The Witch
2015USA★ 75 pt match
Both films sit with paranoia, guilt, and loss of innocence. Both circle the same ground: religion and faith and family wounds passed down. Both move the same way too, bleak, haunting, slow burn, and escalating.
The Wailing
곡성
2016South KoreaLanguage: koDirected by Na Hong-jin★ 7.4
Available in English: subtitled
A stranger arrives in a little village and soon after a mysterious sickness starts spreading. A policeman is drawn into the incident and is forced to solve the mystery in order to save his daughter.
Themes and style
Tone
bleakhauntingtensesurrealdark comedy
Pacing
slow burnescalatingslow build to explosion
Story
investigationsurvivalunraveling
Emotion
paranoiafeeling powerlessgriefloss of innocenceguilt
Themes
family wounds passed downreligion and faithcorrupt institutionsfear of the outsider
Feel
discussion starteremotionally wreckingquietly hauntingcerebralexhausting
Violence
graphicWhere to watch
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Hollywood films like The Wailing
If The Wailing hit you the right way, here are Hollywood films that share its DNA. Same emotional weight, same kind of stories, same kind of payoff.
Sinister
2012USA★ 6.95 pt match
Both films sit with guilt, paranoia, and feeling powerless. Both circle the same ground: family wounds passed down. Same energy: bleak, tense, slow burn, and escalating.
The Shining
1980USA★ 8.24 pt match
Like The Wailing, this one is rooted in paranoia, feeling powerless, and loss of innocence. The world both films live in revolves around family wounds passed down and corrupt institutions. The feel is the same: haunting, bleak, slow burn, and slow build to explosion.
Rosemary's Baby
1968USA★ 7.84 pt match
Both films sit with paranoia, feeling powerless, and loss of innocence. The world both films live in revolves around corrupt institutions and religion and faith. Both move the same way too, haunting, tense, slow burn, and escalating.
The Lighthouse
2019USA★ 7.54 pt match
Like The Wailing, this one is rooted in paranoia, guilt, and feeling powerless. They share the same lens on family wounds passed down and religion and faith. Same energy: bleak, surreal, slow burn, and escalating.
Smile
2022USA★ 6.74 pt match
Like The Wailing, this one is rooted in grief, paranoia, and feeling powerless. They share the same lens on corrupt institutions and family wounds passed down. The feel is the same: bleak, haunting, slow burn, and escalating.
A Nightmare on Elm Street
1984USA★ 7.33 pt match
Like The Wailing, this one is rooted in paranoia, feeling powerless, and loss of innocence. Both circle the same ground: family wounds passed down and corrupt institutions. Same energy: haunting, tense, escalating, and slow burn.
It Follows
2014USA★ 6.63 pt match
Like The Wailing, this one is rooted in paranoia, feeling powerless, and loss of innocence. They share the same lens on family wounds passed down. Same energy: haunting, bleak, slow burn, and escalating.