25 Incredibly Well-Made Horror Films Directed By Women

11. Marina De Van - In My Skin (2002)

In My Skin is a different kind of horror movie. It plays on those grisly nightmares about things like inexplicably sudden tooth and hair loss, parasitism and other subconscious fears centering on uncontrollable bodily damage. There are no monsters in Marina de Van€™s film, no outside threat. The horror comes from within as a woman sinks into insanity and demolishes her own body. In My Skin may be the first slasher film in which the victim and perpetrator are one and the same. With echoes of David Cronenberg's Crash, de Van created a uniquely disturbing work which is certainly not easy viewing. Like Crash, In My Skin begins with an accident. Wandering around outside a party, Esther (de Van) falls and slices her leg on a tool. Strangely excited, she puts off going to the hospital for a few hours. She ultimately becomes fascinated by her own skin, cutting herself compulsively, much to the shock and dismay of loved ones. Despite this extremism, the story isn't a wallow in cheap nihilism. It's a strange and twisted film, but perversely fascinating.