The Scientist(2020)
2020 · Derrick Granado · 94 min
An unconventional scientist, struggling to care for his terminally-ill wife, embarks on a journey to develop a cure for her. However, his methods of treatment and tampering with human DNA, could lead to the extinction of humanity.
Horror · Drama
6.0111 votes
TMDB score
3/5
Intensity
2/5
Gore
2/5
Stays with you
How The Scientist scares
It starts as a quiet, sad drama about a man trying to save someone he loves, then slowly shifts into something much darker and more unsettling as his experiments go wrong. The horror here isn't jump scares or monsters jumping out of closets; it's a slow creep of dread built on desperation and bad choices spiraling out of control. Expect a heavier, more emotional kind of scary rather than a fun haunted-house thrill, with some body horror elements mixed into the science-gone-wrong plot. It's a smaller, indie-feeling film, so don't expect huge scale, more a personal descent into something disturbing.
On The Horror Database's 0–5 scare profile, The Scientist rates psychological 3/5, visceral 3/5, gore 2/5, lingering effect 2/5, and overall intensity 3/5.
- Psychological: 3 of 5
- Visceral: 3 of 5
- Gore: 2 of 5
- Lingering: 2 of 5
- Intensity: 3 of 5
Slow burn vs Jump scares: 20 of 100 — leans Slow burn
Supernatural vs Real-world: 90 of 100 — leans Real-world
Fun-scary vs Disturbing: 60 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, character-driven build that gradually tightens its grip before ending on a much harder, more intense stretch.
Intensity across the runtime, 0 to 100: 0, 1, 1, 1, 2, 2, 2, 3, 3, 4, 4, 5.
How scary is The Scientist?
On The Horror Database's 0–5 intensity scale, The Scientist 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 moderately gory and genuinely disturbing. Some of it will follow you to bed, but it lets go within a day or so.
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