A piece of music can make or break a scene. This is especially applicable to horror films, where a scene's tension often depends on sound design. Adding a popular rock or rap track can cheapen the scene to the point of cliche. However, an off-the-wall song choice can go so far as to immortalize a scene.
Not all horror films do it well (particularly many lower-budget horrors from the '80s), but when a filmmaking team picks the perfect composition, it serves to intensify the impact of the scene and the movie as a whole. It helps that the songs themselves are strong works that have value even outside the context of the movie.
"Red Right Hand" By Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds – Scream (1996)
On top of having one of the best horror movie jump scares from the '90s, Scream also has a terrific utilization of "Red Right Hand" by Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds.
The song is used in both Scream and Scream 2 (with a reworked version in Scream 3) but the first time was the best. Playing over the residents of Woodsboro closing up their shops early for curfew, the song encaptures the feeling of a town currently owned by fear.
"We Belong Together" By Robert & Johnny – Christine (1983)
"Bad to the Bone" by George Thorogood plays well over the opening credits of Christine, but it's this late-50s R&B hit that is used the most effectively.
Arnie Cunningham takes his dream girl, Leigh Cabot, out to a drive-in movie. And she's clearly not as enamored with Christine as Arnie is. In fact, Arnie seems to be more interested in Christine than Cabot. Before long, Arnie is out of the car, and the radio flips to "We Belong Together." Then, a horrible light consumes the interior of the car, and Cabot begins to feel her oxygen deplete. It's arguably the film's scariest scene.
"I Got 5 On It" By Luniz – Us (2019)
The trailer for Jordan Peele's Us started with the Wilson family in their car. Luniz's "I Got 5 on It" starts playing on the radio, which leads Lupita Nyong'o's Adelaide to start snapping to the beat while looking back at her kids.
It's an upbeat song that has its tone entirely flipped. This occurs in the film just as it does in the trailer. It becomes somewhat of a theme piece for The Tethered, with a slowed-down version playing over the film's more nightmarish sequences.
"Hip To Be Square" By Huey Lewis And The News – American Psycho (2000)
Huey Lewis and The News' "Hip To Be Square" works so well in American Psycho because of the main character's outright love for it.
Christian Bale's Patrick Bateman goes into more detail about Phil Collins' discography, but he gives a shoutout to Huey Lewis and The News as one of his favorite groups. The fact that he loudly plays the tune while killing Paul (Jared Leto) is both shocking and darkly comic (thanks to the energy Bale brings to the scene).
"Dream Warriors" By Dokken – A Nightmare On Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors (1987)
As one of the best horror sequels, A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors has several assets in its corner. One of these is a rock and roll soundtrack that perfectly fits with the movie's rebellious central characters. Primarily, the inclusion of two songs by heavy metal band Dokken.
"Into the Fire" plays over the opening scene, where Kristen Parker is building her paper mache house. But it's the title track that's gone on to be a minor icon in horror. It's also the piece of music most closely associated with the franchise outside of its dreamy theme.
"Mr. Sandman" By The Chordettes – Halloween II (1981) & Halloween H20 (1998)
There may be unpopular Reddit opinions about Halloween II, but the usage of "Mr. Sandman" by The Chordettes during the intro and end credits isn't one of them.
"Mr. Sandman" is such a dreamlike song that it could just as easily been placed in a Nightmare on Elm Street movie. The song's references to Liberace and Pagliacci have nothing to do with Michael Myers, but it works. Then again, the reason "Mr. Sandman" is effective in the film is due to its tone, not its lyrics (which are very focused on finding love).
"Goodbye Horses" By Q Lazzarus – The Silence Of The Lambs (1991)
One-hit wonder Q Lazzarus found her song "Goodbye Horses" immortalized in two Jonathan Demme films. The first was Married to the Mob (1988). But it was the song's usage in The Silence of the Lambs that forever associated the piece of music with cinema.
Buffalo Bill dressing up and dancing nearly nude is one of the film's more problematic scenes in terms of representation in cinema. But an effective scene is an effective scene and actor Ted Levine gives a committed and terrifying performance.
"Redbone" By Childish Gambino – Get Out (2017)
Jordan Peele went into the '90s catalog for Us but he used something more modern for one of Get Out's scariest scenes. "Redbone" by Childish Gambino plays over the opening scene as the doomed Andre Hayworth walks through a dark suburb.
The "wump-wumps" present in the song almost mirror his footsteps while the lyrics about "creeping" perfectly match the car making ominous repeat appearances. It's a terrific and unique song played in a movie with the same attributes.
"Blue Moon" By The Marcels – An American Werewolf In London (1981)
One of the more interesting creative choices on display in An American Werewolf in London is its usage of moon-themed songs. "Bad Moon Rising" by Creedence Clearwater Revival and "Moondance" by Van Morrison are both used to great effect.
However, they don't hold a candle to Sam Cooke's cover of "Blue Moon" during the film's standout scene: the transformation. It's a slow cover of a song that fits in nicely (and brutally) with David's equally slow transition into a howling monster.
"(Don't Fear) The Reaper" By Blue Oyster Cult – Halloween (1978)
Halloween's theme is iconic, but so is its usage of "(Don't Fear) The Reaper." The title of the song works so well for the movie that it would be fair to expect it to play over the opening credits. But it's actually used much more subtly. It can be heard over the radio as Annie Brackett drives Laurie Strode through the neighborhood.
It plays at a low volume, almost to the point of being background noise. As opposed to the song just being part of the soundtrack, it's used to further increase the realism. Brackett and Strode are just two 1970s teens talking about boys and listening to rock in the background. Blasting a recent rock hit can yank the viewer from the scene, but John Carpenter did the polar opposite.