Though Horror has been a staple of US cinema since the early 1930’s with Dracula (1931), Frankenstein (1931) and The Wolf Man (1941), other countries didn’t embrace the horror genre until decades later. Though UK- based Hammer Productions released their first film in 1935, it wasn’t until the late 1950’s and 1960’s that we started to really see the Hammer Horror reputation that endures to this day. This period saw 75+ Hammer produced films released including Horror film notables such as The Hound of the Baskervilles (1959), The Mummy (1959), The Plague of Zombies (1966) and Vampire Circus (1972).
The Japanese also began to embrace the Horror genre starting in the early 1960’s with Jigoku (1960), Matango (1963), Onibaba (1964), Kwaidan (1964), and Goke, Body Snatcher from Hell (1968). These Japanese films would form the foundation for a decades-later wave of J-Horror films. However, despite every country’s best effort, nobody quite did Horror like the Italians throughout the 1970’s and early 1980’s.
Similar to how the Italian film industry pumped out an endless wave of Spaghetti westerns in the 1960’s, the Italians turned their focus to the Horror genre with specific emphasis on two subgenres in particular – The slasher film and zombie film. The Italian slasher film even spawned its own subgenre called Giallo films. Italians created some of the more memorable Zombie films during this 15-year period with Zombie Flesh Eaters (1979), Zombie Holocaust (1980), and Nightmare City (1980). As for Slasher films, Italian director Dario Argento led this charge and rose to Horror infamy with Deep Red (1976), Suspiria (1977), Tenebre (1982), Phenomena (1985) and Opera (1987).
World Cinema Horror waned a bit in the 1990’s though there were a few notable films including Dark Waters (1993), Cronos (1993) and The Day of the Beast (1995). It wasn’t until the late 1990’s that we would experience a new wave of Horror films coming out of Japan. J-Horror became a subgenre all on its own with some of the all-time best Horror films that would eventually be remade by Hollywood. Ringu (1998), Ju-on: The Grudge (2002) and Pulse (2001) would all spawn inferior remakes while Japanese director Takashi Miike would show just how extreme J-Horror could get with Audition (1999), Ichi the Killer (2001), Visitor Q (2001) and Imprint (2006).
Not to be outdone by the Japanese, the Koreans soon started their own foray into Horror with yet another Horror subgenre known as K-Horror films. While K-Horror films weren’t as extreme as J-Horror, K-Horror often focused on the supernatural with more intense scares. Notable K-Horror films include A Tale of Two Sisters (2003), The Host (2006), The Chaser (2008), Thirst (2009), I Saw The Devil (2010), The Wailing (2016), Train to Busan (2017), Parasite (2019), Rampant (2019) and #Alive (2020).
While the J-Horror subgenre opened the door for more extreme Horror films, the Europeans decided to kick the door all the way open in the 2000’s. This decade started to see a new wave of extreme horror from France with Inside (2007), Frontiers (2007) and Martyrs (2008) and somewhat tamer films from Spain with [REC] (2007), Shiver (2008) and Julia’s Eyes (2010). Even the Norwegians would dive headfirst into this horror resurgence with films including Cold Prey (2006) and Dead Snow (2009).
In the 2010’s, horror was as popular as ever and this decade produced many great World Cinema Horror films including Frankenstein’s Army (2013), We Are What We Are (2013), Goodnight Mommy (2014), Raw (2016), Tigers Are Not Afraid (2017), and Ghostland (2018).
Our list of World Cinema Horror Films includes over 488+ films and that’s only with most film dates starting from 1960 – Present. Like some of our other subgenre lists with quite a few films, we will likely create multiple lists of World Cinema Horror Films You Haven’t Seen. Not making our first list but definitely worth checking out are the following honorable mentions: Nosferatu the Vampyre (1979), Tetsuo: The Iron Man (1989), Funny Games (1997), Let The Right One In (2008), The Babadook (2014), The Wailing (2017), Rampant (2019), and #Alive (2020).
Here’s the list of Top World Cinema Horror Films You Haven’t Seen:
#10
Demons
Plot: People trapped in a movie theater are hunted one by one by a growing number of Demons.
KBZ’s Take: If you grew up during the 80’s, this was one of a handful of Horror films that likely scared the crap out of you. Watching it 35 years later, it’s cheesy, has dated special effects and has ridiculous English language dubbing. However, it’s still a film to seek out and watch if only to see how an actual Demon comes out of a possessed person. That is one scene you’ll never forget…or unsee.
Where to Stream / Buy: https://amzn.to/40bNS2d
#9
Nightwatch
Plot: A night watchman at a morgue becomes a suspect in a rash of grisly murders.
KBZ’s Take: Remade 3 years later as Nightwatch (1997) with the same screenplay and the same director, there’s just something about the Danish original that makes it rise above its US remake. Seek out the 1994 original film as it has better atmosphere, creepiness and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau (of Jamie Lannister fame) shines in the role as a night watchman slipping slowly into ever increasing paranoia.
Where to Stream / Buy: https://amzn.to/3kRHIUL
Plot: Film crew shooting a zombie film are attacked by real zombies.
KBZ’s Take: There’s not much more you can say about this film beyond its basic plot without ruining the film. Yes, it’s a horror comedy about a film shoot gone wrong, but it’s much, much more than that. It’s one of those films where when you get to the end, you want to rewatch right away to see what you might have missed. It truly is a ‘meta’ defining film.
Where to Stream / Buy: https://amzn.to/3HiZmZ5
Plot: During the Iran-Iraq War, a mother becomes convinced a supernatural force is trying to possess her daughter.
KBZ’s Takee: This Persian-language film is part supernatural horror and part psychological horror. While those horror subgenres typically go hand in hand together, Under the Shadow brilliantly interweaves the psychological aspects of being in a war zone with the supernatural threat of a Djinn. The film also has a few of the better “jump scares” you’ll find in any horror film.
Where to Stream / Buy: https://amzn.to/3YaXqIO
#6
Martyrs
Plot: A young woman abused as a child, seeks revenge on her captors.
KBZ’s Take: Warning: this film is not for the faint of heart. As mentioned in our intro, this was probably the most extreme French horror film released in the 2000’s. It’s often in the Top 3 of any Most Disturbing Films of All Time lists and it’s been labeled as “torture porn”. The film has spawned numerous debates about the ending if you can make it that far.
Where to Stream / Buy: https://amzn.to/3Rjz1i1
#5
[REC]
Plot: TV reporter and crew are locked inside an apartment building where a viral outbreak turns humans into bloodthirsty killers.
KBZ’s Take: [REC] spawned 3 sequels and was remade into 2 US films – Quarantine (2008) and Quarantine 2: Terminal (2011). While the 2008 remake isn’t that bad, we advise seeing the original [REC] series – especially [REC] (2007), [REC]² (2009) and [REC] 4: Apocalypse (2014). Though the film series initially utilizes the found footage format to document a standard zombie outbreak, it evolves over time to integrate supernatural horror into the zombie and pandemic & virus subgenres.
Where to Stream / Buy: https://amzn.to/3Y6Uugn
#4
Audition
Plot: Widowed man sits through actress auditions to find his next wife.
KBZ’s Take: Another film that’s often found on the Most Disturbing Films of All Time lists, Audition does a complete head fake halfway through the movie. At first, you’re watching a romantic comedy about a father and son who are missing the now deceased matriarch of the family. But then it completely turns into a horror film with quite a few WTF moments. The less said of this film’s plot, the better, as it’s a film you have to see for yourself. But, be warned, it’s not for the squeamish! And we wouldn’t advise the old “convince your girlfriend or significant other into thinking they’re watching a romantic comedy so you can watch a horror film” trick as it won’t end well for you either.
Where to Stream / Buy: https://amzn.to/3XNtuTx
#3
The Eye
Plot: A woman gets a cornea transplant and can now see ghosts.
KBZ’s Take: This Hong Kong film by the Pang Brothers spawned yet another subpar remake called The Eye (2008). Noticing a trend yet? Watch the originals as they’re almost always better! What the remake lacks – mainly suspense, horror, and acting – the original excels at. It’s one of the scarier Asian films you’ll see not only from the 2000’s wave of Asian horror but from the last 40 years.
Where to Stream / Buy: https://amzn.to/3XMA7Fr
#2
I Am a Hero
Plot: A lowly manga artist’s assistant witnesses the beginning of a Zombie Apocalypse.
KBZ’s Take: When we are often asked to recommend a horror or zombie film that someone has likely not seen, I Am a Hero is always our #1 recommendation. Based on the Japanese manga series of the same name, this film is a straight up adrenaline rush. While it doesn’t add much to the zombie subgenre, where it shines is with its direction, story and characters. A definite must-see but be warned: this film has A LOT of gore.
Where to Stream / Buy: https://amzn.to/3XPUP7q
Plot: Woman has cosmetic surgery and her sons now doubt who she claims to be…their mother.
KBZ’s Take: This Austrian film is a slow psychological burn that has an amazing payoff at the end. While it takes awhile to get going, once you catch on to the true ‘horror’ aspect of the family, you’ll be filled with dread anticipating what’s about to happen next. This isn’t a film to watch for cheap jump scares but rather a film you’ll be thinking about days after seeing it. Note: you can google message boards about the film that discuss some points in the film you’ll likely be questioning after viewing.
Where to Stream / Buy: https://amzn.to/3Dpz2eT
