Top 9 Timeless Period Piece Horror Films
Ted Hentschke
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3) Deathwatch (2002):
It’s strange that we haven’t seen more WWI horror films, since the consensus seems to be that it was literal hell. Between the barbed wire, gas attacks, artillery fire, starvation, machine guns, and trench foot, ghosts seem like they would fit right in. Luckily, Deathwatch is here to address this discrepancy. In the wake of a gas attack, nine disoriented British soldiers stumble onto a nearly abandoned German command trench. Serving as both refuge and prize, the squad clears out the few remaining German soldiers and hunkers down to wait for reinforcements. It soon becomes clear why this trench is almost abandoned and that the threat from within might be greater than any weapon of war.
Deathwatch shines as a film that uses its unique setting to tailor scares and visuals that fit the era. Barbed wire envelops everything, both protective barrier and suffocating confinement. The trench itself is menacing, dark, and decrepit but is the only shelter against the almost certain death of no man’s land. Nature itself is against them, with constant rain and fog making the trench a horrid place in which to try to survive. Even in the end the villain is nebulous, with only a vague message about kindness giving any solace to the horrors. It’s an excellent reflection of the hopelessness of living a life caught between trenches and machine gun fire.
2) Ravenous (1999):
Some myths have trouble translating into modern fiction. For the Wendigo, there are two reasons why it just doesn’t work anymore. First off, in a modern society, it’s pretty hard to get lost in the woods so bad that you’re forced to eat your friends. We all have cell phones and at our most desperate can just find the nearest highway and cook up some roadkill. Secondly, thanks to the internet, it’s pretty easy to do some research and find out that eating people doesn’t literally turn you into a monster. I mean, not a literal monster. Dahmer didn’t have claws and superpowers.
If you found any of that funny, then Ravenous is the film for you. Watching this film, you will either totally miss the comedy because you’re shocked by the cannibals, or you’ll think it’s fucking hilarious because of the cannibals. Laughing at this movie is how I test for friends. Set in the isolated Fort Spencer nestled in the Sierra Nevadas, this 1850’s tale of macabre mastication works best in the era. It’s a time when people did actually accidentally get lost and have to eat each other, so the idea that a madman is out there looking to do just that is pretty great. If you’re hungry for a dark good time, check out Ravenous.
1) Black Death (2010):
Of all the films on this list, Black Death kicks it most old school in 1348. At the height of the Black Plague, a group of mercenaries led by knight Ulric (Sean Bean) are tasked with tracking down and capturing a reported necromancer capable of stopping the plague. Through a supposed combination of black magic and human sacrifice, the necromancer has successfully kept a remote village healthy. Church don’t stand for no black magic. Young monk Osmund offers his aid to the group, though his agenda is less “witch hunt” and more “escape with my love.”
I didn’t format this list as worst to best, but if I did, then Black Death would still easily be #1. On a list of my top 10 favorite films, it would hover somewhere around 5. The brutality of religion and its clash with Paganism are brought to full bloody force. It’s a bleak time when a torture device is the most technologically advanced thing you’ve ever seen. Dogma and conviction lead to savage and terrible acts on both sides, and the movie doesn’t blink in the face of abject cruelty. It leaves you feeling heavy and dreadful as only something so unmistakably real and unflinching could.
The Witch (2016):
Black Death was a fitting end note, as The Witch takes aim to unseat it as my favorite period piece horror film. Paranoia and religion mix, creating a dread that uniquely reflects the time. The marketing so far as been vague, so audiences are as yet unsure if the threat of witchcraft is real or just an invention of the fervent imagination of the ignorant Puritans. Personally, I can’t wait for February 19th to answer that question.
So, what do you think? Do you have a favorite period piece horror flick? Disagree with any of my choices? Think I left anything amazing out? Are you also excited to see The Witch? Let me know below!
