Scaring the children: The best teen scream films

Freddy Krueger made his debut in the original “A Nightmare on Elm Street,” which director and screenwriter Wes Craven blessed the world with in 1984. Of course, the scores of teenagers who were kept up at night due to a fear of being murdered in their dreams by the demon Krueger might disagree with that sentiment.

Although this list contains a lot of classic horror flicks, “Beautiful Creatures” is not one of them. Not only did it come out just a few years ago, in 2013, but it’s actually more of a gothic fantasy romance film, based on the novel of the same name by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl. It received mixed critical reviews, but was well received by teen audiences (as evidenced by its six nominations at the 2013 Teen Choice Awards), partly because it’s about the trials and tribulations of being a new student in high school... with the added elements of supernatural flashbacks, magic spells and evil curses. 

Prom night is plenty stressful, especially when you’re a teenage girl with an abusive mother, cruel classmates, and unharnessed telekinetic powers. Just ask Carrie (Sissy Spacek), the protagonist of the 1976 film of the same name, which is based on a classic horror novel from Stephen King. However, Spacek and King aren’t the only big names attached to this supernatural film, as it also stars Piper Laurie and John Travolta (in just the second big-screen appearance of his career), and was directed by Brian De Palma.

“The Craft” explores a theme that some teens have pondered in times of weakness and distress: what if you had special powers that could be used to defeat your enemies? Friends and witchcraft enthusiasts Sarah (Robin Tunney), Nancy (Fairuza Balk), Bonnie (Neve Campbell), and Rochelle (Rachel True) gain these supernatural abilities, but soon find out that with great powers comes great responsibility... and a great chance that things will go terribly and dangerously wrong. Although something of a sleeper hit upon its release in 1996, “The Craft” has since reached cult status.

At its core, 2007’s “Disturbia” could be easily dismissed as a teen-centric ripoff of Alfred Hitchcock’s “Rear Window,” but the film is a bit more complex than that. For starters, it features more actors, action, jump-scares, and even some romance, while twisting the plot numerous times before finally coming to an end. Oft-criticized actor Shia LaBeouf turns in one of the strongest performances of his career in the edge-of-your-seat thriller, alongside Sarah Roemer and veteran actor David Morse.

Written and directed by Richard Kelly, “Donnie Darko” is technically a sci-fi film, but it definitely has its share of scares, screams, and other disturbing sights. After all, it opens with a demented bunny and an enormous jet engine that crashes through the roof of a house, and ends with... well, you’ll have to see the cerebral thriller yourself to fully understand it. Jake Gyllenhaal stars in the 2001 film, with supporting roles that feature Maggie Gyllenhaal, Mary McDonnell, Jena Malone, Drew Barrymore and Patrick Swayze. 

Ever think that your high school teachers were so weird that they must have been aliens? “The Faculty” explores that in a violent, creepy, and scream-worthy way, with some help from actors Elijah Wood, Jordana Brewster, Josh Hartnett, Usher, Robert Patrick, Salma Hayek and Jon Stewart, among other notable names. Although the Robert Rodriguez-directed film received mixed reviews from critics, it actually earned Saturn, Teen Choice and Blockbuster Entertainment Award nominations.

When a group of teens cheat death by getting kicked off a plane prior to its takeoff and subsequent explosion, death finds a way to cheat back and kill the teens one by one in James Wong and Jeffrey Reddick’s 2000 horror movie “Final Destination.” The first film in the franchise stars Devon Sawa, Seann William Scott and Amanda Detmer, with each of the four sequels featuring a different cast of doomed death-dodgers.

The hockey-mask-wearing killer Jason Voorhees doesn’t actually murder anyone in 1980’s “Friday the 13th” (his mother, played by Betsy Palmer, does instead), but this first movie in the 12-film slasher franchise is still the most memorable installment. The Sean S. Cunningham flick was also one of the first films to make teens rethink heading off to a summer sleepaway camp in the woods.

A 17-year-old horror fan (William Ragsdale) discovers his neighbor is a vampire, but is, of course, believed by no one. After teaming up with a reluctant actor who once played a vampire hunter on TV (Roddy McDowall), the teen attempts to take down the undead creature next door and save his girlfriend at the same time. “Fright Night” was directed by Tom Holland (“Child’s Play,” “Thinner”) and was remade more than 25 years after the release of the original. 

John Carpenter’s “Halloween” could be called the original teen scream film, as it centers on 17-year-old babysitter Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) as she attempts to escape from psychotic, white-masked serial killer Michael Myers. Produced on a budget of just $300,000, “Halloween” went on to make an unfathomable $70 million at the box office and spawn seven sequels and two reboots (both of the latter by director Rob Zombie).

1988’s “Heathers” isn’t a horror film, but it contains plenty of teen angst, jealousy, violence, suıcide, and murder, making it something a creepy, cruel, and sometimes shocking black comedy. Thanks in part to memorable performances by Winona Ryder, Christian Slater and Shannen Doherty, “Heathers” holds a 95 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes and inspired a TV adaptation, which will premiere later this year 30 years after the film’s theatrical release!

Capitalizing on the immense success of a Wes Craven slasher film released the previous year (more on that later), “I Know What You Did Last Summer” and its hook-handed killer hit theaters in October 1997. It stars Jennifer Love Hewitt, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Ryan Phillippe and Freddie Prinze Jr. – essentially four of the hottest young adults of the 1990s, in every sense of the word. The flick grossed $125.2 million against a budget of just $17 million, which led to sequels in 1998 and 2006. A fourth installment, a remake, is also reportedly in the works.

There are plenty of laughs to be found in 1999’s “Idle Hands,” but there’s also a lot of senseless murder, gore, and jump scares – almost all of which involves a group of teens played by Devon Sawa, Seth Green, and Jessica Alba, as well as appearances by Vivica A. Fox, Kelly Monaco, Fred Willard and The Offspring (plus some other quick cameos). The film was almost universally panned, but don’t let that stop you from giving it a watch one night.

Although technically a two-part miniseries, “It” is generally viewed nowadays as a single, three-hour film that stars an ensemble cast of Tim Curry, Richard Thomas, Harry Anderson, John Ritter, Annette O’Toole, Dennis Christopher Tim Reid and Richard Masur, as well as a very young Seth Green. It is often credited for an enormous increase in coulrophobia (the fear of clowns), and with Curry’s terrifying portrayal of the sharp-toothed, supernatural killer, we can certainly see why. (The 2017 remake is worth a watch too!)

“It Follows”: psychological horror film, or creative way to encourage abstinence among teens? We may never know, but we do know that the David Robert Mitchell film was a surprise hit that debuted at Cannes, made $24 million at the box office, and holds a 97 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

It’s rare to find a film remake that holds up to the original, but the 2009 remake of “My Bloody Valentine” may have achieved this feat – and then some! The 1981 gore-fest was certainly entertaining, but the newer version was presented in 3D, and director Patrick Lussier exploited this gimmick as much as possible when reviving the tale of the maniacal miner hell-bent on murder. Plus, screenwriters Zane Smith and Todd Farmer made plenty of changes to the story, which keeps fans of the original guessing until the very end.

A criminally underrated slasher flick, “Return to Horror High” isn’t a sequel, as the title might suggest. Instead, it’s about a killer who was never caught and returns to Crippen High School, the site of his murders, in order to claim more victims. In some ways, it is something of an inspiration for the “Scream” films, except it came out nine years earlier, features a young George Clooney (in just his third film appearance), and barely managed $1 million at the box office.

How could we have a teen scream list without the ultimate ‘90s teen slasher film, Wes Craven’s “Scream”? (Especially since we already mentioned it numerous times.) Starring Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, Matthew Lillard, Skeet Ulrich, David Arquette and Drew Barrymore (in a surprisingly small role), “Scream” is equal parts horror and satire, playing off of scary movie cliches while creating a unique movie that seems strangely familiar. Although the franchise eventually grew to include four films, the original is by far the best.

“Swimfan” is no ordinary high school tale, unless your high school social experience involved jealousy, obsession, impersonation, and stalking. (And we really hope it didn’t.) The 2002 psychological horror film was directed by John Polson and stars Jesse Bradford, Erika Christensen, Shiri Appleby and Clayne Crawford.