[Editorial] Best of Netflix Horror Films Part 1

As the horror aficionado of my friendship group, I’m often asked for genre recommendations – and it’s normally from friends who believe that “nothing is scary anymore”. 

Well, I am here to tell you that that is simply not true. For a start, horror is subjective – what you find scary may be completely laughable to the person sat next to you in the cinema and vice versa. The key is finding what makes you scared. Aliens? Monsters? Ghosts? Humans? Sharks? We are in a golden age of horror and it’s more accessible than ever.

So here I am, with what I would consider the definitive list of horrors that you can watch on everyone’s favourite streaming service – Netflix (as of Tuesday 18 January 2022). I’d like to think there’s something here for everyone, including obvious titles that should be ticked off by everyone interested in the genre, as well as some hidden gems you may have missed or never even heard of.

Let’s kick things off with some of the most obvious ones – the classics, and the rites of passage:

With the resurgence of slashers hitting our screens at the moment, I would be remiss not to mention one of the most important and famous of all - Halloween (1978). If you haven’t seen this one, you are either living under a rock or you have already decided that slashers are just not your cup of tea.

If it’s the rock thing, then put this to the top of your list and witness the birth of one of the most-loved and iconic final girls of all time – Laurie Strode – before jumping aboard the hype train just in time for the final instalment in the new trilogy this year.

I always say that if there is one film in the history of all films for which I could live through the promo, hype and the experience of seeing it for the first time in a packed cinema, it would be The Blair Witch Project (1999). (Technically, I was alive, but I was 9 years old and in my Spiceworld phase).

The Blair Witch Project was not the first, but it is probably the most famous for kicking off the found footage craze that erupted during the early 00s.

“The Blair Witch Project is a simple story, told perfectly, that remains terrifying almost 25 years later. This film trusts its audience. It’s hard to become desensitised to the scares, because so much is left up to the viewer's imagination. If you have never watched this movie, or if it’s been a while since you revisited it, please give it a watch. I recommend you put your phone away and watch it with the lights off and volume up.” – Ariel Powers-Schaub.

Now, you may be wondering why I have chosen to include The Descent (2005) - a film that came out a mere 16 years ago - under the Classics category? The answer is: because it is simply brilliant and, in my eyes, a British horror classic that will stand the test of time. I recommend this film to absolutely anyone and everyone who hasn’t seen it – I love it so much.

Following a horrendous tragedy, a group of friends go caving in the Appalachian Mountains and quickly find themselves trapped. The Descent has many layers of terror, and one of the best jump-scares in horror history. It’s tense from the minute it begins and doesn’t let up for the duration. The perfect girls-night-in scary movie.

Afraid of the dark? You will be.

If you prefer your horror with a touch more heart, I recently revisited Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein (1994) and absolutely loved it. It’s cheesy, it's over the top, and it's full of unnecessary scenes of Kenneth Branagh running around topless BUT it also tells the classic story of a scientist gone mad, and the way it ultimately destroys him.

There are some seriously grim moments that I had completely erased from my memory, but Helena Bonham Carter's performance is, as always, unforgettable. 

Honourable Mentions:

• Bride (1998) and Seed of Chucky (2004)

• Candyman (1992)

• Thirteen Ghosts (2001)

Moving on to Modern Masterpieces:

First item on your modern horror checklist should be to treat yourself to a day vs night, ‘good for her’ double bill with the phenomenal Hereditary (2018) and Midsommar (2019) from director Ari Aster.

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Whilst the films couldn’t be more different visually, they’re both slow burn emotional horrors dealing with similar themes of grief, loss, relationship breakdowns and female suffering. Neither are packed with jump-scares; they instead drip-feed the dread into your veins until your whole body feels cold with fear. (There are also some startlingly violent scenes if that’s your bag).

Toni Collette and Florence Pugh solidify their places in the Horror Hall of Fame with their performances, with many of us still FURIOUS that they were snubbed by the Oscars. 

There are certain films that you’re always shocked to hear a Horror fan say they have never seen, and one of those films came to light recently when I realised that a fellow Ghouls contributor had never gotten around to seeing Insidious (2010)! 

This is not to say there is anything wrong with not having seen certain films – we all have a limited amount of time on this earth, and it is absolutely down to us individually what we do with it – but boy oh boy, is this film worth your time.

Insidious is a gamechanger in terms of scares, with probably my most favourite jump of all time (I showed a friend the film recently and he jumped so hard he physically injured me). The score is also unbelievable – a mix of haunting old songs and screechy high-pitched violins that make your skin feel itchy. 

The final act is divisive amongst fans, and I will admit that it isn’t as perfectly executed as it could have been, but I will still defend this one for as long as I live and breathe.

Mike Flanagan and Kate Siegel are the married director-actress team that are now most recognised for The Haunting of Hill House/Bly Manor and Midnight Mass, however, before the success of these original Netflix series, there was Hush (2016).

Siegel plays Maddie, a deaf and mute writer who must fight for her life when a masked killer breaks into her home. With no way to hear him coming, or call for help, the tension becomes palpable as we watch Maddie scramble for ways to survive. Hush will have you on the edge of your seat, screaming pointlessly at the screen as things go from bad, to worse, to deadly. 

After the success of Riverdale, Stranger Things and most recently the Fear Street trilogy, it’s no surprise that Netflix are really cashing in on the murder mystery x teenage angst x neon lighting combo with another original title – There’s Someone Inside Your House (2021). 

This teen slasher is, in no way, unique to any others, but it does feel like the most impressive reboot of the genre yet. It’s fun, it’s hella violent, and unlike Fear Street – the characters are genuinely likeable. The opening scene alone is worth tuning in (and scrunching your eyes shut) for.

Honourable Mentions:

• His House (2020)

• Sinister (2015)

• The Conjuring (2013)

Something a little Netflix-Nasty

Is there anything better than a good old fashioned revenge movie? What about one where the woman not only gets her revenge on a disgusting excuse for a man, but also uses that revenge to reinvent herself and further her own new career? Sound good? Then American Mary (2012) is for you my friend.

Written and directed by, and starring, the Soska Sisters, American Mary is a revenge movie with a twist. Instead of the protagonist aligning herself with other mistreated women and exacting her violent revenge quickly and cleanly, Mary integrates herself into a world of body modification enthusiasts, who introduce her to a whole new way of inflicting pain. 

For something a little more political and dystopian, there is Galder Gaztelu-Urrutia’s Spanish horror thriller The Platform (2019). 

Focusing on a brutal experiment based in a vertical prison, we see two cellmates sharing a single small room on a floor with a giant hole in the middle. Each day, a descending meal platform arrives for a brief interval allowing the cellmates to help themselves to food. “If everyone ate only what they needed,” an administrator explains, “the food would reach the lowest levels.”

Of course, though, in a 200-story prison, where the inmates spend a month on a floor before moving lower or higher on the food-chain, desperation prevails and those on the higher floors take what they can while they can – in the fear of not knowing where they will be next.

The Platform is visceral, and bleak, and really makes you question how you would behave being put in such a situation. Fans of Snowpiercer would probably really get on with this one.

Honourable Mentions:

• Apostle (2018)

• Hostel (2005) and Hostel Part II (2011)

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