10 more underrated horror films to keep you terrified all October long
October is the most wonderful time of the year. Not December. It’s October. It’s the one time of the year where everyone is watching the same thing I am all year: horror movies.
Last October, I wrote an article that highlighted some underrated horror films I believed needed some love. Just like any great horror movie, there had to be a spontaneous sequel. This year, I have even more movies that deserve recognition. Get ready for some underrated spooks to indulge in this October:
10. The Bay (2012)
Directed by: Barry Levinson
Starring: Kether Donohue, Will Rogers, Kristen Connolly
Violence: YES
Sex: No
Strong Language: YES
As I discussed last year (in case you actually read my previous article and are currently following up on the sequel), “found footage” films are shot from the perspective of someone in the film. It’s meant to look like long-lost footage of a horrifying or shocking incident, hint the name. Found footage is a very popular subgenre in horror. The production method gained a lot of attention after the release of the groundbreaking film “The Blair Witch Project” in 1999. There are tons of found footage films out there because the filmmaking technique is often very cost-effective. Unfortunately, because there are so many, lots of incredible found footage films fly under the radar.
Synopsis: “The Bay” is one such film. It “documents” a seaside town in Maryland plagued by mysterious waterborne parasites that slowly take control of the host’s body. A happy fourth of July celebration ends in fear and bloodshed as the citizens come to realize just how violent these parasites can be.
Why I Like It: “Body horror” is yet another subgenre of horror. Body horror films are filled with disturbing and unnerving changes or violations of the human body. A good example would be “The Fly” or “The Thing.” “The Bay” is a terrific body horror film. Without giving too much away, I will say that the parasites are absolutely disgusting and the way they eventually take over humans’ bodies is…brutal. It made me squeamish and that’s pretty hard to do. The film also follows different citizens of the town, allowing the viewer to see how the parasites are affecting everyone. I think it’s really well thought out and the gore is surprisingly great for such a low budget film.
Available on Cinemax or for rent on Amazon Prime, YouTube, iTunes, Google Play, and Vudu!
9. The Host (2006)
Directed by: Bong Joon-ho
Starring: Song Kang-ho, Byun Hee-bong, Bae Doona
Violence: YES
Sex: No
Strong language: Yes
Synopsis: “The Host” is one of Bong Joon-ho’s earlier projects, long before “Parasite” took over the world. The movie opens with American military personnel dumping gallons of formaldehyde into the Han River in South Korea. Years later, a terrifying amphibious creature mutated from the pollution emerges from the river. The creature begins terrorizing citizens in a nearby town, snatching them up and killing them.
Why I Like It: I love Bong Joon-ho. I think he is possibly one of the smartest filmmakers of our time. He creates films with such profound messages, like Netflix’s “Okja.” “The Host” tells the story of a town tormented by this creature but, deeper than that, it’s about a town haunted by American imperialism. If it weren’t for the American military, the creature would never exist. The film also deals with militarization within South Korea and citizens protesting against the use of a biological weapon against the creature. “The Host” is undoubtedly a horror movie and one of the many horrors is humanity.
Available on Hulu, Tubi, Vudu, Pluto TV, or for rent on Amazon Prime, YouTube, Google Play, and iTunes!
8. Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark (2010)
Directed by: Troy Nixey
Starring: Katie Holmes, Bailee Madison, Guy Pearce
Violence: Yes
Sex: No
Strong language: A little bit
Synopsis: We were all afraid of the dark as kids. “Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark” plays on that age-old fear. It follows a lonely young girl stuck in a 19th-century mansion her father and his girlfriend are renovating. When the young girl stumbles upon the mansion’s creepy basement, she accidentally unleashes malevolent little creatures that hunt in the dark. The girl must make her father and his girlfriend aware of the threat before the creatures drag them all into their dark lair.
Why I Like It: I am obsessed with Guillermo del Toro. He is my favorite director in the entire world. He co-wrote this movie, so I’m a little biased. But I do love horror that plays on universal fears, especially the universal fears of children. There’s something deeply unsettling about a movie that affirms that there was, in fact, something to fear in the dark. Especially since the dark-dwelling creatures in this movie are so creepy looking!
Available on Netflix or for rent on Amazon Prime, YouTube, iTunes, and Google Play!
7. The Platform (2019)
Directed by: Galder Gaztelu-Urrutia
Starring: Iván Massagué, Antonia San Juan, Alexandra Masangkay
Violence: YES
Sex: Yes
Strong language: A little bit
Synopsis: The scariest thing in this world is people. “The Platform” proves that. When a man volunteers to be placed in one of the most harrowing prisons in the world, he is subjected to the brutality of the institution. The prison, called “The Hole,” is a vertical penitentiary with one cell per floor. No one knows how far down the prison goes. Starting at the top, a feast of delicious food is brought down once every day. Prisoners are only allowed to eat what is leftover from the people above them. The people on the top levels get first grabs at the provisions while those the bottom often fight to the death for scraps.
Why I Like It: It’s pretty easy to see the allegory for capitalism/wealth in general. The rich have all the resources and spare none for those on the lower end of the hierarchy, those who have to work day and night just to put food on the table. See it now? The characters were surprisingly complex, especially considering how briefly we see some of them. It’s also just a really gory movie. I love gore.
Available on Netflix!
6. Ginger Snaps (2000)
Directed by: John Fawcett
Starring: Katharine Isabelle, Emily Perkins, Kris Lemchee
Violence: Yes
Sex: A little bit
Strong language: Yes
Synopsis: Beware the moon. And your period. Ginger and Brigitte are two sisters obsessed with death. They are outcasts in their suburban town and they like it that way. On the night of Ginger’s first period, she is attacked by something in the woods. In the following weeks, Ginger’s behavior becomes increasingly strange and violent. Brigitte uncovers the terrifying truth about what attacked her sister and must save Ginger before she turns into a werewolf.
Why I Like It: I love coming of age films, werewolf films and angsty 90s movies. “Ginger Snaps” is all three wrapped up in one neat Canadian package (even though it came out in the very early 2000s…it still counts). I think it’s interesting how the film uses burgeoning female sexuality and menstruation cycles almost as an allegory for lycanthropy. But it also treats lycanthropy like a sexually transmitted infection at one point? I don’t know what they were trying to say, but I loved it. It felt like the werewolf cousin of “The Craft.”
Available on Amazon Prime, Tubi, Vudu, or for rent on YouTube and Google Play!
5. I See You (2019)
Directed by: Adam Randall
Starring: Helen Hunt, Owen Teague, Libe Barer
Violence: Yes
Sex: No
Strong language: Yes
Synopsis: A small town is rattled by a string of disappearances. Young boys are vanishing seemingly out of thin air and local police have no leads. The lead detective on the case is having issues of his own. His wife recently cheated on him and his son is an angry teen. Things only get stranger as mysterious occurrences start happening in his own home: silverware goes missing, family photos are being removed and his son is found tied up in the bathtub. The detective dives into one of the town’s past violent crimes in order to hopefully uncover clues.
Why I Like It: I hate spoilers. So it’s going to be very hard to explain why I love this movie so much without giving anything away. I will say that, while this movie seems more like a crime film/thriller, it definitely has horror elements in it. It felt like a horror movie to me. The mask seen in the trailer and poster is horrifying enough in itself. “I See You” is creepy and unnerving and so so smart. I still think about this movie and I watched it back in July.
Available on Amazon Prime (with a subscription) or for rent on YouTube, Google Play and Vudu!
4. Cronos (1993)
Directed by: Guillermo del Toro
Starring: Federico Luppi, Ron Perlman, Tamara Shanath
Violence: YES
Sex: No
Strong language: Yes
Synopsis: In 1563, an alchemist discovers the secret to eternal life. He creates a device that will grant the owner immortality. After a building collapses on the alchemist, his immortal device is ostensibly lost forever. In present-day Mexico, an antique store owner and his granddaughter discover a strange contraption that latches onto his skin and draws blood. The store owner soon becomes obsessed with it, allowing it to take his blood more often. The device grants the man new vitality…and a taste for human blood. While the store owner slowly transforms, a violent man is desperately seeking the device for his dying uncle.
Why I Like It: Again, I am an absolute sucker for Guillermo del Toro. He wrote and directed this movie so, to me, it’s perfect. The film has a really interesting take on the vampire myth and the creature design for them is refreshingly original. While it is a horror movie, it is also remarkably emotional. I will never cease to be amazed by del Toro’s ability to combine the profoundly sad with the grisly macabre. I could gush about that man for hours but I won’t do that here. This film is definitely an early masterpiece for del Toro. OK, I’m done.
Available on HBO Max or for rent on Amazon Prime, YouTube, iTunes, and Google Play!
3. Mayhem (2017)
Directed by: Joe Lynch
Starring: Steven Yeun, Samara Weaving, Caroline Chikezie
Violence: YES
Sex: Yes
Strong language: YES
Synopsis: What better time to watch a movie about a mysterious pandemic than living in an actual pandemic? After he’s fired from his hapless job, an unhappy lawyer discovers that his work building is under quarantine because everyone inside has been exposed to a dangerous virus. The virus causes people to lose their morality, allowing them to commit whatever heinous or violent crime they please. The lawyer teams up with a client he screwed over and, together, they fight their way to the executives to get revenge on the people who ruined both of their lives.
Why I Like It: I don’t know why but watching pandemic movies has somehow made me feel better about living through a pandemic. Perhaps it’s the hope at the end of the movie and the fact that the protagonist (usually) survives. Unlike coronavirus, the virus in this movie is so fun. It’s like having “The Purge” go on inside your body. There’s tons of chaos, revenge, battle scenes, and some really funny moments. I also adore Steven Yeun and Samara Weaving is a total badass. Seeing them together is a dream come true.
Available for rent on Amazon Prime, YouTube, Google Play, and Vudu!
2. Deathgasm (2015)
Directed by: Jason Lei Howden
Starring: Milo Cawthorne, James Joshua Blake, Kimberley Crossman
Violence: YES
Sex: Yes
Strong language: YES
Synopsis: After his mother is institutionalized, a metalhead is sent to live with his Bible-thumping uncle in a small town in New Zealand. Once there, he meets the girl of his dreams and a boy who shares his heavy metal taste in music. The two boys start a band called Deathgasm. They decide to play an ominous sheet of music and accidentally summon an army of demonic forces, wreaking havoc on their normally sleepy town.
Why I Like It: I know this whole article is about underrated content but heavy metal horror does not get the love it deserves. Sometimes called “metalsploitation,” it’s the marriage of heavy metal and horror; some examples include “The Devil’s Candy,” “We Summon the Darkness” and this beautiful piece of New Zealand magic. It’s honestly such a fun movie. I didn’t want it to end. There is an especially great battle sequence that features a multitude of sex toy weapons. It’s a movie that doesn’t take itself too seriously and, just like heavy metal, there are no rules. They just did whatever the f*ck they wanted to.
Available on Tubi and Amazon Prime or for rent on YouTube, Google Play and iTunes!
1. Tigers Are Not Afraid (2017)
Directed by: Issa López
Starring: Paola Lora, Juan Ramón López, Nery Arredondo
Violence: YES
Sex: No
Strong language: Yes
Synopsis: One day, a bright young girl in Mexico City receives three pieces of chalk from her teacher that will supposedly grant her three wishes. She comes home to find her mother missing. She uses one of the pieces of chalk to wish for her mother to come home and is soon tormented by the ghoulish spirit of her mother. Forced from her home and into the drug war riddled streets of Mexico, the young girl joins a group of homeless children and they fight to stay alive against the conditions and a group of gang members looking for their stolen phone.
Why I Like It: Much like Guillermo del Toro, Issa López knows how to create a film that is intensely disturbing and deeply emotional. Watching endangered children usually unhinges viewers and this movie is literally filled with endangered children. The use of magical realism is absolutely beautiful. While López has fantastical elements in her film, she also touches on the horrors of reality. She addresses the Mexican Drug War, femicide in Mexico and human trafficking. She’s able to discuss important topics by layering them into a stunning, eerie horror film. If that’s not impressive enough, it was also praised by two of the biggest names in horror: Stephen King and Guillermo del Toro.
Available on the horror streaming platform Shudder or for rent on Vudu, YouTube or Google Play!