[Editorial] Best of Netflix Horror Films Part 2

After her recommendations on the Classics, Modern Masterpieces and Something A Little Netflix-Nasty in part 1, here Elizabeth Bishop continues with a definitive list of horrors that you can watch on everyone’s favourite streaming service – Netflix (as of Tuesday 18 January 2022).

Just for fun:

Looking for horror with a bit more amusement and excitement? Something that you can watch and enjoy over dinner or with a group of friends/family? Try The Babysitter (2017) – a glorious teenage romp with the stunning and enigmatic Samara Weaving at its helm. 

The dark comedy follows Cole (Judah Lewis) as he hatches a plan to stay up late and spy on his babysitter Bee (Weaving). Unfortunately, though, he quickly comes to regret his idea when he becomes witness to a satanic sacrifice. Cue some gory deaths, some awesome chase scenes and lots of comic relief from the gorgeous but dim-witted supporting cast.

Probably the only family-friendly film in our list, Vampires vs The Bronx (2020) gave me big ‘Lost Boys for a new generation’ energy. It has all the familiar vampire tropes, and the warmth and nostalgic feeling of the 80s but it’s set in modern America, where social media is King.

Vampires vs The Bronx is a fun and charming horror-comedy for fans of all ages that would make for a perfect yearly Halloween watch with all the kids.

If you’re anything like me and my parents, you will LOVE a good creature feature on a Sunday afternoon with your roast dinner. 

47 Meters Down Uncaged (2019) follows four teenage girls as they go diving in a ruined underwater city. Things start to go wrong fairly quickly as one of the girls disturbs the ruins, trapping them down there with a decreasing amount of oxygen and an increasing amount of deadly white sharks.

This underwater horror is ridiculous and cheesy in all the right ways, and tense, gory and jumpy in all the right places.

When watching this with my mom and dad - all three of us were sat on the edge of our seats in the final scenes shouting “SWIM! SWIIIMMMMMM!” at the screen, hoping that they would make it out alive. But maybe we just have terrible taste in movies? Who knows.

Honourable Mentions:

• Escape Room (2019)

• Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark (2019)

• Drag me to Hell (2009)

Something Familiar:

People are often quick to turn their noses up at remakes, especially within the horror community as we have a biiiig love for the classics and the way they inspired and changed the genre. However, I think most of us would agree that Dawn of the Dead (2004) is one of, if not THE exception. Gory as all hell, and terrifying from the very beginning – this is one remake that honours, and for some even beats, the original.

A less popular remake, but one that I would encourage everyone to give the chance, is Black Christmas (2019). Aside from the fact that it fits very nicely into everyone’s favourite ‘Good for Her’ sub-genre by bringing back the themes of misogyny and feminism that its original 1974 counterpart had - it’s also a really fun and festive frolic – utilising the cheer and traditions of the holiday to give us some truly inspired kills and laughs. 

Becky Darke covers it as part of our 12 Ghouls of Christmas series, and Kim Morrison looked at all 3 iterations in her Sorority Sisters and Seasonal Slayings piece. 

You might have missed…

With Netflix updating on a weekly basis, and a lot of their content either eagerly anticipated or going viral within days of its release, it's really easy to miss things that have been added.

One that I didn’t see too much hype around, but that you are really gonna wanna go in blind with is I See You (2020). It’s one of those thrillers where you think you know exactly where it’s going, and then you’re suddenly presented with something completely different – something you never even realised you were scared of until it’s in front of your face.

I See You is truly a hidden gem that will have you checking under your bed… and in your wardrobes… and in your loft, before you sleep.

Before he became everyone’s favourite goth boyfriend in Jennifer’s Body, Ghouls Magazine favourite Kyle Gallner starred in The Haunting in Connecticut (2009) – a chilling tale of a family forced to relocate to a decrepit old house with a horrific history. It doesn’t reinvent the wheel when it comes to haunted house tales, but it has some really fun scares and juicy special effects.

If you’re looking for more social commentary than spooky and supernatural, try Spree (2020)– the story of Kurt (Joe Keery – Stranger Things) - a cab driver for a pseudo-Uber service, who longs desperately for internet fame and notoriety – no matter the cost. When his attempts to gain more followers fail repeatedly, he comes up with an elaborate new scheme which he names #TheLesson – a livestream demonstrating to viewers how easy it is to get away with murder.

There’s so much fun to be had with this little found-footage rampage. Joe Keery gives such a manic, off-kilter and unfamiliar performance that you can’t help but watch with pure glee.

Honourable Mentions:

• Creep (2014)

• Wrong Turn (2021)

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