Obscure Horror Movies
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- DirectorHiguchinskyStarsEriko HatsuneFhi FanHinako SaekiThe inhabitants of a small Japanese town become increasingly obsessed with and tormented by spirals.This Japanese horror was released while the manga of the same name was still being published, albeit with a different ending. This film makes great use of practical effects in combination with well executed early computer generated imagery. Like most J-horror films, it's best to go into it knowing your mind is going to be played with.
- DirectorAndrzej ZulawskiStarsIsabelle AdjaniSam NeillMargit CarstensenA woman starts exhibiting increasingly disturbing behavior after asking her husband for a divorce. Suspicions of infidelity soon give way to something much more sinister.Possession is an allegory based film. It's easier to understand the film as a whole if that's known going in to it, but I'll forego the spoiler and leave it to you to guess at what the allegory is. Isabelle Adjani is amazing in this movie, portraying scenes of descent into madness that must be seen to be believed. Sam Neil does well also, though he does seem a little stilted at times. Lastly, it should be noted there is a very controversial scene in this film depicting a "demon" of sorts. Be warned that the scene in question may stay with you long after the movie has ended.
- DirectorPaul LeniStarsMary PhilbinConrad VeidtJulius MolnarWhen a proud noble refuses to kiss the hand of the despotic King James in 1690, he is cruelly executed and his son surgically disfigured.
- DirectorSion SonoStarsMasumi MiyazakiIssei IshidaRie KuwanaThe erotic novelist Taeko is writing a morbid story of a family destroyed by incest, murder and abuse. Her assistant, Yuji, sets on a mission to uncover the reality of this story, but the reality might be too much to bear.There's nothing I can really say to prepare someone for this film. Most of the conventional aspects of horror are there, just turned up to 11. The plot is riddled with mind-bending twists which culminate into a very unsettling payoff in the end. *Note: Some scenes depicting rape are difficult to watch.
- DirectorNarciso Ibáñez SerradorStarsLewis FianderPrunella RansomeAntonio IranzoA couple of English tourists arrive on an island where all the children have gone crazy and are murdering the adults.The original title of this film, "Who can kill a child?", is a much more telling in regards to the plot. When the two adult protagonists find themselves surrounded by pint-sized sociopaths, that question begs to be answered, no matter how taboo. While not especially gory or tense compared to todays fare, the atmosphere and island locations in this film are very unique for the horror genre.
- DirectorAdrian LyneStarsTim RobbinsElizabeth PeñaDanny AielloMourning his dead child, a haunted Vietnam War veteran attempts to uncover his past while suffering from a severe case of dissociation. To do so, he must decipher reality and life from his own dreams, delusions, and perceptions of death.While the final twist of the film steals heavily from Hemingway's "The Snows of Mount Kilimanjaro", the rest of the film is a near masterpiece of terror and suspense. Keep an eye out for the head shaking special effect. For such a simple thing to put to film, it's extremely unnerving to say the least. There's much more I can say about this one, but it really should be watched to be appreciated.
- DirectorBernard RoseStarsCharlotte BurkeJane BertishSamantha CahillA young girl lost in the loneliness and boredom of reality finds solace in an ill boy, whom she can visit in a surreal dream world that she drew in her school composition book.The atmosphere surrounding the plot of Paperhouse is what really makes this a stand-out horror film. With only a mild sprinkling of jump scares and an antagonist who is really just ominous at best, this movie makes creative use of its sets and storyline to really convey a sense of dread throughout.
- DirectorRyûhei KitamuraStarsVinnie JonesBradley CooperLeslie BibbA photographer's obsessive pursuit of dark subject matter leads him into the path of a serial killer who stalks late night commuters, ultimately butchering them in the most gruesome ways.
- DirectorJack ClaytonStarsDeborah KerrPeter WyngardeMegs JenkinsA young governess for two children becomes convinced that the house and grounds are haunted.Gothic horror has become somewhat of a lost art. Audiences were once more easily immersed in dark atmospheres than those of today, who have lived through eras of slashers, exploitation, and unflinching gore fests. That said, "The Innocents" is one of the best in the gothic genre. Moody and plot heavy, it's really an experience film. *Note: The 2001 Nicole Kidman remake entitled "The Others" is decent with respect to how bad remakes often are. Still, "The Innocents", in all its vintage glory is more enjoyable in my opinion.
- DirectorAbel FerraraStarsLili TaylorChristopher WalkenAnnabella SciorraA New York philosophy grad student turns into a vampire after getting bitten by one, and then tries to come to terms with her new lifestyle and frequent craving for human blood.
- DirectorJohn CarpenterStarsSam NeillJürgen ProchnowJulie CarmenAn insurance investigator begins discovering that the impact a horror writer's books have on his fans is more than inspirational.
- DirectorJoel AndersonStarsRosie TraynorDavid PledgerMartin SharpeStrange things start happening after a girl is found drowned in a lake.
- DirectorNagisa ÔshimaStarsTatsuya FujiEiko MatsudaAoi NakajimaA passionate telling of the story of Sada Abe, a woman whose affair with her master led to an obsessive and ultimately destructive sexual relationship.First and foremost, this film is based on true events. Within the horror genre, that adds a completely different layer of context when viewing that's absent from films based on fictional work. If you are a fan of films like "Audition", this one may appeal to you. Two lovers push the envelope from pleasure to pain with horrific results that will have every male viewer subconsciously guarding his crotch for days.
- DirectorNicolas RoegStarsJulie ChristieDonald SutherlandHilary MasonA married couple grieving the recent death of their young daughter are in Venice when they encounter two elderly sisters, one of whom is psychic and brings a warning from beyond.
- DirectorAlejandro AmenábarStarsAna TorrentFele MartínezEduardo NoriegaWhile doing a thesis about violence, Ángela finds a snuff video where a girl is tortured until death. Soon she discovers that the girl was a former student in her faculty...
- DirectorJennifer LynchStarsVincent D'OnofrioEamon FarrenEvan BirdA young man held prisoner by a cab-driving serial killer must make a life or death choice between following in his captor's footsteps or breaking free.
- DirectorBrad AndersonStarsDavid CarusoStephen GevedonPaul GuilfoyleTensions rise within an asbestos cleaning crew as they work in an abandoned mental hospital with a horrific past that seems to be coming back.
- DirectorTi WestStarsJocelin DonahueTom NoonanMary WoronovIn 1983, financially struggling college student Samantha Hughes takes a strange babysitting job that coincides with a full lunar eclipse. She slowly realizes her clients harbor a terrifying secret, putting her life in mortal danger.
- DirectorGregory WilsonStarsWilliam AthertonBlythe AuffarthBlanche BakerFollows the unspeakable torture and abuses committed on a teenage girl in the care of her aunt and the boys who witness and fail to report the crime.
- DirectorToby WilkinsStarsShea WhighamJill WagnerPaulo CostanzoTrapped in an isolated gas station by a voracious Splinter parasite that transforms its still-living victims into deadly hosts, a young couple and an escaped convict must find a way to work together to survive this primal terror.
- DirectorNeil JordanStarsSarah PattersonAngela LansburyDavid WarnerA teenage girl in a country manor falls asleep while reading a magazine, and has a disturbing dream involving wolves prowling the woods below her bedroom window.
- DirectorGary ShermanStarsDonald PleasenceNorman RossingtonDavid LaddWhen a government official disappears in the London tunnels, after several reports of missing people in the same location, Scotland Yard start to take the matter seriously, along with a couple who stumble into a victim by accident.
- DirectorGeorges FranjuStarsPierre BrasseurAlida ValliJuliette MaynielA surgeon causes an accident which leaves his daughter disfigured and goes to extreme lengths to give her a new face.Eyes Without a Face [Les Yeux Sans Visage] is somewhat of a sleeper horror film. It's well known in film circles, but doesn't seem to get much attention elsewhere, even amongst avowed horror fans. The premise, how far someone will go for a loved one at all costs, is easily relatable. Other themes, such as vanity and megalomania, are also given their proper due here. The make-up effects are excellent for the time and the cinematography is well conceived in black and white. The only complaint I have is against the soundtrack. The score becomes oddly campy when victims are being stalked. I guess that can be chalked up to being a product of the 1960's.
- DirectorChuck RussellStarsShawnee SmithKevin DillonDonovan Leitch Jr.A deadly entity from space crash-lands near a small town and begins consuming everyone in its path. Panic ensues as shady government scientists try to contain the horrific creature.While "The Blob" isn't an obscure title in it's own right, the original 1958 version always seems to get more fanfare, being a product of the 50s monster movie era. The '88 Blob is a much slicker movie and undoubtedly more terrifying. The creature effects work, using weather balloons and dyed silicone gel, create something truly horrific.
- DirectorJacques TourneurStarsDana AndrewsPeggy CumminsNiall MacGinnisAmerican professor John Holden arrives in London for a parapsychology conference, only to find himself investigating the mysterious actions of Devil-worshipper Julian Karswell.While not strictly a monster film, the "Demon" featured in this British horror flick is exceptionally terrifying for its day. Billowing smoke and charging through the night sky, it's a real spectacle. The plot is intriguing enough to keep a modern viewers attention as well when the titular monster isn't on screen through cross and double-cross elements between the cast. It really is a near-classic that will hopefully find a newer, wider audience in time.
- DirectorRichard StanleyStarsRobert John BurkeChelsea FieldZakes MokaeA woman on the run from her abusive husband encounters a mysterious hitch-hiker.
- DirectorClaire DenisStarsVincent GalloTricia VesseyBéatrice DalleTwo American newlyweds in Paris experience a love so strong, it almost devours them.
- DirectorWerner HerzogStarsKlaus KinskiIsabelle AdjaniBruno GanzCount Dracula moves from Transylvania to Wismar, spreading the Black Plague across the land. Only a woman pure of heart can bring an end to his reign of horror.
- DirectorMichael WinnerStarsCristina RainesAva GardnerChris SarandonA young woman moves into an apartment in a building which houses a sinister evil.
- DirectorMike FlanaganStarsKatie ParkerCourtney BellDave LevineA woman and her sister begin to link a mysterious tunnel to a series of disappearances, including that of her own husband.
- DirectorM.J. BassettStarsJamie BellRúaidhrí ConroyMike DowneyIn the middle of World War I, nine British soldiers caught behind enemy lines seek refuge in a complex network of German trenches. What they soon discover is that they aren't alone - and it isn't a German soldier that's hunting them down.
- DirectorMario BavaLamberto BavaStarsDaria NicolodiJohn SteinerDavid Colin Jr.A couple is terrorized in their new house haunted by the vengeful ghost of the woman's former husband, who possesses their young son.
- DirectorMichael WadleighStarsAlbert FinneyDiane VenoraEdward James OlmosA New York cop investigates a series of brutal deaths that resemble animal attacks.
- DirectorFrank LaLoggiaStarsLukas HaasLen CariouAlex RoccoAn author tells the story of how, as a young boy growing up in a 1960s small town, he was haunted after witnessing the murder of a little girl.
- DirectorAgustí VillarongaStarsGünter MeisnerDavid SustMarisa ParedesA former Nazi child-killer is confined in an iron lung inside an old mansion after a suicide attempt. His wife hires him a full-time carer, a mysterious young man who is driven slowly mad by the old man's disturbing past.
- DirectorBlutchCharles BurnsMarie CaillouStarsAure AtikaGuillaume DepardieuNicole GarciaSeveral scary black-and-white animated segments in different styles appeal to our fear(s) of the dark.Peurs du Noir [Eng. Fears of the Dark], is a feature length animated anthology film done in stark black and white. Each of the segments presented focus on very different fears, from psychopathy and delusions to mysterious creatures and death, all loosely tied together using darkness as the theme. The film is fractured and meandering in some places, but overall it's creepy and has great moments of uneasiness that are a rare find in feature animation.
- DirectorBob BalabanStarsRandy QuaidMary Beth HurtSandy DennisA young boy living in 1950s suburbia suspects that his parents are cannibalistic murderers.
- DirectorBigas LunaStarsZelda RubinsteinMichael LernerTalia PaulA controlling mother uses telepathic powers to send her middle-aged son on a killing spree.
- DirectorRobert LiebermanStarsD.B. SweeneyRobert PatrickCraig ShefferAn Arizona logger mysteriously disappears for five days in an alleged encounter with a flying saucer in 1975. His co-workers endure ridicule and contempt as they are wrongly accused of murder.I don't usually categorize alien films as horror material, but Fire in the Sky contains several horrific depictions of what happens to an abductee that really shouldn't be missed. The practical and creature effects are outstanding for the time. The rest of the plot plays out as dramatic sci-fi, but it's still quite compelling.
- DirectorJan SvankmajerStarsJan TrískaPavel LiskaAnna GeislerováA man takes up residence with a mysterious marquis and is soon persuaded to enter into an asylum for preventative therapy. Things are not what they seem, and the marquis may be even more sinister than what the young man may've predicted.
- DirectorRoger ChristianStarsKathryn HarroldZeljko IvanekShirley KnightA disturbed telepathic man is unable to fully control his ability to transmit his dreams and visions into the minds of the people around him, or even influence reality. A female therapist tries to help him, but his mother gets in the way.
- DirectorGuy MaddinStarsGretchen KrichSullivan BrownMaya LawsonReturned home to his long-estranged mother upon a request from her deathbed, a man raised by his parents in an orphanage has to confront the childhood memories that have long haunted him.
- DirectorMichele SoaviStarsKelly CurtisHerbert LomMariangela GiordanoA lonely kindergarten teacher discovers a secret well in the basement of her house, and soon finds herself being followed by a murderous Satanic cult.
- DirectorJim MickleStarsBill SageAmbyr ChildersJulia GarnerThe Parkers, a reclusive family who follow ancient customs, find their secret existence threatened as a torrential downpour moves into their area, forcing daughters Iris and Rose to assume responsibilities beyond those of a typical family.
- DirectorToshiharu IkedaStarsMiyuki OnoAya KatsuragiHitomi KobayashiA late night TV presenter receives a snuff tape, in which a woman is brutally killed. She decides to take a crew out to a location indicated in the tape, but only death and despair await them.
- DirectorPupi AvatiStarsLino CapolicchioFrancesca MarcianoGianni CavinaStefano, a young restorer, is commissioned to save a controversial mural located in the church of a small, isolated village.
- DirectorRichard CiupkaStarsJohn VernonSamantha EggarLinda ThorsonSix young actresses auditioning for a movie role at a remote mansion are targeted by a mysterious masked murderer.
- DirectorJacques LacerteStarsMary Charlotte WilcoxLyle WaggonerChristopher StoneA young socialite struggling to control her necrophiliac urges is torn between her affection for a kind businessman and the mortician who supplies her with bodies.
- DirectorBrian De PalmaStarsMargot KidderJennifer SaltCharles DurningA small-time reporter tries to convince the police she saw a murder in the apartment across from hers.
- DirectorJean RollinStarsFrançoise PascalHugues QuesterNatalie PerreyA young couple out for a walk decide to take a stroll through a large cemetery. As darkness begins to fall they realize they can't find their way out, and soon their fears begin to overtake them.The Iron Rose [La Rose de Fer] is an interesting take on French horror. There are no big scares or gory splashes of blood to be seen anywhere here. It's simply an opportunity for the viewer to spend an evening with a young couple... in a graveyard. My advice for this one is to just take it all in as an experience rather than search for a defined linear story.