7 (More) Amazing Horror Movies Not Enough Of You Have Seen
Naboer (Next Door)
Somehow, I feel like I might be the only person who has seen this movie, and it makes it all feel even more insane to me. The best way I can describe this movie is a psycho-sexual-thriller. But even that doesn’t really give you any idea of what you’re sitting down for.
Some seductions, even the strongest of us have not the power to fight.
Naboer (Next Door) is a Norweigan film much in the vein of the old Roman Polanski thrillers, which use sex and waning mental states to instill terror, much more then he used violence or monsters. While this film may not be as blatantly “horror” as Stakeland, as you watch it, you can feel the tension mounting.
The story seems simple. Man meets some neighbors, two young woman, and he gets embroiled in their strange web of sex and mental games. As a result, he begins to question what is real around him, or if he is in his right state of mind. Who are these girls? What do they want? And why?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W0k3DuxwKPQ
If Roman Polanski had sex with the 14 year old, female version of David Lynch, this is the baby they would have made.
I’m not sure if that last caption is Ok, but I am keeping it.
Anyway, the film is sexy at times, and unsettling at others, but the one thing you will not be able to do, from the first second he meets these woman, is look away. The movie is truly enthralling, almost inexplicably so. A strange, twisted journey that more people need to take.
The Woman
Alright, I may lose a few of you here, and that’s OK. It is generally known that anytime director Lucky McKee is going to adapt a Jack Ketchum book into a film, souls are going to be destroyed. If you haven’t seen The Girl Next Door, you don’t know what I am talking about, and that’s OK, You don’t want to. But here, when it is NOT based on a true story, it is FAR more enjoyable, even though it does get pretty depraved.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UsUxrMyWXeI
Plus, Angela Bettis, who played MAY in McKee’s other classic, is back!
The Woman is about a bastard of a man who finds a feral woman one day while he is hunting, and decides to bring her home to his family so they can train her and make her civilized. If you know anything about horror, you know TWO things. Anytime someone captures something feral, it doesn’t end well for the person doing the capturing.
Second, anytime there is a woman chained up, some bad things are going to happen to her. That’s never pleasant to watch, but you will find yourself compelled, watching, excited at the prospect of her breaking free at any moment and making these people pay.
The actresses name is Pollyanna McIntosh, and her gaze will likely never leave your subconscious. Staggering performance, on all accounts.
I think what sets this apart from most “exploited woman gets revenge” movies, which I tend to despise, is that this woman is more animal than human, yet, it is shown, WE are the most animalistic of all. I know movies like The Elephant Man have shown that man are the true animal in far less exploitative ways, still, you will be routing for her to break out through the whole movie (which teeters back and forth between horrific and hilarious with all the glee of an over-caffeinated child on a swing set).
While The Woman may be a little dark and heavy, you should be grateful I went with this, and not DeadGirl.
La Horde
For a guy who loves zombies, I speak of them rarely. And I only speak of them rarely, because it is such a mishandled genre by most, that I don’t even want to validate any of them by talking about it. But every now and then ( Dance of the Dead, Fido, Undead) there are some decent ones that slip by, under the radar. La Horde is one such movie. For anyone who knows anything about the new wave of extreme French horror, you have to know, this movie is NOT going to pull any punches.
And it doesn’t.
Super Mario Brothers: Left 4 Dead Edition: Now with Luigi DLC!
La Horde is a classic zombie movie, mashed up with the pace of a 28 Days Later, and the violence of a movie like Inside. There is so much blood on screen at any given time in this film, you will be checking your shirt for stains. But it does what few zombies movies do lately, it keeps you entertained. It doesn’t bog down you down with allegories or metaphors for a consumerist society. It just shoves zombies at you. Hungry ones, and then it gives you lots of weapons.
Matter of fact, I am not even gonna post the trailer, I am gonna post a scene that shows you just how epic and insane this movie gets. It’s not really a spoiler, BUT, it is a cool scene, so if you plan on seeing the whole movie, I would save it.
For anyone else, get ready.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fZu-edU5Sc
Dead Rising: Photo Realistic Edition. I kept waiting for him to run on their heads.
How can anyone see that and NOT want to see this movie? And the ending of this movie is just so f*cking good, that’s all I have to say about that.
Honorable Mentions:
The Awakening: A British “ghost story” that is subtle and surprisingly beautiful.
Thirst: Chan Wook Park (Oldboy) does it again. Instead of revenge, this time, vampires.
The Innkeepers: A very slow burn, and some people won’t make it, but it goes from 20 mph to 90 mph real fast, and the end makes it worth watching.
Plus, it has Top Gun’s Kelly McGillis as a, wait, how the Hell did this woman suddenly end up in so many good horror movies?
Cigarette Burns: It is an episode of the old Showtime show, Masters of Horror, directed by John Carpenter, and it is one of the creepiest and most original “movies” I have seen in a long time.
You can find it online or order it. Trust me, it is well worth it.
Inside: I bring this up in every horror article. Inside is the most disturbing movie I have seen in the last decade, even trumping the mighty Martyrs.
And it’s STILL a better love story than Twilight.
God, I never get sick of that joke.
I won’t even look up the name of the woman who plays the antagonist in the movie INSIDE, that is how much she scares me.
Dread: Just watched this movie, based around the amazing Clive Barker story, last night and I loved it. More accurate adaptation than The Midnight Meat Train, and disturbingly believable. If I didn’t already finish the article and am adding this right before publication, I would talk far more in depth about this movie. All I can say is: See it. Now.
I loved masters of horror when it was on, but the quality did wax and wane, depending. Here are the ones i liked:
Jenifer
Homecoming
Cigarette Burns
The Fair Haired Child
The Damned Thing (mostly because it’s funny, don’t take this one seriously)
Pelts (Meatloaf!)
Oh for the love of… I just finished all the movies in ‘The ten best horror movies you haven’t seen’ en thought “Well, 2 articles to go’. But in all seriousness, thanks! thanks to you I’ve seen movies that would otherwise never cross my path.
@Habriho – same thoughts here man. I’m still not done with the movies from the previous lists!
But still, thank you for these lists Remy! Keep em coming. I love your articles!
I can’t say that I’ll watch all of these because, honestly, I don’t like going out of my way to feel disgusted by learning new forms of brutality or horror that I couldn’t previously comprehend.
However, a few do interest me and seem more intriguing than mentally-scarring. Lake Mungo for example.
I just want to let you know that I always add at least 5 movies to my Netflix queue because of your articles. I’m never going to catch up. Luckily, some of these are on Instant Watch so thanks!
I try to stay up on things horror related, and I have seen quite a few of the movies on your lists (or a least have heard of them), but still make me feel like a total failure, Remy. thanks.
🙂
sorry that should say, YOU still make me feel like a total failure…
man, that was like a compound failure there.
I know I’m hoping for too much here but do you think that it’s possible to mark which of these movies are available on Netflix either streaming or by mail.
INSIDE is one of my fav movies, except
when that one cop comes back to life and starts beating the shit out of the pregnant chick, actin like some kind of infected zombie? wtF was that all about?
SERBIAN FILM…it will change you
Want to be scared while laughing your head off, watch The Cottage
I’ve seen “La Horde” but not Pontypool. I think I’ll watch that and a few others. Thanks for the list.
Thanks for the overall kind words, guys and dolls. It’s really appreciated. I’ve been on like a three month bender and am literally running out of horror films to watch.
@ Og Bobby, have ALL MY THOUGHTS about Serbian Film right here, man. Go check it out. Yes, the film changes you, but NOT in a good way. It poisons the soul.
http://remycarreiro.com/the-most-soul-destroying-film-i-never-should-have-watched-a-serbian-film/
@Wite Boy, that messed me up, too, until I figured it out. He gets messed up by that ONE lady with dark hair in the dark. When he comes to, he sees the other one, has a head injury, and attacks her immediately not aware that it is the wrong woman (which makes that whole movie even MORE messed up, because it would not have ended the way it did if it was not for that cop)
@mc, LOVED The Cottage. That’s gonna be on my Black Horror Comedies list I’m doing for sure.
Between your unreality posts and your own site, I’ve added so many movies to my Netflix queue that I’m afraid to bump to the top.
Wow, I love that I can read and all your articles and can say I’m only two films behind you, makes me feel accomplished! Totally digging these choices especially! I’m assuming you’re as stoked for Pontypool 2 as I freakin’ am? The new poster hints some crazy plot turns. Cold Fish and I Saw The Devil were also masterpieces, but their long run times can be intimidating to some. And Stake Land? I’m glad someone decided to make vampires frightening again! Ah, Ok, I could ramble all day on non-mainstream horror, but just wanted to leave some love from another horror nerd trying to spread the message like you. I’ve been covering Bloody-Disgusting Selects releases myself, and so far have a full written retrospective on the first 10 films (which I HIGHLY suggest you take a look at in case you missed a few, but I’m not adding the link cuz I don’t want to make it look like I’m spamming.)
The only two I need to argue are on The Horde and Grave Encounters haha Not bad selections at all, but just didn’t really stick with me for some reason (Grave Encounters more than The Horde).
Keep on fighting the bloody good fight.
DeadGirl – best date movie ever
Thanks Matt, huge fan of the site. I feel like you guys took the Fangoria title. and that’s no small feat.
Thanks for reading, man.
I’m gonna dip over and check that out right now, and if you ever wanna collab on a horror piece, I would be down!
The only movie Ive seen out of them is Thirst. I bought it for a dollar at a gamestore and found a diamond in the rough. It was amazing!
Thanks for this list! I’ve seen a few of them, and I agree with most of your opinions of those ones, so I’m intrigued by the others. I’m about to give “La Horde” a shot. Looks pretty f’n fun.
Cheers!
@Remi Carreiro :
Every October for the last 6yrs, I have pursued a tradition of watching at least one horror movie a day, for all 31 days. Of course, it always gets out of hand and my average daily number is more like 2 or 4. My record was 98 horror movies in October 2010. Mentioning running out of horror flicks is relatable to me haha Sometimes we have to dig deep into the catacombs for more, and sometimes we just have to take chances on what looks like it might suck a burlap sack of scrotums. Sometimes you find gold.
Remy, you are a legend – I rushed about asking if anyone at work had seen or read Pontypool, when no one had, on my lunch break went to the store and bought it. As I work in radio it was a “must have”. Thanks for the lists, and keep them coming.
“Pontypool” ROCKED! Now I just have to find the book.
Solid all around, even your inclusion of The Woman (which was infinitely better than Girl… GND’s daytime soap-level acting just killed th eimmersion, and my own familiarity with the actualy case lead to revulsion at Ketchum’s exploitative and needless additions). You have earned my undying love for the inclusion of Naboer and Cigarette Burns.
You guys are awesome! Thanks for actually following the suggestions! The only one I regret leaving out was Kill List, but I saw it just after I made this list, so it was too late, but if you get a chance, check it out. I have much to say about that film.