There are several components to a proper slasher flick, but for my purposes all I really need to see in these movies are two things -
1 - A bad guy with a nasty agenda
2 - See rule #1
It could be argued that several movies from the Big Three (Freddy, Jason and Myers) should make the cut, but I'll only take my favorites from those respective series.  On with the list!

10. My Bloody Valentine (2009)- Yes, I am starting off my list with a remake, but there are a few good reasons why.  The original was great in its own right, but I had a lot more fun seeing this one in all the glory of 3-D.  The acting is very good, the killer has a great look, there is an extended full-frontal scene with the lovely Betsy Rue, and you have none other than the legend himself, TOM ATKINS (Incidentally, TOM ATKINS alone takes any movie to another level with his greatness, so much so that his entire name warrants capitalization).  Chris Carnel performs admirably as The Miner, complete with a very unique walk/stalk all his own.  All in all, the movie does not break any new ground, but it's a fantastic romp and the best way to kick off the list.

9. Inside (2007)- This French film is one of the bloodiest and most disturbing movies of the last 10 years.  The premise is simple - a pregnant woman (scheduled to deliver her baby the next day) comes under siege from a maniacal female intruder.  Alexandre Bustilo and Julien Maury have only this one film under their belt, but some of the shots they pull off look straight out of John Carpenter's best.  A slow build and a blood-soaked second act develop into a most shocking ending, something that you would never see in an American production.

8. A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors (1987)- A Nightmare on Elm Street was a brilliant slasher movie that introduced the iconic Freddy Kruger.  Nightmare 2 took the story in a very different direction, saving Freddy for the last act.  Nightmare 3 pulls out all the stops and turns Freddy loose, making him the main attraction.  Whereas most slasher baddies were born without tongues, Freddy has no problem verbally abusing and taunting his victims.  In the first Nightmare, for the most part he was fairly subdued.  By the later chapters, Freddy had turned into something of a comedian, which lessened his menace.  In Dream Warriors, he strikes a perfect medium between the two.  We get many iconic lines from Freddy to go with some very inventive kills.  The marionette sequence, complete with dripping blood from stretched veins, can still induce chills.

7. Hatchet (2006)- Director Adam Green is a geek, just like you and me.  He grew up watching the same slasher films that we all did.  Lucky for us, the geek is pretty good behind the camera as well.  Hatchet is a love letter to the 80’s, where every horror movie had heaping spoonfuls of blood and boobs.  In Hatchet, we get a fantastic villain in Victor Crowley (played by Jason alum Kane Hodder), a likeable group of survivors, a great setting and some truly fantastic kills.  The very first Victor Crowley reveal alone is worth the price of admission.  Pick this movie up, pop your collar, tight-roll your jeans and have fun reliving a decade where we all had no responsibilities whatsoever.

6. Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon (2006)- 2006 gave is two fantastic slasher films and they could not be farther apart in terms of story and tone.  While Hatchet was a straight-up slasher that harkened back to the glory days of old, Behind the Mask opens the curtain to reveal the inner psychological workings of a madman.  Leslie Vernon is someone you might say ‘hi’ to from across the street while getting your mail, or someone who would hold the door for you at a convenience store.  But Leslie is also someone who aspires to walk in the footsteps of the greatest slashers of all time (in a world where these slashers actually existed).  He is followed around by a documentary crew, and he shares with us answers to some of the most baffling questions of the genre (like how a walking killer always catches up to someone who is sprinting).  There’s a great third act shift, where the film takes on an entirely new tone and cashes in on everything that was set up in the first two.  By the time the credits roll, you’ll be hoping that this is not the last you’ll see of Leslie Vernon.  This movie has a lot going for it, but at the very top of the list is Nathan Baesel as Leslie.  Leslie is charming, intelligent, warm, caring, and above all, psychopathic.  

5. Friday the 13th Part 6: Jason Lives- Jason Lives is my absolute favorite of all the Friday movies.  It’s certainly not the most brutal (hello Final Chapter) and does not star the most iconic Jason actor (the aforementioned Kane Hodder), but much like Nightmare on Elm Street 3, it is by far the most fun.  You know you are in for a romp when Jason is resurrected by not one, but TWO lightning bolts, and the opening title sequence is a straight rip from James Bond.  The movie is flawed, as evidenced by things such as a car chase that takes us back and forth in time by switching between night and dawn, but because it does not take itself too seriously it’s easy to let that stuff slide.  We have a great Jason in C. J. Graham, a believable Tommy Jarvis (who, upon resurrecting Jason actually does the rational thing and goes to the police), unique effects and a sweet title theme by Alice Cooper.  If you are looking for serious, harsh Jason, you’ll find him in parts 2-4.  In Jason Lives you will see a lighter Friday with a great sense of humor that hits the ground running and never lets up until the credits roll.

4. The Texas Chain Saw Massacre- If any of these movies could ever be confused with reality, this would be the one.  There is no flashy camera-work and the only real soundtrack of note is the terrifying buzz of the chainsaw.  As the viewer, we accompany five poor souls as they descend into the hell of Leatherface and his family of cannibals.  Contrary to what we all were told as kids, there is very little gore in this film.  That said, there is some extreme brutality.  The first shot of Leatherface precedes one of the most vicious hammer attacks ever put to film, complete with a sickening *thud*.  This is a very dirty, grimy, nasty movie.  It’s also an absolute work of genius.

3. Scream (1996)- This is the film that put not only slasher movies, but the entire horror genre back on the map from a dismal first half of the decade.  Scream took pieces from multiple sources and threw them all into a huge melting pot, and the result is an amazingly enjoyable film.  The first ten minute sequence sets the pace and lets you know that nobody on the screen is safe.  The following 80 minutes turn the genre upside down and plays off of every rule established over the previous 25 years.  The result is a scary and smart slasher movie that holds up as one of the best ever made.

2. Black Christmas (1974)- Black Christmas is the granddaddy of all slasher films.  Directed by Bob Clark, this film set many of the standards that we are still seeing in our slasher movies today.  Here we first see the killer’s POV shot, the crazy phone calls, the survivor girl, and above all, the mind blowing reveal.  Even by today’s standards this movie is incredibly scary, with the phone calls alone being the stuff of nightmares.  Also included is one of the single scariest shots in horror movie history.  Black Christmas has never gotten the credit it deserves as a landmark horror movie, but given a chance, it will surely get under your skin.

1. Halloween (1978)- The movie that really kicked off the genre, Halloween is not only the greatest slasher movie ever made, but is arguably the greatest horror movie ever made.  John Carpenter set out to make a movie about a man stalking babysitters, and upon a recommendation from his producer, he used Halloween night as the backdrop.  This stalker, while wearing a William Shatner mask sprayed bluish-white, morphed into what we know as Michael Myers, one of the most iconic monsters in film history.  Halloween, which was made on a budget of just over $300k, is shot beautifully.  Whereas many of today’s horror directors seem to take great pleasure in not letting you see an image before cutting, cutting and cutting again, Carpenter lingers.  Carpenter and DP Dean Cundey create beautiful shots, utilizing every single bit of the 2.35:1 ratio.  There are a myriad of reasons why Halloween is the masterpiece that it is.  The direction, the debut of the Scream Queen, the simple yet petrifying mask, the soundtrack, the first POV shot, the ambiguous ending, the crazy doctor…and above all else, the suspense.  Often imitated, but never equaled, John Carpenter’s Halloween is the greatest slasher film of all time.