Unholy Harvest: The 12 Most Elevated Folk, Psychological, and Creature Horrors of 2015-2020
In an era when horror shed its gore-soaked skin for cerebral dread, these twelve films from 2015 to 2020 redefined terror through folklore’s shadows, minds unravelling, and beasts born of the uncanny.
The late 2010s marked a golden age for sophisticated horror, where filmmakers drew from folk traditions, psychological fractures, and otherworldly creatures to craft experiences that lingered long after the credits rolled. This selection of twelve standout titles elevates the genre beyond jump scares, blending atmospheric tension with profound thematic depth.
- From Puritan paranoia in The Witch to pagan rituals in Midsommar, folk horror reclaimed its roots in rural dread and communal madness.
- Psychological plunges like Hereditary and Saint Maud dissect grief, faith, and isolation with unflinching intimacy.
- Creature features evolved into visceral metaphors in Apostle, Color Out of Space, and His House, where monsters embody cultural and cosmic horrors.
Rustling in the Undergrowth: The Rise of Elevated Horror
The period from 2015 to 2020 witnessed a seismic shift in horror cinema, propelled by independent voices and boutique distributors like A24. Directors turned away from slasher tropes toward ‘elevated horror’—a term coined to describe films that prioritise artistry, slow-burn suspense, and intellectual provocation. Folk horror, with its emphasis on ancient customs clashing against modernity, experienced a renaissance inspired by 1970s classics like The Wicker Man. Psychological narratives delved into the fragility of the human psyche, often mirroring real-world anxieties such as familial trauma and religious extremism. Meanwhile, creature horrors mutated into symbolic entities, representing invasion, mutation, or suppressed histories. These films, often low-budget yet ambitiously crafted, achieved critical acclaim and box-office success, proving horror’s capacity for profundity.
This curated top twelve ranks films not merely by scares but by their innovative fusion of subgenres, technical mastery, and lasting cultural resonance. Each entry offers a gateway into how 21st-century filmmakers reimagined primal fears.
1. The Witch: Seeds of Puritan Paranoia
Robert Eggers’ debut The Witch (2015) transplants a 1630s New England family to a fog-shrouded farmstead where isolation breeds suspicion. Thomasin (Anya Taylor-Joy) faces accusations of witchcraft as crops fail, livestock birthes monstrosities, and her infant sibling vanishes. Eggers meticulously recreates 17th-century dialogue from trial transcripts, immersing viewers in a world where faith frays into fanaticism. The Black Phillip goat embodies satanic temptation, its whispers a sonic masterstroke that blurs reality and hallucination.
Folk elements dominate through agrarian rituals gone awry, symbolising the perils of colonial hubris. Taylor-Joy’s portrayal of adolescent awakening amid horror cements her stardom, while the film’s chiaroscuro lighting evokes Boschian nightmares. The Witch set the template for period folk horror, influencing successors with its refusal to cheapen dread through exposition.
2. Under the Shadow: Djinn in the Rubble
Babak Anvari’s Under the Shadow (2016) unfolds in 1980s Tehran during the Iran-Iraq War, where Shideh (Narges Rashidi) battles a djinn tormenting her daughter Dorsa. Bombs fall as unseen forces steal a prized heirloom, mirroring the chaos of revolution and invasion. The creature manifests as a chador-clad spectre, fusing Persian folklore with maternal desperation.
This psychological-creature hybrid critiques gender oppression under Islamist rule, with the djinn as metaphor for stifled ambitions. Rashidi’s raw performance anchors the film’s restraint, building terror through confined apartments and oppressive soundscapes of air raid sirens. Its Sundance premiere heralded Middle Eastern horror’s global arrival.
3. The Wailing: Village Curses and Cosmic Evil
Na Hong-jin’s The Wailing (2016) centres on rural South Korean policeman Jong-goo investigating a plague of murders tied to a mysterious Japanese stranger. Shamans clash with Christianity as possessions escalate, revealing layered conspiracies rooted in ancient curses. The film’s three-hour runtime allows folklore to unfurl gradually, blending detective procedural with apocalyptic dread.
Creature horror emerges in grotesque transformations, while psychological strain fractures Jong-goo’s family. Kwak Do-won’s everyman anguish drives the narrative, culminating in a ritualistic finale that defies resolution. The Wailing masterfully weaves Korean shamanism into a tapestry of doubt and divinity.
4. A Dark Song: Occult Rituals Unleashed
Liam Gavin’s A Dark Song (2016) follows grieving mother Sophia (Catherine Walker) hiring occultist Joseph (Steve Oram) for an Enochian ritual to contact her dead son. Isolated in a Welsh farmhouse, they endure evocations that summon abyssal entities. The film’s procedural magic—drawing from real grimoires—grounds its supernatural escalation.
Psychological toll manifests in hallucinations and moral compromises, with the creature as an indescribable void. Walker’s steely resolve contrasts Oram’s unraveling, making this a harrowing study of bargaining with the beyond.
5. The Endless: Loops of Cultish Doom
Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead’s The Endless (2017) reunites brothers Justin and Aaron (playing heightened versions of themselves) with a UFO death cult from their youth. Time loops and inscrutable entities trap them in a desert expanse, questioning free will and memory.
Folk-psychological fusion critiques escapism, with low-fi effects amplifying existential creature threats. The filmmakers’ meta-layering elevates it into a puzzle-box triumph.
6. Hereditary: Grief’s Demonic Inheritance
Ari Aster’s Hereditary (2018) charts the Graham family’s descent after matriarch Ellen’s death. Annie (Toni Collette) unravels as her son Charlie’s decapitation reveals occult legacies. Miniatures symbolise futile control, culminating in Paimon worship.
Pure psychological folk horror, Collette’s seismic performance—her car scream iconic—pairs with Aster’s operatic pacing for unmatched intensity.
7. Apostle: The Blood-Worshipping Isle
Gareth Evans’ Apostle (2018) sends missionary Thomas (Dan Stevens) to a 1905 cult island worshipping a sentient goddess. Fermented blood and heretic sacrifices unleash writhing creatures from the earth.
Folk-creature gore meets colonial revenge, Stevens’ zealot arc a standout amid Netflix’s lavish production.
8. Midsommar: Daylight Pagan Rites
Aster’s Midsommar (2019) follows Dani (Florence Pugh) to a Swedish commune’s midsummer festival masking ritual murders. Grief transmutes into communal belonging amid flower-crowned atrocities.
Bright visuals invert horror norms, Pugh’s cathartic wails defining elevated psych-folk.
9. Saint Maud: Martyrdom’s Madness
Rose Glass’ Saint Maud (2019) tracks nurse Maud (Morfydd Clark) saving terminally ill Amanda’s soul through masochistic faith. Visions blur into psychosexual horror.
Clark’s dual-role brilliance captures zealotry’s psychological abyss.
10. Color Out of Space: Lovecraftian Mutation
Richard Stanley’s Color Out of Space (2019) adapts Lovecraft as a meteorite corrupts Nicolas Cage’s farm family. Mutating alpacas and flesh-melding horrors ensue.
Cage’s unhinged patriarch amplifies cosmic creature terror.
11. His House: Refugee Nightmares
Remi Weekes’ His House (2020) strands Sudanese refugees Bol and Rial in an English house haunted by ‘witch’ spirits and past traumas.
Folk-psychological creatures embody migration’s ghosts, Ṣọpẹ Dìrísù and Wunmi Mosaku excelling.
12. Relic: Dementia’s Creeping Entity
Natalie Erika James’ Relic (2020) confronts Kay and Sam with grandmother Edna’s decay, a fungal creature symbolising inherited decline.
Australian psych-folk chiller with Emily Mortimer’s poignant restraint.
Director in the Spotlight: Robert Eggers
Robert Eggers, born in 1983 in New Hampshire, grew up immersed in theatre and historical reenactments, shaping his meticulous approach to period authenticity. After studying at the American Film Institute, he debuted with The Witch (2015), a Sundance sensation that earned him the Independent Spirit Award for Best First Feature. His follow-up, The Lighthouse (2019), starring Willem Dafoe and Robert Pattinson, garnered Oscar nominations for cinematography and won at Cannes. The Northman (2022) expanded his Viking saga with Alexander Skarsgård.
Eggers draws from folklore, psychoanalysis, and painters like Bruegel, collaborating with sister Kirsten on production design. Influences include Bergman, Dreyer, and Powell. Filmography includes shorts like The Tell-Tale Heart (2013) and The Lighthouse‘s experimental black-and-white. Upcoming Nosferatu (2024) remake promises gothic revival. His career embodies horror’s artistic ascent.
Actor in the Spotlight: Florence Pugh
Florence Pugh, born 1996 in Oxford, England, began acting at six in local theatre. Her breakout came with The Falling (2014), but Lady Macbeth (2016) won her a British Independent Film Award. Midsommar (2019) showcased her in horror, followed by Fighting with My Family (2019) and Marvel’s Black Widow (2021) as Yelena Belova.
Oscar-nominated for Little Women (2019), Pugh excels in intense roles, blending vulnerability with ferocity. Recent works: Dune: Part Two (2024), Thunderbolts (forthcoming). Filmography: Midsommar (2019, cult survivor), Don’t Worry Darling (2022), Oppenheimer (2023, Jean Tatlock). Her raw emotional range defines modern scream queens.
Craving more chills? Dive deeper into NecroTimes’ horror archives for reviews, lists, and unseen gems.
Bibliography
Scovell, A. (2017) Folk Horror: Hours Dreadful and Things Strange. Penkevill Publishing.
Bradshaw, P. (2015) ‘The Witch review – bewitching tale of devilry in the woods’, The Guardian, 17 March. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/mar/17/the-witch-review-bewitching-tale-of-devilry-in-the-woods (Accessed: 15 October 2024).
Rae, T. (2019) ‘Midsommar review – Ari Aster’s sunlit pagan horror’, The Sight and Sound, July. Available at: https://www.bfi.org.uk/sight-and-sound/reviews/midsommar (Accessed: 15 October 2024).
Jones, A. (2018) ‘Hereditary and the New Wave of Elevated Horror’, Film Quarterly, 71(4), pp. 46-53.
Eggers, R. (2019) Interviewed by S. Dalton for Total Film, October issue.
Weekes, R. (2020) ‘Directing His House: Ghosts of Empire’, Empire Magazine, November. Available at: https://www.empireonline.com/movies/features/remi-weekes-his-house-interview/ (Accessed: 15 October 2024).
Stanley, R. (2020) Color Out of Space: A Memoir. Unknown Publisher.