Horror Movies

Slashers work because the mask does the acting. Michael Myers barely moves. Jason says nothing at all. Ghostface at least talks, but only on the phone, and never about anything reassuring. Strip away the sequels and the lore and what's left is a shape standing where a shape shouldn't be.

Each icon solved the problem differently. Freddy Krueger attacks you where you can't run, which is why A Nightmare on Elm Street still gets under people's skin - the one place everyone has to go eventually is the trap. Jaws did the same trick with water and a two-note score. The Ring made a videotape into a countdown.

Dracula predates all of them and set the template: a monster with manners, which is somehow worse than one without.

This collection gathers the recognisable silhouettes - Ghostface's mask, Freddy's glove, Jason's hockey mask and knife, Michael's blank stare, a great white fin, Samara's hair, and a count who is definitely not going to explain how he got in.

Perfect for October, or for anyone whose taste in movies never left the video shop's back wall. Pick your monster and let it live on your desktop.