Plot: A vampire searches for a cure for her vampire lover whose immortality is wearing off.

KBZ’s Take: If you can make it past the music video stylization of the film (RIP Tony Scott), there’s actually a pretty good story buried underneath. David Bowie’s take on a vampire realizing his end is near helps make the film interesting before the plot devolves into confusion with a muddled back and forth between Catherine Deneuve and Susan Sarandon’s characters. But it’s one of the lesser-known Dark Fantasy and Vampire films that’s worth checking out by fans of the subgenre.

Additional Lists: Top Dark Fantasy Films You Haven’t Seen – 1970 – 1989 #3, Top Films About Vampires You Haven’t Seen #9

Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon

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 Body Horror film with quite a few WTF moments.

The less said about 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.

Additional Lists: Top World Cinema Horror Films You Haven’t Seen #4, Top Scariest Halloween Films for Adults You Haven’t Seen #6

Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon

Plot: Frustrated by scrolling dating apps only to end up on lame, tedious dates, Noa takes a chance by giving her number to the awkwardly charming Steve after a produce-section meet-cute at the grocery store.

KBZ’s Take: This is probably not a film you want to watch if you’ve recently begun dating your loved one. It will make you question how much you can trust someone you’ve just met.

However, it is a film that is worth seeing for the amazing chemistry between Noa (Daisy Edgar-Jones) and Steve (Sebastian Stan). Just be prepared that despite that very romantic first act, it does delve into straight horror for the remainder of the film.

Where to Stream / Buy: Hulu

Plot: An innocent young woman is the unwitting host to a Krasue, a demon who causes havoc in her village as it searches for vengeance at night.

KBZ’s Take: What is a Krasue might you ask? Well, it’s a spirt from Thai folklore that detaches itself from its human host at night with only the head and attached internal organs flying out and about in search of food. Needless to say, it isn’t your typical feel-good fairy tale.

Inhuman Kiss features an infamous Krasue which possesses the body of Sai (Phantira Pipityakorn) and soon mysterious deaths start occurring in Sai’s village. And despite the film having many bloody and horrific sequences, it’s also a Horror Romance between Sai and Noi (Oabnithi Wiwattanawarang). Their love shows that it’s still possible to care for another even when their head is detached from their body and hungry for flesh.

In all seriousness, this was a surprisingly good film with great special effects – especially for the Krasue. You have to see the fight between a female Krasue and the very different embodiment of a male Krasue to believe it. It’s a film we had no expectations of going in but after watching, felt it was not only one of the best subgenre films of the decade but one of the most unique films in the entire Folk Horror subgenre.

Additional Lists: Top Folk Horror Films You Haven’t Seen – 2010s #1

Where to Stream / Buy: Netflix

Plot: Years into their relationship, Tim and Millie find themselves at a crossroads when they move to the countryside, abandoning all that is familiar in their lives except each other. With tensions already flaring, a nightmarish encounter with a mysterious, unnatural force threatens to corrupt their lives, their love, and their flesh.

KBZ’s Take: Unlike our previous entry for Fresh (2022), this is a horror film focused on a couple in a long term relationship with some very dark comedic undertones. It’s also a film that’s not for the squeamish as there are some very unique (and frightening) body horror sequences.

The leads in the film, Alison Brie and Dave Franco, are married in real life and their romantic chemistry is quite believable in this very original (and underrated) romantic horror film.

Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon

Plot: A man rescues a beautiful young woman who is on the run from a coven of witches.

KBZ’s Take: This was a semi-popular B-Horror movie in the late 80’s but has been forgotten over time. Without going into too much detail about the plot, all we can say is it has one of the best ‘twists’ in any horror film you’ll see.

It also has a roster of familiar 80’s B movie actors with Tim Daly, the late Kelly Preston and Rick Rossovich. The less you know about this film going into it, the better…and it’s a great film for a Halloween night or a Valentine’s Day night of horror and romance.

Additional Lists: Top Scariest Halloween Films for Adults You Haven’t Seen #9

Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon

Plot: A farm boy reluctantly becomes a member of the undead when a girl he meets turns out to be part of a band of vampires who roam the highways in stolen cars.

KBZ’s Take: Most vampire films focus on a vampire struggling with immortality in the search for true and eternal love. Near Dark takes a somewhat different approach focusing on Caleb’s (Adrian Pasdar) newfound vampirism at the hand of Mae (Jenny Wright).

Though the film also takes a unique neo-western approach showcasing a pack of transient vampires, at the heart of the film, is the romance between Caleb and Mae.

Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon

Plot: A young man in a personal tailspin flees the US to Italy, where he sparks up a romance with a woman harboring a dark, primordial secret.

KBZ’s Take: If you’ve read our articles before, you’re likely aware that we’re huge fans of Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead. They often bring a unique approach to different subgenres from time loops in The Endless (2017) to time travel in Synchronic (2019).

Spring is one of their earlier films that delves into themes of cosmic horror with a very unique and endearing romance between Evan (Lou Taylor Pucci) and the strange Louise (Nadia Hilker). This is a film that blends multiple genres (horror, sci-fi, fantasy) together with romance at its core to deliver one of the best romantic horror films out there.

Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon

Plot: Set in 1982 in the suburb of Blackeberg, Stockholm, twelve-year-old Oskar is a lonely outsider, bullied at school by his classmates; at home, Oskar dreams of revenge against a trio of bullies. He befriends his twelve-year-old, next-door neighbor Eli, who only appears at night in the snow-covered playground outside their building.

KBZ’s Take: Let the Right One In is one of the most unique films about vampires with its romantic story about the love that blossoms between lonely children. Though the film has some horrific moments, at its core, it is a romance and one of the best of the subgenre.

Let the Right One is a Swedish film and subtitled, so if you’re averse to subtitles, you can always watch the U.S. remake of the film, Let Me In (2010). Though we personally prefer the original Swedish film, both films have their merits and are worth checking out.

Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon

Plot: When Dracula leaves the captive Jonathan Harker and Transylvania for London in search of Mina Harker, the reincarnation of Dracula’s long-dead wife Elisabeta, obsessed vampire hunter Dr. Van Helsing sets out to end the madness.

KBZ’s Take: There was little doubt that a film about Dracula would take the top spot of this list. Dracula’s search for his eternal love has been told in various romanticized forms from Dracula (1931) and Dracula (1979) to the recent Nosferatu (2024) and Dracula: A Love Tale (2026). While some of these films about Dracula have de-emphasized the romantic angle, that can’t be said of Bram Stoker’s Dracula which zeros in on the romantic pursuit of Mina Harker by The Prince of Darkness.

While the film does have its flaws, it more than makes up for them with amazing cinematography, a classic gothic romance and a career performance from Gary Oldman. It’s also a film that more than justifies it’s top ranking with the best line in all of horror romance – “I have crossed oceans of time to find you.”

Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon