You either love or hate scary movies. There’s a certain amount of thrill that comes with the rapid heartbeat and anticipation of the antagonist popping out from around the corner. Scary movies have been the focal point of the Halloween season and some are just fanatics of the genre with some of their favorites being A Nightmare on Elm Street, Friday the 13th or Saw.
Horror/thriller films have only gotten better, but sometime they can’t beat the classics. Audiences are more than happy with the classic storylines of evil and grotesque antagonists scaring people to death. Others are more into the psychological thriller. Netflix has its own batch of original scary movies that will scare the socks of you.
The Open House (3.2)
The Open House is an older film having been released in 2018 and ranks low on the IMDb scale. Don’t let it fool you, the storyline for the film is intriguing. After the death of a suburban father, a mother and son are forced to move into a chalet due to financial instability. Naomi (Piercey Dalton) and Logan (Dylan Minnette) are allowed to stay in the chalet until it sells, but peculiar events start to take place.
The erratic behavior of their elderly neighbor puts them on edge, but items start to go missing or misplaced in the home. Unable to afford new lodgings, they are forced to stay in chalet despite their fear that they are not alone.
Death Note (4.5)
Death Note was in high anticipation before it released in 2017 on Netflix. Anime fans were intrigued on how the popular Japanese manga, by the same name, would come to life on screen. While Japanese live actions of the film have been made before, this is a first to be done by an American company. The film is loosely based on the manga series.
Light Turner (Nat Wolff) comes across a leatherbound book called “Death Note”. The book has the supernatural ability to kill anyone whose name is written in the pages. The victims die just as it is detailed in the book. Turner is coerced by the death god Ryuk to use the book. Having so much power can be deadly.
The Influence (4.5)
The Influence, originally titled La Infulencia, is a Spanish horror movie that released on Netflix in October of 2019. The film’s plot revolves around Alicia (Manuela Velds) returning to her hometown to take care of her ill mother. She moves back with her husband and young daughter.
Cooming home can sometimes be bittersweet. Alicia tries to suppress the harmful memories of her childhood brought by her mother, who was a witch who went crazy. Realizing strange occurrences and the harmful behavior her daughter is exhibiting, she believes there are dark forces at play.
The Silence (5.2)
The Netflix original 2019 film, The Silence, is based on the original novel of the same name by Tim Lebbon. The film starres Kiernan Shipka as Ally Andrews and Stanley Tucci as Hugh Andrews. The plotline has similar elements to the 2018 film, A Quiet Place.
Creatures are discovered by researchers known as ‘vesps’ who violently attack and kill. They migrate to the noisest areas and humans are soon under attack. Hugh and Ally, a deaf teenager, now have to survive while trying to run from a cult who wishes to use Ally to their reproductive advantages.
In The Tall Grass (5.4)
In the Tall Grass was released on Netflix in 2019. It is a Canadian supernatural horror drama based on the Stephen King novel and the novel of the same name by Joe Hill. Becky (Laysla De Oliveira) and her brother Cal (Avery Whitted) are traveling to San Diego. Becky is six months pregnant and hopes to live with their aunt until she can put the baby up for adoption. Along the way, they hear the cries of a child in a field of tall grass.
They, along with a family, become trapped within the grass and find themselves unable to easily escape. The tall grass is harboring an evil and unseen figure that poses a threat and causes hallucinations.
Eli (5.8)
As the IMDb list rise in rankings, the horror film Eli lands at a 5.8 rating. It’s a far more horrific version of the “bubble boy”. Eli (Charlie Shotwell) has a rare disease that makes him severely allergic to the outdoors. He lives his life secluded in a “bubble suit”. He and his parents move to a secluded medical facility by Dr.Isabella Horn (Lili Taylor).
He is at first overjoyed to be given freedom, but starts to hear voices warning him. He soon discovers his treatments have a more horrific meaning and he can’t trust anyone. The film takes an interesting satanic twist that might come as surprising, but adds an intriguing element to the storyline.
Before I Wake (6.2)
Before I Wake was released by Netflix in 2018. It’s advertised as Netflix original, but was released at the Fantasia film festival in 2016. The film was praised for its visual effects and its acting. It has a similar tone to the storyline of A Nightmare on Elm Street and Freddy Kreuger’s abilities.
Jessie (Kate Bosworth) and Mark (Thomas Jane) take in a young boy named Cody (Jacob Tremblay). Cody is afraid of falling asleep and Jessie and Mark think it’s due to his past home experiences. In reality, whenever Cody falls asleep his dream becomes reality. If he dreams imaginative wonders, everything is okay. It’s his night terrors they have to watch out for.
Apostle (6.3)
The 2018 period horror film, Apostle, starres Dan Stevens as Thomas Richards. The film blends a number of genres from the occult, fantasy, and horror. Thomas travels to a remote Welsh island to rescue his sister who has been kidnapped by a cult. He infiltrates the cult pretending to want to join. He soon realizes the cult’s true intentions that tie to the fertility of the town.
The film mixes horror with fantasy as Thomas must also deal with supernatural forces that drive the cult to perform heinous acts. Thomas tries to free the victims of the cult who are being used to bring fertility to the town through blood sacrifices.
The Ritual (6.3)
The Ritual is another film that was originally released in 2017 at the Toronto International Film Festival and its rights later sold to Netflix. The film premiered on Netflix in 2018. It’s based on the novel by Adam Nevill of the same name. The film follows five university students. After the death of one of their friends, the remaining four embark on a hike in Northern Sweden in his honor.
One of the friends suffers a knee injury early on into the hike and they decide to take a shorter route through the forest. The group of friends start to witness odd events in the forest. Upon staying in an abandoned cabin, things start to turn more bizarre as they become the target of a sacrifice.
Gerald’s Game (6.6)
In 2017, Netflix released the film Gerald’s Game based on the Stephen King novel of the same name. The film’s a real mind twister. Many thought Stephen King’s novel wouldn’t be easily translated to screen. Married couple Jessie (Carla Gugino) and Gerald (Bruce Greenwood) travel to an isolated lakehouse for a getaway. After Gerald ties Jessie to the bedpost to enact his hidden fantasy, he dies of a heart attack. Leaving Jessie unable to free herself. She starts to hallucinate.
She becomes mocked by Gerald’s spirit. As she tries to free herself, she starts to remember an event from her childhood. An odd figure enters the room, who Jessie believes it to be a figment of her imagination.
