Serial Killers have always been the talk of the town in the United States, and all around the world for that matter.
This topic really fascinates people, and they just want to know more about them. And we see that same in Hollywood as well.
There has been a huge popularity for movies in the genre of slasher and horror, specifically in the serial killer sub-genre.
And If you really love these, there is always more to check. Here we are listing the best serial killer movies that you must watch.
Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)
The story begins as five friends set out on a road trip. They are headed to a rural town in Texas in search of a potentially vandalized gave of one of their grandfathers.
On their route, they pass across a deserted house, where they encounter a sinister-looking hitchhiker. The hitchhiker soon attacks one of their friends. In the meantime, the other four wander into a shabby place.
Later as the movie scrolls, the four learn that they have entered a death trap. It was the house of none other but the Leatherface, a vicious psychopath murderer who kills his victims with a mean chainsaw.
I know what you did last summer (1997)
Four youngsters driving back from a graduation party accidentally hit a man on the road. The body was seemingly lifeless when they checked and thus decided to dump the body into the sea.
A year later, when it had become a forgotten incident, one among these four friends receives a note stating, I know what you did last summer. The fear which tinkered in the minds of each of them ever since this incident seemed to come true.
Someone knew about what happened on 4th July night, and now they were to be the victims of revenge.
Scream (1996)
In the town of Woodsboro, California. There is a rise of fear in the people of this town after the mysterious killing of two high school teenagers.
A number of strange events started occurring in the small town a year after the death of Mauren R. Prescott.
As the film proceeds, Sydney seems to be the main target of the anonymous killer. The killer calls his victims to ask them questions about horror films, and if they cannot answer correctly, they get killed.
Zodiac (2007)
The United States is the provenance of some of the most infamous and notorious serial killers of all time. The Zodiac Killer was one such case that remains a mystery to date.
The film Zodiac is based on real-life case files of serial killings by the Zodiac Killer during the late 1960s to early 1970s. The story also finds reference from a non-fiction book by Robert Graysmith.
The film walks us through the uprising of a serial killer in San Francisco and the incapability of the police forces to discover his true identity.
It also dives deep into the growing fascination of Graysmith with the case as he continues his research for the novel.
My Friend Dahmer (2017)
My Friend Dahmer is the biopic of a horrific and infamous serial killer, Jeffery Dahmer. This film is narrated from the perspective of a friend of Jeff Dahmer, who belonged to a dysfunctional family.
As a result, he has developed psychological disorders and a fascination with violence and torture.
In his growing years, Dahmer collected dead animal corpses and dissolved them in acids. His detreating mental conditions led his family to abandon him, which further contributed to Dahmer becoming the repugnant serial killer he is known as today.
His killing spree consumes the life of seventeen people. His murders were gruesome, and the film’s intensely graphic scenes can be observed. This is undoubtedly not a watch for the faint-hearted.
M (1931)
One of the oldest films about serial killers is M. The story begins in the streets of Berlin with the rising number of child abduction cases.
The only substantial evidence against the anonymous killer is his hand-written letters which he sends to news publications.
Despite all the security measures taken by the police, the murders continue to occur. They seem to have no clue regarding the psychotic killer’s whereabouts.
Psycho (1960)
Based on the real-life killings of Ed Gein, a serial killer in Wisconsin – The Psycho is a classic American thriller released in 1960. The film is set in Phoenix, Arizona
The story begins with a lady named Marion Crane, who works for a real estate agent and is fed up with her mundane life.
As Mr. Lowrey, Marion’s employer, finalizes a deal, the client hands over forty thousand dollars to be deposited in the bank.
Marion turns up for shelter at a lowkey highway motel named Bates Motel, as she takes a wrong turn on her road to California.
Then occurs, the first killing of this film occurs by Norman Bates, followed by the dark revelations about Norman and the Bates Motel.
Se7en (1995)
This film revolves around how two detectives are hunting for a serial killer who justifies his killings only to victimize people who have committed any of the seven deadly sins.
The film gets increasingly intense as it walks us through the gruesome killings of the victims by John Doe, the sociopathic murderer behind the serial killings.
This film’s conclusion is commendable as Joe completes his killing spree with his seventh victim, but he does not wish to give any spoilers. But this film is sure to tinker your interest and keep you stuck to your seat
The town that dreaded sundown (1976)
It is based loosely on some post-World War II incidents in Texarkana, Texas. The film, The town that dreaded sundown (1976) is based on the murders of the Phantom Killer, also known as the Texarkana Moonlight Murders. To date, the identity of the dreaded Phantom killer remains to be an unsolved mystery.
This is the story of a mysterious hooded serial killer who terrorized a small town in Arkansas. In the year 1946, when Texas was celebrating the return of the soldiers from WW II, a spree of assaults and horrendous murders started to take place by night.
Memories of Murder (2003)
In a small province of Korea, two detectives are on a hunt to trail down a serial killer accused of the rape and murders of multiple young women.
Set in 1986 background, the takes place in a peaceful community that is rendered into an unprecedented spate of homicidal killings.
The two local detectives are joined in by a detective from Seoul, who concludes this case to be of serial killing after finding the dead body of a third victim within a few days.
Detective Seo Tae Yoon, from Seoul, solves the murder mystery and leads to the assassin.
The Alphabet Killer (2008)
This film is based on the true incidents of the double initial killings in Rochester.
The first murder is that of a pre-teen girl who is abducted and raped before being murdered. The case of this killer is being investigated by Detective Megan Paige, who starts to see visions of the victim.
Meanwhile, the FBI profiles the murderer to be moving spontaneously, but Megan thinks this person to be a local who performs his murders in a well-planned manner.
The pedophilic psychopath seems to have a pattern in choosing his victims, and he chooses kids with the same-lettered initials.
Friday the 13th (1980)
The backstory of this film began in 1957 when a young boy names Jason drowned in a lake near Camp Crystal Lake. Two camp counselors are found mysteriously murdered the following year in Camp Crystal Lake.
After the occurrence of these incidents, Camp Crystal Lake has remained closed for near about 22 years.
It was reopened in 1980 by Steve Christy and a bunch of young counselors.
An old man is shown in a few of the beginning scenes, which spread the message that “No one will leave this camp alive.”The youngsters ignore his warnings and thus begin a gruesome killing spree that engulfs the lives of seven youngsters.
Who could be behind these murders? Jason?
Halloween (1978)
Fifteen years had passed since the Halloween night of 1963 when Michael Myers was convicted and sent to a mental institution for killing his own elder sister and his father.
But Michael escaped while being shifted to a psychological institute with higher security returns.
He returns to his hometown, Haddonfield, on Halloween of 1978 to render a murder massacre.
He enters people’s homes like a shadow and kills anyone he finds in front of himself in the most gruesome mane you can imagine.
But since the arrival of Micahel in Haddonfield, he seems to be specifically on the lookout for Laurie Strode, whom he saw drop a key at the Myers house.
Despite numerous trials to overpower him, none seems successful, and thus has to meet the same fate.
Silence of the Lambs (1991)
The Silence of the Lambs is amongst some of the most famous psychological horror films that depict the story of a young FBI trainee who gets involved with the case of Buffalo Bill (a psychopathic killer guilty of multiple rapes and murders) while chasing another serial killer named Hannibal Lecter.
This film is based on a novel by Thomas Harris, Silence of the Lambs. He established the character of Hannibal Lecter as a convicted murderer whom the narrator had met in a Mexican jail.
The character of Clarice Starling (the FBI agent who is in search of Lecter) is based on a real-life FBI agent, Patricia Kirby, whom T. Harris had met while researching for the novel.
In the film, Jodie Foster is in the lead role as Clarice Starling, while Anthony Hopkins and Ted Levine portray the serial killers she is trying to convict.
Featured Image Source: ET