Tamal Kundu
‘The Babysitter’ is a Netflix teen slasher comedy film that tells the story of 12-year-old Cole Johnson (Judah Lewis), who discovers that his beautiful babysitter (Samara Weaving) is the leader of a Satanic blood cult. Now, he must do everything he can to survive the night and not become one of their victims. A McG (‘Charlie’s Angels’) directorial, the film has emerged as a modern horror-comedy classic and spawned a sequel titled ‘The Babysitter: Killer Queen.’ If you are done watching the slasher horror movie and are curious about similar films, here is a list of 7 films like ‘The Babysitter.’
7. A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)
This Wes Craven masterpiece is often regarded as one of the greatest horror movies of all time. It follows Nancy Thompson (Heather Langenkamp), a young woman who is hunted in her dreams by the spirit of a serial killer, Freddy Krueger. ‘A Nightmare on Elm Street’ would go on to create a sprawling franchise of its own, with numerous sequels, books, and video games. It is also the film in which Johnny Depp made his big-screen debut.
6. The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974)
Even after all these years, ‘The Texas Chain Saw Massacre’ remains as riveting and as unsettling as the time of its premiere. It depicts a group of friends who, while traveling to an old homestead, get captured by a family of cannibals. While the writers based Leatherface on the murders committed by Ed Gein, the story is predominantly fictional despite all the claims to the contrary. The film caused significant controversy when it was first released, with many governments deciding not to let it get screened in their respective lands due to its depiction of violence. In the ensuing years, however, the film has found its rightful place in the ledgers of cinema as one of the greatest and most important slasher films of all time.
5. Friday the 13th (1980)
Director Sean S. Cunningham’s ‘Friday the 13th’ is another quintessential 1980s teen slasher that led to a massive franchise. It tells the story of how a group of teenage camp counselors at Camp Crystal Lake are killed one after another by Jason Voorhees, the son of Mrs. Voorhees, who is a killer herself.
4. Candyman (1992)
The cinematic adaptation of Clive Barker’s short story ‘The Forbidden,’ ‘Candyman’ revolves around a Chicago graduate student’s exploration of the urban legend of the same name. Although Barker’s original story is set in contemporary Liverpool and focuses on the British class system, director Bernard Rose used Chicago’s Cabrini-Green homes as the backdrop for the movie and chose to underscore the racism and classism that persists in the United States to this day. Although ‘Candyman’ is still essentially a slasher film, its themes and tone set it apart from all the other entries on this list.
3. The Evil Dead (1981)
A perfect amalgamation of slasher and traditional horror, ‘The Evil Dead’ follows five university students who inadvertently summon a group of demons during their vacation in a remote cottage in Tennessee. They are forced to kill each other as the demons take possession of the bodies of their friends and relatives. In one night, Ash Williams (Bruce Campbell), the main protagonist, loses his girlfriend, sister, and best friend as he struggles to survive through the night.
2. Scream (1996)
The second Wes Craven directorial venture on the list, ‘Scream,’ is based on the real-life murders committed by Danny Rolling, known infamously as The Gainesville Ripper, and revolves around a high-school student named Sidney Prescott (Nave Campbell), who is hunted by a killer in a Halloween costume. Balancing both the comedic and the mystery elements in the story, the film is a clever satire of all the over-used tropes in typical slasher films, including ‘A Nightmare on Elm Street’.
1. Detention (2011)
Director Joseph Kahn’s ‘Detention’ shows a high school where a serial killer known as Cinderella is on a murdering spree. To discover the identity of the killer, the principal of the school places all the possible candidates in detention together on the prom night. He doesn’t know that by doing this, he is putting the students on the path of powerful malevolent supernatural forces.
Read More: Best Wes Craven Movies
