Movie Year* Rank Effects type Monster type Setting Notes
Le Manoir du diable 1896 107 optical effects, props, costumes bat, devil, skeleton   First optical transformations by cutting
Ghost of Slumber Mountain, The 1918 102 stop motion dinosaurs   First combination of stop motion and live action; Willis O'Brien
Golem, The 1920 45 costume animated creature made of clay Prague  
Nosferatu 1922 11 costume vampire Transylvania  
Phantom of the Opera, The 1925 63 costume Deformed man Paris Lon Chaney did his own makeup
Lost World, The 1925 64 stop motion dinosaurs New York City First feature-length stop motion; Willis O'Brien
Metropolis 1927 51 costume, props robot Metropolis  
Frankenstein 1931 10 costume reconstituted, reanimated human Bavaria Earliest surviving film (there were two shorts and an Italian movie before) based on Mary Shelley's book
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde 1931 48 costume, optical transformed human, expression of psychology London Different colored makeup and colored filters used for transformation with the B&W
Dracula 1931 50 costume, optical vampire Transylvania, London  
Island of Lost Souls 1932 61 costume transformed humans Island in the Pacific  
Mummy, The 1932 72 costume mummy Cairo, Egypt  
King Kong 1933 2 stop motion giant creature (other than dinosaur or dragon), gorilla New York City Major success of stop motion, Willis O'Brien
Bride of Frankenstein 1935 14 costume, optical reconstituted, reanimated human Bavaria  
Wolf Man, The 1941 62 costume, optical werewolf Wales 1924 version with John Gilbert is lost
La Belle et la bete 1946 39 costume, optical humanoid beast    
Mighty Joe Young 1949 38 stop motion giant creature, gorilla New York City O'Brien and Ray Harryhausen
Thing from Another World, The 1951 16 costume alien life form Antarctica First full-body fire stunt
Day the Earth Stood Still, The 1951 28 costume, mechanical, optical alien, robot Washington, D.C.  
Beast from 20,000 Fathoms, The 1953 24 stop motion giant creature New York City First atomic mutant; Ray Harryhausen
War of the Worlds, The 1953 26 costume, props, optical alien invasion Los Angeles  
Robot Monster 1957 57 creature suit alien Earth Legendary bad movie, inadvertently surreal, infamous costume of gorilla suit and diving helmet
Creature from the Black Lagoon, The 1954 17 creature suit deviant evolution, the gill man Amazon First creature suit, foam rubber; 3-D
Godzilla 1954 18 creature suit, prop, optical colossal giant creature, atomic mutant, kaiju Tokyo First kaiju, colossal scale, (Black Lagoon beat it as first creature suit by a few months)
Them! 1954 21 mechanical, optical giant insects, ants Almagordo, NM; Los Angeles First giant insect
This Island Earth 1955 99 costume alien Various Earth locations, space  
Revenge of the Creature 1955 105 creature suit gill man Florida  
Forbidden Planet 1956 20 animation, mechanical expression of psychology Altair IV (space)  
Invasion of the Body Snatchers 1956 30 props alien possession Santa Mira, California  
Earth vs. The Flying Saucers 1956 37 stop motion alien invastion Washington D.C. Harryhausen
Creature Walks Among Us, The 1956 56 creature suit gill man Florida  
Rodan 1956 91 creature suit, props kaiju Fukuoka  
Twenty Million Miles to Earth 1957 4 stop motion, mechanical giant creature, alien Rome Harryhausen
Quatermass II [Enemy from Space] 1957 49 costume, props, optical amalgamated organism, alien U.K. Blob-like formation creates kaiju
Abominable Snowman, The 1957 52 costume, optical Yeti Himalayas  
Night of the Demon [aka Curse of the Demon] 1957 53 creature suit demon England  
Deadly Mantis, The 1957 59 props, optical giant creature, praying mantis Various, Washington D.C.  
Black Scorpion, The 1957 89 stop motion giant creature, scorpion Mexico Willis O'Brien, Mexican co-production
Curse of Frankenstein, The 1957 93 costume reconstituted, reanimated human Switzerland Hammer's first color film and entry to the horror legends
Monster that Challenged the World, The 1957 100 mechanical, optical giant creature, larva-like molusc California  
Fly, The 1958 27 costume, optical transformed human, humanoid beast Montreal  
Blob, The 1958 34 props, optical amoeboid, alien Pennsylvania  
Seventh Voyage of Sinbad, The 1958 47 stop motion giant creature, mythical   Harryhausen
It! The Terror from Beyond Space 1958 75 creature suit humanoid beast, alien space Prefigures Alien with monster on spacecraft with crew
Fiend Without a Face 1958 76 props, stop motion brain creature Manitoba, Canada German and Austrian creators of trippy creature effects
Dracula 1958 81 costume vampire Romania, Germany  
Hideous Sun Demon, The 1958 83 creature suit transformed human, humanoid beast SoCal?  
Giant Behemoth, The 1959 41 stop motion giant creature London O'Brien
Mummy, The 1959 97 costume mummy Egypt, England  
Village of the Damned 1960 13 costume, optical alien invasion Midwich, UK  
Mysterious Island 1961 36 stop motion giant creatures Island in the Pacific, Civil War times Harryhausen; Jules Verne
Mothra 1961 80 props, optical kaiju Tokyo  
Gorgo 1961 96 creature suit giant creature London  
King Kong vs. Godzilla 1962 94 creature suit giant creature, kaiju Tokyo The beginning of Godzilla kitsch
Jason and the Argonauts 1963 6 stop motion giant creature, mythical Ancient Greece Harryhausen
Day of the Triffids, The 1963 43 props plantlike, alien Europe  
Dream Come True, A [Mechte navstrechu] 1963 85 costume, props, optical alien space Soviet sci-fi containing elements of Alien re-edited for Queen of Blood
Ghidorah The Three-Headed Monster 1964 88 creature suit kaiju Tokyo  
Invasion of Astro-Monster [Godzilla vs. Monster Zero] 1965 87 creature suit kaiju Tokyo  
One Million Years B.C. 1966 74 stop motion, optical dinosaurs preshistoric Earth Harryhausen
Queen of Blood 1966 79 costume, props, optical alien space Precursor to Alien itself using footage from Soviet films including A Dream Come True
War of the Gargantuas, The 1966 106 creature suit kaiju Tokyo  
Quatermass and the Pit [aka Five Million Years to Earth] 1967 5 props, optical alien London Inventive sci-fi reworking explanation of beliefs
Yongary, Monster from the Deep 1967 104 creature suit giant creature, goemul, kaiju South Korea Korea joins the giant monster club
Night of the Living Dead 1968 40 costume zombie Pennsylvania Though it calles them "ghouls" this set off the zombie craze
Valley of Gwangi, The 1969 69 stop motion dinosaurs Mexico Cowboys and dinosaurs, from idea by Willis O'Brien, brought off by Ray Harryhausen
Godzilla vs. Hedora [the Smog Monster] 1971 101 creature suit kaiju Tokyo Godzilla becomes the protector of Earth against the avatar of pollution
Golden Voyage of Sinbad, The 1973 46 stop motion giant creature, mythical   Harryhausen
Phase IV 1974 68 props ants, alien Arizona &nbps;
Jaws 1975 3 mechanical abnormal shark Amity, New York  
Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger 1977 82 stop motion giant creature, mythical   Harryhausen
Invasion of the Body Snatchers 1978 22 props alien invasion San Francisco  
Alien 1979 1 creature suit, props, mechanical, optical alien, humanoid beast space Supreme evolution of monster movie
American Werewolf in London, An 1980 67 costume, mechanics werewolf London Major development in mechanical effects
Humanoids from the Deep 1980 103 creature suit alien, humanoid beast California  
Clash of the Titans 1981 77 stop motion, costume giant creature, mythical   Harryhausen
Howling, The 1981 86 costume, mechanical werewolf California  
Thing, The 1982 7 mechanical alien possession Antarctica  
Swamp Thing 1982 95 creature suit transformed human, humanoid beast, plantlike Louisiana  
Terminator, The 1984 23 costume, creature suit, mechanical, optical robot Los Angeles  
Fly, The 1986 8 costume, creature suit, mechanical, optical transformed human, humanoid beast Toronto?  
Aliens 1986 9 creature suit, mechanical, optical alien, humanoid beast LV-426  
Predator 1987 25 creature suit, mechanical, optical alien, humanoid beast Central America  
Lair of the White Worm, The 1988 54 costume, mechanical, optical giant serpent, demon Great Britain  
Tremors 1990 42 mechanical, optical giant creature Nevada  
Terminator 2: Judgment Day 1991 31 costume, mechanics, CG robot Los Angeles  
Jurassic Park 1993 12 mechanical, CG dinosaurs Isla Nublar (near Costa Rica) Major success of CG blended with other effects
Species 1998 98 costume, mechanical, optical, CG alien, humanoid beast Los Angeles, et al.  
Independence Day 1996 65 costume, mechanical, optical, CG alien invasion NYC, LA, DC, et al.  
Relic, The 1997 90 mechanical, CG mutant animal Chicago  
Mimic 1997 92 CG mutant insects New York City  
Eight-Legged Freaks 2002 78 mechanical, optical, CG mutant spiders Arizona  
War of the Worlds 2005 15 mechanical, CG alien invasion New York, Boston, New England  
Host, The 2006 32 CG giant creature, goemul Seoul Korean with San Francisco-based CG
Slither 2006 70 costume, CG alien parasite South Carolina  
Mist, The 2007 66 mechanical, CG supernatural creatures Maine, et al.  
Thirty Days of Night 2007 71 CG werewolf Alaska  
Cloverfield 2008 73 CG giant creature New York City  
Attack the Block 2010 35 CG alien creatures South London  
Monsters 2010 60 CG giant creature, alien Mexico, U.S.  
Shin Godzilla 2016 29 CG kaiju Tokyo Most significant reworking since original
Arrival 2016 58 CG kaiju Montana, et al.  
Quiet Place, A 2018 33 CG alien creatures upstate New York, Earth  
Nope 2022 19 CG giant creature, alien Agua Dulce, California