Here are Cinephile Corner’s 10 recommendations for horror movies like Night Swim:
Talk to Me
Talk to Me is the latest elevated horror movie from A24, a studio that’s completely redefined and reimagined the state of the genre, introducing new ideas and themes into it over the past decade. Talk to Me attempts to do the same, pitting trauma and coping mechanisms with demonic forces to a scary degree.
Wolf Man
Wolf Man is another uneven entry in Universal Pictures’ long-running struggle to make their classic monster IP feel vital again. Leigh Whannell may be one of the more exciting genre filmmakers working today, but this misaligned project is more whimper than howl.
Cobweb
Cobweb might be accused of adhering to some familiar horror tropes, but its commitment to its genre roots is what makes it stand out. The movie surpasses expectations with its tight narrative, commendable performances, and a commitment to delivering unadulterated horror.
Doctor Sleep
There is supposedly a better director’s cut of Doctor Sleep out there that fills in the gaps of a few character traits, motivations, and decisions. Honestly, I’m not sure I care. This is about as rigorous and uninteresting as any horror franchise rebooted in recent memory. It’s a glossy, airless, and ultimately unnecessary return to a world that was perfect as is.
Five Nights at Freddy’s
The Five Nights at Freddy’s movie adaptation succumbs to the pitfalls of a poorly executed narrative, sidelining its potentially terrifying animatronic characters in favor of a tepid and uninspiring trauma story. Josh Hutcherson gives a commendable performance, but there’s not enough support around him to make this movie work.
Hereditary
Hereditary is the rare debut that instantly reshapes a genre. Ari Aster’s 2018 feature moves with an icy confidence, turning domestic grief into occult nightmare, and it still feels like a defining horror film of the century. Backed by A24, the film has the precision and patience of a masterwork: long takes that corner you in the frame, sound design that hums with unease, and edits that withhold just enough to make every cut feel like a trapdoor.
Weapons
Weapons opens with one of the most chilling hooks you’ll hear in any movie this year: at exactly 2:17 a.m., every child from Mrs. Gandy’s class woke up, walked downstairs, opened the front door, stepped into the dark… and never came back. It’s the kind of premise that immediately grabs you, the kind of logline that sells itself in a trailer and sticks in your head for days. Writer-director Zach Cregger, who burst onto the horror scene with 2022’s Barbarian, proves once again that he knows how to start a story with an irresistible, terrifying question.
The Woman in the Yard
In a time when many horror films try to be either thinkpieces or thrill rides and fail to be either, The Woman in the Yard hits a rare sweet spot. It’s a horror film that’s genuinely tense, emotionally grounded, and smartly contained. It may not be a game-changer, but it’s a solid, satisfying entry in the modern horror canon—and a reminder that even filmmakers with inconsistent track records like Jaume Collet-Serra can deliver when the right material lands in the right hands.
Bring Her Back
Bring Her Back may satisfy diehard fans of A24-style horror or those looking for a few jarring images, but for most viewers, it will likely feel like an echo of better films. This is the kind of horror that thinks it’s elevated but forgets to be compelling. For the Philippous, it’s a clear step back—stylistic confidence without a story worth telling.
Us
Jordan Peele’s Us was somewhat divisive when it hit theaters in 2019, but it has only grown in my estimation since. Not only did it prove that Get Out was no fluke, but it cemented Peele as a filmmaker with a knack for taking familiar horror tropes and twisting them into something fresh and conceptually bold. It’s a film that balances genre thrills with introspection, making for an experience that is as thought-provoking as it is unsettling.