Best Horror Movie Theme Songs

I'm a sucker for a soundtrack. The moment in Homeward Bound when ****spoiler alert**** Shadow finally comes over that hill ****end of spoiler**** probably wouldn't make me sob like a little child if it wasn't for the emotional soundtrack. Without a soundtrack, the training montages in Rocky would be less inspiring and more like an awkward series of grunts and yells. And without a soundtrack, horror movies would be about as frightening as one of the Twilight movies.

I kid. The Twilight series actually features pretty horrific acting. But while we've discussed horror movies before on Slice of Fried Gold, we've never really discussed horror movie music. . .UNTIL NOW!

Below are the theme songs that bring creepy images to mind, the ones that have become iconic and taken on a life of their own, the ones that, if they suddenly started playing while you were walking down a dark alley, might make you wet yourself. I have excluded some famous horror movie themes, such as:

• Friday the 13th, which features an awesome and iconic sound effect, but the theme song is actually pretty awful.
• Poltergeist, which is a freaky movie, but do you even remember how the theme song goes? Neither do I. 
• "Toccata and Fugue in D Minor." This is a frightfully good song, but it's been used in so many different movies and TV shows that it's hard to associate it with just one.

 Nevertheless, here is my totally subjective list of the top ten best horror movie theme songs:



10. M ("In the Hall of the Mountain King") -  Edvard Grieg 

"In the Hall of the Mountain King" actually comes from Peer Gynt, which is a Norwegian play from the late 1800s. In the play, this song plays as the main character enters a realm of trolls and goblins. However, in the movie M, it is whistled by the main character whenever he is about to abduct and kill a child. It's actually one of the first times in film that a theme song has been associated with a character. This use of "leitmotif" (which is German for "milk mustache") would become a staple for future horror movies and it helped bring "In the Hall of the Mountain King" into the horror movie musical canon.



9. The Omen ("Ave Satani") - Jerry Goldsmith

I'll admit right now that I'm not a big fan of this movie, but the song is undeniably creepy. Gregorian chants always give me the shivers, but this one has a dark, sinister tone that crescendos into chaos. And then, when you realize that the Latin chants actually mean "Hail Satan," "Hail Anti-Christ" and "Elevate the body of Satan," that just makes the song even creepier. I wouldn't recommend playing this one at a Halloween party where children are present -- they may begin to convince other guests to jump off of the roof.



8. The Shining - Wendy Carlos and Rachel Elkind

As I was compiling this list of the best horror movie theme songs, I couldn't remember the music from The Shining. However, once I pulled up this song, it brought back a flood of creepy memories. This theme song was an adaptation of a song by Hector Berloiz, which was an adaptation of a 13th century hymn called "Dies Irae," which is Latin for "Yes, Latin is always creepy when its sung." This song has a great spooky-electric-organ feel and it is a great tune to play at a haunted house.



7. The Fog - John Carpenter

Not only was this film directed and co-written by John Carpenter, but he also composed the music. This theme song appropriately starts with a foghorn and then uses a fairly repetitive, yet effective, piano melody. It also has a familiar ticking percussion noise in the background, which worked quite well in another famous John Carpenter tune. Once again, this is a great theme song to play at a Halloween party because it is able to create a mood while staying in the background.



6. Signs - James Newton Howard

"But, The Former 786," you faithful readers are saying, "this song is WAY too new to be on a list of the best horror movie theme songs of all time!" Yes, it's a recent movie, but I was floored the first time I heard this music and it was shortly thereafter put on my Halloween playlist. It has a sharp, aggressive feel to it, reminiscent of the great scores from Hitchcock films. Whether you like Signs or not (illegal aliens are always a polarizing topic), this theme song deserves an objective listen.



5. Nightmare on Elm Street - Charles Bernstein

While many people only remember the infamous "1, 2, Freddy's coming for you. . ." rhyme sung by children in the film, the theme song of A Nightmare on Elm Street brings a certain, creepy feel to any room - especially a boiler room. This synthesized number has a new-age feel and features a strange, echoing drum, a ghostly voice and a high-pitched melody almost as piercing as Freddy's claws. You could almost fall asleep to this song, although I wouldn't recommend it.



4. The Exorcist ("Tubular Bells") - Mike Oldfield

Once more, I am not a fan of this movie, but this once innocuous tune has taken on a life of its own in the horror movie world. The theme for The Exorcist is actually only a small part of the whole "Tubular Bells" experience. "Tubular Bells, Part 1" actually runs 25 minutes and 58 seconds, and "Tubular Bells, Part 2" goes another 23:20. Apparently Warner Bros. wanted a "softer" score for this film, because they felt harsh music along with the harsh imagery on the screen would be too much for audiences.



3. Psycho ("The Murder") -  Bernard Herrmann

Speaking of harsh music, it doesn't get much more assaulting than this piece by Bernard Herrmann. Ok, technically, this isn't the "theme song" of Psycho, but it is, by far, the most recognizable music from the movie. Hitchcock himself said that much of the success of the film was due to Herrmann's work. The entire film score of Psycho could qualify for this list, but the screeching violins of "The Murder" are synonymous with psychotic behavior and showers. In fact, I can guarantee that almost every time someone is making a downward stabbing gesture with their arm, this music will be coming out of their mouth.



2. Jaws - John Williams 

Much like the whistling of "In the Hall of the Mountain King" in M, whenever you begin to hear the alternating two-note pattern of the tuba, you know the shark is near. The slow, plotting tempo at the beginning quickens and builds into a complete fear frenzy. Perhaps this film is the reason I have an irrational fear of tuba players. Regardless, this film score launched John Williams into well-deserved stardom and it will forever be associated with sharks, shark attacks and anything lurking under the water.



1. Halloween - John Carpenter

This musical theme is not complicated or sophisticated, but, then again, neither is stabbing someone with a butcher knife. The Halloween theme features a simple haunting piano melody backed by sharp and quick percussion. This creepy theme song perfectly complements Michael Myers stalking, lurking and murdering actions. It's just John Carpenter and a keyboard, but it works. This is the kind of music I would not want to hear when walking down a dark alley. This is the kind of music that is perfect for any haunted house or Halloween party. Yes, in my totally subjective opinion, I feel that this is the best horror movie theme song.

Top 5 Re-cut/Mashup Movie Trailers

Movie trailers are a bunch of teases and flirts.

They give you just enough information to peak your interest, but they don't tell you everything you need to know before you get into the relationship. Sometimes movie trailers even lie to the audience. For example, sometimes they'll use a song that isn't to be found anywhere on the actual movie soundtrack. Or, in some cases, editors will put a line or scene next to another, when, in the actual film, those lines/moments are nowhere near each other. This is all to get an emotional response from the audience and hopefully draw them to the theaters, but it is still a form of deception.

When making a movie trailer you can make it look pretty much how you want, so it's no surprise that, five years ago or so, a bunch of re-cut movie trailers flooded the internet. People would take movie trailers we know and love, and edit them with different lines, music, and even scenes to make them look like a different genre of movie. Some say that this is because of the availability of consumer-level digital video editing suites, but I think it's because people were tired of being lied to and they wanted to show movie trailers for the deceptive teases that they are!

And as I was discussing mashup trailers with a friend recently, I realized that, while I have seen many of these re-cut trailers and have enjoyed 16.8% of them, I didn't have any here on Slice of Fried Gold. There are a TON of these trailers out there, but I wanted to make sure that I showed you, my faithful readers, the best ones that are out there.

So without further ado, I present to you the top five re-cut/mashup trailers on the internet:


#5 - West Side Story


Why it's on the list: I love zombie movies and zombie-related things. Plus, with only the addition of some title cards and a few simple special effects, the creators of this mashup made this cheesy musical adaptation of Romeo and Juliet look like 28 Days Later. Also, this re-cut trailer proves that creepy sound effects and quick cuts (even of people dancing) makes people feel uneasy. However, I think the actual West Side Story movie makes people uneasy anyway, so. . .



#4 - Toy Story/The Dark Knight


Why it's on the list: This trailer reminds me of when, as a kid, I used to mute Sesame Street and turn on the radio to see if I could make the lips on the TV match up to the music. It didn't always work, but one time I did successfully "make" a Muppet sing the lyrics to "Unskinny Bop" by Poison. The creators of this mashup did a spectacular job of making Buzz Lightyear and Woody look like they were reciting lines from The Dark Knight. And the music and sound effects match up quite well, as well. A lot of work went into this mashup, and it shows.



#3 - Sleepless in Seattle


Why it's on the list: When you ask someone to think of a romantic comedy, Sleepless in Seattle is one of the first ones they're going to name. It's everything a romantic comedy should be, so it's fun to see it played up as a thriller. Watching Meg Ryan creepily lurk and stalk Tom Hanks and his son is particularly enjoyable. If this was the actual trailer, I probably would have seen this film in theaters. And I must say that the clips of the blue-filtered fire crawling across the ceiling is a touch of genius.



#2 - Mary Poppins (Scary Mary)


Why it's on the list: I always thought that the creepiest part of Mary Poppins is when that old man tries to steal Michael Banks' money and they run away and end up in that back alley, but this trailer proves otherwise. I never realized how supernatural this movie was until I saw this re-cut trailer. Now I realize that Mary Poppins is just as creepy as Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.This one comes in ahead of the others because it manages to make the original movie look scary while only using clips from the original movie - only some music, color changes and title cards are added. This one is genuinely creepy.



#1 - The Shining


Why it's on the list: While this wasn't the first re-cut trailer, this was the one that opened the floodgates. In October 2005 a contest was held by the Association of Independent Creative Editors to see who could come up with the best genre-bending trailer and this one won - and I agree with that decision. I applaud Robert Ryang for making this trailer that is completely different from the movie. And while this trailer suffers from sub-par voiceover work (it doesn't sound authentic), the use of Peter Gabriel's "Solsbury Hill" would cover a multitude of sins.



So there you go. I know there is a slew of other mashups and re-cut trailers out there, but these are the ones that I feel were worth your time. And I'm all about not wasting your time.