Gaslighting, grief, and creatures in the dark - 2020 had it all.
The Invisible Man
I remember watching this and just feeling stressed the whole time, in that uncomfortable “something’s wrong and you can’t prove it” feeling.
There’s loads of moments where nothing is technically happening and yet it still feels awful to sit through, which is kind of impressive.
Also Elisabeth Moss is basically carrying the entire thing on her back.[The Invisible Man on IMDB]
His House
This movie is not really about any scares, even though there are horror elements, as it’s more like everything is simply just heavy all the time.
Even when you’re watching it, you kind of feel like you’re not meant to be comfortable.
It’s one of those films where the horror and the actual real-life stuff are basically doing the same job. [His House on IMDB]
Relic
This one is just doesn’t really announce itself as horror most of the time, it just slowly turns into something you don’t feel great about watching.
I can’t even point to one big moment. It’s more the overall feeling, and it's also a bit of a strange one emotionally.[Relic on IMDB]
Possessor
I still don’t fully know how I feel about this film.
It’s very cold, like emotionally distant in a way that makes it harder to settle into, but also kind of more disturbing because of that.
There are scenes where I just remember thinking “right, okay, that’s enough” and still watching anyway.
It’s not a casual film at all. [Possessor on IMDB]
The Dark and the Wicked
The Dark and the Wicked is just misery in film form.There’s no real break from it, as it just keeps going and gets worse in this very slow, draining way.
I don’t even think I “enjoy” it, because it’s more like I respect how committed it is to making everything feel hopeless.[The Dark and the Wicked on IMDB]
Host
Rob Savage’s Host was perhaps one of the most timely films released in 2020.Shot entirely during lockdown using Zoom, it captures a group of friends who encounter something spooky during an online séance, where it’s literally just a Zoom call.
I think part of it is that it feels familiar, like too familiar, which makes it creepier than it has any right to be.
Also it doesn’t overstay its welcome at all, which helps.[Host on IMDB]
Underwater
This is just pure pressure the whole way through.
Deep sea, trapped, things going wrong, all that stuff.
It doesn’t try to bring much new to the table, it just commits to the situation and runs with it, which is enough.
Quite underrated survival horror in my view.[Underwater on IMDB]
What was your favorite horror movie from 2020?