It’s a rainy night out and Halloween is looming. You want to get in that spooky Halloween mood but the doomsday scrolling through every streaming service has you down. Don’t fear (well do actually fear because that’s the point), Geek Vibes Nation is here with some Halloween Horror gems lurking in your streaming services. You’re welcome.
Netflix:
Listen, don’t mess with the woods. Just don’t. This sleeper hit, The Ritual (2017) truly drives home the point that there’s a lot more out in the woods than you know. A group of friends venture out on a camping trip through the wilderness while mourning the loss of their buddy. Of course their trip soon turns into a surreal, monster meets cult, off kilter set of events that had me finding an excuse to turn the lights on. This film is not what you think and has you clutching your sleeping bag at every turn.
Hush (2016) is a Mike Flanagan cult classic waiting to be found. This film feels like a Stephen King novel through and through. The plot centers around a deaf writer who is suddenly plagued by a masked killer. The horror of the film truly is that the lack of one’s sense can shape a final girl. If the killer can sneak up on you, how do you outwit him? Oh trust me, you’ll find out. Hush is also a great “not your typical horror, but still scary” film if you’re looking to fulfill your sleeping schedule.
Shudder:
Grave Encounters (2011) is truly one of the best “found footage” films I have ever had the chance to convince you to watch. This film is a play on the Ghost Adventures, ghost hunters of the world, trying to film their lockdown in an old insane asylum. I don’t want to say more than that because… I can’t. I can’t tell you what this film has in store because it’s almost two films in one. Now don’t get me wrong, it’s cheesy at times, but Grave Encounters finds a way to make everyone I’ve watched it beside jump at least once. Just do me a favor, encounter this one or at least put it on your list.
Host (2020) did such a good job of scaring me I slept with the lights on. Seriously. Yes, it’s another found footage film, but also it’s more of a found “Zoom”. The film itself was filmed in the middle of the pandemic and truly is a piece of cinema that not only made the historical event we are all living through the subject matter, but it’s also a believable background for the horror that ensues. And the rest…the rest will have you shaking in your boots every time you hear that ominous Zoom tone letting you know someone is in the room with you.
Hulu:
Lights Out (2016) is a film that came from a simple short by director David F. Sandberg. It’s a concept that has plagued us all. You turn out the light and something is lurking in the dark. Turn the light back on, bam, it’s gone. This film is a bit funny at times but there’s something there, there’s something lurking in the dark of this film that’s unsettling. I think it’s the perfect “we can talk over this, but we’re also going to be scared” film you can put on. But you have to turn out the lights to watch it…
Joe Keery is in this. You heard me. Our main Stranger Things, wild haired boy headlines this odd social media commentary horror film, Spree (2020). This film is comedic, yes. But there’s something about the social media subject the plot centers around that’s horrifying. This film made me uncomfortable because I can see the story line happening (not to such a dramatic degree of course) in real life. Keery stars as a ride-share driver who’s trying to build his online following and he’ll do anything to make that happen. Like I said, the real horror of Spree is that social media can be monstrous.
HBOMax:
It’s a classic. It is a staple of any horror film fan’s bag of tricks. But you may have skipped it or simply haven’t watched it in ages. Just watch Poltergeist (1982). I grew up on this film and it has some of the best practical scares of all time. The acting is superb and the plot line itself is believable. It was the original Paranormal Activity to say the least.
Everyone’s seen Evil Dead 2 but the third film in the Evil Dead franchise is the best. You heard me. I took a stance. Raimi’s follow up to Evil Dead 2, Army of Darkness (1992), is cult classic horror material. In this installment, Ash travels back in time and the rest is history…sort of. The practical effects alone are worth watching this film, if not for the dialogue and just epic ways of Bruce Campbell. Fun fact, this film was going to be called “Medieval Dead”. Get it? The word evil is still in there. Regardless, Army of Darkness is a cult horror masterpiece that reigns supreme in my necronomicon book.
Amazon Prime:
The Taking of Deborah Logan (2014) was a film I stumbled upon. I was scrolling and clicked and then I was walking around with the lights on all night, talking aloud, convincing friends to come sleepover. Taking of Deborah Logan is found footage from a senior thesis on the effects of Alzheimer’s. The subject matter is truly scary, but what happens next is horrifying. There are some moments you’ll never unsee, especially the last 10 minutes, trust me. The real stand out though is the the main actress who plays Deborah Logan, Jill Larson. Larson does an incredible job of descending into madness and taking us along with her.
Hell House LLC (2015) is the chronicle of a group of friends setting up a haunted house horror maze in an old hotel. Yes, it’s found footage, but come on, it’s terrifying. There’s even an iconic clown. Am I selling you on another found footage recommendation? Good. This sleeper horror gem got me and still gets me jumping to this day. The forced perspectives, the realistic fear of those horror mazes people set up, it all came together and created quite a jump filled ride called Hell House LLC. You’re allowed to turn on the lights for this one.
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Writer. Geek. Final Girl.
