The spooky season is once again upon us, and with that comes necessary horror viewing.
Sure, you could always revisit the classics (we’re talking your Halloween, Friday the 13th, Scream – and they’re iconic for a reason, so no judgement), but half the fun of the Halloween season is unearthing something scarily unexpected. Between endless scrolling and algorithm fatigue, it’s easy to overlook the lesser-known gems that deserve the same cult status. So, here at The AU Review we’ve done the digging for you!
Here’s a curated list of Halloween watches (we thought we’d go one better than a usual 10) that go beyond the usual suspects, perfect for anyone who loves their chills with a side of discovery.
Creep (2014)
Everybody loves a good found footage film, and this is right up there with The Blair Witch Project and Paranormal Activity. A man responds to an ad looking for somebody to follow them around with a video camera for a day and his requests get increasingly uncomfortable. It’s simple but effective, with satisfying chills throughout. The sequel is also worth checking out for a unique spin on the first (Dylan Oxley).
Available to stream on Netflix.
Doctor Sleep (2019)
This sequel to Stephen King’s The Shining (1980) shouldn’t be dismissed. It is an epic standalone that has a great story, interesting characters and stars to boot. Directed by none other than Mike Flanagan, Doctor Sleep is a look at what happens to little Danny when he grows up (spoiler alert, he becomes Ewan McGregor). Dan has his ability to shine and befriends a young child who has the same ability. Meanwhile, a crew of misfits led by Rose the Hat (Rebecca Ferguson), search for people with the shining in order to feed off it to survive. And my favourite part, when we return to the Overlook Hotel, Dan gets to reunite with his father in the form of The Bartender played by Henry Thomas, who does a phenomenal job of capturing Jack Nicholson’s demented persona in the original Kubrick film (Penny Spirou).
Available to stream on SBS On Demand.
Excision (2012)
Potentially triggering and offensive, Excision is not for the faint of heart. But it’s bold visuals and disturbing insight into a sexually curious, disturbed, delusional high-school student, with aspirations of a career in medicine, who goes to extremes to earn the approval of her controlling mother mask a tragic coming-of-age narrative that many teens are likely to relate to – just, you know, without all the neon-soaked blood dreams! (Peter Gray).
Available to stream on Prime Video.
The First Omen (2024)
Many have tried and failed by taking icons of horror cinema and trying to breath new life into them for the next generation (see The Exorcist: Believer). But The First Omen, which is a prequel to The Omen (a 1976 film, which was remade in 2006) is as haunting as it is beautiful. But please if you are pregnant or with a newborn, maybe give it a miss this Halloween. There are some birthing scenes that will surely traumatise; those visuals are hard to forget. The star, Nell Tiger Free, is as disturbingly sweet as she is in Apple TVs Servant series and delivers a fantastic performance as an American nun who moves to a Catholic orphanage in Rome, discovering sinister and demonic happenings (Penny Spirou).
Available to stream on Disney+.
Hush (2016)
Fans of Mike Flanagan (see greatest horror series of all time: 2018’s The Haunting of Hill House) will need to travel back in time only just a little bit to witness an underrated horror called Hush. Starring the very talented Kate Siegel (co-writer, and also wife of Flanagan), this film does something very unique with disability. The main character, a hearing-impaired woman, comes face to face with an attacker in a remote cabin in the woods (as you do in a classic horror flick). Plenty of films take a person with disability and turn them into a villain. In Hush, she is a hero, using her disability to outwit and outplay the attacker. It is a heart-pounding marathon. Well worth the watch (Penny Spirou).
Available to stream on Shudder, AMC+ and Plex.
It Follows (2014)
You can tell that David Robert Mitchell is a big John Carpenter fan from both the cinematic style and eerie score of this film. It’s about a sexually-transmitted death curse that manifests as a murderous mute, whom only the “infected” can see, making a slow beeline for them until they pass it on. Fans of Smile and The Ring will enjoy the sense of dread and paranoia (Dylan Oxley).
Available to stream on Prime Video.
Midsommar (2019)
There’s horrific and disturbing imagery in Midsommar that still disturb, yet live rent-free in my head to this day! Director Ari Aster commands an equally spellbinding and petrifying adventure for Florence Pugh as she ventures into the world’s most bone-chilling (yet supportive?) cult with a lot of relevant and personal messages on our values in life and society (Tony Ling).
Available to stream on SBS On Demand.
Oddity (2024)
If I were to explain the premise of this film to you, it would be completely insane and make absolutely no sense. But to watch this film, is to love it. You will not realise how long you will hold your breath for, as the suspense is so thick you can cut through it with a guillotine. The story surrounds a visually impaired clairvoyant, Darcy Odello whose twin sister, Dani, is murdered (both played by Carolyn Bracken). Somewhere in-between a life-sized wooden golem comes into play. What follows is very subtle and intense, a quirky little idea that manifests into a pretty decent horror flick (Penny Spirou).
Available to stream on Shudder and AMC+.
The Ritual (2017)
This modern folk horror puts Nordic mythology in a survival setting and makes you not only afraid of what lurks in the woods, but also yourself. It has a story grounded in reality at its heart and feels like something that Ari Aster might make if he had four British actors in a Swedish forest. Some of the shots are stunning, but the real beauty (terror?) comes from what you don’t see (Dylan Oxley).
Available to stream on Netflix.
Sinister (2012)
The unsettling atmosphere and creepy visuals of this haunted house horror give it a James Wan-esque feel. A crime writer (Ethan Hawke) and his family move into a new house when strange occurrences begin to make his wife and children question what he values more: them or his work. It also has some of the best jump scares in recent memory, including a gnarly opening credit sequence (Dylan Oxley).
Available to stream on Stan.
Wolf (1994)
A werewolf movie unlike any other – but given it’s from the director of such classic dramas Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966), The Graduate (1967), and Silkwood (1983), should we be surprised? – Wolf is a dark romantic tale that blends the growing relationship between Jack Nicholson‘s publishing editor and a headstrong Michelle Pfeiffer amongst a series of brutal werewolf attacks that Nicholson believes he’s responsible for. Traditional horror fans may not appreciate the more slow burn approach to Nicholson’s eventual transformation, but if you’d like a dark, passionate watch this Halloween that’s more intelligent than the usual genre fare, this sexy, violent gem is worth uncovering (Peter Gray).
