It’s that time of year again: summer has faded into memory, the clock has gone back and the nights are getting darker. What better way to mark this time of year than to watch a good Horror film on Halloween: a holiday made for us to indulge in those guilty pleasure films from the darkest corners of cinema. For those who are less familiar with the Horror genre, and haven’t got that Argento boxset on order, or are busy traipsing through the seemingly never-ending set of sequels to the The Nightmare on Elm Street franchise, Netflix is probably the best place to start. The issue is, Netflix has some odd choices when it comes to the Horror genre. Some films are, simply put, bad (Case 39, Strippers vs. Werewolves) whilst in other cases you are left to wonder why sequels to franchises like Hellraiser or Halloween are available, but the original isn’t.
So for users of the streaming platform, here are my top recommendations:
The Classic Horror: Carrie (De Palma, 1976)
The original adaptation of Stephen King’s iconic debut novel tells the story of a teenage girl who learns to deal with and utilise her newly awakened supernatural powers against those who have tormented her at school and at home. Is it scary? Not really, and in retrospect the film has dated quite badly in places, unfortunately warranting the Chloë Grace Moretz remake released last year. But its classic scenes and imagery more than make up for a few questionable choices in direction and a young John Travolta’s ridiculous, scene-stealing haircut.
The Modern Horror: Drag Me to Hell (Raimi, 2009)
Long before the (original) Spider-man series, director Sam Raimi was best known for his brilliant comedy/horror Evil Dead trilogy (the last of which, Army of Darkness being available to watch on Netflix). But after the laughable third outing of the web-slinging superhero, Raimi returned to familiar ground with his 2009 horror, Drag Me to Hell. When Christine, a loan officer, refuses to give money to an elderly gypsy woman, a supernatural curse is placed on her which threatens to cast her down into the depths of hell after three days of nightmarish, demonic torment. Drag Me to Hell never takes itself too seriously, but asserts itself as an effective, thrilling horror film, built upon a good foundation of Raimi’s video-nasty aesthetic crafted during the 1980s combined with a polished, contemporary feel.
The Comedy Horror: Tucker and Dale Versus Evil (Craig, 2010)
There is certainly no shortage of great Horror inflected comedies and Netflix definitely has its fair share. Whereas I could suggest something like the original Scary Movie or Zombieland, I thought it would be better to give a shout-out to one of the lesser-known films on offer through the streaming service. This comes in the form of a charming little Canadian flick called Tucker and Dale Vs. Evil, in which, through a series of farcical misunderstandings, a group of teenagers staying at a remote cabin in the woods convince themselves that their neighbours (the titular Tucker and Dale) are serial-killing psychopaths. A brilliant deconstruction of the horror genre, its stereotypes and cliches, akin to Cabin in the Woods (Goddard, 2012) but leaning more towards slapstick comedy rather than satire.
Watch Tucker and Dale Vs. Evil now
The Trashy Horror: From Dusk till Dawn (Rodriguez, 1996)
Sometimes, all you want from a Horror film is a bit of no-brains fun. Well, From Dusk Till Dawn has that in spades. Starting off as a gritty crime thriller, director Robert Rodriguez suddenly turns everything on its head by throwing vampires into the mix. With a cast that includes, George Clooney, Quentin Tarantino, Harvey Keitel, Tom Savini, Juliette Lewis and Danny Trejo, From Dusk Till Dawn is an over-the-top blast of trashy vampire action.
The Arty Horror: The Strange Colour of Your Body’s Tears (Cattet and Forzani, 2013)
The Strange Colour of Your Body’s Tears is perhaps more of an exercise in the atmosphere of horror rather than its actual narrative. Set in a single apartment building and featuring very little dialogue, the film follows the journey of a man as he set out to discover what has happened to his missing wife. An intriguing film which blends together ideas from the films of David Lynch, Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining and a whole host of other psychological horror films, whilst maintaining a uniquely original tone; those wanting a slightly more challenging horror film will not be disappointed.
Watch The Strange Colour of Your Body’s Tears now
Happy Halloween!
Notes from the Multiplex 