The 2010s ushered in a renaissance for horror movies, as it produced many groundbreaking hits such as Get Out, Hereditary, It, and A Quiet Place.
But as many great horror movies blew many audiences away, some terrific films didn’t get the reception that they deserved. Audiences looking to find some new scares should definitely check out these underrated horror movies from the previous decade.
It Comes at Night (2017)
This A24 horror film follows two families who struggle to live together in a cabin in the woods after a mysterious plague destroys the world outside. While the virus is implied to have a supernatural source, it isn’t explained exactly what it is or where it came from.
The film instead focuses on how paranoia and the urge to survive can drive a group of normal people to destroy each other. Harkening back to The Shining and Night of the Living Dead, It Comes At Night is a harrowing psychological terror that leaves audiences with no answers — only sorrow.
The Autopsy of Jane Doe (2016)
Emile Hirsch and Succession‘s Brian Cox star in this film about two coroners who examine the body of an unknown woman found at the scene of multiple homicides. Both men soon find themselves haunted by supernatural forces as they delve deeper into the mysteries held within the titular woman’s corpse.
It’s a clever, slow-burning horror film that blurs the line between reality and nightmares. And thanks to its confined setting and the realistic performances of Hirsch and Cox, the movie builds terror and suspense all the way up to its shocking climax.
Annihilation (2018)
Ex Machina director Alex Garland takes audiences on a psychedelic odyssey into the unknown with this sci-fi horror adventure. After a meteorite crashes into Florida and starts mutating everything around it, a team of scientists investigates the resulting “Shimmer” and encounters countless cosmic horrors and wonders.
Simply put, Annihilation is an enthralling and terrifying rainbow shot straight out of the bowels of a Lovecraftian nightmare that way more audiences should have experienced.