A snuff film, snuff movie, or snuff video is a theoretical type of film, produced for profit or financial gain, that shows, or purports to show, scenes of actual homicide. The victims are supposedly typically lured to their murders by false pretenses and their murder is then filmed and the video depicting it is sold to buyers.
Snuff is a 1976 splatter film directed by Michael Findlay and Horacio Fredriksson. Originally an exploitation film loosely based on the 1969 murders committed by the Manson Family, it is most notorious for being falsely marketed as if it were an actual snuff film. The controversy about the film was deliberately manufactured to attract publicity: it prompted an investigation by the New York County District Attorney, who determined that the murder shown in the film was fake. This picture contributed to the urban legend of snuff films, although the concept did not originate with it.
Broken is a 1993 horror musical short film and long-form music video filmed and directed by Peter Christopherson. It is based on an idea by Trent Reznor, founder of industrial rock band Nine Inch Nails, and is a companion piece to the 1992 Nine Inch Nails EP Broken.
In the Cut is a 2003 psychological thriller film written and directed by Jane Campion and starring Meg Ryan, Mark Ruffalo, Jennifer Jason Leigh and Kevin Bacon. Campion's screenplay is an adaptation of the 1995 novel of the same name by Susanna Moore. The film focuses on an English teacher who becomes personally entangled with a detective investigating a series of gruesome murders in her Manhattan neighborhood.
Saw is a 2004 American horror film directed by James Wan, in his feature directorial debut, and written by Leigh Whannell, from a story by Wan and Whannell. It is the first installment in the Saw film series, and stars Whannell alongside Cary Elwes, Danny Glover, Monica Potter, Michael Emerson, and Ken Leung.
Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer is a 1986 American independent psychological horror film directed and co-written by John McNaughton about the random crime spree of a serial killer who seemingly operates with impunity. It stars Michael Rooker in his film debut as the nomadic killer Henry, Tom Towles as Otis, a prison buddy with whom Henry is living, and Tracy Arnold as Becky, Otis's sister. The characters of Henry and Otis are loosely based on convicted real life serial killers Henry Lee Lucas and Ottis Toole.
Scoop is a 2006 romantic crime comedy film written and directed by Woody Allen and starring Hugh Jackman, Scarlett Johansson, Ian McShane and Allen himself. It was released in the United States by Focus Features on July 28, 2006. The film follows an American journalist and a magician being guided by the spirit of a reporter to investigate a British aristocrat who might be a serial killer. Scoop received mixed reviews from critics regarding its humor, but was a box-office success, grossing $39 million against a $4 million budget.
Ghostface is a fictional identity that is adopted by the primary antagonists of the Scream franchise. The figure was originally created by Kevin Williamson, and is primarily mute in person but voiced over the phone by Roger L. Jackson, regardless of who is behind the mask. The disguise has been adopted by various characters in the movies and in the third season of the television series.
Vacancy is a 2007 American horror film directed by Nimród Antal and written by Mark L. Smith. It stars Kate Beckinsale and Luke Wilson as a married couple who book at the motel after their car breaks down and are soon stalked by masked killers for their snuff films. It was released April 20, 2007, by the distributor Screen Gems.
Slaughter Disc is a 2005 pornographic horror film written, directed and produced by David Kwitmire and starring Caroline Pierce and Robert Williams.
Copkiller (Italian: Copkiller (L'assassino dei poliziotti)), also released as Corrupt, Corrupt Lieutenant, and The Order of Death, is a 1983 Italian crime thriller film directed by Roberto Faenza and starring Harvey Keitel and John Lydon, the lead singer for the bands Sex Pistols and Public Image Ltd. It is based on Hugh Fleetwood's 1977 novel The Order of Death, with a screenplay by Fleetwood, Faenza and Ennio de Concini. The music was composed by Ennio Morricone. The plot follows a psychological cat-and-mouse game between a corrupt police officer (Keitel) and a disturbed young man (Lydon) against the backdrop of murders committed by a serial killer who is targeting police officers.
Untraceable is a 2008 American psychological thriller film directed by Gregory Hoblit and starring Diane Lane, Colin Hanks, Billy Burke, and Joseph Cross. It was distributed by Screen Gems.
August Underground's Mordum is a 2003 direct-to-video horror exploitation film created and distributed by Toetag Pictures. It is the sequel to 2001's August Underground, and was followed by August Underground's Penance in 2007. The film is purposely shot in an amateur way to pass it off as a faux snuff film.
Pig is a 1998 experimental, psychological horror, short film directed and produced by American underground film maker Nico B. and co-directed by and starring deathrock pioneer Rozz Williams. The film co-stars James Hollan and was distributed by the CAV Distributing company in South San Francisco and produced by the studios Open Eye Productions and Cult Epics.
Silent Night is a 2012 slasher film directed by Steven C. Miller and starring Malcolm McDowell, Jaime King, Donal Logue, Ellen Wong, and Brendan Fehr. It is a remake of Charles E. Sellier Jr.'s 1984 film Silent Night, Deadly Night and the sixth installment in the Silent Night, Deadly Night film series. The film was given a limited theatrical release on November 30, 2012, and was released on DVD and Blu-ray Disc on December 4, 2012.
Amateur Porn Star Killer is an American horror film series, currently consisting of three films. Created by Shane Ryan, the original film was theatrically released in 2007.
My Awkward Sexual Adventure is a 2012 Canadian sex comedy film directed by Sean Garrity and written by Jonas Chernick. The film stars Chernick as Jordan, a sexually uptight accountant who enlists Julia, an exotic dancer, to instruct him in the world of sexual adventure.
The Den is a 2013 American slasher film by Zachary Donohue and his feature film directorial debut. The film is shot in screenlife and found footage style and was first released in Russia as смерть в сети, Death Online on December 23, 2013. It was given a simultaneous limited theatrical and VOD release on March 14, 2014 through IFC Midnight. It stars Melanie Papalia as a young woman who discovers a murder via webcam.
Christmas Cruelty! is a 2013 Norwegian slasher film written and directed by Magne Steinsvoll and Per-Ingvar Tomren and co-written by Eline Aasheim, Anita Nyhagen and Janne Iren Holseter. Given a limited theatrical release in its home country, the film stars Steinsvoll, Tomren and Aasheim as Christmas revelers who find themselves being terrorized by a serial killer dressed like Santa Claus.
In the early morning hours of November 15, 1959, four members of the Clutter family – Herb Clutter, his wife, Bonnie, and their teenage children Nancy and Kenyon – were murdered in their rural home just outside the small farming community of Holcomb, Kansas. Two ex-convicts, Perry Smith and Richard Hickock, were found guilty of the murders and sentenced to death. They were both executed on April 14, 1965. The murders were detailed by Truman Capote in his 1966 non-fiction novel In Cold Blood.
