feelsalike.com

Movies that feel like The Ritual (2017)

If you loved The Ritual, the closest films we have are Absentia (2011), The Little Stranger (2018) and The Lodge (2020). All three share The Ritual's dread and unsettling feel, which is what we rank on before quality. 7 of the 12 picks below are included with a subscription right now on HBO Max, Paramount Plus Premium and MUBI and others, checked against today's data.

A group of college friends reunite for a trip to the forest, but encounter a menacing presence in the woods that's stalking them.

πŸ… 74% Rotten Tomatoesβ˜… 6.4 IMDb β†—TMDB β†—dir. David Brucknerdreadunsettlingtwistymelancholy
Stream it:Netflix β†—
See it on the map

When is The Ritual streaming? β†’

If The Ritual hit the spot, these will too

Absentia poster
Absentia
2011 Β· dir. Mike Flanagan
πŸ… 87%β˜… 5.8horror Β· mystery

Both are built on the same subject: grief

Tricia's husband has been missing for seven years. Her younger sister Callie comes to live with her as the pressure mounts to finally declare him 'dead in absentia'. Tricia is reluctant, always holding out hope, but Callie is practical and wants her to move on. As Tricia sifts through the wreckage and tries to move on with her life, Callie finds herself drawn to an ominous tunnel near the house.

Feels alike?
The Little Stranger poster
The Little Stranger
2018 Β· dir. Lenny Abrahamson
πŸ… 64%β˜… 5.5mystery Β· horror

Dread-soaked where it counts, unsettling underneath

The difference: Missing the melancholy of The Ritual

In a dusty post-war summer in rural Warwickshire, a doctor is called to a patient at lonely Hundreds Hall. Home to the Ayres family for over two centuries, the Georgian house is now in decline. But are the Ayreses haunted by something more sinister than a dying way of life?

Feels alike?
The Lodge poster
The Lodge
2020 Β· dir. Veronika Franz
πŸ… 75%β˜… 6horror Β· mystery

Common ground in both: murder and cabin

When a father is forced to abruptly depart for work, he leaves his children, Aidan and Mia, at their holiday home in the care of his new girlfriend, Grace. Isolated and alone, a blizzard traps them inside the lodge as terrifying events summon specters from Grace's dark past.

Feels alike?
The Boy poster
The Boy
2016 Β· dir. William Brent Bell
πŸ… 31%β˜… 6horror Β· mystery Β· thriller

The same preoccupation in both: murder

The difference: Critics were much harder on this one

A young American woman takes a job as a nanny in a remote English village, soon discovering that the family's eight-year-old son is a life-sized doll that comes with a list of strict rules.

Feels alike?
Alone poster
Alone
2007 Β· dir. Banjong Pisanthanakun
β˜… 6.4horror Β· mystery Β· drama

Twisty and melancholy in the same breath

The difference: Sits closer to drama than The Ritual does

When Pim and Ploy, twins conjoined at the stomach, are separated, the operation leaves Pim the surviving sister, haunted by Ploy's vengeful ghost.

Feels alike?
1408 poster
1408
2007 Β· dir. Mikael HΓ₯fstrΓΆm
πŸ… 80%β˜… 6.8horror Β· mystery

Dread-soaked horror in both cases

A man who specializes in debunking paranormal occurrences checks into the fabled room 1408 at the Dolphin Hotel. Soon after settling in, he confronts genuine terror.

Feels alike?
A Dark Song poster
A Dark Song
2016 Β· dir. Liam Gavin
πŸ… 91%β˜… 6.2horror Β· fantasy Β· mystery

Mystery built on unease, twice over

The difference: Leans harder into fantasy than The Ritual does

A determined young woman and a damaged occultist risk their lives and souls to perform a dangerous ritual that will grant them what they want.

Feels alike?
Jacob's Ladder poster
Jacob's Ladder
1990 Β· dir. Adrian Lyne
πŸ… 71%β˜… 7.4drama Β· mystery Β· horror

One thread runs through both: nightmare

The difference: Made in the 1990s, in a different era of the craft

After returning home from the Vietnam War, veteran Jacob Singer struggles to maintain his sanity. Plagued by hallucinations and flashbacks, Singer rapidly falls apart as the world and people around him morph and twist into disturbing images. His girlfriend, Jezzie, and ex-wife, Sarah, try to help, but to little avail. Even Singer's chiropractor friend, Louis, fails to reach him as he descends into madness.

Feels alike?
Talk to Me poster
Talk to Me
2023 Β· dir. Michael Philippou
β˜… 7.1horror

Both keep coming back to the same thing: grief

When a group of friends discover how to conjure spirits using an embalmed hand, they become hooked on the new thrill, until one of them goes too far and unleashes terrifying supernatural forces.

Feels alike?
The Babadook poster
The Babadook
2014 Β· dir. Jennifer Kent
πŸ… 98%β˜… 6.8drama Β· horror

Common ground: monster

A grieving single mother and her child fall into a deep well of paranoia when an eerie children's book manifests in their home.

Feels alike?
The Blair Witch Project poster
The Blair Witch Project
1999 Β· dir. Daniel Myrick
πŸ… 86%β˜… 6.5horror Β· mystery

Both are working the same pair: forest, friends

In October of 1994 three student filmmakers disappeared in the woods near Burkittsville, Maryland, while shooting a documentary. A year later their footage was found.

Feels alike?
Hereditary poster
Hereditary
2018 Β· dir. Ari Aster
πŸ… 90%β˜… 7.3horror Β· mystery Β· thriller

Twisty horror, and it commits to that

Following the death of the Leigh family matriarch, Annie and her children uncover disturbing secrets about their heritage. Their daily lives are not only impacted, but they also become entangled in a chilling fate from which they cannot escape, driving them to the brink of madness.

Feels alike?

In the mood for more dread?

all dread movies β†’

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