FEMALE-CENTRIC MODERN DAY HORROR: this is a list featuring some of my favorite horror films from 2014–2019 that star female characters in central roles. Some are villains, others are heroes, and all exist outside the purview of the “final girl” trope.
What Keeps You Alive (2018): Jackie and Jules celebrate their first wedding anniversary at a rural cabin deep in the woods, but the trip soon sours when Jules begins to unravel the disturbing truth about her wife’s past.
XX (2017): an anthology collection of four segments directed by women that feature a variety of terrors, including monstrous creatures, the mysterious and unstoppable destruction of family, and a child that classic horror fans may find familiar.
Midsommar (2019): a traumatized and reeling Dani travels to Sweden with friends to observe a pagan cult’s increasingly-bizarre midsummer festival, only to end up trapped in a Wickerman-esque nightmare.
The VVitch (2015): Puritan girl Thomasin and her family rebuild their lives on a new farm after suffering banishment from their village, but after a series of frightening events she finds herself accused of practicing witchcraft.
The Blackcoat’s Daughter (2015): set in the dead of winter at an isolated religious school for girls, this film features an eerie environment, an increasing sense of foreboding, and an equally-atmospheric soundtrack.
It Follows (2014): after a date that ends in horror and confusion, Jay realizes that she is being stalked by a slow but relentless entity that can take the form of any human being and is visible only to her.
Father’s Day (2014): Carol arrives home to find a package containing a cassette player and a tape sent by her father, who she has never met and had believed to be long-dead. This one is actually a short film and can be watched for free.
Us (2019): decades after undergoing a terrifying experience, an adult Adelaide returns to her parents’ vacation home and finds herself face-to-face with the figure that has haunted her since childhood.
Mention goes to A Dark Song (2016), The Hole in the Ground (2019), As Above, So Below (2014), Hereditary (2018), Starry Eyes (2014), and The Taking of Deborah Logan (2014).
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