2015 hasn’t been a stellar year for horror, especially mainstream horror. There haven’t been that many stand-out films that I have absolutely loved. There have been plenty of mediocre films and a hefty collection of turds, but horror fans were shortchanged this year when it came to high-quality horror films. Clearly, I wasn’t as impressed by what we received as Mr. Disgusting was. There were a handful of great ones though, and those are the ones I’ve included on this list. I present to you my picks for the five best horror movies of the year!*

*For the sake of not letting readers feel left out, I opted not to include films that only screened at festivals this year. Those will all go on my 2016 lists (should they actually get a release in 2016). Also, I was not able to see every genre film that came out this year, but I did see most of them. For a list of what films were considered for this list, take a look at everything I watched here.

5. The Gift

The Gift (read my review) really came out of nowhere didn’t it? While it is more a psychological drama than a straight-up horror film, The Gift ends on a truly horrifying yet satisfying note. It also gives us a surprisingly dark performance from Jason Bateman, playing against-type as Simon, a psychologically abusive husband who happens across Gordo (Joel Edgerton, who also wrote and directed the film), a former classmate he used to bully, when he moves back to his hometown. Gordo befriends Bateman’s wife Robyn (Rebecca Hall) and things gradually get stranger and stranger with Gordo showing up at their house unannounced, among other things. Edgerton directs the film with a slow but deliberate pace to the point where you’re not sure if Gordo really is up to something or if it’s just Simon and Robyn’s paranoia getting the better of them. All of their suspicions are answered in the sucker punch of a final scene, which will leave you with your jaw on the floor.