James R | On 27, Oct 2020

If you’re looking for something spooky to stream this Halloween, Amazon Prime Video definitely has you covered. For £5.99 a month, the site’s horror line-up is scarily diverse, covering everything from recent remakes and cult comedy to modern and old classics. If subscription VOD services are meant to be missing all the movies from before the 1990s, Amazon’s team clearly didn’t get the memo.

We round up the best horror movies on Amazon Prime Video, some spooky, some silly – all of them perfect for Halloween.

Midsommar

Surreal, scary, funny and freaky, Ari Aster’s operatic folk horror is a trip that’s worth taking.

Shaun of the Dead

“You’ve got red on you…”

Constantine

Keanu Reeves might not be a ringer for the comic book antihero, but this feature-length outing for the occult detective is an entertainingly chilling ride – with a scene-stealing turn from Tilda Swinton.

Available until 6th November

Cube

A group of strangers wake up to find themselves in a cube-shaped room that is booby-trapped with nasty puzzles. They escape, only to find another cube next to it. And another. And another. Splice director Vincenzo Natali’s sci-fi horror is a wonderfully trashy B-movie with enough blood to match its bonkers premise.

The Woman in Black

Daniel Radcliffe impresses in this enjoyably creepy ride through haunted house conventions.

What We Do in the Shadows

Taiki Waititi’s vampire comedy is moving, clever and mercilessly quick, but most of all, it’s bleeding funny.

American Psycho

Director Mary Harron’s stylish and side-splitting adaptation of Bret Easton Ellis’ controversial novel showcases Christian Bale’s unnerving performance and some of the scariest pop tunes of the decade.

Available until 4th November

The Void

A blood-soaked man limping down a deserted road is rushed by a deputy sheriff to a nearby hospital with a skeleton crew. Trapped inside by hooded figures, he discovers that the patients and staff are transforming into something inhuman. This 80s horror pastiche is a cult film in every sense of the word.

Donnie Darko

Richard Kelly’s enigmatic, mind-bending fusion of teen movie, horror flick and sci-fi thriller is an instant cult classic.

The Blair Witch Project

A trio of filmmakers go on what should have been a simple walk in the woods in this hugely influential, definitive found footage horror.

The Night Eats The World

The morning after a party, a young man wakes up to find that Paris has been invaded by zombies in this entertainingly intelligent undead flick.

The Cabinet of Dr Caligari

Robert Wiene’s silent horror is a seminal piece of expressionist cinema, delving into the bizarre, surreal mystery of a somnambulist who appears to have killed a man – but is he actually under the control of the mysterious Dr. Caligari?

Paranormal Activity

A young couple’s joy at moving into their own new home turns sour as sinister disturbances interrupt their sleep. A camcorder documents their increasingly distressing experience. When things don’t happen, it’s brilliantly disturbing. When they do, it’s a slight disappointment.

Cabin in the Woods

Drew Goddard’s satire of the horror genre is an entertaining blitz of horror and laughs.

Underworld

Kate Beckinsale kicks butt in this likeably cheesy vampire thriller, which is joined by all of its sequels on Amazon Prime.

Maggie

Arnie ditches his Terminator garb in favour of a small, indie horror about an anguished father in a post-apocalyptic word who is trying to save his daughter (Abigail Breslin) who is infected with a zombie virus.

Final Girl

Abigail Breslin stars in this stylish thriller that deliberately up-ends the standard stalk-and-slash set-up to entertaining effect.

Nocturne

A music student is possessed by obsessive ambition in this creepy, atmospheric chamber piece. One of four Blumhouse films made for Amazon Prime Video, it’s the strongest of the quartet.

Night of the Living Dead

George A Romero’s 1967 classc, which sees a group of people barricaded in a farmhouse to survive the reawakening of the dead, remains as chillingly relevant as ever.

Secret Santa

For sheer mayhem and in-PC carnage, this jet-black seasonal satire is a festive treat not for the whole family.

The Dark

The Dark is an admirably unique spin on the undead that doesn’t quite overcome its structural issues.

Here Comes Hell

Agatha Christie meets The Evil Dead in this enjoyable horror debut from Jack McHenry.

The Innkeepers

There’s something about corridors that freaks people out. Is it the ghost of The Shining lurking around the corner? Ti West does well to avoid it in his haunted hotel flick, The Innkeepers. Joining lacklustre staff members Claire (Sara Paxton) and Luke (Pat Healy) for the last few days of business, West’s workplace hangout feels closer to The Office than a horror movie – and that defiantly low-key shamble is mostly its best feature.

Plan 9 from Outer Space

Bela Lugosi stars in Ed Wood’s (unintentionally) seminal sci-fi horror, which sees aliens from outer space reanimate the Earth’s dead in an attempt to save the human race.

House on Haunted Hill (1958)

The inimitable Vincent Price stars as a suave, eccentric millionaire who invites five guests to spend the night in a sinister haunted house, offering each $10,000 but only if they survive until morning.

X The Man with the X Ray Eyes

A doctor uses special eye drops to give himself x-ray vision, but the new power has disastrous consequences in this classic 1960s B-movie.

Compliance

Craig Zobel’s horribly gripping thriller takes us right back to the horror of Milgram’s 1960s experiments that showed humans would do anything if they think they’re following orders. A phone call from a police officer to a fast food restaurant is the starting point for a nailbiting incident, with Ann Dowd excellent as the manager caught in the middle of the cop’s instructions. You’ll hate every second – but you won’t stop watching. This is horrible gripping stuff.

Anti Matter

This wonderfully ambitious micro-budget sci-fi follows Ana (Figueroa), a PhD student at Oxford, who accidentally invents a teleporting device. The resulting events dive into a rabbit hole and come out the other side with a gripping study of what makes us human.

Honeymoon

Paul and Bea are a young couple celebrating their marriage by going on holiday to a cabin in the woods. What could possibly go wrong? At first, not very much, as they make love, cook eggs and make lots more love. It’s a slow start that allows director Leigh Janiak to set up her central relationship, showcasing the natural chemistry the couple have. That focus is also what gives Honeymoon its creepy edge.

The Day of the Triffids

Based on the novel by John Wyndham, this 1962 British monster movie is a fantastic example of the genre.

Phenomena

A young girl, with an amazing ability to communicate with insects, is transferred to an exclusive Swiss boarding school, where her unusual capability might help solve a string of murders in Dario Argento’s 1985 classic.

Road Kill

Released in the USA as Joyride, this low-budget horror sees Paul Walker and Steve Zahn on fine form as road trippers who anger a trucker over a radio – and end up the victims of one man’s cruel revenge.

Pontypool

Shock jock Grant has been banished to the early morning slot on a small town station. A boring day turns deadly when reports come in of strange violent acts. It turns out a virus is infecting the town but it spreads through language. Does Grant stay on the air or keep quiet? Bruce McDonald’s underseen 2008 film is a hugely entertaining gem.

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