Horror movies directed by Travis Stevens

How Jakob's Wife scares: Jakob's Wife blends vampire horror with a wicked sense of humor, using the bloodsucking stuff as a backdrop for a story about a woman breaking out of a boring life. The scares lean more toward gross-out surprises and sudden violent bursts than long stretches of dread, so it moves at a brisk, playful pace. There's real blood and some nasty practical effects, but the tone stays more fun and cheeky than heavy or upsetting. It's a good pick if you want horror with a wink and a sense of humor rather than something that'll haunt you.

How Girl on the Third Floor scares: There's a queasy, slow-building unease to this one, like something is rotting just out of sight before it finally shows itself. The pace is patient almost to a fault, letting small wrong details pile up in an old house until the last act turns gross and physical, with oozing walls and body horror replacing any real jump scares. The fear here isn't about a monster jumping out at you, it's about guilt and a house that seems to know things about the people inside it. It's a slower, weirder watch best suited to people who like haunted house stories with a nasty, gooey payoff rather than constant scares.