If you have a preexisting phobia - say, arachnophobia - you probably avoid seeking out movies featuring spiders. But, in some cases, you might go into a movie not knowing how dramatically it will shock and frighten you. Maybe you aren’t aware just how scared you are of heights, or snakes, or tight spaces until you see a film that plays on those fears and intensifies them. Of course, only you can know what you’re most afraid of, but the films on this list have been chosen because they explore or center on common phobias. For the intrepid viewer in all of us, here are eight movies you can watch that will give you new phobias.
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127 Hours (2010)
Pathé
If you suffer from claustrophobia, or the fear of enclosed spaces, we recommend that you stay far away from Danny Boyle’s 127 Hours. No other film so accurately captures the feeling of being jammed into a tight space. To make matters worse, 127 Hours is based on the true story of a hiker, Aron Ralston, who becomes stuck between a boulder and a cliff wall while hiking in Utah (more on this from The Guardian). After seeing what Ralston must do to escape from this predicament, you’ll want to put all your hiking plans on hold for a while.
Free Solo (2018)
National Geographic Documentary Films
Acrophobia, or the fear of heights, is fairly common as far as phobias go. The classic movie phrase, “Don’t look down,” speaks to all the acrophobes out there, but rock climber Alex Honnold is not one of them. Free Solo is a documentary profiling Honnold’s attempt to free solo climb the 3000-ft tall El Capitan rock formation at Yosemite National Park in California. “Free solo” means that you climb without ropes or any other kind of protective gear. Watching Honnold scramble up a cliff with only his bare hands and some chalk will make you afraid of heights in a whole new way.
Jaws (1975)
Universal Pictures
Steven Spielberg’s Jaws is one of the most infamous phobia-films ever made. It’s no easy task to come away from the movie without developing a newfound (or intensified) fear of sharks. You may find yourself avoiding large bodies of water, or staying home from a beach trip with your friends. CBS News even reports that Jaws “caused a generation of people to develop galeophobia — an irrational fear of sharks.” When you hear the ominous notes of the Jaws musical theme, you might find yourself developing galeophobia too.
The Birds (1963)
When you think of phobias, you don’t typically include a fear of birds. But ornithophobia is a real thing, and Alfred Hitchcock’s 1963 thriller The Birds is its cinematic expression. If you find this all a bit silly, watching The Birds in a darkened room might change your mind. Afterwards, you may find yourself watching the skies for winged threats, or eyeing sparrows with a newfound suspicion. At the very least, you’ll know the destruction that frenzied, violent birds are capable of.
Enemy (2013)
Entertainment One
Now, when discussing spiders, we could have included the infamous Arachnophobia on this list. But we think Denis Villenueve’s Enemy conjures a fear of spiders in a more interesting way. It’s not a film about spiders - not at all - but this makes it all the more troubling when they do appear. Arachnophobic viewers expecting a grounded drama will be shocked by the (seemingly random) images of spiders that crop up throughout the film. It’s worse because you don’t, or can’t, expect them. Even the less squeamish among us may find themselves disturbed by Enemy’s arachnoid imagery.
Underwater (2020)
20th Century Studios Releasing
Thalassaphobia, or the fear of large bodies of water, is another common phobia, and one that movies have tapped into for years. Starring Kristen Stewart, Underwater is a recent example that builds a horror film around the fear not only of the open ocean, but of its depth, too. Set at a drilling compound at the bottom of the Mariana Trench, Underwater asks us to consider what may be lurking in the unplumbed depths of the sea. Channeling H.P. Lovecraft’s Cthulu mythos, it has the potential to make thalassaphobes out of us all.
Creep (2014)
The OrchardNetflix
We may have a fear of strangers instilled in us from a young age, but it isn’t something we think about regularly in adulthood. 2014’s Creep will likely change that for you. It chronicles the experiences of a videographer hired through Craigslist to document the life of an eccentric client who becomes increasingly deranged as time goes on. There are lessons here: don’t meet people through Craigslist, and certainly don’t travel with them to a remote cabin in the woods. This may seem obvious, but it’s good to have a reminder every once in a while.
The Descent (2005)
Pathé Distribution
The Descent is a movie that brings two phobias together in one sinister package: the fear of enclosed spaces and the fear of the dark. If you thought one was bad on its own, this will leave you gasping for air. The film follows six women on a spelunking adventure in a North Carolina cave - but their plans quickly go awry. What was supposed to be a fun outing becomes a life-and-death battle against the pitch-black cave and its unexpected inhabitants. By playing on two of humanity’s biggest fears, The Descent becomes one of the most effective horror films of the 21st century.
