Night of the Living Dead

No. 1: "Night of the Living Dead" (1968)

George A. Romero's independent black-and-white classic is a landmark for several reasons. First and foremost, it redefined the zombie as a flesh-eating reanimated corpse and not the victim of a voodoo curse. And, boy, did Romero drive... more the concept home. The (stomach) turning point in the movie is the infamous "cookout" sequence, in which a young couple, killed in an exploding car, becomes a well-done snack. As the ghouls reach into the charred car and pull out the smoking remains, 1968 audiences were not prepared for what they did next. The image of the zombie as cannibal was seared (pun intended) into the public's consciousness for all time.

('Night of the Living Dead'/Everett Collection)