It’s the season of love once again, which means it’s time for chalky candy and big red hearts on every store shelf. Valentine’s Day has always been the perfect opportunity to indulge in expensive tastes and cozy romance stories, with plenty of romcoms and dramas alike taking place during the titular holiday. Regardless of how you feel about the holiday, it’s a perfect opportunity to kick back and watch a fun movie.
So you and your new flame (or longtime partner in crime) are looking for something to watch together on Valentine’s Day. Or maybe you’re single and want to watch something to make you forget all about it. If that’s the case, you may want a chilling horror movie to sour the mood. Whatever your feelings are about big red hearts, enormous teddy bears, dozens of roses, and boxes of chocolates, we’ve got you covered. Whether you love the holiday or not, these horror films for Valentine’s Day are sure to make your skin crawl or, perhaps, romance grow.
‘The Loved Ones’ (2009)
High school student Brent Mitchell (Xavier Samuel) doesn’t think much of it when he turns down the request to go to prom from the socially awkward Lola Stone (Robin McLeavy). However, Lola is a daddy’s girl, and he, played by John Brumpton, makes sure she always gets what she wants. After abducting Brent, the family hosts their own prom at home, willing to torture and hurt Brent for any misbehavior.
The Loved Ones is the perfect blend of dark humor, bloody torture, and unrequited romance. Here, Robin McLeavy is a force of chaos that will have couples thankful they found each other, given her unhinged views on romance and her willingness to resort to violence. The movie is also pretty straightforward with its premise, delivering a quick-paced horror movie that wastes little time getting to the good stuff.
‘The Honeymoon Killers’ (1970)
Maybe playing a bit loose with horror, but The Honeymoon Killers, following a deadly couple as they single out women through lonely hearts ads, certainly has that dark edge fans will appreciate. Martha Beck (Shirley Stoler) and Raymond Fernandez (Tony Lo Bianco) are the titular killers, with Beck driving most of the violence as she grows increasingly violent as Raymond tries to pour on the charm to con women out of their money. The movie is based on the real-life “Lonely Hearts Killers.”
This movie won’t be to every couple’s taste, but those who like bold personalities and macabre murders will find it instantly charming. Maybe you and your partner are fans of cult films? Well, The Honeymoon Killers remains one of director John Waters’ favorite films for a good reason. Don’t let the Pope of Trash make you think this one is about camp, though, as the movie still stands on its own as a pretty bleak love story that is unapologetically ugly.
‘Bride of Chucky’ (1998)
Is there a better modern horror pairing than Tiffany and Chucky? We’ll wait. While it has been a while since the duo have been together, their mark on horror cinema still resonates today when people think of terms like ‘partner in crime.’ Here, the duo hijack an RV and drag with them teenagers Jesse (Nick Stabile) and Jade (Katherine Heigl) along for a wild ride of mayhem as Chucky tries to retrieve his body so he can perform a ritual to become human again.
Their relationship may be pretty toxic, but in the same way that people romanticize Joker and Harley Quinn, there is an undeniable charm in couples who are, literally, mad for each other. The movie is pretty light fare in the history of Chucky films and works a bit better as a slasher comedy, which is ideal if you want to keep the mood lighter on Valentine’s Day.
‘Valentine’ (2001)
The movie starts with a flashback to a Valentine’s Day dance in the ’80s, where four mean girls, one by one, turn down the same social outcast who asks them to dance. A fifth girl says yes, only to accuse him of assault when they’re caught in an intimate moment. The misfit is publicly humiliated and later ends up institutionalized. 13 years later, the ladies are all doing fine, until someone in a cupid mask shows up with obscene valentines and a taste for revenge. Jamie Blanks’s Valentine stars David Boreanaz, Denise Richards, Marley Shelton, and Katherine Heigl.
There is a lot to love here. Denise Richards is phenomenal here, and the masked killer even goes so far as to use a thematically appropriate bow and arrow to take out his victims. While not a massive hit critically or commercially, it did earn several nominations at the Teen Choice Awards and featured a delightfully cheesy licensed soundtrack full of hard rock and metal staples from the time. For a pair that grew up in the 90s/early 2000s, the movie is a fun piece of cheesy nostalgia.
‘My Bloody Valentine’ (1981)
The yearly dance in the small mining town of Valentine’s Bluff returns after a long break, with a mine accident leaving one cannibalistic survivor carrying out a murder spree on the special day, halting the events. Believing the killer is now safely institutionalized, the dance is back on, and a group of local teens is super-excited. However, wouldn’t you know it, people start losing their hearts and their heads, and the culprit is a mysterious killer clad in mining gear.
At the time of its release, the MPAA asked for 9 minutes to be cut to obtain an R-rating, with much of that footage now lost; the movie is still surprisingly gory. There’s more to look forward to than just gore in this horror classic. A genuine slasher mystery carried by the cast’s authentic performances, some impressive on-location cinematography, and retrospective praise from popular filmmakers like Quentin Tarantino makes My Bloody Valentine a genuine gem in the slasher genre. Make sure you prioritize this one over the 2009 remake.
‘Thirst’ (2009)
Parasite’s Song Kang-ho is Sang-hyun, a disillusioned Catholic priest who volunteers for an experiment to cure a usually fatal disease. His survival after a blood transfusion makes him and his church famous, a welcome development until he discovers that he is now a vampire. He desperately tries to avoid killing as a means of obtaining blood until he falls for Tae-ju (Kim Ok-vin), the wife of his sickly childhood friend. After changing her, Sang-hyun has to contend with Tae-ju’s growing bloodlust and willingness to murder.
Equally tense, frightening, and enthralling, Thirst is as sensual as it is spine-tingling, putting an original spin on a classic story setup while building a convincing relationship between Song Kang-ho and Kim Ok-vin. It’s worth noting that this particular horror film made a huge splash at the 2009 Cannes Film Festival, winning the Jury Prize and earning a nomination for the coveted Palme d’Or.
‘Ready or Not’ (2019)
In Ready or Not, Grace (Samara Weaving) was a foster child, so when she marries Alex, who comes from a large, wealthy family that she meets all at once on their wedding day, she’s a little overwhelmed. They’re catty, snobbish, and more than a little weird. Shortly after, they make her draw a card and then play a game of hide-and-seek. But this is no ordinary game. Grace’s new family intends to hunt her down and ritually sacrifice her before dawn.
Co-directed by Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett (Abigail, Scream VI), this cat-and-mouse horror thriller is sure to appease anyone who’s been brushed off by their in-laws. The score by Brian Tyler (Bug, The Final Destination) only adds to the ratcheting tension on-screen. Though the film was produced on a surprisingly modest budget, it would go on to take in more than $57 million at the box office — nearly ten times its original budget. If you want to see Samara Weaving thrive as a final girl, this is the film for you.
‘Only Lovers Left Alive’ (2013)
In Only Lovers Left Alive, Eve (Tilda Swinton) and Adam (Tom Hiddleston) are a couple of the coolest, most attractive vampires you’ll ever come across. They’re cultured, erudite, stylish, and have great friends, like Kit Marlowe (John Hurt). They’ve been married for just about forever and spend a lot of time apart, during which time Adam has become morbid and suicidal. They reunite when Eve senses his despondency and things are on the up, but when her naughty sister Ava (Mia Wasikowska) arrives, she brings a heap of trouble with her.
Only Lovers Left Alive is very much a film by Jim Jarmusch, and the vampire lovers spend a lot of their time contemplating art, technology, and philosophy. It’s a drowsy, swoony kind of film that’s perfect to watch with the person you’d like to spend forever with. It would go on to earn a Palme d’Or nomination at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival, and contemporary and retrospective critics alike have since dubbed the film one of Jim Jarmusch’s best works.
‘Revenge’ (2018)
In Revenge, Jen (Matilda Lutz) is looking forward to a weekend with her married lover Richard (Kevin Janssens) at his isolated desert home before he goes off for a hunting trip with the boys. Unfortunately, “the boys”, Stan (Vincent Colombe) and Dimitri (Guillaume Bouchède), crash the party a few days early. While Richard is out of the house, Stan assaults Jen, and to make matters worse, Richard, upon his return, tries to pay Jen off to shut her up. Jen’s retaliatory threat to tell Richard’s wife doesn’t help matters, and suddenly she’s got three men with hunting gear chasing her through the desert.
The unrelenting desert setting lends the whole thing a decidedly Mad Max air as Jen enacts her take-no-prisoners vengeance. Writer and director Coralie Fargeat does an impeccable job of capturing the raw emotions and brutal violence of this tale, ultimately earning nominations for Best Director and Best Limited Feature at the Fangoria Chainsaw Awards. If you want a fantastic subversion of a particularly nasty subgenre of horror, Revenge successfully pulls it off and then some. More for those wanting to fly solo on Valentine’s with its empowering protagonist.
‘A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night’ (2014)
A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night was billed as “the first Iranian vampire Western.” Its heroine is The Girl (Sheila Vand), a skateboarding, chador-wearing vampire who hearkens back to the lonely heroes of classic spaghetti Westerns, roaming the streets alone at night. She rights wrongs in her own vampiric manner, killing pimps and protecting the weak.
The film is in black-and-white, though its purposeful lack of color makes for a fascinating watch. The soundtrack features music by Radio Tehran and Federale, and the surrounding film is generally the coolest Nosferatu-tinged Western you’re ever going to see. A dissection of what it means to be a vampire, this stylish horror flick is sure to leave an impact on you and your potential viewing partner. The visuals here are steeped in a gothic romantic aesthetic, offering the perfect vibe for the day.
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