Nothing beats a weekend cosying up on the couch, armed with popcorn, Netflix, and the best horror movies ever created.
With Halloween just around the corner, now is the perfect time to binge-watch our favourite spooky flicks — and to take our minds off the actual horrors of our real world.
From sinister rituals to séances gone wrong and zombie attacks, our list of the best horror movies to stream on Netflix promises a spine-chilling evening.
Best horror movies on Netflix to watch this Halloween –
1. Verónica
2017 Spanish horror film Verónica created a stir on social media when viewers claimed that it was so scary that they had to stop watching midway due to its extreme gore. The Paco Plaza-directorial is inspired by a 1992 incident in Madrid when a teenage girl was attacked by a malevolent force after she used an Ouija board at school with her two friends.
Verónica, a schoolgirl who cares for her younger siblings, conducts a séance at school with her friends in an attempt to connect with her deceased father. During the process, the girls conjure an evil spirit that latches itself on Verónica. She then starts witnessing paranormal events at home and tries to protect her family from the demonic presence.
While Verónica did not make big on the award scales, it offered enough blood-curdling moments to deter us from ever messing with Ouija boards.
Watch it here.
2. The Ritual
Picture this: You lose a friend after a tragic incident and decide to honour his or her memory with a hiking trip, only for it to land you in danger — because of one wrong turn. This British horror-mystery film by David Bruckner, inspired by a 2011 Adam Nevill novel of the same name, is based on this premise.
Six months after their friend’s brutal killing, four university buddies decide to reunite for a trek through Sweden’s King’s Trail. Things begin to go awry after one of them injures himself, prompting them to take a shortcut that leads to a series of creepy, unexplained occurrences.
Without giving too much away, what happens next involves a terrifying beast lurking in the woods.
Watch it here.
3. Under The Shadow
Imagine living in a war-torn country where your home, which is supposed to be your safest place, is haunted by a supernatural being. As if you didn’t already have enough problems.
Babak Anvari’s Persian-language Iranian horror film Under The Shadow takes viewers back to the 1980s during the Iran-Iraq war. When a building is hit by a missile, one of its occupants becomes suspicious that it’s cursed by djinns, evil spirits steeped in Middle Eastern folklore, which may attempt to harm her daughter. She then struggles to keep the demons away from her child at home while fighting the fear of losing her husband at war, all at the same time.
While the film begins on a slow pace, it picks up eventually with its masterful combination of the horrors of war and the supernatural, and becomes a gripping, thrilling watch.
Watch it here.
4. Shutter
A young photographer and his girlfriend start to witness horrifying entities in their pictures after being involved in a hit-and-run accident. They initially think that it is the deceased victim’s soul haunting them, but eventually come to learn that it’s an unpleasant mistake of the past that is refusing to leave them alone.
The 2004 film was critically acclaimed for its storyline and execution and became a commercial success worldwide. It was so popular that it sparked several remakes in English, Hindi and Tamil.
Watch it here.
5. Overlord
An action-horror flick, Overlord takes place in an alternate World War 2 setting and follows American soldiers on D-Day when they cross enemy lines — only to discover the dark secrets of Nazi experiments. They then find themselves embroiled in a battle against an army of the undead.
The JJ Abrams-produced film opened to positive reviews for its innovative spin on the war film genre. Do note it doesn’t hold back on the gore and violence — one of its most unnerving scenes depicts a talking severed head.
Watch it here.
This story first appeared on Prestige Singapore
(Main image: Overlord/ IMDB; Featured image: Verónica / IMDB)
The post The Most Spine-Tingling Horror Movies to Watch on Netflix This Halloween appeared first on Prestige Online - Hong Kong.