The Beast(1975)
1975 · Walerian Borowczyk · 98 min
The head of a failing French family thinks that fate has smiled down on him when the daughter of a wealthy man agrees to be married to his son. The daughter and her aunt then travel out to the French countryside to meet with the family, unaware that a mysterious 'beast' is stalking the vicinity.
Drama · Fantasy · Horror · Romance
5.4187 votes
TMDB score
3/5
Intensity
1/5
Gore
3/5
Stays with you
How The Beast scares
It moves like a slow period drama for long stretches, all manners and money talk in a crumbling old estate, before sliding into a long, strange, dreamlike sequence that has almost nothing to do with jump scares or chase logic. The horror here isn't about being hunted or gore, it's about discomfort and taboo, mixing romance and myth in a way that feels more like an unsettling fever dream than a scary movie. There's barely any blood and no real stalking-and-killing tension, so don't expect thrills or jolts. This one is for viewers curious about strange, artsy, provocative old horror-adjacent cinema rather than anyone looking to be scared in a traditional sense.
On The Horror Database's 0–5 scare profile, The Beast rates psychological 2/5, visceral 2/5, gore 1/5, lingering effect 3/5, and overall intensity 3/5.
- Psychological: 2 of 5
- Visceral: 2 of 5
- Gore: 1 of 5
- Lingering: 3 of 5
- Intensity: 3 of 5
Slow burn vs Jump scares: 8 of 100 — leans Slow burn
Supernatural vs Real-world: 25 of 100 — leans Supernatural
Fun-scary vs Disturbing: 65 of 100 — leans Disturbing
Intensity over runtime
Shape only — no eventsReveal pacing shapeHide pacing shapeHidden by default — shows where the tension peaks and lets up.
A slow, mannered start gives way to an intense, dreamlike surge in the middle before settling back into a quieter, unsettling close.
Intensity across the runtime, 0 to 100: 1, 1, 1, 2, 2, 3, 4, 5, 4, 2, 2, 1.
How scary is The Beast?
On The Horror Database's 0–5 intensity scale, The Beast rates 3/5 — solidly scary, building its fear through slow-burn dread rather than shocks. It works on both fronts, unsettling the mind while going for the body. Expect it to be restrained with gore and genuinely disturbing. Some of it will follow you to bed, but it lets go within a day or so.
Watched it? Sign in to confirm whether this profile fits.
