Stream These Contemporary Horror Classics on Netflix This Week

Once October rolls around, movie fans often want to get in the mood for Halloween by enjoying classics like Frankenstein, The Wolf Man and, of course, John Carpenter’s Halloween. Unfortunately, Netflix is quite lacking in classic horror films, forcing audiences to roll the dice on dozens of more contemporary horror films.

Streaming a film through a subscription service has become the most common way for a casual movie fan to enjoy movies, which vastly limits a catalog available for viewing. Instincts might tell someone to throw on a classic in honor of Halloween, but, luckily, some of the best horror films of the last decade are easily available for viewing on Netflix, giving audiences as compelling an experience as any more familiar fright flick.

While calling a film that’s only a few years old a “classic” might seem a little rushed, the way these films have dominated the genre world has helped solidify them as the best films the horror genre has to offer.

Scroll down to see what films you can stream on Netflix that are sure to be remembered for decades to come!

The Babadook

Written and directed by Jennifer Kent, The Babadook not only inspired conversations about how often the horror world is overlooked when Academy Awards season rolls around, but has also given the 2010s one of its only memorable movie monsters.

Following the tragic death of her husband, Amelia (Essie Davis) is forced to take care of their young child all on her own. A book mysteriously shows up on their doorstep that she reads to her son, talking about a monstrous entity known by “Mr. Babadook.” Once she has read the words aloud, Amelia realizes Mr. Babadook has entered her life to torment her and her son, but the entity’s origins aren’t quite what she thinks.

The Babadook earned rumors of awards for good reason, as Kent’s abilities as a filmmaker are rivaled only by that of Davis’ performance as a tormented mother. Additionally, the film has very sophisticated undercurrents of emotional trauma one endures in their life, making it far more than just a film about a supernatural presence terrorizing a family.

The Invitation

Much like Rosemary’s Baby, director Karyn Kusama’s The Invitation reminds viewers that few things are as monstrous as humans, as this film will make you wary of all dinner parties you might attend.

After years of relative seclusion, a couple invites all of their friends over for a dinner party in hopes of explaining to the people once closest to them why they’ve been keeping themselves. The answer is that this couple has discovered “The Invitation,” which they claim is a community and healing program that appears to all party guests as a bizarre cult. Throughout the film, the guests, in addition to the audience, have a hard time grasping if this couple has a truly villainous motivation or if their coping methods are harmless, albeit unconventional.

Films featuring monsters and killers are all well and good, but The Invitation masterfully manipulates its audience into questioning the motives of the characters, as the story isn’t quite black and white. Ultimately, the audience does get their answers, but even if you know the direction the film is going, it doesn’t take away from how compelling and complicated the journey is to get there.

It Follows

Teenagers having sex has always been a common plot point in horror movies, but the way It Follows interprets those tropes both felt familiar while also being new and refreshing, creating an incredibly affecting film.

After Jay (Maika Monroe) goes on a date with a boy that leads to sex, she is horrified to learn she was taken advantage of in a supernatural scheme. Due to their sexual encounter, Jay is now that target of an entity with the ability to take the appearance of anyone, whose sole mission is to kill. The only way to slow it down is to have sex with someone, who will then become the main target of this creature, which could potentially buy you time. Not comfortable creating a massive body count, Jay aims to neutralize this monster no matter what it takes.

Writer/director David Robert Mitchell crafted not only a unique storyline featuring allegories to the death of childhood and fears of sexuality, but the creature he created provides for countless solid scares. Few films have managed to not only honor a nostalgic mood and tone while also reinventing well-worn tropes, ensuring It Follows‘ place in horror’s hall of fame.

The Void

Many of the other films on this list might be remembered for their carefully crafted storylines or performances, but The Void captures the essence of a nightmare in ways many other films strive for effortlessly, marking for a highly memorable experience.

When a police officer brings an injured man to a hospital in the middle of a renovation, he realizes he’s accidentally stumbled into a nefarious scheme, as the building becomes surrounded by dozens of figures in white cloaks. This injured man seems to be at the center of what’s going on, but his injuries prevented him from spilling the details of the situation. As the night unfolds, the survivors taking refuge in this hospital realize the threats lurking outside are the least of their worries.

To some, The Void might be one of the most bizarre films they’ll have seen in recent years, combining blood and guts with an otherworldly narrative. Devout horror fans, however, will see elements of author H.P. Lovecraft, Lucio Fulci and Sam Raimi in this gruesome horror-fantasy full of special effects that are mind-blowing, both literally and figuratively.

The Wailing

The Exorcist helped prove that the concept of an individual being possessed will always be an idea brought to contemporary horror films, recently seen in films like The Last Exorcism or The Exorcism of Emily Rose. No matter how many of these exorcism films you’ve seen, nothing can quite prepare you for the exhausting experience of The Wailing.

Shortly after a Japanese man moves into a community in South Korea, a strange illness starts to befall residents, most notably afflicting the daughter of a police officer. As his daughter’s seeming “possession” gets worse and worse, the police officer gets more desperate for answers, seeking help from shamans and escalating to confronting the stranger whose appearance coincides with the bizarre events.

Clocking in at over two-and-a-half hours, The Wailing is one of the more draining horror movies you’ll ever see, even as a viewer. The narrative might feel familiar, but the experience of watching the events unfold feels almost as traumatic at anything happening on screen, leading to a conclusion that reminds audiences there aren’t always clear-cut answers to complicated questions.