10 Awesome Horror Films That Didn't Rely On CGI
6. Eden Lake
Some horror films don't require much more than a few retractable blades and some well-paced performances. Like The Strangers and The Children, Eden Lake works because of the slow-building tension that eventually boils over into a nerve-wracking game of cat-and-mouse.
Survival horror is a sub-genre that relies on character, not spectacle. And Eden Lake has the former in spades.
A young couple (Kelly Reilly and an as-yet unknown Michael Fassbender) are vacationing at the titular lake when they run afoul of some local children who start with mild harassment and pranks, then turn vicious. The make-up work that goes into the particularly heinous injuries are very, very impressive.
Reilly is particularly good, and the film's infuriatingly nihilistic ending will leave you chilled.