10 Terrifying Films About Home Invasion

No one wants to think about their home getting burgled. And no one wants to think about being locked in a rickety house with a killer. It's not easy tackling the realities of home invasion; it's much more difficult to have to deal with a real break-in than watch a film about one. You may not be insured, things get wrecked, and you have to call the cops. Though they probably won't prepare you for a real home invasion, try locking your doors, stay in tonight, and check out these 10 terrifying films about home invasion.

1. Panic Room: The One Where Even The Safe Room Doesn't Keep 'Em Safe

   Panic Room is a 2002 David Fincher thriller about a single mom and her young daughter, whose new home gets invaded on the first night of their residence. A solid production with great direction, score, and cast, Panic Room reminds us that behind the definition of "scrappy badass" is Jodie Foster, cashing checks. Terrifyingly fun fact: The 11-year old diabetic daughter in the film is well acted by a young Kristen Stewart, who would later become the spokesperson for all tweenage vampire lovers.

2. The Collector: The One Where A Thief Breaks In And There's Way More Terrifying Stuff Already Happening

   Don't be frightened off that the creators of some of the Saw movies put this indie gem out. But do know that The Collector is terrifying, period. A petty thief breaks into a house, but little does he know there's already a crazy insane mass murderer in there that's hacking up the family inside. Lock your doors, engage the alarm, set out bear traps, board up your windows, put up steel cages — anything to get through this underappreciated gorefest.

3. The Strangers: The One Where People With Bags On Their Heads Let Themselves Inside

   "Why are you doing this to us?"

   "Because you were home."

   What do the daughter of a rockstar, Scott Speedman, and Dennis from It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia have in common? They're about to get taken down by a mask-and-potato-sack-wearing murderous family of three. While The Strangers is supposedly "inspired" by true events, this Manson-like mash-up doesn't have to be true to be terrifying.

4. When a Stranger Calls: The One That Gets Boring After 20 Minutes

   "Have you checked the children?"

   Have you checked your watch? 1979 horror flick When a Stranger Calls achieved cult status for its haunting first scene, and for scaring the crap out of babysitters everywhere. Other than that, it's more terrifyingly slow than anything.

5. Home Alone: The One Where A Child Is Terrorized By Burglars

   Remove a couple of the jokes and slapstick booby trap gags, and you've got yourself a terrifying franchise. A series of comedies that gave the world some great pop culture lines, these holiday films ensured that parents everywhere double-check when herding their families to the airport for holiday travel. Terrifying ends: Ditching director Chris Columbus and kid icon Macaulay Culkin after the first two films, Home Alone 3 was surprisingly well-received by movie critic godfather Roger Ebert — and seemingly no one else. Home Alone 4 went straight to DVD.

6. Scream: The One That Influenced A Generation of Copycat Creepers

   A classic slasher from the '90s, Scream rebooted a genre and made horror hip once again, spawning three sequels and several parodies. Also most remembered for its opening scene, a young Drew Barrymore and her boyfriend are murdered with a hunting knife after her home is invaded by a reaper-costumed killer. The subject of some controversy due to copycat crimes, if you like jumping in your seat and burnt popcorn, this high school home invasion film's for you.

7. Wait Until Dark: The One With Audrey Hepburn

   Three burglars break in and terrorize a blind woman because they believe there is a heroin-filled doll in her apartment. Sounds like pretty standard fare as far as home invasion movies go. With an unsurprising plot and a few slow moments, Audrey Hepburn, Alan Arkin, and a cast of mid-'60s heavyweights do deliver one of the biggest "jump out of your seat" moments in home invasion history.

8. Funny Games: The One That Makes You Think Twice About Loaning People Sugar

   Nice preppy guys walk to your door with golf clubs. Doesn't sound the beginning of a terrifying psychological thriller. Invading a family's home and forcing them to play sadistic games that forecast their death doesn't sound like something that Lacoste-clad young men would do, either. But that's exactly what happens in the shot-for-shot American remake of the Austrian Funny Games. It just goes to show you: things aren't always what they seem.

9. Christmas Vacation: The One That Makes You Hate Your Relatives

   A home invasion of a different sort, in Christmas Vacation, the Griswold family certainly gets a houseful. Everyone has their own version of low-rent Cousin Eddie and his thinly-veiled innuendos, smelly centennials that bring senile to a new level, and the terrifying thought of the Griswold kids having to share their rooms with icky cousins and grandparents. While providing a shock, the squirrel in the Christmas tree is nothing compared to the terrifying thought of a holiday with relatives that come … and stay.

10. Inside: The One That Makes You Fear the French

    One of the most terrifying horror movies in recent memory, Inside is bloody (and) brilliant. This 2008 French gorefest is set on Christmas Eve, when a pregnant woman is home alone and a (knitting female) psychokiller has come to claim the unborn baby. Short, sweet (read: twisted and disgusting), and to-the-point, Inside will make you think, shriek, and squirm. And if that's not terrifying, nothing is.

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