Film

Southbound

Name: Southbound
Genre: Fantasy, Thriller, Horror, Science Fiction
Released: 2015
Cast: Fabianne Therese, Larry Fessenden, Kate Beahan, Zoe Cooper, Gerald Downey

Drama
Very dark

Southbound is an anthology horror film where five interconnected stories unfold across a nightmarish desert highway. Each segment traps its characters in surreal, visceral scenarios that blur the line between supernatural punishment and psychological torment. It's visually inventive and deeply unsettling—perfect for viewers who want horror that's weird rather than jump-scares, and who appreciate when a film trusts you to find the connections yourself.

TMDb rating

3.0

If you liked this

V/H/S2012

Another anthology of intercut horror stories with a framing device that ties them together thematically. Raw, imaginative, and committed to making you feel genuinely unmoored from reality.

But The found-footage style will feel dated to some, and a few segments are genuinely difficult to sit through without looking away.

X2022

Ti West's film shares Southbound's desert setting, high visual craft, and the sense that the landscape itself is a character with its own rules. Tense and smart about horror as allegory.

But It's slower and more deliberate than Southbound—less kinetic, more meditative, which some will find boring rather than atmospheric.

The Twilight Zone1959

The obvious spiritual ancestor: episodic stories with twist endings and dark philosophical undertones. If you loved Southbound's structure, this is where it comes from, and it still holds up.

But Black-and-white 1950s television moves at its own pace. If you need constant visual spectacle, you'll find yourself impatient.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Southbound

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Come True2020

Both use genre as a vehicle for something closer to fever dream than traditional narrative. Characters are trapped in systems they don't understand, and the real horror is philosophical rather than physical.

A science-fiction nightmare about sleep studies and fractured consciousness, told with gorgeous, eerie visuals and an synth score that crawls under your skin. Same structural DNA as Southbound—the horror is metaphorical and internal, not explained.

But It's deliberately vague about what's actually happening. If you need a film to explain itself, you'll find this infuriating.

Maniac2018

A limited series where reality fragments and the boundary between dream and waking becomes impossible to trust. Dense, unsettling, and rewards close attention the way Southbound does.

But It's heavy on trauma and mental illness as subject matter. The tone is bleak rather than thrilling, and some episodes are deliberately hard to watch.

The Cabin in the Woods2012

Both films deconstruct horror tropes while operating inside them. Meta without being smug, and visually inventive in how it presents the surreal and the mundane side by side.

But Once you know the twist, the rewatchability drops significantly. It's a film built on revelation rather than atmosphere.

Lake Mungo2009

An Australian found-footage ghost story that feels authentic and deeply eerie. Builds dread through suggestion rather than spectacle, with an ending that recontextualizes everything.

But It's quiet and slow. If you're looking for horror with momentum, this will feel like watching paint dry for the first half.

Creepshow1982

An EC Comics-inspired anthology where horror becomes darkly funny. Multiple stories, strong visuals, and the sense that the film is enjoying itself while terrifying you.

But The special effects are deliberately artificial. If you need your horror to look realistic, the theatrical staging will pull you out.

Nocturna Artificialia1979

A conceptual horror anthology that uses different visual styles for each segment. Experimental, visually bold, and genuinely disturbing in ways that feel fresh rather than derivative.

But It's very difficult to track down, and some segments prioritize weirdness over clarity. Not every idea lands.

The ABCs of Death2013

Twenty-six directors, one segment each, arranged alphabetically. A celebration of horror's variety. Some segments are brilliant, and even the weaker ones try something strange.

But Anthology fatigue sets in by the halfway point. The quality is wildly uneven, and the whole thing tests your patience rather than rewarding it.

Enter the Void2010

Both films use style and visual language to create unease in ways dialogue and plot never could. Southbound and Enter the Void prioritize mood and metaphor over coherence, trusting the audience to feel rather than understand.

Gaspar Noé's neon-soaked Tokyo nightmare is visually unprecedented—shot from a first-person perspective that lets you float through the city's underbelly. Deeply disorienting and hypnotic in ways most films don't attempt.

But It's nearly three hours long, the plot is minimal, and the camera work causes actual nausea in some viewers. Not every experimental choice serves the story.

The Ballad of Little Jo1993

Like Southbound, it uses an unforgiving landscape as a mirror for its characters' trauma and desperation. Both films understand that genre can contain genuine emotion without needing to announce it.

A feminist Western—genuinely rare—about a woman who disguises herself as a man to survive on the frontier. Maggie Greenwald directs with grace and steel, and Suzy Amis is extraordinary. A story about survival against a landscape that denies you.

But It's quiet and deliberate. The Western elements are incidental to the character study; if you want gunfights and speed, you won't find them.