Horror films that redefined the genre and gave it a new twist

While the “horror film” category serves to label the type of stories you’re about to watch, it doesn’t define the end result of a work. Well, they are just that, signs to define what people want to see, and which some filmmakers and artists have been tasked with redefining to give it a twist that is not just about haunted mansions or easy scares.

And that’s who you are horror films that redefined the genre it is difficult to classify them within it, because they touch on many aspects, from drama to psychological thriller, including police. And, even so, they end up not fitting at all, which is why they deserve a special mention, although it should be remembered that they are all subject to availability on each platform.

Mandy

Cosmatos cloths redefined what could be done in a horror film when ‘Mandy’ was released, an unconventional film, like everything starring Nicolas Cage and Andrea Riseborough. It is about an outsider who seeks to avenge his partner’s death at the hands of a cult leader, but the ways he reaches out to him are witnessed firsthand. Available on YouTube and Amazon PrimeVideo.

little pig

What started out as a short film of the same name soon became a unusual horror movie and this has made much of the industry uncomfortable. This is ‘Cerdita’, a film by Carlota Martínez, which tells the story of Sara, an obese girl who suffers from the harassment of her body by her classmates, but a mysterious criminal arrives to terrorize everyone except her. Available on Amazon Prime Video.

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Funny Games

Michael Haneke directed two takes of the same story, take after take. This is ‘Funny Games’, a transgressive horror film with the audience, challenging them to keep watching the atrocities that are about to happen on the screen. It is about a family that will spend a few peaceful days in their beach house, where two young men appear who ask them for a favor, but hide dark intentions.

titan

She already had it with her previous work on ‘Raw’, but it wasn’t until ‘Titane’ that Julia Ducournau rocked the horror genre with her story about Adrien, played by Agatha Rouselle. It’s the story of a boy who disappeared 10 years ago, and is now found face-beaten in an airport, as a series of bizarre murders begin to occur. Available on Mubi.

The lighthouse

Although the trend had already been to go against the conventions of the genre, or to reframe it in some way, Robert Eggers confirmed his suspicions with ‘The Lighthouse’, a horror film that would have been impossible outside the hands of A24. It is the story of two lighthouse keepers, played by Willem Dafoe and Robert Pattinson, who must take care of an old lighthouse without losing their sanity.