 As much as I enjoy a classic horror movie, there's always predetermined horror tropes that you come to expect, and when a movie can be terrifying without these typical scares, that's what gives way to the feeling of real horror. There's been a trend in recent times where directors such as Ari Aster and Darren Aronofsky who push the limits of horror to not scare, but disturb the viewer. They can be referred to as psychological thrillers, but I guess you could call them uncomfortable horrors. In movies such as Aster's Midsummer, the first thing you notice is the majority of the movie being in broad daylight. There's no relying on shadows and what can't be seen. We see the events of the film as clear as day, whether we like it or not. Aster has written and directed two feature films, 2019's Midsummer and 2018's Hereditary. Although Hereditary could be seen as a literally darker version of Midsummer, both films have very similar themes on the surface in the form of pagan rituals, however also on a deeper level. Profound grief is an emotion that Aster uses as an undertone throughout both films, Hereditary and Midsummer. Both films have tragic events that are pivotal for the film's direction and overall story arc. The grief is not just implied, the viewer is confronted headfirst with the unbearable situations that the characters find themselves in. This is not to say these movies are without cliche horror tropes. Aster himself has said that to make a horror movie and scare your audience, the rules of horror are unavoidable and without them it can be difficult for the film to be seen as scary or even classed as a horror at all. You just need to know how to use them. However, one of the primary methods that is used to add to the uncomfortableness of the films is the use of long takes. Aster has said in interviews one of his favourite films is 2015's 45 Years, which is a movie that is made up almost entirely of long takes and relies on the actor's expressions to carry the scene rather than the events of the scene. Shots of a character's emotions that is left too long subconsciously helps you to mirror what they are feeling as there are no edits to distract your attention. Usually these shots are used to prolong the unpleasant feeling the character is going through and you as the viewer cannot escape it. And even in runtime these movies are long, the director's cut of Midsummer runs for over 171 minutes and that's a long time to spend in this unpleasant and uncomfortable world that Aster has created. All of these elements wind up the tension so much that by the climax of Aster's films you're left with a sick feeling in your stomach that leaves you reeling long after the credits roll and instead of being scared of the dark, Midsummer leaves you scared of clear sunny days. A similar director, Darren Aronofsky is notorious for creating films which are not only controversial but polarizing. You either cannot stand his films or you love them, there is no in-between. The best example of this is 2017's Mother. The poster for this movie explains my point best. With the reviews on the left singing its praises as a brilliant and mind-blowing masterpiece and the right-hand side saying that people are going to hate this movie and the review of completely off the rails is probably a review both sides can agree with. Mother also had one of, if not the best trailer I've ever seen. These days with trailers filled with spoilers, the teaser for Mother was only audio. Just a black screen with minimal text announcing the cast. I'll show you the teaser now. Apologies in advance for the quality as the only footage available online for this trailer was filmed in a cinema. What were you doing in their luggage? Was this beautiful? Who are they? They've come here to see me. Come quick. God help you. All I'm trying to do is bring life into this house. You're insane. Mother! Mother! Get out of my house! Mother! Mother appears to be a tame drama about a couple who lives out in the middle of nowhere. But it isn't until an uninvited couple outstay their welcome that things get real crazy. Crazy to the point that your eyes are seeing things that you cannot process as it's just too much. I'm talking horror to the point of existential biblical crises. But dialing Mother back to what it is at its core. There's something about antagonists that outstay their welcome. Home invasion horrors if you will. Take 2007's Funny Games for example. Two young men who simply refuse to leave and torture the family both emotionally and eventually physically. Funny Games also makes use of long takes. This shot of Naomi Watts in the aftermath of her home invaders goes on for way too long. But the magnitude of what has just happened sinks in whilst this shot plays out. The lack of camera motions and the lead actor's emotion again gives the viewer no distractions. Enforcing the viewer to feel what the director wants them to feel. Many directors have said that they prefer long shots to usual sequence shots as they also have the advantage of everything happening in real time and not relying on editing to get the take they need. The other advantage being that the actors in the scene can get more of a grasp of where they need to be emotionally throughout the shot. As there are no breaks and often no time off camera whilst the shot plays out. Many directors use this technique to show off as they like to see how long they can hold a shot without it getting too long as it's a tricky skill to learn when the audience has had enough. Previously I've spoke on the problems of modern horror, the overuse of cliches to the point that you are able to count down to a jump scare. But these movies don't break the tension with tropes like this and instead just wind the suspense tighter and tighter and don't give you the luxury of relief. For me, that's the new standard of horror.