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Phase IV poster

Movies that feel likePhase IV (1974)

Arizona ants mock the food chain on their way to a desert lab to get two scientists and a woman.

If you loved Phase IV, the closest films we have are Scanners (1981), Phantasm (1979) and Son of Frankenstein (1939). All three share Phase IV's dread and unsettling feel, which is what we rank on before quality.

Seen the big three already? The under-the-radar pick below is Island of Lost Souls (1932).

πŸ… 50% Rotten Tomatoesβ˜… 6.4 IMDb β†—TMDB β†—dir. Saul Bassdreadunsettlingcerebral
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If Phase IV hit the spot, these will too

Scanners poster
Scanners
1981 Β· dir. David Cronenberg
πŸ… 69%β˜… 6.7science fiction Β· horrorMax

The same two preoccupations: murder, and scientist

A scientist trains a man with an advanced telepathic ability called 'scanning' to stop a dangerous Scanner with extraordinary psychic powers from waging war against non-Scanners.

Phantasm poster
Phantasm
1979 Β· dir. Don Coscarelli
πŸ… 72%β˜… 6.6horror Β· science fictionPrime Video

Dread-soaked and unsettling in the same breath

A teenage boy and his friends face off against a mysterious grave robber, known only as the Tall Man, who employs a lethal arsenal of unearthly weapons.

Son of Frankenstein poster
Son of Frankenstein
1939 Β· dir. Rowland V. Lee
πŸ… 95%β˜… 7.1horror Β· science fiction

Common ground: murder

The difference: Reviewed even better

One of the sons of late Dr. Henry Frankenstein finds his father's ghoulish creation in a coma and revives him, only to find out the monster is controlled by Ygor who is bent on revenge.

Invasion of the Body Snatchers poster
Invasion of the Body Snatchers
1978 Β· dir. Philip Kaufman
πŸ… 93%β˜… 7.4science fiction Β· horror

Horror built on ideas, twice over

The residents of San Francisco are becoming drone-like shadows of their former selves, and as the phenomenon spreads, two Department of Health workers uncover the horrifying truth.

The Fly poster
The Fly
1958 Β· dir. Kurt Neumann
πŸ… 95%β˜… 7.1science fiction Β· horror Β· dramaPrime Video

Both are built on the same subject: scientist

The difference: Leans harder into drama than Phase IV does

Industrialist FranΓ§ois Delambre is called late at night by his sister-in-law, Helene, who tells him that she has just killed her husband. Reluctant at first, she eventually explains to the police that he invented a matter transportation apparatus and, while experimenting on himself, a fly entered the chamber.

Island of Lost Souls poster
Island of Lost Souls
1932 Β· dir. Erle C. Kenton
πŸ… 88%β˜… 7.3science fiction Β· horror

Dread-soaked science fiction, and it commits to that

The difference: Made in the 1930s, in a different era of the craft

An obsessed scientist conducts profane experiments in evolution, eventually establishing himself as the self-styled demigod to a race of mutated, half-human abominations.

Plan 9 from Outer Space poster
Plan 9 from Outer Space
1957 Β· dir. Edward D. Wood Jr.
πŸ… 66%β˜… 3.9science fiction Β· horror

Horror with a pulse of unease, in both cases

In California, an old man grieves the loss of his wife, and dies the day after she is buried. However, the space soldier Eros and his mate Tanna use an electric device to resurrect them both, alongside the strong Inspector Clay, who was murdered by the alien-controlled dead couple. When the populations of Hollywood and Washington D.C. see flying saucers on the sky, a colonel, a police lieutenant, a commercial pilot, his wife, and a policeman try to stop the aliens.

Seconds poster
Seconds
1966 Β· dir. John Frankenheimer
πŸ… 79%β˜… 7.6science fiction Β· thriller Β· horror

Cerebral science fiction in both cases

The difference: Sits closer to thriller than Phase IV does

An unhappy middle-aged banker agrees to a procedure that will fake his death and give him a completely new look and identity; one that comes with its own price.

Riki-Oh: The Story of Ricky poster
Riki-Oh: The Story of Ricky
1991 Β· dir. Lam Ngai Kai
πŸ… 89%β˜… 7action Β· science fiction Β· horror

Both lean on dread more than on horror

In 2001, where all correctional facilities have been privatized, martial artist Ricky finds himself victim to the corrupt system, found "guilty" of the manslaughter of an infamous crime boss.

The Invisible Man poster
The Invisible Man
1933 Β· dir. James Whale
πŸ… 95%β˜… 7.6horror Β· science fictionPrime VideoPeacock

Both lean on unease more than on science fiction

After experimenting on himself and becoming invisible, scientist Jack Griffin, now aggressive due to the drug's effects, seeks a way to reverse the experiment at any cost.

Kill, Baby... Kill! poster
Kill, Baby... Kill!
1966 Β· dir. Mario Bava
β˜… 6.8horrorPrime Video

The horror is handled with the same confidence

The difference: Trades the ideas of Phase IV for an angle of its own

A 20th century European village is haunted by the ghost of a murderous little girl.

The Thing from Another World poster
The Thing from Another World
1951 Β· dir. Christian Nyby
πŸ… 87%β˜… 7drama Β· horror Β· science fiction

The shared currency is ideas

Scientists and US Air Force officials fend off a blood-thirsty alien organism while investigating at a remote arctic outpost.

In the mood for more dread?

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The best-reviewed films that share Phase IV’s defining feeling.