12 Movies Where the Humans Are the Real Monsters in the Story
Monster movies are typically about otherworldly, hideous creatures that prey on humans. However, not all monsters are alien species. Some movie monsters are far too human. Here are 12 movies with bone-chilling human and human-like monsters.
1. Nightbreed (1990)
Image Credit: 20th Century Fox.
A young man named Aaron Boone has recurring nightmares about Midian, a city inhabited by monsters and mutants called the Nightbreed. Boone seeks the help of Dr. Decker, a psychiatrist, not realizing that the doctor is a serial killer who plans to set up Boone to take the fall for the murders he committed. The Nightbreed look fearsome but are peaceful; it’s a human killer who should be feared.
2. Taxi Driver (1976)
Image Credit: Columbia Pictures.
Travis Bickle, a veteran with chronic insomnia, decides to work the night shift as a New York City taxi driver. Seeing the city’s crime and urban decay worsens his already agitated mental state. Eventually, Bickle becomes a vigilante who targets the worst criminals he encounters, acting out his delusions of finally cleaning up the city.
3. Frailty (2001)
Image Credit: Lions Gate Films.
In this shocking thriller with multiple plot twists, the FBI is hunting for a serial killer who calls himself “God’s Hands.” When someone contacts the FBI agent who is leading the search for the killer, it turns out that not only was there more than one person responsible for the murders, it was a father who started the killings years earlier and taught his son to do the same.
4. Planet of the Apes (1968)
Image Credit: 20th Century-Fox.
Three astronauts crash land on what seems to be another planet, years into the future from the time of their initial space travels. On this planet, humans are captives that have been rendered unable to talk, and primates with human-like intelligence and speech are the dominant species.
It’s revealed that the astronauts have been on Earth the entire time but that a nuclear war started by humans has turned the planet into a post-apocalyptic wasteland.
5. The Shape of Water (2017)
Image Credit: KERRY HAYES/Fox Searchlight Pictures.
Set against the backdrop of the Cold War, Elisa, a mute, lonely cleaning lady working in a top-secret government laboratory, befriends one of the lab’s captive subjects: an amphibian with human features who can heal others. When Elisa discovers the government’s plans to perform horrific experiments on her friend, she seeks help to save their life.
6. 28 Days Later (2002)
Image Credit: Fox Searchlight Pictures.
Eco-terrorists break into a lab in the United Kingdom and free a chimpanzee infected with the “Rage” virus. The virus spreads among humans throughout London, turning them into zombie-like creatures.
Twenty-eight days into the outbreak, Jim, a comatose bike courier, wakes up and finds that society has collapsed. Jim and a few other survivors fight against infected humans and the military, who use the outbreak for their own purposes.
7. The Platform (2019)
Image Credit: Festival Films.
In a futuristic prison with hundreds of floors, inmates are kept in vertical cells. Food is distributed to the inmates based on their assigned floor. Those occupying the highest floors are given the most food. In contrast, those on the lowest floors receive the leftovers, if anything at all. The desperation of the starving prisoners on the lower levels causes them to engage in horrific acts for food.
8. The Host (2006)
Image Credit: Nippon Herald Films.
In South Korea, a member of the U.S. military orders the disposal of hundreds of gallons of toxic chemicals by having them poured down the drain. This pollutes the water table, poisons sea life, and creates a monster that kills adults and kidnaps children. The family of one of the missing children takes it upon themselves to find their daughter before it’s too late.
9. Ex Machina (2014)
Image Credit: Universal Pictures International.
Caleb, a computer programmer, wins a contest to spend a week at the home of Nathan, his company’s CEO. Caleb is tasked with determining if Nathan’s invention, Ava, a human-looking robot with artificial intelligence, can think like a natural person. When Caleb discovers Nathan’s plan to destroy Ava, the three engage in an intellectual fight for dominance that only one will win.
10. Frankenstein (1931)
Image Credit: Universal Pictures.
This classic film, loosely based on Mary Shelley’s novel, tells the story of Dr. Henry Frankenstein and his obsessive search to create new life using the body parts of the recently deceased. Frankenstein’s creation is hideous, but its temperament is that of a child’s. Humans’ fear and violence towards the creature inevitably make him a social outcast and the target of a mob intent on destroying it.
11. Pan’s Labyrinth (2006)
Image Credit: Warner Bros. Pictures.
In Spain during the 1940s, a young girl named Ofelia believes she is the reincarnation of an underworld princess. To reclaim her former life, Ofelia must complete three supernatural tasks. Her quest is complicated by concerns for her pregnant, chronically ill mother. She must also evade her cruel stepfather, a ruthless army officer who is not above torturing anyone he believes oppose him.
12. The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)
Image Credit: 20th Century Fox.
During the early years of the Cold War, a UFO lands in the nation’s capital with Klaatu, a humanoid extraterrestrial, and his robot. Klaatu is immediately attacked and wounded, despite coming in peace.
The alien has come to Earth to warn humanity about the threat their nuclear ambitions pose but is instead treated with suspicion and hunted down.
10 Movies Based on Urban Legends That Will Make You Question Reality
Image Credit: Universal Pictures.
Urban legends have long captivated our imaginations, weaving tales of suspense that leave us questioning the thin veil between fact and fiction. Many of these legends have been fertile ground for filmmakers, inspiring some of the most spine-chilling and memorable movies. From supernatural beings lurking in the shadows to cursed objects that bring about doom, here are ten films that have successfully brought urban legends to life on the big screen.
10 Movies Based on Urban Legends That Will Make You Question Reality
Alien Invasion Anxiety: The 12 Movie Aliens We Pray Stay on the Screen
Image Credit: Paramount Pictures.
If aliens ever decided to invade Earth, it’s safe to say that people would be more than a little concerned. Hollywood has long been fascinated with the idea of extraterrestrial life and has created many alien creatures ranging from the friendly to the downright scary.
According to a film forum, these are the 12 most feared cinematic alien species.
Alien Invasion Anxiety: The 12 Movie Aliens We Pray Stay on the Screen
12 Survival TV Shows That Will Actually Teach You Something About Surviving
Image Credit: Diverse Productions.
If you seek the adrenaline rush wrapped in heart-pounding adventures, you can never go wrong with survival shows. Beyond the freeze and fawn you feel watching these riveting entertainments, many survival shows offer practical, life-saving lessons sufficient to save the day if you ever get into similar messes of your favorite big-screen adventurers.
12 Survival TV Shows That Will Actually Teach You Something About Surviving
10 Great Disaster Films if You Like Watching Apocalypse on the Screen
Image Credit: Paramount Pictures.
If you’re craving some thrilling cinematic escapades that explore the cataclysmic scenarios of doomsday, you’ve come to the right place. Others may not understand your sadistic thought experiments, but I get it.
When you’re bored, why not traumatize yourself with horrific scenarios? These ten disaster films will satisfy your appetite for apocalyptic doom without you, you know, actually having to die. From meteoric threats to alien invasions and global catastrophes, these movies will make you grateful that your life isn’t this exciting.
10 Great Disaster Films if You Like Watching Apocalypse on the Screen
12 Best Post-Apocalypse Survival Shows To Stream Right Now
Image Credit: The Asylum.
Despite the near-dystopian nature of COVID-19, the appetite for post-apocalyptic shows post-pandemic hasn’t receded one bit. The staggering success of the most recent one, The Last of Us, adds life to the argument that post-apocalyptic movies will always be here to stay. An internet fandom about end-of-the-world series wants you to stream these hot survival shows set in post-apocalyptic eras.
12 Best Post-Apocalypse Survival Shows To Stream Right Now
Source: Reddit.
