Horror is one of my favorite genres of movies, and the genre is so broad that I feel there is a horror movie for everyone. However, in my opinion, some types of horror are simply more interesting than others. There are the classic creature-features, vampires, slashers, werewolves, witches, and ghosts. There are also the more modern environmental horror, political horror, apocalyptic, sci-fi, and zombie. These aren’t even all of them! Some of these subgenres are just ones that I could watch all day.
Haunted Houses
This is such a classic trope within horror. This subgenre is a little saturated with content, but there are so many interesting takes on it that there is always something new to see–From the classic “family moves into a haunted house” to “someone releases a ghost into their home” to “a witch cursing the house.” In general, I am a big fan of the more supernatural horror and this just hits the sweet spot.
Some of my favorite haunted house movies are: The Conjuring (can also fit into the next subgenre), The Amityville Horror, Paranormal Activity, and The Grudge.
Demons, Possessions/Exorcisms
Similar to Haunted Houses, this is another staple within the supernatural horror genre. Sometimes there is overlap between this subgenre and that of haunted houses, but some movies make the difference very clear. I feel that this subgenre executes the tension between characters very well, and that’s what puts me on the edge of my seat.
Some of my favorite possession/exorcism movies are: The Exorcism of Emily Rose, The Exorcist, The Evil Dead, and Ouija: Origin of Evil.
Slasher
This is another beloved subgenre of horror. It had a major boom that started in the 1970s that continued to the ‘90s. It’s where some real classic horror movies come from, and I love watching older slashers and seeing how they influenced the genre as a whole. It’s also one of the only subgenres where you can see the people behind (and in front of) the camera having fun. Some don’t take themselves too seriously, and others are literal commentary about the genre that the movie is partaking in. There is also so much variety in this subgenre, that I never run out of interesting movies whether they’re new or old.
Some of my favorite slasher movies are: Scream, The Cabin in the Woods, House of Wax, and Texas Chainsaw Massacre.
There are so many great horror subgenres, that it was honestly hard to choose my top three. Hopefully, this inspired you to check out some great movies in one (or more) of these classic subgenres. Happy watching!
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