10 MORE Horror Movies Where The Monster Isn't The Villain
These creepy critters aren't so bad.
Although we shouldn't judge a book by its cover, it's easier said than done when it comes to the realm of horror. Stories have conditioned people to identify what physical and personality traits represent a hero and which ones represent a villain. And when you see a big, ugly monster lumbering towards you, every fibre in your being screams "bad guy".
Frankenstein reminded moviegoers almost a century ago that monsters aren't inherently evil. Even when a creature harbours hostile intent, films like King Kong, The Fly, and The Babadook emphasise that it's not always black and white.
Not only is this a good lesson to learn, but it's a great way to subvert expectations. A story can be told in a way that initially depicts a monster as a traditional villain, only to later reveal that their actions were misunderstood or justified. These revelations often leave an impression in how they encourage viewers to challenge how they perceive these so-called beasts.
Though we've already covered 10 Horror Movies Where The Monster Isn't The Villain, there are plenty of other movie monsters who are nowhere near as bad as they appear.
10. The People Under The Stairs
In The People Under the Stairs, poverty-stricken boy Fool teams up with two burglars to steal from the Robesons, a pair of oppressive landlords known as "Mommy" and "Daddy".
When Fool investigates the Robeson house, he discovers cannibalistic children residing in the basement. And while Mommy and Daddy are scum, it's safe to assume the occupants living below are even worse. After all, it's hard to be on the side of a cannibal. That said, after befriending the Robesons' daughter Alice, Fool learns that Mommy and Daddy took in many foster kids over the years, forcing them to live by an impossible standard of ethics. When the children rebelled, they were abandoned "under the stairs," where they became savage.
The children aren't seen properly until the halfway point, so they're built up as a massive threat. But when Fool sees one of the abused kids, Roach, helping Alice, it's obvious he and his kin just want to live in peace. When it's ultimately revealed how Mommy and Daddy are siblings from an inbred family who intend to evict everyone in the neighbourhood, it becomes clear who the real monsters are.