Horror films are very popular because they provide some of the most visceral experiences you will ever see. These stories, designed to visibly shock and frighten their audiences, come from the ideas and creations of great film directors.

Increase the feelings of horror characteristic of classics such as The exorcist, Dracula, And The glow, and generating new scare elements is a task that requires work. From chase scenes or shocks to that exceptional sense of fear and unavoidable threat is what they have done the horror directors of the moment Yorgos Lanthimos, Jordan Peele and Ari Aster.

What do you like about your titles? Killing a sacred deer, UsAnd Heir apparent, Besides scaring a lot of people? All of these films are part of the new wave of horror films.

From left to right: killing a sacred deer (2017), ours (2019) and hereditary (2018).

With disturbing, irreverent and, above all, nightmare-generating stories, they tackle various themes with a unique and captivating style. In this way, the three have redefined the way of telling horror. Below, we’ll tell you how these geniuses and their filmographies influenced the genre as a whole.

Yorgos Lanthimos, a 50-year-old Greek director, is considered worldwide as the leading exponent of the Weird Wave, a movement that was born in 2009 and has created some of the strangest and most disturbing films that audiences have seen in recent years. He is known for his work in the highly surreal The lobster and the terrifying Killing a sacred deerboth in leading roles Colin Farrell.

The latter leaves the viewer confused and divided as it tells the terrible story of Steven Murphy, a respected heart surgeon who becomes embroiled in a stormy dilemma with his wife Anna (Nicole Kidman), and his two children, thanks to him. This conflict, proposed by Martin (Barry Keoghan), a boy seeking revenge for his father’s death will prompt the Doctor to choose to kill a member of his family to align with him.

Thus begins the eerie and slow ordeal that the five will experience, as while Murphy decides who to sacrifice, the family falls ill without any explanation. What distinguishes humans from animals? That is the recurring question in all his films, which are characterized by their unmistakable, eccentric and provocative style.

Jordan Peele, 44, explores the multifaceted representation of race in America through his films, which are distinguished by their haunting and carefully composed framing. They all seem designed to disrupt.

By means of Ushis psychological horror film chronicles the rot of American society through the story of the Wilsons, an upper-middle-class family who one night find their ‘tied up‘ or doppelgängers, who are a perfect copy of themselves, created by the government to control the population, and who have spent their entire lives in underground tunnels until that moment of revelation full of shocking twists and revelations.

Starring Lupita Nyong’oAnd Winston Dukethis film gives you the feeling of being cornered thanks to the versatility of the characters they play.

Arie Aster is brilliant at creating deep, layered stories. The 37-year-old American stands out for his productions that combine horror and black humor, and for his desperate and ruthless representations of graphic violence.

It’s with Heir apparent, which took another step to become one of the new references of this film genre. This film about twisted family relationships, woven into a supernatural story, tells the devastating life of Annie (Toni Collette), who feels indifferent and restless after the death of her mother. She begins to experience a complete nightmare when her youngest daughter accidentally dies in a truly violent manner.

The tension that grows between the remaining family members, her husband and eldest son, will lead them to lose control of their emotions and witness the cryptic and terrifying secrets that plague their ancestors, and from which they will not be able to escape because it is a fate they will inherit. This film develops themes of family trauma, mental illness, suffering and grief.

While ‘normal’ horror films have accustomed us to feeling disturbed and shocked, this new wave aims to provoke and put a disturbing reality in your face: real horror is the message and that will give you a completely new horror experience. Fans of extremely dark but thought-provoking films should not miss this trio of horror movie staples.