Tobin Bell names the five greatest horror movies of all time
American actor Tobin Bell has become a renowned figure in the horror industry, recognised for his unforgettable rendition of Jigsaw in the Saw franchise. While his appearances in the Saw films have become the defining part of his filmography, Bell’s acting career extends beyond the beloved horror franchise since he’s been a part of many other exciting projects, including some of the early seasons of the iconic television show The Sopranos.
However, it’s the horror genre that he’s primarily associated with, and that’s the subject that usually pops up in conversations with media outlets. During an interview with Rotten Tomatoes, Bell opened up about his favourite horror movies of all time. His list is definitely interesting because it contains stone-cold classics by directors like Alfred Hitchcock as well as relatively modern films that are not as appreciated as the other entries.
Bell began by citing the 1955 masterpiece Diabolique, stating: “An old French film with Simone Signoret, and I think Paul Meurisse is in it. It’s the film that terrified me as child, with this very simple scene where she pulls a curtain back in an upstairs window, and he’s watching from the yard”.
He added: “That was actually probably the first horror film I ever saw. It was very scary. I was a small child. I just remember the simplicity of that moment when she pulled that curtain back. So there’s that, and they did the remake with Sharon Stone that was not very successful and wasn’t very well made.”
The actor also elaborated on the significance of Hitchcock’s most famous thriller: “Psycho, the Alfred Hitchcock film, the film with Anthony Perkins and Janet Leigh. I thought that film was groundbreaking at its time, and I think everyone else did, too. The shower scene in Psycho, I likened it to people being afraid to go in the ocean because of Jaws. People were afraid after that film to take a shower. I remember distinctly so many people talking about that because of that shower scene with Janet Leigh.”
Continuing with his list, Bell included the game-changing horror masterpiece The Exorcist: “The William Friedkin film. I thought that was very smart. I thought the priests were as terrifying in that, and all the religious symbolism, and all of the dogma of the Catholic Church that was involved in that. It’s pretty rich stuff. The performances were very, very powerful in that film. Some of the special effects also that they did with the child in the bed were just so freaky.”
Check out the full list below.
Tobin Bell’s favourite horror movies:
- Diabolique (Henri-Georges Clouzot, 1955)
- Psycho (Alfred Hitchcock, 1960)
- The Exorcist (William Friedkin, 1973)
- The Descent (Neil Marshall, 2005)
- Wolf Creek (Greg McLean, 2005)
Although the first three picks are almost in the undeniable category, Bell’s final two selections are a bit more controversial. He is a huge fan of Greg McLean’s 2005 Australian outback horror flick Wolf Creek which revolves around a psychotic, fascist serial killer. Bell began: “Wolf Creek, the Australian independent film that has such great locations and great music. A very simple premise, and it’s surprising.”
The actor added: “It starts out in this sort of idyllic setting and situation, and it just falls like dominoes into this horrific situation. Your hopes for the characters are dashed, one by one. I just love when I see a little independent film that’s got all the elements of good filmmaking done on a small budget with extremely powerful performances by the two lead characters in it.”