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When Ari Aster's Hereditary came out in 2018, it took the world by storm. Horror aficionados and casual viewers alike were riveted and horrified by the wonderful blend of drama, gore, and horror that this indie film had to offer. One of the best films produced by A24, the beloved distributor, the movie follows the Graham family as they start seeing cryptic messages after the death of the family's matriarch and long-held secrets come to light.Starring Toni Colette in a masterfully intense performance, the film tells the story of what happens when a family discovers that they have inherited an ominous fate. Hereditary is a fantastic meditation on family, trauma, and the emotional bonds that forever connect us to our ancestors – all while being absolutely terrifying.If you are a fan of this modern horror classic, here are some other movies you have to watch next.
7 Midsommar
If you loved Ari Aster's twisted directorial vision in Hereditary, you will probably like his follow-up feature Midsommar. While it is not as visually dark as Hereditary – in fact, Midsommar is disturbingly bright – this film is certainly as emotionally bleak. Featuring a group of friends who travel to Sweden to have some fun while studying the cultural anthropology of midsummer celebrations, the film comments on suicide, bad breakups, emotional empathy, and the horrors of depression. You can see Aster's signature style in the complex relationship dynamics between characters, existential questions, and beautifully composed shots.
6 Rosemary's Baby
Dealing with themes of the occult while exploring fraught family dynamics, Rosemary's Baby shares a lot of similarities with Hereditary. Directed by the now-infamous Roman Polanski, this classic horror film follows a young couple (played by the iconic Mia Farrow and John Cassavetes) as they move into a new apartment building with nice but overbearing neighbors who become even more enchanted with them when she becomes pregnant.
However, Mia Farrow's character grows paranoid about their intentions with her child, culminating in one of the most memorable and disturbing final scenes in horror movie history. Like Hereditary, Rosemary's Baby uses satanic and occult elements to comment on the ways that our ancestors' actions shape our futures and how the consequences of doing deals with the devil get passed on from generations.
5 Suspiria
One of the defining features of Hereditary is its production design. Although the film takes place in rather mundane locations like home and school, there are always interesting visual and environmental components that fit within the brooding color palette of the film while playing with symbolism. Objects like the bespoke dollhouses, the beautiful tree house, and a blazing fire litter the frames of Aster's film. Horror movies usually build distinct visual identities to immerse us in their world, and no film does this better than Dario Argento's Suspiria.
This classic Italian giallo movie follows Suzy Bannion, a dancer who goes to a renowned dance school in Germany to study ballet only to find that she is amongst a coven of witches. Suspiria is styled with meticulous detail to look avant-garde, scary, moody, gorey, and chic. It is a colorful and visually stimulating film that, like Hereditary, is not afraid of mixing something as disgusting as maggots with some of the most beautiful set pieces you'll see. And if you like Suspiria, make sure to check out the great 2018 remake directed by Luca Guadagnino.
4 Saint Maud
If you are a fan of contemporary, independent horror with a strong female lead, you will likely enjoy Saint Maud. Well, perhaps not enjoy per se, but you will certainly be thrilled, revolted, and bewildered by this psychological horror film. Like Hereditary, this film was released by A24, and they share a similar approach to horror by focusing on the complex inner lives of their protagonists. The film tells the story of a nurse who becomes incredibly pious after she fails to save a patient's life. However, her faith becomes terrifying as she grows obsessed with saving the soul of Amanda, a convalescing patient under her care. Saint Maud seamlessly blends jump scares and body horror with philosophical meditations on religion, belief, trauma, and death. It's one of the best religious horror movies of all time.
3 The Others
Sometimes our parents try to protect us from danger so much that they unwittingly end up becoming the source of that danger. Like Hereditary, Alejandro Amenabar's The Others explores the horrors and fears that are passed on from our ancestors, albeit with a more ghostly twist. The film stars a breathtaking Nicole Kidman as a devoutly religious mother who moves her family to the English coast during World War II.
While the family waits for the father to return, Kidman's character zealously protects her kids from a rare photosensitivity disease by submerging the entire home in darkness, but things go awry when they start seeing and hearing ghosts in their home. Mixing elements of the Gothic, supernatural, and thriller genres, The Others is one of the most stylish horror movies in recent memory, and like Hereditary, it delivers a shocking twist that will have you reeling and wanting to re-watch the film over and over again.
2 The Blackcoat's Daughter
The Blackcoat's Daughter is a slow-burning thriller that is perfect for fans of Hereditary''s brooding atmosphere. Directed by Osgoode Perkins, son of horror royalty Anthony Perkins (Psycho), the film tells the story of two young women who must fight a mysterious evil force when they get left behind at their boarding school over winter break. Featuring breakthrough performances by Mad Men's Kiernan Shipka and Emma Roberts, The Blackcoat's Daughter is divided into three timelines each devoted to exploring the psyche of its characters. Although the film did not make a huge commercial splash, it was beloved by critics, with The Village Voice writing, "Few horror debuts unnerve and fascinate as much as this one."
1 The Omen
If you loved Milly Shapiro's turn as the creepy yet innocent young girl in Hereditary, you should watch the performance that started it all. Directed by Richard Donner, The Omen perfected the trope of the eerie young child which began in movies like The Bad Seed and Village of the Damned. Harvey Spencer Stephens plays Damien, a young child who was replaced at birth by his father, unbeknownst to his wife, after their biological child dies shortly after birth. After Damien joins the family, a series of tragic and unexplainable events strike them, culminating in the violent deaths of people around the family. Soon, they come to learn that Damien is the Antichrist itself. Like Hereditary, The Omen shows how a family unravels following the intrusion of unexplainable evil.