10 Horror Movies Way Darker Than Advertised

5. The Devil's Candy

The Devil's Candy
IFC Midnight

With a lot of movies on this list, they've either been billed as horror comedies with the emphasis on the comedy, or marketed as more mainstream than they actually are. With The Devil's Candy though, audiences knew they were in for some pretty twisted things - but still had no idea just how dark it was going to be.

Directed by Sean Byrne, who helmed the 2009 cult classic (and similarly surprisingly grisly) The Loved Ones, The Devil's Candy is a brutal haunted house story that eventually devolves into very real human horrors. Whispers in a house send artists who occupy it crazy, which doesn't bode well for father Jesse and his wife and daughter, who've just moved in.

A vibrant, surreal kaleidoscope of terror, The Devil's Candy is full of striking images - and not just the ones that comes from Jesse's demented paintings, which are themselves inspired by the presence he's feeling in the house.

The Shining with a heavy metal makeover, Byrne's flick is a true hidden gem - and a dark, grisly one at that.

Contributor

Josh has over 11 years of experience as a published writer, having worked nine of those years as a full-time content producer at WhatCulture. In that period he has created hundreds of articles, videos and podcast episodes for multiple WhatCulture channels, specialising in gaming, horror and film & TV. He now primarily works as a senior content producer and presenter on WhatCulture Gaming where he co-hosts the WhatCulture Gaming Podcast, a top 3 UK most listened to gaming podcast that he co-created in 2018. Over the years he has reviewed several high-profile gaming releases, covered industry events with on-site reporting, opined on breaking news, and even kicked off his interviewing career by chatting to childhood hero, Tommy Wiseau.