Billy O’Brien’s I Am Not a Serial Killer is a genre-bending gem. A slow-burn, snowy character study that mixes sociopathic tendencies with a truly monstrous mystery.

Rob Reiner’s Misery remains the gold standard for Stephen King adaptations. A suffocating, white-knuckle thriller anchored by Kathy Bates’ iconic, terrifying turn.

Robert Eggers’ The Witch is a stunning work of historical horror. A slow-burn, atmospheric masterpiece that explores religious paranoia and domestic collapse.

Joel Anderson’s Lake Mungo is one of the most effective mockumentaries ever made. A profoundly sad and deeply unsettling exploration of grief and hidden secrets.

Karyn Kusama’s The Invitation is a masterclass in psychological tension. A deliberate, slow-burn thriller that weaponises grief and culminates in an iconic ending.

André Øvredal delivers a masterclass in claustrophobic dread with The Autopsy of Jane Doe. A visceral, slow-burn horror that turns a medical procedural into a nightmare.

Michael Haneke’s Funny Games is a cold, clinical deconstruction of media violence. A nihilistic exercise in dread that wags its finger at the viewer.

Wake Wood is a gritty, atmospheric retelling of the classic cautionary tale. A Hammer Horror production that mixes pagan ritual with the visceral dread of grief.

V/H/S is a landmark in found footage history. A brutal, hyper-sexualised, and uneven anthology that launched a franchise and showcased the future of horror.

Exhibit A is a masterclass in domestic horror. A gritty, hyper-realistic found footage film from the UK that documents a family’s collapse with devastating authenticity.

Clive Barker’s Hellraiser is a dark, brooding, and transgressive masterpiece. A unique 80s horror that trades slasher clichés for a visceral study of desire and pain.

Henry Selick’s Coraline is a visual triumph and a perfect gateway horror. A dark, imaginative, and beautifully crafted tale that is as haunting as it is stunning.