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10 Fun Hidden Horror Gems Available to Stream Right Now

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The digital age makes us spoiled for choice thanks to the endless plethora of titles available at the ready across various streaming platforms. As great as it is, though, the sheer volume of accessible horror can be overwhelming. Outside of the popular titles or heavily promoted new releases, it can be challenging to peruse multiple platforms.

And if you’re anything like me, it can be too easy to spend an eternity trying to find something new to watch, only to settle on a familiar comfort viewing. For those in the mood for weird, outside-the-box, or lesser-known horror movies, these ten titles bring the fun and are currently available to stream right now.


Phase IV – Hulu

This is not your average Animal Attacks horror movie. The plot follows scientists and a girl trying to stop a horde of desert ants that have developed collective intelligence from wiping out humanity. Directed by Saul Bass, an acclaimed graphic artist and title designer for films like Psycho and Cape Fear, and penned by Mayo Simon (Futureworld), Phase IV is far removed from the standard ant-based horror. Instead, it’s a psychedelic trip made with intelligence and gorgeous photography. It’s as bizarre as it is bleak, and a significant highlight for eco-horror.


Head Count – Netflix

A quiet little creepypasta set at Joshua Tree, where a weekend getaway among friends becomes a mind-bending descent into paranoia after they unwittingly perform a ritual that summons a supernatural entity. In her feature debut, director Elle Callahan transforms a meager budget into an atmospheric tale. The film’s more deliberate pacing means it won’t be for everyone, but Head Count does offer up one of the year’s most memorable scares.


Girls with Balls – Netflix

An all-girls volleyball team finds themselves hunted by back wooded locals when their van breaks down in the middle of nowhere. Yet, the hunters soon discover they might have bitten off more than they can chew with this resourceful bunch. Girls with Balls is so unapologetically goofy that it’s sure to perplex some. It doesn’t take itself seriously in the least and is sure to offend some with its sense of humor. For those that like their gore with a heaping helping of irreverence, though, it’s a fun one. The film marks the directorial debut by Olivier Alfonso, a notable special makeup effects artist who’d previously worked on RawLeatherfaceAmong the Living, and more. So, you know he applies his expertise on viscera here.


Final Prayer – Tubi

Also known as The Borderlands, this found footage film wins major points for its unusual ending. With a setup similar to The Wicker Man, the film follows a team of Vatican investigators who embark on a remote village to discover the truth behind reports of paranormal activity surrounding the village’s church. The locals are weird, and the truth is even stranger. Effective scares and atmosphere, great performances by the leads, and, again, a baffling ending make for a memorable entry in a maligned sub-genre.


To Let – Tubi

Mario and his pregnant girlfriend are trying to find a new place to live with severe time constraints. Their search leads them to an old building in an abandoned neighborhood. Naturally, it’s a trap. Part of the Films to Keep You Awake TV series, Jaume Balagueró ([REC]Sleep Tight) brings the blood and violence with this one. Even better, it’s only an hour and nine minutes long. Quick and vicious.


The Vineyard – Tubi

If you’re in the mood for pure ‘80s insanity, this is the selection for you. Starring, co-directed and co-written by James Hong (best known as Lo Pan from Big Trouble in Little China), The Vineyard follows a famous winegrower who happens to have a secret elixir for eternal youth. The only problem is that it’s losing its potency, so he invites a group of aspiring actors to his island and believes one of them to be his new source of life. There’s plenty of sleaze, spiders infestations, ax-wielding maniacs, voodoo curses, zombies, and more. It’s a kitchen sink of ‘80s horror strangeness.


The Happiness of the Katakuris – Prime Video

A family moves to the country to run a remote mountainside hotel, but to their horror, the customers begin dying in outlandish and unlikely ways. On paper, the plot sounds a lot like Psycho. Except, this movie was helmed by one of the supreme leaders of the bizarre; Takashi Miike. So, it’s nothing at all like it sounds. There’s singing and dancing, stop motion animation sequences, zombies, death, and the general eccentricities that Miike’s output tends to have. In other words, it’s a blast.


Paperhouse – Prime Video

Before Candyman, Bernard Rose directed this surreal horror-fantasy that sees a lonely girl making friends with a sickly boy that she meets in the dream world she created. Dreams sometimes turn into nightmares, though. Rose creates a unique aesthetic with haunting visuals, but it’s the emotional poignancy of the central characters and their journey that makes this a real standout. Bleak and heartbreaking, but with innocence and hope.


The Seventh Curse – Prime Video

This Hong Kong action/horror/fantasy hybrid dials up the pulp insanity to eleven, delivering an insane crowd-pleaser in the process. After saving a young princess from being sacrificed to the worm god, a cop is stricken with a blood curse. He has seven days to return to the jungle to find the cure, or he’ll bleed to death. There are feuds, evil sorcerers, worm gods, vengeful skeletons, monsters, and more. Expect the blood to flow freely, too, as this is from the same director behind the ultraviolent Riki-Oh: The Story of Ricky. Gather your friends and pizza, and settle in.


The Baby – Shudder

An absurdist slice of ‘70s cult cinema. The plot, in which a social worker attempts to rescue an adult “baby” from his abusive family, doesn’t quite prepare you for what’s in store. It’s downright bonkers and unnerving, in that you have to see it to believe it sort of way. The Baby isn’t entirely the most competently made film, but it is so jaw-droppingly entertaining that you won’t care.

Horror journalist, RT Top Critic, and Critics Choice Association member. Has appeared on PBS series' Monstrum, served on the SXSW Midnighter shorts jury, and moderated horror panels for WonderCon, SeriesFest, and Popcorn Frights Film Fest.

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Brazilian Werewolf Fable ‘Good Manners’ Finally Gets Physical Media Release

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GOOD MANNERS blu-ray

One of contemporary horror’s best werewolf movies is 2017’s Good Manners, and it’s finally set to receive a proper physical media release.

Icarus Films is partnering with OCN Distribution to unleash a new Blu-ray that’s now available to preorder via Vinegar Syndrome. and with a limited edition slipcover.

Set in São Paulo, the film follows Clara, a lonely nurse from the outskirts of the city who is hired by mysterious and wealthy Ana to be the nanny of her soon to be born child. Against all odds, the two women develop a strong bond. But a fateful night marked by a full moon changes their plans.

Good Manners is the second collaboration between filmmakers Juliana Rojas and Marco Dutra, who write and direct. Zama’s Rui Poças‘ cinematography captures this unique werewolf tale described as “Disney meets Jacques Tourneur.”

Our own Trace Thurman wrote in his review, “With Good Manners, Rojas and Dutro have made one of the best werewolf movies ever made. That they are able juggle commentaries on racism and classism while still managing to tell two deeply affecting love stories is remarkable.”

BONUS FEATURES:

  • Commentary from film critics Shelagh Rowan-Legg and Carolyn Mauricette
  • 12-page booklet with an essay by film critic Nicolas Pedrero-Setzer
  • Making-of short film: The Making of a Werewolf (2 mins)
  • Two additional short films from the filmmakers: A STEM (15 mins), directed by Juliana Rojas & Marco Dutras, and DOPPELGANGER (24 mins), directed by Juliana Rojas

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