Horror films have used a variety of locations to elicit thrills and chills over the years, but one of the most prominent settings has been the bucolic farm. With the isolation, breadth of space, handy farm equipment, and sense of timelessness, farms are ideal for unleashing terror on unsuspecting characters. Here’s a rundown on some of the most popular farm house horror movies.
Night of the Living Dead
The granddaddy of zombie films wouldn’t be the same without its farmhouse setting, which sets the stage for daring escapes, power struggles, and zombie mayhem.
Though the Living Dead farmhouse is surely the result of prudent, low-cost choices by the budding filmmakers, its simplicity helps the zombie threat come alive and feel universal – all the better to make the horrors that lie within and without all the more potent.
The Witch
Robert Eggers is making quite the name for himself in horror by putting desperate characters in isolated locations and letting monsters, real and imagined, creep in at the corners.
The farm for his debut film The Witch gives us everything you’d want in countryside horror – mysterious disappearances, possessions, murder, and unholy power lurking in the deep, dark woods just beyond. But its major draw is the goat Black Phillip, a beast of burden who may just be more than he appears…
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Color Out of Space
H.P. Lovecraft’s seminal story got adapted into this bizarre and enthralling 2019 film, one which sees life upended for a family newly arrived at an inherited farm.
Once the “color” from a crashed meteorite takes hold – actually a reality-bending alien lifeform – carnage is unleashed, leading to mutated animals, Cronenbergian monstrosities, insanity, and more. All the while, the peaceful farm setting serves as a haunting counterbalance to the madness that’s spreading.
A Quiet Place
A Quiet Place’s farm serves as something of a fortress for our characters, being rigged with traps, warning signals, and modifications to help them evade and survive the vicious aliens that hunt by sound.
In one of the best uses of a farm setting onscreen, a grain silo set piece sees the child characters struggling to evade a creature while sinking into grain like quicksand. It’s a harrowing bit of suspense, and plays like vintage Spielberg.
Arachnophobia
Speaking of Spielberg, this spinetingling 1990 film saw him serve as producer as part of his Amblin Entertainment production company. For those out there who hate spiders, this might be the worst farm yet.
When a rare South American spider inadvertently gets transported to a small California town, it’s up to newly arrived medical doctor and arachnophobe Ross Jennings to save the day and the world. His barn, riddled with webs and bloodthirsty spiders, becomes the setting for the finale that will make anyone’s skin crawl.
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre
Farms don’t come much worse than the one tended by the Sawyer family, the murderous pack known for indulging in some unusual culinary fare.
With its dilapidated buildings, unmowed lawn, room full of animal skeletons, and functional slaughterhouse, the Sawyer farm is probably the last place most people would want to go, making it ripe for road-tripping college students to beeline straight toward. Sure enough, carnage ensues.
This particular location is a personal favourite in our farm house horror movies list.
Midsommar
This farm house horror movie film Midsommar finds its characters traveling to a remote Swedish commune complete with self-sustaining farm. Once there, they become embroiled in bizarre rituals that lead nowhere pleasant.
The verdant farm setting combined with the near-constant sunlight of Sweden’s summer creates an unsettling feeling for the entire film, not unlike that of the similarly brightly lit film The Shining. More than most, the setting for Midsommar truly enhances the horror that dwells within the space and the reels.
Ghostbusters: Afterlife
Ok, this one might not be all that scary, but as the home of one of cinema’s favorite ghostbusting heroes, it earns a spot on our list.
Without giving too much away, the farm operates not only as a lookout post for supernatural entities, but as a trap designed to capture and contain otherworldly creatures of immense power. But more than that, the farm has real personality to it, feeling lived in and real, helping us grow attached to some new characters primed to save the world.
Final Thoughts
Farmhouse horror movies tap into our deepest fears of isolation and the uncanny. These seemingly peaceful, rural settings quickly turn into nightmare landscapes where danger lurks behind every barn door or field. Whether it’s the eerie solitude in “The Witch” or the grotesque chaos of “Texas Chainsaw Massacre,” farms offer the perfect backdrop for horror. These films remind us that even the most serene environments can hide unspeakable terror, making farm house horror movies a beloved subgenre for fans seeking fear in unexpected places.
