Underrated Horror Movies We Fell In Love With In 2022

Original text from Ranker writer Ryan Izay:

Two young brothers (Matt O'Leary and Jeremy Sumpter) are forced into an unsettling childhood when their father (Bill Paxton) suddenly announces that God has tasked him with dispatching demons disguised as humans from Earth. The experience affects the actions and mental state of the boys when they grow into adults (Matthew McConaughey and Levi Kreis).

Few films are as effective at keeping the audience guessing as Frailty. Among its twists and turns, there are also some effectively terrifying sequences and some of the best uses of an ax in horror since The Shining. Not only does Paxton give one of the finest performances of his career, but he also directed the film.

Unfortunately, audiences weren't necessarily in the mood for a quiet, disconcerting thriller in April 2002, and the film didn't receive nearly the acclaim it deserves.

Original text from Ranker writer Ryan Izay:

FBI Agent Peter Novak (Vince Vaughn) persuades psychotherapist Catherine Deane (Jennifer Lopez) to use an experimental virtual-reality treatment to enter the mind of comatose serial killer Carl Rudolph Stargher (Vincent D'Onofrio) to try to find the location of his last victim. As Deane becomes lost in the dark, surreal maze of Stargher’s mind, she loses sight of what's real within the dreamscape world.

The Cell was the feature-film debut of music video director Tarsem Singh, and it's a visual feast. Some critics complained about the similarities in plot to The Silence of the Lambs, but there are certainly worse films to draw inspiration from.

Original text from Ranker writer Orrin Grey:

These days, James Wan is perhaps best known as the director of the Conjuring franchise, which is now one of (possibly the) highest-grossing horror film franchises of all time. But when he made Dead Silence, he was known primarily as the director of Saw, which also kicked off one of the highest-grossing horror franchises of all time. Those are big shoes to fill (even if they're his own), and Dead Silence certainly didn't fill them, at least at the box office.

In fact, Dead Silence barely recouped its budget, even when accounting for the worldwide box office, and it didn't manage to do so domestically. That's a big disappointment coming right on the heels of Saw, which made more than 100 times its budget worldwide.

And yet, those who loved Wan's latest film, Malignant, may look back on the maligned Dead Silence and find an over-the-top comrade in the director's filmography.

Original text from Ranker writer Ryan Izay:

The Void is a Canadian Lovecraftian horror film about a group of people who become trapped in a hospital containing tentacled creatures hiding inside certain humans. The film's paranoia is enhanced even further by the arrival of hooded cultists surrounding the hospital to prevent anyone from escaping. A triangle portal is also discovered in the hospital, potentially leading to another world.

A surreal blend of creature violence and cosmic dread take the focus over a clear narrative. Perhaps the lower budget prevented The Void from receiving the success it deserves, though the low-budget approach was praised by most critics as a throwback to the style of the 1980s.

Original text from Ranker writer T.W. Mitchell:

Following in his father's footsteps, Brandon Cronenberg knocked it out of the park with the psychological horror of 2020's Possessor.

In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, many would-be filmgoers might have missed the hubbub surrounding this independent flick. Having grossed under a million dollars at the worldwide box office, it seems clear more people need to watch this stylish masterpiece of disturbing sci-fi/horror.

Possessor follows the exploits of an assassin who uses brain implants to take control of other people's bodies and commit murders. The premise may seem straightforward, but this movie is anything but as the main character, played by Andrea Riseborough, begins losing track of her own sanity as time goes on. If you've got the stomach for it, Possessor is well worth the time.

Original text from Ranker writer Orrin Grey:

Winner of the Melies d'Or at the Sitges Film Festival, this horror flick set in rural Spain follows a teenage girl who's bullied about her weight and who must decide what to do when she sees her tormenters being abducted.

Adapted from the short film of the same name, both from director Carlota Pereda, Variety wrote that the film “sits at an unexpected intersection of artistic sensibilities, first recalling Catherine Breillat, then Brian De Palma, before taking a deep, bloody plunge into grindhouse territory.”

In spite of high critical praise, however, Piggy received only a limited theatrical run in the States, and many people still haven't even heard of this harrowing feature.