7 Underrated Horror Thrillers To Stream This Halloween
Halloween is rapidly approaching, and what better way to get into the spirit than to watch a bunch of scary movies? There are, of course, the obvious choices: Carrie and Psycho and the ’80s slasher films that inspired this season of American Horror Story. But there are also plenty of underrated horror thrillers—ripe for the streaming!— that are up to the task of giving you nightmares. And thanks to the popularity of recent films like Midsommar and Parasite, both sharp (and funny) meditations on social mores, our collective definition of “horror” is expanding. So, with that in mind, we’ve rounded up seven offbeat (and under-appreciated) psychological thrillers to freak you out.
The Invitation
When a man brings his new girlfriend to his ex-wife’s dinner party, the guests sense that something is amiss. And it is. The cherry on top? This is a Karyn Kusama joint and she knows how to make a good horror film. Need proof? Watch Jennifer’s Body.
Where to watch: Netflix
It Follows
Is It Follows just an allegory for the spread of sexually transmitted infections? Maybe! But we challenge you to watch this movie and not think about it all the time for at least a week.
Where to watch: Amazon Prime (or Vudu)
The Skin I Live In
Taking inspiration from the 1960 French film Eyes Without a Face, Pedro Almodóvar made this Spanish-language take on a classic mad scientist tale in 2011. After his wife dies in a fiery car crash, a plastic surgeon played by Antonio Banderas creates artificial skin to cover up burn victims. He takes a woman and locks her up in his home, where she is subjects to the doctor’s experiments. The shocking twists in this one open up the possibility for plenty of debate.
Where to watch: Amazon
A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night
Vampire movies don’t have to be as campy and corny as Twilight. Take A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night, Ana Lily Amirpour’s black-and-white Persian-language vampire western about a feminist bloodsucker who hunts the men who harm women.
Where to watch: Amazon
The Witch
Fans of The Crucible will be ecstatic to find that Robert Eggers’s film The Witch (alternatively stylized as, The VVitch: A New-England Folktale), is a fresh take on the Salem Witch Trial genre. When a 17th century New England family of settlers is exiled from their Puritan Plymouth Colony, the eldest daughter is accused of witchcraft. Goody Proctor, who?
Where to watch: Netflix
The Neon Demon
A film about the fashion industry that serves as an Elle Fanning vehicle with killer looks—what else could you want from a psychological thriller directed by Danish filmmaker Nicolas Winding Refn? Oh, there’s also the fact that the Internet’s favorite—Keanu Reeves—stars in it, too.
Where to watch: Amazon
Deep Red
Most people are already familiar with Dario Argento’s popular 1977 thriller, Suspiria, which was remade by Luca Guadagnino in 2018. But Deep Red, which pre-dates Suspiria by two years, is the murder mystery you need to see in order to consider yourself a true Argento aficionado. As the title would suggest, this film is extremely bloody and not for the faint of heart.
Where to watch: Amazon (or Mubi, if you’re kind of a snobbish cinephile)
Related: Scammers, Swindlers, and Stalkers: The Ultimate Streaming Guide
