Welcome to the spine-chilling world of the Spooky Sixties
So you are one of those keen horror fans, who like to travel back in time to experience the frights and terrors of earlier cinematic eras. So are we!
The spooky stuff of the 1960s may be a thing of the distant past, but thanks to an enthralling, good old invention called Film, it will never be really gone.
Whenever you miss those good old days and feel like shivering and screaming, all you have to do, is sit tight, bite on your nails, and enjoy the thrills that only a 1960s horror movie can give you.
It will be a pleasure to drag you kicking and screaming through the blood-chilling frames of each horror film featured here, so let’s proceed to the terrifying collection where you’ll be chased by zombies, vampires, ghosts, insane surgeons, demented cremators, carnivorous plants, glowing-eyed children, vengeful witches, cruel Spanish inquisitors, Satan worshippers and a mysterious samurai wearing a bizarre mask.
This is not your average horror film list featuring only the scariest and goriest films. We treat horror as the broad genre it actually is. Thus, we tried to diversify this collection as much as possible.
We picked science fiction- and fantasy horror films, dramatic mystery horrors, Gothic- and post-apocalyptic horror films, natural- and psychological horror thrillers, dark comedy horror films, anthology horrors and everything in between.
Also, we believe there are no borders when it comes to movies, so we didn’t limit ourselves to the US only. Our horror collection features masterpieces from various countries, including France, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, Sweden and even Czechoslovakia.
Ready to jump and scream in front of the screen? Buckle up then, and let the best horror films of the 1960s scare the living heck out of you!
This collection is an episode of FrameTrek’s Best Horror Movies of All Time. A mega-journey dedicated to identify the spookiest films of each cinematic era, chronologically. It starts with the Horrors of the Silent Era and wanders ahead decade-by-decade, all the way to our ever moving present.
Presenting the 21 Best Horror Movies of the 1960s
Chronologically
Psycho (1960)
Psychological horror thriller film produced and directed by Alfred Hitchcock and starring Anthony Perkins.
Story: A Phoenix secretary embezzles forty thousand dollars from her employer’s client, goes on the run, and checks into a remote motel run by a young man under the domination of his mother. (IMDB)
Infamous for its shower scene, but immortal for its contribution to the horror genre. Because Psycho was filmed with tact, grace, and art, Hitchcock didn’t just create modern horror, he validated it.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is Psycho among the most famous horror movies from the 1960s?
✓ Included among the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die and Roger Ebert’s Great Movies list.
✓ Selected for preservation by The Library of Congress at The National Film Registry.
✓ It set a new level of acceptability for violence, deviant behavior and sexuality in films, and is widely considered to be the earliest example of the slasher film genre.
Where to watch Psycho?
Peeping Tom (1960)
Psychological horror-thriller film directed by Michael Powell, starring Carl Boehm, Anna Massey and Moira Shearer.
Story: A young man murders women, using a movie camera to film their dying expressions of terror. (IMDB)
Peeping Tom is a chilling, methodical look at the psychology of a killer, and a classic work of voyeuristic cinema.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is Peeping Tom among the scary horror movies of the 1960s?
✓ Featured in Roger Ebert’s Great Movies list and included among the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die.
✓ The film was highly controversial and extremely harshly received by the critics and the public at the time but it attracted a cult following. In later years, it has been re-evaluated and is now widely considered a masterpiece, one of the greatest British film of all time and a progenitor of the contemporary slasher film.
✓ Premiere voted this movie as one of “The 25 Most Dangerous Movies”.
Where to watch Peeping Tom?
Eyes Without a Face (1960)
French dramatic horror film co-written and directed by Georges Franju, starring Pierre Brasseur and Alida Valli.
Story: A surgeon causes an accident which leaves his daughter disfigured and goes to extreme lengths to give her a new face. (IMDB)
Between Frames:
✪ Director Georges Franju never considered the film to be a horror story, but instead felt it was tale of anguish.
A horrific tale of guilt and obsession, Eyes Without a Face is just as chilling and poetic today as it was when it was first released.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is Eyes Without a Face among the scariest horror films from the 1960s?
✓ Included among the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die and chosen by Entertainment Weekly magazine as one of the “100 New Classics” in 2008.
✓ Its release in caused controversy. Critical reaction ranged from praise to disgust. Its reputation improved over the years and today it is praised for its poetic nature as well as for being an influence on other filmmakers.
✓ When the film appeared in the Edinburgh Film Festival in 1960 it was reported that seven audience members fainted during the surgery scene. Director Georges Franju responded “Now I know why Scotsmen wear skirts.”
Where to watch Eyes Without a Face?
The Little Shop of Horrors (1960)
Horror comedy film directed by Roger Corman, starring Jonathan Haze, Jackie Joseph and Mel Welles.
Story: A clumsy young man nurtures a plant and discovers that it’s carnivorous, forcing him to kill to feed it. (IMDB)
Why is The Little Shop of Horrors among the best horror movies from the 1960s?
✓ Employs an original style of humor, combining black comedy with farce and incorporating Jewish humor and elements of spoof.
✓ The film slowly gained a cult following through word of mouth and it’s popularity increased with local television broadcasts.
Where to watch The Little Shop of Horrors?
Village of the Damned (1960)
Science fiction horror film directed by Wolf Rilla and starring George Sanders.
Story: In the English village of Midwich, the blonde-haired, glowing-eyed children of uncertain paternity prove to have frightening powers. (IMDB)
Between Frames:
✪ The eerie effect of the children’s glowing eyes was created by matting a negative (reversed) image of their eyes over the pupils when they used their powers.
✪ The children’s white wigs were padded to make their heads look slightly bigger.
✪ For close-ups, the child actors had their heads clamped to ensure that they were totally still.
Chilling performances and a restrained, eerie atmosphere make this British horror both an unnerving parable of its era and a timeless classic.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is Village of the Damned among the greatest horror films from the 1960s?
✓ Praised by critics for its story, timing, atmosphere, the frightening matter-of-factness of the village setting and the performances of the children.
Where to watch Village of the Damned?
Black Sunday (1960)
Italian gothic fantasy horror film directed by Mario Bava, starring Barbara Steele, John Richardson and Andrea Checchi.
Story: A vengeful witch and her fiendish servant return from the grave and begin a bloody campaign to possess the body of the witch’s beautiful look-alike descendant. (IMDB)
Mario Bava’s official narrative debut is a witchy nightmare steeped in gothic splendor, shot in chiaroscuro black and white and punctuated with startling gore.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is Black Sunday among the most popular horror movies of the 1960s?
✓ Included among the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die.
✓ Considered to be a pioneering work that set the standards for Italian horror films due to its juxtaposition of beautiful and horrific elements, with strong depictions of eroticism and graphic violence.
Where to watch Black Sunday?
The Innocents (1961)
Gothic psychological horror film directed and produced by Jack Clayton, starring Deborah Kerr, Michael Redgrave and Megs Jenkins.
Story: A young governess for two children becomes convinced that the house and grounds are haunted. (IMDB)
Between Frames:
✪ The film incorporates bold minimal lighting as well as deep focus to achieve a distinctive – and sometimes claustrophobic – atmosphere.
Creepily atmospheric, The Innocents is a stylishly crafted, chilling British ghost tale with Deborah Kerr at her finest.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is The Innocents among the best horror movies of the 1960s?
✓ The psychological underpinnings of the film’s screenplay have resulted in it being the subject of numerous critical and scholarly essays, particularly in the area of film theory.
✓ Regarded as a classic psychological horror film and it was selected by The Guardian as one of the 25 best horror films ever made.
Where to watch The Innocents?
The Pit and the Pendulum (1961)
Drama horror mystery film directed by Roger Corman, starring Vincent Price, Barbara Steele and John Kerr.
Story: In the sixteenth century, Francis Barnard travels to Spain to clarify the strange circumstances of his sister’s death after she had married the son of a cruel Spanish Inquisitor. (IMDB)
Between Frames:
✪ To increase the pendulum’s sense of deadly menace, the director took out every other frame during the editing stage making the blade appear to move twice as fast.
A chilling visual treat, Pit and the Pendulum unites genre masters Roger Corman and Vincent Price with delightfully dark results.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is The Pit and the Pendulum among the best horror films of the 1960s?
✓ It was a critical and box-office hit, and one of the most popular movies of the 1960s.
✓ Critics noted the film’s strong influence on numerous subsequent Italian thrillers, and Stephen King has described one of Pit’s major shock sequences as being among the most important moments in post-1960 horror film.
Where to watch The Pit and the Pendulum?
What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962)
Psychological horror-thriller film directed by Robert Aldrich, starring Bette Davis and Joan Crawford.
Story: A former child star torments her paraplegic sister in their decaying Hollywood mansion. (IMDB)
What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? combines powerhouse acting, rich atmosphere, and absorbing melodrama in service of a taut thriller with thought-provoking subtext.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? among the top horror films of the 1960s?
✓ Featured in Roger Ebert’s Great Movies list.
✓ Included among the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die.
✓ In the years after release, critics continued to acclaim the film for its psychologically driven black comedy, camp, and creation of the psycho-biddy subgenre. Today it is considered as being a cult classic.
Where to watch What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?
Carnival of Souls (1962)
Independent horror mystery film produced and directed by Herk Harvey and starring Candace Hilligoss.
Story: After a traumatic accident, a woman becomes drawn to a mysterious abandoned carnival. (IMDB)
Carnival of Souls offers delightfully chilling proof that when it comes to telling an effective horror story, less can often be much, much more.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is Carnival of Souls among the greatest horror movies of the 1960s?
✓ Although it did not gain widespread attention when it was originally released, the film was re-discovered in the 1980s and since then it garnered a large cult following.
✓ Regarded by many film schools as a classic, often praised for its atmosphere, lighting and sound design, in which “sight and sound come together… in a horrifying way.”
Where to watch Carnival of Souls?
The Birds (1963)
Natural horror-thriller film produced and directed by Alfred Hitchcock, starring Rod Taylor and Jessica Tandy.
Story: A wealthy San Francisco socialite pursues a potential boyfriend to a small Northern California town that slowly takes a turn for the bizarre when birds of all kinds suddenly begin to attack people. (IMDB)
Between Frames:
✪ 3,200 birds were trained for the movie. The ravens were the cleverest, and the seagulls were the most vicious. The latter were fed a mixture of wheat and whiskey. It was the only way to get them to stand around so much.
✪ Hitchcock kept a graph in his office, charting the rise and fall of the bird attacks in the movie.
✪ While the studio spent an estimated $200,000 on creating mechanical birds for the film, the majority of the birds seen on screen are real.
Proving once again that build-up is the key to suspense, Alfred Hitchcock successfully turned birds into some of the most terrifying villains in horror history.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is The Birds among the most famous horror films of the 1960s?
✓ Included among the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die and Roger Ebert’s Great Movies list.
✓ Selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant”.
✓ Received mixed reviews upon its initial release but with the passage of time, the film’s standing among critics has improved. It has been very influential on the horror genre inspiring filmmakers like Guillermo del Toro and John Carpenter.
Where to watch The Birds?
The Haunting (1963)
Psychological horror film directed and produced by Robert Wise, starring Julie Harris, Claire Bloom and Richard Johnson.
Story: Hill House has stood for about 90 years and appears haunted: its inhabitants have always met strange, tragic ends. Now Dr. John Markway has assembled a team of people who he thinks will prove whether or not the house is haunted. (IMDB)
Between Frames:
✪ The interior sets were designed to be brightly lit, with no dark corners or recesses, and decorated in a Rococo style; all the rooms had ceilings to create a claustrophobic effect on film.
✪ Wise used a weird kind of camera that was not technically ready for use and caused distortions. Some of the sequences kept the camera moving, utilizing low-angle takes, and incorporating unusual pans and tracking shots.
Both psychological and supernatural, The Haunting is a chilling character study.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is The Haunting among the most popular horror films of the 1960s?
✓ When it was released, audiences were genuinely frightened by it and the film’s stature and following have grown steadily since then.
✓ Included among the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die.
✓ The Guardian newspaper ranked it as the 13th-best horror film of all time and director Martin Scorsese has placed it first on his list of the 11 scariest horror films of all time.
Where to watch The Haunting?
The Last Man on Earth (1964)
Post-apocalyptic science fiction horror film directed by Ubaldo Ragona and Sidney Salkow, starring Vincent Price and Franca Bettoia.
Story: When a disease turns all of humanity into the living dead, the last man on earth becomes a reluctant vampire hunter. (IMDB)
A chilling study of loneliness and an acting tour de force for Price as the last survivor of a dead race, and not exactly the feel-good movie of 1964.
Jerry Renshaw – Austin Chronicle
Why is The Last Man on Earth among the best horror movies of the 1960s?
✓ Although the film was not considered a success upon its release, it attained a cult following later on and gained a more favorable reputation as a classic of the genre.
Where to watch The Last Man on Earth?
Onibaba (1964)
Japanese dramatic horror thriller film written and directed by Kaneto Shindo, starring Nobuko Otowa, Jitsuko Yoshimura and Kei Satō.
Story: Two women kill samurai and sell their belongings for a living. While one of them is having an affair with their neighbor, the other woman meets a mysterious samurai wearing a bizarre mask. (IMDB)
Onibaba is a chilling movie, a waking nightmare shot in icy monochrome, and filmed in a colossal and eerily beautiful wilderness.
Peter Bradshaw – Guardian
Why is Onibaba among the best horror films from the 1960s?
✓ Included among the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die and winner of the Grand Prix Inter-Clubs du Cinéma award.
✓ Praised by critics for its photography, acting, musical score, atmosphere, and the unique use of the Hannya mask.
Where to watch Onibaba?
Kwaidan (1964)
Japanese anthology horror film directed by Masaki Kobayashi.
The film consists of four separate and unrelated Japanese folk tales with supernatural themes.
Exquisitely designed and fastidiously ornate, Masaki Kobayashi’s ambitious anthology operates less as a frightening example of horror and more as a meditative tribute to Japanese folklore.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is Kwaidan among the top horror movies of the 1960s?
✓ It received considerable critical acclaim and won the Special Jury Prize at the 1965 Cannes Film Festival. Also received an Academy Award nomination for Best Foreign Language Film.
✓ In Japan the film won Yoko Mizuki the Kinema Junpo award for Best Screenplay. It also won awards for Best Cinematography and Best Art Direction at the Mainichi Film Concours.
Where to watch Kwaidan?
Repulsion (1965)
British psychological horror film directed by Roman Polanski, and starring Catherine Deneuve.
Story: A sex-repulsed woman who disapproves of her sister’s boyfriend sinks into depression and has horrific visions of rape and violence. (IMDB)
Roman Polanski’s first English film follows a schizophrenic woman’s descent into madness, and makes the audience feel as claustrophobic as the character.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is Repulsion among the greatest horror films of the 1960s?
✓ Included among the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die and Premiere voted this film as one of “The 25 Most Dangerous Movies”.
✓ Upon its release, it received considerable critical acclaim and currently is considered one of Polanski’s greatest works.
✓ At the 15th Berlin International Film Festival in 1965, Repulsion won both the FIPRESCI Prize and the Silver Berlin Bear-Extraordinary Jury Prize.
Where to watch Repulsion?
The Fearless Vampire Killers (1967)
British comedy horror film directed by Roman Polanski, starring Polanski, Jack MacGowran and Sharon Tate.
Story: A noted professor and his dim-witted apprentice fall prey to their inquiring vampires, while on the trail of the ominous damsel in distress. (IMDB)
This uneven but amiable 1967 vampire picture is part horror spoof, part central European epic, and 100 percent Roman Polanski, whose signature sensibility colors every frame.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Where to watch The Fearless Vampire Killers?
Rosemary’s Baby (1968)
Psychological horror film written and directed by Roman Polanski, starring Mia Farrow, John Cassavetes and Ruth Gordon.
Story: A young couple moves in to an apartment only to be surrounded by peculiar neighbors and occurrences. When the wife becomes mysteriously pregnant, paranoia over the safety of her unborn child begins to control her life. (IMDB)
Between Frames:
✪ Mia Farrow actually ate raw liver for a scene in the movie despite being a vegetarian at the time.
A frightening tale of Satanism and pregnancy that is even more disturbing than it sounds thanks to convincing and committed performances by Mia Farrow and Ruth Gordon.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is Rosemary’s Baby among the most popular horror films from the 1960s?
✓ Included among the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die and included among the American Film Institute’s list of the Top 100 Most Heart-Pounding American Movies.
✓ Earned universal acclaim from film critics and won numerous nominations and awards it is widely regarded as one of the greatest horror films of all time.
✓ Selected for preservation in the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress, being deemed “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant”.
Where to watch Rosemary’s Baby?
Night of the Living Dead (1968)
Independent horror thriller film directed, photographed, and edited by George A. Romero, starring Duane Jones and Judith O’Dea.
Story: A ragtag group of Pennsylvanians barricade themselves in an old farmhouse to remain safe from a horde of flesh-eating ghouls that are ravaging the East Coast of the United States. (IMDB)
Between Frames:
✪ When the zombies are eating the bodies in the burnt-out truck, they were actually eating roast ham covered in chocolate sauce.
✪ 200 extras were cast in the parts of townspeople and zombies and the Pittsburgh police provided personnel and equipment.
✪ Much of the dialogue was improvised.
George A. Romero’s debut set the template for the zombie film, and features tight editing, realistic gore, and a sly political undercurrent.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is Night of the Living Dead among the scariest horror movies of the 1960s?
✓ The film’s explicit violence and gore was considered groundbreaking and unprecedented for the time, leading to widespread controversy and negative reviews upon its initial release. It eventually garnered a cult following and acclaim among critics over time, and has appeared on lists of the greatest and most influential films ever made.
✓ Frequently identified as the first modern zombie film and a touchstone in the development of the horror genre.
✓ Included among the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die and selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant”.
Where to watch Night of the Living Dead?
Hour of the Wolf (1968)
Swedish psychological horror film directed by Ingmar Bergman, starring Max von Sydow and Liv Ullmann.
Story: While vacationing on a remote German island with his younger pregnant wife, an artist has an emotional breakdown while confronting his repressed desires. (IMDB)
Ingmar Bergman makes a successful foray into horror with Hour of the Wolf, infusing the demons that spring from creativity with his trademark psychological curiosity.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is Hour of the Wolf among the greatest horror films from the 1960s?
✓ Included among the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die.
✓ The movie’s themes include insanity, particularly as experienced by an artist, sexuality, and relationships, conveyed in a surreal style and with elements of folklore. Analysts have found allusions to vampire and werewolf legend.
✓ It was poorly received initially but in later years it received generally positive reviews and was ranked one of the 50 greatest films ever made in a directors’ poll by the British Film Institute.
Where to watch Hour of the Wolf?
The Cremator (1969)
Czechoslovak dark comedy horror film directed by Juraj Herz.
Story: Set in Central Europe during World War II, a demented cremator believes cremation relieves earthly suffering and sets out to save the world. (IMDB)
Between Frames:
✪ Part of the movie was filmed in crematorium with real deceased people arranged for their cremation.
The Cremator is essential viewing if you’re a lover of morbid black comedy, the kind of cinema that lies on the delicate border between horror and social satire.
Jonathan Romney – Film Comment Magazine
Why is The Cremator among the best horror films from the 1960s?
✓ Selected as the Czechoslovakian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 42nd Academy Awards and it won the Festival de Cine de Sitges Best Film award.
✓ It gathered a prominent cult following over the years and it is widely considered to be one of the best movies ever made in Czechoslovakia.
Where to watch The Cremator?
…end of the reel…
Your turn!
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