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Best Horror Movies of 2013

The holidays are over and the cold has settled. The season has turned from fall to winter. The days are shorter and the nights are a whole lot longer. With all this dark and cold weather, it is a good idea to stay inside and keep warm. Seriously, is there a better way to stay warm than to have your heart pounding in your ears and your eyes glued to the television watching a good horror flick? No, I say. No. There is not.
With that in mind, let's look at what the last year brought to us in the way of horror. At the top of our list is a crowd pleasing, horror fest that rips the mind open and shoves in thoughts and images that could only be described by the insane and that movie is Mama. Yes, Mama is the story of a woman and her children, who have been taken into a home by a young couple who just don't understand how protective Mama can be of her children. The visuals are sick with detail and some of the sounds coming from the screen will make your skin crawl. Mama was directed by Andrés Muschietti and stars Jessica Chastain.

Next on this list of frights is the remake of the cult classic Evil Dead. This remake paid homage to the original while being able to keep up with the newer movies in Hollywood. The gore level is cranked up and the cheesy one liners and silly plot has been updated in such a way that is guaranteed to make you lose sleep and your appetite. The story takes place in a cabin out in the woods where five friends have gathered to have a good time. That good time ends when the group finds an old book that summons demons. Evil Dead was directed by Fede Alvarez and stars Jane Levy and Shiloh Fernandez.  The original was directed by Sam Rami and starred Burn Notice star Bruce Campbell.
 
Coming up in the third spot of our horror movie queue is Dark Skies. Dark Skies is a supernatural horror/ thriller. It tells the story of a young family from the suburbs who find themselves under attack in the presumed safety of their home by an evil supernatural being. Dark Skies, while not liked by a lot of critiques, is still worthy of a rental for any horror fan. As a horror movie, Dark Skies delivers with visceral scenes and dark dialog. There are many shivers to be felt during the film. Dark Skies was directed by Scott Stewart and stars Keri Russell and Josh Hamilton. 

The Conjuring is revealing itself in the fourth spot on our list of best horror movies. The Conjuring is the telling of a somewhat true story about a pair of famous paranormal investigators who are asked to help a family deal with a very nasty problem. The problem turns out to be a barn which is now haunted. Using science to deal with the supernatural instead of religion is one of the reasons that this movie is on this list. The Conjuring also does away with a lot of the gore that is common in horror movies and replaced it with spine chilling camera shots that build tension at an unrelenting pace. This unusual horror show is also one of the highest rated movies of the year. The Conjuring was directed by James Wan and stars Patrick Wilson and Lili Taylor.
Rolling in on old home style video into the fifth place on our list is Sinister. This horror show is about a down on his luck writer who moves his family to a house that has some old homemade movies hidden in the attic. These old flicks turn out to be snuff films tied up with a demonic overtone. The images are brutal in their presentation and the sounds will make you look over your shoulder for the entire length of the film. The film stars Ethan Hawke as the writer trying to protect his family and is directed and written by Scott Derickson. Mr. Derickson also wrote and directed the hit paranormal movie, The Possession of Emily Rose, which was based on a true story. 

Insidious Chapter 2 frights its way into the sixth spot on our list of best horror movies of 2013. This movie is the hit sequel to the first Insidious film and continues the story of a family trying to survive their own personal demon apocalypse. Chapter Two is directed and written by the same masterful horror duo as the first, James Wan and Leigh Wannel. These two horror masterminds, when put together, know how to polish a horror story and take it to the next level. The gore level is a little low; however, it is more than made up for by the sheer terror of the camera angles and the story telling of the actors. Even though this movie bombed for the critics, it still has all the makings of a modern horror movie and should be watched by any fan of the genre. 

And there you have it. This was our list of the best Horror movies of 2013. Starting off with Mama and finishing with Insidious Chapter Two, there was enough blood and gore to choke any horror fan. There were a lot of good horror movies that came out in 2013, most of them made by small indie studios that published straight to DVD and Netflix. And because of that fact, these lesser known movies didn't get the credit they so rightly deserve. So if you are a fan of horror, check out the movies on this list and when you have finished them all, turn off the lights, turn on Netflix and check out the rest of movies that you may have missed. Here’s a quick survival tip for your night of movie horror. Whatever you do, don’t investigate that sound you heard. It is the killer and you will die.