This is my favorite time of year! I love watching scary movies year-round (they’re my stress relief), but they feel spookier as we approach Halloween. As you tool around online, you’re definitely going to see lists of “The Best Horror Movies” or “The Top Scary Movies that Stand the Test of Time.” Instead, here are some scary movies that you may not have seen yet! They may not be classics like The Exorcist or The Ring, but who cares? They’ll make you jump and isn’t that the whole point?
The Innkeepers (2011)
Two hotel employees must spend the entire weekend in the historic inn to prepare it to close its doors for good. Some mysterious guests and a creepy basement round out this moody, creepy film! •
Source: (Amazon Prime) [Photo: Amazon; Dark Sky Films]
Hell House LLC (2015)
Found footage films are way overdone, but I still dug this take on the genre. A journalist tries to piece together what happened inside a haunted house that left multiple people dead. The city won’t tell the truth to the public so, using found footage, we get to see the events unfold. Keep your eyes peeled as the camera often picks up things the characters never see or reference.
Source: (Amazon Prime) [Photo: Amazon, Cognetti Films]
Session 9 (2001)
Holy cow I loved this film. An asbestos removal crew has one week to clean up an abandoned mental hospital. One of the crew members finds nine taped recordings of sessions with a patient who had dissociative identity disorder. The movie was filmed at an actual abandoned mental hospital, and all of the props were items that the filmmakers reportedly found inside the existing hospital! • (Starz) [Photo: YouTube, USA Films]
The Awakening (2011)
A woman who debunks paranormal hoaxes travels to visit a haunted boarding school. This film is less “blood and guts” scary and is more of a psychological creep-out, but it will definitely get you in that chilly Halloween mood! •
Source: (Netflix) [Photo: YoutTube, Studio Canal Features]
Grave Encounters (2011)
This movie starts as a direct parody of the TV show “Ghost Adventures,” complete with an over-the-top, fame-hungry bro ghost hunter. But it actually gets pretty scary as the film goes on and becomes a legit horror film! • (Rent on YouTube, Amazon Prime, Vudu) [Photo: YouTube, Digital Interference Productions/Twin Engine Films]
Green Room (2016)
Sir Patrick Stewart, in a horror film? Sold! A band playing a gig in the Pacific Northwest witnesses a murder and must then fight for their lives. •
Source: (Amazon Prime) [Photo: YouTube, Broad Green Pictures/Film Science]
Dream House (2011)
2011 was apparently an incredible year for scary movies! Rachel Weisz, Naomi Watts and Daniel Craig star in this house-based scary movie (my favorite kind!). A couple moves into their dream house, but then they discover that a horrific crime was committed in their new house. Because if you get your dream house, chances are someone was brutally murdered in it. Might as well come to terms with that now. •
Source: (Netflix) [Photo: YouTube, Cliffjack Motion Pictures/Morgan Creek Productions]
HONORABLE MENTION
Cube (1997)
For some reason this movie doesn’t strike me as a “horror” film, but there’s definitely psychological stress and killin’ in it! So maybe it is? Regardless, I love this movie. Six strangers wake up inside of a maze of cubes and must try and escape while avoiding random booby traps. Not for you if you have claustrophobia! (My favorite part? Even though the maze of cubes feels endless, only one actual cube was built for the set!) •
Source: (Rent on Amazon Prime) [Photo: YouTube, Cube Libre/Viacom Canada]
DO NOT WATCH
Martyrs (2008)
This movie is f**ked up. A woman aims to get revenge against the people who abducted and tortured her as a little girl. She and her friend sneak into the people’s house, only to find themselves in a worse situation. This movie definitely falls into the “torture porn” category and proved too intense and disturbing for me. An American remake came out in 2015 with “Pretty Little Liars” star Troian Bellisario. I haven’t seen the remake so I can’t speak to it, but I have no desire to give this film a second shot! •
Source: (Rent on YouTube) [Photo: YouTube, Canal Horizons/Canal+]
xoxo, Bethany
Bethany@elvisduran.com
@RadioBethany
@MsBethanyWatson
@MsBethanyWatson