Editorials
The 10 Most Psychotic Exes in Horror
In Leigh Whannell’s The Invisible Man, Elisabeth Moss plays Cecilia, a woman whose nightmare is only just beginning after escaping from an abusive relationship. Her ex commits suicide and leaves her his fortune under specific criteria, but she soon suspects that his death was a hoax. That he’s still there, unseen and stalking her.
Based on the trailer, Adrian Griffin (Oliver Jackson-Cohen) looks downright terrifying while “alive.” Still, the freedom to torture Cecilia under the mask of invisibility looks to take the terror to a whole new unrelenting level. In anticipation, we look back at some of horror’s most intimidating and psychotic exes.
What Lies Beneath – Norman Spencer
After her daughter leaves for college, creepy things start happening around Claire’s house. She thinks she’s haunted, her husband Norman thinks she’s coping with empty nest syndrome. It doesn’t help that she notices her neighbors’ volatile relationship or that Norman is always away at work. Claire isn’t losing her mind, though; her husband’s secret lover is haunting her. And the undead ex wants justice. Norman murdered the woman when she threatened to expose the affair, and when he couldn’t gaslight his wife any longer, he tried to kill her, too. On the surface, Norman is a charming scientist and doting husband, but it’s an airtight mask for the homicidal narcissist underneath. That he’s so socially adept and cunning makes him a far more dangerous; you won’t know you’re in harm’s way until far too late. You can stream this now on Netflix and Tubi.
Scream 4 – Jill Roberts
Sidney Prescott’s niece seems perfectly well adjusted for most of the movie. At least all things considered. She’s still reeling from a recent breakup with her boyfriend Trevor, who took her virginity then slept with another girl. Then there’s the matter of Ghostface, who’s resurfaced in conjunction with Sidney’s return to Woodsboro to slay again. It turns out hell hath no fury like a psycho scorned, though, and Jill reveals herself to be the murdering mastermind of the film. Still holding a serious grudge against her ex, she not only sets him up as her patsy, but she shoots him in the crotch before executing him.
Hellbound: Hellraiser II – Frank and Julia Cotton
In the sordid saga of the Cotton family, exes Frank and Julia are equally psychotic. Nevermind that Julia cheated on her husband Larry with his brother Frank while Frank was alive, or that she murdered for him so he could regenerate his flesh after escaping Hell. When Frank shows no remorse for killing Julia in Hellraiser, it sparks a severe grudge match in Hellbound. Both are ruthless killers, and yet there’s not enough room in Hell for these former lovers. Hellbound: Hellraiser II is currently streaming on Hulu and Prime Video.
May – May Dove Canady
From the moment we meet May, it’s clear she’s off-kilter. Socially awkward and friendless, save for her doll Suzie, May longs for connection. She finds that with Adam. At least until she becomes sexually aroused by cannibal horror and tries to emulate it in a makeout session. He’s repulsed. Then she begins a fling with the flirtatious Polly but is devastated to discover Polly moves on quickly. May grows increasingly delusional and depressed by the rejections, and a triggering event causes her to snap. It doesn’t end well for her exes. May is available now on Tubi.
Fear – David McCall
Teen Nicole Walker finds herself immediately attracted to the older, bad boy David (Mark Wahlberg). The feeling is mutual, much to the chagrin of her father. After a while, though, his charm wears thin and gives way to angry and controlling behavior. Then he rapes her best friend and murders another. Naturally, Nicole decides it’s time to break up. David doesn’t take the rejection well, and he becomes violently unhinged.
Play Misty For Me – Evelyn Draper
When you think of psychotic exes, Glenn Close’s unhinged stilted lover in Fatal Attraction tends to come to mind. Evelyn Draper is the deadlier precursor. Radio DJ Dave happens across Evelyn at a bar, and the two embark on a casual relationship. Except, Evelyn didn’t meet Dave by chance, she was already a fan of his radio show. Her obsessive behavior grows progressively worrisome until Dave breaks it off with her. Cue the suicide attempts, vandalism, and physical assaults on those in Dave’s life. It culminates in an explosive finale where people wind up dead.
Audition – Asami Yamazaki
Shigeharu Aoyama thinks he’s found the perfect new mate in the docile Asami. Neither he nor the viewer realize until far too late that Asami has a serious jealousy streak. Lovers that don’t have eyes for her, and her only, suffer the worst possible fate. We know this because Shigeharu slowly discovers a grisly trail of Asami’s former lovers. More importantly, we know this because Asami keeps an ex of hers in a burlap sack, many of his limbs amputated. She feeds him her vomit. Shigeharu’s on his way to becoming her next former lover. Audition is currently streaming on Shudder.
Nightmare – George Tatum
After spending years in a mental institution recovering from a break that resulted in the murder of a family in New York, George is released. He decides to head to Florida to see his ex-wife and their children. The only problem is that it doesn’t take much to trigger his psychosis, and his road trip to Florida is littered with a lot of dead bodies. This Video Nasty slasher gets gory, and George’s instability is extra dangerous for his former family. Nightmare is currently available to stream on Prime Video and Tubi.
Possession – Anna
When Mark returns home, his wife tells him she wants a divorce. Thus, one of horror’s most challenging, complex, and bizarre portraits of a marriage’s disintegration begins. Mark follows Anna, beats her human lover, discovers an inhuman lover, and keeps human body parts in the fridge. That’s just the tip of the iceberg in her breakdown. Of Mark’s as well. This is a psychotronic breakup movie that refuses to adhere to linear storytelling or traditional tropes. It’s insanity at its best.
The Brood – Nola Carveth
Nola is in the midst of a painful custody battle with her ex over their daughter. She’s also an extremely disturbed woman undergoing experimental therapy that’s supposed to allow the patient to let go of their suppressed emotions through physiological changes to their bodies. For Nola, that means giving birth to asexual children through her psychoplasmically-induced external womb, creating a brood of them that brutally murder those involved in her ex’s life. David Cronenberg’s divorce movie goes heavy on body horror and psychosis, in the best way. The Brood is available on Kanopy or the Criterion Channel.
Editorials
‘Immaculate’ – A Companion Watch Guide to the Religious Horror Movie and Its Cinematic Influences
The religious horror movie Immaculate, starring Sydney Sweeney and directed by Michael Mohan, wears its horror influences on its sleeves. NEON’s new horror movie is now available on Digital and PVOD, making it easier to catch up with the buzzy title. If you’ve already seen Immaculate, this companion watch guide highlights horror movies to pair with it.
Sweeney stars in Immaculate as Cecilia, a woman of devout faith who is offered a fulfilling new role at an illustrious Italian convent. Cecilia’s warm welcome to the picture-perfect Italian countryside gets derailed soon enough when she discovers she’s become pregnant and realizes the convent harbors disturbing secrets.
From Will Bates’ gothic score to the filming locations and even shot compositions, Immaculate owes a lot to its cinematic influences. Mohan pulls from more than just religious horror, though. While Immaculate pays tribute to the classics, the horror movie surprises for the way it leans so heavily into Italian horror and New French Extremity. Let’s dig into many of the film’s most prominent horror influences with a companion watch guide.
Warning: Immaculate spoilers ahead.
Rosemary’s Baby
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The mother of all pregnancy horror movies introduces Rosemary Woodhouse (Mia Farrow), an eager-to-please housewife who’s supportive of her husband, Guy, and thrilled he landed them a spot in the coveted Bramford apartment building. Guy proposes a romantic evening, which gives way to a hallucinogenic nightmare scenario that leaves Rosemary confused and pregnant. Rosemary’s suspicions and paranoia mount as she’s gaslit by everyone around her, all attempting to distract her from her deeply abnormal pregnancy. While Cecilia follows a similar emotional journey to Rosemary, from the confusion over her baby’s conception to being gaslit by those who claim to have her best interests in mind, Immaculate inverts the iconic final frame of Rosemary’s Baby to great effect.
The Exorcist
William Friedkin’s horror classic shook audiences to their core upon release in the ’70s, largely for its shocking imagery. A grim battle over faith is waged between demon Pazuzu and priests Damien Karras (Jason Miller) and Lankester Merrin (Max von Sydow). The battleground happens to be a 12-year-old, Regan MacNeil (Linda Blair), whose possessed form commits blasphemy often, including violently masturbating with a crucifix. Yet Friedkin captures the horrifying events with stunning cinematography; the emotional complexity and shot composition lend elegance to a film that counterbalances the horror. That balance between transgressive imagery and artful form permeates Immaculate as well.
Suspiria
Jessica Harper stars as Suzy Bannion, an American newcomer at a prestigious dance academy in Germany who uncovers a supernatural conspiracy amid a series of grisly murders. It’s a dance academy so disciplined in its art form that its students and faculty live their full time, spending nearly every waking hour there, including built-in meals and scheduled bedtimes. Like Suzy Bannion, Cecilia is a novitiate committed to learning her chosen trade, so much so that she travels to a foreign country to continue her training. Also, like Suzy, Cecilia quickly realizes the pristine façade of her new setting belies sinister secrets that mean her harm.
What Have You Done to Solange?
This 1972 Italian horror film follows a college professor who gets embroiled in a bizarre series of murders when his mistress, a student, witnesses one taking place. The professor starts his own investigation to discover what happened to the young woman, Solange. Sex, murder, and religion course through this Giallo’s veins, which features I Spit on Your Grave’s Camille Keaton as Solange. Immaculate director Michael Mohan revealed to The Wrap that he emulated director Massimo Dallamano’s techniques, particularly in a key scene that sees Cecilia alone in a crowded room of male superiors, all interrogating her on her immaculate status.
The Red Queen Kills Seven Times
In this Giallo, two sisters inherit their family’s castle that’s also cursed. When a dark-haired, red-robed woman begins killing people around them, the sisters begin to wonder if the castle’s mysterious curse has resurfaced. Director Emilio Miraglia infuses his Giallo with vibrant style, with the titular Red Queen instantly eye-catching in design. While the killer’s design and use of red no doubt played an influential role in some of Immaculate’s nightmare imagery, its biggest inspiration in Mohan’s film is its score. Immaculate pays tribute to The Red Queen Kills Seven Times through specific music cues.
The Vanishing
Rex’s life is irrevocably changed when the love of his life is abducted from a rest stop. Three years later, he begins receiving letters from his girlfriend’s abductor. Director George Sluizer infuses his simple premise with bone-chilling dread and psychological terror as the kidnapper toys with Red. It builds to a harrowing finale you won’t forget; and neither did Mohan, who cited The Vanishing as an influence on Immaculate. Likely for its surprise closing moments, but mostly for the way Sluizer filmed from inside a coffin.
The Other Hell
This nunsploitation film begins where Immaculate ends: in the catacombs of a convent that leads to an underground laboratory. The Other Hell sees a priest investigating the seemingly paranormal activity surrounding the convent as possessed nuns get violent toward others. But is this a case of the Devil or simply nuns run amok? Immaculate opts to ground its horrors in reality, where The Other Hell leans into the supernatural, but the surprise lab setting beneath the holy grounds evokes the same sense of blasphemous shock.
Inside
During Immaculate‘s freakout climax, Cecilia sets the underground lab on fire with Father Sal Tedeschi (Álvaro Morte) locked inside. He manages to escape, though badly burned, and chases Cecilia through the catacombs. When Father Tedeschi catches Cecilia, he attempts to cut her baby out of her womb, and the stark imagery instantly calls Alexandre Bustillo and Julien Maury’s seminal French horror movie to mind. Like Tedeschi, Inside’s La Femme (Béatrice Dalle) will stop at nothing to get the baby, badly burned and all.
Burial Ground
At first glance, this Italian zombie movie bears little resemblance to Immaculate. The plot sees an eclectic group forced to band together against a wave of undead, offering no shortage of zombie gore and wild character quirks. What connects them is the setting; both employed the Villa Parisi as a filming location. The Villa Parisi happens to be a prominent filming spot for Italian horror; also pair the new horror movie with Mario Bava’s A Bay of Blood or Blood for Dracula for additional boundary-pushing horror titles shot at the Villa Parisi.
The Devils
The Devils was always intended to be incendiary. Horror, at its most depraved and sadistic, tends to make casual viewers uncomfortable. Ken Russell’s 1971 epic takes it to a whole new squeamish level with its nightmarish visuals steeped in some historical accuracy. There are the horror classics, like The Exorcist, and there are definitive transgressive horror cult classics. The Devils falls squarely in the latter, and Russell’s fearlessness in exploring taboos and wielding unholy imagery inspired Mohan’s approach to the escalating horror in Immaculate.
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