After She Wakes (2019) movie poster

After She Wakes

2019 ·1h 18m · ★ 5.1 (32)

After tragic death of her baby son, a narcoleptic mother with young daughter suffers from terrifying sleep disruptions as they try to deal with ongoing pain and grief. They begin experiencing different episodes of parasomnia including night terrors and sleep paralysis, leaving them unable to move and only able to witness horrific visions. These nightmares become too disturbing as they create a rift in their own realities causing the mother to believe someone or something is watching her sleep every night. Soon the terrifying visions from their dreams begin to manifest into a sinister reality, leaving the mother vulnerable.

Why it matters

A slow-burning psychological horror that probes grief through the unsettling lens of sleep paralysis and parasomnia.

  • Grounds supernatural terror in the raw, intimate trauma of a mother losing her child—grief as haunting.
  • Uses the eerie stillness and helplessness of sleep disorders to amplify dread without cheap jump scares.
  • Perfect for fans of mood-driven, character-focused horror that trades gore for creeping psychological unease.
  • Practical effects and shadowy atmospherics echo classic folk horror’s oppressive sense of unseen menace.

Horror DNA

Gore
0
Slow Burn
50
Psychological
86
Supernatural
0
Creature
0
Disturbing
17
Fun Factor
17
Cerebral
28
Survival
0

Content Warnings

Child in Danger

Pairs Well With