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Carpenter Brut’s 5 Favorite Horror Movies Are Basically All of My Favorite Horror Movies Too (Exclusive)

French darkwave musician Carpenter Brut is a man of good horror movie taste, namedropping ‘The Thing’ and ‘Evil Dead 2’ among his favorites.

By Stephen Andrew Galiher

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In the world of synth and electronic music, there are few artists more darkly cinematic than Carpenter Brut. Hell, even the enigmatic French musician’s stage name is partially derived from that of horror filmmaker John Carpenter.

On Friday, February 27, 2026, Carpenter Brut dropped his third official full-length studio album, Leather Temple. The project is a masterclass in merging darkwave and metal into something that sounds like the score of a cyberpunk film.

To celebrate the project’s release, I reached out to Carpenter Brut and asked if he would share his top five favorite horror movies. Turns out, they are basically all my favorite horror movies too! Scroll on to see his list and what he had to say about each film.

‘Bad Taste’ (Peter Jackson, 1987)

“I first discovered Bad Taste on Canal+ (a French TV channel) when I was 12 or 13, one afternoon at my grandparents’ place, and it completely blew my mind. It was the first time I’d seen something so unhinged with so little money: the image is dirty, the energy is punk, and the whole thing feels handmade in the best way.

“It’s one of the most DIY films I’ve ever watched, made over years in Peter Jackson’s spare time with friends and co-workers, and it still has that artisanal character. I’ve always loved gore that’s both disgusting and stupid, and Bad Taste has these unforgettable, iconic moments that are as funny as they are gross. It’s wild, chaotic, and genuinely hilarious, a total cult UFO that helped put Jackson on the gore map.”

‘Evil Dead 2’ (Sam Raimi, 1987)

“I don’t really see Evil Dead 2 as a classic ‘part two.’ It feels more like a remake of the first film with more budget, more humor, and even more insanity. It’s a cult movie because it’s completely unleashed and unbelievably inventive, with Bruce Campbell taking a beating for 90 minutes in the most entertaining way possible.

“Everything escalates into pure joyful nonsense, but it works because it commits 100% to the madness. You can feel Raimi’s youth and ambition, like he’s trying to blow your mind with pocket change, and that’s what I love about low-budget horror: limitations force crazy ideas. The directing is wild, the effects are nasty, and it’s basically fun in its purest form.”

‘Friday the 13th’ (Sean S. Cunningham, 1980)

“The original Friday the 13th is the one I truly care about, because it’s the most interesting entry by far. The twist is great, the kills are classic, Tom Savini’s effects are perfect, and Harry Manfredini’s “ki-ki-ki, ma-ma-ma” sound is basically burned into horror history. What’s funny is that the franchise became synonymous with Jason, but in the first film, the story is smarter than that, and it would’ve been stronger if it had stayed a one-off.

“Studio greed turned it into a chain of sequels that flatten the concept into a dumb formula, and that’s a shame because the first movie has a real mood and a real story. Critics trashed it at the time, as usual, but for horror, that almost feels like a quality stamp. The original remains a cornerstone.”

‘The Texas Chain Saw Massacre’ (Tobe Hooper, 1974)

“The Texas Chain Saw Massacre is probably the horror film that marked me the most. I saw it too young, it traumatized me so badly that I’ve only rewatched it once since, and yet it’s still in my all-time top five. Everything in it feels rotten and deadly: Leatherface, the mask, the family, the meat hook, the atmosphere, it’s like the film itself is decaying.

“The low-budget, brutal conditions of the shoot pushed everyone to the edge, and that real exhaustion and tension leak into the performances, which makes it feel terrifyingly real. It’s radical, raw, and non-conformist, and you can understand why it influenced generations of filmmakers. Some films don’t just scare you, they leave a scar, and this is one of them.”

‘The Thing’ (John Carpenter, 1982)

“If I have to pick one John Carpenter film, it’s The Thing, and it might be my favorite of his entire career. The premise is perfect: in Antarctica, a creature can imitate and “infect” people, so paranoia takes over because nobody knows who’s still human. The atmosphere is flawless, the cinematography is stunning, and the practical creature effects are legendary, still some of the most disgusting and brilliant in horror history.

“I also love that Ennio Morricone did the score; it gives the film this cold, heavy pulse. It’s crazy that it was dismissed on release, partly because E.T. made aliens lovable that year, while Carpenter’s alien is pure nightmare fuel. It just took time for people to catch up and recognize it as a total classic.”

Carpenter Brut’s new album ‘Leather Temple’ is out now

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