Looks like there’s no more room in Hell and the dead are walking the Earth. Zombies are a hard sub-genre to pin down when it comes to horror. We have the classic “Romero” zombies that walk slowly, and usually provide more for the humans to be the evil, wicked characters in movies, than anything else. There’s also the possessed zombie, like in Evil Dead or Pet Sematary, or even something like the Rage Virus “zombies” of the 28 ______ Later series. For the sake of this list, we’re going to focus on the most classic interpretation of the word zombie. Other sub-sub-genres of zombies is a time and a place for another list, but this is going to be the Top 5 Best Zombie Horror Movies.

Because it’s only 5 movies this time around, some are going to get left off the list, which means we’re going to have some angry people wondering why their favorite brain-eating film didn’t make the cut. Here are some honorable mentions, but ones that didn’t quite make it.

Honorable Mentions:

Night of the Living Dead (1968)
Night of the Living Dead (1990
Zombie (1979)
Shaun of the Dead (2004)
Dawn of the Dead (2004)
City of the Living Dead (1980)
Return of the Living Dead III (1993)
White Zombie (1932)
Zombieland (2009)

5. Train To Busan (2016)

Train To Busan might have revitalized the zombie genre as a whole upon its release in 2016. For a genre that was somewhat played out at the time, this movie gave us plenty of likeable characters, and a roaming setting on a train. It’s spawned sequels and prequels and even an American remake that was supposed to come out in 2023. However, the impact of this movie can’t be understated and it gave us Ma Dong-seok punching zombies with his Christmas HoneyBaked Ham sized fists. The brutality and realistic depiction of what could and would happen during an outbreak here is second to none for modern movies.

4. Dead Alive (1992)

Peter Jackson might be into The Beatles today, but he showed off a wild side earlier in his career with movies like Dead Alive and Bad Taste. Between priests that kick ass for the Lord and a scene involving a lawn mower that had the record for most blood used in a movie, Dead Alive (or Brain Dead for parts of the world) is required viewing. The movie needs a 4K restoration pretty badly and it’s not even readily available on Blu-ray. This one is absolutely wild in the best possible ways.

3. Dawn of the Dead (1978)

This one might be a bit of an upset for some people, but Dawn of the Dead is still among the best zombie movies ever made. A gigantic metaphor for the American experience and how consumerism will kill us all, Romero got some of his best work done with this movie. Tom Savini and his team absolutely slay with the effects, crafting one of the best zombie films ever. There’s not much that separates this and the other Romero film on our list.

2. Re-Animator (1985)

Re-Animator not only celebrates 40 years this year, but it’s also got a magnificent 4K restoration from Ignite Films that’s out now as well. Jeffrey Combs, Barbara Crampton, Stuart Gordon, and Co. all combine together for a hell of a zombie movie. Dr. Herbert West is one of the best horror characters ever. The sequels are also great. Its a shame that we lost Stuart Gordon so young, but this movie is a testament to his abilities as a director.

1. Day of the Dead (1985)

George Romero might have popularized the zombie genre with Night of the Living Dead and Dawn of the Dead, but he perfected it with Day of the Dead. The clinical hallways of the underground tunnels that the survivors live in combined with the walking dead outside, make for an excellent setting to show off the worst that humanity has to offer. Rhodes is a fantastic villain and a metaphor for human nature as a whole. This is about as far as I’ll go when it comes to zombies having full on sentience. Bub is great.

There’s a new 4K restoration of Day of the Dead coming from Scream Factory at some point soon, and this movie deserves the deluxe treatment.

Zombie movies are great because they can give us a look into the human experience. Most of the time, the humanity remaining after the outbreak are the worst part. These 5 movies all show off varying excellence in the horror genre.

So, what do you think of the list, let us know in the comments!

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