The 10 scariest makeup effects in horror history

Horror films are all about their ability to frighten us from the safety of our warm, locked homes. But without the makeup departments on set, none of these things would be possible. Here’s a quick run-down of 10 great horror makeup moments. But beware, there are some shocking spoilers. (Click on the title to see the screenshot.)

10 – High Tension (2003)
2003’s High Tension brought plenty of choice horror moments, but few were finer than the moment Mère’s throat is slit wide open, sending blood shooting in every which way direction.

 9 – Hellraiser 
The now classic 1987 horror flick was home to plenty of very choice moments of practical effects, but nothing chills me more than Uncle Franks summoning of fish hooks to rip the skin from his face. A truly killer scene.

8 – Maniac (1980)
Tom Savini took the special makeup credit on this one, as well as the credit for the victim in one of the films most famous scenes, in which the unfortunate boyfriend of a soon to be victim of Zito is blasted directly in the face, blowing it in almost every direction.

7 – Day of the Dead (1985)
Another Tom Savini credit, another awesome moment as the cowardly Rhodes is incapacitated by Zombie turned Smart-Zombie Bub, only to be ripped apart by a room full of flesh hungry zombies in this George Romero classic.

 6 – Scanners (1981)
What kind of makeup moment list would be complete without a nod towards David Cronenberg’s very excellent 1981 flick Scanners? A poor one, that’s what. Even still, Chris Walas’ and Tom Shwartz work on the exploding head scene is the thing of legend.

5 – Alien (1979) 
A film so great, it’s not only one of the best horror films, but also sci-fi and action films as well. The chest-bursting scene is now so famous it’s hard to imagine the flick without it, but Pat Hay’s work here is superb. Famously, the actors (other than Hurt) were unaware as to what was about to happen, so the terrified screams audible in the film are genuine.

4 - The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre is a great film, but even more impressive is Dorothy Pearl’s makeup work on Leatherface, it’s incredibly unsettling.

 3 - Dead Alive (1992)
Peter Jackson before he became widely known for The Lord of the Rings movies was something a horror nut, with gruesome comedies like Bad Taste and yes, the incredible Dead Alive. Our pick is the infamous lawnmower scene, a bloody, gory free for all of the best sort. Great work, Marjory Hamlin

2 - The Elephant Man (1980)
Whilst it might not strictly be a horror movie, John Hurt’s makeup in The Elephant man is just incredible to pass up mentioning, for simply being incredibly grotesque and yet completely believable. Bravo.

 1 - An American Werewolf in London (1981)
31 years ago, special effects weren’t what they were now. Indeed, we look back on most effects from the time and laugh at just how hokey they are in comparison to modern films. Not so with An American Werewolf in London’s transformation scene, which is still horrifying to behold even to this day. A true horror moment classic, and a deserved #1.

This article was contributed by Cosmetics4Less, to browse our range of famous brands at affordable prices click here.