The new adaptation of Stephen King's It is a jolly good movie. It's also made lots of money, and quite right too. But some people have said that Pennywise isn't actually terribly scary. Unsettling, yep. Disquieting, indubitably. But not actually wee-yourself terrifying.

For those who want their movie monsters to give them the proper willies, here are eight movie monsters we reckon would give even Pennywise nightmares.

1. Pazuzu from The Exorcist

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Sure Regan is unnerving, what with her bad skin and terrible teeth but the real villain of this piece is Pazuzu, the demon who possesses her. Pazuzu himself (or in fact herself – the face is of actress Eileen Dietz in Kabuki-themed make-up) pops up between shots so quickly that you doubt what you've actually seen. It's extremely effective and we're still a little bit not okay with this face.

2. Niña Medeiros from [REC]

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Part of the reason the long-limbed attic woman from the [REC] series is so scary is because, in the first film at least, you barely see her at all. In fact she's only in one horrifying scene, the very last, as she appears in the attic filmed by journalist Angela's night vision camera.

She lumbers briefly into view, naked by for a pair of saggy pants, carrying a hammer, and she drags Angela into the darkness leaving viewers exclaiming "WTF was that?!".

Here's actor Javier Botet, who plays her, in costume, in the light. You're welcome.

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3. Sadako from Ringu

Sadly an over-saturation of remakes, sequels and knock-offs has rather diluted the power that Sadako once held as an entity literally able to scare people to death, but there's definitely something unshakingly not right about her jolting gait, ragged fingernails and long lank hair. That, and she's completely relentless and unstoppable.

4. Brundlefly from The Fly

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Brundlefly, that genetic milkshake of fly and scientist Seth Brundle, is properly disgusting: a man whose limbs are falling off and who pukes on his food before eating it.

We feel sorry for Brundlefly too, though, and this is what make him so terrifying. Brundlefly is a metaphor for our own impending decrepitude. We fear him because we know we must become him.

5. The Pale Man from Pan's Labyrinth

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He looks like a penis, he's got eyes on his hands and he plucks fairies out of the air and devours them whole. Guillermo del Toro's hellish apparition is the scariest beast in the labyrinth and only slightly less scary than the real-world Colonel Vidal.

6. Leatherface from The Texas Chainsaw Massacre

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We have omitted most of the classic horror movie icons from this list – Freddy, Jason, Chucky, Pinhead, the Tall Man, because their ubiquity has diminished their impact. They're more like faithful old friends than terrifying monsters. But Leatherface (from the original at least) is still flipping scary. More animal than man, he's silent and brutal, dressed in a mask of skin and killing kids like cattle.

7. The Nun from The Conjuring 2

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The Nun, aka Valak, is admittedly a bit of a cheap and dirty monster, whose main trick is appearing unexpectedly and not actually really doing very much. She's getting her own movie next year so we'll see more of what she gets up to then. Nun-theless, she's undeniably scary. Even if she does look like Marilyn Manson dressed in a pair of curtains.

8. The Baby from Eraserhead

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Wrong. Just wrong.

From: Digital Spy