5 Horror Movies Released 20 Years Ago That Will Make You Sleep With the Lights On
The new wave of horror films scares us with talk of trauma and mental health issues. And if you miss classic horror movies with dynamic plots and inventive jump scares, these five flicks are for you.
Horror fans not only watch the latest releases, but also those that have become classics over the years. Many of these films are still appreciated by viewers for their suspense, compelling storylines, and well-developed characters.
Here are some of the most notable horror films of the 2000s that will definitely scare even the seasoned viewers.
1. The Exorcism of Emily Rose, 2005
This movie owes much to the true story of Anneliese Michel. First diagnosed with temporal lobe epilepsy, then admitted to a psychiatric hospital, she soon claimed to be possessed by a demon.
Her condition worsened, she tore her clothes and called herself by several names, so the religious Anneliese soon insisted on the ritual herself.
Exorcists visited her house 67 times in 10 months, and on July 1, 1976, the girl was found dead. The ensuing trial soon raised the issue of attitudes toward exorcism in the legal field, and in 2005 a movie was made that tried to understand and explore the incident.
2. The Descent, 2005
A group of friends go on vacation to explore remote mountain caves. Everything goes according to plan until they stumble upon a mysterious grotto.
The enticing secrets of the subterranean world make them forget caution and find themselves deep underground, with no way back. Darkness, cold, hunger, desperation and fear will not be their only companions on this dangerous journey.
Neil Marshall's film can truly be called one of the kings of low-budget horror: the film paid for itself 16 times over and even won the Saturn Award for Best Horror Film in 2006.
3. The Ring, 2002
In the early 2000s, Hollywood was gripped by a fever of Japanese horror remakes, but few of them were truly worthy. Gore Verbinski's The Ring is an exception to the rule.
One of the movie's greatest strengths is its suspense build-up, which never lets up until the very end. Verbinski eschews cheap jump scares and gallons of fake blood; each murder of the TV girl is a mystery that she takes with her into a dark well.
It was this understatement that made The Ring the most attention-grabbing, forced the audience to make up their own minds, and ultimately scared them even more.
4. Dead Silence, 2007
Newlyweds Jamie and Lisa receive a package with no return address containing a ventriloquist's dummy. That same night, something brutally kills Lisa, and Jamie, the prime suspect, decides to investigate her mysterious death himself.
He returns to his hometown, where he sees his father for the first time in a long time and learns the details of a local legend – many years ago, a ventriloquist lived here and bequeathed to be buried with all her dummies.
The movie follows all the classic tropes of the 2000s with impulsive editing and jump scares, but at the same time it captivates with the design of the puppets, the mechanisms and the sound of an old children's song.
5. REC, 2007
Young journalist Angela is filming a story in a high-rise building. Unbeknownst to her, a deadly zombie virus has spread throughout the building, making it almost impossible to escape.
The Spanish pseudo-documentary horror is reminiscent of the video game Outlast: the main character ends up in an isolated room with monsters and villains and fights her way to freedom step by step.
Every few minutes, directors Jaume Balagueró and Paco Plaza add new challenges to Angela's path: these can be new bloodthirsty corpses, as well as other people.
