Some movies terrify or upset the public with jump scares and unanticipated plot twists. Others, however, use a different, sly approach to disturb the crowd. They unsettle us with a slow-burning dread that sneakily insinuates into our minds, keeping us on edge throughout the whole experience. Through this more calculated method, these films often remain impressed in our memory for longer than traditional horrors or thrillers.

Examples of these types of movies are hard to classify, seemingly unable to fit in with a specific genre. They are hardly tales about monsters or curses, but if present, the supernatural element is mainly used as a metaphor for deeper, more twisted fears. These stories, however, don’t affect everyone the same way. What might disturb one viewer may not even faze another. From the portrayal of eerily haunting visuals to the overwhelming sense of impending doom, some films have left me with an excruciating unease throughout the entire watch.

10

Midsommar (2019)

Directed By Ari Aster

There is something tragically unsettling about the story of a traumatized young woman seeking a family, only to be ensnared by a cult that exploits her longing for love and acceptance. Instead of taking place in the dark corners of an abandoned mansion, Midsommar unfolds in the blinding daylight, tricking the viewer, as the sect does with Dani, into a reality of false bliss. The main character, played by Florence Pugh, is trapped in a downward spiral of grief, with little support from her emotionally distant boyfriend.

Despite the idyllic atmosphere, however, it is clear from the beginning that something sinister lurks beneath the surface. Yet, all the way through the movie, I found myself mesmerized by its breathtaking scenery and the slow unraveling of its mystery. The need to see more kept me absorbed, even as an unshakable sense of unease crept in as both me and Dani were drowning deeper in the insidious game of the cult. The increasingly harrowing occurrences of Midsommar never left my mind.

9

We Need to Talk About Kevin (2011)

Directed By Lynne Ramsay

We Need to Talk About Kevin is a psychological descent into a mother’s most terrifying nightmare as she struggles to come to terms with the traumatic events that caused her family to collapse. The story is seen through the eyes and memories of Eva (Tilda Swinton), as she gradually realizes that her firstborn might be a psychopath. Unfortunately, almost everyone around her appears oblivious to Kevin’s insidious nature.

Throughout most of the film, I felt forced to live through Eva’s inner restlessness. From fear and guilt to hope and despair, Kevin’s mother is stuck in an impossibly difficult situation. As I watched suspiciously the unfolding of a story that promised to be tragic from the start, I sensed a growing sense of unease, feeling trapped alongside Eva in a reality with no way out. We Need to Talk About Kevin is an exceptionally executed film, but the ominous narrative is unnerving, to say the least. For this reason, the spine-chilling movie should only be watched once.

8

Funny Games (1997)

Directed By Michael Haneke

The most unsettling aspect of Funny Games is not simply the sheer cruelty displayed by the characters, which is disturbing in itself. It is the complete absence of causality behind said brutality and the occasional lack of barriers between the public and the story. The two protagonists, Paul and Peter, randomly take a family hostage and torture them. But little is provided to explain their sadistic behavior.

However, the movie is not simply a vicious display of gratuitous violence. The characters draw the viewer into their reality. By breaking the fourth wall and through direct engagement, they appear to possess an unsettling awareness of the public’s presence, implying that the reasons for their actions might lie within us. During my first and only watch, I couldn’t shake the feeling that they were trying to make me complicit, as if the violence was somehow tied to my role as a viewer. While the trick ultimately failed, it still left me deeply unsettled.

7

Melancholia (2011)

Directed By Lars Von Trier

No movie in history was able to invest me with such a suffocating sense of foreboding as intensely as Lars von Trier’s Melancholia did. The slow-burning unfolding of the movie’s narrative draws you in, creating an eerie, bleak atmosphere that promises to unravel something catastrophic. Ever since the beginning, the character of Justine embodies a profound sense of hopelessness that soon comes to mirror the impending cosmic threat the world has to face.

Throughout most of the movie, I attempted to hold on to scattered shreds of hope that could reᴀssure me that there would be a better outcome for the world, or at least a second chance for the few. However, Von Trier refuses to give any consolation, portraying the end of everything we know as an inevitable and unexplainable force. There is no relief, redemption, or meaning; only the crushing finality of an unavoidable fate.

6

Hereditary (2018)

Directed By Ari Aster

Ari Aster has a gift for crafting spine-chilling films that keep haunting you long after they’re over. Hereditary is one of its most unsettling examples. What starts as a meditation on grief slowly unravels into something more sinister. The horrors plaguing the family at the heart of the story feel unreasonably cruel, preying on their pain and tragedy. For the whole run of the movie, there is an ominous weight hanging over the narrative, making every scene feel like the prelude to a catastrophe.

Toni Collette’s captivating performance as Annie pulls the viewer into her reality, establishing an emotional connection. As I watched the movie for the first time, it became increasingly difficult for me to detach myself from the raw anguish and despair experienced by the character. Moreover, although the supernatural elements of the story are chilling, it is the real-world fears and struggles they symbolize that intensify the terror, making the narrative, as improbable as it might seem, relatable.

5

Parasite (2019)

Directed By Bong Joon-Ho

Never in my life have I watched a film as absurd yet thought-provoking as Parasite, and I doubt I ever will. Bong Joon-ho’s masterpiece defied any expectations or preconceptions I might have had. Parasite is a masterclass in suspense and manipulation, with a sharp critique that forces people to reflect deeply on uncomfortable but, unfortunately, undeniable realities we would rather avoid.

The tension in the story builds effortlessly. What appeared as a satirical black comedy soon acquired a more tragic and menacing tone. There is little redemption or relief for the characters in the film. Each twist feels like a step toward the damnation that has been waiting for them throughout most of the movie, but that, in a way, is also already part of their life. Parasite explores the devastating impact of the class divide, late-stage capitalism, and economic disparities, exposing the dehumanization that stems from them.

4

Speak No Evil (2022)

Directed By Christian Tafdrup

More than the American remake, the original Danish version of Speak No Evil left me with an unshakable sense of dread. The movie is a commentary on the dangers of letting evil go unpunished in the name of maintaining a ficтιтious sense of social decorum. From the moment Bjørn, Louise, and their daughter are welcomed into the isolated country house of their seemingly ordinary hosts, Patrick and Karin, an eerie sense of discomfort settles in.

Throughout most of the movie, I found myself growing increasingly astonished, occasionally even irritated, not only at the disturbing behavior of the hostile couple but also at the lack of reactions on behalf of the protagonists. As Patrick and Karin became increasingly unhinged, the guests seemed shockingly numb before the continued offenses against them and their daughter. As the tension escalates, the film reaches its most horrifying conclusion, leaving no room for escape.

3

Requiem For A Dream

Directed By Darren Aronofsky

Perhaps no film other than Requiem for a Dream was ever able to paint the harrowing brutality of addiction with such bleak hopelessness. Although not classified as a horror story, Aronofsky’s movie taps into a psychological terror that is difficult to ignore or forget. It might not have jump scares or blood-sucking vampires, but it still harbors its own terrifying monster—it simply takes a different form than we normally expect.

The nightmare-like elements of ​Requiem For A Dream do not stem from mysterious shadows in the dark, but from the insidious presences that never leave the protagonists, not even in the light of the day. All the way through the story, the suffocating sense of menace and doom felt inescapable, regardless of the presumed free will of the characters. The movie is divided into three chapters that mirror the seasons, yet Aronofsky deliberately ignores spring; offering, with biting cynicism, no hope of rebirth from addiction. The movie left a deep void in my heart.

2

Suspiria (1977)

Directed By Dario Argento

Dario Argento’s 1977 masterpiece is one of the most visually unnerving horror films of all time. Contrary to the many spine-chilling movies that kept me on edge throughout their entire run with their psychological tension and mind tricks, Suspiria achieves its goal in a more physical, almost primal way. Ever since the first scene, the viewer feels forced into a head-spinning experience of sensory bombardment.

Argento exploits a palette of vibrant colors and unsettling close-ups, enriching them with a haunting music score to create an enthralling yet disquieting sense of discomfort in the viewer. The demoniac atmosphere and malevolent presence effortlessly blend with the ethereal innocence of the background where the terror unfolds, a dance academy. Suspiria to me felt like a feverish nightmare from which I could never wake up. Its unwavering beauty and impactful visuals kept me hypnotized before the screen, never once giving me the chance to turn the other way, even during the scariest scenes.

1

The Human Centipede (2010)

Directed By Tom Six

It feels surreal to believe that someone could ever not only conceive, but also bring to life a movie like The Human Centipede. The film brings the concept of body horror to an almost comically grotesque extreme. The sole premise, a deranged doctor kidnaps a group of innocent tourists to surgically attach them, mouth to anus, to create a human version of the centipede, is as terrifying as it is despicable.

The movie, in fact, did not unsettle me by manipulating my emotional vulnerabilities or by creating an impending, existential sense of doom. It simply elicited the most visceral sense of utter repulsion. After finishing the film, my body struggled to process what I had witnessed. The Human Centipede pushed boundaries that I did not know I had and, like many other people before me, became one of those movies that I will never watch again.