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Horror movies usually scare us with ghosts, monsters, and sudden loud noises, but some have endings that leave us feeling more sad than scared; these movies take us on a spooky ride, only to end in a way that might make us reach for a tissue instead of hiding behind a pillow.
This list is for those who don't mind a little bit of sadness with their scares; it's a collection of horror movies that are sure to touch your heart, maybe even as much as they make it race, showing that sometimes the scariest thing is not the monster under the bed, but the emotions that come with saying goodbye.
1. "The Mist" (2007) Rotten Tomatoes score: 73%
After a powerful storm, residents of a small Maine town encounter a thick, unnatural mist that conceals otherworldly monsters, leading a group of townspeople, including artist David Drayton and his son, to seek refuge in a supermarket, facing not only the external horrors but also the unraveling of societal norms and the rise of fear-driven madness among themselves.
2. "Night of the Living Dead" (1968) Rotten Tomatoes score: 95%
Barbara and Ben find themselves trapped in a rural Pennsylvania farmhouse alongside several others as the dead begin to rise and attack the living, leading to a desperate fight for survival against the zombies outside and the fracturing human relationships within.
3. "Tigers Are Not Afraid" (2017) Rotten Tomatoes score: 97%
In a drug-war-torn Mexican city, a young girl named Estrella joins a group of orphaned boys after receiving three magical wishes, leading them on a supernatural journey for survival, haunted by the ghosts of the cartel's victims and their own pasts.
4. "The Orphanage" (also known as "El Orfanato") (2007) Rotten Tomatoes score: 87%
Laura returns to her childhood orphanage with her husband and adopted son, Simon, with plans to reopen it, but when Simon disappears, Laura finds herself unraveling a chilling mystery linked to the orphanage's haunting past and a group of masked children.
5. "The Descent" (2005) Rotten Tomatoes score: 87%
A group of women exploring a cave system in the Appalachian Mountains become trapped and are hunted by a horrifying species of subterranean humanoids, forcing them to fight for survival while dealing with the psychological strains of their dire situation and the unraveling of group dynamics.
6. "A Tale of Two Sisters" (2003) Rotten Tomatoes score: 86%
After returning home from a mental institution, Su-mi and her sister Su-yeon confront their cruel stepmother and a series of disturbing occurrences that suggest their lakeside family home is haunted, unraveling a tragic family secret that blurs the lines between reality and terrifying psychological torment.
7. "The Fly" (1986) Rotten Tomatoes score: 93%
Scientist Seth Brundle's groundbreaking teleportation experiment goes horrifically wrong when his DNA is fused with that of a fly, leading him on a transformation into a grotesque human-fly hybrid, as his girlfriend, journalist Veronica Quaife, watches in horror and pity.
8. "Train to Busan" (2016) Rotten Tomatoes score: 95%
Seok-woo and his daughter, Su-an, board a high-speed train from Seoul to Busan only to discover that the train is overrun by zombies during a sudden outbreak, forcing passengers into a desperate fight for survival as societal order collapses around them.
9. "Marrowbone" (2017) Rotten Tomatoes score: 49%
Four siblings, seeking to escape their troubled past, hide away in Marrowbone House after their mother's death, but when supernatural occurrences begin to reveal the dark secrets they've been trying to bury, their bond is tested in terrifying ways.
10. "The Lodge" (2019) Rotten Tomatoes score: 75%
A soon-to-be stepmom, Grace, finds herself snowed in at a remote holiday lodge with her fiancé's two children; isolation and the haunting presence of a cult's dark past lead to a harrowing psychological ordeal that blurs the lines between reality and paranoia.
After being bitten by a werewolf, teenager Ginger Fitzgerald undergoes a terrifying transformation, pushing her sister Brigitte to find a cure, as they deal with the horrifying physical changes and the violent urges that threaten to consume Ginger.
12. "Eden Lake" (2008) Rotten Tomatoes score: 81%
A romantic weekend getaway for a young couple, Jenny and Steve, turns into a horrifying survival ordeal when they are brutally terrorized by a gang of ruthless teenagers, leading to a chilling and bloody confrontation that tests the limits of their will to survive.
Single mother Yoshimi battles for custody of her daughter while they move into a dilapidated apartment haunted by the ghost of a neglected child, leading to a series of eerie events that force Yoshimi to confront the apartment's dark past to protect her daughter.
14. "Drag Me to Hell" (2009) Rotten Tomatoes score: 92%
Loan officer Christine Brown, aiming for a job promotion and under pressure, refuses a mortgage extension to an elderly woman who then places a powerful curse on Christine, leading her into a desperate fight for her soul against a demonic force.
15. "Martyrs" (2008) Rotten Tomatoes score: 65%
A young woman seeks revenge against the people who kidnapped and tortured her as a child, leading her and a friend into a nightmarish journey that uncovers a secret society obsessed with finding the true nature of martyrdom through extreme acts.
16. "Oculus" (2013) Rotten Tomatoes score: 75%
A brother and sister, Tim and Kaylie Russell, are haunted by the violent deaths of their parents, which Kaylie believes were caused by a cursed antique mirror. They set out to prove that the mirror is haunted while confronting their traumatic past.
17. "Speak No Evil" (2022) Rotten Tomatoes score: 84%
On a vacation in Tuscany, a Danish family befriends a Dutch family, but after accepting an invitation to visit their new friends' home, unsettling events unfold, revealing the hosts' sinister intentions.
18. "The Others" (2001) Rotten Tomatoes score: 84%
Grace Stewart, living in a remote country house with her two photosensitive children, becomes convinced their home is haunted. As she unravels the truth, she discovers a shocking secret about her family and the house's past occupants.
19. "Deathdream" (also known as "Dead of Night") (1974) Rotten Tomatoes score: 85% When a young man, Andy Brooks, is killed in Vietnam and returns home to his family, they notice he's profoundly changed and exhibits strange, violent behavior, leading to a dark revelation tied to the war's impact on soldiers.
20. "The Blackcoat's Daughter" (also known as "February") (2015) Rotten Tomatoes score: 76%
Two girls at a Catholic boarding school and a mysterious woman intertwined by a series of sinister events and demonic possession, leading to a bloody encounter tied to a satanic pact.
21. "Midsommar" (2019) Rotten Tomatoes score: 83%
A couple, Dani and Christian, travel with friends to Sweden to visit a rural hometown's fabled mid-summer festival. What begins as an idyllic retreat quickly devolves into a violent and bizarre competition at the hands of a pagan cult.
22. "The Thing" (1982) Rotten Tomatoes score: 84%
A team of researchers in Antarctica is confronted by a shape-shifting alien that assumes the appearance of the people it kills, leading to paranoia and a fight for survival against an unknown enemy.
Siblings Darry and Trish encounter a flesh-eating creature known as the Creeper on their drive home through the countryside, unleashing a series of horrifying events as they discover its cyclic hunting pattern and try to escape its pursuit.
Rosemary Woodhouse, a young married woman, becomes pregnant but starts to suspect that her husband has made a pact with their eccentric neighbors, leading to paranoia about her unborn child's safety and a conspiracy involving witchcraft.
25. "Barbarian" (2022) Rotten Tomatoes score: 93%
A young woman, Tess, arrives at her rental home in Detroit only to find it double-booked with a stranger. As she decides to stay the night, she discovers the house's terrifying secrets that are far more alarming than an awkward living situation.
