The transition from childhood into adulthood is rife with hormone-induced turmoil, angst, and growing pains. Like many things in life, puberty lends well to horror. The physical body changes and the trials and tribulations of adolescence become heightened to a terrifying effect when applied to the genre.

In other words, growing up can be hell, and coming of age horror can convey the experience like no other.

These movies exemplify the uncomfortable, awkward, and often painful fears of leaving childhood behind. 

Carrie

A common thread in coming of age tales is the journey of self-discovery. That’s hard enough for a hormonal teenager, but it’s even more so when that teen is an outcast targeted for bullying. Poor Carrie White grew up extremely sheltered thanks to her fanatically religious mother, so when her first period came in the middle of her post-gym class shower, she thought she was dying. Cue excessive bullying. Her foray into puberty comes with newfound telekinetic power, and with it enough strength to rebel against her mother and find herself. Carrie’s road to self-discovery is paved with a lot of blood and death. 

I Am Not a Serial Killer

As the title indicates, teen John Wayne Cleaver isn’t a serial killer, though he quickly could become one. Diagnosed as a sociopath with murderous impulses, John must consistently control those impulses. It’s not easy, considering his mother owns a funeral home, and he’s bullied at school. Then there’s the matter of a supernatural killer on the loose, drawing the murder-obsessed teen into the mystery behind the entity. Self-discovery and finding contentment with one’s self become the central themes in John’s teen story.

The Company of Wolves

Fairy tales often feature coming of age themes, so it makes sense that it would be the focal point of a gothic horror fantasy that owed a lot of “Little Red Riding Hood.” In Neil Jordan’s film, young Rosaleen falls asleep at her home and dreams of menacing wolves, many of which disguise themselves as men. All of which makes for a dark metaphor for Rosaleen’s sexual awakening in adolescence. Beware the man whose brows meet in the middle. 

Found

Twelve-year-old Marty deals with bullying, friendships, and tumultuous family life. His father is short-tempered and a terrible role model, at best. Marty finds solace in horror movies, something he used to share with his older brother Steve. Steve, however, has become an aloof teen who spends as little time at home as possible, giving Marty plenty of room to discover his secret; Steve likes to commit murder and keep his victims’ heads as souvenirs. One of the most extreme takes on coming of age horror, Found takes a hard look at how parents shape their children’s lives. It’s not for the faint of heart.

Raw

Teen Justine begins her first semester at vet school, following in the footsteps of everyone in her family. Desperate to fit in with her peers, she relents to an initiation ritual and eats meat, which goes against her vegetarian nature. It sets her down a spiraling path of horrific body changes, primal sexual awakening, and an insatiable lust for human flesh. Julia Ducournau gives the coming of age story a stylish, cannibalistic twist.

Let the Right One In

Young Oskar lives alone with his mother and spends his school days getting bullied by others. He’s lonely. When he meets a girl his age at his apartment complex, they soon form a strong bond despite her initial warnings that they could never be friends. Eli harbors a grim secret; she’s an old vampire. Through Eli, Oskar finds the love he desperately craved along with the potential for revenge. This somber, romantic tale offers up a horrific exploration of the friendships we forge during our most formative years and the permanent repercussions they can have heading into adulthood.

The Witch

Robert Eggers’ feature debut centers around a young woman coming of age under the harshest of conditions. After exile from their community, Thomasin’s family relocates to a rural area near dark woods to rebuild their lives. Thomasin’s adolescence is marred with puritanical oppression and a witch in the woods wreaking havoc on the family. What would self-discovery look like in 1630s New England, when the freedom to do so doesn’t exist? Never have we cheered so hard for a teen to live deliciously and find her place in the world.

Ginger Snaps

Outcasts and death-obsessed sisters Brigitte and Ginger are enormously tight-knit. They have no friends outside of each other and have no interest, either. Their inseparable bond becomes tested in dangerous ways, though, when Ginger gets her first period. Her transition into womanhood threatens to alter her relationship with Brigitte, and the gap widens when a werewolf bites her. Puberty and identity by way of a bloody werewolf tale, Ginger Snaps gives the coming of age story a gloriously monstrous twist. 

Jennifer’s Body

Hell is a teenage girl. If ever there was a well-rounded coming of age horror movie that tried to encapsulate the teen girl experience, it’s Jennifer’s Body. When Jennifer becomes possessed by a man-eating demon in a sacrifice gone wrong, her best friend Needy must learn to step out of Jennifer’s shadow if she hopes to stop her. Toxic friendships, self-discovery, the heartbreak of first loves and first traumas, and more are explored in this bitingly hilarious horror-comedy.

IT: Chapter One

In the summer of 1989, a group of misfits bands together to fight off a tremendous shape-shifting evil infecting the town of Derry, Maine. One of the most affecting coming of age horror movies of all time, this talented cast and their characters’ friendships anchor the nightmarish Pennywise and the torment he unleashes upon them. Yet, that’s not even the most frightening aspect of their childhoods; the Losers’ Club copes with racism, bullying, abusive parents, sexual harassment, first crushes, loss, and more. The supernatural becomes a mere backdrop to the grim realities of life and adolescence.