Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
Arts & Entertainment
What's Your Favorite Scary Movie? Part One
By
Jen Carlson
Published Oct 9, 2012
Modified Oct 18, 2012
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Jen Carlson
Published Oct 9, 2012
Modified Oct 18, 2012
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
What's your favorite scary movie? We've been asking a variety of people this question, and we'll be posting their picks in a series... starting now. Turn out the lights and check out these recommendations from Ted Leo, Edith Zimmerman, Justin Warner, Chris Robbins, and Eugene Mirman.
TED LEO (Musician): The original The Changeling with George C. Scott is my favorite horror movie of all time, hands down. He loses his family in a tragic accident and moves into this mansion haunted by... something. I won't give it away, but it involves a ball that repeatedly bounces down the stairs, a manic old cob-webbed wheel chair, and that icy late 70s/early 80s pacing that just continually builds the tension and terror over the entire length of the film. I'll say this: my insane uncle Gregory took me to see this in the theatre when I was 10 years old (WTF, UNCLE GREG!?), and it took me another 10 years before I could see the name "Joseph" printed anywhere and not shudder.
EDITH ZIMMERMAN (The Hairpin): Omg scary movies scare the SHIT out of me, so I avoid them. I did have fun watching The Exorcist one time in high school, though, and shrieking and shrieking with my friend Lucy. And everyone will laugh at me, but I thought Signs was really scary. Whatever! Just thinking about aliens freaks me out, and the part where the aliens grab the butcher knife from under the door... aiee! Also Event Horizon, and I Am Legend. I mean, these movies were horrible torture, and I hated every second that I watched them. They should have made clearer how scary I Am Legend was going to be. But Cabin in the Woods—I'm not sure if it's a proper horror movie, but I thought it was perfect.
JUSTIN WARNER (Do or Dine; Food Network Star): 28 Days Later. Everything changes when zombies can run. I don't know why it took so long for someone to figure out that plot device, but it's a real game-changer. Quarantining all of England was pretty genius as well. It makes me shudder... Thank goodness I don't live on a densely populated island. Oh wait.
CHRISTOPHER ROBBINS (Gothamist): When I was 13, my dad made me sit down with him and watch the "original" Night of the Living Dead, which would have been fine had it actually been the black-and-white 1968 version, instead of the 1990 full-color (read: gory) remake. There's a scene where a lone woman wanders into her family's house in the country calling, "Uncle Reeg? Uncle Reeg?" as her corpulent, zombified uncle lurches behind her. She dispatches him with a fire poker to the skull, and his forehead collapses like a dented ping-pong ball—cheesy for an adult but petrifying for a kid who wasn't usually allowed to watch R-rated movies. Throughout my teens anytime I was alone in our house my dad would call "Uncle Reeg? Uncle Reeeeeeeg?" and I'd have flashbacks while I listened for the creaking in the floorboards to make sure my dad didn't have the jump on me.
That's a long way of explaining why I dig The Hills Have Eyes. It's got everything: zombie-mutants, creepy government conspiracies, a willingness to (gruesomely!) kill off cherished characters, RVs, and really gross villains. It's one of those horror movies that you laugh at for its campiness, but they're really loud, nervous, AHA-HA-HA laughs to mask how scared shitless you really are. I still need to see the 1977 original (which is online in its entirety for free).
EUGENE MIRMAN (Comedian): I don't really like horror movies, so I don't have one. Though I am still somewhat scared of the 2005 Heather Locklear film, The Perfect Man.
Tagged
halloween
horror movie
movies
scary movie
the perfect man
whats your favorite scary movie
original
Jen Carlson
Jen Carlson is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE arts-entertainment
Ever wish you could get paid to walk through a stranger’s house? ‘The Scout’ is for you.
A new film focuses on the strange career of a location scout in New York City.
By
Sonia Rao
Published Sep 26, 2026
There are 100s of places to visit during Open House New York. Here's 5 of our favorites.
See the entire lineup for the weekend when the city opens its doors.
By
Hannah Frishberg
Arts & Entertainment
There are 100s of places to visit during Open House New York. Here's 5 of our favorites.
See the entire lineup for the weekend when the city opens its doors.
By
Hannah Frishberg
A massive MTA archive ended up in a Virginia warehouse. A Brooklyn man brought it home.
By
Hannah Frishberg
How a Harry Styles pop-up in the East Village led to a nearby bookstore owner's arrest
By
Sonia Rao
NYC’s creative workers are increasingly self-employed, report says
By
Hannah Frishberg
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .