Halloween season is here, and if you’re like me, you may find yourself watching the same old horror films every year. There’s nothing wrong with the classics, but if you’re looking to diversify your horror movie watching, then hopefully this is the video for you! In this list I’ll be giving you 7 underrated horror films you should definitely check out. Now, these aren’t going to be super obscure, bottom of the iceberg picks; simply films that I find to be great that don’t discussed nearly as often as some of the classics or today’s newest brand of horror. Be sure to leave any suggestions for underrated horror films down in the comments!

Dracula aka Horror of Dracula

Let’s start off a little retro with one of horror’s most iconic figures, Dracula. Not exactly an unknown character, as you’ve most likely seen the famous vampire portrayed in some capacity, from the days of Bella Lugosi to the more recent portrayal of Nicholas Cage. But in between there was a fantastic rendition of Dracula that gave the character the bloody edge he needed, which came from the 1950s film Dracula, known in the states as Horror of Dracula. Produced by Hammer Films, the one time kings of horror films, this take on Dracula ushered in a lot of the elements we would come to associate with the count. The fangs, the stakes and the seductiveness all deride from this film, with the titular vampire played by the legendary Christopher Lee. The film itself has a technicolor, gothic aesthetic to it that I just love. The handmade sets are gorgeous and creative, while the violence and the lewdness pushed boundaries at the time. It may seem pretty tame now, but in the 50s this little bit of blood and cleavage was shocking to see. Overall this is just a great film led by fantastic performances like the aforementioned Christopher Lee as Dracula and Peter Kushing as Dr. Van Helsing. The pacing is quite fast and the story is very engaging, basically surmounting to Dracula being a petty asshole looking to seduce every woman he can. The concept of this mystical stalker manipulating and terrorizing the ones you love is no less unnerving now as it was then. It’s a great piece of history that spawned multiple sequels, so if you’re looking for something with a classic horror feel I would definitely check this out.

Black Christmas

For how popular slasher films like Halloween and Friday the 13th are, I have no clue how 1974’s Black Christmas isn’t talked about more. This film really seemed to pioneer a lot of what makes those films memorable, from the young and unassuming teenage characters to the prowling POV shots of the killer, to the unnerving phone calls. What really sticks out to me about this film is how real all the characters feel, existing far before a lot of those dumb, horny stereotypes became commonplace in the genre. They feel like real people, which makes the horror of their situation so much easier to connect to. The tension is also super tight and claustrophobic at times, with most of the killings taking place in a sorority house just out of earshot of the others, genuinely making you want to yell out to the girls. It’s a super unnerving film that still manages to disturb without the use of heavy violence or gore, thanks to great performances and expert directing from…the guy who directed A Christmas Story? He must really love the holiday. If you enjoy classic slashers I highly recommend this. I haven’t seen the 2000s remake so can’t speak to the quality of it, but absolutely do not watch the 2019 remake; it feels like it was written by an AI trained off of Twitter buzzwords.

Don’t Look Now

Elevated horror is such a popular sub-genre right now, opting to get more metaphorical with its horror rather than just relying on killers and copious amounts of gore. A24 is most well known for these kinds of films, but they certainly didn’t invent this kind of sub genre. There’s tons of older, more meditative horror films out there, and one of my favorites is Don’t Look Now. It’s a story about a couple reeling after the death of their daughter, trying to move forward while drowning themselves in their work while experiencing some otherworldly coincidences. I’ll be upfront, this is not a super scary film, yet it does contain an incredibly interesting story for the genre at the time. It’s meditative on grief and premonitions, aiming to unnerve you with atmosphere and heavy emotions rather than visceral images. The film is edited in such a smart way that shows you things that you later have to piece together exactly when and where they occurred, crafting a mystery that feels elevated beyond just the narrative. The backdrop of Venice and its ancient architecture makes for both a beautiful and daunting setting that seems to twist and turn around our characters constantly. It’s definitely treading the line on its “horror” distinction, but if you like horror with interesting, thought provoking stories, I don’t think you’ll be disappointed. Also, it has peak Donald Sutherland mustache. How could you possibly go wrong?

House

House is such a bizarre film to talk about, because while its premise certainly sounds straight forward, its execution is anything but. The story follows a group of girls going to stay with an eccentric aunt in a big, isolated mansion. From there the girls are tormented by a variety of spirits in ways that can be both scary and hilarious. House is full of inventive, off the wall visuals that take the haunted house genre in an insane direction, a sub-genre I’ve heard referred to as “kaleidoscope horror”. From floating heads to hungry pianos, the film’s sense of humor is often nonsensical but often endearing, often utilizing a style of editing or setup that reminded me of old YouTube Poops. At face value this may seem like just a silly haunted house film, but reading deeper into the director and his intentions will reveal something much more interesting and sad. Director Nobuhiko Obayashi was born in Hiroshima, Japan and would go on to lose all of his childhood friends to the atomic bomb. That terror of your friends slowly disappearing and turning up dead begins to hold a lot more weight when you tie it into a terrible tragedy that continues to affect the world we live in today. But it’s not all grim grief behind the film, as Obayashi consulted with his pre-teen daughter while writing the script, utilizing a lot of her ideas and fears in the final product. It’s a bonkers film with some insane imagery and an off-tilt sense of humor, so throw it on with a few friends and a couple of drinks for a good time.

Big Bad Wolves

Okay, let’s jump ahead to some more modern horror films that may have slid under your radar. Big Bad Wolves is a 2013 Israeli black comedy horror film that follows a grieving father and a rouge cop who kidnap a local school teacher after they believe he is responsible for the sexual assault and murder of a little girl. Kind of like a f’ed up cross between Prisoners and The Hunt. Quentin Tarantino lauded it as the best film of 2013, and I can see where he’s coming from. This film is not afraid to dwell on unsettling and taboo topics, yet will find ways to dare you to laugh with its bleak sense of humor. The film is a bit of a mix between a police procedural and revenge fueled torture porn, complete with a tight plot and an engaging mystery that leads to a gut punch of an ending. Even though you feel for the main characters and what they’re doing, you still feel sickened by the depravity they’ll go to to torment a man who, for all we know, could be innocent. I do think the mix of horror and comedy isn’t always seamless, as you might find a good amount of tonal inconsistencies. Yet the film is incredibly insane regardless. Definitely worth a watch if you have the stomach for it.

The Wailing

Next up is one of my favorite newer horror movies I’ve stumbled across, 2016’s The Wailing. It’s a Korean horror film about a small village who suddenly become plagued with mysterious killings and a virus turning people into zombies. A bumbling policeman begins to investigate, while many begin to blame a old Japanese man who recently moved to the village, with some accusing him of being the devil. This is another film that I think balances a terrifying story with little sprinklings of horror very, very well. Yet the horror is still always incredibly effective, utilizing smart jump scares and a dread-filled ambiance. One of my favorite scares is near the beginning of the film where two policemen in a station are yelling and pointing about something scary they see outside, but the camera refrains from showing us what exactly they’re seeing until the last minute, and damn is that effective. Paranoia runs high throughout the film, as more characters get introduced and you’re not sure who can really be trusted. It all leads up to an electrifying finale that literally took the wind out of me, both from a visual point of view and a poignant realization of what had happened. It has everything from ghosts, to exorcisms to body horror, and demons. I do think the film is a bit long and might be too daunting for some, but this is so far the best Korean horror film I’ve come across. And that’s really saying something, because they don’t mess around over there.

We’re All Going to the World’s Fair

And finally I want to close this video out with a very recent horror film that really, really surprised me. It’s certainly the most unconventional film on this list and I’ll admit, at first I really didn’t think I was going to like it. Yet as the film continued and I finally started to clue into what the film was trying to accomplish, I was floored. We’re All Going to the World’s Fair was just shy of being in my top 10 films of last year, but I think it’s absolutely worth talking about. It’s a coming of age horror film revolving around a young girl named Casey who becomes enthralled with an online horror trend. She eventually befriends another participant online, who eventually turns out to be a much older man. I know where you think this may be going but trust me, it’s not what you’re expecting. The film uses horror elements to highlight the loneliness that comes with being a teenager, where you feel like no one understands you and your only solace is the dark unknown of being online, which I think the film absolutely nails. While occasionally droning and repetitive, I think it does capture emotional isolation very well, along with that youthful gravitation towards the dark and unknown. I definitely felt that one as a young, awkward kid. That inability to properly assess or express your emotions that drives you towards any abnormal outlet you can find, hoping to find others like you to know your suffering isn’t exclusive. Most people will find this very style over substance, which makes this the hardest film to recommend to the common movie goer. But if you’re looking for something a little less spooky and a little more existential, then by all means give this one a try.