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Don’t forget to check under the bed. Monster films have been around since the dawn of cinema. Some monsters are gigantic, and others lurk in the shadows. Some monsters are bloodthirsty and pure evil, and others are sympathetic and complex. Monster films can be fun and scary, but they can also be a clever medium to make social commentaries. Grab some popcorn, turn out the lights, and let’s rank the 20 greatest monster films.
20. Tremors
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Tremors is a comedy horror monster film directed by Ron Underwood, who also did City Slickers and Mighty Joe Young. The Graboids monster is a gigantic worm-like creature that lies beneath the ground, waiting to attack. What made the monster believable and terrifying was its innovative practical effects. It is a modernized version of Jaws, except on land. Kevin Bacon stood out in the film with his portrayal of Valentine McKee. At first, it only grossed $16.6 million, but it has found a second life on home video. Critics gave it a score of eighty-eight percent on Rotten Tomatoes. There are seven Tremors films in the franchise and a TV series.
19. The Cabin in the Woods
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The Cabin in the Woods amalgamates many famous monsters throughout cinema’s history. It was directed by Drew Goddard, known for Cloverfield and Bad Times at the El Royale, and co-written with Joss Whedon, known for Buffy, Firefly, and The Avengers. It combines horror, comedy, and sci-fi masterfully. What makes the film unique is how it satirizes monster tropes. Some fun monster cameos include clowns, a blob-like creature, a mummy, a kraken, an alien beast, a giant snake, vampires, and a werewolf. The film received a respectable ninety-two percent on Rotten Tomatoes. It is a love letter to monster films. It deconstructs the horror archetypes while using the same tactics to scare the audience.
18. Creature from the Black Lagoon
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Creature from the Black Lagoon is a monster sci-fi film directed by Jack Arnold, known for It Came from Outer Space and Tarantula. The film was applauded for its innovative use of underwater cinematography. It was shot in 3D, which enhanced the fear and immersed the audience. The Gill-man is considered one of the main Universal monsters, like Dracula, Frankenstein’s Monster, and The Mummy. The film earned a seventy-nine percent on Rotten Tomatoes. The film had a major cultural impact across TV, film, and pop culture. Some films take inspiration from it, including the Academy Award-winning film The Shape of Water.
17. An American Werewolf in London
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There have been hundreds of werewolf films across several genres, but perhaps one of the most iconic monster movies featuring a werewolf is An American Werewolf in London. The horror comedy film is written and directed by John Landis, known for The Blues Brothers and Animal House. Landis had a screenplay for the film in 1969 but could only get it made once he became more of a name. One element that makes this monster movie stand out is its incredible practical effects and the werewolf transformation created by Rick Baker. Baker was the first to receive an Academy Award for Best Makeup. The iconic werewolf transformation scene took an entire week to shoot. Critics gave the film an eighty-nine percent on Rotten Tomatoes. There was a loose sequel called An American Werewolf in Paris. Max Landis, the son of John Landis, is working on remaking the classic monster film.
16. A Quiet Place
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A Quiet Place is an original horror thriller monster movie that was inspired by silent horror films. John Krasinski directed, co-wrote, and starred in the film. Monster films are known for their chilling sound effects that create suspense and dread. A Quiet Place uses a lack of sound to create tension. The film also stars Emily Blunt, Millicent Simmonds, and Noah Jupe. The critics praised the film for its unique storytelling, performances, and innovative monsters, giving it a ninety-six percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes. It was a massive hit, earning $340.9 million worldwide. Two other films were made within the franchise, one a sequel, the other a prequel.
15. The Descent
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The Descent is an untraditional monster that delves into the psyche. It is written and directed by Neil Marshall, known for Dog Soldiers and the newest Hellboy. It is dark, claustrophobic, and suspenseful. A group of female friends becomes trapped in a cave, only to discover they are not alone. The film tackles themes of grief and trauma that lie beneath the surface, literally and metaphorically. The crawlers are blind monsters with heightened senses that are terrifying and dangerous. This low-budget film, of $3.5 million, grossed $57.1 million. It received a Rotten Tomatoes score of eighty-six percent. There was a sequel called The Descent: Part 2.
14. The Host
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Acclaimed South Korean director Bong Joon-ho, known for Snowpiercer and Parasite, co-wrote and directed the monster film The Host. The film paid homage to films like Godzilla and Jaws. Like any of Joon-ho’s films, there is a social commentary. The monster is created due to toxic chemicals being dumped into Seoul’s Han River, which is a direct result of neglectful environmental behaviors propagated by the government. The real monster is the existential climate change crisis. It also has a great blend of horror and dark humor. The film was admired by critics, with a ninety-three percent on Rotten Tomatoes. It also was the highest-grossing South Korean film at the time, earning $89.4 million worldwide.
13. Barbarian
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Writer and director Zach Cregger was known mostly for his comedic work on the sketch comedy show The Whitest Kids U’ Know but knocked it out of the park with the highly original monster film Barbarian. The film primarily takes place in one place, a nice-looking Airbnb in a dilapidated neighborhood in Detroit. It is a clever commentary on gentrification, and like the film, on the surface, things look nice and ordinary, but beneath it all, there are deep-seated issues. In the film’s case, a monster named The Mother. The film has great twists and turns and is a unique monster that some people have tried to ignore but cannot. It received a ninety-three on Rotten Tomatoes. It grossed $45.4 million worldwide, which is incredible considering it only had a budget of $4.5 million.
12. Cloverfield
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Cloverfield is in the vein of monster films like Godzilla and King Kong. However, it is not your typical giant monster terrorizing the city monster film. Director Matt Reeves, known for Dawn of the Planet of the Apes and The Batman, took a unique approach by making it a found-footage film. It puts the user in the perspective of the characters, giving it a feeling of authenticity. Using tactics similar to those in Jaws, you seldom see the behemoth monster, creating an unsettling feeling of suspense. It earned $172 million at the box office. There were two additional Cloverfield films, 10 Cloverfield Lane and The Cloverfield Paradox.
11. Let The Right One In
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Vampires have been a monster film staple for over a hundred years, starting with the black and white, silent, German Expressionist film Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror in 1922. Let the Right One In is a Swedish film directed by Tomas Alfredson, known for Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. It is based on John Ajvide Lindqvist’s novel, which has the same name. The film is not as cut and dry as some other vampire films. There are some moral ambiguities. Eli, played by Lina Leandersson, looks like a child and a sympathetic character. Juxtaposed to her innocent facade, Eli needs to kill to survive. The horror elements are minimal but effective. It is a slow burn that creates a tense atmosphere. Critics sucked up to it, giving it a ninety-eight percent on Rotten Tomatoes. There was an American remake called Let Me In and a TV series called Let the Right One In.
10. The Mummy
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The 1999 reboot of The Mummy reimagines the classic Universal Monster film from 1932. Stephen Sommers, known for Van Helsing and G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, directed The Mummy and blended adventure and comedy within the monster genre. At the time, the special effects mesmerized and enhanced the monster’s horror element. It stars Brendan Fraser, Rachel Weisz, and Arnold Vosloo. It was a huge blockbuster, grossing $416.4 million worldwide. There were two direct sequels and a spin-off franchise, The Scorpion King, with five films. There was one additional reboot starring Tom Cruise. Altogether, twenty films have been made, including reboots and spin-offs since the 1932 The Mummy film.
9. It
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Based on the terrifying novel by Stephen King, director Andy Muschietti, known for Mama, made a film adaption of It. It might not be the film for you if you have coulrophobia (irrational fear of clowns). One out of every ten adults has some degree of fear of clowns. Tim Curry frightened one generation, playing the iconic monster Pennywise the Clown in the 1990 TV mini-series. Bill Skarsgård brought the sadistic and horrifying clown Pennywise to the silver screen and a new generation. What makes the film such an effective monster film is Pennwise’s ability to pinpoint individual fears. The film at the time became the highest-grossing horror film, with $701.8 million worldwide, dethroning The Exorcist. Critics gave it a respectable eighty-six percent on Rotten Tomatoes. Due to the success, there was a sequel, It: Chapter Two, which takes place twenty-seven years later and is the novel’s second half. There is even an upcoming prequel TV show called Welcome to Derry.
8. Jurassic Park
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Michael Crichton wrote the novel Jurassic Park. Steven Spielberg, known for Jaws, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, and Raiders of the Lost Ark, took on the epic monster film Jurassic Park. The story is a modern retelling of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. Like Frankenstein, the film explores the theme of humanity playing God and the repercussions that come from that. What makes this such an effective monster film is Spielberg’s revolutionary use of CGI and gigantic animatronics. The animatronic T. Rex weighed twelve thousand pounds. Like Bruce, the shark in Jaws, Spielberg dealt with malfunctioning dinosaurs, mostly due to the rain. The monster film was a smash hit, earning over a billion dollars at the box office. It got a ninety-one percent on Rotten Tomatoes. The Jurassic Park franchise has six films made, with a seventh one in the works.
7. The Fly
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David Cronenberg, known for Videodrome and Scanners, remade the classic film The Fly in 1986, based on the short story by George Langelaan. In Cronenberg’s version, it is more dark and grotesque. It explores man’s transformation into a monster. Stephan Dupuis earned himself an Academy Award for his stomach-churning special effect makeup in this film, which brings the monster to life. The slow, intense transformation of Seth Brundle, played by Jeff Goldblum, makes the film more horrific and scary. It has a high Rotten Tomatoes score of ninety-three percent. It grossed $60.6 million worldwide. Five films were made in the franchise, with a sixth in development.
6. Frankenstein
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Frankenstein is on the Mount Rushmore of monster films. It was directed by James Whale, known for The Invisible Man and Show Boat. The film was adapted by Mary Shelley’s classic horror novel of the same name. After hours in the makeup chair working with makeup artist Jack Pierce, Boris Karloff embodied and captivated audiences as Frankenstein’s monster. What makes the film unique is its theme of a man playing God. It also touches on the fear of the unknown. The monster is not vicious and evil at heart but complicated and misunderstood. It is man’s first creation of fire that the monster fears, which leads him to his destructive behavior. The film is praised by critics with a one-hundred percent on Rotten Tomatoes. It also had one of the best sequels, The Bride of Frankenstein. There have been more than sixty-five films featuring Frankenstein’s monster. Frankenstein has made a lasting mark in the monster world.
5. The Thing
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John Carpenter has directed some classic horror films, including Halloween, They Live, and Christine. One of Carpenter’s best monster films is The Thing. The film is based on John W. Campbell’s novella Who Goes There? Unlike classic monster films, the monster’s presence is a mystery as it can imitate a living organism, including a human. It is suspenseful and psychologically tortures the characters. One of the reasons this film is still effective today is its use of practical effects. Rob Bottin was only twenty-two when he did special effects for the film, creating horrific creatures. The film did not perform well at the box office due to its competition with E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. Despite that, many regarded it as one of the greatest horror films ever made.
4. Alien
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Director Ridley Scott, known for iconic films like Blade Runner and Gladiator, brought us one of the greatest monster movies of all time, Alien. The film marries the horror and sci-fi genre beautifully. There is a sense of no escape, as the crew is trapped on a claustrophobic spaceship while being hunted by these nightmarish-looking aliens. H.R. Giger’s brilliant design of the aliens called Xenomorphs made these monsters memorable with their acid blood and sharp teeth. Giger was inspired by surreal art and animals like snakes, beetles, horseshoe crabs, and more. The film is a slow burn that builds suspense. It has memorable scenes, including when the alien pops out of someone’s chest. The film was extremely successful, grossing $106.3 million worldwide and earning an astounding ninety-eight percent on Rotten Tomatoes. Due to the film’s popularity, the franchise has nine films and two Alien vs. Predator crossover films.
3. Godzilla
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The 1954 Godzilla is a Japanese film that created the kaiju genre, translating to strange creatures. The film took inspiration from King Kong and eventually would have cross-over films starting with King Kong vs. Godzilla. Godzilla, on the surface, was an unstoppable giant monster terrorizing Japan. However, the film is a commentary on the horror and destruction of nuclear bombs dropped on two major Japanese cities, Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The film was adored by critics, receiving a ninety-three percent on Rotten Tomatoes. The film was so successful and resonated with audiences nationally and abroad that the Godzilla franchise has thirty-eight films, thirty-three of which were produced in Japan. After seventy years, Godzilla Minus One was the first film in the film franchise to win an Academy Award for Best Visual Effects.
2. King Kong
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“They said it couldn’t be filmed — but it was!” That is the tagline from the 1933 film King Kong. The film has remarkable special effects for the time, specifically Willis O’Brien’s innovative use of stop-motion animation. The “monster” is typically the villain, but Kong is more complex and an antihero. The real villain in the film is Carl Denham, and how he exploits an animal for greed, which leads Kong to rampage. The film is epic in scale and has a memorable scene of Kong climbing up the Empire State Building. The film was so successful and well-received, with a ninety-six percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes, that there have been thirteen King Kong movies.
1. Jaws
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Jaws did something new for the monster genre. It took something real in nature, a shark, and turned it into a lurking monster hidden underneath a vast ocean. The mechanical shark, Bruce, had technical issues, a blessing and a curse. Seldom do we see the full shark. The occasional glimpse of a shark fin, matched with John Williams’s hauntingly brilliant minimal score, makes this film uncomfortably suspenseful. The film created a whole subgenre called sharksploitation. Steven Spielberg drew inspiration from Alfred Hitchcock, specifically Psycho. The film won three Academy Awards and has an extremely high Rotten Tomato score of ninety-eight percent. The shark is also listed as number eighteen on AFI’s 100 Years….100 Heroes & Villains. After the film’s immense success, there were three more Jaws installments.
