Here's a guide to Christopher Nolan's favorite horror movies. While he has yet to make a horror film himself, Christopher Nolan's work bears major influence from the genre. Tenet - which mercifully happens offscreen - also won't be out of place in a horror movie.
Even while dreaming up Inception, the Christopher Nolan movie was originally envisioned as a horror story, before switching to a heist concept. In interviews, Nolan has made it clear he loves everything from Kubrick to Michael Mann to the lesser-sung likes of The Fast And The Furious series or MacGruber, making it clear he has eclectic taste. Nolan has also stated he's open to helming a horror project someday, but he has yet to commit to one.
Here are Christopher Nolan's favorite horror movies, and how they influenced his own work
Alien (1979)
Many filmmakers have cited H.R. Giger-designed Xenomorph struck from the dark.
Scott has been a particularly big influence on Nolan, who told the Batman Begins.
The Hitcher (1986)
Hosting one of the late, great Rutger Hauer's - who later appeared in Batman Begins - best performances, The Hitcher is a dreamlike slasher movie. Another of Christopher Nolan's favorite horror movies, the story follows C. Thomas Howell's character, who is stalked by Hauer's relentless killer for reasons that are never made clear. The movie is famous for its strange, ethereal tone and the scene where Jennifer Jason Leigh's character is tied between two trucks.
Nolan (via The Hitcher is a slasher that appears to be more of a guilty pleasure for the director, the character of John Ryder - who seems to materialize out of nowhere to create havoc before vanishing again - may have been an influence on The Dark Knight's Joker.
Angel Heart (1987)
The last of Christopher Nolan's favorite horror movies, Angel Heart is a sweaty, nightmarish blend of noir mystery and horror. It cast Mickey Rourke as a private eye hired by Robert De Niro's mystery client to track down a missing person, with the investigation getting progressively bloodier as the story unravels. The movie is a dread-soaked ride, and one of director Alan Parker's best works. Christopher Nolan cited Angel Heart's use of a fractured narrative as an inspiration for Memento, especially in the way it rewards repeat viewings.
