The role of the house and home is an important one.
Traditionally - it’s where we feel at our safest, harboured beneath a shelter - sturdy
walls - a roaring fireplace, and a nice heavily bolted front door.
Shut away from the dangers and threats of the wilderness and the wider world.
So then - it became a fear that this very same danger would find its way to our home.
In the literal sense - a wolf - at our door.
The illusion of safety shattered - and that critical time where we choose to fight back.
Well, horror cinema is rife with home invasion tropes - so let’s take a look at some of
the most terrifying on this list.
Hello horror fans - and welcome back to the scariest channel on YouTube - Top 5 Scary
Videos.
As always, I’ll be your horror host Jack Finch - as today, we creak back the porch
door - and take a look at the Top 5 Scariest Home Invasion Horror Movies.
Roll the clip.
For those of you that don’t know, that clip was from 2008’s The Strangers - which may
or may not be on this list.
Before we dive in though horror fans, we’ve gotta get the usual house rules out of the
way.
If you’re a fan of this video, horror cinema or just Top 5 Scary Videos in general - then
please, be a dear and hit that thumbs up button - as well as that subscribe bell, so you can
stay up to date with our latest and greatest uploads.
Also - make sure to stick around all the way to the end where I’ll be reading out some
of your more creative comments from the past few days.
On with the show.
Oh - also, quick note - Michael Haneke’s Funny Games would always make this list, but
I feel like I’ve harped on too much about it for this specific video - so, consider
this my standalone recommendation.
Kicking off at Number 5 - Ils, 2006
Which always is a stark reminder that you don’t need an abundance of gore to pull
off a terrifyingly suspenseful psychological horror - and makes a point to turn up the
bleak dread of European cinematic isolation - particularly when you take into account
the final reveal of this film.
Written and directed by David Moreau and Xavier Palud, Ils is a French-Romanian horror film
which claims to have been based on real events - namely based on the urban legend of an Austrian
couple murdered by three teenagers while on vacation in the Czech Republic.
It was commonly billed in North American under it’s English translation - Them - and tells
the story of Clementine, played by Olivia Bonamy - a young teacher that has moved to
the idyllic Romanian countryside with her boyfriend Lucas, played by Michael Cohen.
What plays out next is far from idyllic - and leads up to a nail biting game of cat and
mouse.
Granted, I’ll admit that this film isn’t for everyone - and some viewers will get put
off by the films pacing - I didn’t fully appreciate Ils until the second time I saw
it - but it’s a masterclass in suspense, and quickly tears apart the illusion of safety.
Next up at Number 4 - The Strangers, 2008
Here’s the crux - whether you thought 2008’s The Strangers was a decent horror film or
not, it highlighted a very important theme that would play out in the decades to come.
In the 80s - we had the slashers or horror legend, Halloween, Friday the 13th, The Texas
Chainsaw Massacre - where several moods and motifs were commonplace - if you drank booze,
took drugs - you’d end up killed by Leatherface, Jason or Michael pretty soon.
Now - in no way am I comparing The Strangers to the likes of Halloween and its ilk - but
in a post-911 world though - horror has a different game.
Death isn’t related to a certain behaviour - it is random, it has no meaning.
It’s cause and effect aren’t the same as before.
And that’s what we get with Bryan Bertino’s 2008 thriller - The Strangers.
Summed up in the lines - ‘Why are you doing this to us?’
- ‘Because you were home’ - it’s a different style of horror, a different league, a different
sport.
Successful or not - it was a demonstration that the goalposts had shifted in horror - and
the monsters motivations had evolved into a completely different beast.
Coming in at Number 3 - Hush, 2016
And what an absolute gem of a horror movie, from the continuing meteoric rise of Mike
Flanagan - the director that brought us the fantastic Haunting of Hill House, but before
that - made his name with the likes of 2014’s Oculus and 2016’s Before I Wake - Hush is
a departure from the two, but also gave us a glimpse into the same sensory deprivation
that Flanagan weaves so masterfully into his tapestries of horror.
Namely - the sound of silence, tied into the awesome Kate Siegel’s character - who plays
Maddie, a deaf woman who lives in isolation in the woods.
Before anything - this film is just a straight up, good old fashioned horror movie - while
at the same time, it plays with one of the most ingenious and original horror concepts
that I’ve seen in a long, long time.
Originally - Flanagan wanted to make this film completely silent - exaggerating Maddie’s
deafness in the process, but I for one am glad he didn’t take that massive risk - because
the sound design of this film is unparalleled, and part of the reason why we feel like we’re
right there trapped inside that same house with Maddie.
Start to finish - Hush is a masterclass is suspense, pacing - and a white knuckle warning
to make sure you should always check your front door.
And, carry a crossbow.
Swinging in at Number 2 - You’re Next, 2011
Which is probably still one of the most surprising horror movies to emerge in recent times.
On the surface, You’re Next seemed like a stereotypical slasher carbon copy - but
thankfully, for all of us - it was much, much more than that.
This film doesn’t take itself seriously at all - but still manages to maintain its
fresh approach to the genre by simultaneously paying homage to the horror tropes that it
lays its foundation on - and also completely flipping the table and turning them all on
their head.
You’re Next emerged in a post The Strangers world, when home invasion thrillers seemed
to come along every five minutes - and it took a final girl named Erin to change up
the playing field.
Directed by Adam Wingard and written by Simon Barrett, You’re Next tells the story of
Erin and her boyfriend Crispian - who head out for a family reunion at his parents vacation
home in Missouri.
As far as the plot is concerned, there’s a few twist and turns that keep the stereotype
fresh - but for the most part it’s A to B home invasion horror.
Well - kind of - because then we have Erin, and if you’ve never seen this film - watch
it purely for Sharni Vinson’s depiction of a badass survivalist who doesn’t have
any time for crazy slashers in creepy animal masks.
And finally - at our Number 1 spot - Straw Dogs, 1971
An incredibly controversial film - that still maintains the same reputation to this day.
Although, despite that, Sam Peckinpah’s Straw Dogs is one of the greatest psychological
horrors ever made - period.
It’s themes sparked a mass of controversy over its increasing level of violence - but,
eh - compared to the barrage of hyper-violence which is commonplace nowadays, it still manages
to strike a chord - and more importantly, confront us with a very important question.
Instead - what we’re left with is a slow burning flame of a film - that gradually turns
up the heat like a frog in a pot of water - before realising that it’s already too
late.
This film is incredibly important - holding a mirror to society, which asks the question
- how far can we go before the mask slips?
Loosely based on the novel The Siege of Trencher’s Farm by Gordon Williams, Straw Dogs tells
the story of David Sumner - played by the seminal Dustin Hoffman - and his wife Amy
Sumner, played by the awesome Susan George - who move out to a remote village in the
Cornish countryside.
That’s all you need to know really, because what plays out is a psychological tour-de-force
of cinematic legend.
Give it a watch.
Well - unfortunately that’s all for today folks - but before we depart, let’s take
a look at some of your more creative comments from the past few days.
The Warlock says - Best horror channel next to Dead Meat! --- weeewwww boy!
Dead Meat is like - some seriously high praise.
Great channel - and you’re a great horror fan for being so egalitarian.
Thanks Mr. Warlock.
-- Shaysma1 says IRRIGARDLESS IS NOT A WORD.
-- Well for one, you spelt irregardless wrong.
And two - yes it is a word - and I use a controversial non-standard double negative to reinforce
a hyperbolic point on a daily basis - because I’m a horror host, and that’s exactly
what I went to school for.
Listen guys.
Irregardless is a word.
And while we’re on the matter, I pronounce H in the less-RP vocalization of AITCH because
I’m from the Midlands of England and that’s how accents work - language is a fluid function,
grammar is a life choice - new phone who dis - get on with it.
That’s all I have to say on the matter.
Phew - sorry guys.
Anyway horror fans - cheers for sticking around all the way till the end.
If you were a fan of this video, make sure to hit that thumbs up button, as well as that
subscribe bell - and we’ll be seeing you in the next one.
As per usual, I’ve been your horror host Jack Finch - you’ve been watching Top 5
Scary Videos - and until next time, you take it easy.