The 21st century has been a tremendous time to be a fan of horror cinema. It has not simply been being able to see the various millennial forms of horror blossom and transform, but the easy availability of horror films from all around the world has expanded the possibilities of the genre. Here are the 50 horror films released from 2000 that I personally found exceptional. If you see an obvious omission, odds are I have not seen it.

50. Dark Water
2002, Japan, d. Hideo Nakata.
After knocking Japanese horror cinema into the stratosphere with 1998’s Ring, director Hideo Nakata returned to the works of author Koji Suzuki with this elegant, creepy ghost story about a woman and her daughter facing a supernatural threat in an apartment building. It is rich in tone and atmosphere, with the ongoing motif of leaking water being hugely effective. A 2005 American remake directed by Walter Salles did not quite manage to replicate its effectiveness.

49. Old
2021, USA, d. M. Night Shyamalan.
It is fair to say that, after the one-two punch of The Sixth Sense (1999) and Unbreakable (2000), Shyamalan never quite managed to recapture the alluring promise of his early work. Old seemed a strong return to form. It does what the writer/director does best: takes a simple concept, and then builds it out to generate superb tension, engaging characters, and striking set pieces. Old manages to develop horrors based upon fears I did not even realise I had.

48. Suicide Forest Village
2021, Japan, d. Takashi Shimizu.
Shimizu gained international recognition for his Ju-On/The Grudge features, and while he enjoyed success with several subsequent films (2004’s Marebito comes to mind) he seemed to suffer a fallow period in the 2010s. Based on this – the second instalment of a loose Village trilogy – he has enjoyed a return to form. This is a slow-burn, unsettling horror film that amps up the effect with each additional filling in of the narrative. There is an impressive shift in Shimizu’s style from supernatural to body horror.

47. Daguerreotype
France, 2016, d. Kiyoshi Kurosawa.
Many horror fans have seen and loved the works of Japanese filmmaker Kiyoshi Kurosawa, particularly his 2001 film Pulse. Precious few have managed to see his haunting French ghost story Daguerreotype (2016), which is a shame. It is a slow, sombre affair, boasting fantastic performances – particularly by Tahar Rahim – and a strong unsettled tone. It is a distinct style of film from Kurosawa’s typical work, which may explain why he went to Europe to direct it.

46. 1922
2017, USA, d. Zak Hilditch.
Stephen King has proved rich material for horror cinema for decades, and Zak Hilditch’s Netflix adaptation of King’s novella is able proof of that. This grim, grimy blend of crime, drama, and supernatural horror captures the famed author at his best. It has an excellent measured pace and focuses on a particularly strong lead performance by Thomas Jane. With so many films made out of King’s fiction, it is a genuine challenge for one to stand out: Hilditch’s film certainly does that.

45. Fresh
2022, USA, d. Mimi Cave.
Mimi Cave’s smartly and bleakly funny horror film opens with one of the longest cons I can remember: a light-hearted romantic comedy that takes an age to show off its true colours. When it does, it is a brilliantly performed game of smarts between a victim (Daisy Edgar-Jones) and her captor (Sebastian Stan). Circumstances of COVID-19 relegated Fresh to premiering on Disney+ instead of in theatres. It deserved better.

44. The Dark and the Wicked
2020, USA, d. Bryan Bertino.
Bertino’s bleak, unremitting supernatural thriller takes a strong, satisfying step above the crowd purely by being so well produced. It is elegantly staged, well performed and carries a seemingly bottomless sense of misery. It is as much a family tragedy as it is a horror film. One of the things I love about horror is its versatility: good horror can be laugh-out-loud funny, like Fresh, and it can be utterly hopeless and bleak. The Dark and the Wicked is such a strong example of the latter.

43. Kill List
2011, UK, d. Ben Wheatley.
A blunt, ugly, and ultra-violent crime thriller takes a gradual, disturbing lurch into folk horror. The staged violence is uncomfortable to watch for all manner of reasons: at first it is the gory realism of it, but as Ben Wheatley’s unexpected narrative unfolds that discomfort shifts to the context. By the time two hitmen are torturing and murdering a man, and that man is thanking them for it, it has become clear just how innovative and inventive Kill List is.

42. Barbarian
2022, USA, d. Zach Gregger.
This inventive horror film takes something of a leaf out of Hitchcock’s book, starting what seems like a rental home invasion thriller before jumping at 90 degrees to present the story of a disgraced film director facing the consequences of his actions. It all pulls together into one narrative with style, and boasts some great performances by Georgina Campbell, Bill Skarsgård, and Justin Long. Good cinematography and music enhance what is already a great horror film.

41. The Black Phone
2021, USA, d. Scott Derrickson.
Here Scott Derrickson (Doctor Strange) adapts a story by author Joe Hill that combines the archetypes of both supernatural horror and the serial killer film. Ethan Hawke delivers a superb turn as the film’s villain: a tormented kidnapper and murderer that is very much against type for Hawke’s usual roles. Smartly, however, the films real horrors come from the abusive home life of the protagonist (played by the talented Mason Thames). Proof once again that real life horrors always disturb more than fictional ones.