17 Most Shocking Home Invasion Movies Ever, Ranked
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There are few types of horror film more simple, yet more scary, than the home invasion movie. It's a sub-genre that uses an incredibly straightforward premise and yet taps into the most primal fear for so many of us. The idea of very bad people entering our homes with the intent of doing very bad things to us is one that horror filmmakers have returned to again and again over the years, and no matter how many times we see a similar story play out, it continues to be an incredibly potent viewing experience.
On a purely practical level, it's easy to see why writers and directors are so drawn to these films. In its most basic form, all that is really needed are two characters and one location--a home, its owner, and an invader. It's quick and cheap to make, and let's face it, the economics of the horror genre are what has made it such an attractive arena for so many cash-strapped filmmakers over the decades.
But while there are many terrible home invasion movies that offer little more than this set-up, it's this very simplicity that also makes it so effective. This is the one sub-genre that can actually be even more effective when watched at home than in a theater, the claustrophobia of that single, enclosed setting creating some incredibly effective and terrifying movies.
Of course, not all films that use home invasion are as simplistic as that. Some use it as part of a wider story rather than the entire focus, building up to home invasion scenes or using them to develop the plot or characters. Others take the conventions and put their own spin on them, throwing in gimmicks and twists to keep audiences guessing.
But in all cases, the scares ultimately come from the same, terrifying place: In short, as long as people have homes, we'll be watching them get invaded on screen. So here are some of the most tense, shocking, and terrifying home invasion movies ever made. Just make sure the front door is locked before you start reading...
17. The Purge (2013)
The Purge series has dabbled in several genres across four movies and a TV show, but while later entries are more action-orientated, the first movie took the home invasion genre as its template. Ethan Hawke and his family are on lockdown while the annual criminal free-for-all takes place, but inevitably some enterprising Purgers intend to get into his seemingly ultra-secure house. It might not be the best movie in the franchise, but it delivers some pretty effective home invasion scares.
16. Panic Room (2007)
In terms of director David Fincher's filmography, Panic Room is one of his lesser movies, but it's still a slick, entertaining ride. Jodie Foster and a young Kristen Stewart are a mom and daughter who take refuge in their high-tech new home's panic room when a trio of robbers come calling. It's not a horror movie and is arguably flashier than it needs to be, as Fincher goes for broke with his trademark visual and technical trickery. But it's highly enjoyable, with strong performances and Fincher's undeniable skill ensuring a taut, suspenseful experience.
15. Hush (2016)
With so many home invasion movies out there, it's good to have a gimmick to help a film stand out from the pack. The Netflix horror Hush pits a deaf, mute writer against a masked, crossbow wielding invader who has entered her isolated woodland house. Without the ability to hear or scream, she must rely on her wits to fight back against this villain. The movie is directed by Mike Flanagan, who most recently made the brilliant The Haunting of Hill House for Netflix, and features a strong lead performance from that show's Kate Siegel.
14. Death Game (1977)/Knock Knock (2015)
While most of the movies on this list focus on villains breaking into a home, in the 1977 exploitation favorite Death Game, they are invited in. A middle-aged businessman has been been left alone by his family one night, when a pair of young women knock on his door, claiming that their car has broken down. Of course, their intentions are very different, and they soon start playing a series of increasingly disturbing sexual and psychological games with their unlucky prey. The movie was remade by Eli Roth in 2015 as Knock Knock, and while it doesn't really add anything new to the story, it's worth checking out for Keanu Reeves' increasingly unhinged performance.
13. Don't Breathe (2016)
Like Hush, Don't Breathe uses the idea of sensory deprivation to heighten the scares. This time the invaders are the "heroes." This trio might be trying to rob an old man in his house, but it turns out he is a psychotic former special forces operative who has no intention of letting them leave alive. The one advantage they have is that he is also blind. This movie is directed Fede Alvarez, who helmed the Evil Dead remake and the recent Girl In the Spider's Web, and features a terrifying lead performance from Avatar's Stephen Lang.
12. High Tension (2004)
Also known as Switchblade Romance, this over-the-top French shocker was the debut movie from Alexandre Aja, who subquenty helmed the Hills Have Eyes and Piranha remakes in Hollywood. This one certainly delivers on the title, as a young woman and her college pal attempt to survive in a remote house against a mysterious, hulking intruder. Aja ladles on the gore like it's going out of style, with a series of inventive, crowd-pleasing murder sequences. The movie loses its way a bit in the second half when we leave the house--and the less said about the idiotic final twist the better--but for an hour or so it's an incredibly effective experience.
11. Kidnapped (2011)
While it does feature some moments of grueling violence, the power of this Spanish movie comes mostly from its style and the level of scary realism it delivers. The plot is simple, as a family are held hostage in their home by a criminal gang, while the husband is taken to an ATM to empty their bank account. But the inventive ways director Miguel Ángel Vivas cuts between both situations is masterful, using long single takes and split-screen to put us right in this horrific situation with the family.
10. A Clockwork Orange (1971)
Stanley Kubrick's classic dystopian sci-fi satire is a study of criminal behaviour and the way society deals with it, featuring a truly disturbing home invasion sequence. Criminal "droog" Alex and his gang break into the house of a wealthy couple and proceed to brutalize them. What makes this scene especially upsetting is the odd mix of tones--the cartoonish villains and the brutally realistic violence, plus the way Alex joyfully croons "Singing in the Rain" while his accomplices commit terribles acts. Much of the scene is shot from the POV of the husband, as he watches his wife raped in front of him. However, the brilliance of Kubrick’s film is that, despite scenes such as these, by the end of the film Alex becomes a sympathetic figure.
9. Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer (1986)
While this 1986 horror classic isn't strictly a home invasion movie, it does feature one of the most upsetting scenes in the subgenre. It's also a precursor to the found footage craze a decade later, as we watch insane Henry and his murdering associate Otis hold a family hostage through the lens of a video camera. This shocking sequence is made all the more powerful when it ends and we realise that Henry and Otis have been watching it back on their TV hours later, reveling in their crimes.
8. Straw Dogs (1971)
While Straw Dogs is every bit as tense and brutal as many other home invasion movies, director Sam Peckinpah is more interested in exploring the nature of masculinity and violence than he is in simply shocking the audience. This story of a quiet, "civilised" American writer (a perfectly cast Dustin Hoffman) living in rural UK who is forced to go to some dark places when locals break into his house and attack him and his wife was one of the most notorious studio movies of the 1970s. Peckinpah takes his time, setting the mood and general feel of unease before allowing his movie to explode into violence and revenge.
7. The Strangers (2007)
There's nothing particularly original in The Strangers, but it's a ruthlessly effective movie that has gained a cult following over the past decade. The plot is very similar to the French movie Them--a young couple are menaced in their isolated house by young, masked psychos--and writer/director Bryan Betino keeps the tension levels high. Star Liv Tyler played scared so well that the sheer amount screaming she was required to do subsequently gave her tonsillitis.
6. House on the Edge of the Park (1980)
Heavily influenced by Wes Craven's notorious Last House on the Left (it borrows both its lead actor and some of its title) this Italian movie delivers the sleazy goods. It's directed by Ruggero Deodato, the man responsible for the notorious Cannibal Holocaust, and stars the terrifying David Hess as a psychopath who torments the unlucky attendees of an upper class dinner party. As in Cannibal Holocaust, Deodato attempts a level of social commentary--in this case, class differences--but really it's an excuse for an orgy of torture, rape, and murder.
5. Inside (2009)
This stylish French gorefest stars Gallic icon Beatrice Dalle (Betty Blue) and puts a truly horrific twist on the psycho-in-the-house theme. Dalle's deranged character breaks into the home of a heavily pregnant woman with one intention--cutting the baby out of her. What follows is an incredibly intense and unpredictable experience, as directors Julien Maury and Alexandre Bustillo crank the tension to nearly unbearable levels. The fact the whole movie is set on Christmas Eve makes it even worse/better. Inside is an outstanding horror movie, but probably not one to watch with the family on Christmas Day.
4. Fight for Your Life (1977)
There are few home invasion movies more infamous than Fight for Your Life. This late '70s exploitation shocker focuses on a trio of escaped convicts (including Deadwood's William Sanderson) who break into the house of a middle-class black family and subject them to horrendous racial abuse before the tables are turned on them. While the movie is very violent, it's the language that is the most disturbing aspect when viewed 40 years later, and which led to the movie being banned in the UK. There's no denying that Fight for Your Life is a powerful experience marked by unusually strong performances for this type of low-budget movie, but extreme caution is advised.
3. Them (2007)
The French movie Them (aka Ils) keeps it simple, but is an incredibly effective shocker. A young couple living the huge countryside mansion outside Bucharest are targeted one night by a group of mysterious hooded attackers, who cut the power and set about trying to get in the house. Directors David Moreau and Xavier Palud ratchet up the horror to seriously intense levels and use the size of the house to ensure that you never know what is waiting around the corner.
2. You're Next (2009)
Director Adam Wingard's profile has been rising with every movie, and he'll next helm 2020's megabudget Godzilla vs Kong. Ten years ago he delivered this outstanding home invasion/slasher movie hybrid, in which a dysfunctional family gathering is brought to an abrupt close by animal-masked crazies who target the house. What sets You're Next apart is that far from being a cowering victim, lead character Erin (Sharni Vinson) takes matters into her own hands and start to fight back against the attackers in a variety of creative ways. It's a gory, thrilling ride, and a lot more fun than most other home invasion movies.
1. Funny Games (1997/2007)
Michael Haneke made his modern classic Funny Games twice--once in 1997, then ten years later in the US with Tim Roth and Naomi Watts in the lead roles. The original is a stunning mix of scares, tension, and thought-provoking satire, and for once the Hollywood remake is every bit as effective. What makes both versions so powerful is the way that Haneke implicates his audience, as we watch a pair of well-spoken, polite young men hold a family hostage. The antagonists frequently break the fourth wall to address the audience, making us question why we watch movies like this in the first place. It’s a home invasion masterpiece.