TheFolk Horror genrehas become one of the most popular forms of horror in recent years, with the rise of cult and ancestral narratives pervasive throughout all horror films.Folk horror’s best filmsare known for using elements of folklore, rituals, and ancient traditions toprovide the backdrop for the thrilling and horrifying stories told that reveal the darker sides of our nature and humanity. It has become so popular as it mixes the realistic with the spiritually sinister and creates a crossover that has a feel all too real of ‘this could happen to me’.
The most impactful of the folk genre throughout cinema history and into recent years have focused on cults, voodoo, paganism, and superstition. Films like the critically acclaimedHereditarywith surprise endings, which puts a legitimately terrifying, modern spin on the occult, orMidsommar,that brings violent cults and the psychological forces within to the fore.Every film places the onus on the viewer that what they are watching isn’t something too far outside the realm of possibility, and that realization is what makes this genre one of the most fear-inducing horror themes and why the films themselves are so haunting.
The Blair Witch Project
Cast
The Blair Witch Project is a 1999 horror film that follows three film students who venture into the Black Hills near Burkittsville, Maryland. As they document their search for the Blair Witch legend, strange and unsettling events unfold. Presented as found footage, the film is directed by Daniel Myrick and Eduardo Sánchez, and it pioneered the found footage genre in mainstream cinema.
This infamous ‘found-footage’ supernatural horror follows three film students who set out to make a documentary about the Blair Witch, a being who supposedly haunts a local forest, with strange occurrences and people going missing routinely. The use ofhandheld ‘documentary’ style footage and shaky camera work was revolutionaryand adds a constant tension as you never know what is going to appear on the screen next and you, as the viewer, are often left in genuine suspense, both through the story and what is being seen.
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It’s easy to fail to note the significance and the impact of a film likeThe Blair Witch Project. While the technology used was rudimentary by today’s standards, the techniques, plot, storytelling, and marketing were years ahead of their time.The decision not to use special effects was masterful, adding to the realism, and many film-goers thought the footage was legitimately shot and genuinely portrayed their experience. Also, in marketing the film, the production had missing posters for their actors. Everything culminated in one incredible, horrifying, and believable film that became one of the most successful independent films ever created.
9The Blood On Satan’s Claw (1971)
Starring Patrick Wymark And Linda Hayden
Directed by Piers Haggard, this film, set in an early 18th-century country village in England tells the story of farmer Ralph Gower uncovering a deformed skull from within his field and with that, an unleashing of a demonic force that takes control of the local youths in the area.The film descends into a series of foul, gruesome, and hideous sequences, with children being murdered, ritualistic cult assaults, and the summoning of evil spirits. A nerve-jolting 93 minutes that starts off grim and only gets more terrifying with each passing moment.
WhileThe Blood On Satan’s Claw(working title,Satan’s Skin) isn’t overly well-known or critically acclaimed, it is an early example of folk horror done correctly and executed well throughout the production.Particular scenes like Angel, the leader of the corrupted children, attempting to seduce the priestbefore revealing her friend’s murder, and the Black Mass stay with you after you finish watching. The film has an eerie and unsettling atmosphere, the soundtrack by Marc Wilkinson is superb, and it stands the test of time, remaining genuinely frightening even 50 years later.
Apostle
In the year 1905, a man travels to a remote island to rescue his sister, who’s been kidnapped by a religious cult. Netflix picked up the film in March 2017, about a month before production began. It had its world premiere at the 2018 Fantastic Fest.
In one of the more original and thrilling horror narratives in recent years, Thomas Richardson (Dan Stevens) goes to visit a remote Welsh island to rescue his sister, who was kidnapped by a dangerous and mysterious cult. Throughout the film,Thomas attempts to covertly rescue his sister while continually getting thrown into more bizarre and horrifying scenarios, uncovering the island’s true religious nature and the ritualistic sacrifices required to keep the island ‘flourishing.’
WhileApostlesteps over the line and into the paranormal, writer and directorGareth Evans masterfully builds a foreboding, realistic sense of dreadthroughout the film.
The real qualities of a true folk horror classic are often defined by their use of nature, folklore, and finding horror in the plausible. WhileApostlesteps over the line and into the paranormal, writer and directorGareth Evans masterfully builds a foreboding, realistic sense of dreadthroughout the film. No cheap jump scares or other-worldly creatures. The film fuels its horror with graphic violence and a deep dive into the cult and pagan rituals that can leave scars figuratively and literally.
7La Llorona (2019)
Starring María Mercedes Coroy And Margarita Kenéfic
Also known asThe Weeping Woman, this Guatemalan horror film, written, directed, and edited by Jayro Bustamante, is anelevated adaption of the Mexican folk tale of La Lorena, a ghost of a woman who mourns the murder of her children.The plot revolves around a former Guatemalan dictator, Enrique Monteverde, who, after wriggling out of crimesof orchestrating the native Mayan Genocide, has his house and family become haunted by visions and spirits punishing him for his past wrongdoings.
La Lloronais an exceptional folk horror film filled with beautifully choreographed and shot scenes with iconic imagery and terrifying compositions. LikeApostle, the film is a slow-burner, gradually rackingup the tensions with a series of supernatural occurrences and chilling visions. It explores themes of war, justice, class, race, and gender yet doesn’t let the commentary slow down the need for blood-chilling horror. The film currently holds a 96% rating, based on 97 reviews on Rotten Tomatoes, and for good reason, making it one of the most popular recent folklore horror films.
Kill List
Kill List: Released in 2011, Kill List follows a hitman who embarks on a new contract involving three killings, promising a substantial reward. As the seemingly straightforward task progresses, it spirals out of control, leading him into increasingly sinister and dark circumstances.
In Ben Wheatley’sKill List, two former British soldiers join forces to work as contracted hitmen for a shadowy client who wants three people murdered. As they work their way through the names on the list,the bizarre situations and graphic violence escalate rapidly. The further into the job they go, the further they become embroiled in a plot with a deadly cult that employs rituals and human sacrifices with a narrative that keeps viewers glued to the edge of their seats.
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Wheatley has stated he was influenced by legendary director Stanley Kubrick, by planning the gory imagery of the film first and then revolving the plot around it, with actors often improvising takes and lines. In doing so, the film has a gritty realism and takes real-world scenarios and elevates them to new, horrific heights, employing the cult and satanic themes to great effect.The murder-by-hammer sequence in the killing of their second victim is as shocking as it is brutally violent, creating a sense of palpable tension and producing one of the most genuinely disturbing films of the 2010s.
Midsommar
Ari Aster’s Midsommar follows a group of American college students who travel to a friend’s isolated rural hometown in Sweden to experience their renowned midsummer festival. What starts out as idyllic quickly becomes a disconcertingly violent pagan ritual, with the friends engaged in a ruthless competition that will test more than just their friendship. Florence Pugh stars alongside Jack Reynor, Will Poulter, and William Jackson Harper.
This is the first film many people will think of when it comes to folk horror in recent years, and rightly so.Midsommaris about agroup of American students who travel to a secluded Swedish village to take part in a nine-day midsummer festival at a commune called the Hårga. Florence Pugh stars as Dani, a young woman grieving the death of her family, and the film works through themes of grief, anger, betrayal, and breakups. The festival soon degrades into a terrifying cult ritual, with forced human sacrifices, sexual assaults and disturbing traditions.
With Swedish audiences, rather than eliciting fear, many people reportedly laughed throughout the film, with most Swedish critics praising the movie as a brilliant black comedy rather than a horror.
Almost every scene inMidsommarpacks a genuine gut punch, and the film is as unsettling as it is horror in its purest form. From the opening scene where Dani’s mentally ill sister takes her own and her parents lives through carbon monoxide poisoning or theritualistic sacrifice of two elderly cult members forced to jump off a cliff onto rocks.Midsommaris beautifully vivid and wonderfully shot, which makes the slow-burning dread and graphic depictions of violence that much more impactful to create a masterpiece of horror cinema.
The Wailing
The arrival of a mysterious stranger in a quiet village coincides with a wave of vicious murders, causing panic and distrust among the residents. While investigating the suspect, a policeman realizes that his daughter may have been a victim of the attack.
South Korean cinema as a whole has been known to produce some of the best and most gruesome horror films of all time andThe Wailingis absolutely no exception. The film follows the story of a Japanese stranger entering a small, rural village in the mountains of Gokseong,which is soon taken over by a horrifying infection, and what follows is a terrifying combination of shamanistic rituals, hexes, and demonic slayings of locals. A local police officer, Joon-goo (Hwak Do-won) aims to solve the mystery before the whole town turns into a bloodbath.
Scenes involving cults, shrines, and animal mutilations linger with you, and much like the virus in the story, they grow and invade your senses until the emotion and dread build up to unmanageable levels.
Na Hong-jin has directed one of the scariest South Korean folk horror films ever, with a 99% approval score on Rotten Tomatoes. The film is an epic, expansive narrative totaling an impressive 156 minutes, however the story and suspense are paced expertly and are built absolutely perfectly.Scenes involving cults, shrines, and animal mutilations linger with you, and much like the virus in the story, they grow and invade your senses until the emotion and dread build up to unmanageable levels. A true modern classic of the folk horror genre and one to be talked about for years to come.
The Wicker Man
The Wicker Man is a horror film released in 1973 and follows Police Sergeant Neil Howie, who heads to an island on the coast of Scottland in search of a missing girl. Howie discovers that the disappearance is related to a pagan society that conflicts with his Christian values - but his continued search leads him to the heart of something sinister.
Without a doubt,The Wicker Manhas to be the clearest and most popular example of the epitome of the folk horror genre. The iconic story follows Sergeant Howie (Edward Woodward) as he goes to investigatethe mysterious disappearance of a young girl on a secluded Scottish island. While conducting his investigation, Howie discovers the terrifying mysteries of the islands and its inhabitants and, rather than saving the young girl, falls into the trap set for himself to be used as a Celtic pagan sacrifice for next year’s harvest.
The Wicker Manhas been dubbed “TheCitizen Kaneof horror movies,” and upon watching, you’re able to understand why it’s been given such a high honor. Directed by Robin Hardy and with stand-out performances from Edward Norton, Christopher Lee, and the entire cast, the film dissolves in horror before erupting into a gruesome, agonizing climax. The iconicfinal scene as Howie burns to death inside ‘The Wicker Man’ statuewith the setting sun in the background is one of the most compelling in all of cinema and a true classic British folk horror film in every sense of the word.
The Witch
The Witch follows a 1630s family that relocates to a remote New England farm. Strange, unsettling events transpire, causing mounting suspicion and paranoia. This testing environment challenges the family’s faith, loyalty, and love amid isolation and tension as they confront the unknown forces lurking beyond their new home.
Written and directed by Robert Eggers (The Lighthouse) in his first feature film debut,The Witchrecounts the story of a family banished from a Puritan settlement who built a farm near a large, mysterious forest. After thedeath of their young baby, paranoia meets the paranormal as a Witch infiltrates and terrorizesthe young family through a variety of means, and the film grows in terror as it plays on themes such as witchcraft, murder, and isolation. From start to finish, the film feels like a horrific rollercoaster with minimal pauses in the palpable horror.
Even though it’s Eggers’s first full-length film, it has the polish and style of someone at the pinnacle of their career, joined by a breakout performance from Anya Taylor-Joy, who is mesmerizing throughout the entire film.The cinematography, acting, and setting are all perfectly executedand often times what you don’t see on screen is more unsettling than what you do. The dedication to an uncompromising, factual look at religious family dynamics and early American folktales, combined with the paranormal Witches coven, makes this one of the most genuinely scary folk horror movies ever made.
Hereditary
The feature film debut of writer-director Ari Aster, Hereditary tells the story of the unwittingly cursed Graham family. Annie Graham (Toni Collette) lives with her husband Steve (Gabriel Byrne) and their children Peter (Alex Wolff) and Charlie (Milly Shapiro). After the death of Annie’s mother, the family is beset by disaster and stalked by a supernatural entity that dredges up a past that Annie had spent her life trying to overlook.
After the death of her secretive mother, the strange family matriarch, Annie (Toni Collette), and her family’s life descends into hell after discovering horrifying facts about their family, lineage, and their links with the supernatural and occult.Hereditaryis completely hair-raising from the opening scene to the final credits. The story is perfectly paced and follows the family’s destruction as they attempt to contact their daughter after her gruesome death and supernatural forces cause demonic possessions alongside countless terrifying occurrences.
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Many of the indoor shots took place in a custom-built set to give the film a dollhouse look and feel, and you’re able to really feel the unnatural unease throughout the film as the characters literally and figuratively become puppets to their occult roots.Toni Collette gives the performance of her career, and her breakdown and range throughout is impeccable. Scenes like the horrific decapitation of daughter Charlie are now iconic moments in cinema, and the whole film is bleak, grotesque, and genuinely terrifying, a gritty look into early folklore, combining to create the bestfolk horrorfilm of all time.
