Which Classic Monster Frightened You The Most?

Which classic monster frightens you the most? Which one would you most not want to run into in a dark, dank basement?

Every October we immerse ourselves in movies that scare the bejesus out of us. Why do we do that?

When I was a little girl, my most frightening monster was...the werewolf. I'd watched I Was A Teenage Werewolf starring a young Michael Landon, and from that point on, I was aware of the transformative potential of a full moon. Vampires don't frighten me, nor does Frankenstein or zombies, but hairy faced werewolves? Yeek!

For me, a good scary movie is less about the monster and more about the suspense. Movies like Alfred Hitchcock's The Birds or Stephen King's Christine, excellent. The Jason, Michael Meyers, Chucky movies don't do it for me. I don't like gory movies with gratuitous violence or movies where people venture into dark attics and then trip and fall running away.

Young Frankenstein? Now that's a great Halloween movie!

Every culture has constructed monsters and the myths to go with them. I wonder what that says psychologically about human beings. I mean, it's not like we don't already have enough things to concern us on a daily basis! Just driving to work in the morning can be a horror show. What makes us conjure up even more frightening scenarios to the point where we don't like to hang our feet over the bed in case there's something under there to grab our foot!

Like a classic monster?

Mary Wollstoncraft Godwin Shelly (Mary Shelley) wrote the "monster" into existence when she was in her late teens. It's the story of a university student, Victor Frankenstein, who assembles a being from pieces of corpses and somehow brings all those pieces back to life. Mary published the book anonymously and never gave the "monster" a name. The Frankenstein creature is a big, dumb monster who doesn't know his own strength and is probably miserable because he fears he won't be socially accepted because of his unique appearance. We love you Frankenstein.
https://twitter.com/AllUniHorror/status/1574494476235460609

It's believed that Bram Stoker's Dracula was partially inspired by Romanian prince, Vlad the Impaler. Suffice it to say, Vlad the Impaler was not a good guy. Dracula sleeps upside down like a bat during the day and comes out at night ready to sink his oversized canines into your neck so he can drink your blood. Ewww. Gross. Wear garlic.
https://twitter.com/darklongbox/status/1574570059355209728

The werewolf, or lycanthrope, can be traced all the way back to Greek mythology. There's also a story of men turning into wolves in Nordic folklore. Basically, a guy grows fangs and a lot of hair exceptionally fast and becomes a werewolf during a full moon and will rip you to shreds and eat you because he can.
https://twitter.com/GroovyHistory/status/1224528035178860544

Godzilla was born in Japan in 1954. He's a big, scary prehistoric sea monster that was awakened and is empowered by nuclear radiation and he will annihilate you with his nuclear powered breath. (Someone please get Godzilla a fresh mint.)
https://twitter.com/Godzilla_Toho/status/1552368411530956808

Perhaps the saddest of monsters. There he was, living the dream on a tropical island where he was revered, when some idiot decides to shackle, kidnap and drag him to NYC and make him the Eighth Wonder of the World. Big mistake. King Kong eventually escaped, rampaged the city and found himself trapped on top of the tallest building in the world (at the time). The authorities took him out. They shouldn't have brought him there in the first place.
https://twitter.com/KongShots/status/1576667960391106560

I know the feeling. Monday mornings, anyone? Dead but still going through the motions? Zombies go back centuries, perhaps starting with Greek civilization who buried bodies and held them down with heavy objects, presumably to make sure the body didn't reanimate. Zombies are also associated with the Voodoo religion. Here's the real scary part: There are a few credible reports in medical journals of people given specific compounds that made them appear to be deceased, buried, then revived. Regardless, keep your decaying, rotting, flesh eating body to yourself. Stay in your lane.