9 Subversive Horror Movies That Aren't What You Expect

9. Wes Craven's New Nightmare

Of course, the king of meta horror has a few tricks up his sleeve when it comes to subversive movies, defining three eras of the genre in his reign as one of the most influential directors out there. He's worked his way through everything from exploitation nastiness and national hysteria in The Last House on the Left, to 80s slasher tropes in A Nightmare on Elm Street, to self-aware rule making and breaking in Scream - and whilst the latter would be the obvious choice for this particular title, there's another film that still stands as an unexpected gem in his personal horror history canon.

What most would expect to be a run of the mill Nightmare sequel actually turns out to be far more considered in its approach to the source material. Playing out as a real-life take on Freddy's legend, the monster breaks free from fiction and starts to kill off the actors involved, turning what could have easily been a slasher packed to the brim with cheesy one-liners and derivative content into an insanely interesting premise.

Wes Craven even stars as himself writing the very script that the film follows the beats of, making for some mind-melting commentary on Hollywood horror as much as it provides gruesome entertainment.