Entertainment
The Best Old Horror Movies Of All Time
List Rules
Only classic horror movies released BEFORE 1960.
The best old horror movies of all time not only include some of the most influential and important films the genre has ever seen, but also some genuine works of art that still stand the test of time to this very day. Modern horror movies are great, but they have nothing on the old-school classics. Early horror movies tapped into our deepest fears of the unknown, combining compelling, unique stories with outstanding character acting. Whether it's zombies, ghosts, vampires, or other supernatural creatures, this list of old horror movies includes some of the greatest frightening films ever made.
What makes for a truly outstanding horror movie? Bottom line, it scares the living daylights out of us by tapping into some dark, primal fear we have. The best older horror movies manage to chill, thrill and terrify by exposing us to monsters, both real and imagined. If you're looking to delve into classic horror movies, this is a great place to start.
Be sure to vote up the best old horror movies of all time, and for more spooky fun, check out these lists of the best horror books and of course, the greatest horror films ever made!
Ranked by
- 1Carl Laemmle
- Actors: Boris Karloff, Colin Clive, Mae Clarke, John Boles, Edward Van Sloan
- Released: 1931
- Directed by: James Whale
This iconic horror film follows the obsessed scientist Dr. Henry Frankenstein (Colin Clive) as he attempts to create life by assembling a creature from body parts of the deceased. Aided by his loyal ...more - 2Tod Browning, Carl Laemmle
- Actors: Bela Lugosi, Edward Van Sloan, Dwight Frye, David Manners, Herbert Bunston
- Released: 1931
- Directed by: Tod Browning
The dashing, mysterious Count Dracula (Bela Lugosi), after hypnotizing a British soldier, Renfield (Dwight Frye), into his mindless slave, travels to London and takes up residence in an old castle. ...more - 3Carl Laemmle
- Actors: Boris Karloff, Elsa Lanchester, Colin Clive, Valerie Hobson, O.P. Heggie
- Released: 1935
- Directed by: James Whale
After recovering from injuries sustained in the mob attack upon himself and his creation, Dr. Frankenstein (Colin Clive) falls under the control of his former mentor, Dr. Pretorius (Ernest Thesiger), ...more - 4Enrico Dieckmann, Albin Grau
- Actors: Max Schreck, Alexander Granach, Gustav von Wangenheim, Greta Schroeder, G.H. Schnell
- Released: 1922
- Directed by: F.W. Murnau
In this highly influential silent horror film, the mysterious Count Orlok (Max Schreck) summons Thomas Hutter (Gustav von Wangenheim) to his remote Transylvanian castle in the mountains. The eerie ...more - 5George Waggner
- Actors: Lon Chaney, Claude Rains, Ralph Bellamy, Evelyn Ankers, Warren William
- Released: 1941
- Directed by: George Waggner
When his brother dies, Larry Talbot (Lon Chaney) returns to Wales and reconciles with his father (Claude Rains). While there, he visits an antique shop and, hoping to impress Gwen (Evelyn Ankers), ...more - 6Walter Wanger
- Actors: Kevin McCarthy, Dana Wynter, Carolyn Jones, Larry Gates, King Donovan
- Released: 1956
- Directed by: Don Siegel
In Santa Mira, California, Dr. Miles Bennell (Kevin McCarthy) is baffled when all his patients come to him with the same complaint: their loved ones seem to have been replaced by emotionless ...more - 7Kurt Neumann, Robert L. Lippert
- Actors: David Hedison, Patricia Owens, Vincent Price, Herbert Marshall, Kathleen Freeman
- Released: 1958
- Directed by: Kurt Neumann
When scientist Andre Delambre (Al Hedison) tests his matter transporter on himself, an errant housefly makes its way into the transportation chamber, and things go horribly wrong. As a result, ...more - 8Carl Laemmle
- Actors: Boris Karloff, Zita Johann, David Manners, Edward Van Sloan, Arthur Byron
- Released: 1932
- Directed by: Karl Freund
A team of British archaeologists led by Sir Joseph Whemple (Arthur Byron) discover the mummified remains of the ancient Egyptian prince Imhotep (Boris Karloff), along with the legendary scroll of ...more - 9William Castle
- Actors: Vincent Price, Carol Ohmart, Richard Long, Alan Marshal, Carolyn Craig
- Released: 1959
- Directed by: William Castle
Rich oddball Frederick Loren (Vincent Price) has a proposal for five guests at a possibly haunted mansion: Show up, survive a night filled with scares and receive $10,000 each. The guest of honor is ...more - 10Carl Laemmle, Jr.
- Actors: Claude Rains, Gloria Stuart, Una O'Connor, Holmes Herbert, E. E. Clive
- Released: 1933
- Directed by: James Whale
The Invisible Man is a 1933 science fiction film based on H. G. Wells' science fiction novel The Invisible Man, published in 1897, as adapted by R. C. Sherriff, Philip Wylie and Preston Sturges, ...more - 11William Alland
- Actors: Richard Carlson, Julie Adams, Richard Denning, Antonio Moreno, Nestor Paiva
- Released: 1954
- Directed by: Jack Arnold
Remnants of a mysterious animal have come to light in a remote jungle, and a group of scientists intends to determine if the find is an anomaly or evidence of an undiscovered beast. To accomplish ...more - 12Carl Laemmle
- Actors: Lon Chaney, Mary Philbin, Norman Kerry, Arthur Edmund Carewe, Gibson Gowland
- Released: 1925
- Directed by: Rupert Julian
In this silent horror classic, aspiring young opera singer Christine Daaé (Mary Philbin) discovers that she has a mysterious admirer intent on helping her become a lead performer. This enigmatic ...more - 13Anthony Hinds
- Actors: Peter Cushing, Christopher Lee, Michael Gough, Melissa Stribling, Carol Marsh
- Released: 1958
- Directed by: Terence Fisher
On a search for his missing friend Jonathan Harker (John Van Eyssen), vampire hunter Dr. Van Helsing (Peter Cushing) is led to Count Dracula's (Christopher Lee) castle. Upon arriving, Van Helsing ...more - 14Bryan Foy
- Actors: Vincent Price, Frank Lovejoy, Phyllis Kirk, Carolyn Jones, Paul Picerni
- Released: 1953
- Directed by: Andre de Toth
Wax sculptor Henry (Vincent Price) is horrified to learn that his business partner, Matthew (Roy Roberts), plans on torching their wax museum to collect on the insurance policy. Henry miraculously ...more - 15Howard Hawks
- Actors: James Arness, Paul Frees, George Fenneman, Kenneth Tobey, Eduard Franz
- Released: 1951
- Directed by: Howard Hawks, Christian Nyby
The Thing from Another World is a 1951 American black-and-white science fiction/horror film produced by Howard Hawks' Winchester Pictures Corporation, released by RKO Pictures, and directed by ...more - 16David Weisbart
- Actors: James Whitmore, Edmund Gwenn, Joan Weldon, James Arness, Onslow Stevens
- Released: 1954
- Directed by: Gordon Douglas
While investigating a series of mysterious deaths, Sergeant Ben Peterson (James Whitmore) finds a young girl (Sandy Descher) who is unable to speak. As Peterson joins forces with FBI agent Robert ...more - 17George Waggner
- Actors: Lon Chaney, Bela Lugosi, Ilona Massey, Patric Knowles, Lionel Atwill
- Released: 1943
- Directed by: Roy William Neill
Lawrence Stewart Talbot (Lon Chaney Jr.) is plagued by a physical oddity that turns him into a crazed werewolf after sundown. His desire to rid himself of this ailment leads him to the castle owned ...more - 18Rouben Mamoulian
- Actors: Fredric March, Miriam Hopkins, Rose Hobart, Holmes Herbert, Halliwell Hobbes
- Released: 1931
- Directed by: Rouben Mamoulian
Testing his theory that in every man dwells a good and an evil force, the reserved Dr. Jekyll (Fredric March) develops a formula that separates the two, turning him into a violent ruffian named Mr. ...more - 19Merian C. Cooper, Ernest B. Schoedsack
- Actors: Fay Wray, Bruce Cabot, Robert Armstrong, Frank Reicher, Sam Hardy
- Released: 1933
- Directed by: Merian C. Cooper, Ernest B. Schoedsack
Actress Ann Darrow (Fay Wray) and director Carl Denham (Robert Armstrong) travel to the Indian Ocean to do location shoots for Denham's new jungle picture. Along the way, the actress meets and falls ...more - 20Rowland V. Lee
- Actors: Basil Rathbone, Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi, Lionel Atwill, Josephine Hutchinson
- Released: 1939
- Directed by: Rowland V. Lee
Baron Wolf von Frankenstein (Basil Rathbone) is determined to prove the legitimacy of his father's scientific work, thus rescuing the family name from disgrace. With the help of Ygor (Bela Lugosi), a ...more - 21Paul Malvern
- Actors: Boris Karloff, Lon Chaney, J. Carrol Naish, John Carradine, Anne Gwynne
- Released: 1945
- Directed by: Erle C. Kenton
After escaping from prison, the evil Dr. Niemann (Boris Karloff) and his hunchbacked assistant, Daniel (J. Carrol Naish), plot their revenge against those who imprisoned them. For this, they recruit ...more - 22Tod Browning, Dwain Esper, Hildegarde Stadie
- Actors: Wallace Ford, Olga Baclanova, Leila Hyams, Roscoe Ates, Harry Earles
- Released: 1932
- Directed by: Tod Browning
When trapeze artist Cleopatra (Olga Baclanova) learns that circus midget Hans (Harry Earles) has an inheritance, she marries the lovesick, diminutive performer, all the while planning to steal his ...more - 23Anthony Hinds
- Actors: Peter Cushing, Christopher Lee, Hazel Court, Robert Urquhart, Valerie Gaunt
- Released: 1957
- Directed by: Terence Fisher
Victor Frankenstein (Peter Cushing) is a brilliant scientist willing to stop at nothing in his quest to reanimate a deceased body. After alienating his longtime friend and partner, Paul Krempe ...more - 24Debra Hill
- Actors: Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi, David Manners
- Released: 1934
- Directed by: Edgar G. Ulmer
Not to be confused with the 1941 version also featuring Bela Lugosi. The Black Cat is a 1934 horror film that became Universal Pictures' biggest box office hit of the year. The picture was the first ...more - 25Stanley Bergerman
- Actors: Henry Hull, Warner Oland, Valerie Hobson, Lester Matthews, Lawrence Grant
- Released: 1935
- Directed by: Stuart Walker
While in Tibet researching a mysterious flower that purportedly takes its strength from the moon, botanist Wilfred Glendon (Henry Hull) is bitten by a strange creature. Back in London, Glendon ...more
