Netflix and kill: Top underrated horror films on Netflix UK
Martyn Conterio | On 24, Aug 2016
When Danish philosopher Soren Kierkegaard discussed his theory “the anxiety of freedom”, he was clearly talking about what to watch on Netflix. There are so many films to choose from, it’s difficult to know where to start. It can feel a little bit like those halcyon days of trawling the aisles at the video store (remember them?), looking at the cover art and reading the blurbs.
That’s why we’ve hand-picked some horror recommendations currently available on Netflix. You already know from our reviews elsewhere that we love Creep. Instead, this list is a mixture of the new, the old and the forgotten. Happy viewing!
Poltergeist II
Julian Beck scared the bejesus out of us, when we first saw Poltergeist II (1986) on the telly, circa 1995. Beck, an experimental theatre pioneer and some-time movie actor, was suffering from terminal stomach cancer during filming and he died not long after. This explains why Beck looks like a walking corpse and is so effective in the role of Henry Kane, a demonic preacher who targets the Freeling family. With his freaky look, malevolent intent and high-pitched southern gent voice, Beck gave to the world, as a parting gift, one of the scariest screen villains in horror movie history.
The Keep
Best known for his action thrillers, Michael Mann’s second directorial effort has become a cult item. A horror movie about Nazis coming a cropper in a Romanian castle, when they accidentally unleash a supernatural force, it doesn’t make one lick of sense (the film was butchered in the editing room, after Mann turned in a three-hour cut), but thanks to top-notch cinematography and Tangerine Dream’s electronic noodling, The Keep (1983) is a keeper.
The Invitation
Invited to his ex-wife’s Hollywood hills home for a reconciliation and get together with old pals, Will (Logan Marshall-Green, aka. Tom Hardly) begins to wonder if there’s something sinister going on. Karyn Kasuma’s The Invitation is allowed to breathe like an expensive Napa Valley merlot, and the pay-off is superb. Not only a great horror film, it’s also one of 2016’s best, full stop.
The Believers
Martin Sheen tackles devil-worshippers in John Schlesinger’s 1987 Satanic panic thriller, The Believers. A work of unusual pedigree, the film revolves around a psychoanalyst uncovering a network of fiends involved in child ritual sacrifice and a Hispanic form of witchcraft, known as Brujería. A top supporting cast and cinematography by renowned German DoP, Robby Müller, sets it apart from other 1980s horror flicks about devil-worshippers.
Let’s Scare Jessica to Death
The very definition of a hidden gem in the horror mine. Made way back in 1971, Let’s Scare Jessica to Death takes a very confused heroine and plays around with her sanity. It’s eerie and frankly, more people need to see it.
30 Days of Night
Based on a cool-as graphic novel, this Sam Raimi backed vampire nightmare is set in an inspired locale: Alaska. Clearly indebted to the masterworks of John Carpenter, 30 Days of Night (2007) presents the vampire clan as feral and otherworldly creatures. They’re pure killing machines, not New Romantic goths or sparkly loved up teens. Claustrophobic, intense and scary, David Slade’s film is loads of bloody fun.
Invaders from Mars
Tobe Hooper’s 1986 remake of William Cameron Menzies 1953 classic is not the disaster the history books detail. If you loved Stranger Things, here’s the type of movie it was riffing on in all its authentic 1980s glory. The final scene is super-creepy.
Lifeforce
Before Tobe Hooper made Invaders from Mars, he delivered Lifeforce (1985). A love letter to Hammer’s Quatermass films, Lifeforce is absolutely fantastic in terms of visual imagination, and absolutely crackers in terms of plot. Matilda May’s naked space vampire is iconic, too. They honestly don’t make ‘em like this anymore. Dan O’Bannon co-wrote the script with Dan Jacoby. The pair also penned Invaders from Mars.