A Glean movie guide
Hidden Gems: Underrated Horror
Beyond the jump scares.
Skip the blockbusters for these overlooked masterpieces of dread and suspense.
Handpicked for this guide
The movie list
- 01
Session 9
A masterclass in psychological dread set within the decaying walls of a real abandoned asylum.
Tensions rise within an asbestos cleaning crew as they work in an abandoned mental hospital with a horrific past that seems to be coming back.
- 02
Lake Mungo
A chillingly realistic mockumentary that explores grief through a haunting supernatural lens.
After 16-year-old Alice Palmer drowns at a local dam, her family experiences a series of strange, inexplicable events centered in and around their home. Unsettled, the Palmers seek the help of a psychic and parapsychologist, who discovers that Alice led a secret, double life. At Lake Mungo, Alice's secret past emerges.
- 03
The House of the Devil
A pitch-perfect tribute to 80s horror that builds unbearable tension through its deliberate, slow-burn pace.
A young college student who’s struggling financially takes a strange babysitting job which coincides with a full lunar eclipse. She slowly realizes her clients harbor a terrifying secret, putting her life in mortal danger.
- 04
Pontypool
A brilliant, claustrophobic reimagining of the zombie genre that uses language itself as the source of infection.
When disc jockey Grant Mazzy reports to his basement radio station in the Canadian town of Pontypool, he thinks it's just another day at work. But when he hears reports of a virus that turns people into zombies, Mazzy barricades himself in the radio booth and tries to figure out a way to warn his listeners about the virus and its unlikely mode of transmission.
- 05
Triangle
A mind-bending psychological puzzle that rewards viewers who pay close attention to its looping narrative.
When Jess sets sail on a yacht with a group of friends, she cannot shake the feeling that there is something wrong.
- 06
Under the Shadow
A terrifying blend of historical drama and Persian folklore set during the height of the Iran-Iraq War.
After Shideh's building is hit by a missile during the Iran-Iraq War, a superstitious neighbor suggests that the missile was cursed and might be carrying malevolent Middle-Eastern spirits. She becomes convinced a supernatural force within the building is attempting to possess her daughter Dorsa, and she has no choice but to confront these forces if she is to save her daughter and herself.
- 07
The Autopsy of Jane Doe
A tight, two-room mystery that generates massive scares through clinical curiosity and mounting supernatural unease.
Father and son coroners receive a mysterious unidentified corpse with no apparent cause of death. As they attempt to examine the "Jane Doe," they discover increasingly bizarre clues that hold the key to her terrifying secrets.
- 08
A Dark Song
An intense and grounded look at the grueling psychological toll of performing a months-long occult ritual.
A determined young woman and a damaged occultist risk their lives and souls to perform a dangerous ritual that will grant them what they want.
- 09
The Night House
A visually inventive ghost story that uses architectural cleverness to manifest the weight of grief.
Reeling from the unexpected death of her husband, Beth is left alone in the lakeside home he built for her. Soon she begins to uncover her recently deceased husband's disturbing secrets.
- 10
Possession
A visceral and surreal cult classic featuring an unforgettable, award-winning performance of pure emotional chaos.
A young woman left her family for an unspecified reason. The husband determines to find out the truth and starts following his wife. At first, he suspects that a man is involved. But gradually, he finds out more and more strange behaviors and bizarre incidents that indicate something more than a possessed love affair.