Dracula
Horror movies have always seemed to be one of the UK's specialities when is came to movies, and with the likes of Alfred Hitchcock on your side it's not remotely surprising.
This week sees that trend continue with the release of Tormented, which stars Alex Pettifer and April Pearson.
Things couldn't be going much better for Justine Fielding (Tuppence Middleton), a bright and beautiful student at Fairview High.
But Alexis and his clique aren't quite as cool as they seem. They mercilessly bully students who don't match up to their exacting standards - one such victim was overweight, asthmatic geek Darren Mullett (Calvin Dean), whom they victimised so relentlessly that he killed himself last summer.
But now he's back from the dead and ready to settle some scores.
So to celebrate the release of the new movie FemaleFirst takes a look at some of the best British horror movies that have graced the big screen over the years.
The Curse of Frankenstein (1957) & Dracula (1958)
Hammer Horror movies have always led the way when it came to horror movies in the fifties and sixties and it was The Curse of Frankenstein that marked the Gothic revival.
Upon release the levels of violence and gore were heavily criticised, however it was to be pioneering, it went on to be Hammer's first worldwide hit.
The film starred Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee, both of who would go on to enjoy long careers and find success in this genre.
The Curse of Frankenstein paved the way for the likes of Dracula and The Mummy and, for a time, Hammer Horror paved the way in this genre for everyone else.
Despite having a long and illustrious career Christopher Lee will forever be linked with his role as Dracula, inspired by Bram Stoker's novel.
After the success of The Curse of Frankenstein characters such as Dracula, and the Mummy all made it to the big screen.
Psycho (1960)
I appreciate that Psycho was one of Hitchcock's American movies, his first being Rebecca in 1940, but he is a British director so it counts.
Today nearly fifty years after it's release Psycho still remains one of the Hitchcock's best movies and one of the best films in the horror movie genre.
And Hitchcock wasn't afraid to throw the movie rulebook out of the window, that's what made him such a standout and respected filmmaker, and Psycho is where this is most evident; killing his leading lady in the first act of the movie.
Couple that with the fact that Janet Leigh was one of the biggest names at the box office at the time and it was a risky plan. But Leigh's demise, the infamous shower scene, still remains one of the most iconic and terrifying scenes ever committed to film.
How this film didn't win Best Picture at the Oscars is anyone's guess.
The Wicker Man (1973)
By the seventies attitudes towards horror movies were changing and audiences didn't want to see monsters such as Dracula and Frankenstein, what was big in America was the likes of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre that looked at the monster inside the everyday individual.
So the UK obliged and released The Wicker Man, with Christopher Lee returning to the genre that made him a star.
But when it was released the movie only enjoyed mediocre success and it only the years since then that it has become the critical hit that it now is, today it is considered one of the best British horror movies of all time.
But thinking that they could do a better job in 2006 The Wicker Man got an American makeover with Nicholas Cage in the lead role.
Needless to say fans of the original were not impressed and the movie was a box office disaster.
Shaun of the Dead (2004)
But today's British horror movies seem to have gone down a different route, and there's no better example of this than Shaun of the Dead, a romantic zombie comedy film that pokes fun at the American zombie movies that have dominated the cinema screens in recent years.
Despite it's modest $4 million budget Shaun of the Dead went ion to gross $30 million and enjoyed critical success on both sides of the Atlantic.
Other movies that have made an impact over the last few years include Danny Boyle's Shallow Grave and 28 Days Later as well as The Descent, which has a sequel released later this year.
Tormented is released 22nd May
FemaleFirst Helen Earnshaw
Tagged in Psycho