11 Excellent Fairy Tale Horror Films

How many Czech puppet movies are on this list?

Lately, my mental health has been in the trash, but I was especially struggling during the first few months of the year. Despite this, I rang in the new year by attending screenings of The Color of Pomegranates and Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors (two Sergei Parajanov films). Both films dealt with folk elements in gorgeous technicolor and were immensely comforting to me. Therefore, I began seeking out a lot of movies (not just horror) that focus on fairy tale or folktale* elements. The formulaic plot with good triumphing over evil (most of the time) was all that I could handle. Recently we were blessed with a body horror Cinderella-retelling from Shudder, The Ugly Stepsister, so I’ve been thinking about these films again. In honor of this new release, here are 11 fairy tale-inspired horror movies.

Courtesy of Ustredni Pujcovna Filmu

The Pied Piper (1986)- dir. Jiří Barta

Drawing inspiration from medieval German folktale the Pied Piper of Hamelin, Barta’s The Pied Piper (also sometimes credited as Krysar) focuses on the greed and capitalism in the town before exploring the Pied Piper’s story. The animation style is meant to mimic German expressionism. The result is quite dark and grotesque, making this film not necessarily for kids. But adults seem to love it, as the film won Un Certain Regard at the 1986 Cannes Film Festival! Plus, I love a creepy Czech puppet movie (oddly-specific, I know, but it’s a thing– I originally had about four Czech movies in this post and had to cut it down!).

Courtesy of A24

The Green Knight (2021)- dir. David Lowery

Based on the 14th century poem “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight,” this Arthurian legend follows Sir Gawain (Dev Patel), a teenager-like adult who takes up a challenge to battle the Green Knight. The whole movie recounts Gawain’s revelry after the battle, showing how he does and doesn’t come of age. This movie was made with a sparse budget but still really triumphed in the folk/fairytale subgenre. Would I call this horror? Maybe not, but it is a dark fairytale and does have some scary elements.

Courtesy of Mosfilm

Viy (1967)- dir. Konstantin Yershov, Georgi Kropachyov

Ever since seeing Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors, I’ve been quite into seeing out Slavic movies of the same time period, and Viy appeared. Based on a short story by Nikolai Gogol, this Gothic fantasy tale follows a young priest who must be locked in a chapel with a corpse to recount blessings for three nights. The corpse, a young girl, each night rises up to terrorize him. By the third night, all hell breaks loose. This movie also features creepy little puppets (see a pattern?) and some of the stills of the inside of the chapel are gorgeous. I’ve seen this film a few times and each time, I like it more and more.

Courtesy of ITC Entertainment

The Company of Wolves (1984)- dir. Neil Jordan

Inspired by Angela Carter’s fairy tale retellings, Rosaleen is told cautionary fairy tales by her grandmother. When she falls asleep, these stories seamlessly weave together: never stray from the path, never eat a windfall apple and beware a man whose eyebrows meet. The costumes and lush setting of the woods is enough, but with Sarah Patterson in the leading role and Angela Lansbury as Granny, you know this is gonna be good.

Courtesy of Kino Swiat

The Lure (2015)- dir. Agnieszka Smoczyńska

I was lucky enough to see this movie twice in theaters during its initial release because of my friend Cassie (shoutout!). Two mermaids, Golden and Silver, meet a band playing music on the beach and land a nightclub act in Poland. When Silver falls in love with one of the musicians, the sisters’ bond is threatened. Based on “The Little Mermaid” by Hans Christian Andersen, The Lure is an interesting tale of this familiar tale with all original music by the Polish duo Ballady i Romanse. Despite its darkness, it’s very fun.

Courtesy of Warner Bros

Pan's Labryrinth (2006)- dir. Guillermo del Toro

I don’t really need to introduce this movie since it’s one of the best fantasy films ever made, but in case you need a refresher: Pan’s Labyrinth follows Ofelia (Ivana Baquero), a child in 1944 Spain who travels with her mother to move in with her new stepfather, a Captain in the Civil Guard. As her mother grows more ill from her pregnancy, Ofelia conjures a fantasy world filled with fauns, monsters, and fairies. It’s a gorgeous and heartbreaking story, and one of my favorite movies. The childlike wonder and the real-life horrors of the world are portrayed with equal importance. Plus, Guillermo del Toro’s creature design is unparalleled.

Courtesy of Zeitgeist Films

Little Otik (2000)- dir. Jan Švankmajer

Little Otik is the second animation-forward Czech movie on this list, but is completely different from The Pied Piper. When a couple realizes that they cannot have biological children, Karel digs up a tree stump and presents it to his wife Božena who names him Otik. Otik begins to come alive with a mind of its own. Little Otik is regarded as a comedy horror film and is based on a Czech fairy tale Otesánek. Honestly, Otik is so cute in his little bonnet that you won’t even mind when he tries to eat the mailman!

Good Manners (2017)- dir. Juliana Rojas, Marco Dutra

Clara is a nurse on the outskirts of São Paulo. Ana is a wealthy woman who is pregnant and in need of a nanny. The two women cohabitate as Clara begins to realize that this pregnancy might not be… typical. The movie uses supernatural elements to interrogate classism in modern day Brazil. This is one of the films where the less you know, the better, so I’m going to stop right here.

Courtesy of Opus Films

November (2017)- dir. Rainer Sarnet

A black and white film set in an Estonianian village as the villagers prepare for winter, both naturally and supernaturally. Through this, the viewer learns a lot about Estonian myths and legends in this manner (for example, a kratt). November was chosen by Estonia to represent the country in the Academy Awards but was ultimately not chosen for a Best Foreign Feature nomination. However, November is a great companion to the work of Bela Tarr and Robert Eggers.

Courtesy of B.O.M. Film

A Tale of Two Sisters (2003)- dir. Kim Jee-won

Did you know that this South Korean cult classic is based on a folktale? I did not! The folktale is called “Janghwa Hongryeon jeon.” Two sisters, Moo-hyeon and Su-yeon, return home after a stay in a mental institution, only to face their unconventional stepmother. The girls begin seeing their late mother’s ghost, and strange things happen around the house. Get off your phones for this one, because you’re going to want to pay attention!

School Mystery (1995)- dir. Joji Matsuoka

Are urban legends considered folktales? They’re passed down orally and presented as truth, sometimes with a supernatural bent. This Japanese urban legend is about a girl named Hanako who haunts one stall of a girl’s bathroom, commonly wearing a red dress. In the movie School Mystery, a new girl at school uses the “Hanako” stall of the girl’s bathroom. Rumors begin to fly that she herself is Hanako-san. Simultaneously, a serial killer is on the loose, killing schoolchildren. Called “Toire no Hanako-san” in Japanese and sometimes “Phantom of the Toilet” (amazing title, should be a musical imo), this movie is excellent gateway horror for younger audiences.

Recently I was texting my family about our shared love horror movies and my dad said that I was influenced by him reading me Italian folktales and Grimms fairy tales, “which were sometimes horror,” as fairy tales and folktales are often more grisly than how they were depicted in Disney. But perhaps this is why I find fairy tales and folktales comforting right now, too. I saw many of these movies as a kid, as gateway horror. They are nostalgic and make me feel closer to my family during hard times. But even if you don’t have history with these movies, they fairy tale stories are familiar narratives. Perhaps they will be nostalgic and comforting to you, too.

*The difference between fairy tales and folktales is complicated, but just know that I use the terms loosely. A note on folktale horror: I think that folktales can be a part of the folk horror subgenre, but not all folk horror is folktale-inspired horror. The act of storytelling is essential to folktale horror.