Regardless of their artistic merit, it’s understandable that it can sometimes be difficult for mainstream cinephiles to connect with movies about twisted bodies and grisly mutations. Obviously, this doesn’t mean that these films are any less deserving of praise – it’s just that not every critic has a strong stomach. That’s why it’s so satisfying to see a production like Coralie Fargeat’s satirical body horror flick The Substance get the recognition it deserves in spite of its disturbing mean streak.
And in honor of this Demi Moore / Margaret Qualley experiment wowing highbrow audiences worldwide, we’ve decided to come up with a list recommending six other arthouse body horror flicks for your viewing pleasure! After all, there’s no reason that fine cinema should be devoid of blood and malformed guts.
For the purposes of this list, we’ll be defining “arthouse” as any film specifically meant to engage with off-kilter ideas usually reserved for non-commercial cinema. That being said, I’d like to make it clear that every single scary movie is technically a work of art regardless of presentation, subject matter or even quality – some of these flicks are just more brazen about this fact than others.
With that out of the way, don’t forget to comment below with your own body horror favorites if you think we missed a particularly artsy one.
Now, onto the list…
6. Excision (2012)
Adapted from an equally disturbing short film made by the same director, Excision is a lot darker (not to mention bloodier) than your average coming-of-age high school movie. Telling the story of a delusional teenager with an unhealthy obsession for invasive surgeries, the film cleverly juxtaposes violent imagery with traditional youthful desires in a memorable cocktail of psychosexual storytelling.
And with a cast featuring the talents of genre veterans like John Waters, Malcom McDowell, Ray Wise and even Traci Lords, there’s really no excuse to ignore this one – unless you’re uncomfortable with the idea of teens conducting homemade organ transplants.
5. Audition (1999)
Takashi Miike is no stranger to fans of body horror, but it’s this controversial 1999 feature that first propelled the Japanese director to neo-exploitation stardom with its wince-inducing exploration of misogyny, feminism and human cruelty. An adaptation of Ryu Murakami’s celebrated novel of the same name, Audition follows widower Shigeharu Aoyama (Ryo Ishibashi) as he searches for a new wife through a mock casting process. This leads him to Asami Yamazaki (Eihi Shiina), a mysterious young lady that might just be the man’s downfall.
While most of the actual body-horror here is relegated to the film’s final act, it’s the contrast between these visceral terrors and everything that came before that makes the flick so effective. I’d just recommend avoiding any trailers if you’re planning on checking this one out, as the film’s marketing spoils many of its most iconic moments.
4. Raw (2016)
Habitual binge-drinking, widespread STDs and a diet almost exclusively comprised of instant ramen and energy drinks – it can be argued that the average college experience is already a terrifying precursor to genuine body horror. That being said, French director Julia Ducournau takes the horrors of higher learning to the next level by incorporating bizarrely sexualized cannibalism into her coming-of-age thriller Raw.
Following a vegetarian who begins to suffer from unexplainable cravings after being forced to eat meat during a hazing ritual, Raw may take a little while to get going (with the film establishing its themes and characters before bringing out the nastiness), but I guarantee that body horror fans will be pleased with the amount of visceral depravity present in the film’s second act.
3. American Mary (2012)
In real life, the body modification community is much more focused on artistic expression than turning oneself into an off-brand Cenobite, but you have to admit that the concept of regarding the human body as a malleable canvas seems like a great starting point for an artsy body-horror flick.
Canadian filmmakers Jen and Sylvia Soska seem to agree, as their cult classic American Mary dives into the darker side of both surgical revenge and the underground body modification scene. Telling the story of down-on-her-luck medical student Mary Mason (played by the insanely talented Katharine Isabelle) as she turns to illegal operations in order to make a living, this is one of my favorite films on this list – as well as a shining example of how practical effects can make or break a body-horror movie.
2. Tetsuo: The Iron Man (1989)
A cult film that slowly grew in popularity in much the same way that the biomechanical infection takes over the titular Iron Man, Tetsuo is a textbook case of a film that “must be seen to be believed.” Directed by Shinya Tsukamoto (an underground artist fascinated with surrealism and experimental theater), the film replaces a conventional narrative with an interconnected collection of horrific vignettes about mankind’s toxic relationship with machines and big city living.
Despite now being considered one of the greatest Japanese films of all time, it actually took quite a while for folks to warm up to such a strange feature, with a steady supply of international festival praise steadily propelling the flick to home video fame. That’s why you shouldn’t blame yourself if you don’t quite connect with Tetsuo on your first watch, as this unique experiment is something of an acquired taste.
1. Naked Lunch (1991)
It would be easy to fill this list with high-profile Cronenberg flicks, with the Canadian director being known for his gruesome indie films that tackle serious subject matter through a fleshy lens, but in the interest of keeping things varied, I’d like to limit today’s Cronenberg recommendation to a single film based on a celebrated novel by infamous author William S. Burroughs.
A surreal sci-fi romp following an exterminator-turned-secret-agent living in a disgusting world that doesn’t play by our rules, Naked Lunch managed to earn its director a series of prominent prizes (such as Best Motion Picture at the Genie Awards) despite its frequent use of fleshy creatures and characters that are actually carnivorous bugs disguised as human beings.
If you ask me, body horror doesn’t get much more artsy than this.
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