10 Horrific Movie Moments That Come Out Of Nowhere
What on earth was THAT?!
Whether it's a Lovecraftian cosmic entity that's unknowable in size and scope, or a simple jump scare designed to catch us off guard, horror is at its most brilliant when it's toying with the concept of the unknown. And that works for whatever film genre we're talking about; throwing in something that doesn't fit its surroundings as a narrative left turn only serves to make it stand out, and stress us out, that much more.
Even when we're coming prepared to a movie we know is going to be dishing out perturbing content, the very best films are the ones that ratchet it up ten levels when you least expect it. The ones that leave you reeling in the aftermath. The ones that make you double take and question 'what on earth was THAT?!'
So then, these are the movies that used horror as a weapon, attacking both our senses and sensibilities with deviations into the horrifying when we're nowhere near prepared to deal with it. From sweet, beautiful love stories twisted by arresting imagery, to genre fare that subverted expectations to jaw-dropping effect, these are the moments of horror that make their movies all the more disturbing.
10. The Lovecraftian Monster - Spring
Spring, for the most part, is a romantic getaway movie. Evan loses his mother from cancer, deciding to run away to Italy to clear his head - but finds his thoughts filled with a woman he meets out there that he quickly falls in love with.
Louise, on the other hand, has a monstrous secret, one she tries to keep from Evan until finally succumbing to her transformation later on in the movie. Whilst we've seen glimpses of this creature throughout - as a scaly lizard woman most prominently - it's only when Evan breaks into Louise's flat to check on her that we see the true extent of her condition.
Yes, we expect to see her true form at some point, but can anyone rightly say they were ready for quite this horror? Louise is in an octopus-like state, tentacles sprouting where her limbs once were and writhing desperately to try and reach her cure.
And as soon as we're offered this incredible monster snippet, it's taken away, with the rest of the movie played out relatively normally. It's the perfect fever-dream moment that cements the horror of this movie in one swift jab of a scene.