The aughts were quite the time for horror. From the nihilistic, the range of horror remakes that either impressed us or made our eyes roll, the gore, and the low-rise jeans, accompanied by a lot of tank tops. Not to mention disturbing horror films that many of us won’t soon forget. When you say the words “disturbing” or “disgusting” to general horror fans, they’ll often think about The Human Centipede (2009), rather than a New French Extremity gem. But what about the other disturbing horror films that aren’t mentioned often?

What a horror fan defines as disturbing is relatively subjective, but many of us can agree on specific films (and no, I won’t drop a specific film because we all know what it is). Though if you’re someone who tends to shuffle into the extreme horror side of things, you might be looking for different recommendations. Most of us know about I Spit on Your Grave, The Last House on the Left, Martyrs (2008), and other more notable films in the subgenre. But there are others from the 2000s that you could check out.

Heavily advise that you look up content warnings for all the films, just in case you’re unable to handle certain subject matter or imagery. Disturbing horror films aren’t for everyone, even if you are a big horror nerd. Be cautious and do your research on the following films, just in case. 

Deadgirl (2008)

For the love of everything gothic, don’t watch this if the idea of violating an undead woman is too much for you. Deadgirl follows two troubled teenage boys whose latest exploration leads them to a female zombie. Instead of reporting what they’ve found to an adult, they keep the body to violate as much as they please. It’s absolutely an extreme horror film, that you’ll either see the exploration of rape culture as well as toxic masculinity, or you’ll be too repulsed to notice the themes.

The fact of the matter is, Deadgirl isn’t a film to recommend to any horror-loving individual. It’s an extraordinarily hard watch, has a lot of problematic characters (the 2000s were rough with the phobias and isms), and the ending will leave you wanting to rightfully punch the air. Though if you can stomach it and want to watch the film for yourself, it absolutely earns its spot on the list. 

Dread (2009)

If you’re looking for an underrated adaptation of a short story by Clive Barker, look no further. Dread follows college students who are doing a school project about fear, only for one of them to take things too far. People diving into their biggest fears goes beyond being abandoned; the film gets quite heavy, and the trauma touched upon is intense. And this isn’t a film with a shiny happy ending either.

Dread doesn’t just look gritty, but you’ll feel like you need to take a shower right after you watch this film. The violence is bloody, the sequences don’t hold back, and that ending will punch you right in the gut. It might not be the most disturbing horror film you’ll ever watch, but that certainly does depend on your threshold. The trauma that some of the characters have endured might disturb you at the very least.

Hunger (2009)

The games that deranged people in horror love to play aren’t always about elaborate traps. Hunger follows five strangers who find themselves trapped in a deep well, and are forced to see how long they can go without eating. It’s an extremely grisly film because it does involve cannibalism, as well as how people might behave when pushed to their limits. The psychological aspects of the film are just as disturbing as anything else.

It’s one thing to be abducted by some random person, but to be forced to potentially cannibalize several strangers is another. Hunger is one of those horror films that’ll make you really think what you’d do if you were in that position. And it’s not a comfortable film to watch for that very reason.

Midnight Meat Train (2009)

If you can get past the CGI that hasn’t aged well at all, Midnight Meat Train might make for an alright watch one evening. Midnight Meat Train follows a photographer named Leon (Bradley Cooper), who desperately wants to solve the case of a serial killer, and finds there’s more going on than that. The film’ll leave you guessing until the very end. Not to mention, it gives its audience more than a few gross moments before any reveals.

Midnight Meat Train is another film based on a short story by Clive Barker; therefore, you’re in for gnarly visuals. You don’t have to read the short story to enjoy this film, either, which makes watching a less daunting task. As a whole, it’s very much your typical 2000s horror with a lot of color washing, bloody scenes, bad CGI, and grimy visuals that’ll make you wish the floors would get hosed down. It also doesn’t go exactly the way you might expect it to, so that’s a tiny bonus.  

Frontier(s) (2007)

If you want to see neo-Nazis get brutally destroyed, turn on this New French Extremity gem. Frontier(s) follows a group of folks who flee Paris and decide to stay in an inn, only to realize it is being run by a group of neo-Nazis. This isn’t a New French Extremity film that’s widely discussed in comparison to Inside (2007),  Martyrs (2008), or others. However, that should be more incentive to check it out.

There are more than a few scenes that’ll make you squirm, not to mention wish they had never stopped at that inn. Frontier(s) is, of course, filled to the brim with social commentary, especially about the rise of the far-right at the time in France. Just like most New French Extremity, it gets very violent, gory, taboo, and isn’t afraid to make its audience feel deeply hopeless. The ending doesn’t leave much hope for any survivors either, and it’s an effectively bleak and bloody experience.

Antichrist (2009)

For those who are squeamish about mutilation of any kind, you might want to sit this one out. Antichrist follows a couple whose loss of their child sends them to a cabin in the middle of nowhere, only for madness to unfold. It’s no exaggeration to say this film is quite controversial for a lot of folks, but if you aren’t worried about that, then you might enjoy this. OK, enjoy might be the wrong word choice here.

Antichrist is one of those extreme horror movies where looking up the content warnings is incredibly necessary. Don’t walk into this film with no knowledge about what you’re going to see. Once you’ve done that, you might be ready to actually watch the events unfold in this deeply divisive film from Lars von Trier. 

Categorized: Editorials