Summary
Thebody horror movie genreis alive and well in recent years and is still truly for the brave and ultimatehorror moviefanatics. This specific sub-genre of horror is defined as grotesque mutilations or unnatural things that happen to the human body in a film. For movies in the genre, utilizing the human body in this way creates a stronger reaction for audiences as they can relate to it even more than something like a possession or otherworldly creature.
The modern era has absolutely been an interesting time for movies, and that includes those in the body horror genre. Recently, there’s been a push to revisit it with unique stories and concepts not seen before. In many of the genre’s films, there is no lack of creativity, resulting in ultimately disturbing stories and scenes that prove its prevalence.
2024 Is One Of The Best Years For Horror In My Lifetime
The horror genre has been having one of the best years it’s ever had, with over a dozen critically-acclaimed scary films coming out in 2024.
10Titane (2021)
Directed by Julia Ducournau
Titaneis directed by Julia Ducournau and released in 2021. Starring Agathe Rousselle as Alexia, we follow her story as we learn that she has a titanium plate surgically placed into her head, leading to violent tendencies.Titanealso follows a retired firefighter named Vincent, played by Vincent Lindon, who is looking for his missing son.This French film absolutely fits into the modern body horror genre, with stabbing, bone-breaking, murder, surgeries, fire, blood, and gore.
Ducournau also directed another notable body horror film, released in 2016, calledRaw.TitaneandRaware far from traditional offerings in the body horror genre, asTitaneincludes psychological elements andRawfunctions as a coming-of-age story. Both movies prove Ducournau is an exciting rising talent within the body horror genre and a great example of its impact on modern filmmaking.
Titane
Cast
Titane is a French horror drama directed by Julia Ducournau. Agathe Rousselle stars as Alexia, a woman with a titanium plate in her head who leads a violent and unconventional life.
9Malignant (2021)
Directed by James Wan
Malignant, directed by James Wan, isone of the more well-known body horror films released in recent years.Malignantstars Annnabelle Wallis as Madison Mitchell. Madison, tormented by her abuse and time in a research hospital, has to live with visions of murder in her mind. She struggles to define reality against her imagination and dreams as they begin to become realities.
The film pretty much checks everything off the list as far as depictions of violence and horror: twisted and gruesome murders, fights, surgical procedures, and all the bones and blood you would want in a body horror film. It helps that Wan is very established in the genre, with his experience makingMalignanta must-see example of body horror. Considering Wan’s prolific work in horror at large, it makes sense he’s had a hand in reviving the sub-genre.
Malignant
In this horror thriller from the creator of the Conjuring universe, a woman named Madison is tormented by visions of grisly murders. When she discovers that these waking dreams are in fact terrifying realities, she attempts to unlock her repressed memories to find the killer and stop him.
8Crimes of the Future (2022)
Directed by David Cronenberg
It’s impossible to discuss modern body horror without mentioning David Cronenberg. One of his most striking movies,Crimes of the Future, was released in 2022 and stars Viggo Mortensen as Saul Tenser and Léa Seydoux as Caprice. Saul is a famous performance artist, and he and his partner, Caprice, live in the future. In this setting, surgery and the metamorphosis of Saul’s organs are put on display and showcased to the public.
With the film revolving around disturbing depictions of surgery,Crimes of the Futureabsolutely proves that body horror is still alive and well. The movie fully embraces the genre and makes no effort to be anything else. This makes sense, as Cronenberg is seen as an essential figure in the body horror genre, having directed other iconic films likeThe Fly(1986),Videodrome(1983), andCrash(1996).
Crimes of the Future
Crimes of the Future is a horror-thriller film by director David Cronenberg that follows Saul Tenser and his partner Caprice, performers who live in a future where surgeries are performative due to the advanced evolution of the human race. Together, they have a show where Saul puts the metamorphosis of his organs on public display. This draws the attention of a group that wants to use this metamorphosis to investigate an evolutionary disease.
7Possessor (2020)
Directed by Brandon Cronenberg
Possessoris another film by a Cronenberg, this one by David’s son, Brandon. The movie stars Andrea Riseborough as Tasya Vos and Christopher Abbott as Colin Tate, also featuring Jennifer Jason Leigh and Sean Bean. InPossessor, Riseborough’s Tasya is an assassin in high-profile cases. She uses a type of technology that allows her to control her targets' bodies but becomes trapped in the mind of her latest one.
With that premise,it’s no surprise thatPossessorhas terrifying sceneswith various twisted kinds of murders, dismemberment, blood, and gore. With the movie, Brandon Cronenberg proves he is one of the most exciting new voices in the horror movie genre. He adeptly combines science fiction, body horror, and psychological elements for a potent cocktail of a film that marks an exciting evolution of all three genres.
Possessor
Possessor, directed by Brandon Cronenberg, is a 2020 science fiction horror film that follows Tasya Vos, a corporate agent who uses brain-implant technology to inhabit other people’s bodies and perform assassinations. As Vos struggles with her identity and loses control over her host, the boundaries between her own mind and her host’s begin to blur, leading to catastrophic consequences. Starring Andrea Riseborough and Christopher Abbott, the film explores themes of control and identity.
6Men (2022)
Directed by Alex Garland
Menis a film by Alex Garland with the prolifichorror movie producer and distributor A24. The film stars the talented Jessie Buckley as Harper, who takes a trip to stay alone and recover in the English countryside after a tragedy takes place in her life. Of course, the surrounding woods in the area begin to come alive with something staking Harper, turning her stay into a nightmare come to life. As such,the movie features traditional elements of body horror, but with a folk twist.
Garland is a frequent collaborator with A24, directing successful films likeEx Machina(2015) andCivil War(2024).WithMenand his other works, Garland has proven himself to be a master of several different genres, so it’s no wonder he excels at the body horror elements ofMen,making it a prime example of the subgenre’s impact on modern cinema.
Men
From director Alex Garland comes Men, a horror film that follows a woman named Harper who seeks a place to rest and recover after being widowed. Arriving at a comfortable and sleepy British village in the country, she expects to find what she needs. What she finds, however, is a disturbing nightmare filled with strange men that seem to be stalking her - and are somehow unearthing painful memories of her past.
Directed by Babak Anvari
Woundsis a body horror film released in 2019 and is directed by Babak Anvari.Woundsfollows the haunting story of Will, played by Armie Hammer, who increasingly loses his sanity as he gets disturbing messages from a cell phone someone left at his bar.Woundsalso features Dakota Johnson as Carrie, Will’s girlfriend who’s a student at a school nearby.
The movie delivers on the titleby showing disturbing things such as violence, fights, blood, gore, and insects. These horrifying depictions makeWoundsan important entry in the body horror subset of films, while also incorporating psychological elements, similar to other movies in the same vein. Impressively,Woundsis Anvari’s English language debut as a director, positioning him as an exciting new figure in the genre who could further solidify its impact on future filmmaking.
4Saint Maud (2019)
Directed by Rose Glass
Saint Maudwas released in 2019 and is directed by Rose Glass. The film stars Morfydd Clark as Maud, a quiet, young nurse who devotes her life to Christianity after an odd trauma in her life. She is assigned to conduct hospice care for her new patient, Amanda (Jennifer Ehle), who has cancer and was previously a dancer. Maud becomes obsessed with her religion and decides she will do whatever it takes to save Amanda’s soul.
Saint Maudhas depictions of stabbing, self-inflicting pain, fire, blood, and gore. This absolutely makes this horror movie earn its spot among modern body horror films.It was also very successful and popular upon its release, bringing the body horror genre to audiences who may have had little prior experience with it. Glass recently directed the buzzy romantic thrillerLove Lies Bleeding, proving her talent isn’t limited to just body horror.
Saint Maud
Saint Maud follows Maud, a pious and reclusive nurse, who becomes obsessed with saving the soul of her new patient, Amanda, a retired dancer grappling with terminal illness. Directed by Rose Glass, this psychological horror delves into themes of faith, salvation, and the fine line between devotion and madness. As Maud’s mission intensifies, her grip on reality begins to slip, leading to a gripping and unsettling climax.
3Huesera: The Bone Woman (2022)
Directed by Michelle Garza Cervera
Huesera: The Bone Womanis a totally unique film in the body horror genre, released in 2022. Directed by Michelle Garza Cervera, the film features Natalia Solian as the main character Valeria, who is a first-time mother and pregnant. She becomes cursed by a dark and sinister energy that begins to take this from her. It features multiple gory scenes and, true to the movie’s title, lots of them revolve around bones.
The film is unique in thatit isbased on the Mexican folklore story, La Huesera, abouta woman who gathers bones in the desert. This inspiration provides a unique twist on the body horror genre that helps the movie stand out among similar offerings. Also worth noting:Huesera: The Bone Womanis Cervera’s directorial debut, and the film certainly seems to suggest similarly inventive stories could be on the horizon.
2Climax (2018)
Directed by Gaspar Noé
Climaxis a truly horrifying and dizzying film that released in 2018 and is directed by Argentine-Italian filmmaker Gaspar Noé.Climaxfeatures an ensemble cast, just a few of those actors being Sofia Boutella, Romain Guillermic, and Souhelia Yacoub. The entire film takes place in an abandoned school and tells the story of a single night where a group of dancers rehearse a performance and celebrate together. They soon realize their drinks are laced with LSD, and the night becomes increasingly disturbing and gruesome as they try to find out who is responsible.
The scenes feature depictions of brutal violence, self-inflicted harm, electrocution, fire, blood, and gore. The film engrosses the audience in the story with its unique use of camera work that features extra-long takes, which makes it even more realistic and terrifying.This underrated film can be difficult to watchbut certainly stands out as an example of body horror in the modern era.
Climax
Climax is a 2018 film directed by Gaspar Noé, featuring a dance troupe whose rehearsal descends into chaos and horror after they unwittingly consume drug-laced sangria. As tensions rise, the group struggles to survive the night and uncover the person responsible for the spiked drink in an isolated setting.
1Swallow (2019)
Directed by Carlo Mirabella-Davis
Swallowis another pretty hard-to-watch film and was directed by Carlo Mirabella-Davis. It follows Hunter Conrad, played by Haley Bennet, a pregnant woman and housewife who has anobsession with swallowing inedible objects.This disorder begins to take over her life and keeps audiences in suspense as Hunter quickly goes downhill. The real psychological condition this film is inspired by is called Pica, an eating disorder where a person eats non-food items.
The gore in this film, of course, comes from Hunter’s disorder worsening, and she begins to swallow objects that are sharp and ultimately harm her.Swallowis another great example of body horror still going strong in the modern filmmaking era. It’s a new and original story that highlights creatives' ability to think outside the box and add layers to the classic genre.
Swallow
Swallow is a psychological thriller directed by Carlo Mirabella-Davis. The film follows Hunter, a newly pregnant housewife, played by Haley Bennett, who develops a dangerous habit of swallowing inedible objects. This condition, known as pica, reveals deeper issues within her seemingly perfect marriage and life, leading her to confront disturbing secrets and personal struggles.
