Top 10 Foreign Horror Movies To Watch This Spooky Season

TV & Film

Sep 24

Foreign Horror Film — Image Source: IMDB

Horror has seen a pretty big resurgence since the COVID-19 pandemic forced so many to stay home. A lot of the credit goes to social media platforms like X (formerly Twitter) and TikTok where film fans started communities to discuss their favorite horror films, subgenres, directors, and actors/actresses. While the entire genre was impacted the subgenre of foreign horror saw a huge uptick in interest as people started sharing their favorite horror films from around the world. American audiences are no strangers to foreign horror as we saw tons of American remakes like The Ring, The Grudge, and One Last Call in the early to mid-2000s. While these are great it’s time to give foreign horror filmmakers the attention they deserve! Here are ten foreign horror films you should add to your spooky season watchlist this year.

10. Revenge (2017)

This is the only film on the list that could be considered more of a thriller than a horror movie. While on a romantic vacation with her wealthy married boyfriend Jen finds herself fighting for her life after his sleazy friends show up out of nowhere. Unbeknownst to her the trio had planned a hunting trip around their getaway. After an incident between the friends Jen is attacked and left for dead. The rest of the film follows Jen as she enacts her revenge on the three men.

Revenge is available to stream on AMC+.

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9. Ringu (1998)

This Japanese film is based on Koji Suzuki’s novel Ring. The film got an American remake in 2002 that audiences and critics loved. The original film follows a young reporter who is on a mission to discover what killed her niece and her three friends. After discovering the cursed videotape that the four teens had watched she and her ex-husband watch the film and learn they have seven days to live. The pair discover the origin of the tape and race against the clock to solve a decades-old murder case that may be the root of the problem.

Ringu is available to stream on AMC+.

8. Let The Right One In (2008)

Let The Right One In poster — Image Source: IMDB

This Swedish film follows a young boy who is being bullied relentlessly. He soon meets his young and shy neighbor and after keeping each other at a distance they form a strong bond. This leads to the revelation that the young girl is hiding a dark secret and that she is connected to a string of local murders. This film also got an American remake in 2010 by The Batman director Matt Reeves which is considered one of the few horror remakes that is as good as the original.

Let the Right One In is available to stream on Amazon Prime Video.

7. Suspiria (1977)

This Italian film is a cult classic and probably one of the most recognizable on the list. It follows a young woman, Suzy who travels to Germany to attend a prestigious ballet school. Upon arriving at the school she sees a woman fleeing in fear and upon entering her apartment she is murdered. Suzy is accepted into the school the next day but she soon learns that the school has a dark secret and an even darker history. The film was remade in 2018 but the remake has been mostly ignored by fans of the original.

Suspiria is available to stream on Tubi.

6. Martyrs (2008)

This French film is easily the most disturbing on the list. The film follows two childhood friends who had been kidnapped and tortured when they were young girls. Now, young women, they decide to track down their captors and murder them for what they did. Unfortunately, the girls are forced to learn the truth behind their kidnappings and the ending of this film will leave you feeling gutted. It was remade in 2015 but unless you search for the remake you wouldn’t know that it exists as it flew under everyone’s radar.

Martyrs is available to stream on Tubi.

5. One Missed Call (2003)

One Missed Call poster — Image Source: IMDB

This Japanese film follows a young woman who is trying to solve the mystery of her friends’ deaths. The friends are receiving voice mails from their future selves that depict how they will die and then within a few days, the calls play out. As more of her friends die they begin to receive videos as well as voicemails and the young woman soon learns that there is a vengeful spirit to blame and that the spirit is connected to her. The film was remade in 2008, but the remake was met with a lot of backlash due to not sticking to the original material and some feeling that it felt more like a Scream or Final Destination film.

One Missed Call is available to stream on Hulu.

4. Shutter (2004)

This Thai film is sometimes attributed to Japan due to its setting and the fact that the filmmakers were heavily influenced by Japanese horror. The film follows a young couple who begin noticing a shadowy figure in the back of their photographs after they hit a woman with their car. The girlfriend believes that it is her fault since she was driving but as she uncovers the young woman’s identity she learns a horrifying secret about her boyfriend. I love the ending of this movie because it is so unexpected! The film was remade in 2008 and while the remake is good it is not nearly as scary as the original.

Shutter is available to stream on Vudu.

3. Ju-On: The Grudge (2002)

Ju-On: The Grudge poster — Image Source: IMDB

This Japanese film is probably one of the most recognizable on the list. The film focuses on the belief that if a building has endured a horror then it will absorb it and return it to anyone who visits. A group of vigilantes learn that this is more than simply a scary story as they a drug together by an investigation into seemingly unrelated events. The film was remade in 2004 and audiences loved it because while it still honored the idea of the original it created a new story and allowed for the fandom of the film to grow.

Ju-On: The Grudge is available to rent on Amazon Prime Video.

2. The Wailing (2016)

This South Korean film follows a group of policemen who are investigating a small town. The town is being overrun by murders and mass hysteria after a mysterious stranger visits. The film can be pure chaos at times, but overall it is a great addition to the horror genre. It currently has not gotten the remake treatment, but many fans have voiced their opinions online asking for the film to be remade as they feel that it would be better if given the remake treatment.

The Wailing is available to stream on Peacock.

1. Train To Busan (2016)

Train To Busan poster — Image Source: IMDB

This South Korean film is probably one of the saddest on the list, but easily the best. The film follows a group of strangers who are traveling on a train from Seoul to Busan when there is a zombie outbreak. Pure chaos ensues as the passengers fight for their lives while trapped on a speeding train. The film was supposed to get a remake released in April of this year titled The Last Train to New York, but it was unfortunately delayed for an unknown amount of time.

Train to Busan is available to stream on Peacock.

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