Although they may not be for everyone, there are countless reasons to lovehorrormovies, and some particularly twisted horror movies deserve more than one watch. The entire genre is dedicated to thrilling their audiences by giving them the frights they crave. Whether they use strange creatures from other worlds, unsettling methods ofdark psychological horror, or something in between, tons of horror movies have consistently scared their viewers over the years. Unfortunately, there is one major downside to many films that fall within this unique genre.
Because horror movies often rely on suspense and the element of surprise,many of them are sadly not as effective the second time around.Even some of thebest horror movieslose their punch when the audience knows what is coming. However, there are a handful of outstanding films that actually get even better upon a rewatch. Thesehorror movies not only feature shocking twists, but carefully foreshadow them throughout the film. Thanks to their subtle clues that the audience likely missed the first time, these horror movies need to be seen twice to get the full experience.
Hereditary
Cast
The feature film debut of writer-director Ari Aster, Hereditary tells the story of the unwittingly cursed Graham family. Annie Graham (Toni Collette) lives with her husband Steve (Gabriel Byrne) and their children Peter (Alex Wolff) and Charlie (Milly Shapiro). After the death of Annie’s mother, the family is beset by disaster and stalked by a supernatural entity that dredges up a past that Annie had spent her life trying to overlook.
Ari Aster immediately established himself as a force to be reckoned with in the world of horror with his 2018 feature film debut,Hereditary. This acclaimed psychological horror film from A24 follows a family being tormented by an evil, supernatural force, following a series of gruesome tragedies. The haunting film is guaranteed to stay in the minds of its viewers for long after the credits roll, thanks to its chilling story and disturbing visuals.
Hereditaryis packed with hidden clues that something sinister may be at play.
In case Toni Collette, whoseperformance in the horror movie was one of the best of her career, wasn’t enough to draw viewers back for a second viewing,Hereditaryincludes numerous elements that even the most attentive audiences were bound to miss the first time around.Ranging all the way from demonic symbols appearing on telephone poles to shadowy figures lurking in the background,Hereditaryis packed with hidden clues that something sinister may be at play.
Get Out
Jordan Peele made his directorial Horror debut with Get Out, a terrifying Psychological Horror film starring Daniel Kaluuya. In the 2017 release, Chris Washington heads to Upstate New York to meet the family of his girlfriend, Rose. What follows is a horrifying ordeal for the anxious photographer.
In 2017, Jordan Peele blew audiences away with his seamless transition from comedy to horror withthe twistyGet Out, his debut feature film as a writer and director. This Oscar-winning psychological horror movie stars Daniel Kaluuya as Chris, a Black photographer who begins witnessing increasingly disturbing events while visiting the family of his white girlfriend. The film impressively functions not only as an effective horror movie, but as a gripping commentary on race in modern-day America.
What makesGet Outeven better is the way it feels even more complex upon a rewatch.When the dark truth is known about Chris’s girlfriend and her family, so many of the interactions between characters in the first half of the movie can be completely reinterpreted. This is especially true of the early scene in which Chris interacts with a police officer after hitting a deer on the road. When the audience understands what is really going on, the motivations of each character in the scene become entirely different, making the film fascinating all over again.
It Follows
It Follows is a horror-thriller film released in 2014 and follows a college student named Jay who is terrorized by a specter of a woman that follows her everywhere she goes. When Jay has sex with her new boyfriend, he ties her up and reveals that this mysterious woman will now haunt her until she passes it on to another or is killed by her. Now haunted by a woman that only she and those once afflicted by her can see, Jay will attempt to survive and find away to break the curse.
In terms of modern horror movies,It Followscertainly has one of the more unique concepts.The plot of this unusual, although highly acclaimed film is driven forward by a mysterious entity which perpetually follows its target while moving at a slow, walking pace. The person being followed can only redirect the entity to a different target by having a sexual encounter with another person.It Followswas immediately hailed as a modern classic, receiving ample praise for its surprisingly complex commentary.
While its creative story and powerful message surely make the film worthy of a rewatch on its own, the clever foreshadowing in the beginning makesIt Followseven more enjoyable the second time.The film begins with a brief scene of three characters playing the classic card game, Old Maid;a game all about passing the titular card off to the other players, with the loser being whoever ends up being stuck with it at the end. Anyone rewatching the film will realize that these are essentially the same rules that apply to the deadly entity terrorizing the main characters.
Saw
Saw is the first installment in the horror franchise directed by James Wan. Released in 2004, the film follows two men who awake shackled in a derelict bathroom, discovering they are part of a sadistic game orchestrated by the enigmatic Jigsaw, requiring them to follow cryptic instructions to survive.
The bloody horror movie,Saw, quickly became one of the most iconic horror films of the 21st century, inspiring a long line of sequels and cementing itself in the minds of viewers thanks to its shocking twist ending.The film is centered around the disturbing “games” designed by the notorious Jigsaw Killer, who uses them as a sadistic means of torturing and killing his victims. Audiences were thoroughly caught off-guard by the final reveal that the mastermind behind the traps was actually the “dead body” on the floor in the middle of the main room all along.
Saw Movie Series: The Complete Guide & Jigsaw Timeline
Saw has one of the more convoluted timelines in horror movie history. From flashbacks to plot twists, this is the place to understand it all.
The major twist inSawmay have come as a huge surprise, but, when watching the film again, it becomes clear that the filmmakers were hinting at it all along. For example, when John Kramer is first shown as a patient in the hospital, eagle-eyed viewers may notice that there are sketches of the rough designs for some of the deadly traps on the desk beside him, hinting to his true identity as the Jigsaw Killer.Minor details like this help establishSawas a film that must be seen multiple times to get the full effect.
Final Destination
Final Destination follows a teenager who experiences a premonition of a fatal plane crash. After preventing the disaster, he and his friends are pursued by a malevolent force seeking to reclaim the unintended survivors. Released in 2000, the film explores themes of fate and mortality.
TheFinal Destinationfranchise is known for the creatively dark ways it kills off its characters, but an underappreciated element of the series (particularly the first film) is how carefully each one of the deaths is foreshadowed.The first installment in the franchise follows a very straightforward plot: a group of high school students (and one of their teachers) manage to evade death and then proceed to be picked off one by one in increasingly shocking ways.
What keepsFinal Destinationinteresting time and time again is the way the opening sequence subtly lays out how all the deaths will occur.
The first act of the film is riddled with hidden clues about the gruesome nature of each character’s death, with something new bound to be discovered each time a person watches the movie. The clever, consistent use of foreshadowing encourages viewers to keep their eyes peeled, as they never know what tiny details may prove to be significant later on.
Shaun of the Dead
From director Edgar Wright, Shaun of the Dead stars Simon Pegg as Shaun, an ambitionless slacker who one day finds his world overrun by zombies. From a script by Wright and Pegg, Shaun of the Dead injects comedy into a typically horror-focused subgenre as Shaun and his lazy friend Ed (Nick Frost) attempt to rescue Shaun’s estranged girlfriend and make it through the apocalypse unscathed.
Theutterly quotableShaun of the Deadmay be just as much of a comedy as it is a horror movie, but that doesn’t stop the film from using its dialogue to cleverly foreshadow various major plot points.Directed by Edgar Wright, the film follows an underperforming salesperson named Shaun as he desperately tries to save himself and his loved ones from a sudden zombie apocalypse. The film effectively functions as a comedic tribute to the entire subgenre of zombie horror movies.
Like most of Wright’s films,Shaun of the Deadmust be watched multiple times in order to be fully appreciated.Every bit of dialogue is meticulously planned,with practically every line in the first act managing to come back with a whole new meaning once the zombies have begun attacking later in the film. Even the most seemingly insignificant interactions contain some form of foreshadowing about the fate of the characters.Shaun of the Deadalways offers something new to be discovered, no matter how many times the film is seen.
Scream
1996’s Scream follows a teenage girl who is targeted by a masked killer a year after her mother’s murder who uses horror movies as a deadly game against her and her friends.
Wes Craven’s 1996 slasher film,Scream, blew audiences away, not only sparking a long line of sequels, but helping to bring new life to the genre as a whole. The film tells the story of a group of high school students being terrorized by a mysterious serial killer one year after another gruesome tragedy struck their small town.Screamgained notoriety for many aspects of the creative story, including its twist ending, which revealed that there were actually two killers, using identical costumes to pose as one person.
Scream 1996’s End Credits Included A Hilariously Petty Message From Wes Craven
Wes Craven was a consummate professional so it’s understandable it was a lack of professionalism that set him off during the filming of Scream.
Screambecame hugely popular with audiences thanks to its intelligent, humorous commentary on various tropes of the horror genre, while also serving as an exciting horror film on its own by intentionally buying into some of these ideas.Where the film really showcases its intelligence is in its attention to detail, consistently leaving subtle clues about the twist ending that are bound to go over viewers' heads the first time around. WhileScreamhas been a fan-favorite for decades, it should be seen multiple times to fully appreciate its cleverness.
Psycho
In this now-iconic Alfred Hitchcock thriller, a secretary embezzles forty thousand dollars from her employer’s client, goes on the run, and checks into a remote motel. The place is run by a young man under the domination of his mother – and he soon turns out to be far more threatening than he appeared at first.
The 1960 horror film,Psycho, is easily among the most prominent classic horror movies of all time. Directed by Alfred Hitchcock, the iconic film highlights the dark, mysterious events unfolding at the Bates Motel, all at the hands of its shady proprietor, Norman Bates. From the moment Norman is introduced, the audience can tell that something is not right with him, though it is difficult to pinpoint what exactly is going on. It is ultimately revealed that Norman killed his own mother, and has assimilated her personality alongside his own, driving him to commit gruesome acts of violence.
On first viewing, audiences may be puzzled as to how exactly Norman managed to pull off these heinous crimes, all while seeming to consistently interact with his “sick” mother.This is why it is essential to seePsychoa second time. When watching the film again, it becomes clear that Norman’s mother is no longer alive, and that all of “her” actions were actually performed by Norman while being driven by her personality. This forces the audience to reconsider everything they saw the first time around.
The Cabin in the Woods
The Cabin in the Woods strictly follows the traditional slasher movie dynamic: a group of teens heads to a remote location for the weekend only to find themselves beset by monsters. However, what they don’t know is that the inevitable horrors they will face have all been arranged by a mysterious team watching from a facility deep underground.
What would happen if every monster shown in the horror genre was gathered and held together in a secret facility used to annually sacrifice innocent people?This haunting question forms the foundation ofThe Cabin in the Woods, the feature directorial debut by Drew Goddard. The film follows a group of college students who gather to spend a night in the titular cabin, only to be terrorized when various demonic creatures are unleashed upon them by the operators of the underground facility.
Because of the exciting and frenetic nature of these scenes, it is impossible to notice every little detail after seeing the film just once.
The Cabin in the Woodsdeserves to be seen multiple times, not only because of its creative, unexpected twist, but because of the sheer overwhelming nature of the scenes involving the various creatures. Because of the exciting and frenetic nature of these scenes, it is impossible to notice every little detail after seeing the film just once.Viewers are bound to notice another classic horror creature each time they watch the film, allowing for an exciting new experience with every subsequent viewing.
The Wicker Man
The Wicker Man is a horror film released in 1973 and follows Police Sergeant Neil Howie, who heads to an island on the coast of Scottland in search of a missing girl. Howie discovers that the disappearance is related to a pagan society that conflicts with his Christian values - but his continued search leads him to the heart of something sinister.
The Wicker Manmay rely heavily on suspense, but, impressively, that suspense is not diminished even when the grim reality of the ending is already known.This disturbing film follows Sergeant Neil Howie as he investigates a remote island in search of a missing girl. It is immediately clear that something is not quite right on the island, with all of its inhabitants acting in strange, discomforting ways. The final reveal that Howie was brought there to be a human sacrifice provides a perfectly haunting ending for the creepy film.
Even when the ending is known,The Wicker Maneffectively captures a chilling atmosphere that will resonate with viewers for a long time after the film ends. The disturbing actions of the island’s inhabitants continue to achieve their massively unsettling effect, and, if anything, actually feel ever more creepy when the viewer knows exactly what all the tension is building toward.The Wicker Manis a rare film that manages to maintain a high level of suspense upon a rewatch.
