Top Ten Horror Documentaries

There is only one thing Horror fans love more than a good scary movie, and that’s a documentary about scary movies.  A good documentary usually includes interviews with the cast and crew from the films and behind the scenes looks into what went into making your favourite Horror films plus a few insights into what makes these films great.    So the next time you are not sure what to watch next,  pop in a good documentary and you likely will have a growing list of films you would like to see next.

 10- BBC, A History of Horror (2010)

A History of Horror is a three-part series narrated by Mark Gatiss made for BBC that shows the complete history of Horror.   Part 1 talks about the golden age of Hollywood Horror, the Universal films and the first silent Horror films.  Part 2 goes in depth about British Horror including the Hammer Films.  Part 3 talks about the American Horror movies made during the 60s and 70s.  This is a great documentary for a general overview of the history of Horror.

9- 100 years of Horror with Christopher Lee (1996)

This 5 -disc DVD set, hosted by Christopher Lee, details Horror films from the silent era to the 90s.  It focuses primarily on films older than the 70s.  Christopher Lee offers plenty of insight into the Hammer Films as well as plenty of good information to be had even for a veteran Horror fan.

8- Halloween, 25 Years of Terror (2006)

P.J. Soles narrates this retrospective on the Halloween franchise covering the last 25 years.  There are interviews with the cast and crew of all the Halloween movies including John Carpenter, Debra Hill, Jamie Lee Curtis, Moustapha Akkad, Tom Atkins, Danielle Harris, Kathleen Kinmont, and Nancy Loomis.

7- Nightmares in Red, White, and Blue (2009)

Lance Henriksen narrates Nightmares in Red, White, and Blue.  It mostly talks about the psychology behind Horror films and asks the question why we crave horror and violence in film.   It’s a social and political history lesson about the origins of Horror films and why we love them.

6- Terror in the Aisles (1984)

Donald Pleasance and Nancy Allen host this documentary that covers Horror films mostly from the 70s and 80s.  There are tons of short clips showing popular Horror movies and some Thrillers too, but they aren’t identified so you will have fun naming them as they come on.  Mostly I just enjoyed the commentary from Donald Pleasance.

5- Flesh and Blood, The Hammer Heritage of Horror (1994)

This is a must see for any Hammer Horror fan because it was filmed shortly before Peter Cushing passed away and has an interview with Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee recalling all the movies they worked on together.  Most of the people interviewed have since passed away so the documentary is a nice tribute to the film studio and those who worked for it.

4- Best Worst Movie (2009)

Troll 2 is arguably the worst movie ever made, and yet there is a huge cult following over it.  It truly is a good example of a movie that is so bad it’s good. After 20 years of pretending they were not in Troll 2, the cast comes together to present a documentary about making the worst film ever.  The documentary is very amusing and tells the story of the aftermath of a terrible movie.

3- Going to Pieces (2006)

Going to Pieces is a pretty good documentary on the slasher film genre with lots of interesting facts, trivia, and interviews from some big names in the industry.  I am not sure why Halloween  is made out to be the first slasher movie when clearly Black Christmas came before it, but if you ignore that little slight there is some good info here to be had.  Going to Pieces interweaves present-day interviews with film clips from classic 80s horror flicks to give you a behind the scenes look at the slasher genre.

2- His Name Was Jason (2009)

Tom Savini hosts this 90 minute documentary about the Friday The 13th series.   There are interviews with the cast & crew from each of the Friday the 13th movies  up to the new remake and plenty of scenes from the movies spliced in for effect.    Spanning twelve films and three decades, this is a must own for any Friday the 13th fan.  Also don’t miss the other documentary on the series called From Crystal Lake to Manhattan.

1- Never Sleep Again (2010)

Never Sleep Again is a 4-hour long documentary that details the entire Nightmare on Elm Street series and talks about the rise of New Line Cinema or “The House That Freddy Built”.  It is the ultimate fan’s guide to the Nightmare on Elm Street series and includes interviews with all the cast and crew that were involved with the  making of the entire Elm Street series.  There are another 4 hours of Bonus Features to be found on the 2- Disc Dvd set.   This labour of love was  made by the same people that filmed His Name Was Jason.