# Recommend some obscure horror/thriller movies! **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 12, 2008, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-obscure-horror-thriller-movies/449085 "2008-05-12T21:31:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Cuckoorex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ad7895/32.png) [@Cuckoorex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cuckoorex)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2008, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-obscure-horror-thriller-movies/449085/1 "2008-05-12T21:31:08Z")
I’ve been wading through a bunch of Netflix horror and thriller movies in the “watch instantly” category lately…probably over half of them end up being unwatchable after about ten minutes, but there have been some halfway decent ones here and there. The types of horror/thriller movies I like tend to be (A) more of the creepy rather than the gory type, especially when it comes to psychological thrillers and ghost stories or (B) completely over-the-top B-movie gorefests with liberal doses of fake blood and boobs and ridiculous dialogue, or © trippy mindfucks; not quite something like _Holy Mountain_ or _Satyricon_ although I can take small doses of that kind of stuff. I’m thinking more like _Fight Club_ type stuff. Preferrably I’d like “Watch Instantly” suggestions, but I also have a queue and I’m not afraid to use it. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2008, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-obscure-horror-thriller-movies/449085/2 "2008-05-12T21:48:48Z")
Maybe it’s too traditional for you, but have you seen _The Changeling_, a ghost story starring George C. Scott? I never get tired of watching that one. One of my favorites is _Razorback_ – it’s artfully shot, a really pretty movie. Yeah, it’s about a giant wild pig. How about that creepy TV movie with Kim Darby? I think it’s called _Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark_. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2008, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-obscure-horror-thriller-movies/449085/3 "2008-05-13T00:33:23Z")
Thrillers: **Day of the Jackal The Flight of the Phoenix** (the original Jummy Stewart/Richard Ayttenborough version) \*\*Firefox The Odessa File Panic in Year Zero \*\* ---
**Author:** ![Moirai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/96bed5/32.png) [@Moirai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moirai)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2008, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-obscure-horror-thriller-movies/449085/4 "2008-05-13T00:35:23Z")
Horror as in truly horrifying? _Baxter_- it’s about the family dog. Kind of. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2008, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-obscure-horror-thriller-movies/449085/5 "2008-05-13T00:39:03Z")
**Cal** , O **Cal**. Please tell me you’re not actually _recommending_ someone watch _Firefox_. Please. ---
**Author:** ![Baldwin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baldwin/32/7264_2.png) [@Baldwin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baldwin)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2008, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-obscure-horror-thriller-movies/449085/6 "2008-05-13T00:51:06Z")
[QUOTE=AuntiePam] Maybe it’s too traditional for you, but have you seen _The Changeling_, a ghost story starring George C. Scott? I never get tired of watching that one. One of my favorites is _Razorback_ – it’s artfully shot, a really pretty movie. Yeah, it’s about a giant wild pig. How about that creepy TV movie with Kim Darby? I think it’s called _Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark_. [/QUOTE] All excellent suggestions, but Netflix only has _The Changeling_. (There are a lot of old tv-movies I remember that I wish they’d put out on DVD, like _Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark_.) If you’ve never seen the 1963 movie _The Haunting_, it definitely falls into the first category (pschological thriller/ghost story). I’d also recommend the excellent ghost story _The Uninvited_ (1944), but for some reason that’s not available. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Fight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/90ced4/32.png) [@Cat\_Fight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Fight)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2008, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-obscure-horror-thriller-movies/449085/7 "2008-05-13T01:10:13Z")
[Curdled](http://www.netflix.com/Movie/Curdled/60034047?lnkctr=srchrd-sr&strkid=1086734534_0_0) is more dark comedy but it’s lots of fun, totally underrated and is quite gory (it’s about a morbid woman who joins a crime scene clean-up crew and is obsessed with a serial killer). ---
**Author:** ![Love\_Rhombus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/love_rhombus/32/10694_2.png) [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2008, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-obscure-horror-thriller-movies/449085/8 "2008-05-13T02:27:33Z")
I liked\*\* Black Sheep\*\*. Also **Outpost** and **CHUD.** The commentary is hilarious. Oh, and **Return of the Living Dead**. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2008, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-obscure-horror-thriller-movies/449085/9 "2008-05-13T02:32:08Z")
**The Tenant**. Superb, especially if you’re familiar with **Rosemary’s Baby** (Roman Polanski directed both, and assumes you have, which is part of what makes it great). The final scene is chilling. ---
**Author:** ![Love\_Rhombus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/love_rhombus/32/10694_2.png) [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2008, 2:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-obscure-horror-thriller-movies/449085/10 "2008-05-13T02:41:23Z")
I’m sorry, I guess upon looking at this thread my selections are not that obscure. ---
**Author:** ![Long\_Time\_First\_Time](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ad7895/32.png) [@Long\_Time\_First\_Time](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Long_Time_First_Time)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2008, 3:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-obscure-horror-thriller-movies/449085/11 "2008-05-13T03:06:04Z")
I don’t know if this is available via Netflix, but [The Stepfather](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0094035/) is a great horror/psychological thriller movie. ---
**Author:** ![Cuckoorex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ad7895/32.png) [@Cuckoorex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cuckoorex)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2008, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-obscure-horror-thriller-movies/449085/12 "2008-05-13T04:18:00Z")
Some great suggestions so far, thanks! I am quite familiar with _The Haunting_ (one of the best EVER, IMO) and _The Changeling_ and _Rosemary’s Baby_ and even _Firefox_ (heh! Good old Clint) but I’ll be sure to check out some of the others that have been mentioned. ---
**Author:** ![Crocodiles\_And\_Boulevards](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ee7513/32.png) [@Crocodiles\_And\_Boulevards](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crocodiles_And_Boulevards)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2008, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-obscure-horror-thriller-movies/449085/13 "2008-05-13T04:21:49Z")
**A Tale of Two Sisters** is a great, creepy, very atmospheric Korean ghost story. Probably one of the best horror movies I’ve seen that isn’t one of those jump-out-and-scare-you types. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2008, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-obscure-horror-thriller-movies/449085/14 "2008-05-13T04:33:40Z")
[QUOTE=Long Time First Time] I don’t know if this is available via Netflix, but [The Stepfather](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0094035/) is a great horror/psychological thriller movie. [/QUOTE] I really wanted to see this movie, but Netflix doesn’t have it. ☹ Only the sequel. Sigh. Also seconding A Tale of Two Sisters–very creepy. ---
**Author:** ![Duck\_Duck\_Goose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/50afbb/32.png) [@Duck\_Duck\_Goose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duck_Duck_Goose)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2008, 4:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-obscure-horror-thriller-movies/449085/15 "2008-05-13T04:42:25Z")
I have a secret, quite irrational, warm spot in my heart for the Klaus Kinski “Venom” (1982), mainly because I enjoy watching him, and Oliver Reed, and Nicol Williamson, and having all three of them together in the same “snake on the loose” potboiler is just gravy. Then add Sarah Miles, and Susan George, and Sterling Hayden of all people. Plus, a special added bonus: Michael Gough! Not to mention a thoroughly unpleasant non-cute child actor, the kind with pasty skin and a runny nose–you’ll find yourself hoping the kidnappers (or the snake) off him … …although I must confess that having him die of the asthma would be what would make me happy. Every time they go through that “OMG! He needs his inhaler! Or he’ll DIEEEE!” crisis I found myself going, “Yesss!” Perfectly trashy and silly, the equivalent of one of those 300-page beach reads. I think it’s Leonard Maltin who says, “Half the cast looks drunk, and half the cast looks like it wishes it were.” Um, yeah. I videotaped it off TBS ages ago, probably oughta just buy it on DVD… ---
**Author:** ![Sefton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5daacb/32.png) [@Sefton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sefton)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2008, 4:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-obscure-horror-thriller-movies/449085/16 "2008-05-13T04:44:05Z")
An oldie - [City of the Dead](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0053719/) - scared the piss out of me when I saw it late one spooky evening. No blood or gore, just old-fashioned horror. ---
**Author:** ![Edward\_The\_Head](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ce73a5/32.png) [@Edward\_The\_Head](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Edward_The_Head)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2008, 1:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-obscure-horror-thriller-movies/449085/17 "2008-05-13T13:00:22Z")
There’s a movie called May, that I rented from recommendations here. It can’t be more then 5-6 years old or so It was very good, creepy, and not over the top horror, at least not with lots of blood and stuff. ---
**Author:** ![Cuckoorex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ad7895/32.png) [@Cuckoorex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cuckoorex)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2008, 1:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-obscure-horror-thriller-movies/449085/18 "2008-05-13T13:04:06Z")
[QUOTE=Crocodiles And Boulevards] **A Tale of Two Sisters** is a great, creepy, very atmospheric Korean ghost story. Probably one of the best horror movies I’ve seen that isn’t one of those jump-out-and-scare-you types. [/QUOTE] Yep, saw that one and loved it! To give some examples of others that I’ve enjoyed: I actually prefer the American remake _The Ring_ over _Ringu_. Hard to explain why, maybe it’s the language aspect or the setting or something being more familiar. Conversely, I thought _Ju-on_ was far better than the remake _The Grudge_. _The Shining_ has a permanent place in my personal pantheon. _Session 9_ is another favorite. _Below_ is an underrated ghost story, IMO. I’ve seen or will soon see most of Dario Argento’s ouvre. I love John Carpenter’s version of _The Thing_. _Stir of Echoes_ has a special place in my heart. I liked the freaky bits in _Event Horizon_. _Jacob’s Ladder_ is a classic. Among more recent titles I really liked _Mad Cow Girl_, _May_, and _The Manson Family._ I confess that I like flicks like _Last House on the Left_, _House on the Edge of the Park_, and _I spit on your grave_. Lately, I’ve been enjoying horror that goes a bit against convention and expectation; the two recent films based on Jack Ketchum books (_The Girl Next Door_ and _The Lost_) exemplify this; the people you think should save the day never do, and the resolution never seems to satisfy; you want the punishment to fit the crime, but as in real life that rarely works out as planned. Although not really in the horror genre, I loved _Pan’s Labyrinth_ and _No Country for Old Men_. My guilty pleasure is werewolf movies; _The Howling, American Werewolf in London, American Werewolf in Paris_ (I know! Cut me some slack!), _Dog Soldiers, Ginger Snaps_ (all of the series), even _Bad Moon_ (the book, _Thor_, is WAY more interesting) and \*Wolf \*all float my boat. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2008, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-obscure-horror-thriller-movies/449085/19 "2008-05-13T13:24:20Z")
> [@](#): > > Cal, O Cal. > > Please tell me you’re not actually recommending someone watch Firefox. Please. So sue me – I like it. The special effects are pretty impressive, even if you don’t like the technical errors. ---
**Author:** ![nofloyd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nofloyd/32/2870_2.png) [@nofloyd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nofloyd)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2008, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-obscure-horror-thriller-movies/449085/20 "2008-05-13T13:24:51Z")
[QUOTE=Baldwin] I’d also recommend the excellent ghost story _The Uninvited_ (1944), but for some reason that’s not available. [/QUOTE] I’ve been looking for this movie for some years now. Didn’t know the title but recognized it instantly. The Uninvited. One of my mother’s favorites. I remember it being seriously creepy. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-obscure-horror-thriller-movies/449085.md?page=2)