annashay 
Horror has fascinated us moviegoers for decades now. Perhaps since the silent age, it’s the one genre that’s consistently grown stronger and more significant in the entertainment world, and some argue it’s only gotten bigger in the 21st century. In a new age of technologies, styles, and subgenres, horror in the twenty-first century has seen some considerable classics. Many, though, came from the 2010s.
The 2010s were ten of the most remarkable years for horror this century so far, a time associated with terrifying greatness. From Oscar-winners to box-office smash juggernauts, horror has thrived on its ability to produce some truly remarkable standouts this decade. This was a time for horror lovers and for them to witness amazing stories across all horror subgenres, from found footage to body horror. In honor of what the 2010s achieved for the genre, these are the ten greatest movies in the most recognizable subgenre of horror during this time.
Body Horror: ‘The Skin I Live In’ (2011)
Body horror has been an essential part of the horror genre since classics like The Fly, Re-Animator, Videodrome, and John Carpenter‘s The Thing truly popularized it in the 1980s. Now in the 2010s, this subgenre gave some skin-crawling highlights, the best of which was The Skin I Live In, a Spanish horror drama starring Antonio Banderas and Elena Anaya. It centers around a brilliant plastic surgeon who creates a new form of prosthetic skin by testing it out on a mysterious woman he has captive in his home.
Though not as grotesque or terrifying as some other notable body horror films, The Skin I Live In is a compelling mix of horror, drama, and romance, all combined into one compellingly told and acted story. It’s very much a character-driven story that explores more of the themes of grief, revenge, and identity issues. But that’s not to say it isn’t scary, as there’s still plenty of disturbing surgical scenes, some violence, and one of the most unnerving twists in modern horror. It truly needs to be experienced as it’s a modern masterpiece that keeps you invested from beginning to end.
Comedy: ‘What We Do in the Shadows’ (2014)
Though they’re polar opposites, horror and comedy have blended incredibly well throughout cinema history. Take your pick from the many iconic examples, like Evil Dead II, Shaun of the Dead, and Tucker and Dale vs. Evil. The 2010s saw a plethora of these movies, but the best, arguably, has to be the mockumentary vampire film What We Do in the Shadows.
Directed by and starring Oscar-winning Taika Waititi and Jemaine Clement, it follows four highly dysfunctional and out-of-touch vampires as they live out their boring existence as flatmates in New Zealand. Comedy ensues as the audience sees these bumbling bloodsuckers struggle to fit into the modern world. It brilliantly pokes fun at the vampire genre and its tropes while falling in love with its charm and hilarious characters.
Found footage movies were either hit or miss going into the 2010s, but they have still been a domineering force at the box office ever since 2007’s Paranormal Activity gave a significant boost to their popularity. But the start of the decade saw perhaps its greatest standout, Troll Hunter, a Norwegian dark fantasy film by director André Øvredal. It sees a college film crew as they head out into the countryside to document a series of strange bear deaths, but run into a mysterious poacher who hunts mythical trolls.
Thrilling, dark, and oddly funny, Troll Hunter is quite an exciting and unique entry to the subgenre. Like many other modern classics, time has only improved its reputation, and now it’s considered one of the better entries of this century. Troll Hunter was well-received by critics and mostly did well at the box office, but it has garnered more followers in the years since its release.
Monster: ‘The Babadook’ (2014)
No cinematic decade is complete without mentioning a solid monster movie or two. And really, the 2010s were stacked with terrifying tales of creatures going bump in the night, like It Follows and Andy Muschietti‘s It. But this next monster film isn’t just the scariest of its subgenre; it often takes the crown as the most unsettling horror movie of the decade.
Directed by Jennifer Kent, 2014’s The Babadook is a monster movie unlike anything else, a tense, elevated horror that follows a stressed-out widowed mother of a problem child as she struggles to defend her home when a sinister entity, manifested by the grief of her late husband, threatens to take her child. There’s a lingering scene where something terrible awaits the mother and son at any moment, as the sinister creature, The Babadook, can terrorize them anywhere at any time. It’s an anxiety-inducer that keeps you on the edge of your seat with its mounting suspense and very few but well-placed jumpscares.
Psychological: ‘Get Out’ (2017)
Psychological horror provides the kind of horror that comes from within. One of the oldest subgenres today, it’s kept blowing us away with mind-bending tales that have provided unforgettable dread. The 2010s saw no shortage of these types of films; many just kept getting more eerie each year. But truly, nothing was quite like 2017’s Get Out.
The twisted dark comedy by Jordan Peele, Get Out, follows an African American photographer whose seemingly normal trip to meet his wealthy white girlfriend’s family takes an unexpected turn as the family slowly reveals sinister plans for him. It’s a bizarre, unpredictable thriller where anything could happen. It’s Peele’s skilled camera work and creatively original story that make this a one for the books, especially since it earned Peele the rare Best Original Screenplay Academy Award for a horror movie.
Science Fiction: ‘Under the Skin’ (2013)
The science fiction horror realm has endless creative and constant possibilities. 2013’s Under the Skin best describes this, as it’s one of the decade’s most uniquely unsettling and compelling standouts. Scarlett Johansson gives perhaps the most captivating performance of her career so far as a mysterious extraterrestrial in human disguise as she roams the Scottish countryside in search of lonely male victims.
Boosted with powerful, thought-provoking themes and flawless visuals, Under the Skin is barely over ten years old now and is already a contender to be a classic. It’s so stunning and thematic, but also disturbing and at times intense, as at its center is a tale of a monster luring people to their grisly deaths. However, everything is so beautifully presented, bolstered by a brilliant performance, making it one of the 2010s’ most defining horror films.
Slasher: ‘You’re Next’ (2011)
Ever since Wes Craven‘s Scream brought the slasher subgenre back from the brink of obscurity in the late ’90s, we’ve seen an age of compelling slasher terror. It’s continued to grow these last two decades, and fans in the 2010s have become pleased with a wide array of newer entries. The greatest from this time is considered a game-changer for how it flips the slasher script. 2011’s You’re Next is an action-packed horror thriller that follows a young woman as she turns the tables against a trio of armed killers sent to crash her boyfriend’s family party.
This slasher is spectacularly brutal, intense, and full of thrilling action. Not to mention, it features one of modern horror’s most capable final girls with Erin (Sharni Vinson), who breaks many typical horror clichés to be such a resilient and badass protagonist. You’re Next is a remarkable addition to the subgenre and how it subverted its tropes and predictable storytelling, a lot like how Scream became legendary. It’s certainly for fans of slashers and will continue to leave a positive impact on horror.
Splatter: ‘Terrifier’ (2018)
It seems like each new decade sees horror ramping things up with its use of on-screen violence. It’s no wonder splatter movies in the 2010s were particularly more noticeable, as things were just getting bloodier and gorier with each new year. But the crown for goriest this decade goes to, honestly, one of the most shocking, brutal, and spectacularly bloody movies not just of the 2010s but of all time: Damien Leone‘s Terrifier.
A film that just wants to be as appallingly gory and disgusting as possible, Terrifier has become a standout for how bonkers and over the top its violence gets. Though it is divisive and is certainly not for everyone, it deserves appreciation for not holding anything back as its iconic antagonist, Art the Clown (David Howard Thorton), goes from horrific, bloody murder to the next. There were no limits to how hardcore this cult classic could get, which is why its slow success has spawned one of the best horror franchises in recent memory.
Supernatural: ‘Hereditary’ (2018)
Stunning the horror community with one monumentally eerie masterpiece near the end of the decade, 2018’s Hereditary was made to help end the 2010s with one major win for the supernatural subgenre. The nightmarish creation of rising prominent filmmaker Ari Aster, Hereditary is a breath-taker that never stops for a second to leave you absolutely shivering in your seats.
Starring Toni Collette in a commanding lead performance, it tells of a grieving family spiraling into madness and heartbreaking tragedies when they’re targeted by a mysterious pagan cult. Whether it’s Collette’s criminally snubbed and Oscar-worthy acting or Aster’s tightly paced story and mounting suspense, Hereditary is not only the 2010s’ most frightening standout, it’s on par with some of the scariest films in movie history. It gave supernatural films tremendous credibility this decade, and acclaim has only gotten stronger.
Zombie: ‘Train to Busan’ (2016)
Zombies are everywhere these days, as they’ve been present in cinema since the days when George A. Romero created Night of the Living Dead. The 21st century has seen a significant boost not only in their popularity but in their appearances, as it seems we get one of these types of films every year now. The 2010s have a wide selection of hits, but truly nothing can top 2016’s Train to Busan.
Filled with nonstop action and a fast-paced story that feels like an unending chase, Train to Busan is one of the most pulse-pounding and intense zombie films ever. It follows scared survivors aboard a bullet train bound for Busan, South Korea, as they battle hordes of aggressive zombies and even each other to make it safely. Not all the characters make it, and it’s a stressful race to the end as we watch most of them, some of whom we come to love, die in tragic ways. Train to Busan really stands out for always keeping the viewers thrilled and invested in its characters, which some others in its subgenre fail to achieve.
