Horror is typically characterized by its jump scares, terrifying villains, and depictions of violence and gore. Marked by humanity’s deepest fears, the genre is so much more than that, frequently exploring profound themes like death, existential dread, grief, trauma, societal anxieties, social injustices, and more. An essential element of bringing to life these psychologically engaging stories is visuals and imagery that embrace both the beautiful and the macabre.
Despite what non-horror fans might believe, horror is a gorgeous, breathtaking genre. So much artistry goes into making scary movies, from creating grotesque monsters to evoking a dark and eerie atmosphere. Some of the most gorgeous films ever created were horror pictures. Take Dario Argento’s Suspiria as an example. There are countless others.
Curated below are 20 of the most visually stunning horror movies.
‘The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari’ (1920)
Despite being over a century old, Robert Wiene’s The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari still holds up well to this day. As a seminal piece of horror cinema, it’s a must-watch for any fan of the genre. The German expressionist film follows a story-within-a-story narrative. Sitting on a park bench, Francis (Friedrick Feher) tells an older man (Hans Lanser-Rudolff) about his horrific experience visiting a carnival, where he and his friend, Alan (Rudolf Lettinger), encountered a crazed hypnotist (Werner Krauss) who committed murder through a somnambulist (Conrad Veidt).
Like Nothing That Exists in Reality
The film plays out like a slow-moving, discombobulating nightmare. Artists Hermann Warm, Walter Reimann, and Walter Röhrig conjured up the breathtaking set design, which is characterized by distorted architecture, bizarre proportions, irregular forms, and a two-dimensional, graphic style. The effect is eerily dreamlike, making the viewer feel like they’re trapped in a twisted Expressionist painting. Its influence can be seen in filmmakers like David Lynch, Tim Burton, and Stanley Kubrick.
‘Cat People’ (1942)
Produced by Val Lewton and directed by Jacques Tourneur, the low-budget horror film Cat People saved RKO Pictures from bankruptcy after a string of box office failures, including Citizen Kane (1941). Simone Simon stars as Irina Dubrovna, a young Serbian immigrant and fashion illustrator living alone in New York. After meeting Oliver (Kent Smith), the two quickly wed, but their marriage goes unconsummated because Irina believes she’s descended from a line of cursed women who transform into lethal panthers in the throes of passion. Oliver grows closer to his co-worker Alice (Jane Randolph), leading to tragic consequences.
One of the Most Gorgeous Black-and-White Horrors
Cat People terrifies through its psychological use of light and shadows, evoking terror through suggestion rather than showing. Blending noir and Expressionist styles, the movie uses chiaroscuro (stark, dramatic contrasts between light and shadow) to create a moody, unsettling atmosphere. Decades later, it remains one of the greatest examples of visual storytelling.
‘Kwaidan’ (1964)
Hailing from Japan, Masaki Kobayashi’s Kwaidan, which translates to “ghost story,” is a rare Oscar-nominated horror film. The eerie movie tells four different tales tied to Japanese folklore. The central characters of each segment include a regretful swordsman, a woodcutter who encounters a yuki-onna (snow spirit), a blind musician cursed to perform for ghostly samurais, and a writer who sees a strange vision in a cup of tea.
A Haunting Beauty
Each story in the anthology is presented through captivating visuals. The movie employs an avant-garde set design, impressive cinematography, and an imaginative use of color. Its atmosphere is spellbinding and otherworldly. Watching the film is like walking through a haunting Expressionist fairy tale. Don’t let its three-hour runtime discourage you from watching this distinctive horror picture.
‘Blood and Black Lace’ (1964)
As one of the earliest giallo films, Mario Bava’s Blood and Black Lace established various elements typical of the subgenre, among them the trope of the killer donning black leather gloves. The horror mystery tells the story of a prestigious Roman fashion house whose models are targeted and brutally murdered by a masked killer. The owner and employees of the salon become suspects, and a deadly game of cat and mouse ensues.
A Highly Stylized and Vibrant Film
The movie is set amidst the gorgeous, glamorous backdrop of haute couture. Using striking camera angles and a rich palette of striking crimsons, blues, and greens set against shadowy scenery, Bava creates a surreal, dreamlike atmosphere. He combines sophisticated visual artistry and B-movie-type graphic violence to immerse the viewer in a vibrant, bloody tale. Fair warning to those who are afraid of mannequins.
‘Carrie’ (1976)
Most horror fans are familiar with Carrie White’s (Sissy Spacek) heartbreaking story. It’s a tale that resonates with anyone who has ever struggled to fit in or suffered through the cruelties of girlhood. Carrie suffers from abuse both at school and at home, living an isolated life that leads to tragedy as she reaches the culmination of her telekinetic powers. Brian De Palma’s film remains, to this day, the greatest Stephen King adaptation of all time.
A Visual Splendor
De Palma poured his all into the direction of Carrie, resulting in a true masterclass in visually stunning horror. The film pushes boundaries with a Vaseline-glazed, hazy, the use of split-screen imagery, and dreamlike slow motion. Before prom, the colors are muted and desaturated, reflecting Carrie’s sad, repressed existence. During the dance, there’s a spectacle of color. Perhaps the picture’s most dazzling visuals are the colored lights and twinkling stars at the prom. Not to mention, the bright red blood callously being dumped on Carrie.
‘Suspiria’ (1977)
Suspiria captivates the viewer from the beginning: “Suzy Bannion decided to perfect her ballet studies in the most famous school of dance in Europe. She chose the celebrated Academy of Freiburg. One day at 9 in the morning, she left Kennedy Airport, New York and arrived in Germany at 10:40 p.m. local time.” From the moment the wide-eyed protagonist (Jessica Harper) is introduced as she walks out of the airport bathed in red light, Suspiria dazzles visually. The supernatural, giallo-adjacent horror film is a feast for the eyes, following the heroine as death surrounds her in a school that serves as a front for a dangerous witch coven.
One of the Most Beautiful Films Ever Created
Having been inspired by the colors and fantastic imagery of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937), Dario Argento set out to make a psychedelic, gothic fairy tale. The film was one of the last to be processed in Technicolor, emphasizing colors with vibrancy beyond the wildest of dreams. Suspiria is breathtakingly lit throughout with rich red, blue, and pink lighting. Dripping in Art Nouveau splendor, it casts a spell with its elaborate set pieces, stained glass, and geometric floors and walls. Not only is it one of the most gorgeous horror movies, but it’s one of the most striking films ever made — a true work of art.
‘House’ (1977)
House, also known as Hausu, is another one of Japan’s all-time greatest horror movies. The surreal, twisted film is both a fairy tale and a dark comedy. It follows a young girl as she ventures to her aunt’s countryside estate with her six friends for a summer vacation. But something is very, very wrong with both Auntie and her house. Once they arrive, the girls enter a nightmarish escape, where they fall prey to bizarre and gruesome traps.
One of the Most Experimental Horror Movies Ever Made
This deranged haunted house horror has become a cult classic over the years. Beneath its outrageousness is a coming-of-age story of postwar Japan that explores youthful wonder, the destruction of innocence, and the dissonance between generations. Director Nobuhiko Obayashi employed experimental, hyper-stylized techniques to create hallucinatory imagery and create a disorienting experience that plays out like a child’s nightmare.
‘The Shining’ (1980)
Despite Stephen King himself being one of the biggest detractors of Stanley Kubrick’s (unfaithful) adaptation of his novel, The Shining is a cinematic masterpiece. Arguably, Kubrick’s is the superior story. Regardless of your opinion, you can’t deny that there’s much to love about the movie — its oppressive atmosphere, masterful use of psychological horror, slow-burn descent into madness, chilling sequences, and ominous score.
A Masterclass in Visual Storytelling
Forty-five years later, The Shining remains a cultural and artistic influence. Kubrick’s obsessive attention to visual detail and deliberate camerawork make it an enduring legacy. Known for its magnificent wide shots, the film mesmerizes from the opening birds-eye-view shot of the Torrance car making its way through the stretching, winding road up the mountain. So much thought went into every frame — the twins at the end of the hallway, the hedge maze, the green bathroom of room 237, the red restroom scene. Kubrick unsettles through geometric patterns, symbolic use of color and light, and symmetry. An entire documentary (Room 237) exists deciphering subliminal imagery and the hidden meanings behind visual details.
‘The Company of Wolves’ (1984)
Directed by Neil Jordan (Interview With the Vampire) and adapted from Angela Carter’s short story of the same name, The Company of Wolves is both an anthology and a twisted retelling of “The Little Red Riding Hood.” Beginning with teenaged Rosaleen (Sarah Patterson) falling asleep in the present, it follows her into her dream set in an 18th-century village near a dark forest, where a wolf is terrorizing the townsfolk. After her sister falls prey to the beast, she’s sent to stay with her grandmother, who tells her supernatural tales of werewolves and menacing men.
A Fantastical, Gothic Dreamscape
As one of the best werewolf movies of all time, it’s a shame that The Company of Wolves is such an overlooked horror movie. The dark coming-of-age horror feels like being trapped inside the pages of an illustrated fairy tale book. With an otherworldly set, lavish visuals, extraordinary costumes, and strange practical effects, a wonderland full of magic and danger is brought to life.
‘Bram Stoker’s Dracula’ (1992)
Bram Stoker’s Dracula might not actually be a faithful adaptation of Bram Stoker’s novel, but it’s a magnificent one nonetheless. Whereas in the novel, the vampire is a terrifying and inherently evil force, here, Gary Oldman’s Count Dracula is all at once a tragic figure and monster. Mina (Winona Ryder) is more voracious in the movie than she is in the book. Most importantly, there’s more of a romantic element to the story, which drips in both lust and sorrow.
Gorgeous Gothic Glamour
Francis Ford Coppola’s iteration is a beautiful love letter to the original tale. Not only is it narratively impressive, but it’s visually stunning. So much extravagant artistry went into the film to create its old-world atmosphere. The costumes are some of the most breathtaking in cinema, having won a Best Costume Design Academy Award for Eiko Ishioka. The movie also received the award for best makeup. Bram Stoker’s Dracula is an ornate Gothic feat.
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