The best 70s horror movies is a common topic of debate among us here at horrorfan. We’re children of the 70s, and our love for the horror films of our birth decade eclipses pretty much everything else in our lives. The 70s can’t be matched in terms of horror movie gore; directors started adding more gory effects and buckets of blood to try and add something fresh to what was becoming a tired genre. Unfortunately, the horror movies of the 70s also can’t be matched in terms of cheesiness; there are just as many bad 70s horror movies as there are good ones.

Horror movies are a huge part of the cultural history of the 70s, and even the bad horror movies can be so bad they’re good. At very least, if you grew up in the 70s, the horror movies from that decade are an important link to your past. Maybe you remember staying up late and watching cheesy low-budget horror movies on TV or sneaking out to the drive-in to catch a movie you were too young to see. Either way, most people’s memory of the 70s involves horror movie classics.

The 70s without horror movies wouldn’t be the 70s. To that end, here is a quick breakdown of what are generally considered the three best horror films of the 1970’s.

1. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)

Today’s lineup of homemade, low-budget, indie horror flicks owes everything to The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. This is a classic slasher film made on a shoestring budget starring horror icon Leatherface. You won’t find many horror movies with more tension or gore than  can be found here, a truly scary horror flick that broke all the rules.

2. Black Christmas (1974)

A hybrid Christmas and horror movie, Black Christmas doesn’t get the attention it deserves. Blending Christmas and horror sets the mood for this creepy story of a group of college girls being picked off one by one by a mysterious killer. Some truly scary moments here, with a classic 70s look and soundtrack.

3. Halloween (1978)

The original Halloween is the grandfather of every “creepy serial killer that wears a mask” movie ever made. In Halloween, the killer is a mask-wearing psycho named Michael Myers who breaks out of a mental hospital to terrorize a woman played by a young Jamie Lee Curtis. Halloween has been called one of the most influential movies of all time, and most of today’s horror movies borrow from this flick in one way or another.

There are over 150 Dracula movies out there . . . so how is a horror movie fan to choose? Dracula is the most popular horror movie character, a classic that movie storytellers can’t seem to stay away from. Instead of wading through all 161 movies starring Dracula, stick to the best Dracula movies of all time.

Dracula, the world’s favorite horror villain/hero, is your grandfather’s kind of vampire. No, we’re not talking about the kind of vampires you find in the Twilight movies, though some Dracula movies are spoofs or comedies that may not treat him with the most respect. For the most part, the best Dracula movies of all time tend to show Dracula in a more classical light.

Dracula is a megastar in the horror world, appearing in Dracula comics, TV shows, books, and any other media you can think of. How do you dig through the piles and piles of Dracula movies to find the best of the best?

Don’t worry, we’ve done the hard work for you. Here are the three best Dracula movies of all time.

1. Dracula (1931)

Nobody has ever or will ever play Dracula like Bela Lugosi in this Dracula classic. While this wasn’t the first Dracula movie ever made, it is the one that most people think of when they think of the words “Dracula movie.” Lugosi’s version of Count Dracula continues to influence the way we think of Dracula today.

2. House of Frankenstein (1944)

For the first time in movie history, we see the Wolfman, Dracula, and Frankenstein all in the same place at the same time. This would become a trend in horror movies, up to the present day. Look out for John Carradine as a particularly creepy and stylized Dracula. There’s also a mad scientist and a hunchback character thrown in for good measure, making this movie like a one stop shop for all things classic horror.

3. Dracula 2000 (2000)

Wes Craven produced this hyper update of the original Dracula novel for the new millenium. Christopher Plummer plays Van Helsing, a bright spot among some poor acting that makes the whole film worth a watch. It doesn’t hurt that Jeri Ryan sexes it up for most of the movie, and Gerard Butler as Dracula, the star of the show, turns in a chilling performance as well. Big chunks of the movie are laughable, but part of the appeal of Dracula movies is the mix of the laughably bad with the stunningly brilliant. There is plenty of both in this update.