th" took cinema by storm, and introduced the world to a new breed of terror: Jason Voorhees (who is featured more prominently in the subsequent sequels). Donning his now iconic hockey mask in the third film, Jason has raised the body count more than any other horror icon, with his trademark machete and unique killing methods. He's the silent stalker, a looming presence who stalks his prey and strikes without warning. The first film is the best because it firmly establishes the franchise, but it's the fifth film that's the worst for obvious reasons (after you watch it you'll know why). His character has been an icon bigger than life, and the impact he's made in horror cinema will never be equaled.
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