Do you like scary movies?

Lock your doors: Daily Arts is counting down the 10 greatest horror films of all time

By Lyle Henretty

Daily Arts Writer

As the leaves in ole Ann Arbor begin to crunch under your shoes and the chill of impending winter begins to fester in the wind, Halloween looms as large as the Ohio State game. While many will fasten in some vampire teeth to suck the life out of some miniature boxes of Good 'n' Plentys or wolf down a few beers at some haunted frat, others will celebrate Halloween the way our forefathers did: Sitting in front of the tube. Assuming that you're looking for something other than your midterm grades to chill your bones, I offer you this short list of the scariest, the goriest, the grimmest visions ever put on celluloid. Plus a transvestite with an Oedipus complex and an owl fetish.

10) "Phantasm": The story of a young boy who stumbles on an other-worldly undertaker (known only as "The Tall Man," even in the film's credits) who is stealing cadavers and turning them into soulless mutants retains its creepiness to this day. The Tall Man's arsenal of choice, a series of floating silver balls that brandish both blades and drills, rank with Freddy's glove as the coolest slasher death toy of all time. Yeah, the white guys with Afros and the three-dollar special effects keep this movie a little dated, but it remains one of the most satisfying, story-driven horror flicks of the '70s. Classic line: "C'mere, Boooyyyy!"

9) "Psycho": You don't have to be a film student to admit that Alfred Hitchcock was the master and that "Psycho" is his masterpiece. How many other movies kill off their star before the halfway point? Forty years after its release, and with an astonishing lack of blood, a night with Norman Bates in the VCR will keep you out of the shower for months. Classic line: "Well, a son is a poor substitute for a lover."

Courtesy of Universal

Rumor has it that "Psycho" was based on the strange relationship between Alfred Hitchcock and his mother. Double spooky.

8) "The Silence of the Lambs": The only horror movie ever to win an Oscar for Best Picture. Clarice Starling must get inside the mind of Hannibal "The Cannibal" Lecter in order to catch a killer who is making a dress out of human skin. It just makes him feel pretty. While this is more of a suspense thriller than an out-and-out horror movie, this has more gasps than all nine "Friday the 13th" movies put together. Wonderfully intense verbal word play between the incarcerated Lecter and newbie FBI agent Starling is so full of sexual tension that you almost expect them to end up together. I dare you to breathe during the terrifying climax in the killer's dark basement. Classic line (say it with me): "I ate his liver, with some fava beans and a nice Chianti. Fllluppppt."

7) "Dead Alive (aka Braindead)": The first 20 minutes of this gem from New Zealand run like a bad romantic comedy. Then, suddenly, poor Lionel's mum is bitten by the infamous "rat-monkey" and dies. The next day his dead mother hosts a luncheon for some local dignitaries. During lunch her ear falls off, and one of the dignitaries eats it. The movie only gets better from there. This bizarre zombie flick has the distinction of being the bloodiest movie I have ever seen, and possibly ever made. As the whole town slowly turns into zombies, Lionel tries to hide all this from his newly imported Spanish love. He does this by strapping a lawnmower to his chest and doing battle with his mother, who has now evolved into a giant rat-monkey with breasts like deflated Hindenburgs. This one truly has to be seen to be believed. Classic line (from a priest about to make good): "I kick ass for the Lord!"

6) "Halloween": The first and best slasher-exploitation film. Michael Myers just likes to kill people, especially teenagers about to have, or maybe just finishing, sex. Only the strong and virginal survive. Even the consummate movie watcher will yell, at least once "Look behind you!" Everything about this movie is classic, from the amazing music to the abrupt ending that leaves almost nothing resolved. This is the movie that put Jamie Lee Curtis on the map, and effectively took Donald Pleasence off it. Old-fashioned scares take the place of gore, but this does not lessen the impact. You will never look at the innocent sheet-with-eyeholes ghost costume the same again. Classic line: "I realized what was living behind that boy's eyes was purely and simply ... EVIL!"

Courtesy of Anchor Bay Entertainment

Rumor has it that the Michael Myers mask used in "Halloween" was just a Captain Kirk mask with the hair dyed brown. Spooky.