Seven of the best Netflix horror movies for Halloween
Take your pick from the best-reviewed horror films on Netflix
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Your support makes all the difference.It’s Halloween and people are looking to Netflix to provide the scares.
Luckily, the streaming giant has plenty to choose from when it comes to horror – although, as with anything, not all scary movies are created equal.
Trust in the guidance of your fellow horror lovers and find seven of the best-reviewed horror films on Netflix below...
1. Creep 2 (100 per cent)
While the gruesome horror film was released in 2017, many viewers are just now discovering it thanks to its place on Netflix.
The sequel follows on from the 2004 cult favourite Creep, a found-footage psychological horror film (also on Netflix) directed by Patrick Brice, who co-wrote the story with Mark Duplass.
In the original, Duplass plays a stranger who hires a videographer (Brice) to film him for a day, explaining that the idea behind the video is to pass it down to his unborn son. From there, things take a sinister turn.
The sequel sees the return of Duplass’s character. Similarly, he puts out an ad for a videographer and lures YouTuber Sara (Desiree Akhavan, best known for the 2018 film The Miseducation of Cameron Post) to his remote cabin.
2. His House (100 per cent)
This horror film mostly flew under the radar when it was released in 2020. His House – written and directed by British director Remi Weekes – stars Wunmi Mosaku and Sope Dirisu as a refugee couple from South Sudan who struggle to adjust to their new life in an English town with a sinister presence. Matt Smith also stars, and creature actor Javier Botet – though, we’ll leave his role a surprise.
In a four-star review for The Independent, film critic Clarisse Loughrey wrote: “Weekes here crafts a horror film in dual, clashing palettes – you get twice the scares, in a sense.” The film is leaving Netflix on 29 October so watch it while you can!
3. Under the Shadow (99 per cent)
Another horror that may have passed you by is Under the Shadow, a Persian-language 2016 film that has been called both “intelligent” and “terrifying” by viewers.
Set in Tehran during the Eighties, the film follows a mother and daughter who are haunted by a malevolent presence. A review for IndieWire praises the movie for giving jump scares and old tropes a “fresh spin”. Fans of The Babadook and A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night are likely to enjoy this one.
4. The Old Ways (95 per cent)
This 2020 folk-horror film stars Brigitte Kali Canales as a Mexican-American reporter who returns to her hometown near Veracruz looking for a story about witchcraft. When she arrives, however, she is kidnapped by locals, including a witch who believes she is possessed by a demon.
While we’ll be sure to steer clear of spoilers, suffice to say that the ending is a memorable one.
5. Hush (93 per cent)
It’s a home invasion thriller with a twist. Kate Siegel plays a deaf writer whose solitary life in the woods is interrupted when a masked killer appears in her window one night.
The film is directed by Netflix favourite Mike Flanagan, who is behind horror hits including The Haunting of Hill House, The Haunting of Bly Manor, and most recently, The Midnight Club (which broke a record for the most jumpscares in a single episode of television).
6. Cam (93 per cent)
It’s hard to describe Cam for two reasons. Firstly to do so would spoil a remarkable twist, and secondly, you’re not quite sure how.
A doppelgänger horror for the digital age, Cam is set within the world of webcam porn. The Handmaid’s Tale star Madeline Brewer plays Alice, a “cam girl” who discovers an exact replica of herself online. The techno-thriller is a disturbing, salacious and suspenseful romp that’ll have you thinking about the film’s end long after the credits roll.
7. Coming Home in the Dark (92 per cent)
This New Zealand psychological-thriller is based on a 1995 short story of the same name by Owen Marshall.
A school teacher Alan Hoaganraad (Daniel Gillies) is forced to confront a brutal act from his past when an encounter with a pair of drifters takes him and his family on a nightmarish road trip. Reviews have commended the film for being “beautifully shot” and superbly acted.
8. Gerald’s Game (91 per cent)
There are plenty of Stephen King adaptations out there – many of which have found a home on Netflix – but Gerald’s Game is among the best.
Director Mike Flanagan triumphs in this excellent adaptation of Stephen King’s 1992 novel of the same name. The Haunting of Hill House’s Carla Gugino gives a stand-out performance as Jessie, a docile housewife whose husband whisks her off to the country for a sexy weekend getaway. When Gerald dies from an unexpected heart attack, Jessie is left stranded in handcuffs without water, food or any possibility of rescue. Sleep-deprived and dying, Jessie is forced to reckon with her inner demons – and a looming bogeyman who may or may not be real. Gerald’s Game is an intelligent, absorbing psychological thriller.
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