Essential horror viewing

When it comes to classic genre films which are 'essential viewing', there isn't a definitive list, but, in 1999, Empire released a Special Collector's Edition supplement called The Greatest Horror Films Ever, which is a really good 'beginners guide' to horror. In it, there are 50 films in different categories of films, which I'll list here.

Creature Features
Frankenstein
Nosferatu
Dracula (1931)
The Mummy
The Bride of Frankenstein
Cat People
The Curse of Frankenstein
Night of the Demon
Dracula (1958)
The Birds
Night of the Living Dead
Dawn of the Dead
The Fog
The Howling
The Keep
The Company of Wolves
Near Dark
Interview with the Vampire

Nightmare Movies
Don't Look Now
Witchfinder General
The Wicker Man
The Hills Have Eyes
Videodrome
The Blair Witch Project

Hauntings
The Sixth Sense
Carnival of Souls
The Haunting
Poltergeist
Candyman

Slasher Movies
Halloween
House of Wax (1953)
Psycho
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre
Suspiria
A Nightmare on Elm Street
Re-Animator
Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer

Diabolic
The Exorcist
Rosemary's Baby
The Omen
Hellraiser

Psychomania
The Shining
the Cabinet of Dr. Caligari
The Pit and the Pendulum (1961)
Carrie
The Evil Dead 2
Fight Club

Comedy Horror
Scream
An American Werewolf in London
Gremlins

Bear in mind, this publication is dated because, at the end, the Final Word ('See No Evil'), written by Kim Newman, goes through films which aren't available on video. These include Straw Dogs, Last House on the Left, I Spit on Your Grave, The House at the Edge of the Park, Cannibal Holocaust, Deep River Savages, Eaten Alive, Cannibal Ferox, Ilsa, She-Wolf of the SS, SS Experiment Camp and Child's Play 3 – how times have changed!