Top 15 Scariest Psychological Horror Movies
Psychological Horror–The Last 5 Years: A Comprehensive List
Looking for a film or two that’s guaranteed to make you think? Compiled here is a list of films that both scared me to the core and left clean cuts turned infected wounds in my brain. This list will include my recent favorite psychologically scary films that either made my head spin, or made me want to rip my head off altogether. You’ll also find a mentioning of popular films which can be classified as Psychological Horror, but are on many other popular horror movie lists. A bonus Honorable Mention section, just to make sure everyone leaves with a new movie or two to look forward to. This is a SPOILER FREE ZONE. Stay tuned for my upcoming lists!
What is Psychological Horror?
To me, it’s about experience. My experience and how each piece of art tells me a story that transcends time. I want to be tortured and left for carrion, so I put MUCH weight on the way a movie leaves me feeling. I want to go into a film, get excited over dread, and leave the film worse off. If a movie encouraged my heartbeat to join the auditory cues and inspires me to tell someone else about it, you’ll find it on this list. If a film causes me to lose sleep, cry in horror, and pushes me to think about the world around me differently, you’ll find it on my list in the higher numbers. All of the films listed here are rated either R or TV-MA. None of them being kid-friendly.
Pop-Horror
I will not include certain movies I’ve seen on this list, for various reasons. If I get positive responses on this post, there are plans for many movies not listed here to go on other recommendation lists (i.e. foreign films, movies older than 2015).
I have tried to compile a list of films which are not as popular. I don’t want to take up spaces for the more well known films, so this list serves you best. Except for the final movie on this short list, which is here because I’m not smart enough to review it. Yet.
Those films are:
- Hereditary (2018)
- Midsommar (2019)
- It Follows (2015)
- Get Out (2017)
- Us (2019)
- The House That Jack Built (2019)
I did enjoy the movies above, and if you’re missing out on any of them, it’s time to get on it! If you’re looking for MORE. If you need more good, meaningful, horrifying AND terrifying Horror in your life, read on.
Scare Me! Spook Me! Freak Me Out!
In order of their effect on my psyche and my overall rating. Please note that not all of these films are considered as being a part of the Horror genre, but they certainly all hold horrifying stories.
15. The Nun (2018)
Director Corin Hardy adds to The Conjuring Universe with this dark, brutal, horrifying flick. Set in 1952, The Nun is the start to the storyline of Ed and Lorraine Warren’s accounts of life experiences. We follow the investigation of the death of a young nun. And it get pretty damn spooky.
Not only are there Mystery and Thriller qualities, there’s a touch of Psychological Horror, a touch that spreads ’til the very end. In addition to the great use of sound and lighting, the atmosphere is a dread filled and fear inducing promise. The first half is a tad sluggish, which is why it is not a higher number on the list. If you decide to only watch one film from this franchise, make The Nun it.
14. Hush (2016)
Starring Kate Siegel and John Gallagher Jr., this terror of a film is often classified as a Slasher Thriller. Meh. That’s fine, but this movie is much more than an average, surface level Slasher OR Thriller. Our main character being a reclusive author who’s under attack by a sadistic killer. Oh, I forgot to mention, SHE’S DEAF! Can you imagine yourself in her shoes? Just try.
The director of Hush, Mike Flanagan, uses lighting and sound in effective, smart ways. The reason Hush is so far back on my list isn’t because I didn’t like it as much as the others, but because it was formulaic and although this movie scares me at points, I haven’t lost any sleep. There’s blood, of course, and a few disturbing scenes, but the reason Hush made this list is purely because of the portrayal of our main character’s resilience. Great place for you to start on this list if you’ve ever felt like you’ve had to fight odds. So, all of you, I assume. It’s currently streaming on Netflix, so watch it while you can!
13. Mother! (2017)
Jennifer Lawrence turns heads with this killer performance. Darron Aronofsky, our writer/director, takes us on the Hellish journey from sanity to complete insanity, without batting an eye. We follow a woman when life abruptly changes because these particular strangers find their way to her doorstep.
With a runtime of over two hours, I’m pleasantly surprised with how much is fit in. The only reason this jaw-dropping film isn’t higher is because as the bloodfest of an end nears, I can see people being turned-off. You should make it out ok on the other side if you prepare to feel hopeless. Oh, and plan on getting offended. It’s available on Hulu at the time of this publication.
12. Cam (2018)
A Netflix movie on a top horror countdown? Yaaassssssss! Cam, directed by Daniel Goldhaber, is a piece of art, the way it weaves in and out of the everyday lives of every American. And in raw story, every human. We follow a ‘cam girl’, played by actress Madeline Brewer, as she desperately struggles to regain control over the recent chaos caused by a…look-a-like? a…doppelganger? an…alien? a…psycho?
Ripping open the wounds many Americans already have and bringing attention to the fear in everyone else is bottom line. With sophistication and care, Cam gives us little treats along the way, and we get a good sloppy kiss at the end. It’s on Netflix, check it out!
11. Head Count (2019)
Follow me on a mind-bending joyride filled with gorgeous camera work and an even more stellar score, audio cues, and aesthetics. Head Count socks Horror a good black eye in 2019. Our main character, played by Isaac Jay, gets sucked into a new group of friends while visiting his brother, and we’re twisted through the shocking events in the following days.
Elle Callahan, the director of Head Count, had a clear vision, and executed it with passion. I really wish I could put this higher on the list, but the first half is a little slow in getting off the ground. It may look like another Teen Slash ‘Em Up and Dish ‘Em Out by the cover, but the complicated emotions and moral concerns are pushed to the surface. It’s on Netflix!
10. The Blackcoat’s Daughter (2015)
In this dreamy, corrosive flick, we follow a set of girls during winter break at an empty boarding school. Yes…a boarding school. I know, I know. It’s okay, don’t worry, just keep reading. Oh, yeah, and there’s some sort of, well, something’s amiss. I understand, this sounds just like many other horror movies around, but this is superb. A terrifying, concussive look into the eyes of evil.
The director, Oz Perkins, exhibits rich vision in this non-linear story. The beautiful Emma Roberts stars alongside a small cast, and they all give good weight to the severity of silence. I expect more character exploration in such a dark, soul-stirring horror, but the film does invite us for a little dance, and after we agree with excitement, we are thrown in the pit with a lion or two. Currently, it’s available on Netflix.
9. Braid (2019)
Colors, saturated and vibrant, wind us through this radical tale of symbolism and metaphor. Wrapped up in a box and garnished with a bow, I didn’t see how far this film, directed by Mitzi Peirone, stretches. After my first viewing, I left unsatisfied. I distinctly remember thinking “Huh. What the fuck? Okay…”, which is similar to my thoughts after my first viewing of Enemy (2013). And just like I did with Enemy, I gave Braid another chance.
We follow three friends on a hallucinatory kick, and over time it’s almost as if we begin to question the sanity of the film. Brilliant. It’s like watching a poem. A poem in a different form. I love very much when I gain more insight and can find literature in film during a second, sometimes third viewing, so yeah, totally, these movies should continue to be made. But it is not near the top of the list simply because the value isn’t as…accessible. I’m watching for Peirone’s next piece, watch her bloom into her final form. Available on Amazon Prime currently.
8. The Wind (2019)
IFC Films! I seem to be enjoying more and more of these in recent years. You too? We follow a hardworking woman, played by the gorgeous Caitlin Gerrard, try to live in the boonies during the American frontier. The dread peeks in and pushes through, little by little, until it’s got you by the throat. Director Emma Tammi knows how to create claustrophobia in isolation. Talent.
Sweet, sweet metaphor. This may take a second watch to fully comprehend each capsule of vital information, the deep scarring; and at times the film seemed long and tedious, which is why it’s sitting near center. The complicated relationships and tensions developed in each is a brilliant addition to this slow burn.
7. The Invitation (2015)
Paranoia festers as we follow a man, played by actor Logan Marshall-Green, attend a dinner party at, wait for it…his ex wife’s house. As his suspicion of his ex grows, we flip-flop in our loyalties. How cool is that? A movie can induce an experience like this?! Cool.
Although I wish lighting and sound were utilized more, Karyn Kusama, the director, knows how far in each direction to pull us. Very clever. The epic final few seconds of The Invitation is guaranteed to invoke a little smile. It’s available on Netflix, but has been for a while. If you haven’t seen it yet, now’s your chance!
6. The Neon Demon (2016)
Nicolas Winding Refn executed his clear vision in this slow burn Horror flick. The atmosphere brings a dream-like, visceral experience. We follow a character, played by Elle Fanning, and her spiral into conformity. The film feels vain, but I mean, the tension and point blank reality leaves a bleak outlook on humanity.
I’m impressed with the patience in The Neon Demon, the twisty, sometimes questionable pacing, leads to a grim payoff. To improve the film, there should be more given to us from the characters. I see development, but character depth isn’t fully realized. The possible political agenda is evident, but doesn’t take from the film’s gravity. It’s about time for a re-watch, it’s on Amazon Prime, anyone want to join me?
5. Green Room (2015)
Patrick Stewart a neo-Nazi? This alone rocks my world. We follow Anton Yelchin’s (miss you, buddy) character move through the consequences of the situation he’s found himself in. Stuck in a room at a punk rock spot, he and his buddies are forced to do what they can to simply survive. The special effects, the violence, looks real. Like, REAL. I found myself wondering if this is the most disturbing, graphic, fucked up movie I’d ever seen. I’m not certain to this day, but it’s definitely high up on that list.
Want a movie that may make you question those around you and uncover motives of even the most mundane of behaviors? Watch Green Room. Make sure you have plenty of time to decompress afterward, and you should enjoy this with at least one other person who’s not seen it. There are some horrifying pieces in this film, but I have yet to discover implicative horror that I should be considering for life. Oh! And it’s on Netflix!
Wait. A little disclaimer. If you puke during a viewing of Green Room, sorry. Heed my warning.
4. Unsane (2018)
Unnerving and unapologetic, Steven Soderbergh’s Unsane follows a woman who is (un)?voluntarily committed to a mental health facility, where she finds her stalker working the floor. The film screams for change and evolution of both ourselves and systems in power. Gorgeous.
It’s scary, haunting, and demands attention. Not only is it a mind bendy adventure from a little town between desperation and Hell, but it pushes us there with gentle nudges. Unsane is shot from an iPhone, neat! Making this piece even more relevant. I wish this was higher on the list, I just had a serious love affair with the remaining three features…Shh! Don’t tell my spouse. Please?
3. Daniel Isn’t Real (2019)
This beauty is guaranteed to please fans of Psychological Horror, Cosmic Horror, and Body Horror combined. Feast on this grisly tale of a guy reconnecting with a childhood imaginary friend. In this hypnotic witch hunt, we fight with ourselves while trying to figure out what, exactly, Daniel is.
Daniel Isn’t Real showcases the reason why movies are made. Just grab a beer, pack a bowl, and sit back and enjoy. I’d find myself questioning some aspects Adam Egypt Mortimer included, but those aspects found their way to reason. After you try this film, move on to my number two choice, which was an earlier release from the same team of people.
2. Mandy (2018)
Nicholas Cage is still around? Apparently so, and boy am I glad. The film he was born to make. A role that could be filled by none other. In this trippy, heavy metal inspired piece, we follow a man (Cage) and his lover as their world is turned upside down by a travelling cult. Here, one of those films I said made me want to just rip my head off completely and let it roll across the wood floor. Okay…and we’re moving on…
It’s common to be unable to genre classify masterpieces, and Mandy is no exception. Panos Cosmatos knew exactly what he wanted to create, and did it. Flawlessly. I STILL think about this film, over a year later. The neon red glow mixed with the stylish, insightful score. Allow yourself to let go of all preconceived thoughts on what a movie should be before you sit down to watch this, and your mind will be blown. Find it on Shudder.
Psychological Horror: Honorable Mentions
- Ready or Not (2019)
- Nocturnal Animals (2016)
- Summer of ’84 (2018) See my full review here.
- Personal Shopper (2016)
- It Comes At Night (2017)
And my top Psychological Horror movie of the last five years is…..
1. First Reformed (2017)
Oh, how my psyche has suffered. Talk about someone born for a role…Ethan Hawke brings pain and severity to Paul Schrader’s lacerating direction. And a gift to humanity is born, a film we’d all be good to study. We follow a self reflecting pastor spiral after a meeting with an environmental activist. And it’s damn good. Dark and deceptive. Perfection.
I see so much of myself in Ethan Hawk’s character, and this scares the living shit out of me. It was a ‘paranoia obsessed and couldn’t find motivation to push forward in life until I broke down my feelings on this piece’ kind of thing. I lost sleep, my appetite, and felt pure hopelessness. Days later, after my thoughts were arranged in a manageable manner, I of course moved on. Every once in a while this piece pops back up in my mind.
But Ethan Hawke’s portrayal of turmoil in First Reformed is beyond something you can practice. It’s something only another who has first hand experience with torturous thoughts can reproduce. I feel…undeserving of this film. Now it’s time for you to experience this too.
PARZZ1VAL–How To Connect:
I’m real interested on your thoughts on this list. What would you add or take away? Did you find anything to add to your queue? Argue me in the comments why your list is better!
- Email me @ parzz1val@yahoo.com
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Movies n TV
Wicked City (1987), a Film Review
Wicked City (1987) is a dark fantasy horror animation following a world at the brink of war as mortals and supernatural being clash.
Wicked City (1987) is a dark fantasy horror and the debut feature-length animation of director Yoshiaki Kawajiri. This unrated film adapts the first novel of the Wicked City series, Black Guard. It stars Yûsaku Yara, Toshiko Fujita and Ichirô Nagai. As of this review, Wicked City is available on Prime and Crunchyroll.
As the peace between the mortal and supernatural worlds ends, forces clash in a plot to establish a new order. Tasked with protecting the best chance for peace, Taki (Yûsaku Yara) must guard Giuseppe Mayart (Ichirô Nagai). A Black Worlder named Makie (Toshiko Fujita) remains his partner in this pursuit. Can the three brave the challenges and establish a world of peace?
What I Like about Wicked City
Wicked City works best in its parts, providing strong and interesting elements that don’t inherently add up to the whole. The art style and design evoke a memorable aesthetic. There’s a charm to this 80s-era anime that creates either an environment for abominations or spectacles.
It makes sense that Wicked City is an adaptation because the plot depicted seems like parts of a larger narrative we do not see in the film. From what remains, the world and political scheming seem worth exploring. Unfortunately, little of this plot receives depth.
Prior to this, Yoshiaki Kawajiri contributed to many TV shows, exercising a new muscle as he directed a film-length work. He seems invaluable on a team, as his filmography and success indicate, but his directorial contributions don’t seem as critically successful. This effort and work best express themselves in the level of animation and scenes depicted in this flawed film.
Despite the missing pieces throughout the film, the ending seems complete. While there’s clearly room for a sequel, Wicked City tells its story and suggests an answer to the new era’s direction.
Supposedly, this started out as a short film, but Yoshiaki Kawajiri’s execution earned enough attention and respect to get a green light for a feature-length film. This work was all done within a year. Assuming this is true, Wicked City’s completion and animation quality deserve respect.
It received a live-action adaptation. From my understanding, the film adapts the anime, but I hope and imagine some of the manga gets explored to make a more functioning plot.
Tired Tropes and Triggers
Sexual assault and rape remain grotesquely overused in the film. Such subject matter has a place in art, but its use in Wicked City gravitates more toward exploitation and spectacle. Many of the visual designs make most of the fight allegories for sexual assault atop the actual assaults.
As most creatures are organic, there’s a heightened amount of body horror. There’s a level of separation in animation as opposed to live-action body horror, but this point certainly applies to those sensitive to such material.
From what we learn of the characters, many decisions directly contradict their supposed purpose.
What I Dislike about Wicked City
Wicked City circles forums and rank-listings as a cult classic or niche horror, but it’s flawed in almost every way. Ideally, such works might have a plot that draws one in. Wicked City has a concept of a plot that evokes interest but doesn’t communicate it well or explore its depths. Ultimately, it’s a film made up of its parts. The good gets outweighed by the dysfunctional points.
Frankly, the romantic tension between the two leads is underdeveloped. I hesitate to say it doesn’t exist because there’s some work implemented with this in mind. Viewers note the work in the film, but it lacks polish or sensibility.
Final Thoughts
Wicked City is a flawed work from a successful animator. If given more time to develop, perhaps a staple of the 80s might exist. Unfortunately, the film has merits in its parts but falls in connection to the whole. However, for those who can overlook the limitations and exploitations, there are many worthy parts that excel in terms of animation quality and creative decisions.
(2 / 5)
Released in 2023, Late Night with the Devil is a found-footage movie about a late-night host who’d do anything to have the top-rated show.
Don’t worry, it’s not about Jay Leno.
The story
Our story begins, as many found footage films do, with a quick explanation. What we are going to see is the surviving footage from the last episode of a late-night show, along with some never-before-seen footage of backstage during the fateful night everything went wrong.
We then meet Jack Delroy. He’s a late-night host of the show Night Owls. And a year after the death of his beloved wife, he worries that his show is going to be canceled. The ratings are freefalling. So, on Halloween, he invites a girl named Lilly on the show who claims to be possessed.
Because that’s going to go well.
The show begins with a monolog, like most late-night shows. We then meet the first two guests, a claimed psychic named Christou and a stage magician slash skeptic named Carmichael Haig. After hot-reading the audience, Christou appears to have a real psychic vision. One that involves Jack’s deceased wife. He then proceeds to vomit black sludge all over the stage.
You’d think that would be the end of things. It would be stupid to still bring on the possessed girl after a warning like that.
But, of course, the show must go on.
What worked
Late Night with The Devil dedicated itself to the found footage vibe. As such, it felt very much like you were watching something from the 70s. The whole movie is at a lower, grainy resolution, unlike some other horror films that eventually and subtly switch out for a more modern and clear picture. The clothes, the music, the cheap and cheesy costumes. It all reminds one of a good episode of the Brady Bunch or Bewitched. Even when someone’s puking black blood or has worms pouring out of their freshly opened gut.
I was also quite impressed by the acting in this film. Especially that of David Dastmalchian, who played Jack Delroy. This role was performed to perfection. Jack manages to come off as a kind, compassionate man. The sort of person you’d be comfortable talking to, even about the most horrible moments of your life. You get the feeling that you could tell him about the worst moments of your life and he’d thank you for sharing.
This kind facade never slips. But we also see his true motivations. He doesn’t care about anyone, no matter how kind he acts. The show must go on is his entire drive and mission. He didn’t let a little thing like a guest dying stop him. Or a mental breakdown on stage. Or even his dead wife calling to him from beyond the grave.
The show must go on. And on, and on.
Even Dastmalchian is outshined, however, by Ingrid Torelli who played Lilly.
Lilly was a creepy character from the first time we saw her. There is something so unnerving about a child who knows far more than they should. This is a hallmark of demon possession films, all the way back to Reagan. But there’s also something else about the way she behaves that has little to do with the possession. She is always looking to either June or Jack for direction. As much as she speaks to the adults like she knows one, she is still always looking to please the adults around her. She is eager to look at the right camera at the right moment. She is eager to be obedient. It’s hidden, but for someone who has seen enough cult content, it’s easy to spot. She played a former cult victim very well. And that was perhaps the most terrifying part of that character.
What didn’t work
This was almost a perfect movie. Then, like so many others, it just couldn’t stick the landing.
Near the end of the film, there is a strange scene that doesn’t seem to mesh with the rest of it. It appears to be a collection of Jack’s memories. Whether they are true memories or not is left to our interpretation. But they explain the entire reveal of the whole movie. In dull, excruciating detail.
This series of scenes was insulting. It was the equivalent of asking someone if they got the joke. But are you sure you got it? Wait, let me explain it and really just kill the effect altogether.
We were already laughing. Or, to step away from this metaphor, we were already creeped out. We were already grossed out. We were already living in the scene, sitting in the audience right next to the lady who lost her son or the man dressed as a skeleton. Rather than explain the twist, which didn’t need explaining, this scene pulls us rudely out of that audience and deposits us back in the real world.
All that being said, Late Night with The Devil is still a terrific horror film. It was dark, it was gorey, and it left us with unsettling questions even after the ill-planned info dump. If it isn’t already on your Halloween watch list, it certainly deserves a spot.
(4 / 5)
Movies n TV
“B is for Brain” (Evil: S2E8)
“B is for Brain” is an episode of the supernatural drama Evil. The assessors investigate new brain mapping research.
“B is for Brain” is an episode of the supernatural drama Evil, created by Michelle King and Robert King. The central cast includes Katja Herbers, Mike Colter, Aasif Mandvi, Michael Emerson, Christine Lahti, and Andrea Martin. It originally aired under CBS before moving to Paramount+. As of this review, it’s available through Netflix and Paramount+ and its add-ons.
The assessors investigate new brain mapping research that might expose others to God and Hell. Kristen (Katja Herbers) struggles with aggression as Andy (Patrick Brammall) returns from his expedition. Ben (Aasif Mandvi) struggles with what he sees while in the brain mapping process. David (Mike Colter) returns to the basics to find God.
What I Like about “B is for Brain”
“B is for Brain” provides a unique opportunity for viewers to gain more insight into Ben’s past. While not his episode, as “B is for Brain” balances the leads nearly perfectly, he has his most emotional moment in the series so far. Despite the lower stakes, it provides a more vulnerable moment than “E is for Elevator.”
Leland (Michael Emerson) and Sister Andrea (Andrea Martin) meet again on more equal terms and establish their hostile relationship. Sister Andrea proves herself to be a woman who doesn’t back down when a Satanist tries to intimidate her. It also raises the necessity of David’s training, creating a more tangible threat.
Kristen’s deteriorating relationship with Andy reaches a boiling point as her impulsiveness and hostility reach new heights. It seems her sabbatical to the monastery might have increased the evil influences. “B is for Brain” builds upon what “S is for Silence” introduces and creates an interesting interpretation of the last episode’s events.
“B is for Brain” brings a new dynamic to its horror by focusing on how technology, science, and religion intersect. There’s an incredibly diabolical conversation on how this technology could induce fear to empower religion. This idea evokes a more subtle horror than most episodes.
Tired Tropes and Triggers
There is a potential nay-theist trope. By that, I mean there’s a single line where one can interpret an atheist character turned from God because God turned from them. It’s a single line that remains interpretable, but it’s worth mentioning.
There’s a moment of self-harm with clear implications that this is a pattern with the specific character. This harm has some implication of demonic influence, but this remains unconfirmed at the moment. I will mention this becomes more obvious as the season continues.
What I Dislike about “B is for Brain”
Unfortunately, such a big reveal for Ben’s character doesn’t have time to get fully explored in “B is for Brain.” While the focus between the three is great, a few big reveals only earn a light address. It’s less that Ben doesn’t get a fair amount of attention and more that these subjects don’t receive that attention.
A similar point remains relevant about the claim of using brain mapping as a way of evoking religious conversion. That point merits interrogation from the characters and the plot, but it’s only lightly touched on. Further expanding these points is that there’s only light reference in the future specifically about brain mapping.
Final Thoughts
“B is for Brain” gets placed into two memorable episodes, diminishing its lasting power. While not a fault of the episode, it does overlook some potentially big reveals. Some of the more relevant character moments will receive the attention they deserve in later episodes, but it doesn’t aid “B is for Brain” in execution. While a strong and enjoyable episode, diving into those moments might have created an episode that haunts the viewer.
(3 / 5)
Evelyn C
January 2, 2020 at 10:43 am
The Nun? Noooooooo. I giggled the entire time watching that movie. Everything was so trite and predictable. Hush I loved, but I remember watching a video on Youtube in which a deaf person explained their dislike of how deaf people are portrayed. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WFfc-TJmmCY
The higher up the list I see movies that I know are just awesome no matter what anyone says and a lot are ones I haven’t seen. The Nun though. . . I wouldn’t even want it on the honorable mentions list. (I guess it really is one of those love it or hate it movies.
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