Horror is not typically a genre whose films get rewatched, and for two reasons — because most movies tend to follow a formulaic plot that rarely deviates from the norm, and because the thrill of the genre is inextricably linked to the narrative twists and surprise endings (which aren't be as exciting the second time around.)
That being said, there are horror films that most certainly deserve, or even demand, a rewatch, as the stories they tell are so complex and layered that a single viewing is barely enough to skim the surface. These films don't rely on jump scares, but tap into the most secret nightmares that people experience.
The Shining (1980)
Stanley Kubrick's very successful adaptation of a Stephen King novel is widely considered to be one of his best works, and one of the most impressive achievements in cinema period. The Shining takes place in a distant hotel, surrounded by miles of snow, with no escape possible for anyone staying in it during the winter.
Jack Torrance's slow devolution from man to monster is equal parts fascinating and horrifying, but it is the character of Wendy that requires a closer look as she serves as the audience for Jack's state of mind.
The Babadook (2014)
Psychological horror is truly one of the most agonizing genres to experience, because it exposes humanity for all its evil, dissecting its trauma until there's nothing left. The Babadook is a definitive example. It shows how a single mother with a severely troubled son deals with a nightmare come to life, except that the creature in question might not have supernatural roots at all.
Watching this movie with this realization in mind results in a completely different reading of the narrative as it goes from a standard jump-scare flick to one about the demons that thrive within the soul.
Alien (1979)
"In space, no one can hear you scream", reads the tagline for Alien, Ridley Scott's classic about a parasitic extraterrestrial life form, whose apparent aim is to gruesomely massacre everyone onboard a commercial freight vessel in the year 2122.
Or so it feels on the surface. The depth of Alien can only be plumbed from multiple viewings because only then will the actual villain of the story become obvious. It may not be overly complicated, but its simplicity should not be mistaken for a lack of insight.
Us (2019)
Comedian Jordan Peele proved that he can handle horror with considerable finesse, starting with his directorial debut Get Out, a brilliant take on the "realities of racism." Us, however, is on another level of genius. Two families, each of them identical mirrors of the other, save for the fact that one of them is filled with murderous intent and the other is desperately trying to save their lives.
The climax is a plot twist of legendary proportions, adding an element of surprise that practically inverts the crux of the film and instantly demands a second watch. Who is Adelaide Thomas, really?
The Thing (1982)
The Thing is a practical effects extravaganza, from flying gore to flaming monsters to the most frightening truth a human would ever have to face — who can and who cannot be trusted, and how can each category be identified?
The being from outer space is not meant to be perceived in its actual form, because doing so would have destroyed the metaphor for faith that director John Carpenter worked so hard to develop. As such, The Thing does not reveal its secrets upon cursory examination, such is the amount of detail incorporated into the movie.
Midsommar (2019)
Ari Aster's Midsommar is difficult to digest, which is exactly why it needs to be consumed over and over again. What appears as slasher entertainment turns out to be a hallucinatory fever dream set under the eternal sun of the Arctic Circle.
Elderly people euthanizing themselves, cultists performing the Viking blood eagle on innocent victims, a protagonist awash in vibrant flowers — Midsommar is a visual delight, starkly contrasting with its eerie content and disturbing tone.
Dark Water (2002)
Dark Water (the original J-Horror version, not the watered down English remake) follows a divorced woman, Yoshimi Matsubara, and Ikuko, her little daughter, as they attempt to rebuild their lives. Without two incomes to pay for rent, Yoshimi is forced to move into a rather decrepit apartment building, where she comes across the specter of a dead child.
The film integrates Yoshimi's parentless childhood into itself, spacing out specific scenes that sync in with the present timeline. The conclusion, unlike most instances in the horror genre, is shockingly warm and infinitely compassionate. Best of all: there is quite a lot of discover and rediscover.
Under The Shadow (2016)
Under the Shadow is nothing short of fantastic. A woman and her daughter undergo a series of unpleasant encounters with a Djinn haunting the floor above their apartment in Tehran, Iran. The plot alone is enough to make even the stoniest of viewers uneasy, but with its setting (the War of the Cities during the 1980s), numerous other dimensions come into play.
The status of women in Iran, the indiscriminate bombing of city blocks, the disappearance of the father — each of these components are woven together to produce a masterpiece of cinema. Every viewing becomes a new experience.
The Witch (2015)
The Witch is an unnerving story set in the 1600s about a family of six as they are exiled into the forest for refusing to recant their "blasphemy". Everything takes a turn for the worse when their baby disappears, at which point the twins begin singing eerie songs about their goat, Black Phillip.
The protagonist is Thomasin, the eldest daughter, who has to prove that she's not behind the macabre events that follow — and, by extension, that she's not the witch. The fact that the ending makes The Witch even more mysterious provides the film with excellent rewatch value.
The Others (2001)
Alejandro Amenábar's The Others provides one heck of a predicament for Grace Stewart and her two kids, all of whom live in an old mansion on the British coastline with the creepiest overtones imaginable. As they wait for their patriarch to return from World War II, Anne Stewart begins talking about ghosts roaming the place, which their mother disregards as some sort of unsavory prank enacted by the domestic help.
That is, until she begins to experience the supernatural herself. The resolution to the family's problems is quite different from what an audience would expect from a horror movie of the haunting kind — no matter how many times they experience it.