Horror and adventure initially don’t seem like the best combination of film genres on paper, but in practice, the horror-adventure subgenre has resulted in some legendary films. The best adventure films are full of excitement, peril and peril, characterized by unknown journeys in hostile environments with memorable characters and threatening dangers. Horror adventure films take the idea a step further, removing the four-quadrant appeal of the genre, making the obstacles faced by the protagonists even more visceral and terrifying.
Maintaining a sense of fear and a sense of adventure can often be a difficult balance to strike. Compared to other horror subgenres, adventure film protagonists often stand a chance against their villains, being able to fight back regardless of demoralizing odds. This doesn’t mean that horror and adventure films can’t be extremely scary, placing their characters in chilling situations in familiar settings.
10
As above, so below
A harrowing journey through the Parisian catacombs
The found footage horror genre has been a popular element of cinema since the success of The Blair Witch Project. As above, so below is a smart film that somehow manages to marry the unstable sensibilities of diagetic imagery with the grandiose ambitions of an adventure story. The film’s protagonist, Scarlett, is a scholar obsessed with finding the legendary philosopher’s stone, a key component in the lost art of alchemy. To find him, she must lead a team on an expedition deep into Paris’ infamous catacombs, filled with ancient bodies and horrors too strange to describe.
Actually filmed in the real catacombs of Paris, the attention to detail demonstrated by As above, so below creates a chilling and surreal experience. The entire story serves as an allegory for one of the oldest adventure stories, Dante’s Infernoadding some sophisticated references to a standard scary movie. That said, the film is rightly criticized for being so hurtful by the format of the found footage, with the shaky, nauseating camera that lessens the tension.
9
Van Helsing
An Avengers-style crossover with famous horror monsters
Few scary films are able to combine famous characters like Dracula, the Wolf Man and Frankenstien’s monster with as much self-confidence and talent as 2004’s. Van Helsing. Starring Hugh Jackman as the titular vampire hunter, the film combines stories from several famous public domain horror tales. Characters like Hyde and Victor Frankenstien are ultimately linked by Van Helsing’s mission to eliminate Dracula on behalf of the Knights of the Holy Order, an ancient anti-monster organization operating out of the Vatican.
It is certain that Van Helsing is far from a cerebral cinematic experience, carried instead by its special effects, creative creature designs, and effortlessly cool action set pieces. Jackman is underappreciated in his second attempt at leading a major early 2000s action franchise, making Van Helsing a fun hero to root for. Even though it was criticized at the time of release, famous film critic Roger Ebert of Chicago Sun Times was pertinent enough to recognize the film’s place as a goofy but incredibly fun romp through the greatest creature hits.
8
Brotherhood of the Wolf
A unique French creature feature with high-flying action
Occupying a unique niche as a popcorn-worthy martial arts horror film, Brotherhood of the Wolf is a deliciously gothic chiller from France. Set in the 18th century, the story follows a French knight and naturalist who hunts a legendary beast alongside his Iriquois companion. The creature in question is the legendary Beast of Gévaudan, a true monster from French folklore that supposedly terrorized the French province in the 18th century.
Notoriously, Brotherhood of the Wolf is known for heavily inspiring the beloved action-horror RPG video game Transmitted by blood, who took a lot of inspiration from the film’s costumes and set design. With creative practical effects and strangely thrilling martial arts battles in equal measure, Brotherhood of the Wolf it’s not as sloppy as a horror film or an action-adventure extravaganza. However, the film is dark for a reason, mired in the complicated politics of 18th-century France that sometimes interrupts the pacing.
7
The witches
One of the best Roald Dahl adaptations ever shown
Interestingly, adventure and horror films do not always have to lose their technically child-friendly appeal in their efforts to achieve scarier imagery. The 1990 original The witches is a great thesis for this statement, exploring the dark side of beloved children’s author Roald Dahl. Based on the book of the same name, the film follows an American boy who is forced to move to Europe to live with relatives after the death of his parents, only to encounter a terrifying coven of witches with a burning hatred for children.
Produced by iconic puppeteer Jim Henson, the practical effects of The witches they are a horrific sight to behold, pushing the boundaries of what is acceptable in children’s horror stories. The existential terror of the fate of some children also adds a good dose of narrative horror to the impressive special effects. However, the film loses points for cowering from the book’s depressing ending, changing things to be more hopeful.
6
hell boy
Still the best adaptation of the classic comic
Adventure horror is in the blood of Guillermo del Toro’s filmography, as the original proves hell boy film. Based on Mike Mignola’s iconic comic book series of the same name, the film explores the origins of Ron Perlman’s Hellboy, a demon summoned to destroy the Earth by the Nazis in World War II, only to be taken in by the Allies and raised to become the first detective. of BRPD, the Bureau of Paranormal Research and Defense. In the film, Hellboy faces the sorcerer who summoned him in the first place, Rasputin.
Ron Perlman is nothing short of iconic as Hellboy, using his square jaw in combination with an impressive tolerance for makeup to bring the sarcastic everyman demon to life. The insidious Nazi cyborg Kroenen is also a terrifying antagonist who plagues the film, endangering the film’s emotional core. It’s still the best Hellboy movie even after the release of Hellboy: The Crooked Man, Hellboy it’s only held back by the sheer concentration of comic book characters that may surprise those unfamiliar with the source material.
5
The Descent
A claustrophobic spelunking in madness
Few adventure horror films can keep up with more conventional horror experiences in terms of raw scares, but The Descent remains a genuinely terrifying film. The plot concerns a group of women who go on a spelunking trip into the uncharted caves of the Appalachain Mountains, with one of the less adrenaline-seeking members of the group still recovering from a personal tragedy. The journey goes from bad to worse when they are not only trapped underground, but also attacked by horrible cave-dwelling demi-humans called “Crawlers.”
As horror enemies go, Crawlers are some of the most terrifying packs of monsters in existence, silently climbing slippery cave surfaces while only visible in spooky night vision footage. The caves themselves are equally frightening, closing in around the hapless explorers in a claustrophobic grip. While the cast may not be the most memorable group of characters, even though they are well acted, The Descent is a creative and frighteningly effective horror film with a strong sense of adventure.
4
Annihilation
A clever Lovecraftian horror odyssey
Horror adventure films don’t always have to be such superficial experiences, sometimes capable of exploring some deep themes and esoteric forces of horror undreamt of by even the most sophisticated traditional horror stories. To type Annihilation, a harrowing Lovecraftian horror film with some reality-defying visuals. The film focuses on a scientist who embarks on an expedition to a mysterious quarantine zone called “The Shimmer”, in which her husband had disappeared on a previous mission.
The twisted biology of The Shimmer’s flora and fauna is both a breathtaking adventure and a paralyzingly frightening glimpse into cosmic horror. Natalie Portman holds her own as a steady lead, confused by the nightmare ahead but determined to succeed. Annihilation it can be a little too philosophical at times, getting lost in its own mysteries, but it doesn’t distract from the fun enough to stop the film from being a deviously thrilling horror adventure.
3
Army of Darkness
The epitome of horror slapstick
Marrying horror adventure with horror comedy along with a healthy touch of fantasy, Sam Raimi’s iconic trio Army of Darkness has its fingers in many genre pies. Occurring shortly after Evil Dead II, Bruce Campbell returns as the slow but tenacious Ash Williams, having been thrown through a portal to the past by the evil Deadites. After conquering the terrified citizens of the Middle Ages, Ash must lead the charge against an invasion.Alarmy of the undead, setting off on a dangerous mission in the process.
As important as the previous film was to the franchise, the evil Dead the series as a whole owes a lot to Army of Darkness. With daring knights, spectacular battles and a classic hero’s journey, the film is as adventurous as horror films come, while offering plenty of bloody chills and body horror to surpass the imaginations of dedicated fans. The only problem is the occasionally overbearing nature of the slapstick comedy, which often denigrates a particularly bloody episode of Tom and Jerry instead of a horror movie.
2
The mummy
Indiana Jones meets classic universal horror
Few films can uphold the principles of horror and adventure film like Brendan Fraser’s The mummy. Equal parts Raiders of the Lost Ark and classic Universal Studios creature feature, the film stars Fraser as Rick O’Connell, an American tomb raider who is tasked with leading a group of adventurers into ancient Egyptian ruins in hopes of discovering Hamunaptra, the ancient city of the dead. Along the way, the group comes to the unwanted attention of an ancient mummified evil.
The mummy has long reigned supreme as not only one of the best horror adventure films ever made, but perhaps the best mummy movie of all time. From Fraser’s infectious charisma as the protagonist to the blood-curdling visuals of swarms of scarabs and exhumed skinless corpses, both about The mummy it simply works. If there’s one thing that stops the film from being timeless, it’s the visibly aged special effects, which only got worse as they progressed. The mummy series continued.
1
Aliens
Brilliant sci-fi horror in a space opera wrapper
As big as Foreigner is a tense, standalone horror film, adding a healthy dose of adventure, combat, and agency to Ripley’s journey has done wonders for the franchise. James Cameron’s sequel to Ridley Scott’s masterpiece features the surviving scientist of the Nostromo joining a group of overconfident Space Marines on a mission to a planet infected by xenomorphs. Encountering a horde of creatures instead of a single specimen, it’s up to Ridley to destroy the alien queen and save the lives of innocent colonists.
Aliens was the first film to establish action and horror tropes that have since been repeated to the point of cliché. In addition to the cool images of Ripley wearing the power charger or the terrifying look of the xenomorph matriarch, Aliens also touches on some powerful themes of motherhood, masculinity, femininity, and post-traumatic stress disorder. The quintessence horror adventure wrapped up in a nice sci-fi package, it’s hard to do better than Aliens.