Best movies like Desperation
Last updated March 2024
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Plot Summary:
When a sheriff arrests a writer, a family, a couple, and a hitchiker and throws them in a jail cell in the deserted town of Desperation, they must fight for their lives.
IMDB Rating: 5.2
IMDB Votes: 12000
Genere: Drama, Fantasy, Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 131 min
Plot tags: scary, serious, suspenseful, rough, suspense, demonic, splatter, lovecraft, cult horror, crying
Best tv shows and movies like Desperation (2006):
Similar in 80%
A Resurrection (2013)
Plot Summary:
A down to earth school psychologist tries to help a mentally ill student who actually believes his brother is coming back from the grave for revenge on the students who killed him.
IMDB Rating: 3.9
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama, Horror, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 89 min
Plot tags: serious, suspenseful, captivating, suspense, scary, crying, psychotronic, iconic
Similar in 87%
Sometimes They Come Back... for More (1998)
Plot Summary:
On a arctic circle radio shack, an ancient evil lurks, ready to strike at a psychologist, an army man and their collective forces.
IMDB Rating: 3.4
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 89 min
Plot tags: scary, rough, serious, suspenseful, independent film, apocalyptic
Similar in 85%
Population 436 (2006)
Plot Summary:
A census-taker (Sisto) is sent to investigate why a certain small town has had the same population -- 436 residents -- for the last 100 years.
IMDB Rating: 5.7
IMDB Votes: 13000
Genere: Drama, Horror, Mystery, Romance, Thriller
Country: Canada, USA
Duration: 92 min
Plot tags: suspenseful, suspense, scary, twisted, psychological thriller, surprise ending, mysterious, offbeat, serious
Similar in 88%
The Dark Half (1993)
Plot Summary:
Thad Beaumont is the author of a highly successful series of violent pulp thrillers written under the pseudonym of ‘George Stark’, but when he decides to ‘kill-off’ his alter-ego in a mock ceremony, it precipitates a string of sadistic murders matching those in his pulp novels, which are soon discovered to be the work of Stark himself. Looking like a maniacal version of his counterpart, Stark is not so willing to quit the writing game – even if it means coming after Thad's wife and their baby.
IMDB Rating: 6.0
IMDB Votes: 19000
Genere: Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 122 min
Plot tags: scary, psychological, disturbing, atmospheric, creepy, rough, suspenseful, suspense, splatter, neurotic
Similar in 81%
Mortuary (2005)
Plot Summary:
A family moves to a small town in California where they plan on starting a new life while running a long-abandoned funeral home. The locals fear the place, which is suspected to be on haunted ground.
IMDB Rating: 4.2
IMDB Votes: 6000
Genere: Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 94 min
Plot tags: slasher, rough, suspenseful, atmospheric, bleak, lovecraft, suspense, dark, independent film, scary
Similar in 85%
Needful Things (1993)
Plot Summary:
A mysterious new shop opens in a small town which always seems to stock the deepest desires of each shopper, with a price far heavier than expected.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 27000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Fantasy, Horror, Thriller
Country: USA, Canada
Duration: 121 min
Plot tags: scary, clever, cult classic, satanic, emotional, slasher, splatter, apocalyptic, fantasy adventure, creepy
Similar in 86%
Sometimes They Come Back (1991)
Plot Summary:
Based on a short story by Stephen King, a man and his family return to his home town, but he is then harassed by teenagers that died when he was a kid.
IMDB Rating: 5.7
IMDB Votes: 12000
Genere: Drama, Horror, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 97 min
Plot tags: slasher, atmospheric, suspense, satanic, rough, serious, suspenseful, philosophical, depressing, splatter
Similar in 87%
The Dark (2005)
Plot Summary:
Adèle and her daughter Sarah are traveling on the Welsh coastline to see her husband James when Sarah disappears. A different but similar looking girl appears who says she died in a past time. Adèle tries to discover what happened to her daughter as she is tormented by Celtic mythology from the past.
IMDB Rating: 5.3
IMDB Votes: 11000
Genere: Drama, Fantasy, Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Country: UK, USA, Germany
Duration: 93 min
Plot tags: psychological, serious, suspenseful, scary, suspense, dark, gothic horror, cult classic, classic horror, spooky
Similar in 77%
Castle Freak (1995)
Plot Summary:
John has inherited a castle and Italy and he moves there with his wife Susan and their blind daughter Rebecca. What they don't realize is that there is somebody else in the castle. An abused child left to die in the basement who has now become the castle freak and is out to wreak havoc.
IMDB Rating: 5.9
IMDB Votes: 10000
Genere: Drama, Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA, Italy
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: scary, slasher, rough, suspenseful, lovecraft, independent film, gothic, splatter, grindhouse, creepy
Similar in 78%
The Diary of Ellen Rimbauer (2003)
Plot Summary:
Set at the turn of the century, this is the tale of Ellen Rimbauer who just received this mysterious mansion as a wedding gift from her new husband.
IMDB Rating: 5.4
IMDB Votes: 4000
Genere: Drama, Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 88 min
Plot tags: psychological, atmospheric, serious, suspenseful, scary, suspense, dark, disturbing, splatter, creepy
Similar in 82%
The Omen (2006)
Plot Summary:
A diplomatic couple adopts the son of the devil without knowing it. A remake of the classic horror film of the same name from 1976.
IMDB Rating: 5.5
IMDB Votes: 62000
Genere: Drama, Fantasy, Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 110 min
Plot tags: scary, suspenseful, suspense, atmospheric, harsh, intense, stylized, demonic, splatter, religious horror
Similar in 80%
New Nightmare (1994)
Plot Summary:
In this meta horror film, a demonic entity uses the fictional character of Freddy Krueger to enter the real world and torment "Elm Street" heroine Heather Langenkamp and her family.
IMDB Rating: 6.4
IMDB Votes: 63000
Genere: Fantasy, Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 112 min
Plot tags: slasher, scary, psychological, bloody, suspense, splatter, cult classic, classic horror, spooky, meta
Similar in 86%
The Guardian (1990)
Plot Summary:
The idyllic lives of Phil and Kate seem complete when they select the winsome young Camilla as a live-in nanny for their newborn child. But the lovely young Camilla s not what she appears to be.
IMDB Rating: 5.4
IMDB Votes: 6000
Genere: Drama, Fantasy, Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 92 min
Plot tags: scary, suspenseful, sexy, erotic, creepy, atmospheric, slasher, dark, demonic, psychological
Similar in 86%
Sleepwalkers (1992)
Plot Summary:
A mother-and-son team of strange supernatural creatures come to town to seek out a virgin to feed on.
IMDB Rating: 5.3
IMDB Votes: 24000
Genere: Fantasy, Horror
Country: USA
Duration: 91 min
Plot tags: scary, suspense, slasher, sexy, rough, serious, suspenseful, splatter, creepy, cult classic
Similar in 76%
The Exorcist III (1990)
Plot Summary:
Set fifteen years after the original film, The Exorcist III centers around the philosophical Lieutenant William F. Kinderman who is investigating a baffling series of murders around Georgetown that all contain the hallmarks of The Gemini, a deceased serial killer. It eventually leads him to a catatonic patient in a psychiatric hospital who has recently started to speak, claiming he is the The Gemini and detailing the murders, but bears a striking resemblance to Father Damien Karras.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 38000
Genere: Drama, Horror, Mystery
Country: USA
Duration: 110 min
Plot tags: demonic, scary, suspenseful, suspense, disturbing, splatter, detective, cult classic, frightening, religious horror
Similar in 80%
The Dead Zone (1983)
Plot Summary:
Johnny Smith is a schoolteacher with his whole life ahead of him but, after leaving his fiancee's home one night, is involved in a car crash which leaves him in a coma for 5 years. When he wakes, he discovers he has an ability to see into the past, present and future life of anyone with whom he comes into physical contact.
IMDB Rating: 7.2
IMDB Votes: 76000
Genere: Drama, Horror, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA, Canada
Duration: 103 min
Plot tags: psychological, neo noir, suspense, dark, suspenseful, psychological thriller, tense, atmospheric, scary, cerebral
Similar in 81%
Doctor Sleep (2019)
Plot Summary:
A traumatized, alcoholic Dan Torrance meets Abra, a kid who also has the ability to "shine." He tries to protect her from the True Knot, a cult whose goal is to feed off people like them in order to remain immortal.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 214000
Genere: Drama, Fantasy, Horror, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 152 min
Plot tags: disturbing, dark fantasy, enigmatic, suspense, twist ending, gothic, surprise ending, psychological, scary, psychological thriller
Similar in 77%
Penny Dreadful (2006)
Plot Summary:
Young Penny goes on a retreat with her psychologist; the intention is to help her overcome her phobia, an intense fear of cars. Unexpected events find her in a nightmarish situation where her worst fears come true.
IMDB Rating: 4.8
IMDB Votes: 7000
Genere: Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 92 min
Plot tags: scary, slasher, serious, suspenseful, dark, suspense, independent film, crying, psychological
Similar in 78%
Christine (1983)
Plot Summary:
Geeky student Arnie Cunningham falls for Christine, a rusty 1958 Plymouth Fury, and becomes obsessed with restoring the classic automobile to her former glory. As the car changes, so does Arnie, whose newfound confidence turns to arrogance behind the wheel of his exotic beauty. Arnie's girlfriend Leigh and best friend Dennis reach out to him, only to be met by a Fury like no other.
IMDB Rating: 6.8
IMDB Votes: 91000
Genere: Horror, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 110 min
Plot tags: scary, tense, suspenseful, suspense, cult classic, atmospheric, slasher, creepy, grindhouse, classic horror
Similar in 76%
The Haunting in Connecticut 2: Ghosts of Georgia (2013)
Plot Summary:
Sequel to the 2009 mezzo-mezzo supernatural horror purporting to be based on a true story in which a cancer-afflicted teen starts seeing things in the new Victorian house he and his family moved into.
IMDB Rating: 5.3
IMDB Votes: 18000
Genere: Drama, Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 101 min
Plot tags: atmospheric, scary, suspenseful, serious, demonic, spooky, exciting, splatter, intense, creepy
Similar in 77%
Ouija: Origin of Evil (2016)
Plot Summary:
In 1965 Los Angeles, a widowed mother and her two daughters add a new stunt to bolster their séance scam business and unwittingly invite authentic evil into their home. When the youngest daughter is overtaken by the merciless spirit, this small family confronts unthinkable fears to save her and send her possessor back to the other side.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 72000
Genere: Drama, Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 99 min
Plot tags: scary, suspense, psychological, dark, spooky, disturbing, atmospheric, suspenseful, stylized, creepy
Similar in 81%
Children of the Corn (1984)
Plot Summary:
A boy preacher named Isaac goes to a town in Nebraska called Gatlin and gets all the children to murder every adult in town.
IMDB Rating: 5.6
IMDB Votes: 56000
Genere: Horror, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 92 min
Plot tags: scary, suspense, slasher, atmospheric, suspenseful, demonic, creepy, rough, classic horror, psychological
Similar in 86%
It Chapter Two (2019)
Plot Summary:
Because every 27 years evil revisits the town of Derry, Maine, it chapter two brings the chapters - who've long since gone their separate ways - back together as adults, nearly three decades after the events of the first film.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 294000
Genere: Drama, Fantasy, Horror
Country: USA, Canada
Duration: 169 min
Plot tags: scary, slasher, bloody, epic, spooky, suspense, demonic, suspenseful, splatter, psychological horror
Similar in 78%
The Empty Man (2020)
Plot Summary:
After a group of teens from a small Midwestern town begin to mysteriously disappear, the locals believe it is the work of an urban legend known as The Empty Man. As a retired cop investigates and struggles to make sense of the stories, he discovers a horrific secret that puts his life—and the lives of those close to him—in grave danger.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 37000
Genere: Drama, Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA, South Africa, France
Duration: 137 min
Plot tags: psychological, suspense, lovecraft, tense, suspenseful, detective, scary, slasher, philosophical, atmospheric
Similar in 79%
The Hills Have Eyes (1977)
Plot Summary:
On the way to California, a family has the misfortune to have their car break down in an area closed to the public, and inhabited by violent savages ready to attack.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 39000
Genere: Horror, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: scary, slasher, tense, suspenseful, disturbing, dark, bloody, harsh, splatter, cult classic
Similar in 84%
In the Mouth of Madness (1994)
Plot Summary:
With the disappearance of hack horror writer Sutter Cane, all Hell is breaking loose...literally! Author Cane, it seems, has a knack for description that really brings his evil creepy-crawlies to life. Insurance investigator John Trent is sent to investigate Cane's mysterious vanishing act and ends up in the sleepy little East Coast town of Hobb's End.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 78000
Genere: Drama, Fantasy, Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 95 min
Plot tags: psychological, surreal, atmospheric, gothic, neo noir, suspense, lovecraft, scary, suspenseful, dark
Similar in 80%
Sinister (2012)
Plot Summary:
Found footage helps a true-crime novelist realize how and why a family was murdered in his new home, though his discoveries put his entire family in the path of a supernatural entity.
IMDB Rating: 6.8
IMDB Votes: 274000
Genere: Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA, UK, Canada
Duration: 110 min
Plot tags: scary, suspense, suspenseful, tense, disturbing, twist ending, rough, dark, creepy, sinister
Similar in 80%
The Witch (2015)
Plot Summary:
In 1630s New England, William and Katherine lead a devout Christian life with five children, homesteading on the edge of an impassable wilderness, exiled from their settlement when William defies the local church. When their newborn son vanishes and crops mysteriously fail, the family turns on one another.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 291000
Genere: Drama, Fantasy, Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA, Canada, UK
Duration: 92 min
Plot tags: disturbing, atmospheric, dark, suspenseful, scary, gothic, psychological, suspense, satanic, enigmatic
Similar in 86%
Pet Sematary II (1992)
Plot Summary:
The "sematary" is up to its old zombie-raising tricks again. This time, the protagonists are Jeff Matthews, whose mother died in a Hollywood stage accident, and Drew Gilbert, a boy coping with an abusive stepfather.
IMDB Rating: 4.9
IMDB Votes: 23000
Genere: Fantasy, Horror, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 100 min
Plot tags: scary, slasher, rough, serious, suspenseful, dark, classic horror, suspense, splatter, retro
Similar in 88%
Hereditary (2018)
Plot Summary:
After their reclusive grandmother passes away, the Graham family begins to unravel cryptic and increasingly terrifying secrets about their ancestry. The more they discover, the more they find themselves trying to outrun the sinister fate they seem to have inherited.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 364000
Genere: Drama, Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 127 min
Plot tags: psychological horror, disturbing, psychological, suspense, bleak, spooky, atmospheric, satanic, mind bending, dark