Three horror movies to get you through finals
Entertainment November 20, 2025, Comments OffMirror writer and horror movie connoisseur, Charles Williamson, provides his expert opinion on three horror movies to add to your watchlist. Whether you’re a novice horror fan seeking limited terror or a true adrenaline junkie, Charles has you covered.
For mild horror fans: Cemetery Man (1994) R
Based on the novel “Dellamorte Dellamore” by author Tiziano Sclavi, Cemetery Man follows a cemetery watchman named Francesco Dellamorte (Rupert Everett), whose sole responsibility is to destroy the dead who come back to life in his graveyard. Francesco relies on the help of his mentally impaired assistant, Gnaghi (Francois Hadji-Lazaro). Both Francesco and Gnaghi’s desire for love starts a dangerous chain of events when Francesco falls for a recent widow.
Cemetery Man balances its tone of melancholy, humor, and eroticism astonishingly well with its slapstick violence. Most of the philosophizing sadness is found in Francesco’s narration, which plays throughout the film, allowing us to enter his mind. Francesco tries to find comfort in many women throughout this film, all of whom are played by Anna Falchi, who is simply credited as “She” in the cast list. “She” is found wherever Francesco looks for comfort, but he can never seem to keep her. In his insecurity, he spirals towards self-destruction.
The film’s humor comes from the ever-escalating violence against the living dead. With Cemetary Man‘s dynamic filmmaking, you’ll never once get bored with gunshots or stabbings. The relationship between Francesco and his assistant is a constant source of lightheartedness because of his assistant’s incompetence. The tone of the film is also able to stay light with the help of its score composed by Manuel De Sica, which stays upbeat even when the tone of the scene is melancholic.
Cemetary Man‘s set design, led by Massimo Antonello Geleng, is meticulously crafted to immerse you in this world. With the graveyard being the standout in a blend of realism and fantasy, you learn that this is no ordinary zombie film. The design is heightened by the SFX, VFX, and makeup artist Sergio Stivaletti, who unites the set with masterfully crafted effects that bring the dead to life.
Cemetery Man is a horror film for those who don’t like to be scared. There are no jump scares or moments of extreme intensity. The film’s monsters are not used as a device to scare the audience, but rather as the source of its humor in the gruesome ways our protagonist puts them down. Most of the horror is found in the character’s endless search for love and purpose.
For the moderates: Mandy (2018) NR
“When I die, bury me deep, lay two speakers at my feet, wrap some headphones around my head and rock ‘n roll me when I’m dead.” These are the words that open the film while “Starless’ by King Crimson plays in the background. Nicholas Cage stars in Mandy as Red Miller, a lumberjack in the “Shadow Mountains,” which resemble a pine forest in the Pacific Northwest. Miller’s partner and namesake of the film, Mandy (Andrea Riseborough), works at a local convenience store. Together, they live in a cabin secluded in the woods until a religious cult, known as the “Children of the New Dawn,” scouts her to join their cult as a part of their leader’s harem. In order to kidnap her, they summon a group of demons through an LSD ritual and a human sacrifice. This sets off Red into an incredibly violent, blood-soaked, psychedelic journey into hell as he avenges his partner.
Mandy can’t be praised enough as director Panos Cosmatos, along with his cinematographer Benjamin Loeb, push the boundaries of visual storytelling. Mandy is soaked in reds, greens, and blues, whether it’s to portray a beautiful, dreamy atmosphere or to communicate a sense of dread to the audience. The film’s visuals are only enhanced by the design of the characters, especially the demon biker gang from hell. Loeb and Cosmatos’ visuals also blend with the metal and synth soundtrack of the film, scored by Johann Johannsson, in a manner that propels us through the story.
The film’s horror is found in Red’s deepening and worsening situations. We watch him spiral in his grief and in the insidious cult behind the brutal killing of Red’s partner. Nicholas Cage brings full intensity to all the situations he faces, which makes every grotesquely violent encounter as extreme as possible. The leader of the cult, Jeremiah Sand, portrayed by Linus Roache, is as egotistical as he is insecure. He’s a leader who is desperate for validation and submission, especially from women.
Mandy is a horror film for those who like the intensity of thrillers, but are more sheepish of what is traditionally scary. This film is without jump scares or other classic horror elements, but Mandy is still filled with a dreadful narrative that will leave you gasping for air.
For those seeking extreme: Titane (2021) R
Titane is a movie for serious horror fans. While on a drive, a young girl and her father get into an argument, which causes them to crash. The father is unharmed, but the girl has to get a titanium plate in her skull. Flashing forward many years, Alexia, played by Agathe Rousselle, has grown up and is now a dancer. After work, she kills a man who makes unwanted sexual advances towards her, which sets off the rest of the events in the film. One of the most bizarre sequences comes directly after her first murder where she is impregnated by her car.
At the center of this film is a story about acceptance and found family. Alexia, who assumes a new identity to run from the law, finally finds a father who loves her. As a love-hate relationship begins to foster, her pregnancy wreaks havoc on her body.
The horror in the film is found in the body horror and unsettling relationship that forms between Alexia and her false father. Ever since the 80’s, there have been David Cronenberg clones who claim to use him as inspiration, but Julia Ducournau is truly a successor of Cronenberg in her thematically relevant horror. A particularly painful use of body modification is when Alexia is changing her appearance when running from the law. In this moment, she decides to break her nose. At first, she attempts to punch herself in the face, but when that proves unsuccessful, she decides to slam her face into a bathroom sink. In another scene, her stomach has an intense itch, and in her fierce itching, a finger pierces the skin, revealing oil instead of blood.
Titane is a horror film for those who can stomach intensely grotesque body horror and scenes so uncomfortable that they near sickening. But underneath all of the jagged edges of this film lies a very touching story about two lonely people finding each other. In a narrative that’s always changing pace and direction, it will leave you comforted yet disturbed. And when the credits roll, it’s clear how this film won the Palme d’Or at the 2021 Cannes Film Festival.
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