These are the horror movies that most people don’t seem to like. Whether it’s because of the quality, the unrealistic or obvious twist, or the generic plot and characters, audiences seemed unable to just sit back and enjoy these movies without overthinking. When I watch a movie my brain switches off, which means that I don’t sit and guess the ending or who the killer is, or how ridiculous and impossible the plot is. I didn’t even notice how bad the 2017 version of The Justice League looked until it was pointed out to me. I am apparently oblivious to the obvious, but that helps me find entertainment easier than most, which makes me less picky. There is only one thing that will determine whether or not I will enjoy something. Did it entertain me? Simple enough. That is why I enjoy horror that others don’t. Like the ones on this list. Strangely, I tend to dislike some of the most popular, mainly because of hype and hearing about the same movies over and over again (I hate repetition). I thought Hereditary was only okay, A Quiet Place didn’t do enough to hold my attention, and I have begun to re-evaluate whether or not I actually liked The Babadook.
I will include the links for each movie on justwatch, on which you can change the country to suit your location, so you can find out where to watch it.
Birdemic Shock and Terror (2010)
This movie is many things; poorly written, poorly filmed, poorly acted, has very low production values and terrible special effects. There is one thing that it isn’t, and that’s boring. There is something incredibly and indescribably charming about Birdemic. I feel like they tried, and I respect that. It also provided me with one of my favourite CinemaSins videos. A lot of people like The Room because of how bad it is. This is my The Room. Bonus points for it taking place in the Autumn. Let’s do it for Becky!
Where to watch: https://www.justwatch.com/uk/movie/birdemic-shock-and-terror
This is one of those movies where people tend to say things like “oh, I saw the twist coming a mile away”, or, “the ending was so obvious”. Unfortunately I went into the movie knowing the twist, like most of Shyamalan’s movies after The Sixth Sense. That was the last unspoiled movie of his for me. In spite of this, I still thought it was a good twist, possibly one of the best in Shyamalan’s filmography. It feels like the most possible and realistic. Like something out of a true crime story. Granted, it does have its flaws. Like why did the kids wait so long to peel the pancake batter off the camera? Like peeling glue off your fingers, it seems like it would be a very satisfying task, and something tells me it wouldn’t have taken that long to come off.
Where to watch: https://www.justwatch.com/uk/movie/the-visit-2015
I’m not sure if it’s the generic story or the ambiguous ending that people had a problem with, but it wasn’t well received. I’ll admit that a home invasion is more impactful when it’s your own home, but when you’re staying in someone else’s home, you gain that feeling of nowhere being safe. In horror, there is no safe place, that’s just a fact. Whether it’s a police station, hospital, or church, if something wants to get you, it probably will no matter where you are. I did like the ambiguity of the killer’s identity. Not all serial killers are caught or identified, and like Black Christmas, it’s more disturbing if they aren’t. There have been around 185,000 unsolved murders in the United States in the last 40 years, so clearly you can get away with murder.
Where to watch: https://www.justwatch.com/uk/movie/the-open-house
Another generic haunted house flick. I still enjoyed it as it felt like a return to form from Kevin Bacon. It may not be as good as 1999’s Stir of Echoes, but it felt like they made an entertaining enough movie. The ending may have been obvious to most, but for me personally, I like the double meaning of the title.
Where to watch: https://www.justwatch.com/uk/movie/you-should-have-left
The special effects may be a bit lacking and outdated by today’s standards, and a lot of people thought the ending was dumb, but I thought the use of the many dolls and the dark gothic aesthetic worked in its favour. From Donnie’s constant shaving, to the lore of Mary Shaw, this is a fairly decent watch if you want to go through Leigh Whannell and James Wan’s back catalogue. And in all fairness, it is better (and gorier) than a lot of the entries in the Conjuring Universe.
Where to watch: https://www.justwatch.com/uk/movie/dead-silence
I’m not entirely sure what people have against this movie, but most of the time when I do hear it talked about it’s usually about the very memorable opening. Apparently it went downhill after that. I guess it’s a tad generic, but most horror is. That’s why people watch them, and that’s why studios continue to make them. I like the cast, the eerie setting, the opening scene (obviously), as well as the flashback scene that shows more of the opening. Yes, some of the dialogue was cringey and some of the effects were sub-par, but overall I’ve always liked this movie. There aren’t many horror movies that take place on a ship, so I’ll take what I can get. I know Triangle exists but that’s more of a head scratcher rather than some mindless fun.
Where to watch: https://www.justwatch.com/uk/movie/ghost-ship
Still a better entry in The Conjuring Universe than Annabelle. The problem with the series is that due to their PG-13 ratings, the movie relies heavily on jump scares to make up for the lack of blood and gore. Now jump scares to me are cheap. The best way to sum it up is (a-la CinemaSins) “it’s like if a comedy movie tickled you to make you laugh”. Jumps don’t make a movie scary. It’s a cheap reaction. Now there were a lot of blah moments in this movie, and unfortunately the trailer ruined the best scare of the movie (Valak coming from the side as the nun walks down the corridor). Other than that, I thought it was a watchable enough addition to the franchise, like most of the movies.
Where to watch: https://www.justwatch.com/uk/movie/the-nun-2018
If nothing else, this movie sports a great ensemble cast that includes: Robert De Niro, Famke Janssen, Elizabeth Shue, Amy Irving, Dylan Baker, Robert John Burke, and Dakota Fanning. Quite a few horror alums here. I think the biggest problem people had was with the twist and the problems that came with it. I remember being surprised by it (shocker I know). It has a certain “traumatised child has to adjust to a new location” kind of charm that came from the mid-2000s, and Fanning was probably one of the best child stars of the time, and one of the most memorable of all time. I understand that incorporating a mental health issue in a horror movie to be used as a twist can be harmful and insulting, not only to people who suffer the same condition, but to audience members in general – like their intelligence is being called into question – especially when it’s tacked on as a “oh, by the way…” without real explanation. My understanding (through a bit of research) is that Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) is more commonly (apparently 90%) triggered by childhood abuse, as well as PTSD and medical procedures, among other things. An introverted adult is less likely to create a murderous personality to kill his wife because of DID. It may have worked better with a bit more explanation or background (not quite as lengthy as Psycho but in a similar vein), instead of just throwing it in as a surprise, which is both dangerous and a tad lazy.
Where to watch: https://www.justwatch.com/uk/movie/hide-and-seek
I spent the entire runtime thinking that Jennifer Lawrence’s Mother was living in a world of her own creation to escape some kind of horrific reality that began to seep through into the perfect world she’d imagined. Maybe she was living through a war-torn existence and while she was in hiding had retreated into her own head, creating a peaceful and happy life for herself. It was in fact a retelling of events from the bible, which thanks to FoundFlix, had to be explained to me. My only knowledge of the bible is from movies and TV shows, rather than having read it myself. Not to bring religion into this, but since it’s the main point of the movie, here I go. I was christened a protestant on my 1st birthday, but I wasn’t raised in a religious family, so I think it was more of a ‘it’s just what you do when you have a baby’ part of our British culture rather than a meaningful religious right of passage. I never grew up with any religious beliefs, and as I got older I came to realise that I am an atheist. To me, all that means is that I have no faith, but don’t judge others who do. There’s nothing more to it. I don’t belong to any groups, I don’t think I have any atheist friends (although I only have a small handful of those and religion doesn’t come up), and I don’t think I’m better or smarter than those who are religious. Live and let live. This is probably why I didn’t pick up on the biblical subtext, although I did feel a bit stupid for not realising it because it is obvious once you know. I thought it was really well done, with plenty of strong performances, and a lot of disturbing images. I may have limited knowledge of the bible, but I do know it can get pretty dark and hardcore in there. This movie took the same path and went for a sensory assault approach. I would watch it again. I also want to add that I do have a friend that was raised religious, and he saw Mother!, understood the subtext and said he probably wouldn’t watch it again.
Where to watch: https://www.justwatch.com/uk/movie/mother-2017
Surprise, surprise, another Shyamalan that people thought was stupid. Yes, there are many problems that are glossed over. To my knowledge even if you make an area a no fly zone, military planes don’t have these limitations and commercial planes can accidentally fly over them, too. My biggest problem is the worst and least convincing portrayal of a blind person I’ve ever seen in a movie or TV show. I did cover this in my review, and this is about why I actually like the movie, so I won’t go into it. The fall setting and the unnatural feel are why I like it, and even though it’s a bit silly, it’s still something I can sit through and not feel like I’ve wasted my time. I would like to see more Little Red Porcupine Hood cosplays at Comic Con, though.
Where to watch: https://www.justwatch.com/uk/movie/the-village
I think the biggest criticisms mainly come from the fans of the game series. I have never played a Silent Hill game, the only horror games I have played have been some Resident Evils (4, 5, & 6). I saw this in around 2007 and didn’t actually know it was based on a game. All I knew was that I enjoyed its spooky atmosphere, interesting effects, and creepy monsters. The size of Pyramid Head, and his massive blade, freaked me out, in the same way Resident Evil’s Nemesis does (hence why I haven’t played that particular game or finished 2 where you’re chased by that Mr. X character *shudder*). I can just about stomach the Executioners from RE5. Who doesn’t love the idea of Sean Bean surviving a horror movie? There are two others but I’m not going to spoil it by naming them.
Where to watch: https://www.justwatch.com/uk/movie/silent-hill
I swear this is the last one. The premise was good, the execution was not. People committing suicide in various disturbing ways because of toxins spread by plant life is quite a clever (and possible) plot. The dialogue and performances were just so weird and awkward that it is hard to see it as anything other than a joke. Why is this guy going on about hot dogs all the time, why is the P.E. teacher from Carrie calling it a lemon drink, and where did Shyamalan get the (almost) life-like robot of Zooey? So many questions, but such a blast to watch.
Where to watch: https://www.justwatch.com/uk/movie/the-happening
AKA: 50 Shades of J.Lo. Kind of like Fatal Attraction with a difference. It’s a divorced woman and a younger man who can’t take no for an answer. We know Jenny from the block isn’t the greatest actor in the world (despite her incredible turn as Selena in 1995), so it’s bound to be slightly off. It’s very cringey at times, particularly that sex scene. If we didn’t want to see Bennifer on the boat in that music video or turkey time in the early 2000s, why would you think we’d want to see this over a decade later? Despite this, I still thought it was a decent erotic thriller, reminiscent of those TV movies from the 90s and 00s that I have a strange penchant for.
Where to watch: https://www.justwatch.com/uk/movie/the-boy-next-door
Finally, we have this subversive gem. Is it perfect? No. Were people expecting a generic haunted doll movie? Yes. Were they surprised that it was in fact a man-child living in the walls instead? You betcha. It may have been full of cliches and cheap jump scares, but the pay off was kind of brilliant. It’s too bad the sequel didn’t stick with this and retconned the entire thing, making it a generic haunted doll movie. Shame.
Where to watch: https://www.justwatch.com/uk/movie/the-boy-2016
So these are the movies that I found some entertainment in, even though others couldn’t. I’m not trying to change people’s minds about liking the movies, I’m just sharing my own opinions. They all had their faults but they also had a few good moments, too.
Linsey Loves Horror 
There are some gems on there. Birdemic is one of them.
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