Legitimately tragic horror films

I’ve only seen it once, while I was in high school, and it freaked me out.

The Fly always stuck me as tragic, even though he brought it on himself.

I know this wasn't a typical "horror' movie, but it may as well have been. Requiem for a Dream was horrifying beyond belief. No winners in that one, and impossible to watch more than once.

The Orphanage - a Spanish horror movie

The Vanishing - the original with subtitles, not the American remake.

I'd add Prom Night to this list too, come to think of it. While it is a slasher with silly moments, the ending is probably the most tragic of any slasher movie ever.

I always found Sarah Michelle Gellar's character/performance in I Know What You Did Last Summer memorably sad. Say what you want about the film but it's her best work, really. Her chase scene/eventual death is almost operatic.

"The Shining" was not exactly bedecked with feelgood moments. Wendy and Danny escape but at the cost of Dick's life and possibly Danny's sanity.

"The Haunting" (1963) is, aside from the absolutely terrifying aspects of the phenomena, a very sad film about twisted, self-destructive people.

The original "Night of the Living Dead" is one of the most gruesome versions of "No Exit" that can be imagined. Ben's death at the end is probably the most brilliant downer ending of any movie of the period.

The original "Nightmare on Elm Street" is much darker than most people remember and Nancy's life is a complete hellscape without any help from Freddy. Her fraught relationship with her parents would be incredibly disturbing even if the rest of it really was nothing but a dream.

"Phantasm" is a bit of an outlier but an aspect of the story that struck me as very sad is that it is based on trauma - the young boy who is the main character is terrified of his older brother abandoning him. There's a great shot of the older brother, cheerful and sexy, in his prime, driving his muscle car down the road, unaware that the kid is literally running after the car the way a dog would.

Stephen King's The Mist.

Near the end of the movie, a small group of people are faced with a horrific situation and make an unspeakable choice, but, it's what happens shortly afterwards in which the real tragedy is revealed. It was a truly tragic ending.

Halloween II (1981)

It was a tragedy Leo Rossi's ass shot was so quick.

The Innocents (1961)

Don't Look Now (1973)

Another JLC film, Terror Train. I always felt sorry for poor Kenny, the way they pranked him in the beginning of the film, terrorizing him to the point of insanity.

Cujo is pretty sad too. The book is even sadder...

**SPOILER**

The kid dies in the book.

When you first see her, writhing about, drenched in red, you know something isn't quite right. But when she opens her mouth and the shrieking begins, you know something is terribly, terribly wrong.

[quote] Stephen King's The Mist.

If you like being pounded over the head by pathos brought to you by Kmart, that is.

Halloween 5 - When Rachel dies and even, as horribly annoying as she was, when Tina dies. Though I've always thought Rachel should've had Tina's death. It would've been 10x more tragic/ emotional than either of the scenes.

The Hand That Rocks the Cradle. It was tragic that Rebecca De Mornay's character "Peyton" lost her husband and her child all because of Claire, and when Peyton tried to get justice for what had been done to her, Claire brutally killed her. It was a very sad movie. The only good thing that happened is when Claire's evil, obnoxious friend Marlene, got skewed in the greenhouse when she was trying to spoil Peyton's plan.

Baby Jane's a tragedy. That gets overlooked because of the camp factor of Bette and Joan in the same film (plus that awful, tinny background music) but if either of them had made an intelligent choice earlier in life (which neither of them were able to do because their parents pushed them into showbiz as tots to bring in money for them) it could have ended up much happier for them both.

The film makes these issues much cruder and the message is completely lost, but the book makes it clear that both of the sisters were terribly unhappy children, even though they tried to understand each other even then, and failed. Neither of them ever had a chance.

Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me. Poor Laura.

A genuinely disturbing film you should watch on my recommendation alone with no background knowledge is Found (2012). It's on Tubi now for free. I usually like to watch films a couple times over if they're good but once was enough for this one.

Of course the best horror flicks of the decade are all tragedies. Hereditary, Midsommar, the Suspiria remake.

The Exorcist is actually tragic, because of the sacrifice Father Karras makes.

[R18} Oh, God, yes!!! It is a masterpiece but harrowing to watch. Sheryl Lee absolutely sells the character and the suffering the cast goes through is unbelievable. Yet it never feels like "torture porn".

R16, Peyton’s husband was a creepy molester whose tragic ending was his own fault. Peyton was clearly already a little touched before the stress of her husband’s suicide caused her to miscarry.

The Changeling. The mansion is haunted by the ghost of a disabled boy who was murdered by his father.

Nightmare on Elm Street 2 . Poor teen bottom Jesse lost his boypussy virginity to an ugly burned up serial killer.

Splice was pretty disturbing.

The original I Spit on Your Grave is tough to get through. It’s almost like watching a documentary.

Wes Craven’s The Last House on the Left is similarly tragic and documentary-like, despite the silly ending.

I kind of feel sorry for poor kid Jason in the first Friday the 13th.

The end of Alien Resurrection and her scene with the Neomorph was disturbing.

Sleepaway Camp is so fucked up. A boys parents die leaving him with his batshit crazy aunt that raises him as a girl. He goes to summer camp and turns into a serial killer when every couselor there wants to rape him and he finally flashes his dick at the end of the movie to show he’s not a girl!

I saw the silent The Phantom of the Opera on the big screen in a restored version with color tints. It was very frightening and beautiful at the same time, and Lon Chaney was a genuinely tragic Phantom.

The Shape of Water was good, but the whole sex with the creature was pretty cringey.

Some company even developed a dildo of the creature’s cock. WTF.

R31 Neither a horror film nor a tragedy.

The Hills Have Eyes (the original and the remake), are both excruciating to watch as they show the bulk of an entire family get decimated in front of one another. Children lose parents, siblings lose siblings, wives lose husbands, and husbands lose wives, all in a matter of about 10 minutes. You also have the older sister character (Dee Wallace in the original/Vinessa Shaw in the remake) getting shot in the head in front of her entire family (including her newborn baby, whom the killers playfully point the gun at) before they kidnap the child. It's extremely dark.

I’d say fucking the creature from the black lagoon is pretty tragic

Blow Out has a tragic ending. I love Nancy Allen!

The TV nuclear apocalypse movie The Day After. The quiet, simple ending tears your heart out. And yeah, tragic.

I have a very hard time watching 'Whatever Happened to Baby Jane'. It hits too close to home. My grandmother and aunt lived together: my aunt had a developmental disability, and my grandmother had become quite disabled. My brother and I were enlisted twice a year to wash down the walls because of the cigarette smoke. They yelled at each other constantly; at some point, my aunt thought my grandmother was malingering, and yanked my Grandma out of bed, causing irreversible damage to her spine. My Grandma was admitted to a rehab hospital, and never saw her house or daughter again. I honestly loved both of them, very much, but it was like they had a lifetime sentence in jail, with each other

The original "Frankenstein" is pretty tragic.

"Carrie," of course (you can nitpick the film, but not Sissy Spacek's devastating performance).

"Psycho II," which takes a twist halfway through that makes you feel sorry for Norman Bates as he tries to live a sane, normal life.

R5 They just played The Vanishing on TCM. I recorded it but haven't watched yet. I saw it when it came out but not since. The ending has spooked me to this day!

Psycho: the ending nails it.

The Descent. It starts with a horribly sad scene. To take a break from the sadness in her life, the main character goes on a girls' weekend with a few friends. Do they go to the beach? No. They go caving. And horrible things happen. Then there is lots of thrilling terror. And then the end is just terribly sad...and scary.

I instantly thought of Cronenberg's The Fly as soon as I read the thread title. Only two replies in, and I see someone else has already mentioned it.

Probably the only horror film that's almost made me cry at the end.

"Bad Ronald" — a nerd, tormented by his peers, goes over the edge.

[quote]Peyton’s husband was a creepy molester whose tragic ending was his own fault. Peyton was clearly already a little touched before the stress of her husband’s suicide caused her to miscarry.

That doesn't exonerate Claire for what she did to the Mott family. Mrs. Mott would be expected to break under the circumstances, losing her husband and unborn child, especially knowing that the woman responsible was able to go on with a husband and child of her own. Claire didn't even bother or care to know what happened to Dr. Mott's wife.

If I watched it now I would probably laugh at how cheaply it was made, but back in the 70s, Race With the Devil scared the shit out of me. A cheapie, horror devil-worship film that starred Peter Fonda, Loretta Swit and Lara Parker ("Angelique" from Dark Shadows). It might be worth searching out.

Repulsion

Although not a classic horror by any means, Requiem for a Dream is a horror. Absolutely no one in the movie ends up ok. Horror of drug use, isolation, crime, age, socioeconomic level and double ended dildos. ... and it starts off so pretty

Any scene from Dark Shadows featuring Grayson Hall.

How about the fairly recent, Under The Skin - probably Scarlett Johansson’s best performance to date? Very dark, and with the perfect, tragic ending.

Isn’t there boners in that movie?

[quote]That doesn't exonerate Claire for what she did to the Mott family

What did she do other than report her doctor for sexually molesting her during an exam? The events that took place after that are all Dr. Mott’s fault.

I just watched The Vanishing on TCM as a result of this thread. Meh. Yeah, the ending is tragic and the beginning is terrific but...meh. With the reputation it has, I thought there were would be more there. There are stretches of the movie that are just leaden and lots of scenes that didn’t need to be included. It reminded me of When A Stranger Calls in that the beginning and end were good and the middle sucked.

And I was kind of expecting more bang for my buck with how it ended. It was like a later season Tales from the Crypt twist.

Anything M has ever “starred” in has been a tragic, horror film. I mean, have you SEEN The Hours????

^^Yes. It was wonderful. Have you seen Maxie?

The book was so much better than the movie, but I vote for The House Next Door.

Also, Pet Semetary and Ghost Story.

The film of Ghost Story is nothing like the book, which I love, but it is a superbly acted and photographed classic ghost story and very much a tragedy. The locations are beautiful and Alice Krige is by turns terrifying, lovely and moving as the wronged Alma Mobely.

The scene with the gradually filling bathtub must be one of the most underrated jump scares in cinematic history.

Another tragic movie was Fatal Attraction. Glenn Close was a victim who was used by MIchael Douglas and when she tried to prevent him from getting away with it, she ends being killed. The wife and child also suffer because of the husband's adultery. People who toy with someone's affection deserve retribution.

R57 that's not a horror film.

You could argue Fatal Attraction is a horror film. That reshot ending is like it's out of a Friday the 13th sequel.

Also, I consider it be both tragic and horror - the ending of Looking for Mr. Goodbar.

"The Haunting of Julia" with Mia Farrow is probably more sad than scary.

Fatal Attraction is not a tragedy. It’s about a homely woman who doesn’t know her place. It’s a slice of life, really.

THE SIXTH SENSE

THE OTHERS

CARNIVAL OF SOULS

NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD

THE DESCENT (original Aussie cut)

THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT and almost every, other found footage movie.

The French film Eyes Without A Face

You could say ALIENS if you consider that the Weyland-Yutani corp betrayed Ripley, Hicks and Newt by impregnating them with aliens before ALIEN 3 began.

But everybody hates ALIEN 3 and you have to see it to make ALIENS a tragedy.

Another vote for Cronenberg's remake of THE FLY, largely because it's a terrific love story. A lot of credit goes to Jeff Goldblum and Geena Davis for making it all so palpable and real. I sob like a baby at the ending.

Geena, crumpled at the end, is devastating.

The only movies on your list that are tragic are NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD and THE HAUNTING, r8.

There has to be an unintentional, self-defeat by the protagonist at the end. Shelley Duvall, Nancy Thompson, etc. survived as heroines and won because of their efforts.

MIDSOMMAR isn't a tragedy, r19. Florence Pugh becomes a queen and lives happily ever after. Much happier than being stuck with her loveless boyfriend.

The disabled boy wasn't the protagonist of THE CHANGELING, r23. George C. Scott was.

George C. Scott survives the ordeal heroically, while the disabled boy gets revenge on the people who contributed to his murder and cover-up.

All the good guys win, actually.

That "silly ending" is why LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFT is not a tragedy, r26.

The parents get bloody revenge and win. Every horror show has victims — there's not necessarily irony or self-sabotage in their defeat.

Truly horrifying and devastating in every sense of the word: Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father.

I was left speechless and dumbfounded for a few days afterwards.

Hereditary was tragic. A woman works her entire adult life to offer her own family members to a demon, and in death, she succeeds, destroying her daughter's family one person at a time.

Don't Look in the Basement

I always feel so bad for Sam in the end

Possession (1981) by Andrzej Żuławski is horrific, disturbing and tragic. One of Isabelle Adjani's greatest performances.

Let the Right One In/Let Me In

The lonely, bullied boy thinks he has found a friend in the vampire girl, but in the end he is just going to be another servant for her and have to do terrible things for the rest of his life to keep her alive.

Good one, r75.

The novel is amazing too.

Kuroneko, a Japanese horror movie from the 60s. The husband is away (he's a samurai) while his wipe is raped and killed and becomes a ghost, taking vengeance on men who walk through the forest at night.

*the wife becomes a ghost, not the samurai husband

Um, the Phantom of the Opera was the bad guy, r30. He was rightfully defeated.

How did you sympathize with him in any way? Just because he had a disfigured face?

Christine is the protagonist of that story. She and her friends survive and win.

r31 has nothing to do with this thread and the creature was not the bad guy in SHAPE OF WATER.

And yet Doug and half the members of the Carter family survive and win in both versions of the film, r33, killing the mutants with the help of one of their own family who knows the mutants were doing wrong.

It's a heroic triumph where the good protagonist Doug and his friends win and the bad guys are killed.

If every horror show with a victim is a tragedy, then every horror show is a tragedy.

PSYCHO is not a tragedy, WTF.

Sam subdues Norman Bates and gets him locked up. Bates is the villain, doing wrong. You really feel more sorry for him than his victims? And the lies he tells to cover up his murders?

Bates loses and justice is done in that film. Yes, it's kind of sad that some psychos are delusional. But it's not a tragedy if they were never doing right.

REQUIEM FOR A DREAM is not a horror movie.

It's just a psychedelic drama / tragedy about heroin use. Yes, it's sad and harrowing. But so are war movies and other dramas.

A Tale of Two Sisters.

It's such a sad film, and so engaging throughout. This scene scared the shit outta me.

The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kunt

Never Let Me Go. In honesty, I barely remember the movie, but the book is gutting.

[quote]That "silly ending" is why LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFT is not a tragedy, [R26].

What happens to those poor girls is tragic in and of itself.

Stranger by The Lake. Super eerie and incredibly hot love story.

Spanking Sessions with Yuval (1991), camp and frightening Israeli movie.

Another vote for The Fly -- I think of it as a romantic tragedy within the package of a horror film.

Also agree with the choices of Repulsion, Prom Night and Under the Skin.

Blow Out is a tragedy, but I wouldn't classify it as horror.

No one puts The Baby in the corner.

Cronenberg's, "The Fly" first came to mind. I would classify "Requiem for a Dream" as psychological horror. I suppose any iteration of, "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" and "Frankenstein" should be considered. "Magic", starring the excellent Anthony Hopkins is another tragic psychological horror film.

Although it's not considered a horror film, the original, Korean, "Old Boy" is. And also tragic. It deserved its Cannes win.

Hey anal retentive horror movie fan—policing everyone posting films that aren’t technically categorized as horror—can you give us a fucking break? There are films that have qualities of a horror film. Go nerd out on a Fangoria forum instead.

If you don’t cry “whyyyyyy?????!” to the Heavens at the denouement of MOON CHILD (2003, Zeze) then we can’t be friends. The climax is just desolate. Though I hate the final five minutes which sadly ruin what came before with sentimental cheese.

And yes, pedant Queens, technically it’s a tragi-romantic Yakuza movie with only moderate elements of supernatural fantasy horror - not a straight guro or horror picture. Well, it’s gay and pretty and tearful and bloody enough that ion even care.

The Lodge was incredibly fucked up. I guess it was a cautionary tale about revenge, but it just makes you feel shitty for the girl who is being gaslit and abused her whole life.

Also any Ari Aster movie is depressing as hell. Hereditary put me in a bad mood for about a week after I saw it.

I'm convinced that Ari Aster loves watching women get hysterical, scream, wail, and rent their clothes. I can get along without watching a 5 minute hysterical woman scene.

Jeepers Creepers. Pair siblings are terrorized by a cannibalistic monster. The creature really wants the brother. The sister tries to sacrifice herself to no avail.

Are there any good horror films featuring lesbians?

Whatever Happened to My Nut Loaf?

R95 I LOVED "The Lodge". I saw it twice in theaters. It was so atmospheric, grim, and unsettling. Riley Keough proved herself a legitimate talent to me in it. Her performance was nerve-shattering. It just came out today on Blu-ray and is also on Hulu. I'd recommend it to anyone who likes a dark psychological horror movie.

I've never thought about "Jeepers Creepers" as being tragic before R97, but you are right. It is a sad ending. The scene where the monster finally takes her brother and flies away with him like a vermin is quite depressing. I've always thought that film was well-acted and well-shot, and just an all around good monster movie. It's too bad that Victor Salva is a convicted pedophile, which puts a sour taste in my mouth.

Still of the Night

It's tragic that cunt Streep didn't get killed

(R99) I've been wanting to see The Lodge. I'm going to watch it tonight. Thank you.

I liked Midsommar, but the ending pissed me off. An annoying high-maintenance girl decides her boyfriend should die because she found a cult who worship her. And she’s the one we’re supposed to sympathize with? Please.

(R102) did you even see the beginning of the movie? Her sister and parents die in a murder suicide. If that doesn't mess you up, nothing will. She has nothing. But a jerk ass boyfriend that pitys her. She is too far gone to really realize what is happening.

I know you're going to say this is not exactly a horror film, but "The Skin I Live In" by Pedro Almovodar sure gave me the creeps. BTW, the female lead is a lesbian IRL.

If you've never seen it, you should.

Not R101 but I just watched The Lodge. I thought it was a really good movie. I hate those children though. What little brats.

Yeah but R103 but he doesn’t have to DIE for it. He’s sticking around while she’s still vulnerable and she still obviously needs it. He could’ve ditched her like a lot of other guys would. It’s weird how the movie shows zero empathy for him.

OP is the one who asked for horror films, not me.

REQUIEM FOR A DREAM is an art film drama.

When were you actually scared in that movie? Where was the suspense?

THE HUNGER is a classic, R98.

DRACULA’S DAUGHTER also has a surprisingly bold lesbian romance at the center that barely escaped the censors. Very impressive for 1938.

THE HAUNTING is one of the greatest horror movies ever made and it, too, has a surprisingly frank depiction of a lesbian who is not bad or derelict in any way.

The following article has a bunch of other suggestions I don’t recognize.

But I don’t consider JENNIFER’S BODY lesbian and I don’t consider BLACK SWAN, HEAVENLY CREATURES or MULLHOLLAND DRIVE to be horror (though I love them all!).

[quote] It's too bad that Victor Salva is a convicted pedophile, which puts a sour taste in my mouth.

At least you never tasted him after he eats asparagus!

[quote]R71 Truly horrifying and devastating in every sense of the word: “Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father.” I was left speechless and dumbfounded for a few days afterwards.

I watched that when there was nothing else remotely interesting to choose from, and started out thinking it was so sappy and lame.

Was blindsided by the second half.

I would always say Dear Zachary was the best movie I saw that I would never recommend to another person. It’s soul-shattering. I was horribly depressed for the next couple of days.

R99 Salva decided to suck off of the fugly 12 year old instead of hot 19 year old Sam Rockwell..dumb

r107, body horror. You don't need to be scared to be horrified. It's a bad simile, but like you're horrified looking at photos of the bodies in Auschwitz.

I watched 10 Rillington Place (1971) last night, it's currently available on Amazon Prime. The atmosphere of the film is genuinely disturbing and there are plenty of horrific moments in it, plus it's a real life tragedy.

I just watched The Lodge. It's pretty good and has a couple tragic moments. Alicia Silverstone like you've never seen her...although she doesn't have a lot of screen time.

R115, I was genuinely shocked in the first few minutes (you know what I'm referring to). Didn't see that coming. And I do find Richard Armitage very attractive. I don't feel that bad for those kids though.

None of the movies mentioned here is as tragic as Austrian horror movie, Good Night Mommy.

Good Night Mommy is unbelievably tragic and sad

Agree with OP about CARRIE, she was bullied and had no friends. Even at home CARRIE was bullied. Ultimately the movie is about bullying, harassment and how mean some kids can be. Yes, tragic. Stephen King said the character was based on a girl who was often bullied and laughed at in his high school. Evidently she only had two or three dresses.

Hereditary (unless you're the demon) and Midsommar (but I actually felt happy for the protagonist)! Can't wait for what Ari Aster has else in store.

Not horror films at all, but Park Chan-wook's vengeance trilogy all end on a somber note.

We Need to Talk About Kevin with Tilda Swinton and John C Reilly

[quote]I would always say Dear Zachary was the best movie I saw that I would never recommend to another person. It’s soul-shattering. I was horribly depressed for the next couple of days.

R111 That's how I felt about The Deer Hunter and Requiem for a Dream. I don't want to watch either ever again and would never recommend them.

Old Boy, the original.

Has anyone seen a psych-thriller with horror rising film called "Devoured"? The lead actress has a very sad fate with a crazy twist. It's a step up from the competition, I think.

I was going to watch 10 Rillington Place.

But then the trailer GAVE THE ENTIRE STORY AWAY.

R125 I'm laughing! It was a true story so how can you be surprised by the ending?

r125, I knew the true story before watching the film and was still devastated and deeply disturbed after watching it. At the very least, it's worth seeing for the masterful performances of Richard Attenborough and John Hurt, both of whom should've been Oscar-nominated.

R127 10 Rillington Place is horrifying. Knowing how it ends - because it's a true story - makes no difference. You are correct that Attenborough and Hurt were outstanding.

I'm not big on vampire movies. FRIGHT NIGHT, 30 DAYS OF NIGHT and the new Netflix DRACULA are some of the only ones I like.

But "The Wurdalak" sequence from Mario Bava's BLACK SABBATH is one of the best. It stars Boris Karloff as the vampire father of a Romanian family in the remote countryside of Transylvania who comes home to feat when they're snowed-in. It's very sad and atmospherically creepy at the same time — definitely tragic. It's short, as it's only one of three vignettes in BLACK SABBATH. But very well done from a horror legend. This is the movie that Ozzie Osbourne's metal band took their name from.

The definition of horror film is, " a film that seeks to elicit fear for entertainment purposes." The person who is stating that some horror films are not horror films is showing their ignorance. If a film is intended to scare the audience, whether it be from suspense or shock or gore, it's a horror film.

Good call, r129! You have a terrible creeping sense from the opening moments that things will end badly, but can’t tear yourself away. It’s like a nightmare unfolding. And the way the vampires exploit their family members’ love for them in order to get at them is horrific. It’s a short tale, and simple on the surface, but there’s a lot going on deeper down.

Well, horror is a genre with the purpose of killing or torturing someone involved and a purpose to scare.

It means much more to the public, critics and the industry than r130.

A rollercoaster “elicits fear for entertainment purposes.”

WALL-E “elicits fear for entertainment purposes.” So does INDIANA JONES and ALL THE PRESIDENT’S MEN.

But they’re not horror movies.

I beg to differ, r132.

Carrie is one that stood out to me. She is an interesting character because she was like a wounded animal who turns after being prodded too much. You feel sorry for her and at the same time, you understand why she lashed out, without condoning what she did or the innocents that got caught up in her rage.

So Miss Film Auteur, would you consider, "Se7en" or "Silence of the Lambs" just psychological thrillers? They are straight up horror to me.

The Killing of a Sacred Deer.

God, can't believe no one has mentioned this one yet.

R136, I attempted to watch like 10 minutes of that movie and it was just too weird for me. Would you recommend it?

[quote]The Killing of a Sacred Deer. God, can't believe no one has mentioned this one yet.

For me it was too comedic to be tragic. I viewed it as a dark comedy. Maybe if the characters themselves viewed it as a tragedy, I could feel the same but the family just seemed to be to easygoing about the whole affair.

The Others with Nicole Kidman. It's just like an old ghost story. But I found it very sad. It was the first movie that I actually liked Nicole Kidman in. The mother goes mad and kills her children. Most of the movie is them being in denial that they are dead. Last shot of them staring out the window then turning to ghosts. Made me cry. They are stuck in that house for eternity.

R139 I remember being impressed by the two child actors but their careers went no where, too ugly for Hollywood perhaps.

R137, it gets very, very weird. Definitely not everyone's cup of tea, and if you found the first ten minutes to be a chore, it certainly doesn't let up. There are several "what the fuck am I watching?" moments. But somehow, it's held together by the young, insanely creepy protagonist and Colin Farrell. And Alicia Silverstone has a brief, bizarre part.

I couldn't stop watching. As another poster mentioned, it has an uncomfortably dark comedic cadence barely audible beneath its surface.

There’s also the bizarre monologue that Colin Farrell gives about jerking off his father and the body hair modeling he does for the villain. Strange, strange movie.

SEVEN and SILENCE are horror.

SEVEN is a hooror-noir hybrid.

A Serbian Film, not only is this horror film fucked up to the core with an incest scene of a man fucking a baby, the ending is beyond tragic.

The Hour of the Wolf by Ingmar Bergman.

I second The Fly and Night of the Living dead too.

I heard about Serbian Film. There are some films I am never going to watch and that's one of them.

Irreversible was grotesque ....the only humanity in this movie is the tragedy of what happens to the female character who is the victim of a brutal rape. Other than that, I honestly had to fast forward it in parts and would never watch it or recommend it to anyone. I think Gasper Noe is a homophobe who portrays the gay lifestyle in a very grotesque and seedy way and makes the rapist a gay man too. Art house, my arse.

^^ Sorry, *would never watch it again*

Surprisingly, a Serbian Film is less graphic than say Hostel or other torture porn out of America, but its sexual nature, the premisse being of a guy who thinks he's going to make an art film and finds out he's shooting a snuff film with pedophilia and necrophilia and other grotesque things is what makes it hard for some people. The ending is very tragic, you feel very sorry for the protagonist.

I agree with everything you have to say about Gaspar Noé and would include here Lars von trier (though I do like some of his early works).

The Human Centipede is somehow ridiculous in its premise but I find it not only grotesque but tragic, if you get past the stupid idea i find the ending sad and terrifying as hell.

"Last House on Dead End Street" from 1977 is a deep cut, but it's a seriously fucked up movie about a ex-convict who gets financing to make a movie from a local film company, only to make a snuff film. There is a particularly awful scene where two women who are "actresses" in his movie lure a blind man into an abandoned building, where the ex-con strangles the man to death. In a later scene, a woman gets disemboweled on a table (while still alive) and is recurrently brought back to consciousness with smelling salts, and at the end, one of the gay film execs visits the building only to be forced to fellate a goat hoof and then get a drill bit shoved through his head.

It's very low-budget, but still manages to be unsettling and deeply disturbing IMO. The whole thing honestly looks like it could be video diaries from the Manson family. The murder of the blind man though is still the worst, and one of the most tragic, haunting things I've ever seen in a movie.

The film Jude (1996). Not a horror film, but utterly tragic and disturbing on multiple levels. Fantastic cast with Kate Winslet, Rachel Griffiths, and Christopher Ecclestone.

R147 Thank you for the summary. :-) Some press has said despite its disturbing nature it's well-made, however, I think I'll give it a miss anyway, lol. I guess I am just not so much of a fan of shock movies, or torture porn, call me a wuss if you like. I think Gasper Noé is one of those types of directors who makes movies for shock value and masquerades as 'arthouse'. I would agree about Lars Von trier, also and I also liked his early works.

Glitter with DL fav Mariah. Just like most of you, I haven’t seen it but I hear it’s BLEAK!

The Innocents. Is Deborah Kerr a pedophile or is she legitimately seeing ghosts? You decide. In all seriousness though, if you think The Others is good (it is), you should see The Innocents which is far better than any of the haunted house movies.

R122 I think I’m the only person on the planet whose reason for never finishing THE DEER HUNTER was boredom. My attention kept wandering and I just threw up my hands before the two hour mark. It was so fucking dull and moved at a glacial pace. I guess I missed the iconic gruelling parts with the jungle tortures and suchlike.

R154, I watched about 40 minutes and then gave up. After the wedding. I don't even know if I'd ever want to watch Heaven's Gate.

Candyman always struck me as a bit tragic. For one, you have Candyman's unfair fate just because he loved a white woman and you had Helen dying trying to prevent Candyman from taking his final sacrifice. The scene where the Cabrini Green residents crash her funeral always gets to me for some reason. I always wondered if they still thought Helen killed those people and kidnapped the baby or if they were there to honor her for defeating Candyman and passing the torch to her. It's a very interesting movie.

Also, Clive Barker but Hellraiser. Just because her husband is bad in the sack, a woman brings back his brother/her lover by killing a bunch of innocents and, in the end, she's murdered by the man she brought back to life. The moral - don't let good dick rule your life.

[quote] The moral - don't let good dick rule your life.

The perfect post-AIDS message.