We Are What We Are (2013)

Film details

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DirectorJim Mickle
Year2013
CountryUSA
TypeMovie
Runtime105m
CastKassie Wesley DePaiva, Laurent Rejto, Julia Garner, Ambyr Childers, Jack Gore, Bill Sage, Kelly McGillis, Wyatt Russell, Michael Parks, Annemarie Lawless

Review

""We Are What We Are" is mostly not terrifying, offers almost nothing in the way of traditional horror-movie shocks and jolts, and does not get bloody until the last 20 minutes or so. (At which point, whoo-boy.) It's a sinister, wistful and even sad portrait of one family that has followed the insanity and bloodthirstiness of American history into a dark corridor with no exit. There's a hint of Terrence Malick (or David Lowery, of "Ain't Them Bodies Saints") in the often-gorgeous photography of Ryan Samul, and a hint of Shakespearean grandeur in Sage's portrayal of a dignified and honorable American father infused with an ideology of madness. I'm pretty sure I've never seen an exploitation film played so effectively as human tragedy." - Andrew O'Hehir, Salon

Ranking history

The 1,000 Greatest Horror Films

EDITIONS IN TOP 1,00010
HIGHEST#5062025
LOWEST#9932018
Top 1,000Outside Top 1,000Missing ranking data

Dashed lines indicate missing ranking data. Select a point to view that year's published list. The 1,000 Greatest Horror Films list was not updated in 2022.

The 21st Century’s Greatest Horror Films

EDITIONS RANKED7
HIGHEST#1042015
LOWEST#2422024
Published rankingNot ranked (outside published list)

The list was not updated from 2016 to 2019 or in 2022. It expanded from a Top 250 to a Top 500 in 2021. Full rankings beyond the published lists are not available. Dotted segments and hollow points indicate editions in which the film was outside the published list; their exact ranks are unknown.

Lists featuring this film 55 lists

Ain't it Cool News' Ambush Bug's Best Horror Films of 2012-20132013Ranked#9
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Bloody Disgusting's Best Horror Movies of All Time - 2010s (So Far)2017Unranked—
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Dread Central's Brad McHargue's Five Cannibal Film Favorites2013Unranked—
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Film4's 50 Must-See Horror Films Of The 21st Century2015Ranked#40
Final Girl Shocktoberfest Poll2017Ranked#178
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Hide.me's TOP 25 HORROR MOVIES OF 21ST CENTURY2015Ranked#20
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IGN's 100 Best Horror Movies2017Ranked#65
IndieWire's Eric Kohn's The 13 Best New Indie Horror Movies You Should Watch This Halloween2013Unranked—
Jarvis City's 50 Greatest Cannibal Movies Of All Time2017Ranked#17
Jason Coffman's 100 Favorite Horror Films 2000-20142015Ranked#68
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Max Molinaro's 100 Overlooked Horror Movie Gems2014Ranked#8
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SciFiNow's Jonathan Hatfull's 15 Best Horror Films of 20142014Ranked#2
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SlashFilm's Matt Donato's The 100 Best Horror Movies of the Past Decade2019Ranked#100
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The Horror Club's The Best Horror Movies of 20132014Unranked—
The LineUp's Jessica Ferri's 9 Best Horror Movies from the Early 2010s You May Have Missed2019Unranked—
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