Three of the best best lone heads in horror…

Lots of films in the horror genre feature a decapitation of some kind, but it’s only a rare few that take that to the next level, by keeping the head in character. Here are three of the best creepy, freaky and chilling cinematic disembodied heads.
The Thing (1982)
Not many films either before or after John Carpenter’s atmospheric masterpiece, can match up to the breathtaking special effects of Rob Bottin. Carpenter was determined to make the alien shape-shifter a genuinely menacing presence and offer truly powerful scares – Bottin didn’t disappoint. Things had been going horribly wrong in the isolated Antarctic research facility for a while, but when Norris (Charles Callahan), the resident geologist, literally bursts open in front of their eyes, it’s a watershed moment. His head squelches out of his body, sprouting eyes and legs before scuttling off through the nearest doorway.
Alien (1979)
Despite being over 35 years old, the first film in the Alien franchise still has the ability to shock even a modern audience. John Hurt’s chest-burster scene is probably one of the best remembered sequences but there’s another that’s just as classic. As the ship’s science officer, Ash (Ian Holm) should be someone the crew could rely on, but in facts he’s a company robot, sent to ensure their payload gets home safe. However, his identity is revealed when he begins to malfunction spectacularly, and is smashed into submission with a fire extinguisher, by Parker (Yaphet Kotto). His ripped off head is dumped on a desk, complete with oozing white sludge and wired innards, but even in this pretty vulnerable state, Ash is as unpleasant as ever, observing: “I can’t lie about your chances…but you have my sympathies.”
Re-Animator (1985)
A classic in the so-bad-it’s-good field, Re-Animator is getting on now, but still looks as visceral, savage and uncontrolled as it did 30 years ago. Who knows whether HP Lovecraft would have enjoyed this version of his 1920’s novella, but it’s as camp as they come and rarely takes its self too seriously. Herbert West(Jeffrey Combe) is the crazed med student who creates a serum that revives dead things.  After decapitating the dean of his med school, he then injects the head and body with the formula. And, in the mind boggling scenes that follow, the furious dean, Dr Hill, (David Gale) is forced to summons his shambling body to carry his head around in a metal tray.