The 2000s proved to be a bit of an odd decade for the horror genre. People were slowly migrating to online forums to find movie recommendations. However, this was far removed from sites like Letterboxd and IMDB dominating ‘recommends’ and creating curated content lists; not everyone was constantly glued to their phones. This transitionary period resulted in some great and entertaining horror films falling under the radar.
Now, fans can revisit some of these gems and give them a second, deserved look. These 10 films offer memorable or unique entries in the horror genre that have almost all been forgotten with time, awash in the digital age that made the decade one of the most understated.
10
‘Marebito’ (2005)
Marebito
Release Date
May 13, 2005
Runtime
92 Minutes
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Shin’ya Tsukamoto
Masuoka
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Kazuhiro Nakahara
Arei Furoki
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Miho Ninagawa
Aya Fukumoto
A freelance cameraman who tries to capture the seedier side of Japanese society starts down a bizarre rabbit hole after he films a man committing suicide. His investigation into what drove the man to madness leads him to an underground world where he finds a young, naked woman chained up. Taking her back to his place, he realizes she requires blood to survive, making him become obsessed with finding ways to keep her alive.
Lovecraft Comes to Japan
Director Takashi Shimizu may have found international success with The Grudge, but Marebito is arguably his masterpiece despite the film’s minimal budget and quick shooting schedule. The movie’s Lovecraftian influence is evident here, but it is a unique experience with heavy J-horror influences making it unlike its Western counterparts. The result is a capturing of severe isolation often explored in Japanese horror and Lovecraft’s otherworldly and metaphysical horror.
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9
‘The Loved Ones’ (2009)
Release Date
September 13, 2009
Runtime
84 minutes
Director
Sean Byrne
Highschooler Brent does not think much of his rejection of a prom proposal by outsider Lola until he wakes up after being kidnapped and tied to a chair in her family home. Lola’s father always ensures his daughter gets what she wants, and the two torture him into submission to be the perfect date. Brent has to navigate the complex emotions, demands, and violent actions of a deranged family to survive the night.
Am I Pretty Enough?
The Loved Ones is a deranged piece of horror that is certain to please those looking for more extreme thrills. The torture elements are the main focus of the horror here, but Lola’s bizarre obsession with getting the boy of her dreams pushes the story forward in a disturbing way. Australia often gets overlooked when talking about horror. Still, the country has been churning out notable mini-hits for decades that frequently get moderate to no fanfare here in America.
8
‘The Roost’ (2005)
Four friends’ trip to a wedding is interrupted when a bat hits a windshield and causes a car crash, leaving them stranded. They find refuge at a seemingly abandoned farm but soon discover that the previous residents have transformed into bloodthirsty zombies. The movie is also framed by a ‘horror host’ who cracks jokes and alters scenes to his whim when the conclusion is not to his liking.
Ti West’s First Film
It is a bit of a stretch to call The Roost a ‘good’ horror film, with the intriguing framing device and slow-burn approach not entirely complimentary. However, the movie marks the first feature film by the now-beloved director Ti West and shows his early potential as a unique voice within the horror genre when viewed under that pretext. The Roost is admittedly ‘mid,’ and there is good reason why people brush over it when talking about West’s career, but it is still worth a watch for fans.
7
‘Infection’ (2004)
A small Japanese hospital in the decommissioning process receives a bizarre late-night arrival from an ambulance, a man who appears to be melting into a puddle of green goop. Hesitant to take him in, the hospital is eventually left with no choice. Curiosity from the head of the hospital and the potential of discovering a new disease causes him to expose the sickness to the few remaining crew and patients. The infection manifests itself in green blood that turns its victims violent towards themselves and others.
A Supernatural Body Horror Film Unlike Anything Else
Reaching into a pot of boiling needles is just one of the many shocking moments in Infection that make it such a disturbing horror film. Yet, the production shines in its unique approach to mixing body horror with a supernatural mystery. Infection is one of the best J-horror movies made. Its obscurity is tied to its being part of the J-Horror Theater series, a project backed by a limited budget. This made the film slightly less polished than had become expected of the genre here in the West. Despite its budgetary shortcomings, Infection is a unique and unforgettable experience.
6
‘The Convent’ (2000)
The Convent
Release Date
January 21, 2000
Runtime
79 minutes
Director
Mike Mendez
A group of college students decides to spend the night in an infamous haunted covenant that was rumored to have gone under after one student massacred the entire congregation. A group of nerdy Satanists also staying at the old church perform a ritual that awakens an ancient evil. The group must fight for their lives against demonic, squirrel-sounding, neon-soaked demons.
A Delightful Horror Comedy
Director Mike Mendez is almost the definition of overlooked, as his films have garnered him a dedicated following but have yet to penetrate the mainstream; films like Big A** Spider, Grave Dancers, and his entry in the anthology Satanic Hispanics are all delightful and underrated gems. The Convent is a wonderful mix of ’90s nostalgia (released early in the 2000s), paying homage to classics like Night of the Demons, giving it a neon-soaked spin. The balance of comedy and horror here is perfect, albeit a bit dated, and the appearance of Adrienne Barbeau near the movie’s end is the perfect nod to her iconic status.
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5
‘S&Man’ (2006)
Release Date
March 10, 2006
Runtime
84
Director
J.T. Petty
S&Man is a pseudo-documentary that blends actual interviews with icons of underground and SOV cinema with a fictional narrative around a potential snuff filmmaker. With actual insight into the industry, the film takes a peculiar turn when a filmmaker who calls his series of films S&Man, becomes the focal point. As the documentarians touch on the man’s murderous tendencies, it may prove too late for them to distance themselves from him.
Documenting a Serial Killer
S&Man is undoubtedly an enjoyable love letter to the outsiders of horror cinema, featuring interviews with notable actors and filmmakers such as Debbie D and Fred Vogel. This authenticity becomes deeply disturbing as it melts away into fiction, creating a very believable narrative of a documentarian becoming entangled with a real-life serial killer. Disturbing, unique, and engrossing, S&Man is an overlooked gem of the 2000s.
4
‘The Signal’ (2007)
Release Date
July 13, 2007
Runtime
103 Minutes
An anthology set in the fictional city of Terminus, The Signal follows three individuals as they deal with the sudden appearance of a signal that turns its inhabitants violent. Connected but tonally different, the anthology follows lovers trying to survive their new reality by keeping the signal out of their home, a woman who just murdered her husband pushing forward with party plans, and friends at odds as one tries to convince the other the signal is a conspiratorial lie.
A Horror Anthology Ahead of Its Time
The Signal is an engaging horror anthology tied together by a solid theme that felt ahead of its time for 2007. The feature offers up horror, comedy, and gore while being visually and thematically interconnected in a way that many other anthologies fumble. The film has become a bit of a cult classic with time, but decades after its release, the movie is seldom discussed.
3
‘Nightmare Detective’ (2006)
A retired detective with the ability to enter the dreams of others has long removed himself from society due to the severe mental toll his work has taken on him. Yet, when a killer attacks his victims through their dreams, the titular Nightmare Detective becomes the only person who can stop the brutal killing spree taking place across Tokyo.
Dreams of Death and Dismemberment
Director Shinya Tsukamoto’s work is cherished and still discussed in detail today, from his cyberpunk debut Tetsuo The Iron Man to his more recent post-World War II drama Shadow of Fire. Yet, Nightmare Detective remains overlooked when discussing his work because it was a ‘commercial’ gig outside his own studio. This has done some disservice because Nightmare Detective is an engaging J-horror film with stunning visuals and ghastly kills. Fans of Nightmare on Elm Street will also appreciate the unique approach of a dream killer that causes its victims to horribly mutilate themselves.
2
‘Rogue’ (2007)
Rogue
Release Date
November 8, 2007
Runtime
99 minutes
A group of tourists on a crocodile-watching river cruise in Kakadu National Park, Northern Territory, is stranded after their ship overturns. They learn that a giant crocodile has been attacking anyone who enters its domain, and the group must survive its continuous attacks on a sinking ship.
One of the Best Killer Croc Movies Made
Wolf Creek has become a staple franchise with a dedicated following, but many overlook one of director Greg Mclean’s earlier work in Rogue. Perhaps the over-saturation of deadly animal monster movies has made this killer crocodile feature less talked about with time, but it marks itself as one of the best in the subgenre. It is gritty, intense, and well-acted, another example of Australia’s underrated mastery of the horror genre.
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1
‘Pontypool’ (2009)
Pontypool
5
/5
Release Date
September 18, 2009
Runtime
93 Minutes
Director
Bruce McDonald
A once famous radio show host, Grant Mazzy, has found himself relegated to a small Canadian town, the titular Pontypool, which is currently swept up in a winter storm. What is supposed to be a simple workday begins to break into chaos as the radio station gets reports from the locals of a zombie outbreak, with those infected repeating words obsessively.
Zombie Virus Transmitted Through Language
The idea of a zombie outbreak being spread through language was a fascinating concept to adapt into film (the movie is based on a book of the same name). Despite zombies only appearing near the film’s end, Pontypool manages to interject a lot of horror as a skeleton crew at a remote radio station tries to understand the nightmarish scenarios in their town.
The movie is brilliantly executed from start to finish, and there were initially plans to make a sequel that would be less abstract and more focused on zombie attacks. Sadly, the first movie did not generate enough interest, arguably because of its abstract approach and certain elements that were very Canadian. Still, Pontypool remains one of the most original zombie films ever made and deserves a much larger audience.
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