Is Shallow Ground gory?

Somewhat — Shallow Ground rates 3/5 on The Horror Database's gore scale: some blood, not an endurance test.

Does Shallow Ground rely on jump scares?

Not really — Shallow Ground leans slow-burn (25/100 on THDB's slow-burn↔jump-scare spectrum); the fear builds as dread rather than shocks.

Will Shallow Ground stay with you after watching?

Some of it — Shallow Ground rates 2/5 on lingering effect; it follows you to bed but lets go within a day or so.

Who is Shallow Ground for?

Shallow Ground is genuinely disturbing (60/100 toward disturbing on THDB's fun-scary↔disturbing spectrum) and rates 3/5 on overall intensity — for viewers who want horror that cuts deep.

BrowseAI · unconfirmed

Shallow Ground(2005)

Name: Shallow Ground
Genre: Horror
Released: 2005
Duration: 97 min

2005 · Sheldon Wilson · 97 min

A naked teenage boy covered in blood appears at a remote sheriff's station one year after the brutal unsolved murder of a local girl. Now Sheriff Jack Shepherd, guilt ridden over the girl's murder, must confront his own demons as he desperately searches for the boy's true identity and possible victims. Little does Jack realize that he has started down a path that will bring him face to face with an unthinkable horror. Before sunrise the living will pay for the pain the dead have suffered.

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Horror

5.1122 votes

TMDB score

3/5

Intensity

3/5

Gore

2/5

Stays with you

How Shallow Ground scares

Shallow Ground leans into a moody, guilt-soaked small-town atmosphere rather than quick shocks, letting dread build through unease and confusion instead of loud jolts. The mystery around the strange bloody figure keeps things ambiguous for most of the runtime, mixing quiet psychological unease with occasional bursts of disturbing imagery. It plays more like a somber, unsettling character piece than a rollercoaster horror ride, so it suits viewers who like their scares slow and atmospheric rather than fast and adrenaline-driven.

Intensity over runtime

Shape only — no events

Reveal pacing shapeHidden by default — shows where the tension peaks and lets up.

A slow-burn mystery that gradually tightens its grip, building steadily into a dark, intense final stretch.

How scary is Shallow Ground?

On The Horror Database's 0–5 intensity scale, Shallow Ground rates 3/5 — solidly scary, building its fear through slow-burn dread rather than shocks. The fear is mostly in your head — it unsettles far more than it assaults. 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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