A Novice's Guide to Horror Movies

You and your partner have made it through the initial onslaught of terror and now find many of the indie fare floating around the streaming srevices boring and unscary, so where do you go from here? This list is the next stepping stone for diving deeep in the genre.

Dead Silence

James Wan, 2007

Cast: Ryan Kwanten, Amber Valletta, Donnie Wahlberg, Judith Roberts

Before reinvigorating the horror scene with the Insidious and Conjuring franchises, James Wan and writing partner Leigh Whannell were struggling to find their next project and after being pressured by studios for a new film, they landed on the evil ventriloquist-focused supernatural horror film Dead Silence. Due to the lack of interest from the two and the rushed nature of it, the film was not quite a masterpiece, but even on a film he doesn’t care about, Wan still refuses to put in a lackluster effort as the atmosphere is appropriately eerie, the direction is strong and most of the visual effects offer some good shocks, making this a more than unsettling venture.

The Last Exorcism

Daniel Stamm, 2010

Cast: Patrick Fabian, Ashley Bell, Iris Bahr, Louis Herthum

During the resurgence of the found footage genre thanks to the Paranormal Activity series, many attempts to recreate its achievements hit screens with little to no success, but one of the few to capture some of the terror and strength from the blockbuster franchise was 2010’s The Last Exorcism. As a documentary crew follow a priest seeking to delegitimize exorcisms, the group are all shocked when they come across a case of a legitimate, and horrifying, true possession. Thanks to a slow-burning story, smart practical effects and a brilliantly chilling performance from Ashley Bell as the possessed young daughter of a conservative family, it’s a terrifying but rather short journey.

Southbound

Various, 2015

Cast: Chad Villella, Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, Fabianne Therese, Hannah Marks

Though anthologies are now a popular genre format for the small-screen, it’s still a rarely seen venture on the big screen given that it can be tougher to attain a balanced feel to the project, and the horror genre’s attempts are an even rarer feat, but one of the more successful attempts is 2015’s Southbound. Set in an undisclosed and mysterious area of the southwestern desert, the film tells the tale of multiple groups of people and their interweaving lives in the worst of times. The tone stays mostly consistent throughout the film, the tales all remain terrifying and shocking and the interconnection of them proves to be a fascinating one open to multiple viewings and analyses.

Halloween

John Carpenter, 1978

Cast: Jamie Lee Curtis, Donald Pleasance, Nick Castle, P.J. Soles

Widely hailed as the origin of the slasher genre and the trope of the final girl, John Carpenter’s 1978 classic Halloween is absolutely one of the greatest horror movies in cinematic history, and though it doesn’t quite hold up in terror levels in the over 40 years since its release, there’s still an undercurrent of unsettling and suspenseful chills to the film that make it a challenge for some. Following a group of teenagers in a small Illinois town as they are stalked and killed by a masked murderer, Carpenter gets a large degree of scares out of his film thanks to its more grounded approach to its kills, its menacing direction and haunting music, resulting in an absolute classic that is sure to still terrify many.

Lights OUT

David F. Sandberg, 2016

Cast: Teresa Palmer, Gabriel Bateman, Maria Bello, Billy Burke

The modern horror resurgence has seen new voices break out and thrive with a keen eye for direction as well as knowing how to properly tell a story, and one of those voices is David F. Sandberg, who made his feature directorial debut with the full-length adaptation of his short film, Lights Out. Following a young woman who learns of a malevolent spirit haunting her and her brother in the wake of their stepfather’s death with mysterious ties to their mother, the film not only features some visually compelling and terrifying scares utilizing light and the lack thereof, but also a moving and powerful family drama and exploration of depression that is bolstered by fantastic performances from its cast.

The Strangers

Bryan Bertino, 2008

Cast: Liv Tyler, Scott Speedman, Gemma Ward, Glenn Howerton

The home invasion genre is an on-again-off-again trend that always faces mixed results, with some smartly aiming for a more horror approach while other shoot to be an absolute thrill ride, and one that found the perfect middle ground was 2008’s The Strangers. Inspired by a string of break-ins in the writer/director’s childhood neighborhood and the Manson murders, the film follows a struggling couple who are terrorized by a group of masked assailants in their vacation home. The film features many tropes of the genre and does run a tad short, but the abbreviated runtime keeps audiences on the edge of their seat from start to finish as the trio of killers toy with the couple and pull a few frights on the viewers as well.

Insidious

James Wan, 2010

Cast: Rose Byrne, Patrick Wilson, Ty Simpkins, Lin Shaye

While Saw was seen as James Wan’s first breakout into the horror genre, it was truly 2010’s Insidious that began his streak of horror hits that would make him the modern master of the genre. Starting with the familiar setup of a family moving into a house seemingly haunted by paranormal activity, the film takes a unique twist as we learn that it’s actually the younger son in the family who is being haunted by numerous demonic spirits after falling into a coma. Combining kinetic and stylish direction from Wan, a moody and haunting atmosphere and some of the most effective jump scares in modern horror history, this stands as a recent classic.

Pet Sematary

Kevin Kölsch and Dennis Widmyer, 2019

Cast: Jason Clarke, Amy Seimetz, John Lithgow, Jeté Laurence

As previously mentioned, one would be remiss to not discuss Stephen King when exploring the horror genre and of the dozens of novels adapted for the screen, one that’s seen the most mixed reception from fans and critics alike have been the Pet Sematary films, although if to choose between the two, this year’s adaptation was certainly a much more chilling and eerie affair. Following a doctor learning of a pet cemetery on the land he has just moved his family to in Maine that brings anything buried there back from the dead, the film’s dramatic exploration of the consequences of messing with fate provides some disturbing imagery and jump scares and highlights strong performances from Jason Clarke and Amy Seimetz.

Oculus

Mike Flanagan, 2013

Cast: Karen Gillan, Brenton Thwaites, Katee Sackhoff, Rory Cochrane

Short films turned into feature-length projects can result in some absolute gems and in addition to Sandberg’s Lights Out, one of the most terrifying and thrilling out there is Mike Flanagan’s Oculus. Set around a brother and sister looking into the history of a mysterious mirror and its ties to the deaths of their mother and father as kids, the film’s double timeline story is compelling to watch play out and interact with one another, the direction from Flanagan is top-notch, the performances from its four main cast members are superb and though there aren’t any jump scares, the film’s visuals are unsettling and the atmosphere is horrifying and will sit with viewers long after watching it.

V/H/S

Various, 2012

Cast: Hannah Fierman, Adam Wingard, Joe Swanberg, Matt Bettinelli-Olpin

It’s time for another dive into the anthology with another of the more consistent and terrifying horror efforts with the inaugural installment in the V/H/S franchise. Set primarily around a group of criminals who are hired to break into a house and find a single VHS tape, the film tells a variety of tales from celebrated indie horror writers and directors through other tapes and it proved to be a shocking, exhilarating and intense array of stories. One of the most celebrated, “Amateur Night,” which is pictured above, even went on to spawn a spin-off film thanks to its chilling premise, and with other intriguing tales, this is certainly worth a watch.