Just as a trailer can be a sign of what’s to come, the first couple minutes of a movie are often the most important part. They set the tone for the rest of the film, and can easily make or break a movie, regardless of how good or bad the rest of the film is. We’ve looked for the most awesome, most gruesome, more fright-inducing openers in horror — the list below! Spoilers ahead!
*Some videos may be age-restricted and are available to watch on YouTube.
House on Haunted Hill (1999)
I love House on Haunted Hill for its gothic crypt vibes with a 2000s tech feel. Jerky movements, cobwebbed basement hallways, and a stellar cast all make this film one to rewatch over and over. And it all starts at the beginning. We don’t know how twisted and evil this house (… really, more or a hospital) is at first, but the intro makes sure to beat it into us. Quiet pencil sharpening quickly turns into a mob of crazed prisoners destroying and killing everything in sight. No wonder it’s so messed up in there!
Sinister (2012)
This intro will always have a special place in my heart. In 2012, we were supposed to go to a haunted theme park event, but tickets were sold out. Instead, we went to see Sinister. Not knowing much of what was going to happen, we were expecting the normal scary movie fare. When the trailers ended, we were met with a projector noise and disturbing music that matched the imagery you see in this video here. Never before had we seen an intro start like this, and it made such a profound impact on me especially that I gripped my armrests the entire rest of the movie. Intros that are attention-grabbing are often loud and boisterous; this intro was the opposite, yet still extremely violent and horrifying. Bravo!
Final Destination (series, as a whole)
For movies based entirely on the opener, you may find it surprising to see this series in the middle of the list. That’s not because of how good or bad the inciting actions are — they’re amazing, and pretty much a cultural movement at this point — it’s because over the years, we expect an awful tragedy to befall a group of people. It’s no surprise to us anymore. That doesn’t take away how powerful a plane crash or massive highway pileup are to the viewer, it’s just something we assume will happen. When it comes though, we’re always happy.
Friday the 13th (2009)
I can’t tell you how many people still talk about the opening of this slasher reboot. To this day, we’re all still dumbfounded about how we were made to think the group of friends we were following was the main group for the rest of the movie. And I think I can speak for everyone when I say how surprising the Friday the 13th title card and a new group of kids was. We probably should have suspected something was up when the original group was being killed off so quickly, but when you’re watching Jason doing his signature “Stalk and Kill,” you don’t really think about how little time has gone by. The action and kills in this title sequence are only made better when we find out we have the whole main story afterward.
Ghost Ship (2002)
Ahh, the early 2000s and its very early 2000s horror films. Today, Ghost Ship is one of those movies that you either forget or remember being pretty bad. In truth, I rather like this movie, and I remember being scared watching it as a pre-teen. Regardless of what you think, this title sequence (and companion sequence later on in the film) is something most horror fans would agree on as being awesome. We’re lulled into a false sense of security as we watch cruise patrons enjoy a night out on the seas, only for it to end in bodies cut in half, strewn about the dance floor. Jarring and seriously bloody, the effects some of the bodies have are hard to look at, and you find yourself wondering how it all happened.
There are plenty of openers that scare you to the bone, but this list is a plate of prime rib amongst veggie burgers at a T-rex convention. There are, of course, others… but that’s for another list!
What’s your favorite horror film opener? Let us know in the comments!
One thought on “Top Movie Openers”