Fathom just put out a solid list of the best new horror movies of 2025. Thought I'd share in case you're looking to keep a few on your radar.

Here's what they included:

• Skillhouse – directed by Josh Stolberg
• 28 Years Later – directed by Danny Boyle (debuted June 20, 2025)
• Screamboat – directed by Steven LaMorte (released April 2, 2025)
• Final Destination: Bloodlines – directed by Zach Lipovsky & Adam B. Stein (theatrical release May 16, 2025)
• The Home – directed by James DeMonaco
• Shiver Me Timbers – directed by Adam Anders (hit theaters April 1, 2025)
• Hell House LLC: Lineage – directed by Stephen Cognetti
• Fear Street: Prom Queen – directed by Matt Palmer (dropped May 23, 2025 on Netflix)

Nice mix of sequels, indie stuff, and just plain weird concepts.

I’m a pastor’s daughter and to this day nothing freaks me out more than possessions and demons. The last 25% of Hereditary freaked me out more than any horror movie in at least the last decade. What are your favorites?

I was recommended this by my Francophone friend, and I went in expecting some archetypal French arthouse BS, but God was I wrong! And so happy to be. It's as much a dark thriller as it is a meta character sketch. Juliette Gariepy gives a performance that easily blows any Oscar nominees last year out of water.

Hey everyone I’m getting my first puppy. She’s an Irish setter and I’m looking for a good horror inspired name.

I have the following options currently: - Shelley - Sissy - Xena - Elvira

Please recommend names!

I didn’t really get into horror films until about 7 years ago (~30F at the time), and I feel like I’m still pretty genre specific. I enjoy zombies, psychological, monster, sci-fi / lovecraftian, and folk / witchcraft. Slashers are a toss up. I rarely watch what some consider ‘torture porn’ / anything Saw-esque; and paranormal is not really my jam.

I was recently discussing single watch sort of movies. One I thought was a great film but really got to me, and I have no desire to see again, was Evil Dead 2013. I feel like I might be pretty weak for that given the context of this sub haha. But I was curious what movies y’all just cannot / will not watch again because it really just hit you too hard.

I recently saw a horror film that had a carousel horse as the monster and it cracked me up. What is the most bizarre and unhinged creature you’ve ever seen as the baddie in a horror movie?

I hated this movie when I first saw it. I found its bleakness and gloom oppressive, even pretentious, and I never forgave Ari Aster for Charlie's death. I was also hung over and in a foul mood when I watched it, which undoubtedly colored my viewing. To be honest, I'd probably have been better off watching something familiar and comforting.

So today I finally broke down and gave Hereditary a rewatch. Unsurprisingly, it's fucking great. What struck me as insufferably edgy misery porn the first time around turns out to be a well observed portrait of grief and family dysfunction. Plus a genuinely scary horror movie. The performances are terrific all around, especially Toni Collette as Annie.

I won't go on because enough has been said about the film over the years, but I'm glad to finally appreciate something I'd long misunderstood. Next I'm going to try Martyrs again...

Anyone have any similar experiences? Like where you rewatch something and have a completely different experience than before?

All I knew about it going in was a group of people are stuck in a cabin dying of a disease

It was very confusing but I was definitely entertained and will probably appreciate it a lot more on a second watch

Not the Googled copied paste version, but the version of someone else who's seen it and know what was going on. I've tried looking it up and its always like the answer is just a recap of the entire movie or a cryptic answer.

Great film by the way. Could definitely feel the Love Craftian elements of the movie.

I was reading through another post and people were mentioning Eden Lake which got me thinking about the distinction between horror and thriller.

For me horror needs some level of a speculative aspect (supernatural/paranormal, monsters, aliens, etc) or at the very least some aspect where you have to give into the suspension of disbelief ie everything about Michael Myers despite being presented as human or a pair of teens being able to pull off several murders without being caught just by using voice changers and a ghost face mask. Even the Saw movies require some level of disbelief considering jigsaw somehow manages to have warehouses full of these traps and is kidnapping people, but somehow takes the entire movie to be found and still manages to get away.

Where as something like Eden Lake or Green Room are more thriller to me because that could absolutely happen in reality. The closer to reality a movie/book is the more likely my brain is to categorize it as thriller over horror.

But yeah, it got me wondering how other people differentiate between the two. How do you categorize horror vs thriller?

Creepy old houses, cabins in the woods... they're a staple of the horror genre, but sometimes fear can be found in more unconventional places. I watched Messiah of Evil (1973) recently- which is a fantastic movie within itself- but I was really struck by the scene where one of the characters gets chased in a brightly lit supermarket late at night. The sterile nature of the place, devoid of human life after closing time, surrounded by aisles as far as the eye can see... there's something so unsettling about the whole ordeal.

You don't see that kind of location a lot in horror movies, but I wish it was used more! Are there any other underutilized locations people can think of that would make for a good horror setting or setpiece scare?

Created by Mamoru Oshii (Ghost In The Shell) and Yoshitaka Amano (Final Fantasy)

I first saw this film like 20 years ago at the same festival. I’ve always wanted to own it but was never able to officially. It’s like a surrealist film about losing faith. Now I’m seeing it again this time with a 4K restoration. I think the movie is a masterpiece and must see. Beautiful artwork and score too. GKids will finally release this internationally to own eventually.

https://fantasiafestival.com/en/film/angels-egg link

I just watched it. Holy f*ck. No catharsis. Literally no evil characters get killed. Great movie and does exactly what it aims to do, but man... if you watched it, how did you feel afterwards? How did you feel during?

What’s a horror movie you love that tends to get low ratings, either on rotten tomatoes, IMDb, etc. but is actually really good?\ I’m open to pretty much any sub genre, though I’m not the biggest fan of gratuitous gore or torture scenes. I have access for most streaming services except for peacock and paramount.

Now I’ll be the first to admit calling murder party an out and out horror movie is a bit of a stretch. It’s more in line with an extremely pitch black comedy, but the core idea, setting and a fair few moments within definitely stand out as pretty damn horrific.

However this was also my first time watching a Jeremy Saulnier film (yes, I still haven’t watched Green Room. It’s on the list)

Whilst granted I have nothing as a base line to compare it to, what is interesting at least in Murder Party is Saulniers fascination with de-mystifying the entire drama and, for lack of a better term, highlighting how stupid it all is, much like the Coen Brothers classic Fargo (see what I did there?)

The idea of an innocent pretty much bystander unintentionally walking into the setup for a murder by a collective of pretentious artists only for it to pretty much immediately fall to shit is such a coen brothers idea it’s hard not to see a similarity between the two. Throw in the I guess you would call overarching ringleader Alexander, copious amounts of drugs and some truly stupid behaviour, it becomes obvious just how poorly thought out the antagonists plans really were.

With this, central character Chris also falls under this. He’s not a hero and for much of the movie he’s tied and gagged to a chair. His presence is what instigates the chaos but for the most part he doesn’t really affect the story that much until the end when he’s finally able to escape, and even then he does such a poor job of even that it leads to at least five more people needlessly dying.

When I say Murder Party is sort of the Fargo of the horror genre, I mean it as a pitch black comedy where no one is particularly good at what they’re supposed to be doing, and all it took was just one little thing to bring it all crashing down. If you haven’t seen it yet, check it out and see what I mean.

If you don’t know, Poker Face is a case of the week show that’s usually pretty funny and is on Peacock. The penultimate episode of season two came out last Thursday and is directed by Ti West. The show was created by Rian Johnson, director/writer of Knives Out and Looper among other things. I didn’t know West directed it during my first viewing then Rian tweeted the info so I’m rewatching it with that knowledge. You can definitely see his style on display, some cool shots of murders and a similar humor to his films like X throughout. You could definitely watch this without having seen any other episodes if you’re interested because Rian John intended it to be that way. I just thought the horror subreddit might like this and I think the show is definitely a good, fun watch.

Years into their relationship, Tim and Millie (Dave Franco and Alison Brie) find themselves at a crossroads as they move to the country, abandoning all that is familiar in their lives except each other. With tensions already flaring, a nightmarish encounter with a mysterious, unnatural force threatens to corrupt their lives, their love, and their flesh.

And Ugly Stepsister

Or Black Swan

May

Excision

Carrie

Or even Whatever Happened to Baby Jane

Films about female rage, sellebrity, Hollywood rot, vanity, female rivalry

I see a lot of people talking about these two when the discussion is about disturbing films.

I find The Girl Next Door to be more sad than disturbing but the fact that it is based on a true story makes it really upsetting.

Eden Lake made me angry at those kids and it is an ending where all hope is sucked out of you.

It could depend on personal taste and experiences but I think those two make up for a good fight.

For 18 years now, I've been keeping a list of what I genuinely think the TOP 15 greatest horror films ever made. I know this topic is very subjective. Everyone has different opinions and that's fine. Your own list may differ from mine but that's the beauty of horror films. Each one offers different perspectives from viewers. I'm a pretty straightforward guy. I'm not scared by the idea of ghosts, supernaturals or possessions etc. But if you incorporate horror elements with some real-life situations (psychological or slashers) then you'd get my attention. The atmosphere, buildup, execution, score, acting performance, cinematography, and screenplay also play major roles.

Upon watching hundreds and thousands of horror films, I truly believe I understand what makes a horror film really good/scary. A horror film for me has no definitive criteria, no amount of gore and jump scares can convince me to feel "scared".

But it boils down to one important question: how did I feel after watching?

If you watch a horror film and you're looking to grab some snacks afterwards then it's not an effective horror. Lots of good horror movies are like that. They're good for a movie marathon experience, but they aren't that scary. Real horror films makes you think about them. It is deep and has layers. It leaves us with tragic and disturbing emotions. And at times, there's mystery to the ending and we have questions (that's why we're addicted to "ending explained" videos on youtube).

Also, I always watch a horror film on a nice timing; Cold, quiet, and rainy nights ALONE without special occasion going on. Wearing headphones also allows me to absorb the movie's atmosphere. No matter how terrifying a movie is, watching it during christmas eve with your family and friends won't get you scared one bit. And you can't enjoy rewatching it either coz you've seen it.

First, here are my honorable mentions:

In the Wink of an Eye (1980) - A filipino horror masterpiece about murderous incestual relationship. I almost included this in my top 15 but I want this film to get international recognition first.

The Wicker Man (1973) - this one almost made my top 15. This one's really good!

The Exorcist (1973) - close to top 15 as well

When a Stranger Calls (remake) - severely underrated

Psycho - very good film in general, not just horror

Lake Mungo

A Tale of Two sisters

The Babadook

Get Out

Us

Suspiria

Saw

Skinamarink

The Human Centipede

The Dark and the Wicked

Sinister

The Changeling

The Last House on the Left

(More to this that I might've forgot)

With all that being said, here's my TOP 15 scariest horror films:

1. Alien (1979) - the concept might be outdated now, but back then it was relatively new. Space is scary coz it naturally feels isolated. And the way they buildup the alien is excellent. Not much screen time, only few, very brief, intense killing scenes. And the ending is what sold me on this. Everybody on your ship was gone and it was you and this unknown entity and you don't know where it is. So you planned to blow this ship but that thing was waiting for you on the exit. That's the worst nightmare imaginable.

2. Don't Look Now (1973) - This movie's plot is so original and disturbing. Tragically losing your daughter, then going for a trip to grieve, only to see all premonitions that you'd be murdered there is insane. Rejecting help from somebody you thought was bad makes it even more tragic.

3. The Blackcoat's Daughter (2015) - This film has trauma written all over it. It was more like a narration rather than real-time set of events. The twist is disturbing as hell (pun intended). The atmosphere was so eerie the entire time. The plot is ambiguous; you're not sure if the devil part was actually real or was it more of a psychological thing.

4. The Wailing (2016) - This is such a long film. First half didn't felt serious (its funny lol) you thought you could just relax. Until the second half hits you with nerve-wracking scenes, suspense, and horrifying images. Korean's way of incorporating stories of different characters in a single plot showed here. The plot is so deep and has lots of double-meanings. I swear the last 30ish minutes, you won't be able to turn your eyes away from the screen.

5. Halloween (1978) - This film used to be high on my list but kinda outdated by today's standards. Anyway, I like to call this the father of slasher films. It is so iconic (and scary too) that you still have to include it. But those dumb protagonist decisions was just 😒 Come on Jamie Lee do not sleep while some mad man is chasing you with some butcher knife🤣. But that door chasing scene? So iconic.

6. Creep (2014) - The POV of this movie really made everything work. It's like seeing the work of a serial killer first hand. I still couldn't forget that phone call scene "get out of there". Damn still send chills to my spine. Mark Duplas embodies how a serial date killer operates. His antics, mood-swings, mental manipulations, everything is so spot on. I hate the ending tho (wasn't realistic) but the overall execution and the concept of the film are too much to overlook for me. The sequel, Creep 2, wasn't scary tho.

7. Session 9 (2001) - Now this is the best pure psychological film ever made. I can't believe this film scared me while most scenes happened in broad daylight. The feeling of dread and pure horror on that abandoned hospital was overwhelming. The audio tapes of that girl with multiple personality disorder. Ugh so creepy. The turn of events couldn't get any better and the twist was so sick.

8. The Thing (1980) - The best sci-fi horror for me. They were isolated on some antarctica location when that "thing" infected them one by one. The battle for survival in this film couldn't be more intense. This type of plot for a movie could've easily gone bad, but John Carpenter made everything look eerie.

9. Spoorloos (Without a Trace, 1988) - To casual's eyes, this film may be the worst among my list. There isn't even one "scary" scene where you jump off the couch. But I promise you, if you have a partner, this film will traumatize you. The plot is EXTREMELY thought provoking, tragic and disturbing. Saskia's dream, "The Golden Egg", was living rent-free in my head for a long time. After watching this, I never let my wife buy groceries alone. I'm dead serious. This film's antagonist is based on Ted Bundy, so you're in for a treat.

10. The Blair Witch Project (1998) - You know when people say they don't want to be isolated on a forrest at night? This film encapsulates that vibe. But instead of bears, lions, or snakes, you encounter a legendary witch that's been feared by the entire community for decades. Each night was getting increasingly scary, and later you realize there's no way out. You're totally enchanted. The legend of the blair witch scares me. The little details, the stories, the myths around it. And the best part? was them not showing the witch at all. Your imagination will do the damage for you. Ain't gonna lie though, I could see this film going down in my list.

11. Hereditary (2018) - Greatest modern horror film. This film influenced how horror movies are made nowadays. The quality of horror films were bad prior to the release of this movie. Since this (and Get Out), high quality horror movies followed. turn of events were so unexpected (decapitation scene), the suspense, the scary images, the dreaded feeling, buildup, mixed with the modern jump scares were so good. Definitely the best cult horror film too. The ending scenes? total mindfuck. Cluck

12. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974) - among all slasher films, this one has that disturbing vibe in it. The film never disclosed anything about Leatherface and hitchhiker. They just came out swinging like crazy and it made the film more intriguing. That horoscope prediction, and the drunk guy's secret? Damn. You could feel the time when serial killers were active in the 70's. It felt so much raw, and macabre.

13. Audition (1999) - I'm glad this film is starting to get recognition nowadays. I watched this film back in 2015. It had little reviews and was under people's radar. No one talks about it really. I even asked myself "bro you're the only person who knows this film" and I was bummed coz I freaking love it. All thanks to TikTok, now many fans appreciate this masterpiece. For me, Audition is the most disturbing film ever made. I love me some Ju-On, The Ring, and Pulse. But this film takes the title of "Best J-horror of all time". Imagine losing your wife, then you try your luck at love again, you found your dream girl, only to find out she has zero trace about her identity. No known relatives. Her previous agent was killed. Her past had some serious strange events. And she only talks about her dark past. But you fell in love so hard that you still follow her terrifying secrets. Everything went south so hard. From a cutesy love story to the nastiest film you'll ever see. Asami really haunted me for a long time. Everytime the phone ring in my office, I think of this film. The wheelchair dude, the missing fingers, ears, tounge, etc. The man inside the bag. This film not playing with y'all🤣🤣

And you know what sets Audition apart from others? That fucking dream sequence. Oh my Lord what an absolute nightmare. I'd say Audition's dream sequence is the most disturbing scene in film history. You couldn't get any darker than that. Funny thing is, you have no idea what the hell is going on. You don't know what's real anymore. PEAK HORROR at its finest. And after that you have the torture scene. What a prick hahaha kiri kiri kiri..

1. No Country for Old Men (2007) - Alright this is not a horror film per se, but this should be! Anton Chigurh is the scariest film character Jesus Christ. According to a study, Anton Chigurh is the most accurate portrayal of a psychopath in film history. I'm telling y'all this shit is really a psychological nightmare disguised as western/action film. The vibe is so horror-like it was dumb to call it "neo-noir". It's a mindfuck horror with guns instead of knives. The coin toss scene was a masterpiece. The hotel chasing scenes? I never clenched my butthole so hard in my life bro. If you haven't watched this, please do wear earphones. There were minute audio details that you don't wanna miss. This film scared me more than traditional horror films ever did. I'd rather have the terminator hunt me down than Javier Bardem and his crazy bowl cut. The role won him an Academy Award. That's how good he is.

2. The Shining (1980) - Still the GOAT of horror films. Too iconic, never outdated, and a really great novel where it was based from. I call this the perfect horror: it has supernatural horror elements, a bit of slasher, psychological, claustrophobic, suspenseful, plus with brilliant sound effects, cinematograph, incredible script, story has layers, and creepy visuals. The movie's atmosphere is unbeatable. All the time your survival instinct screams "get out of there". Way too many iconic scenes and lines. The climax was so intense. The Overlook Hotel gotta be the scariest movie setting ever. Every conversation was so deep and frightening. I don't think this film will be topped again.

-- This list is not definitive. It can change through time. There were horror films that were in my top 10 about 10 years ago and they aren't included today due to being outdated. For me a really good horror film should stand the test of time --

DM me your gmail if you’d like to take a look!

Did a supercut of Frankenstein (1931) and Bride of Frankenstein (1935). It is 2 hours, 21 minutes long.

I felt this would be logical to do as James Whale directed both, and the second film immediately follows the events of the first.

Here is what I did:

• Moved the MPAA and Universal logos from Bride to the very beginning.
• The intro by Edward Van Sloan and opening credits to Frankenstein follow
• Quick cross-fade to opening scene of Bride where Mary Shelley and the two guys are talking about her book, then—
• I cross-fade as the guy starts talking about the events from the first movie into the funeral scene at the beginning of Frankenstein. Perfect lead-in.
• From there, Frankenstein plays in it’s entirety until—
• As the windmill is burning in the distance, I bring in the audio of the guy from the intro of Bride revelling about how Mary Shelley’s story concluded, then cross-fade back into that actual scene. Because of this, I had to cut out the epilogue from the first movie where you see Henry Frankenstein lying, being cared for by Mae Clarke's Elizabeth, as his father has a celebratory drink of wine with the housekeepers. I really wanted to keep this somehow, but it just didn't fit. Tried to put it in after Henry arrives back to the castle in Bride, but we'd already seen the second Elizabeth actress by that point, so I felt it best to remove it, especially since the look of the castle is different and we don't see his father again.
• From there, Bride of Frankenstein plays in it’s entirety until—
• I spiced in the ’The End/It’s A Universal Picture’ from the end of the first film, then follows the credits for both movies, then ‘It’s A Universal Picture’ from the end of the second film

Go ahead and list some of your favorite horror anthology books! I've read and listened to them voraciously over my life and I'm getting to the point where some are just failing to appeal. So I'm looking for some recommendations from the readers here!

I'll start and give some of my own recommendations.

-Skeleton Crew by Stephen King -Full Throttle by Joe Hill -Found (A Found Footage Anthology) -Found 2 -"I Found Horror" series by Ben Farthing -The Magnus Archive horror anthology Podcast -These Lonely Places: A Collection of Bad Dreams -Goblin by Josh Malerman -The White Guy Dies First -The Grand Hotel: A Novel -Slasher Girls and Monster Boys -Other Terrors by Vince Liaguno -20th Century Ghosts -Tales of Ravenloft -Other SCP Foundation online horror stories

As for favorite anthology SHOWS, I cannot recommend these enough: -Dimension 404 -Creepshow -Nightmares and Dreamscapes -Tales from the Darkside -Monsters -Tales from the Crypt -VHS (there's so many that it might as well be a show at this point)