5 Non-Horror Films That Build Dread Better Than Any Official Monster Flicks
Did they traumatize you too?
If you're a fan of the horror genre, there must be a few titles you haven't checked out yet. But don't be too discouraged, because there are actually a lot of movies that aren't categorized as horror that build suspense, tension, and unease better than any jump-scary monster flick or slasher.
Here are five examples that have stayed with audiences for years. Let's see if you ever thought of them as horror.
Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971)
The original Willy Wonka adaptation is usually labeled as a fantasy, musical comedy, and children's movie. But if you look at it from an adult perspective, it is actually a G-rated version of Friday the 13th, where a group of kids fall into the clutches of a psychotic man and are knocked off one by one. The whole story makes you uncomfortable, and what's the deal with the creepy rowing rhyme?
Still not convinced? Take a look at the fan-cut horror trailer of the movie, which makes its nature very clear.
Uncut Gems (2019)
The Safdie brothers' film is billed as a crime thriller, but it is so immersive and unrelenting that many viewers were too anxious to even finish it. The film stars Adam Sandler as a Jewish-American jeweler with a severe gambling addiction. The plot revolves around a rare black opal, the obsession with which provides Sandler's character with an insane, high-octane, non-stop action-anxiety ride.
This and other projects by the Safdie brothers prove that they would be great in the horror genre. Hopefully one day we'll get to see their slasher or monster movie.
A Clockwork Orange (1971)
It's hard to believe, but Stanley Kubrick's classic film is not considered horror, even though it sends shivers down your spine in almost every scene. Malcolm McDowell's Alex, his gang of young antisocial delinquents and the surrounding cruelty they drown in is sickening to watch.
The film has been marked a 'dystopian crime'. And to be fair, dystopian fiction and film projects based on it are long overdue to be added to the horror genre. Nothing scares us more than ourselves and what we are capable of.
Requiem for a Dream (2000)
Easily the most horrific movie ever made actually premiered under the label of 'psychological drama.' Darren Aronofsky's story of people affected by drug addiction is nuanced, well-made, and life-altering. But no one in their right mind would voluntarily watch it a second time. Even the first viewing will give you nightmares for life.
Aronofsky is number one on the list of the greatest filmmakers whose projects we never rewatch.
Return to Oz (1985)
This is no joke. Billed as fun for the whole family, the movie is actually a traumatizing experience when you think about it. It begins with Dorothy being committed to a mental institution and then subjected to electroshock treatment. That scene alone chills us to the bone. Not to mention all the messed up stuff that happens in Oz.
A manic gang that are 'the wheelers', a headless princess who keeps children's heads, Nicol Williamson as the supremely intimidating Nome King. It's all fantastically creepy. Certainly not a story to show the kids at bedtime.