10 Intense Slow Burn Horror Movies That Keep You Guessing

6. The Killing Of A Sacred Deer

The Witch
A24

Bringing together psychological horror and art-house direction, Yorgos Lanthimos has brewed up a heady concoction of elements that make The Killing of a Sacred Deer an intense ride from start to finish. Undeniably a movie situated firmly in the Greek director's portfolio, the movie is actually based on the ancient Greek play Iphigenia at Aulis by Euripides, though updated to suit a modern audience. When a cardiovascular surgeon takes a teenage boy under his wing, his life begins to change dramatically - resulting in an unthinkable sacrifice to bring balance back to the family's lives.

It's a meditation on the human condition, horrific in the way it presents a realistic situation pushed to its very brink - as you never really know who someone is, or what they're capable of, after all. Filmed in emotionally vacant, sterile fashion: The Killing of a Sacred Deer is a stylistically distant movie, but one that creeps up on you as the run time plays out.

 
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Horror film junkie, burrito connoisseur, and serial cat stroker. WhatCulture's least favourite ginger.