This week marks American Cinematheque’s fifth edition of “Bleak Week: Cinema of Despair,” a curated series dedicated to heavy and depressing cinema that originated as cheeky counter-programming to summer blockbuster season. Since its launch in 2022, Bleak Week has evolved from a local phenomenon into a worldwide event with a 100-theater expansion beginning in June.
It’s a programming series that suits horror well; Salò, or the 120 Days of Sodom (1975) and Funny Games (1997) were among the initial films featured in the inaugural Bleak Week, after all. Not only is death the ultimate leveler, and mortality well-suited to horror, but the genre excels at holding up a mirror to unpleasant truths. It yields raw empathy as a result, as we wince with sympathy for the grueling pain inflicted.
The human condition has never been as despairing as with the films that qualify for Bleak Week. Whether padding your local Bleak Week screenings, from NYC to Houston and beyond, or symbolically participating from home, here are five ultra-despairing and grim dark horror movies that’ll turn your sunny summer disposition upside-down.
Read on for where to watch; you can also find less nihilistic options here.
The Golden Glove – Kanopy
The Golden Glove presents one stomach-churning watch based on notorious German serial killer Fritz Honka, impressive in its unwavering goal to force viewers to confront the darkest corners of humanity. Nestled in the red light district of Hamburg, set during the ‘70s, Honka (Jonas Dassler) is a socially awkward loner who spends most of his evenings getting drunk at the Golden Glove. It’s greasy, skin-crawling, and extremely bleak. But it’s also a deeply fascinating study of how someone so vile slipped through the cracks of society as they commit unspeakable acts of violence.
Hounds of Love – Darkroom
Writer/Director Ben Young draws from true crime for his sobering feature debut. Set in the ’80s, it centers around sadistic couple John and Evelyn White as they kidnap teen girls to viciously assault, torture, and then murder them. Their latest victim, Vicki, must drive a wedge between the couple if she has any hope of surviving. Stephen Curry is downright frightening as John, but it’s Emma Booth’s portrayal of the broken Evelyn and the heartbreaking vulnerability of Ashleigh Cummings’ Vicki that make this as gripping as it is. If it’s not already clear, the subject matter is harrowing and intense, making for a discomforting but powerful watch.
Martyrs – AMC+, Shudder
Writer/Director Pascal Laugier’s extreme horror film follows Lucie (Mylene Jampanoi), a young woman shattered by childhood abuse, as she drags childhood friend Anna (Morjana Alaoui) along on her violent quest for retribution. Of course, there’s no predicting how this journey will wind up, but it’s guaranteed to induce maximum discomfort and leave jaws on the floor. Its visceral examination of pain elicits such a strong physical response, made worse by its ultra-grim outlook. This one is soul crushing.
Threads – Fandor, Fawesome, Hoopla, Kanopy, Midnight Pulp
Mick Jackson’s made-for-TV cautionary tale, broadcast on BBC Two in September 1984, terrified viewers with the harrowing depiction of the devastating effects of nuclear war. It tracks the escalating tensions between the US and the Soviet Union until a bomb is dropped. The fallout is intensely terrifying, as looters get murderous, disease and radiation sickness spread, and food grows scarce. Cannibalism, famine, disease, and the regression of civilization into a more barbaric period. It’s harrowing, bleak, and unflinching, made even more so by its sense of realism.
We Need to Talk About Kevin – Fawesome, Hoopla, Kanopy, Midnight Pulp, Mubi, Peacock, Pluto TV, Prime Video, Screambox
Told from the perspective of Kevin’s mother, Eva, We Need to Talk About Kevin plays with the concept of nurture versus nature as Eva struggles to bond with her son throughout his life. The film toggles between the harrowing present and the disturbing past, and no matter the age, the creepiness of Kevin remains a constant. Both Eva and the viewer watch helplessly as Kevin grows from defiant to stone-cold sociopath, exploding into a terrifying climax made even scarier by the realism in its possibilities.