Best Horror Movies - 2000 and Later - Suggestions?

[Forlorn Drifter]

I personally liked the Zombie remakes of Halloween, although that seems to be an unpopular opinion.

Still love Texas Chainsaw too, despite the flack it gets.

[TSTR]

The first RZ Halloween is pretty good ultraviolence. The second one is hot garbage.

[dsheinem]

The Halloween reboots are really shit. Too much unneeded nudity and rape scenes.

How much nudity and rape would you consider an "appropriate amount" in a horror film?

[dsheinem]

It is just my personal opinion. I thought the rape scene in Michael's cell was unneeded and rather distasteful. The viewer didn't need to see that much to get an idea of what is going on. Bear in mind, there is two versions of the movie. I was unfortunate to see the unrated version. I turned off the movie at that point.

I'm of the opinion that a horror movie should make you feel uncomfortable and uneasy, or else it isn't really very horrific. It seems that Zombie was successful in making you feel disgusted, which is the mark of a good horror film in my book.

[Gooseberrysoda]

the cabin in the woods, guys
V/H/S

scream 4 was also good, if a little weaker than the others. And Final Destination 2 was really cool, if you're into that

[SirGawain]

I'm of the opinion that a horror movie should make you feel uncomfortable and uneasy, or else it isn't really very horrific. It seems that Zombie was successful in making you feel disgusted, which is the mark of a good horror film in my book.

Zombie actually said that was what he goes for in his movies. It is a homage to all the great horror movies from the 70's, which do make most viewers uneasy

[squid]

So glad you asked this.

Ginger Snaps (2000) - Probably the best werewolf movie all time and one of my favorite movies. The sequel is meh. Didn't bother with the third one. The first one is incredible though, and you should watch it.

Dog Soldiers (2002) - A british film set in Scotland. It feels like a 1980s movie. Cheesy. Another Werewolf movie. The make-up and effects are well done. All practical effects if I'm remembering correctly. No/very little CGI is big for me anyway. Worth watching with friends and beer.

Father's Day (2011) - It's... a horror movie I guess. It takes a lot of inspiration from a number of exploitation genres. It's also a very funny movie. It's also a very fucked up movie. The guys that made this are coming out with a Giallo film soon too. So that's exciting.

Let the Right One In (2008) - You could also watch the American version Let Me In (2010) if foreign films aren't your thing. I haven't seen it, but I'm told it's pretty similar. Fresh take on the vampire genre. It's an A+ movie all around with the exception of one pretty crappy but funny because it's so crappy out of left field scene involving cats. The film is based on a book. So that's neat too. The film might still be on Netflix instant.

The Conjuring (2013) - Surprisingly good. I didn't think I would like this as much as I did. It's similar to movies like Insidious and Sinister, but, I don't know, better. And actually kinda scary/creepy.

The Orphanage (2007) and The Devil's Backbone (2001) - Two Spanish language horror films. The latter is a Guillermo Del Toro film if you're into that sort of thing. Both are about ghosts. And more stuff. But mostly there are ghosts.

Someone already mentioned Rec (2007) but that is another great Spanish language film. Shaky cam. Zombies. It's tense.

Some movies you might like--that a lot of people like--but maybe are a little overrated (they definitely are) Martyrs (2008), a great, intriguing first half of a film followed by a pretty long boring torture sequence of a second half; Cabin in the Woods (2012) a comedy horror movie Joss Whedon had some fingers in, and is entertaining but ultimately forgettable; The Descent (2005) which I haven't seen but have heard mostly positive things.

Oh, and one horror film not from the 2000s but it doesn't matter because it's The Thing (1982). No horror fan should be able to justify not seeing this movie. You've probably seen it. You've definitely seen it. But you should watch it again.

[Ack]

It is just my personal opinion. I thought the rape scene in Michael's cell was unneeded and rather distasteful. The viewer didn't need to see that much to get an idea of what is going on. Bear in mind, there is two versions of the movie. I was unfortunate to see the unrated version. I turned off the movie at that point.

I'm of the opinion that a horror movie should make you feel uncomfortable and uneasy, or else it isn't really very horrific. It seems that Zombie was successful in making you feel disgusted, which is the mark of a good horror film in my book.

Not necessarily. Clownhouse makes me feel disgusted, but not because of what is in the film. And for some people, effective horror will have different definitions. Is Antichrist an effective horror movie because the sight of Willem Dafoe ejaculating blood makes me uncomfortable? Or is Jacob's Ladder, where the setting and cinematography manage to instill dread without having to show me excessive sexuality or gore(though admittedly there is some of both). It's a subjective matter, and in this case, Adam felt the rape and nudity was not effective as a horror tool but instead felt unnecessary and detracted from the film. Perhaps he felt uncomfortable because he felt it veered into blatant sexism or cheap attempts at shock value.

Now I want to know why we made it well into the second page before someone mentioned The Cabin in the Woods.

Anyway, suggestions, suggestions. I will suggest a few, some of which I liked, some of which I wasn't as impressed by but you might still enjoy.

The Cabin in the Woods - No, seriously, go watch this one now. It is a summation of the entire horror film genre wrapped up in a two-hour bow that shows exactly where we are today, and how we got here.

The films of Ti West - In my opinion, he is hit or miss, but several other members here have enjoyed the likes of The Innkeepers, The House of the Devil, Cabin Fever 2, V/H/S, and The ABCs of Death, all of which he directed at least in part.

The Descent - An extremely claustrophobic movie with some absolutely gorgeous usage of color and some great performances. I find the cave itself more frightening then what lies within, but this movie is damned good.

The films of Rob Zombie - Again, these may be hit or miss depending on your taste, but as you've already watched The Devil's Rejects, you might as well continue on and check out his House of 1000 Corpses, his takes on Halloween, and his Lords of Salem, which I thought was incredibly strange but also extremely evocative.

Maniac - Elijah Wood's update of the early 1980s horror classic is quite intense, incredibly gory, disturbing, frightening, and also notable for its first person camera work.

Tucker & Dale vs Evil - I love a good comedy horror, and this one is pure gold, playing heavily on the hillbilly slasher trope from an entirely different angle which will make you rethink whether rednecks really want to make you squeal like a pig or are just horribly misunderstood.

Pontypool - This Canadian horror film features a radio shock jock and his crew trapped in a radio station as reports start coming in about a bizarre accident with horrifying results that is spreading through the town of Pontypool, Ontario. It's zombies, but an entirely different kind of zombie.

Grabbers - A remote island in Ireland is under siege by a terrifying tentacled monster which consumes blood but hates alcohol! Can the Irish stay drunk enough to fend it off while sober enough to stop it?

Zombieland - More zombies, only this time its Woody Harrelson, Jesse Eisenberg, Emma Stone, and Abigail Breslin taking them on while on the search for Twinkies. Guest starring Bill Murray, in a scene that will truly touch your heart.

Gozu - I love Takashi Miike. This film is about a Yakuza member taking his best friend on a trip to be executed. But then he loses him. What follows is bizarre, disjointed, surreal, and twisted. Gozu is the movie I threaten my friends with.

The Call of Cthulhu - This one is a silent film, shot in the style of its setting(early 1920s) but entirely based on the The Call of Cthulhu short story by HP Lovecraft. It's very low budget, and the style may throw off a lot of viewers, but this film is well worth watching if you love early 20th century horror, weird fiction, or Lovecraftian takes on the supernatural.

[squid]

I thought of a couple more you might like:

Triangle (2009) - The less you know about the movie going in the more fun you'll have watching it. Part of the enjoyment of the film is trying to figure out what the heck is going on. So don't look up a plot synopsis or anything. Just watch it.

I Saw the Devil (2010) - More of a Korean revenge/thriller movie, but the revenge stuff is pretty extreme and dark and I think it crosses into horror territory.

[Gamerforlife]

There is a sequence of scenes in Cabin in the Woods that is among the greatest cinematic sequences I've ever seen in my life, and it all starts with, "Let's get this party started"

My face while watching those scenes:



followed by:



That sequence pretty much embodies the saying, "Go big or go home"