Jeff Goldblum in ‘The Fly’ | Sunset Boulevard/GettyImages
Body horror is a sub-genre that piques your curiosity one moment and fills you with disgust in another. There’s something so compelling about a really great body horror movie and the cinematic experience that comes with it.
There are many classics in thissub-genre, like David Cronenberg’s filmography, but there are also many awesome movies that fly under the radar. This list includes seven movies you simply won’t forget—in all the best ways.
The…
Jeff Goldblum in ‘The Fly’ | Sunset Boulevard/GettyImages
Body horror is a sub-genre that piques your curiosity one moment and fills you with disgust in another. There’s something so compelling about a really great body horror movie and the cinematic experience that comes with it.
There are many classics in thissub-genre, like David Cronenberg’s filmography, but there are also many awesome movies that fly under the radar. This list includes seven movies you simply won’t forget—in all the best ways.
The Fly (1986)
David Cronenberg’s The Fly packs a real punch—even on rewatches. The film is loosely based on George Langelaan’s 1957 short story and the 1958 movie adaptation, but this version is the most memorable.
Jeff Goldblum plays Seth Brundle, a scientist who thinks he has figured out teleportation. But when a fly sneaks into the pod, his life turns into a painful transformation that turns tragic. With incredible practical effects, it’s no wonder this is one of the most recognizable and impactful films in the body horror sub-genre.
Stream on Hulu and Disney+.
Under the Skin (2013)
There’s a lot to unpack with Jonathan Glazer’s Under the Skin. It’s both horror and sci-fi, and it’s almost hard to describe the events that transpire in the movie.
It’s based on Michel Faber’s novel from 2000, but Glazer and co-writer Walter Campbell stripped the story down into something so much more unsettling. Scarlett Johansson plays an alien who lures lonely men into a black void.
One of the biggest reasons the film feels so unsettling comes from the great score by Mica Levi, especially the main theme “Lipstick to Void,” which is immensely haunting.
Rent on Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV, YouTube, Fandango at Home, and Google Play.
Possessor (2020)
Possessor, directed by Brandon Cronenberg—David Cronenberg’s son—shows a different side of the body horror sub-genre in the modern era.
The movie follows an assassin named Tasya Vos, played by Andrea Riseborough. But she doesn’t kill people in a normal way. Her company uses a strange device that lets her take over the bodies of people to make them commit murders for her, which makes for a very unique and interesting premise.
Christopher Abbott, who plays Colin, ends up being the host that she can’t control, and the struggle between them becomes the excruciating part of the story.
Stream on Tubi.
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Slither (2006)
James Gunn might now be most well-known for his work for Marvel and DC, but he made his directorial debut with Slither. Looking back, it’s impressive how different this movie feels from all of the superhero projects he’s done since.
The movie revolves around a slimy alien parasite that crashes into Earth and infects a character named Grant, played by Michael Rooker. The film leans into its own absurdity without becoming a joke, playing homage to classic creature features.
Stream on Tubi.
Tusk (2014)
Kevin Smith’s Tusk is one of the strangest horror films of the last 20 years, and that’s saying something. It’s the first entry in his plannedTrue North trilogy, with the sequel, Yoga Hosers, releasing in 2016. The third film hasn’t happened yet.
In the movie, Justin Long plays Wallace, a podcaster who interviews strange people for content and ends up trapped by an old sailor. Wallace gets tortured by this sailor and is turned into a walrus by the end of the movie.
Tusk can become jarring at times with its tone, and it goes a little overboard in the second half, but it’s worth a watch for fans of this sub-genre. It’s not the kind of movie you forget, even if you wish you could.
Rent on Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV, YouTube, Fandango at Home, and Google Play.
Hellraiser (1987)
Clive Barker’s first Hellraiser movie remains one of the most influential body horror films ever made. Barker adapted the movie from his own 1986 novella, *The Hellbound Heart, *directing the film with very little experience. But somehow, he delivered a great movie that created an entire horror franchise. The special effects and design, especially in the original, have been widely applauded.
Strema on Amazon Prime Video, Tubi, Pluto TV, and PLEX.
Infinity Pool (2023)
Brandon Cronenberg followed up on *Possessor *with Infinity Pool, going even stranger with this movie, which is set in the fictional country of Li Tolqa.
The movie follows a struggling novelist named James Foster (Alexander Skarsgård) and his wife Em (Cleopatra Coleman). They take a vacation, but find themselves dragged into a world where the country’s laws allow wealthy tourists to escape punishment through a bizarre cloning system.
One of the great things about the movie is how it mixes body horror with psychological collapse. The body horror moments aren’t as constant as in Possessor, but when they happen, they’re screech-worthy.
Rent on Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV, YouTube, Fandango at Home, and Google Play.
This article was originally published on mentalfloss.com as Trust Us: You Won’t Be Able to Look Away From These 7 Great Body Horror Movies.