Welcome back to my series of effectively a massive list of horror films to watch. Last time out I wisely followed up A with B and now we come to C! Funny how that works! Without further ado, here are 13 horror films to watch beginning with the letter C.

The Cabinet of Dr Caligari (1920)
Not only one of the earliest horror films, but also considered possibly one of the best. Undoubtedly however it is one of the most influential for its genre. Much like Metropolis for science fiction, films released this decade will have DNA linking it to The Cabinet of Dr Caligari. A masterpiece in every sense of the word. For a film that is 100 years old, it is just as if not more effective as a horror film than the dross that has been released already this year.

Cabin Fever (2002)
The story is one that has (especially by 2002) been well-trodden at this point. College friends go to a remote cabin for a last hurrah and everything possible hits the fan. But Cabin Fever wasn’t just a typical rehash of what we have seen before. It was nastier and far more graphic than we could ever have expected. The nastiness isn’t just from the scenes and deaths of our group, but also their decisions when one member is infected. Eli Roth exploded onto the scene here and it is still a shame ad for a few years he was the poster boy of horror.

Candyman (1992)
Taking a step away from chasing about teenagers, Candyman tried to bring more to the table than what has been given by most horror fodder in the 1980s. This is a film that is trying its hardest to make you feel uncomfortable and boy does it succeed and then some. Adapted from Clive Barkers excellent short story, this was always going to connect with audiences. It is just a shame about all of those sequels not being as strong.

Carnival of Souls (1962)
A classic that has been forgotten over time and one that should be caught whenever you have the chance. For those unaware of the story, Mary and her friends in the midst of a drag race, crash off a bridge to their apparent deaths. Only Mary miraculously lives and is forever haunted by it. As eerie a film you will see from the 60s. How does one recover from a near-death experience?

Cat People (1942)
Out of the two, I just prefer the 1942 version of Cat People more than the remake and here’s why, it doesn’t need jump scares or gore to scare the audience, it uses its atmosphere and the use of the idea of what you think you see is often scarier than what you do. It works wonderfully in Cat People. Additionally, the use of such prolonged suspense makes the film stand out more and more than its contemporaries of the era.

Child’s Play (1988)
It is still a surprise to me that Child’s Play became the long-running franchise that it became. But for those who need to see where it all started and need to forget about the remake, it is why to watch it. A film that balances between comedy and horror almost expertly and makes you think Annabelle is nothing but a cuddly pillow in comparison.

Communion (1976)
Otherwise known as Alice, Sweet Alice (but I only ever knew it as Communion, thus its position in C) will have gotten by a lot of people and that is truly a shame. While it is labelled a slasher film for its suspenseful and graphic deaths, in reality, it is about grief and religion. Almost an awful lot like Antichrist in its themes (they do go off in very different journeys). Alfred Sole created a film with a lot of depth beyond horror and it is a real shame that he did not take this ball and run with it in his directorial career. Though, the less said about Tanya’s Island the better.

Coraline (2009)
The first stop motion animation to come up in these lists, Coraline is a wonderful artistic endeavour that no matter what others will say has enough horror elements in it to be classified as horror and it certainly has more suspense and ominous elements than most horror films released in the past year. If you haven’t watched it, Coraline will surprise you.

Crawl (2019)
I can safely say that no one saw crawl being as good or as widely well-received as it was. Alex Aja is a talented director and sadly has not been as prolific as horror fans would like. When I first heard about crawl I very much expected it to be a slightly better Sharknado. Very harsh I know, but a film about a hurricane-affected town getting plagued by crocodiles in their home, kind of gives off that vibe. What we get is a nail-biting test of the nerves as we watch this family try to escape as safe as possible.

Creep (2015)
Great use of the found footage genre that utilises its minimal aspect to an expert level from the first-time director Patrick Brice. The best aspect of Creep is how unsettlingly funny it is, to the point that it distracts the audience into not expecting the turn when it happens. Duplass owns the film and truly makes the character and the performance his own as you will see next.

Creep 2 (2017)
Did we need to see a sequel to Creep? Not at all, but boy I am glad that we did. Where the film loses the number of scares in comparison to the first film, the tension and nerves are increased threefold as we now know or at least suspect that “Aaron” will turn on Sara at some point, just a matter of when. A very worthy sequel and a great double bill.

Cronos (1994)
Guillermo Del Toro’s debut feature film, Cronos showed the world the talent and love that he has for the genre. Directed with the confidence of a seasoned auteur, Del Toro wasn’t afraid to take from other classic horror traits all the while able to put his own spin and look to the piece. Visually, like all Del Toro’s pictures would be, Cronos is stunning, but it is also assisted by strong performances from the cast. A must watch, unsurprisingly in a binge with his other horror works. We will return to Del Toro another day.
That is all for today, have I missed any films that should be there? I feel that there are probably some, let us know! Until next time.
Horror films to watch: Letter A
Horror films to watch: Letter B
Horror films to watch: Letter B (Part 2)
Horror films to watch: Letter C
Horror films to watch: Letter D
Horror films to watch: Letter E
Horror films to watch: Letter F
Horror films to watch: Letter G
Horror films to watch: Letter H: Part 1
Horror films to watch: Letter H: Part 2
Horror films to watch: Letter H: Part 3
Horror films to watch: Letter I; Part 1
Horror films to watch: Letter I – Part 2
Horror films to watch; Letter J
Horror films to watch; Letter K
Horror films to watch: Letter L
Horror films to watch: Letter M
Horror films to watch: Letter M (Part 2)
Horror films to watch: Letter M (part 3)
Horror films to watch: Letter N
Horror films to watch: Letter N (Part 2)
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The Cabinett of Dr. Caligari is such a cool film! I wish more people knew about it.
Usually, films before 1960 get forgotten pretty quickly! Agreed though.