12 Scariest Movie Moments Of 2016

7. The Basement Scene - Don't Breathe

The Shallows Shark
Screen Gems

Director Fede Alvarez proved with his Evil Dead remake that he knows how to make audiences squirm, thanks to a mixture of gross-out body horror and fluids shooting everywhere. He toned down the gore for Don’t Breathe, but even then he conceived of a deeply gross scene involving leading lady Jane Levy.

She plays one of three thieves who break into the house of a rich blind man, not realising he’s a psychopath with a dark secret. It turns out he kidnapped the lady who killed his child in an accident and impregnated her with a turkey baster, so she could conceive a replacement for him. When that poor lady dies trying to escape he blames Levy’s character, tying her up in a harness.

He explains his plan in terrifying detail about how he'll use her as a surrogate instead and preps another baster from the fridge. This sequence is both icky and deeply unsettling, and Alvarez makes sure audience discomfort is at maximum before she gets saved at the last possible moment.

Contributor
Contributor

Handsome. Charismatic. Intelligent. Noble. Witty. I'm none of these things, but I'm a half decent writer, I guess.