Related:The Best Horror Movies on Shudder Right Now
Halloween (1978)
Director:John Carpenter |Run Time:91 minutes
Starring:Jamie Lee Curtis, Donald Pleasence, and Tony Moran
The godfather of the slasher genre, Shudder proudly boasts one of the most iconic horror franchises ever made. Most importantly, Shudder has the one film that started it all -John Carpenter’s influential masterpieceHalloween(1978). Here, the all-time greatest slasher in the history of horror cinema, Michael Myers (Tony Moran) - a ruthless escaped asylum patient who returns to his hometown of Haddonfield to wreak havoc on the community once more. With Michael’s sights set on a new victim in babysitter Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis), it falls onto Michael’s former psychiatrist Dr. Loomis (Donald Pleasence) to find his old patient and put him down once and for all.
Watch on Shudder
Director:Phil Tippett |Run Time:83 minutes
Starring:Alex Cox
Horror has crossed over with a variety of genres in its long and established history, but one combination we don’t see very often is horror and animation. We see that union done to incredible effect inMad God(2021), directed by veteran VFX artistPhil Tippettwhose past work includesJurassic Park(1993) andStar Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi(1983). A passion project years in the making for Tippett,Mad Godis a 100% stop-motion nightmare that takes an assassin through a hell-like landscape packed to the brim with demonic creatures and monstrosities.
Train to Busan (2016)
Director:Sang-ho Yeon |Run Time:118 minutes
Starring:Gong Yoo, Jung Yu-mi, Ma Dong-seok, and Su-an Kim
There’s a reason why South Korean filmmakerSang-ho Yeon’s hit zombie thriller is getting an American remake. Not only are the film’s zombies brought to life with some convincing special effects and even more convincing acting from the zombie performers, but the feeling of isolation of being trapped on a train with them also makes the undead villains even scarier. Plus,the remarkably well-developed characters(particularlyMa Dong-seok’s character of Sang-hwa) add stakes that most thrillers only dream of having.
Phantasm (1979)
Director:Don Coscarelli |Run Time:89 minutes
Starring:A. Michael Baldwin and Angus Scrimm
Another film that spawned many sequels (albeit with more of a cult following),Phantasm(1979), successfully pulls off the classic trend of a mysterious monster’s pursuit of younger teens. The monster this time around is the infamous Tall Man (Angus Scrimm), a creepy gravedigger whose origins seem supernatural in nature. Scrimm’s delightfully unsettling performance as the iconic villain is precisely why the cult classic spawned a grand total of four sequels.
Exorcist III (1990)
Director:William Peter Blatty |Run Time:110 minutes
Starring:George C. Scott, Ed Flanders, Brad Dourif, and Jason Miller
William Friedkin’s groundbreaking classicThe Exorcist(1973) unfortunately is not available on Shudder, but fortunately, its abysmal sequel,Exorcist II: The Heretic(1977), isn’t either. However, there’s a little-known third installment that is something of a hidden gem in this would-be franchise,that beingExorcist III(1990). Originally titledLegion, this was a film not initially planned to be a sequel at all, but was later reworked to feature a demonic element and even the surprising return of a character from the original. While a police officer (George C. Scott) attempts to track down a deadly serial killer (Brad Dourif), we arrive at a mental asylum to see none other than Father Karras (Jason Miller) - the priest who was presumed dead after saving young Regan (Lina Blair) in the first film. Now he grapples with a demonic force as he’s possessed by that very same demon he contracted all those years ago.
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974)
Director:Tobe Hooper |Run Time:83 minutes
Starring:Marilyn Burns, Edwin Neal, Jim Siedow, and Gunnar Hansen
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre(1974) caused quite a bit of controversy upon its release, mainly due to its claims of being based on a true story. Those claims wound up being used as marketing to make the movie scarier, butThe Texas Chain Saw Massacreis still plenty unsettling without the faux true story. The demented Sawyer family and their most popular dismembering member Leatherface (Gunnar Hansen) have also tormented visitors to their estateover several sequels, but the first film is easily the best.
The Stepfather (1987)
Director:Joseph Ruben |Run Time:89 minutes
Starring:Terry O’Quinn, Jill Schoelen, and Shelley Hack
According to Jerry Blake (Terry O’Quinn), all he has ever wanted was the perfect family. To him, his original wife and children didn’t really shape up, so he did what any responsible father figure would do and murdered them in cold blood. Now he’s found a new wife in Susand (Shelley Hack), but her daughter Stephanie (Jill Schoelen) can tell that something is off with Jerry. Terry O’Quinn as the titular stepfather delivers a performance that’s manic and manipulative in all the best ways.
Black Christmas (1974)
Director:Bob Clark |Run Time:98 minutes
Starring:Olivia Hussey, Keir Dullea, Margot Kidder, and John Saxon
Black Christmas(1974)has been the subject of not one, but two pretty terrible remakes, but the 1970s classic is absolutely worth watching. The premise is abundantly simple, and honestly doesn’t really have that much to do with the holidays. On paper, the idea of a group of college girls being pursued by a deranged stalker doesn’t really sound like anything that special, butBlack Christmasis a perfect example of a simple premise and flawless execution. The intense breathing of the mysterious killer alone is more than enough to terrify audiences.
Hellraiser (1987)
Director:Clive Barker |Run Time:94 minutes
Starring:Ashley Laurence, Andrew Robinson, Clare Higgins, Sean Chapman, and Doug Bradley
Master of horrorClive Barker’s magnum opus,Hellraiseris a stunningly disgusting look at a devious union between pleasure and pain. It all starts when a vile man named Frank (Sean Chapman) finds a mysterious puzzle box. After he solves it, he is transported into a dimension where he becomes the tortured subject of The Cenobites - entities of pure pain that are angels to some and demons to others. Frank is partially revived by his brother’s wife, Julia (Clare Higgins), and the two begin claiming victims, so Frank can be brought back to his old human form.
Hellbound: Hellraiser II (1988)
Director: Tony Randel |Run Time:97 minutes
Starring:Ashley Laurence, Clare Higgins, Doug Bradley, and Kenneth Cranham
Released only a year after the original,Hellbound: Hellraiser IIpicks off right where the original left off, with protagonist Kirsty (Ashley Laurence) now living in a mental hospital and becoming the subject of the shady Dr. Channard (Kenneth Cranham. This time, instead of Frank being resurrected, it’s his partner in crime Julia, who in turn uses Channard to discover the secrets of the Cenobites. Overall,Hellboundis an excellent continuation that’s an exploration of The Cenobites' origins making it essential for fans of the first.
