The end of summer marks a few significant events for those who love all things fall-adjacent, warm, and terrifying. One of which is watching horror movies, because spooky season kicks off now — although, let’s be honest, any season is spooky season if you’re a horror aficionado.
Spine-tingling movies appeal to fans for several reasons; some horror lovers watch them for the thrills, others are connoisseurs of the stylistic elements. Films like Scream and Chucky have cult followings, movie franchises like Halloween seem unending in the best, most epic way, and of course, movies about real-life haunts are sure to spook you for years to come.
So what about the set of dark-embracing horror lovers who want to watch a movie without a typical Hollywood happy ending? Well, a Reddit user asked for recommendations today and was met with hundreds of them!
Funny Games was a reply that had several people in agreement, noting that it was a tough watch, but it certainly fits the bill for no happily ever after in sight.
John Carpenter has a thing for making films without a happy ending; see The Thing and The Prince of Darkness. Horror lovers also mentioned Phillip Kaufman’s Invasion of the Body Snatchers.
If you can watch The Mist without getting, well — misty-eyed from the end of that movie, we applaud you. There is no ending more tear-jerking. It almost makes you want to throw your popcorn and Coke at the screen.
A shoutout to Shudder; horror fans flock to the streaming platform to find original movies that leave them feeling miserable and uneasy. The Dark and The Wicked is one that fans think you have to check out if you’re in the mood for the opposite of a fairytale ending.
Drag Me To Hell is a film that shocked all of us. We thought things had finally turned around for the movie’s central power player; the evil had left the building, and happily ever after was on the horizon. Then, in the blink of an eye, it all changed.
This list is also full of scary flicks without a perfectly-tied bow on top by way of explanation at the end. Oh, and we’re still not over Midsommar — is anyone else over Midsommar yet?
The Vanishing has an ending that will leave you feeling some type of way for days after having watched it.
So be it one of those days (or weeks) where easy endings won’t do, or just because you’re in the mood for persistent unease, here’s to horror without happily ever after. Sometimes the tragic endings just make it all worth the watch.