A Ranking Of Movie Monsters We Want To Be Afraid Of But Can't Actually See Due To Poorly-Lit Action Scenes

    Maybe I just need my eyes checked?

    Kailey Hansen
    by Kailey Hansen

    BuzzFeed Contributor

    Have you ever been watching a movie only to find yourself squinting during the pivotal action sequences? From Jaws to Jurassic Park, monster movies are full of scary suspense. Unfortunately, some fall prey to letting their creature lurk a little too darkly in the shadows - and not in an intentional way like M. Night Shyamalan's Signs or The Village.

    Warner Bros. Pictures / Via tenor.com

    I'm ranking menacing monsters from film and TV based on how difficult it is to see them during action scenes. Volume down, brightness up!

    HBO / Via tenor.com

    Please enjoy this confusing gif of two dragons battling in the sky during an episode of Game of Thrones.

    8. The Kaiju (Pacific Rim)

    Warner Bros. Pictures / Via tenor.com

    The colossal sea monsters that come from the bottom of the ocean in the first Pacific Rim movie are pretty cool... when you can see them. Many of the combat scenes between these creatures and the giant humanoid robots take place at night and in water. Lots of crashing waves and unintelligible things happening.

    7. The Hulk and Absorbing Man (Hulk)

    Universal Pictures

    In Ang Lee's 2003 adaptation of Hulk, Bruce Banner must duel his father who has also acquired supernatural abilities. Alas, their big fight scene is very dimly-lit, leaving the viewer to amp up their brightness in order to navigate who is who. Without super-vision, it's kind of difficult to see which of these guys is the giant green protagonist.

    6. The Spinosaurus (Jurassic Park III)

    Universal Pictures

    General consensus is that Jurassic Park III's plot is lackluster compared to the first two installments, but I personally enjoy the dinosaurs featured in this chapter. The big baddie of the movie is the spinosaurus, whose penultimate action scene occurs amidst tumultuous rains, in the water, at night, as it tries to attack Dr. Alan Grant's boat. Is it daytime yet?

    5. The Megalodon (The Meg)

    Warner Bros. Pictures / Via tenor.com

    For the meg being a shark of gigantic proportions, I wanted a clearer look at his face. In The Meg, we definitely catch glimpses of this killer shark, but he's no Jaws. Mostly, he's looking like a massive gray blob lurking in dark waters. If I were living in an underwater science lab, I'd have all the lights on all the time.

    4. White Walkers and Dragons (Game of Thrones' "The Long Night")

    HBO / Via tenor.com

    Ah, yes, what would this ranking be without including the notably dark episode of Game of Thrones? I'm talking about season 8, episode 3 ("The Long Night") in which Jon Snow, Daenerys Targaryen, Arya Stark, and a myriad of other characters combine forces to battle the Night King and his army in Winterfell. It's absolutely epic, but notorious for being too dimly-lit to easily make out white walkers, dragons, and literally everyone else.

    3. The Xenomorphs and Predators (Alien vs. Predator: Requiem)

    20th Century Fox / Via tenor.com

    Merging two sci-fi monsters into one film, Alien vs. Predator: Requiem makes the mistake of setting most of its action sequences in barely-visible settings. Reddit is brimming with threads about the lighting in this movie, and it has become a running joke for fans of the franchise that this installment is the worst, partially due to poor visibility. 

    2. Godzilla (Godzilla)

    Warner Bros. Pictures / Via tenor.com

    In 2014, the cult classic monster, Godzilla, got a makeover and was totally scary. I think. He looks a little bit scary when you can see him, but many of his close-ups are in foggy, cloudy, rainy darkness. Who? What? Where is Godzilla now?

    1. Godzilla and Monster Friends (Godzilla: King of the Monsters)

    Warner Bros. Pictures / Via tenor.com

    The sequel to Godzilla, featuring a bunch of cool new monsters, felt even darker, but this is probably because I just wanted to see that three-headed Ghidorah in the light of day! Do these titans have an aversion to battling at around 11am? Would be much appreciated.

    Do you agree with this list or do I just need to make use of my vision insurance? Share your thoughts (and your own additions) in the comments below.