Film

Teeth

Name: Teeth
Genre: Comedy, Horror
Released: 2008
Cast: Jess Weixler, John Hensley, Josh Pais, Hale Appleman, Lenny Von Dohlen

Horror comedy
Strange

A darkly comic body-horror film that weaponizes the vagina dentata myth into a story about bodily autonomy, sexual coercion, and what happens when a woman's body becomes her most effective defense. It's genuinely funny and genuinely unsettling, operating as both satire and revenge fantasy. For anyone who likes their feminism served with teeth.

TMDb rating

2.7

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you like body horror that laughs at its own nerve, where a satirical premise about purity gets pushed into lurid, squirm-inducing territory with a straight face.

Skip it if you find frank sexual comedy and gore hard to sit through, or prefer horror that frightens rather than cheekily grotesques; its tone swings between giggles and wincing.

What it asks of you: Ninety-four minutes, brisk and unbalanced, with comic setups that stay uncomfortable long after the laugh, and a tone that won't settle into one mood.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

Carrie1976

A teenage girl discovers her body is a weapon and uses it against those who've wronged her. Like Teeth, it's about female power expressed through bodily horror, and it's endlessly influential for good reason.

But The prom sequence is iconic, but the film moves slower than modern audiences expect, and some of the dated elements can feel quaint now.

Raw2017

A coming-of-age body-horror film about a young woman discovering her true nature (cannibalism, in this case) and the liberation and terror that brings. It has Teeth's dark comedy and serious feminist undertones.

But It's genuinely nauseating in places. Not squeamish-friendly, and the pacing can feel deliberately glacial.

The Babadook2014

Grief and rage manifested as a monster that stalks a mother and son. Like Teeth, it takes something internal and makes it horrifyingly, darkly funny. Both are about women's anger given form.

But It's slower and more psychologically dense than Teeth, and some find the metaphor heavy-handed rather than satisfying.

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

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Akira1988

Both treat puberty/bodily awakening as a civilizational crisis; both make the body a site of unstoppable power; both understand that growing up is a form of monstrousness.

A young man's body becomes a weapon he can't control, triggering apocalypse. Like Teeth, it's about puberty and power expressed through sudden bodily change, but animated, set in a dystopia, and far more operatic. Proof that body-horror-as-awakening works across medium and genre.

But The animation is stunning but dense; the plot is confusing if you're not paying attention. It's sci-fi action, not horror-comedy, so the tone is vastly different from Teeth.

Heathers1989

A teenager navigates high-school social hierarchies with dark humor and moral recklessness. It has the same sharp satirical bite as Teeth and the same willingness to make serious points through comedy.

But It's a product of the 80s in ways that can feel dated, and the tone-shifts between comedy and tragedy won't work for everyone.

Ginger Snaps2000

Werewolf transformation as a metaphor for female puberty and body horror. It shares Teeth's willingness to use genre as a vehicle for feminist commentary, with excellent dark comedy throughout.

But The creature effects are low-budget, and the third act slides into more conventional horror than some prefer.

Jennifer's Body2009

A possessed teenage girl becomes a predator. It's essentially Teeth's evil twin—same era, same satirical energy, same commitment to making female violence darkly entertaining and morally complex.

But It was badly received on release and hasn't entirely shaken that reputation. The humor can feel forced in places.

A Dark Song2016

A woman in grief pursues occult rituals with fierce determination. Like Teeth, it's about a woman reclaiming agency through a process that's both spiritual and dangerous, delivered with dark poetry.

But It's slow, meditative, and deeply melancholic. Not a revenge fantasy—more of a grief odyssey. Completely different tone from Teeth.

May2003

An isolated woman constructs a companion from dismembered body parts. Like Teeth, it uses body horror as both comedy and tragedy, and it's genuinely sympathetic to its protagonist's alienation.

But It's bleak and genuinely unpleasant. The humor is pitch-black, and the ending is designed to unsettle rather than satisfy.

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street2007

A man grinds his enemies into meat pies. It has Teeth's dark comedic energy and its fascination with turning bodily violation into poetic justice, wrapped in Gothic atmosphere.

But It's a musical adaptation that doesn't always land, and the pacing is uneven. Some find Depp's performance mannered.