10 Amazing Nordic Horror Movies You Must See Before You Die

We’ve seen plenty of amazing crime-based noir coming out of the Nordics in recent years, from movies like Insomnia and The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo to TV shows like The Killing and The Bridge.

The Nordic regions’ horror movie industry, however, has never really received as much attention as its crime drama and though its horror output might not be as prolific as some other places, the scary flicks it does make tend to be rather good indeed.

The influence of Hollywood horror is clear, but in these movies you’ll find the added bonus of what makes Nordic horror exactly what it is – plenty of snow, social realism and local superstition.

So, brace yourself for a whirlwind tour of our Nordic neighbours very best horror films – Nazi zombies, scary Santa Clauses and terrifying trolls included.

Antichrist might not be a conventional horror movie, but if you can think of scenarios more horrific than a close-up DIY clitoridectomy and Willem Dafoe’s scrotum being crushed then please let us know.

Directed by Denmark’s enfant terrible of film Lars von Trier (which should give you an idea of the kind of controversy it sparked), the film stars Dafoe alongside Charlotte Gainsbourg as a pair of grieving parents who retreat to a remote cabin to recuperate from their toddler son’s tragic death.

But this is Lars von Trier and things inevitably take a turn for the bizarre when the couple’s grief coping tactics devolve into the aforementioned genital mutilation.

Unsurprisingly it polarized audiences during it Cannes premiere, even prompting a few walkouts and faintings. It somehow managed to scoop a Palme D’or nomination though and if you can stomach the body horror, Antichrist definitely makes for one of the Nordic horror scene’s more unsettling watches.