As the nascent Winter leisurely crystallises,
and the world around us slowly falls into a lull,
As the air grows dense,
and the darkness of the night expands its claws,
strange things begin to happen.
Distant murky figures on the road that warrant a double-take, bands of dogs howling through the night, things disappearing without any rhyme or reason, these strange occurrences become a normalcy in the dark.
If you deem yourself a horror fanatic with a penchant for all things dark, scary and obscure, if the thought of the paranormal, the world beyond human comprehension and logic, gets your heart racing beyond measure and if the only time you feel truly, liberatingly alive is when you are scared out of your wits, you, friend, have come to the right place!
Also Read, Best Horror on OTT
Best Horror Movies On Netflix
1. Scream
Regardless of how many parodies the world comes up with, the authentic creepiness of the original Scream movies remains unparalleled. With one of the most epic opening scenes of all time, Scream is a classic slasher horror movie resplendent with iconic 90s stars, vintage ominous music and a series of unexpected jump-scares. While this horror movie might not address the supernatural per se, it does cover something practically more plausible and hence, terrifying: evil in the form of human beings.
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Plot: A group of high-school students in middle-class suburbia, desperately search for ways to survive and remain safe as a fright-masked maniac runs around town stabbing people to death and piling up bodies.
Director: Wes Craven
Star Cast: Courtney Cox, Neve Campbell, David Arquette
IMDB Rating: 7.2/10
2. Insidious
In the genre of horror movies, little children and supernatural spirits form an inseparable pair. In an over-done, over-explored niche, standing your ground as a movie is a challenging feat that few achieve. Insidious falls in that category. With unnerving imagery and disturbing ideas, this movie takes you for a spine-chilling ride. Not only will this Netflix horror movie keep you hooked by spiking up your heartbeat every now and then, you will also find yourself strangely intrigued by and involved in the life of the characters, as the plot unravels.
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Plot: A family struggles to come to terms with petrifying elements of the past and present as their child, Dalton slips into a coma after a mysterious accident in the attic. The key to getting their son back is immersing themselves in the world of the supernatural, the evil and the sinister.
Director: James Wan
Star Cast: Patrick Wilson, Rose Byrne, Ty Simpkins
IMDB Rating: 6.8/ 10
3. Veronica
This movie took Netflix by storm when it first aired, and for good reason. Reputed as one of the scariest movies to have been made to-date, Veronica is the perfect Horror watch for those looking to be seriously spooked. The movie might have been made in Spanish but don't let that deter you from switching the audio to English, turning on your subtitles and experiencing the chilling story of Veronica. Need more reason to include this in your top horror movies to watch list? It's based on a true story.
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Plot: The movie is based on the events encountered by Estefania Gutierrez Lazaro and her family in 1991. Estefania, after playing Ouija with two of her friends, begins to experience bloodcurdling paranormal activity.
Director: Paco Plaza
Star Cast: Sandra Escacena, Bruna Gonzalez, Claudia Placer
IMDB Rating: 6.2/ 10
4. Split
If you want your mind boggled whilst binging the top horror movies on Netflix, this one would be an apt choice. More eerie, creepy and unsettling than scary horror, Split is a complex psychological thriller shedding light on the darkness that lurks behind our own minds. If you are doing something horrible, but aren't aware of it, how do you stop yourself? This relatively recent Horror flick will make you question everything you considered sane, normal and within the confines of the human brain.
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Plot: A man diagnosed with Dissociative Identity Disorder (colloquially, referred to as Multiple Personality Disorder) has 23 personalities residing in his brain. He kidnaps three innocent girls just as his psyche is on the brink of developing a frightful and malicious 24th personality.
Director: M. Night Shyamalan.
Star Cast: James McAvoy, Anya Taylor-Joy, Haley Lu Richardson
IMDB Rating: 7.3/10
5. Se7en
A movie that captures the essence of what happens when human beings fabricate their own version of justice, Se7en is a classic 90s psychological thriller with a plot and screenplay ahead of its time. Crime, lunacy and an exploration of the esoteric beliefs in the mind of a serial killer make Se7en the perfect Netflix horror movie to watch. Need more convincing? There's Brad Pitt. More? There's Morgan Freeman. Yet More? Kevin Spacey!
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Plot: As a deranged serial killer goes on a murder spree based on his own version of absolving the world's ignorance of the Seven Deadly Sins, two homicide detectives, one a novice and the other a veteran, go on a desperate hunt to stop this monster at all costs.
Director: David Fincher
Star Cast: Morgan Freeman, Brad Pitt, Kevin Spacey
IMDB Rating: 8.6/10
6. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre
Another classic scary watch falling in the genre of slasher horror, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre is gruesome, sweat-inducing and takes you on a relentless scream fest. This horror movie drew its inspiration from Ed Gein, an infamous murderer and body-snatcher who was big on art and craft but believed in using human organs instead of your regular chart paper. The selling point of this movie is the portrayal of a singular character so terrifying that he manages to go on a massacre of multiple people.
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Plot: Two siblings and three of their friends embark on a journey to visit their grandfather's grave in Texas, but find themselves confronting "Leatherface" and his family of psychopathic cannibals midway.
Director: Tobe Hooper
Star Cast: Marilyn Burns, Edwin Neal, Allen Danziger
IMDB Rating: 7.5/10
7. Oculus
A highly under-rated horror flick, Oculus gives you a dose of unexpected and unpredictable terror at opportune moments. Its a one person against the world kind of a situation, it's a stop at nothing to protect your family kind of a situation and it's a chomping on your nails to figure out what happens next kind of a situation!
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Plot: In an attempt to exonerate her brother who has been convicted of a murder, a woman takes extreme measures to prove that the heinous crime was committed at the hands of a supernatural force.
Director: Mika Flanagan
Star Cast: Karen Gillan, Brenton Thwaites, Katee Sackhoff
IMDB Rating: 6.5/10
8. Sinister
If you dislike children, this movie will further augment your views. There is something about this Netflix horror movie that is deeply disconcerting but goes beyond the horror genre norms of jump scares and gore. From a cinematic standpoint, the movie makes use of light-dark contrasts, cryptic signals and eerie background scores to create the perfect eerie atmosphere of dread and fright. The plot unravels at a steadfast pace, revealing critical details periodically and leading up to a climax that you probably never saw coming!
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Plot: A crime writer with a decaying career discovers a mysterious box of 8 home movies that lead to a particular realisation: the murder he is investigating was committed by a serial killer whose gruesome crimes date back to 1960s and have been leaving in their wake, a series of terrifying encounters.
Director: Scott Derrickson
Star Cast: Ethan Hawke, Juliet Rylance, James Ransone
IMDB Rating: 6.8/10
9. Friday The 13th
This timeless 80s horror flick went onto become a cult classic, the popularity of which has only grown in prominence over time. Coined after the folklore of the unlucky day of Friday the 13th, this top Netflix horror movie portrays the repercussions of having a fate so ill, you bump into one of the most sinister horror villains of all time. The influence of this movie on the current prevailing genre of horror has been tremendous which makes it the perfect classic Netflix horror watch.
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Plot: A malicious assailant begins to stalk and murder a group of camp counsellors while they were in the process of re-opening a summer camp. The campsite, however, also happened to be the sight of a child's drowning.
Director: Sean S. Cunningham
Star Cast: Betsy Palmer, Adrienne King, Jeannine Taylor
IMDB Rating: 6.5/10
10. Blood Red Sky
It’s a petrifying story of an enigmatically unwell woman who revealed an uncanny secret about herself to save her son in a hijacked flight. Originally released in the German language, Blood Red Sky is a moving, surprising, and intriguing dilemma. A high-altitude thriller presents the delirious preposterousness of the imp character of Nadja. This a great recommendation for the vampire movie lover for its phenomenal concept and whole new freshness while delivering a delicious treat for scallion genre enthusiasts.
Genre: Horror, Mystery & Thriller
Director: Porter Thorwarth
Star Cast: Peri Baumeister, Chidi Ajufo, Alexander Scheer, Roland Moller, Dominic Purcell, and Graham Mc Tavish.
11. The 8th Night
With the stylistically frightening scene, The 8th Night will leave a lasting impression on the mind of viewers with Kim Tae-hyung’s suffering and search for enlightenment. This chilling horror, supernatural genre Korean movie will leave you awestruck with its creepy portrayal of cozy horror with nightmarish imagery. Set on your couch with your dear ones with a bag full of popcorn to have a spine-tingling supernatural ride. It portrays the struggle of an old occultist who tries to obstruct the reawakening of two malefic mysterious beings who agonized human beings with wreak havoc and were locked up for 2500 years.
Genre: Horror
Director: Kim Tae-hyung
Producer: Hyun Gwang-seo
Star Cast: Lee Sung-min, Park Hae-joon, Kim Yoo-jeong, Nam Da-reum, Choi Jin-ho, and Lee Eol.
Top Spine-Chilling TV Shows
1. Marianne
Released on the 13th of September this year, this Netflix Horror TV Show has rapidly gained an expansive fanbase due to its eerie storyline and its brilliant execution on screen. A very "Stephen King-esque" horror show, Marianne manages to take you on a scream fest through its eight episodes of terrifying scenes. The whispers of a second season are already floating through the air as Marianne fans demand more of such top-notch horror material and we can't help but agree.
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Plot: Emma, a famous and successful French horror writer, is forced to return to her hometown after the woman who haunted her dreams fifteen years ago begins to re-appear. The stories she pieces together are apparently works of fiction, but how much of those did Emma derive from her own life?
Director: Samuel Bodin
Star Cast: Victoire Du Bois, Lucie Boujenah, Tiphaine Daviot
IMDB Rating: 7.6/10
2. The Haunting of Hill House
Another contemporary favourite amongst fans of Netflix horror TV Shows, The Haunting of Hill House is chilling, unnerving and heartbreaking. This show has brought to view some exceptional writing, casting, direction as well as execution, without falling victim to cliched horror tactics like jump scares and gore. The charm of this TV show lies in the strange, friendship like affection that you end up developing for the characters.
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Plot: In the wake of tragedy, a family is forced to confront their past life spent in a house which later went on to be remembered as the most famous haunted property in the country.
Director: Mike Flanagan, Ciarán Foy
Star Cast: Henry Thomas, Oliver Jackson-Cohen, Kate Siegel
IMDB Rating: 8.7/10
3. Chilling Adventures of Sabrina
A spin-off based on one of the most adored childhood fictional characters of Sabrina, the teenage witch, this Netflix Horror TV Show adopts a more mature, and darker approach to the story. It explores the world of occult and witchcraft while maintaining an engaging storyline and progressive character development. With a heavy gothic influence, this Netflix TV show is perfect for curling up on the bed and binging.
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Plot: As her sixteenth birthday draws closer, Sabrina finds herself torn between the witch world of her family and the human world of her friend. As a part-witch, part-mortal, Sabrina struggles to form her own identity while safeguarding herself and her close ones from the evil that lurks outside.
Director: Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa
Star Cast: Kiernan Shipka, Ross Lynch, Lucy Davis
IMDB Rating: 7.7/10
4. Dark
With carefully cultivated and emotionally grounded characters, Dark does a brilliant job at showcasing a theme, many previous movies and shows have failed at. Slightly mind-bending in nature, the storyline is brimming with time travel and paradoxes. It is a cerebral Netflix Horror TV Show that refuses to spoon-feed the audience and yet manages to quench their curiosity at the right places. Dark is captivating, stimulating and compelling, providing you with enough reason to add it to your list of Netflix Horror movies and shows.
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Plot: Set in a German town, the story follows the relationship between four families, exposed by the disappearance of two children with a supernatural twist.
Director: Baran bo Odar, Jantje Friese
Star Cast: Karoline Eichhorn, Louis Hofmann, Jördis Triebel
IMDB Rating: 8.7/10
With this list by your side, all that is left to do is grab a big bowl of popcorn and snuggle into your cosy bed with Netflix. As the world around you grows quiet and the creatures of the dark come crawling in, you will be glued to your screen in the safety of your house.
