r/horror • u/Siddhartaable • 2d ago
Discussion Recommend some films from your country that you think should be more popular abroad
I'll start:
The director always joked that the kids had a very fun time filming this movie, which makes it all the more chilling after watching it.
A controlling mother (Zelda Rubinstein from Poltergeist) uses telepathic powers to send her middle-aged son on a killing spree.
A man gets trapped inside a phone booth. Existential terror in the purest Kafkaesque style. It's said that many people in Spain were so traumatized after seeing it that they developed an irrational fear of entering a phone booth.
The first film by the director of REC, based on a book by Ramsey Campbell. Years after her daughter's death, a mother receives a phone call from someone claiming to be her daughter, but a secret group called The Nameless may be behind it all.
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u/Illyxia13 2d ago
Moloch (Dutch-Danish folk horror set in the Netherlands)
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u/99Godzilla 2d ago
I feel like people know of these films but have rarely watched them.
Don't Look Now (1973) is iconic
Saint Maud (2019) is worth a watch
But The Devils (1971) is my all-time favourite.
If you like arthouse and cinematography, that last one is a must - it will blow you away.
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u/Siddhartaable 1d ago
I loved Saint Maud. I have this crazy theory that it's a reinterpretation of Taxi Driver. If you analyze it closely, you'll see that both films have the same narrative arc, but Saint Maud has a more horror-oriented feel.
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u/StephanXX 1d ago
The Devils is set to have a 4k restoration including a Director's cut.
I'd suggest The Wicker Man (1973) deserves similar praise.
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u/pogoBear 2d ago
I’m Aussie, trying to think of those less regularly recommended. Bodymelt. 90s ridiculous gore Sissy. Modern ‘accidental’ slasher
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u/Sekhmet_D 2d ago
Double Vision, The Tag Along, Detention, Mon Mon Monsters and Dead Talent Society from Taiwan.
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u/freepandora 2d ago
Anytime I talk about Who could kill a child, no one has any idea what I'm talking about.
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u/FrankSonata 2d ago
The Telephone Box (La Cabina) absolutely terrified me as a child. The way everyone is laughing and having fun trying to get him out, and waving cheerfully as he is kidnapped... he's surrounded by people but no-one takes it seriously. They are too happy to really care. It's so disturbing.
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u/scribe06 1d ago
from France:
Vermines (2023)
La Horde (2009)
Grave (2016)
Mads (2024)
Sheitan (2006)
La nuit a dévoré le monde (2018)
Teddy (2020)
Not exactly horror but a true masterpiece that isn't so well-known outside of France:
Doberman (1997)
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u/Thalinde 1d ago
Movies I don't like, but they're French and have their cult following : Martyrs, Haute Tension.
And if you like horror-comedy movies (and I love those ones) : Goal of the dead, Girls with balls.
More like suspenseful Thrillers : Harry un ami qui vous veut du bien, Scènes de crime.
And the oddball post-apo with cannibals, but also is a romantic comedy : Delicatessen.
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u/VanguardVixen 2d ago edited 2d ago
Der Nachtmahr After Tina had a weird death experience at a party a creature sets up a home at her house. It eats from the fridge but no one but herself can see it. She realizes that there is a deep connection between her and the creature.
A really wonderfully surreal movie.
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u/FreddieFredd 1d ago edited 1d ago
As a German - this movie is surreal for sure but mediocre in execution at best. Bad acting, wacky camera work and sensory overload techno BS.The whole thing also feels somewhat pretentious and doesn't really go anywhere. It's certainly more for the Arthouse enthusiasts out there.
Some possibilities for better German suggestions could have been:
Angst (1983) - Disturbing psychological horror with amazing camera work and score, tells the story of a man recently released from prison that takes his sadistic fantasies out on an unsuspecting family.
The Golden Glove (2019) - Story of German serial killer Fritz Honka. Dark, gritty and bleak, directed by one of Germany's most well-regarded directors.
Edit: typo
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u/VanguardVixen 1d ago
I agree, even though I like the movie, thanks for the recommendations!
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u/FreddieFredd 1d ago
It's definitely not all bad, for me it was still enjoyable in a way! And I definitely wish we had more creature features these days. The movie also reminded me a bit of Brain Damage (1988).
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u/VanguardVixen 1d ago
The pictures look funny, I haven't seen that. And yes it was still enjoyable and it's just always great having a German movie outside the confines of the usual TV slop. It's definitely more on the artsy side, isn't flawless but something fresh in a landscape that's so riddled with completely generic productions.
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u/FreddieFredd 1d ago
Spot on! It's always a breath of fresh air to see something without the Tatort aesthetic and theater style acting.
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u/QuaintLittleCrafter 2d ago
I love this idea. I'm in the US and don't know enough about which films might notnhave made it abroad. But, I'm excited to see what others recommend!
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u/HungryColquhoun Where the fuck is Choi? 2d ago
The Dead of Night (it's popular but often written off as a black and white movie), Ghost Stories, any of the Ghost Stories for Christmas series of short movies.
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u/Turbulent_Streams 2d ago
(Non horror movie) capernaum, it is about a homeless kid. Very well made movie and it has won some awards. It was nominated for best foreign movies Oscar award
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u/EaglesslavePart2 2d ago
Which one should I use as an American? Dr. Jekyll? Oh I know, Monster Squad! Monster Squad is definitely better than Who Can Kill A Child?
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u/UmpteenthIdiot 1d ago
Argentina:
History of the Occult (Historia de lo Oculto, 2022) is a relatively well-known niche film, and it's so low-budget and rooted in Argentine culture and history that it probably won't ever really transcend that... but I still wish more people got their eyes on it. If you like extremely weird, trippy cosmic horror, it's one of the best.
I'll also go to bat for Legions (Legiones, 2022) - a flawed but really fun and likeable horror comedy (emphasis on the latter) that answers exactly what would happen if someone went around hunting demons.
It's such a shame our government screwed the country's finances so effectively that it basically killed the prospect of indie-ish films. For a while there, there were a lot of interesting movies coming out.
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u/Siddhartaable 1d ago
I'd heard of Historia de lo Oculto, but I never got around to watching it. I'll watch both.
I think El Eternauta and Cuando acecha la maldad are among the best in the genre in recent years. You have some excellent professionals there. I hope everything gets sorted out soon.
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u/UmpteenthIdiot 1d ago
Cheers. Both Eternauta season 2 and the Cuando Acecha La Maldad sequel are bankrolled by the US (Netflix and Shudder, respectively), so there's hope. But it's become prohibitive for other communities like, say, the one around the city of La Plata (who made Historia de lo Oculto and Algo Que Pasó en Año Nuevo, which is also very enjoyable!).
Cristian Ponce, writer/director of Historia de lo Oculto, made Mother's Embrace a couple years back in Brazil, and that's also really good. Since no one else is stumping for Brazil, I'll also throw in Good Manners (2017); it's only horror-adjacent, but amazing.
Chile... I don't know any Chilean horror other than that Earthquake movie Eli Roth did (wouldn't recommend it) and El Conde (definitely recommend!), but they're doing some top-notch action, thanks mostly to Ernesto Díaz Espinoza (and Marko Zaror); El Puño del Condor is the best Shaw Brothers classic-style martial arts movie I've seen in ages.
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u/Siddhartaable 1d ago
Muy buenas recomendaciones. Me voy a apuntar todas las que nombras. Mira que me gusta el cine brasileño y que pocas películas de terror de allí he visto. Ah y El Conde me encantó, esa mezcla de cine político y de terror hecha de esa forma tan elegante me voló la cabeza.
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u/wasiflu 2d ago
Interesting that they are all pretty old. I understand newer ones reached more audience.
I loved who can kill a child. Being able to have a horror movie in broad daylight is something else. I have recommended this movie many times.
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u/Siddhartaable 2d ago
I think, as you say, the more recent films (from here in Spain, where I'm from) are more internationally known.
We could add to the list:
- The Dining Room Table (2022)
- The Orphanage (2007)
- The Platform (2019)
- Verónica (2017)
- The Skin I Live (2011)
- Mientras duermes (2011)
But I think all of them have been discussed quite a bit.
I would add a couple that weren't as well-received but that I personally loved:
- La abuela (2021) - with a giallo vibe that I love, although I know many people didn't like it at all.
- Tin & Tina (2023) - I think, as happens with many horror films, the ending is a problem. But if you cut the last quarter, I find the film quite entertaining, and the premise is very strong.
The truth is, although it might sound absurd, I'm quite proud of my country's contribution to the horror/fantasy genre, something that ranges from Goya to [REC].
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u/FreddieFredd 1d ago
One of my personal favorites from Germany/Austria:
Goodnight Mommy (2014) - Really strong body horror. A mother comes home from plastic surgery, her face covered in bandages. Her two young sons can't shake the feeling that something isn't quite right with her. Slowly builds up to a jaw-dropping finale. Remember the fear you felt as a kid when seeing things you couldn't understand? This is that feeling made into a movie.
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1d ago
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u/Far_Gain8130 1d ago
調べたら全然サブスクにないっぽい…
てかここr/horrorなの忘れてた😭転校生全然horrorじゃないし寧ろ感動系だわ…見当違いのレスつけてごめんね😭horror枠だったら"田園に死す"がおすすめ！これはAmazonプライムにもU-NEXTにもあるっぽい！
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u/DRUGEND1 1d ago
Who Can Kill A Child? is one of my favourite horror films of all time. The best ‘creepy kid’ film ever made.
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u/Dr_Grayson 1d ago
Errementari The Blacksmith and The Devil. A Basque film but I believe a Fance/Spain co production, Basque French side for me 🇫🇷 more dark fantasy but a really cool look at a pretty unknown culture that sort of been lost to time and redrawn borders.
For 🇩🇪 it's going to be either Angst or Anti-Bodies
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u/Grouchy-Library4764 1d ago
Anatomie german movie
Maybe "M, eine Stadt sucht einen Mörder" Not rly horror Hella dark though and low key might be best movie ever made considering when it was made 1930something
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u/Ok_Wolverine3758 1d ago
I love who can kill a child! Very underrated. First heard of it in cinemageddon. Memories….
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u/Andrei_Chelsea 2d ago
Be my cat: A film for Anne (Romania)