Suspiria And 4 Other Mind-Bending Horror Movies That Will Make You Question Reality
Forget the usual jump scares and prepare for complete insanity.
Psychological horror films do not rely on scare tactics to get the viewer's attention. They are more like nightmares, and traditional horror films are more like nightmare situations.
Questions of sanity, what is real, who can be trusted, what is the right choice, and what to do with the consequences are what make this genre so terrifying.
1. In the Mouth of Madness, 1994
Insurance agent John Trent must find the famous author Sutter Cane. His books have a strange effect on readers, making them aggressive and confusing their memories.
The agent creates a route that leads him to a town that is not marked on any map. It seems that not only the author himself lives there, but also all his characters.
John Carpenter's movie can be called the best adaptation of the books by H.P. Lovecraft. At the same time, the film is not based on any specific work – it is simply inspired by the crazy atmosphere of his stories.
2. Beyond the Black Rainbow, 2010
Once upon a time, scientist Mercurio Arboria founded an institute where science and the supernatural are mixed. Now the institute is run by his follower Barry.
He is holding Elena, who has telekinetic abilities, by force. But it seems that not everything is so simple with Barry himself.
Many know Panos Cosmatos from the horror film Mandy, which was Nicolas Cage's return to the big screen. The director began his career with a retro-futuristic film in which the feeling of madness goes hand in hand with pure fear.
3. Jacob's Ladder, 1990
In 1971, Jacob Singer was wounded in Vietnam. Four years later, he begins having waking nightmares. At the same time, everyone around him is convinced that Jacob is lying about his military past.
The man gradually loses his sense of reality and descends into an atmosphere of madness.
At first glance, Adrian Lyne's movie seems to be just another dramatic thriller about a man with PTSD. But the author made every effort to make the viewer feel the character's emotions. While watching, it is almost impossible to figure out what is really happening to Jacob and what is a figment of his imagination.
4. Skinamarink, 2022
Four-year-old Kevin was injured while sleepwalking. When he returns from the hospital, he wakes up in the middle of the night and notices that something very unusual is happening in his house.
Together with his sister, the boy watches as objects and even windows disappear. Something strange is also happening to his parents.
Kyle Edward Ball shot the movie with his own money in the house where he grew up. Skinamarink is based entirely on the so-called logic of sleep. The children seem to be in a nightmare, forcing the viewer to experience it with them.
5. Suspiria, 1977
Ballerina Suszy moves from the US to Germany to enroll in a prestigious dance school. On the night of her arrival, she is not allowed in for some reason, but she meets a running girl who warns the newcomer of the danger.
Suszy begins her studies, but soon realizes that something strange is happening at the school.
Dario Argento is a master of the giallo genre, a mixture of horror and thriller with a touch of eroticism. In the case of Suspiria, the director seasoned all this with unusual choreography, immersing the viewer in an almost ritualistic action.