The horror genre has recently experienced a renaissance, with production companies like Blumhouse and A24 and directors like Robert Eggers and Ari Aster offering titles that subvert many of its preconceived tropes and standards. Filled with complicated themes, stunning cinematography, compelling narratives, and strong performances from top-tier talent, these modern horror movies are changing the perception of what it means to be scared.
Whether they pull back society's safe veneer to expose its dangerous chaos, explore important issues of racism and classism, highlight primal feelings of grief and loss, or simply contain some of the scariest imagery seen on the screen, these are the best modern horror movies ranked by IMDb.
The VVitch (2015) 6.9/10
A period piece that is both accessible to modern audiences and full of the most fundamental elements of horror marks a singularity in the genre, The VVitch may focus on a young woman accused of witchcraft after her younger brother goes missing, but its themes of grief and suspicion are universal.
Puritanical righteousness and chilling paranoia collide as the woman's family decides whether to condemn her for her mysterious ways, unknowingly evoking her own vengeance and retaliation in response.
Midsommar (2019) 7.1/10
Aiming to put the grief of her family's ing behind her and focus on her fractious relationship, a young woman agrees to accompany her boyfriend and his friends on a backpacking trip to Europe. When they land in Sweden, the country presents a bucolic countryside begging to be explored, and the group ends up in a quaint village in the midst of its midsummer festival.
Eventually, charming traditions and rituals give way to terrifying trials and competitions as the villagers pull the visitors one by one into Midsommar's savagery.
Hereditary (2018) 7.3/10
After their matriarch dies, the Graham family begins to uncover disturbing secrets about her past, possibly predisposing them to the same fate. As grief and despair intrude into their sanity, with first one tragedy and then another, the mother tries to keep the unit together even as the edges of reality begin to waver and her own mind succumbs to madness.
Whether viewers choose to see Hereditary as an exploration of mental illness, familial dysfunction, or simply as a surreal haunting, its disturbing images can't be unseen, and the depth of its emotions isn't easily put aside.
It (2017) 7.3/10
Stephen King's popular horror story is brought to chilling life in It, following a malevolent entity bent on luring children to their deaths, often appearing to them in the guise of a colorful clown named Pennywise. After one young boy goes missing, his older brother and friends endeavor to make a stand against Pennywise, but his ability to prey on their worst fears proves too powerful.
The movie deftly manages to incorporate the best themes of King's work, especially the obstacles that must be vanquished growing up, balancing both nostalgia and the appeal of small-town life with the secrets that lurk just beneath its quaint veneer.
The Conjuring (2013) 7.5/10
All of the movies in The Conjuring franchise are based on the supposed real cases of paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren in the '70s, but the first movie remains the best and most compelling. It follows the Warrens as they try to help rid a family of a sinister presence terrorizing them in their remote farmhouse.
One of the reasons the movie is so believable is because of the Warrens, who are portrayed as real, dynamic characters that care about each other and the victims of the bizarre circumstances they explore.
The Lighthouse (2019) 7.5/10
On a remote New England island just before the turn of the 20th century, two lighthouse keepers find themselves slowly losing their grip on reality. As the dread and isolation set in, they question what's real and what isn't, eventually being consumed by violent hallucinations.
Eerily shot in black and white and featuring riveting performances, that may baffle viewers as much as it entices, but it's always memorable.
A Quiet Place (2018) 7.5/10
A Quiet Place manages to make even breathing a cursed act for a family forced to hide from monsters drawn to sound. An apocalypse ravaged the world, leaving only pockets of survivors, and with sound as the enemy, every interaction must be done in complete silence.
Luckily the movie's clever premise never feels gimmicky, as each family member fights to survive, contending not just with monsters but great emotional tragedy. Its story continues in the much anticipated which expands the world-building and the scares.
Get Out (2017) 7.7/10
The "meet the parents" stage is bound to be full of anxiety, but when a weekend getaway turns hostile for a young man in an interracial relationship, it becomes deadly. The family's originally benign behavior suddenly becomes sinister as he uncovers harrowing revelations about their legacy.
most progressive and unique horror movies of the modern era.
Shutter Island (2010) 8.1/10
Martin Scorsese uses all of the technical and artistic skills he's acquired over decades of film making, while also combining elements ofShutter Island. It places a US marshal front and center in a mystery involving a remote insane asylum, and the woman who's escaped from it.
As fascinating as the mystery is to try to solve, its ending will leave audiences with more questions than answers. Rather than detract from its success, this makes it infinitely re-watchable, as each clue brings new discoveries to light.
Parasite (2019) 8.5/10
The destitute and always hustling Kim clan is seemingly never able to sur the class divide that separates them from incredibly wealthy people like the Park family until one clever boy finds a way to integrate his entire family into their household and take over.
Parasite is equal parts slow-burning thriller and satirical black comedy that explores issues of class, greed, and survival as highlighted by the way the tables are turned on a family that generates their affluence from a poor labor force.
