Oftentimes horror movies are unrealistic and solely rely on outrageous storylines and paranormal entities. I appreciate Barbarian as a horror film because it doesn't rely on these details to convey horror but rather creates a story that could actually occur in the real world. The use of an airbnb like rental system also implements a sense or realism as many resort to utilizing airbnb services while vacationing. I also adore actor Jake Long and his realistic performance as a gaslighting manchild.
2. Coraline
Coraline has always been a childhood favorite of mine as it is a child coded horror movie that doesn't shy away from tough subjects such as parental neglect, mortality and eerie imagery. I enjoy this film a lot as it's a great work of stop-motion which is my favorite form of animation due to its attention to detail and amazing artistry required.
3. Insidious
Insidious was part of my introduction to the horror genre, probably not my first horror movie but definitely the first that actually gave me the feeling of fear. The build ups and jump scares are exceptional as they come at the most unexpected moments making them much scarier compared to other horror films.
4. Paranorman
Paranorman is another childhood favorite of mine and is a great watch for halloween. The use of zombies and ghosts is done in a fascinating way as stop motion and technological effects come together to bring the world to life. Also this film features the first openly gay character within animated media which is also a great accomplishment that I admire the film for.
5. Perfect Blue
Perfect Blue is my all time favorite movie due to the psychological nature of the film. The twists and turns throughout the film not only show the struggles the main character has to her reality but also gives its audience a hard time navigating what is real and what isn't. The animation is also very strong with incredible details put into every part of it.
6. Princess Mononoke
Princess Mononoke is another animated movie that shows why its important to preserve nature. Aside from the story depicted the dialogue and visuals set the tone of more adult themes compared to other ghibli films.
7. Talk to Me
Talk to me completely changed my mind on modern horror and proved to me that horror can still be captured in a way that is relevant to today's time period. I adore the actors within the film and the performances they give, their infantilization with the possession artifact is something that I could complently occur especially as a horrifying social media trend.
8. The Birds
The Birds is considered a classic horror, upon watching I was unsure of this statement as the movie started as a romance film rather than a horror. However, the film just had a slow start and while it wasn't initially the expected genre it was still interesting to watch but once the horror did hit it made the film unlike any other as its horror was twisted and unexpected.
9. The House
The house covers its topics in a very interesting way using one house but over three different time periods and different species. I liked this movie because of the stories being depicted. They all had an eeriness to them as the lesson portrayed were relevant issues as greed, madness and pursuing true happiness are problems most face within their life. While to stories have eeriness the ending is more hopeful which I also enjoyed.
10. Puss in Boots: The Last Wish
Puss in Boots is an iconic character from the Shrek franchise. He has had his own movie before but this film in particular tackled a much emotion subject being that of death. Despite the grim subject this movie potrays itself in a kid friendly way which I liked as it destigmatized the taboo behind death in both an educational and exciting format.
11. Trick R Treat
Trick R Treat is a series of haunting events occuring on halloween highligting on necessary precautions to take when partaking in halloween activites. I really liked the format of this film as the differing stories tended to all come together in the end. The horror elements were also a nice touch especially with the main killer of the movie Sam who has a very creepy cute design to him.
12. Us
This movie is made by Jordan Peele who is a popular horror director, before the film released I knew it would be a brilliant one. The film did not disappoint as its story line of evil doppelgangers was unexpected and horrifying. Of course there is also a twist to the movie that makes it all the more perfectly horrifying.
