10 Confusing Horror Movies You Need To Watch Twice To Understand
Puzzling scares that require multiple screenings.
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00:00 Two of the most enticing aspects of horror films are the simplicity of the storylines
00:04 and the immediacy of the scares.
00:06 More often than not, the genre excels at providing easily digestible plots surrounded by visceral
00:11 frights.
00:12 Of course, though, there are always exceptions to this rule, and some films require multiple
00:17 examinations to truly reveal all of their secrets, explanations, connections, and greater
00:22 meanings.
00:23 So if you want some films that are gonna flex your brain muscle, then I have got you covered.
00:28 I'm Amy from WhatCulture, and here are 10 Confusing Horror Movies You Need to Watch
00:32 Twice to Understand.
00:34 10.
00:35 Don't Look Now, 1973
00:37 The death of a child is the hardest thing a parent can endure, and this is something
00:41 explored in the harrowingly abstract 1973 masterpiece Don't Look Now.
00:46 It centers around John and Laura Baxter, a young couple who flee from England to Italy
00:50 to heal their minds and marriage after the accidental drowning of their young daughter,
00:54 Christine.
00:55 For the most part, this consists of John restoring an ancient church, whilst Julie spends her
00:59 time with a pair of elderly sisters, one of whom is blind and psychic.
01:04 While that may sound fairly straightforward, Don't Look Now is anything but.
01:08 In fact, it's full of odd behavior and dialogue from several characters, including the sisters,
01:13 that perpetually makes the Baxters and the audience feel uneasy.
01:16 There are also a few ambiguous visions and visual depictions spread throughout, as well
01:21 as a mysterious recurring figure in red who reminds John of Christine.
01:25 How all of these events are connected, inevitably leading to one of the most shocking and sudden
01:29 endings in horror history, is only made clear after at least two in-depth appraisals.
01:34 That, or, you know, you could just watch our 2019 video explanation.
01:38 9.
01:39 Possession, 1981
01:41 Long before polarizing auteurs like Ari Aster, Yorgos Lanthimos, and Darren Aronofsky began
01:46 simultaneously frustrating, confusing, and delighting their fans, there was Andrzej
01:51 Zalowski's violently impressionistic Possession.
01:54 Through the most reductive lens, the story chronicles the mental and physical breakdown
01:58 of Anna, as she wrestles with her concurrent roles as matriarch, adulteress, and independent
02:03 soul-searcher.
02:04 Caught in the crossfire are her husband Mark, her child Bob, and her new lover Heinrich.
02:09 Along the way, some of them even get doppelgangers.
02:12 Obviously, that's just scratching the surface of what Possession has in store, with the
02:16 director handling themes of sexual repression, unwanted parentage, and a host of other profound
02:21 yet perplexing concepts.
02:23 It's a cinematic journey unlike any other.
02:25 If you want just a taste of the cerebral anarchy that walks a razor's edge between madness
02:30 and genius that this movie is, just take a look at the infamous subway scene.
02:34 Undoubtedly, it's an experience that's as easy to love as it is to hate, with dozens
02:38 of layers to peel back upon a concentrated second go-round.
02:41 8.
02:42 Jacob's Ladder
02:43 Although the 1990s were ripe with other extraordinary psychological terrors, virtually none match
02:49 the poignant truths of Jacob's Ladder.
02:51 The film follows the titular Vietnam vet as he succumbs to mystifying hallucinations and
02:55 increased paranoia related to his prior tour of duty.
02:58 Despite being almost relentlessly nightmarish and surreal, which is why it helped influence
03:02 so many subsequent pop culture IPs such as the Silent Hill franchise, it's also a grounded
03:07 and biting commentary on the depictions and the lingering after-effects of war.
03:11 It's a stellar implementation of the unreliable narrator template, too, since spectators can't
03:16 help but get lost in Jacob's puzzlement as he searches to discover what's real, who's
03:20 trustworthy, and why it's all happening.
03:22 Led by a host of stellar performances, it's as emotional and compelling as it is unnerving
03:27 and fantastical.
03:28 Of course, the ultimate revelation recontextualizes and enhances everything you've witnessed.
03:33 Thus, a return trip is a definite requirement once your heart is ready for it.
03:37 On that note, though, just be sure to watch the original.
03:40 Don't bother with the 2019 remake.
03:43 7.
03:44 In the Mouth of Madness
03:45 Commonly considered John Carpenter's last great endeavor, The Mouth of Madness is a
03:49 forward-thinking slice of self-referential insanity.
03:52 It's also seen as the final installment of Carpenter's unofficial Apocalypse trilogy,
03:56 the other two being 1982's The Thing and 1987's Prince of Darkness.
04:01 The sheer grisliness and weirdness of its plot, in which an insurance investigator searches
04:06 for a missing horror writer by inexplicably entering the evil town from the writer's books.
04:11 The protagonist encounters plenty of macabre sights and sounds that fall in line not only
04:16 with Carpenter's previous projects, but sort of refer and direct us to those of Cronenberg
04:21 and Lynch, too.
04:22 That said, what makes In the Mouth of Madness truly rewatchable is how it scatters many
04:26 meta-observations and callbacks into the downward spiral of lucidity and logic.
04:31 Primarily, the film's horror writer, Sutter Kane, and his imaginary universe pay homage
04:36 to beloved Stephen King novels like Cujo and Children of the Corn.
04:39 By the end, the movie even offers a few delightfully sly winks at itself before investing in a
04:44 finale that's implications baffle nearly every first-time viewer.
04:48 6.
04:49 Antichrist, 2009
04:51 Like Don't Look Now, Antichrist centers on a married couple who relocate in an attempt
04:56 to reconnect after losing their child.
04:58 In typical Lars von Trier fashion, it's an even more graphically violent, explicitly
05:02 erotic, and thematically intangible statement.
05:06 Charlotte Gainsbourg and Willem Dafoe star as the couple in question.
05:09 Overcome with grief and fear, the couple retreat to the woods, where, over time, the woman
05:13 develops manic and destructive tendencies whilst the man becomes progressively domineering
05:18 yet helpless.
05:19 By the end, the pair indulge in numerous acts of sadomasochism, such as the very famous
05:23 genital mutilation scene, all while growing further apart as they witness startling allegorical
05:28 visions.
05:29 There are decomposing animals, a tree made out of entwined corpses, and an abundance
05:34 of other bafflingly unsettling imagery.
05:36 At the time, von Trier was suffering from severe depression, so it's only natural that
05:40 his downcast outlook permeates the proceedings.
05:43 Brutal, philosophical, and disturbing, Antichrist is not for the faint of heart, and it's unquestionably
05:49 impenetrable without repeated scrutiny.
05:52 5.
05:53 Triangle (2009)
05:54 The best twist endings in cinema go beyond lazily employed shock value.
05:58 Rather, they force audiences to reconsider everything they've just seen in order to comprehend
06:03 the inevitable conclusion.
06:04 What's even better is if these climaxes add new implications and layers for viewers to
06:08 digest when they hit the play button again.
06:10 Initially, Triangle seems like an intriguing and fun, yet fairly insubstantial merger of
06:15 the slasher and time travel subgenres, with protagonist Jess and friends getting stranded
06:20 on an abandoned ocean liner with a masked killer.
06:23 One by one, each person is slaughtered, only for multiple versions of them to reappear
06:27 and interact as the situation keeps resetting itself.
06:30 Only exasperated single mother Jess realizes that this is happening, which means that she
06:34 simultaneously operates as the main hero and principal villain.
06:38 For sure, it's a premise that keeps you guessing until the very end.
06:41 However, the true meaning of what's going on isn't revealed until the last few minutes,
06:44 and it's a game-changer.
06:46 So much so, in fact, that consequent voyages are rendered both structurally and emotionally
06:50 complex, with a haunting air of tragedy dampening each scene.
06:54 4.
06:55 The Babadook
06:56 Many of the greatest horror films bury deeply relevant and universal subject matter beneath
07:00 their blatant scares.
07:01 Jennifer Kent's directorial debut The Babadook is a superb example of this.
07:05 Ostensibly, it's about a widowed mother, Amelia, trying to cope with her unstable son, Sam,
07:10 following the death of her husband, Oscar.
07:12 Before long, she's terrorized by the namesake being, as she becomes increasingly irritable
07:17 and neglectful.
07:18 Eventually, the creature taunts Amelia with glimpses of Oscar before possessing her, and
07:22 from there she chases her son around the house with murderous intent, but is met with compassion
07:26 when her son embraces her, giving her the power to imprison her, torment her in the
07:30 basement, and feed it when necessary.
07:32 As a superficially threatening monster, The Babadook is certainly frightening, but its
07:36 weightier role as a metaphorical manifestation of Amelia's debilitating anguish and resentment,
07:41 which she finally learns to manage in a healthy way, makes return encounters far clearer and
07:46 more beautiful.
07:47 3.
07:48 Goodnight Mommy
07:49 Malevolent and untrustworthy kids are a staple of the style, and Goodnight Mommy demonstrates
07:54 that better than most.
07:55 In a nutshell, the film finds twin brothers Lucas and Elias becoming highly skeptical
07:59 of their mother, whose head is covered in bandages because she's just returned from
08:03 having cosmetic surgery.
08:04 They believe that the woman beneath the bandages isn't really their mother, and instead that
08:08 she's an imposter who's come to harm them.
08:10 Part of their newfound touchiness involves her lashing out at Elias and imposing strange
08:15 rules like keeping the blinds closed during the day.
08:17 In response, the boys do the logical thing and torture her so that she'll confess to
08:21 not being who she says she is, leading to an alarming conclusion that incorporates aspects
08:25 of several mental ailments.
08:27 Written and directed by Veronica Frangs and Severin Fiala, Goodnight Mommy is a pleasingly
08:32 warped tale that, like their latest venture, 2019's The Lodge, unveils darker repercussions
08:37 and clues with each new examination.
08:39 2.
08:40 The Wailing
08:41 South Korea has inarguably turned out some of the strongest horror experiences of the
08:45 last decade, but with The Wailing, writer-director Na Hong-jin may have crafted the best of
08:50 the bunch.
08:51 It's a combination of horror and crime thriller, diving into a family drama revolving around
08:56 demonic possession.
08:57 Long story short, a strange man shows up in a small village, and shortly thereafter, a
09:01 mysterious illness and murders start occurring, prompting a police officer to go and find
09:05 out how everything's linked before more residents, namely his daughter, become afflicted.
09:10 It's a fascinating and inventive take on the exorcism subgenre that's about much more than
09:14 just instant terror.
09:15 In other words, the film is as scary for its makeup effects and disconcerting audio as
09:19 it is for its glimpse into how faith, obsession, and doubt can tear apart a community.
09:24 Bursting with rich personalities, dense world-building, and consistently stunning revelations, it's
09:29 a multi-layered triumph whose full scope can only be appreciated upon multiple inspections.
09:34 1.
09:35 Mother
09:36 In Mother, there's so much going on that it's quite difficult to summarize the plot.
09:40 But put most simply, it follows a woman who has to watch powerlessly as her utopic life
09:45 is disrupted by dozens of strangers who venerate her husband beyond measure, and it delivers
09:50 a visual experience that's equal parts ghastly, cruel, pensive, and figurative.
09:55 Part of the terror comes from seeing Jennifer Lawrence's titular protagonist treated with
09:59 such effortless, mean-spirited, and violent disrespect.
10:02 We watch instances of self-immolation, infanticide, and mass murder, and literally everyone else
10:08 around her just seems to be cool with it.
10:10 By the end, audiences wholly adapt her sense of confusion and lack of urgency, unsure why
10:14 things happened as they did and what it all means.
10:17 The most overt thing about it is its biblical connotations.
10:20 That's made clear pretty quickly, like an uninvited couple being kicked out for stealing
10:24 something and one of their sons kills the other one, this all comes straight from the
10:28 Bible.
10:29 But when things start getting really crazy, it can be hard to keep up with and notice
10:32 every clever little visual element.
10:35 So to truly get the most out of this movie, watch it once to get a base understanding,
10:39 and then go back at least another two times to get the most.
10:43 And with that, we've reached the end of this list of 10 Confusing Horror Movies You Need
10:46 to Watch Twice to Understand.
10:48 What other movies didn't you understand on the first watch?
10:51 Let us know in the comments below.
10:53 And remember to check out WhatCulture.com for more lists and articles like this every
10:57 single day.
10:58 As always, I've been Amy from WhatCulture, and I'll catch you next time.
11:01 (upbeat music)