It’s October, which means it’s time to dust off the movies that go bump in the night; the killers and the slashers, the ghosts and ghouls, goblins and devils, and just plain rotten people. Horror movies take on many shapes and forms, and the last 20 years have brought us a unique era in the genre’s long history. So now lurks Reel Speak’s Top 10 Best Horror Films of the Millennium, 2000-2019.
There is no question that ever since the slasher-genre of the 1980’s ended, horror has been looking for a single identity. This has been a good and bad thing; gone were the faces (or masks) of iconic blade-wielders, but in came a wave of cross-genre films that dipped their knives into psychological terror and gore-fests. After the cultural-smashing success of THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT (1999), a whole bloody mess of found-footage films came about, with the PARANOMAL ACTIVITY franchise becoming a major money maker across seven films. Franchises were the priority; with THE CONJURING and INSIDIOUS series combing for eleven films including spinoffs. A divisive sub-genre called "torture porn" came about in the early part of the 2000's, with films such as HOSTEL (2006), and WOLF CREEK (2005) leading the blood trail. Zombies have been everywhere…to the point of being overdone, and arthouse directors such as Danny Boyle have been taking a stab at scaring us. The last 20 years have brought us many hits and misses…and here is how the blood spills.
10. US (2019)
Jordan Peele may have won Oscars for his genre-bending, cultural smash GET OUT in 2017, but his follow-up manages to stand taller as a tighter, and more clever film. US follows a family being menaced by their own doppelgangers, and through one mind-bending twist after another, turns the tables upside down on (ahem), us more than once. It’s a statement on social division with some genuine creepy scenes, and a jaw-dropping performance by Lupita Nyong’o.
9. THE CABIN IN THE WOODS (2011)
One of the reasons why the old slasher genre will probably never make a true comeback is because of this genre-breaker that will never allow us to watch those old films the same way again. Written by Joss Whedon and Drew Goddard, with Goddard at the helm…CABIN takes us behind the curtain of the more cliché elements of 1980’s horror films; showing off an immense knowledge of the genre while making a cultural impact.
8. SHAUN OF THE DEAD (2004) and ZOMBIELAND (2009)
This may seem like a bit of a cheat, but these two films are separated only by a pond. One is a British comedy and the other American, but both deal with a zombie plague being battled off by groups of every-day people who are ill-equipped to fight off the walking dead. Both films are endlessly quotable, funny, with more than enough laughs and scares…and both give the tired old zombie genre the swift kick in the head that it needs. If a zombie double-feature is on the October watch-list but you don't want to feel miserable about life, these are your films.
7. MIDSOMMAR (2019)
Ari Aster directs this unnerving tale about a group of friends who travel to Sweden for a secretive festival that only occurs every 90 years. The cult behind the festival may be lacking their reasons for being, and a lot of gaps can be filled in, but that doesn’t keep MIDSOMMAR from being one of the most disturbing films of the last 20 years. Bodies are smashed and burned and mutilated…all towards a purpose and an end. The film is carried by Florence Pugh, who in one scene of extended wailing and crying…establishes herself as one of the best actresses working today.
6. THE STRANGERS (2008)
Sometimes the scariest movies are the ones that show things that can actually happen to us; never mind the ghosts and goblins when a home invasion can always be right around the corner. Bryan Bertino directs this creepy thriller about a couple (Liv Tyler, Scott Speedman), whose home is invaded by a trio of white-masked criminals. Not just a brutal take on having our privacy and safety area destroyed, but downright scary as those simple white masks bring on the chills.
5. SAW (2004)
Feel free to pretend that the endless gaggle of garbage SAW sequels never happened, because this first film stands just fine on its own. James Wan directs this thriller in which two men (Cary Elwes and franchise creator Leigh Whannell), wake up in a derelict building chained to pipes and are manipulated into playing a game of life and death. Told in a non-linear fashion and packed with surprises, SAW brought on a creepy and disturbing atmosphere that was relentless, and the final twist had people talking long after the credits rolled.
4. THE RING (2002)
Before director Gore Verbinski made Captain Jack Sparrow a household name, he was scaring audiences away from their screens with this remake of the 1998 Japanese horror film RING. Naomi Watts plays a journalist investigating a cursed videotape that kills the viewer seven days after watching it. What seems like a silly concept is given a deadly spin, and every scene has a creepy and foreboding atmosphere that is thicker than blood. Tension is high, and a scene with a mad horse on a ferry-boat is unforgettable.
3. THE OTHERS (2001)
Nicole Kidman puts in one of her best performances ever in this gothic supernatural slow-burner, taking home a Golden Globe and a BAFTA. Kidman plays the mother of two light-sensitive children, trapped in their large house during WWII. Things start to go bump in the night and it becomes clear the little family is not alone. Directed by Alejandro Amenabar, THE OTHERS makes great use of lights and shadows and is stunning to look at, and the scares and creep factor are excellent…not to mention a whopper of a twist at the end that makes us want to re-watch it right away.
2. THE DEVIL’S REJECTS (2005)
Rob Zombie’s sequel to his HOUSE OF 1000 CORPSES (2003). Where his first film was high on the camp, REJECTS went into the gritty and dirty style of the 1970’s; a change in tone and style that was grounded and effective. The film follows three outlaws on the run; Baby (Sheri Moon Zombie), Otis (Bill Moseley), and Captain Spaulding (the late great Sid Haig), as they rampage across Texas leaving a trail of blood and guts. It’s real-life horror as a grisly tale that could easily happen today…but the genius of it all comes near the end. After an entire film of making the rejects the most despicable and rotten people on Earth, Zombie turns the tables and suddenly makes us feel sympathy for them. It’s a heel-turn that most horror films would not even try. Tack on some excellent music choices, and we’ve got one hell of a scary movie.
1. THE WITCH (2015)
The feature debut of Robert Eggers, who spins this dark yarn about a 1630 Puritan family who encounters forces of evil surrounding their farm. Disturbing down to the bone, the family has their baby go missing and a pet goat showing signs of evil…and the blame gets put on the eldest daughter (Ana Taylor-Joy) as a practitioner of witchcraft. Put together with minimal dialogue, THE WITCH cuts from scene to scene with obvious gaps…leaving the viewer to use their imagination to catch up, and using our imagination to connect the dots is just as terrifying as Egger’s visuals. Where some (or most) films would stumble with this technique, Eggers makes it work in a way that gets into our heads and rattles about. The film plays on fear and belief, and there’s never a moment where we will have it all figured out. Scary as hell, atmospheric, artful, and can follow us out the door. One of those films that will have us looking over our shoulder.
REEL SPEAK'S TOP 10 BEST HORROR FILMS OF THE MILLENNIUM
- THE WITCH
- THE DEVIL'S REJECTS
- THE OTHERS
- THE RING
- SAW
- THE STRANGERS
- MIDSOMMAR
- SHAUN OF THE DEAD/ZOMBIELAND
- CABIN IN THE WOODS
- US
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