Valentine’s Day is here, and for some weird reason, some people want to Netflix and chill with a… horror romance movie! It makes sense, as a horror movie gets the emotions stirring. And sometimes, you can get just the right alchemy of love and terror. Kissing turns to killing, and then maybe kissing again. It’s all about the passion, right? No matter what, a Valentine’s Day horror-romance movie will need to deliver the love.
To be considered for this Valentine’s Day list, the horror romance movie must be about the relationship as the core of the story. A good husband and wife pairing isn’t enough if the story isn’t about why they are together. No props or incidental love interests. Some movies, like Happy Death Day, have a decent romantic side plot, which is secondary to the central theme. Other movies, like Get Out, Ready or Not, and Whatever Keeps You Alive are about the failure of a relationship, and who wants that for Valentine’s Day? It’s gotta be about love, even to the bitter end.
If you are looking for a romantic night on the sofa, you don’t want something mean-spirited and grisly. That’s a mood killer. The scares are suitable for bonding, but you don’t want to be grossed out on your Valentine’s romantic evening. These movies are all primed for a cozy night getting a little scared, but not so much that you are turned off when it comes to what happens after you are done watching the movies. (wink!)
The Bride of Frankenstein (1935)
There is a proud tradition in the Golden Age of romance in cinema in almost all this era’s films. Nearly every one of the early Universal pictures featured a wedding that was put at risk of… the monster. In Dracula, Frankenstein, Doctor Jekyll Mr. Hyde, and The Mummy, there are weddings between the lead protagonists. How awful! How scary! This was expected. The Bride of Frankenstein was the glowing exception, and the anticipated romance was between the monsters. Universal understood what it had with this franchise, and people came not to see Dr. Frankenstein but the monster. We all rooted for the monster, but even it was not to be, for his bride-to-be feared him as the rest of society. It was a bittersweet and unfulfilled love.
Cat People (1942)
When the Hays code put the lid on horror movies, directors like Val Lewton found a way to put a spark in horror by injecting a smoldering love triangle. Irena Dubrovna (Simone Simon) is a beautiful, lovelorn young woman cursed to become a panther if aroused to passion. When she finds an ideal mate in Oliver (Kent Smith) and marries him, she abstains from consummating the marriage, fearful that she will go full-on panther. Oliver is patient, but when he shows more attention to his colleague Alice, who is honestly a better match for him, the feline fury comes to the surface. This is a story of contained passions and the problems of keeping the cat in the bag. Fssst!
The Uninvited (1944)
The Uninvited is another great 1940s mature and sophisticated horror romance, though definitely a dated expression compared to modern relationships. The 1940s were a desert when it came to horror films, but it knew how to do romantic horror far better than the explosive films of the 1970s could. Brother and sister Rick and Pamela Fitzgerald (Ray Milland and Ruth Hussey) purchase a haunted seaside home. They got the manor inexpensively because it is haunted by the previous owner, who fell to her death over the nearby seacliff. That woman’s daughter, Stella (Gail Russell) is drawn to the estate by the presence of her mother.
The much older Rick and Stella gradually fall in love, but the young woman is drawn towards the same fate that doomed her mother. This is a sophisticated tale and a big step up from the “let’s get married” 1930s trend, and it deals with a more nurturing love. However, the big age gap between the lovers is almost as creepy as the ghosts.
Peeping Tom (1960)
Hear me out with this one. This may be the only horror-romance list that includes Peeping Tom, but I propose that this features one of the strangest love stories in all of horror. The twist here is that the awkward and reclusive Mark (Carl Boehm) is a serial killer who creates snuff films of his murders. He falls for his downstairs tenant, Helen (Anna Massey), who finds his shyness endearing and appreciates his earnestness. He is handsome, polite, and kind to her. Mark hides his killer instincts very well, though he does let slip to Helen that his social anxieties came from being an abused child. This frankness only increases Helen’s empathy for him. The movie focuses on their relationship for the entire second act, and you begin to root for the couple. Mark would never hurt Helen, but the horrible truth is just under the surface, waiting to be exposed. They love each other, but the potential for Mark to make Helen his next subject is the center of the movie’s tension. Roll camera!
Cat People (1982)
Sexy horror! Cat People returns, this time in New Orleans, and it borrows many of the tropes from the original but puts a big R-rated twist on it. Irena (Natassja Kinski) is still suffering from the cat curse, but her brother Paul (Malcom McDowell) arrives because he too has cat scratch fever. Irena is a virgin, so she doesn’t know the horrible secret. Having sex with a normal human turns the cat people into panthers, and only by killing a human can they turn back into their human forms. So, the only way to have normal sex is to have it with another cat person. Incest! EWWWW! John Heard plays Oliver, once again the man in the middle, but this is an Irena and Paul story. This might be your ticket if you are looking for a more sensual Valentine’s date. Sexy!
The Hunger (1983)
Speaking of sexy… just look at this cast! Catherine Deneuve, Susan Sarandon, and David Freaking Bowie all in their primes. Hard to beat that. Vampires always exude sex and seduction, with a blood price. The Hunger is perhaps the most sumptuous sexy vampire movie ever made. There were a spate of sexy lesbian vampire movies made in the 1970s but nothing had the music video-level sexy vibe to it as this one.
Miriam (Deneuve) is an ancient vampire, who can enthrall her lovers, giving them the promise of eternal life, but (and here’s the key) not eternal youth. When her partner John (David Bowie) realizes that Miriam has grown tired of his company, he rapidly ages. John seeks help from aging specialist Dr. Sarah Roberts (Sarandon), but it is too late for him and an eternal living death in a coffin awaits. Miriam seduces Sarah, and the chain continues.
If you see one sexy lesbian vampire movie, you can start and end here.
The Fly (1986)
The Fly, at its core, is a movie of the AIDS era. Perhaps the greatest body horror ever made, and performed to a should-have-been Oscar-worthy performance by Jeff Goldblum, it also contains a sweet romantic story. The best part is that Goldblum and Geena Davis fell in love making this movie and eventually married. That chemistry is evident on screen. Seth Brundle (Goldblum) is a brilliant mad scientist, and his quirky brilliance charms the socks off of Veronica Quaife (Davis). In a drunken fit of jealousy, Brundle doesn’t properly sterilize his teleportation device, and… Brundlefly.
As Brundle begins to transform, initially athletically, and then horrifically, Veronica stands by him. Even the nightmares of a maggot birth don’t scare her away, and she is the comforter of a man in the middle of a grisly alteration. It is love, even to the bittersweet end of a shotgun.
Little Shop of Horrors (1986)
On to some lighter fare, Little Shop of Horrors is one of the great horror movies about an unrequited crush. Seymour (Rick Moranis) is madly in love with his coworker, Audrey (Ellen Greene), so much so that he names his monstrous carnivorous plant Audrey II. Par for the course, Rick Moranis plays a sad sack loser. But he is very sweet, and despite being out of his league, holds out hope that Audrey will ditch her abusive boyfriend Orin (Steve Martin) and join him. You know the story. Boy meets girl. Boy finds a plant. Plant demands human meat for sustenance. It is a story so good, they made a musical out of it! FEED ME!
If you are looking for a fun and rollicking movie for Valentine’s Day, start here.
Shaun of the Dead (2004)
OR… perhaps start here. Yes, Shaun of the Dead is a buddy movie. And, it’s a zombie movie. But it also is very much a romantic comedy as well. Shaun (Simon Pegg) is a layabout and unambitious guy, and his girlfriend Liz (Kate Ashford) has just about had it with him. They don’t like each other’s friends. She doesn’t like hanging out at the Winchester Pub every day. Shaun makes things worse by failing to remember a fancy dinner date reservation. That’s it! Breakup. But then the zombie apocalypse saves the day for Shaun, allowing him to redeem himself, and save his girl.
This is a great second-chance horror romance. If you find yourself needing to mend some romantic fences, perhaps this movie?
King Kong (2005)
I could have chosen the original 1933 movie, where Fay Wray and Kong went up the Empire State Building together. But that version of Ann Darrow was in terror of Kong, even if Kong liked her. The Peter Jackson 2005 movie really dove into the relationship between Anne (Naomi Watts) and Kong. Once Anne realized that Kong would protect her and not hurt her, the relationship changed. It was sweet. Doomed, but sweet. We always rooted for the big guy, but in this version, when Kong is slain by the planes, we are crushed and don’t tell me you didn’t shed a tear for Kong.
The Corpse Bride (2005)
With this ring, I thee wed. Victor Van Dort (Johnny Depp) is a young well-to-do lad who has been set up in an arranged marriage that he isn’t ready for, with a local girl, Victoria (Emily Watson), whose family has fallen upon hard times and is banking on this marriage to fescue them. When rehearsing his vows the wedding ring ends up accidentally on the finger of a dead woman, Emily (Helena Bonham Carter). Ta daaa! Congratulations! You have a corpse bride. And now… off to the Land of the Dead.
Lots of claymation wackiness ensues, courtesy of Tim Burton’s imagination. If you are a horror lightweight, but enjoy some creepiness and charm at the same time, this may be a great gateway pick.
Let the Right One In (2008)
There is something undeniably sweet about childhood sweethearts. Although, in the Case of Let The Right One In, one of the kids is actually an ancient vampire trapped in a little girl’s body. Oskar (Kåre Hedebrant ) is a sad boy, who suffers taunts and bullying by the other boys in school, so he finds himself alone. A little girl, Eli (Lie Leanderson) joins him on a frozen playground, and she too is lonely. She doesn’t have friends, because she’s a bloodsucker with only an enthralled man-servant for company. In perhaps the most heartfelt performances of two children falling in love, regardless of genre, you will fall in love with the characters. The bloody revenge of Eli protecting Oskar is powerful.
Only Lovers Left Alive (2013)
Languid and literate, like all Jim Jarmusch movies, Only Lovers Left Alive is the intellectual’s horror romance. Adam (Tom Hiddleston) and Eve (Tilda Swinton) are a vampire couple, lovers for hundreds of years but separated by thousands of miles. When Adam, a musician, suffers a bout of depression, Eve travels from Tangiers to Michigan to lift his spirits, and a bit of romance. They are non-killer vampires, reliant upon blood bags, but their existence is challenged when Adam’s little sister arrives and threatens to ruin everything. Perfect casting and a gauzy atmosphere may set you in the mood for a contemplative couch viewing, with a critical analysis afterward.
Warm Bodies (2013)
This one is for you, ladies! I don’t know of a female horror fan who isn’t a fan of this movie. Fellas, it’s the Nicholas Hoult factor. He plays R, an enlightened zombie who comes to the rescue of Julie (Teresa Palmer) in an unusual act of empathy for a walking corpse. Fortunately for Julie, R isn’t a decaying fetid zombie. He’s just a little gray, with bloodshot eyes. So he’s still quite presentable. The two form a bond that could help them both make it through the zombie apocalypse. This film uses the tropes of both the zombie film and the rom-com to surprisingly powerful ends.
Guys, seriously, if you agree to watch this movie, it’ll be worth some brownie points.
A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night (2014)
Thematically close to Let the Right One In, but swaps out Sweden for Iran, and age the characters up to adulthood. Arash (Arash Mirandi) is a young man struggling with an addict father amidst a world of drug dealers and prostitutes. The woman (Sheila Vand) is a vampire who can confidently walk, or skateboard, through the streets of Bad City. She is an antihero, taking out the miscreants of the city. When given the opportunity to attack Arash, she instead becomes attracted to him, and provides him with a big but violent favor.
If you enjoy a stylistically cool noir production, this is for the hipster romantics.
Spring (2014)
There have been a bunch of really bad mermaid horror movies released recently. I would pass on all of them and watch Spring instead. This is beauty and the beast, where instead of the beast being the man, it’s the woman. Evan (Lou Taylor Pucci) is an American abroad, traveling to Italy while trying to cope with the loss of his mother. In the Piazza, he meets a beautiful flirtatious young woman, Louise (Nadia Hilker) who seduces him for a night of romance. It turns out she is a 2000 year old immortal monstrous octopus-mermaid creature. A siren, who lures men to mate with to help perpetuate her life. This time, however, she has fallen in love with her quarry.
This is my favorite horror-romance-drama. It shows the early promise of the Benson and Moorhouse directing tandem, and it forges a complex relationship between Evan and Louise. Yes she’s a mutant, and yes, she was using him. But they are in love, and his life and her immortality are at stake.,
Night of the Living Deb (2015)
Zombie movies make for good rom-coms apparently. Maria Thayer is Deb, an awkward and goofy television production assistant who manages to score a drunken one-night stand with her crush, Ryan (Michael Cassidy). He’s rich, handsome, sensitive, and, unfortunately for Deb… soon to be married to a greedy, mean girl, Stacy (Syd Wilder). Deb is still in the afterglow of the inebriated romance, but Ryan is in panic mode, killing the mood. And then the zombie apocalypse strikes, courtesy of Ryan’s corrupt water management mogul practices. Night of the Living Deb is a wonderful comedy that leans on Deb’s naive sense of romance and Ryan’s discomfort of the whole situation. For a zombie movie, it’s fairly light on the gore so that it will make for a silly, stress-free Valentine’s day watch.
The Love Witch (2016)
Anna Biller pulled this whole thing off herself. She wrote it, directed it, composed the music, edited it, made the costumes, was the production designer, and was the art director. Pretty damned impressive. There may not be an IMDB credit page quite like this one. It’s a singular vision, and it works. Elaine is a young witch looking for love in the swinging 70s. Despite her beauty, she struggles to find a Mister Right, so she does what any self-respecting witch would do. She creates love potions. Unfortunately, it works too well and she is compelled to dispatch her enchanted bad dates.
The Love Witch is ideal for the single woman who hasn’t yet set up a Valentine’s date. Fiendishly clever, and oozing with style, The Love Witch is a one-of-a-kind film.
The Shape of Water (2017)
Folks, we have an Oscar Winner! It’s not just any award either… the big one. THE BEST PICTURE. Guillermo Del Toro’s masterpiece brings his trademark grand imagination and unbeatable production values with an aching beauty and the beast tale. Elisa (Sally Hawkins) is meek on the outside but steel on the inside employee at a secret underground lab where the Amphibian Man (Doug Jones) is being held. He is a cryptoid curiosity, feared by the military but horribly misunderstood. Elisa, ever the empathetic soul, makes it her mission to free him, and in doing so falls in love with him.
You cannot go wrong with this movie. Though, it isn’t scary, it is intense, and the movie is a towering genre achievement, fully deserving of the Oscars it won.
Extra Ordinary (2019)
Extra Ordinary is a little Irish horror rom-com that is perhaps the ideal Valentine’s horror date night movie. If you have one takeaway from this list, it is WATCH THIS MOVIE. Maeve Higgins plays Rose, a driving instructor whose true talent is in being a supernatural medium. But, following a disastrous exorcism gone wrong, she has put aside her medium ways, only to be dragged back in to help Martin Martin (Barry Ward) a man who needs to deal with the ghost of his former wife. Meanwhile, Martin’s virgin daughter has been targeted by a failing pop star (Will Forte) who needs a virgin sacrifice to maintain his demonic pact to preserve his pop star status.
Rose and Martin are an unlikely but perfect pairing. This movie changes from sweet to raucous to gory and back again, but always the focus is on Rose, a woman who you cheer for from the moment she shows up on the screen.
Spontaneous (2020)
Spontaneous, as in spontaneous body explosions. Sounds romantic, right? Mara (Katherine Langford) and her classmates are plagued with their peers mysteriously Mara (Katherine Langford) and her classmates are plagued by their peers mysteriously and systematically “popping.” As Mara tries to get to the bottom of the mysterious and bloody phenomenon and systematically “popping”. As Mara tries to get to the bottom of the mysterious and bloody phenomena, her love interest joins her, Dylan (Charlie Plummer). This is a wonderful comic young duo who exhibit great chemistry together. The emotional highs and lows of high school life with the added pressure that you just might burst into a bloody spray is palpable.
It’s cute. It’s endearing. And it’s gross. But it’s not too gross. Have fun with this one!
Love and Monsters (2020)
The hero’s journey meets a giant critter-populated apocalypse that drives Love and Monsters. Joel (Dylan O’Brien) and Aimee (Jessica Henwick) were just hitting it off as a young romantic couple when the world changed. Joel and Aimee get separated, and years pass, but Joel still holds a torch for her, even while confined to an underground survival bunker. When a radio signal indicates Aimee is still alive, Joel sets out on an impossibly dangerous trek to find her. With a dog he finds in the wilderness, Joel battles giant slugs, centipedes, and a monster mutant frog to find his true love. When he finds Aimee, much time has passed, and sometimes things aren’t what they used to be.
This is a hopeful adventure. The Odyssey. Star Wars. The Hobbit. It’s an adventure with the love of your life at the end of the map. Writer Brian Duffield also wrote Spontaneous, and his gift at the teen horror romance plotting goes two for two in 2020. The special effects impress, but it’s the romance that propels this film.
Swallowed (2022)
How far would you go to make your loved one happy? In Swallowed, Dom (Jose Colon) wants to send his boyfriend Ben (Cooper Koch) a generous gift before Ben heads to California to be a porn star, but he doesn’t have the means. So Dom agrees to traffic drugs across the Canadian border with Ben, but when they are told to swallow the packages as drug mules and to poop the product out upon delivery, it’s already in Yuckyville. When we find out that the “drugs” are actually large insect pupae that secrete hallucinogenic mucus, the yuck factor goes up exponentially. This is an unflinching look at a gay relationship put into the most extreme duress. It’s powerful and harrowing. Perhaps not ideal date night fare, but this undeniably is the power of what one person will do for another out of love, even if the risk is revolting and deadly.,
Bones and All (2022)
Bones and All is the Romeo and Juliet of the horror world. It’s a horror tragedy, expertly told. It doesn’t help that you have A-list talent like Timothee Chalamet and Taylor Russell as your leads. Chalemet returns to work with auteur Luca Guadagnino, who proved his bona fides with the excellent remake of Suspiria. Those who watch the trailer know the jump-cringe scene that opens the film where Maren (Russell) bites and strips the finger flesh off of one of her classmates at a slumber party. This coming-of-age tale comes with a side of cannibalism. Maren is forced to go on the run, and finds out from her father by Sony Walkman (this is an ’80s retro film) of her curse.
“Eaters” can smell their own. They keep themselves hidden, but they know when they are in the presence of another of their kind. She meets several unsavory characters this way, but when she finds Lee (Chalamet), they are drawn to each other. First, by necessity, but it helps that they are both hyper-attractive. It isn’t meant to last. This condition spells doom, and they know it, and the audience knows it. This movie loads up on emotions.
Humanist Vampire Seeking Consenting Suicidal Person (2024)
What if you were a vampire, but you lacked the bloodlust to kill someone to suck their blood? Such is the predicament that finds Sasha (Sara Montpetit), a musically talented young vampire (But old for a human) whose fangs have not dropped because she hasn’t made her first kill yet. Her family is concerned because Sara could be the cul-de-sac of their lineage. She must kill. To fulfill the family obligation, Sara seeks a person who is ready to die. Someone for whom death would be a gift. She meets Paul (Félix-Antoine Bénard), a bullied but handsome young man who is ready to end his own life. It’s a perfect match! It is so perfect that they fall for each other. Now Sara faces another conundrum.
This was the surprise hit of the Overlook Film Festival. This French Canadian film had the audience roaring with laughter at times, and it was so much damned fun. The leads are great. The supporting cast is great. The writing snaps. There is definitely a horror lineage here, but like What We Do in the Shadows, it is comedy first.
Your Monster (2024)
Your Monster presents the classic Beauty and the Beast within a modern relationship horror package. It is also a revenge film… but mostly girl meets the man of her dreams who happens to be monstrous (but still ruggedly handsome). Melissa Barrera has been in a number of horror franchises lately, but this is where her star shines brightest. Laura is a struggling actress who just came out of cancer recovery only to be dumped by her collaborator and playwright boyfriend. Cold, I know! The guy’s a dick. Out of Laura’s melancholy emerges her childhood Monster (Tommy Dewey) from her closet, where he had been dormant in her mother’s house until aroused by Laura’s return to the home for recovery. At first, they can’t stand each other, but wouldn’t you know it? The monster has a soft spot for Laura.
This movie feels very much like Disney’s Beauty and the Beast on the surface, but just under the surface is a psychological horror show. Like Monster, the horror waits until the right moment to show its fangs. In the meanwhile you get a top-shelf odd couple romance and some really good song and dance routines for Melissa Barrera. Fellas, let the lady own this one. It’s good.
Heart Eyes (2025)
We already have a surprise horror rom-com hit! At first glance, you might think that this is a conventional slasher film like My Bloody Valentine, but the romance in the film really shines through. And, yes, there is a slasher. The Heart Eyes Killer has arrived in Seattle, and every Valentine’s Day, he goes on a murder spree. Ally (Olivia Holt) and Jay (Mason Gooding) are a newly dating couple who have become the targets of Heart Eyes Killer. This film hits all the beats you would expect from a hard slasher film, but it also manages to thread the needle of romantic comedy. Already at 81% on Rotten Tomatoes, this film was meant for you to go out THIS WEEKEND on a date. Popcorn is not included.
Companion (2025)
A sentient sex bot is a problematic ethical conundrum, particularly if you don’t treat her like you would a real human. Such is the predicament in Companion. Iris (Sophie Thatcher) and her boyfriend Josh (Jack Quaid) go on a date with their friends at a lakeside cabin. When things go horribly wrong, resulting in Iris having to kill in self-defense, she learns that she is a sexbot. Josh can do what he wants with her, but she’s clever. It turns out that another bot is at the cabin, and it is revealed that these robots can feel genuine emotions, including love. With the advent of complex AI, the ethics of how we relate to near-human or almost-human entities becomes significant. This movie is also currently out in theaters and is worth a trip to the cinema. Just don’t look for an off-switch on your date!
The Gorge (2025)
2025 is off to quite a start with the Horror Romances. The Gorge is an Apple+ exclusive that shines with the character chemistry and romance part of this action horror show stopper. The star power of Anya Taylor-Joy and Miles Teller elevates this above most comparable films. Levi (Teller) and Drasa (Taylor-Joy) are top-shot snipers, serving duty by themselves on opposite sides of the top of a fog-shrouded gorge. In the gorge are hungry mutants, and their countries have assigned them to prevent monsters from leaving it. It is super top-secret stuff. As the boredom of the lonely outpost wears on, they flirt with flashcards across the canyon. (Strictly forbidden by their superiors, mind you.) They become smitten and risk their missions and lives to cross the monster-filled ravine for a date.
The romance REALLY works. The gorge is a bit of a MacGuffin, and the science behind what is going on is pure hokum, but it pays off with spectacular action sequences. I had to squeeze this film in at the last moment, but few horror films put the relationships this far forward.