Welcome to QueueItUp, a new weekly column where we'll look at the hidden gems and new releases currently available in your digital stream. We won't exclusively be looking at Netflix, and I promise you, this is going to lead to bigger and better things, not only here at the site, but also as we branch into other avenues of media.
Today, we're going to get a jumpstart on Halloween. Whether you're throwing a party and need something playing on a screen in the backyard, or you're more of a 'stay at home and sip on whiskey by yourself' kind of gal, we've paid our $7.99 in full for the month, so that we have unlimited access to tons of Trick or Treat thrillers that will keep you scared into the wee hours of November.
Some are classic, some are cult, and some you've never seen. Here are the 10 Terrifying Halloween Movies Available Now on Netflix Streaming that you need to watch this holiday season. Go ahead, treat yourself to a scare!
[1] The Nightmare Before Christmas
It may lend its title to a completely different holiday, but this Tim Burton stop-motion animated classic from director Henry Selick is a perennial favorite that keeps on giving from the first week of October all the way through Christmas Eve Night. And 'This is Halloween' has become the national theme song of this gloriously gruesome celebration, which is quickly bearing down upon us. It doesn't matter how many times you've seen it before, The Nightmare Before Christmas is a fall season classic that always brings a smile to any face. Watch and relive Jack Skellington's quest to leave October 31 behind and become the king of Christmas! Shrunken heads, ghoulish gifts, and monstrous children fill the dark gothic landscape of this musical comedy extravaganza, and its sure to please everyone, from kids scared of their first trick or treat session to a blood smeared gutter punk searching for a black cat to kill in honor of Samhain. It truly is a crowd pleaser (though one that often stops the party, so be warned).
[2] Mad Monster Party
Experience the original film that inspired The Nightmare Before Christmas in its uncut glory. From director Jules Bass and writer/producer Arthur Rankin Jr., the masterminds behind such stop-motion animated Christmas classics as Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer, comes their first and only Halloween inspired feature Mad Monster Party! Before Hotel Transylvania, there was this wacky creep-filled horror comedy adventure that brings all of our favorite monsters together for one heck of a bash. Horror icon Boris Karloff even provides voices for some of the characters, as Dr. Frankenstein makes plans for his retirement and convenes a meeting of all monsters to announce his replacement. Word gets out that the good doctor is choosing his nerdy nephew as his successor, and suddenly its chaos in creature land. This is one non-stop party you won't want to miss this All Hallow's Eve.
[3] Satan's Little Helper
Wow! It just goes to prove, no matter how small your budget is, if you're heart's in the right place, you can't help but create something magical. Sure, Satan's Little Helper looks like it was shot in 1993 on an old tube camera rescued from the local community access station, but this downright unnerving slasher flick from 2004 will make you smile, and cringe, and cheer on some truly disturbing behavior. It follows the exploits of a young boy obsessed with a video game where his avatar must run around, helping Satan kill off various clichéd stereotypes all while avoiding the wrath of god. From the get-go, the kid is dressed in a very cheap red devil costume, which only adds to the creepiness of the whole thing. His sister is coming into town from college (she's training to be an actress), and they are going on their annual trick or treat run. The kid has other goals in mind, though. You see, he wants to find the real Satan and help out with some of those horrible deeds in real life. Amanda Plummer stars as the boy's mom, giving one of her most whacked out performances ever, gleefully encouraging the child's beliefs in Satan. When the sister arrives, she has her new boyfriend in tow, which greatly upsets her little brother. Little Helper leaves in a tantrum, wonders around town, and eventually spots a mute man in a grotesque purple rubber devil's outfit, which gives Michael Myers signature white mask and jump suit a run for its money. The cheapness of it brings shivering vibes of ickiness, and the rest of the movie is awash in dread. Teaming up, Satan and his new Little Helper decide to kill the sister's boyfriend. And a murder spree erupts across town as they set out to fulfil the boy's quaint Halloween wish. The best scene finds Satan pushing his Little Helper in a grocery cart, where they proceed to run over and kill a pregnant lady, a baby, and a crippled old man. The slasher scenes are a little cheap and goofy, but director Jeff Lieberman makes up for it with a quick pace and a bravura style that deserves to be applauded. Now that it's found a home on Netflix, this jaunt through slasher film heaven will surely build a bigger cult audience.
[4] Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers
What would Halloween be without Michael Myers? Just a dried up, boring old fall holiday without its requisite boogeyman, that's what. Sure, Halloween 6 might be one of the more disappointing sequels in the franchise, but beggars can't be choosers. If you were a horror child of the 90s, you'll remember anxiously awaiting this installment, as Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers and Halloween 5 set out to reestablish an awesome mythology for the Samhain slasher. This trilogy ending finale was a giant letdown, though, as it failed to keep the story momentum going. But here, nearly twenty years removed and watched on its own terms, The Curse of Michael Myers still does the trick for that Halloween Jones. This one finds Mike's niece giving birth. The baby is given over to the now iconic Tommy Doyle, who must hide the child from it's killer Uncle. Problems arise when Doyle suddenly realizes that young Danny Strode may be plagued by the same demons that have consumed the rest of his family. This one is all about the Myers Curse, a piece of the backstory that would be lost in future sequels.
[5] Spooky Buddies
Really? Terrifying? Well, the one-two punch of Rance Howard and Harland Williams is pretty scary. But come on, it's the Buddies! And they deserve their own Halloween adventure. Fun for everyone, and actually packing a couple of good scares, this doggy adventure finds the Golden Retriever pups Cosplaying in a wicked castle, where a dead dog's ghost roams as the residual from an ancient curse. Someone better call the Ghostbusters, because it's the Halloween Hound! Spooky Buddies is just too cute not to include here, and this holiday is intended for the kiddies (right?). If cuddly animals walking around for an hour and a half isn't your cup of stream, maybe you'll like our next find. It's a little more on the gruesome side of things...
[6] Halloween Night
Enough with the cute puppies...Let's get some gore up in this bloody beach house! In the fine tradition of Halloween and Satan's Little Helper comes Halloween Night! Another slasher flick on the cheap (are all Halloween horror movies low budget?), this tasty side dish of gristle serves up a deformed killer from a maximum-security prison. The movie really aims for the juggular, as it racks up an impressive body count. Signature slasher villain Chris Vale never saw his own franchise, but this packs enough knife swings in for two sequels. Supposedly based on real events, and looking like a reality show shot in the late 90s, Halloween Night follows Chris' jaunt home after escaping the local mental institution. When he finally returns as the prodigal son, he finds his childhood bedroom has become party central for a teen and his friends. If you don't know what happens next, you've obviously never seen a horror movie. Halloween Night doesn't break any new ground, but it's a quickly paced chop-em-up that continues to find new ways to taunt, shock, and sicken its audience. Just make sure you've put the Buddies to bed before diving into this one.
Fans of Best Worst Movie, which gleefully tromped through the history of Troll 2, will dig this latest horror documentary from director and Troll 2 star Michael Stephenson. What's scarier than ghosts and goblins? How about the creepy neighbor who hides all year long, only coming out for one month to scare all the kids in the surrounding cul-de-sac. The American Scream travels to the unassuming town of Fairhaven, MA, where three seemingly normal families get in a heated Haunted House competition every Halloween. If these jovial, passionate, and sometimes down right harrowing haunt artists don't get you into the Halloween spirit, nothing ever will. And now for a slightly more disturbing Halloween documentary...
[8] Hell House
Who says documentaries can't be truly scary? Like, you can feel it in the deep recesses of your gut. And it hurts like a knife wound. Hell House delves into the truly frightening Christian Haunted House phenomenon, which puts you through the throughs of a drug addiction, lets you experience your own abortion, and brings you face to face with Satan himself, all as put on by a group of local, passionate teens and their creepy uncle councilor. You'll laugh, you'll scream, you'll run away in tears, hoping into the arms of Satan and forever frightened of God and what he can do to mankind. Hell House goes inside this multimedia fire-and-brimstone performance designed to give its audiences a glimpse of what awaits those who stray from the path of a strict Christian lifestyle. Here, we see the troubled faces of a church group just outside of Dallas, Texas, as they await and prepare their wares for thousands of new visitors. Maybe the scariest movie on this list, enter this one with caution. You may never be the same again. (Who would have thought Christians to be the scariest thing about Halloween?)
Forget the remake. The best has been, and always will be Evil Dead 2: Dead by Dawn. Sure, the original has its fans, but no one can deny this is where Bruce Campbell and Sam Raimi came into their own as cult icons. Maybe it doesn't take place on Halloween, but it is one of the great haunted house movies of all time (or haunted cabin, rather). In actuality, there is no reason for this sequel to exist in terms of what happened in the first movie. In reality, Ash would never return to the woods. But we're glad he does. This is one spook-a-blast thrillride from its opening moments to its final climax, which perfectly sets up Army Of Darkness. Watch as one man stands up to hordes of demons under an ancient curse, and see him lose his hand, only to replace it with a chainsaw. Evil Dead 2 perfectly captures the spirit of the holiday season, and if you can't physically get out to see a real haint house, this is the next best thing to a haunted hayride. This October is the first time this classic is being offered on Netflix.
Why not end our list, and your Halloween celebration, with a binge viewing session of American Horror Story's first season? It has one heck of a Halloween episode, and the rest of the show is just one giant roller coaster ride all the way through. It's scary, funny, full of ghosts and it has plenty of demon babies. Relive the best moments inside Los Angeles' infamous Murder House, as one Boston family slowly discovers its secrets, becoming the mansion's latest victims. Its Casper the Friendly Ghost sold to adults who like their blowjobs served with a side of bloody breath. When it comes to essential fall viewing, this should be at the top of everyone's list.
There you have it! My obsessive Netflix viewing habits have finally paid off. Now, please, please, please let me know if there is something else I need to watch! I'm a hungry stream hunter and open to all suggestions. Hopefully mine helped you out as well! Until next week, when we'll look at the classic horror movies currently available...Have a Happy Haunting Time!