10 MORE Horror Movie Openings That Get Worse The More You Think About It
4. Lights Out
Lights Out is a neat little horror flick from David F. Sandberg with one hell of an opening hook - malevolent spirit Diana (Alicia Vela-Bailey) kills her victims in the dark, but is unable to attack them when lights are on.
The rules are perfectly laid out in the taut pre-title sequence, where Paul (Billy Burke), the stepfather of protagonist Rebecca (Teresa Palmer), is killed by Diana in the textile factory he runs after the lights go out.
Seeing this creature capable of inhabiting any shadow is yet another reminder of how desperately reliant we are as human beings upon technology - in this case, something as "basic" to modern eyes as electricity - for our safety.
Humans have a natural aversion to the dark, and in this case it's very thoroughly justified, with an entity who can reside within any dark space and simply wait there for you to enter it.