Streaming services may provide more ways than ever to offer genre fans their favorite programming, but often they have to perform the onerous task of verifying the content that's worth binging from the kind that can be skipped. Shudder arrived to solve this problem for horror fans by not only providing them nothing but scary movies, but succinct categories for all their favorite subgenres, from slasher to murder mystery and beyond.
Shudder's only problem is that it has so much entertaining content, it's difficult for viewers to know where to start. Like Netflix, Amazon, and Hulu, it offers its own original content that has been proving just as innovative and shocking as the latest horror films from big production companies.
10 Spiral
One of Shudder's newest releases and already one of its most pertinent, Kurtis David Harder's Canadian horror film Spiral offers a subversive investigation of the erosion of small town life when it's confronted by outsiders unable to conform to its quaint template.
When Malik and Aaron (Jeffrey Bowyer-Chapman and Ari Cohen) move into a cute little town to raise their daughter, they never expect the sort of hostility they encounter at the hands of their neighbors. What they first find to be a welcoming community turns sinister when they realize the truth behind the plastered smiles and plates of welcome home pie.
9 Gwen
Fans of beautifully shot and atmospheric horror films will want to be transported with Gwen, William McGregor's folksy tale about a spirited young woman trying to survive in the harsh environs of 19th century Wales.
Gwen (Eleanor Worthington-Cox) suffers abuse from being put in the middle of an impossible situation: keeping her family together while her father dies of an illness, and battling a mining company that wants their land. She soon discovers that under extreme duress her circumstances can take a supernatural bend. The film speaks to survivors of loss who feel helpless against a faceless threat, and acts as a strong metaphor for remorse.
8 Black Noire: A History Of Black Horror
This Shudder-produced documentary Black Noire: A History Of Black Horror by Xavier Burgin explores the impact of African-Americans on horror cinema history, from the trope of people of color always dying first, to Night of the Living Dead producing the first Black leading man in Duane Jones.
Black influence is chronicled in both a passive and an active sense, adapted from the pages of the book of the same name by Robin R. Means Coleman, and becomes vitally important to understanding not only the past contributions of Black excellence in horror, but its bright future through filmmakers like Jordan Peele.
7 Host
One of Shudder's summer 2020 releases, Host capitalizes on the unstable nature of today's world by presenting a film that preys on anxiety and uncertainty. The film was based on a short by Rob Savage, who initially designed it as a prank in which he investigated odd attic sounds while on a video chat with a group of friends.
Savage decided to use the same format for a feature film, encouraging his actors to remotely set up their own lighting, cameras, and practical effects before guiding them through how to operate them effectively. The film itself focuses on a group of teens whose Zoom call turns into a supernatural creep show, further proving that the horror genre will always push new boundaries even in the middle of a pandemic.
6 Christmas Presence
Some horror fans need something to enjoy during the most festive time of the year, so in the spirit of such haunting holiday favorites as Red Christmas and Krampus, Shudder adds Christmas Presence to their naughty list.
James Edward Cooks offers a bright amalgamation of horror and comedy with his winter's tale about a group of friends gathering at a remote log cabin for some egg nog, only to have merrymakers start disappearing before it can be spiked. What follows is a gory massacre that will either be the gift that keeps on giving for horror fans, or the cinematic equivalent of a lump of coal.
5 The Beach House
Jeffrey A. Brown makes his directorial debut with The Beach House, a film that begins as a lively frolic for a young couple interested in taking a vacation to their beach getaway— only to find that they must share the house with an older couple while a nightmarish infection sweeps the shoreline.
For a debut film with a relatively low budget, Brown manages to ratchet up the tension and create a taut bio-ecological thriller that evokes a '50s sci-fi mood, while infusing it with far more disgusting body horror special effects than anything of that era.
4 Revenge
Fans that might be put off by its simplistic title will miss the dynamic and terrifying film that Revenge proves to be. Coralie Fargeat's vengeful tale focuses on a hunting expedition in Morocco that goes awry after the men involved begin to fight over one of the hunter's girlfriends, played by Matilda Lutz.
The woman is eventually left for dead after the men are done with her, and she begins to concoct a harrowing revenge plan that will ensure each man understands the meaning of pain and degradation. A wild and visceral ride, Revenge is not for the faint of heart.
3 Deadtectives
Shudder doesn't have a terribly large selection of its own original horror-comedies yet, but Deadtectives is a worthy contribution with its satirical look at ghost hunting. When a crew of ghost hunters look to capture poltergeists (and ratings) on a trip to Mexico, they camp out at one of the country's premier haunted houses— and all ghosts break loose.
Fans of films like Ghostbusters will appreciate the deft blend of bumbling slapstick comedy and genuinely frightening visual effects as they watch the inept crew battle their way out of the house.
2 Belzebuth
Fans of Saw's Jigsaw will be interested in Belzebuth, which features Tobin Bell as a Vatican priest who must help a detective investigate a sudden massacre at a primary school. Detective Ritter believes it was committed by one of its students, while the priest believes the perpetrator was a powerful supernatural entity.
This Mexican horror film, directed by Emilio Portes of Pastorela fame, offers atmospheric cinematography, commanding performances, and the right balance of reason and religious faith that characterizes films like The Exorcist and La Llorona.
1 Blood Quantum
The zombie genre is an already crowded category of horror films, and it can be difficult to be original. But Jeff Barnaby's Blood Quantum strives to be just that by creating a film about the undead that uses the concept of "blood quantum"— a term used in the United States as a basis for granting citizenry by determining indigeneity based on one's indigenous ancestry.
The horror films with the longest legs have some sort of message, and Blood Quantum presents itself as a zombie film with a sociopolitical subtext amidst its intense gore.
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