A tall, beautiful blonde steps into a hot shower, unaware that her blood is about to circle the drain as a stalker approaches from the other side of the curtain. A drunken teen sprints through the remote woods of his summer camp, tripping just in time to be “sliced and diced” by a menacing figure in a white hockey mask. A school gymnasium full of cruel teenagers is tormented by an enraged, supernatural girl drenched in pig’s blood during a senior prom.

Whether you love the thrill of a good scary movie or can’t make it past the opening credits, there is no denying that classic horror movies have made a huge impact on pop culture. Iconic villains such as Freddy, Chucky and Michael Myers have ruined the sleep schedules of petrified children and adults alike for decades.

In the past few years, some new horror films have received a lot of praise from both critics and the public for their “terrifying” and “shocking” content. Some viewers even dare to claim that these new movies push horror boundaries and exceed the quality of their predecessors.

This claim is about as lunatic as Michael Myers himself.

Most scary movies that come out today are cliché. They typically consist of a paranormal entity, killers and/or a threatening environment in which a main character or group of people are terrorized and targeted. This builds to a climax where they either defeat the disturbance or are defeated by it themselves.

While some scares may be effective, the structure of these new films are almost always the same, resulting in an overall formulaic and bland execution.

Although old-school horror may be considered cliché nowadays, this wasn’t the case when these movies were first released to mass audiences. Part of the reason why these movies became so successful is because the frights were original, unnerving and innovative when they came out. While we now may know what happens to the babysitter who opens the closet door to investigate a strange noise or a group of nervous teens who split up to search the forest, one can still appreciate these scenes by understanding they were the first to use these tactics to scare audiences.

Other modern films are moving further away from the concept of horror to explore more psychological themes focusing on societal issues. While I will admit that recent offerings like ‘Get Out,’ ‘mother!’ and ‘The Witch’ are captivating films, they are not horror movies and should not be classified or praised as such.

Classic horror movies such as ‘The Shining’ and ‘Rosemary’s Baby’ explore psychological themes as well, but they do so in a way that is genuinely frightening. For example, these films explored ideas concerning isolation and religion, which made audiences reflect on society while also getting scared in the process.

I will go as far as arguing that some of the most famous and respected horror films of our time including ‘The Conjuring’ universe, the ‘Insidious’ saga and ‘The Purge’ are highly overrated. These movies rely too heavily on jump scares and computer-generated imagery to shock audiences. Although this may provide some momentary fright, viewers leave the theater unaffected by the so-called “terror” and are able to sleep peacefully.

This is not the effect that should result from a legitimate horror movie experience.

Ultimately, the films that are typically the most successful today from the horror genre are connected to the iconic franchises of the past. 2017’s ‘It,’ a remake of the original TV miniseries, and the recently released ‘Halloween’ both gained popularity and universal acclaim for recapturing the magic of the classics that preceded them. Having said that, the source material cannot be beaten due to its sheer authenticity.

It is clear that the horror movies of the past reign supreme against newer offerings. As October comes to a close, one’s Halloween experience simply isn’t complete without gathering a group of friends and witnessing a classic fright flick unfold before the eyes. Just don’t get too invested, you never know when someone — or something — may be joining you for the show.