Offbeat Horror Films To Stream This Halloween

Pooped after celebrating Halloween as Aunt Gladys from “Weapons” or as an inflatable Portland frog? Why not try unwinding by streaming some of the offbeat horror titles mentioned below? There’s everything from balls to the wall body horror to psychological chills to even a queer-friendly analogy or two.  

American Mary (Kanopy)--Into body horror?  This Canadian film from Jen and Sylvia Soska takes the desire for body modification to disturbing extremes.  Medical student Mary Mason displays a promising talent for surgery.  But because she’s money-desperate, circumstances lead to her getting involved in the world of illicit body modification surgery.  Whether it’s turning a woman into a human doll or using her rapist’s body as an advertising tool, Bloody Mary is going to show just how far a body can be altered.  

The Autopsy Of Jane Doe (Tubi)–On a stormy night, father and son coroners Tommy (Brian Cox) and Austin Tilden (Emile Hirsch) are presented with an enigma of a corpse.  Jane Doe’s body was found in the basement of a house where a bizarre multiple homicide took place.  As the two coroners examine the unknown body, they discover contradictory information about her.  How can she physically be both dead for several days and appear to have died recently?  Why does she have both unblemished skin and repeatedly stabbed organs?  There is an answer to these questions and others, but neither of the Tildens might have the capacity to deal with the consequences of what director Andre Ovredal reveals.  (Trigger warning: Viewers who don’t like films where terrible things happen to a cat should give this one a pass.)

A Bay Of Blood (Shudder)–If you’ve seen the original “Friday the 13th” (which ripped off several notable kills), you’ve gotten a taste of Mario Bava’s horror classic.  Lust for possession of the Countess Federica Donati’s mansion and the bay land around it sparks a series of murders.  Whether the killing’s done by axe, billhook, or even a shotgun, no one is safe.

Carnival Of Souls (Criterion)--Herk Harvey’s atmospheric low-budget horror classic concerns young Mary Henry, who survives a road race accident to start a new life as a Salt Lake City church organist.  Yet this new beginning is threatened by continual visions of a mysterious ghoulish pale-faced Man.  And why is Mary strangely obsessed by an abandoned carnival pavilion located on the shores of the Great Salt Lake?

Dead And Buried (Amazon)--Why are visitors to the coastal town of Potters Bluff being continually murdered?  And why do the killers constantly photograph the victims of their crimes?  Sheriff Dan Gillis wants answers, especially as the deaths disconcertingly occur every day.  But the answers Gillis seeks turn out to lie a little closer to home, and involve Potters Bluff's eccentric local coroner/mortician William G. Dobbs (Jack Albertson in his last performance).  Gary Sherman helms the cinematic chaos.

The Descent (Criterion)--Neil Marshall’s horror classic will rattle the nerves of claustrophobic viewers or put viewers off watching Spider-Man movies for a week.  Extreme sports athlete Sarah has been left psychologically traumatized by an awful personal tragedy.  A year later, sister extreme athlete Juno convinces Sarah to regain her mojo by joining an all-female spelunking expedition in North Carolina’s Appalachian Mountains.  But a crucial lie by Juno turns this supposed milk run trip into an unimaginable fight for survival.

Exhuma (Shudder)--Jang Jae-hyun mixes the supernatural and Korean history in this stunner of a tale.  Renowned shaman Hwa-rim and her assistant Bong-gil have been hired for a job offering a potentially big payday.  The superwealthy Ji-yong Park has hired them to lift a family curse that has stricken generations of first born Park children, including Park himself.  The shaman suspects the source of the Park family curse lies with a restless ancestor.  But breaking the curse requires getting the help of veteran geomancer Kim Sang-deok and his Christian apprentice Yeong-guen.  It also requires retrieving the corpse from its current location: a mountain-top grave on the borderland between North and South Korea.

Freaky (Amazon)--Christopher Landon’s dark comedy shows what happens when you mix the premise of "Freaky Friday" with a serial killer movie.  The serial killer known as the Blissfield Butcher is assumed to be an urban legend until he kills a group of unwary teens and steals the ancient dagger known as La Dola.  The Butcher’s failed attempt to murder bullied high school teen Millie Kessler with La Dola sparks a manhunt for him.  But the big surprise comes the next morning, when the knife wound the Butcher left in Millie’s shoulder from the attack has caused their personalities to switch bodies.  The middle-aged serial killer sees that in Millie’s body he can kill as many people as he likes without attracting suspicion.  Meanwhile, the teen girl races against time to reverse the body switch before she’s permanently trapped in the fugitive killer’s original body .  

Goodnight Mommy (Tubi)--In this Austrian psychological horror film from directors Veronika Franz and Severin Fiala, a mother and her 10-year-old twin sons Elias and Lukas are spending the summer months at their isolated lake side home.  The mother’s face is all bandaged up thanks to her having undergone cosmetic facial surgery.  But the mother’s strange behavior soon has the twins convinced that the woman under the bandages is not their real mother but an imposter.  Guess how far the boys are willing to go to confirm their suspicions?  Hint: Children and glue prove a spectacularly dire combination here.

Let The Right One In (Amazon)--Tomas Alfredson’s vampire film takes place in the Swedish suburb of Blackeberg in 1982.  One evening, bullied 12-year-old Oskar meets new neighbor girl Eli.  Despite Eli telling the boy they can’t be friends, the two start getting closer emotionally.  But the neighbor is far older than she appears, for she’s actually a vampire stuck in a 12-year-old’s body.  Problems ensue when failed efforts to get blood for Eli starts drawing unwanted attention.  Also, the bullying against Oskar increases.

Nadja (Roku Channel)--Michael Almereyda’s take on the Dracula story focuses on freedom from toxic family legacies.  The titular Nadja (Elina Lowensohn) happens to be the daughter of Dracula, and she figures her father's demise will liberate her from continuing the family's bloodsucking business.  But Dracula’s old enemy Dr. Van Helsing (Peter Fonda) fears that the notorious vampire may return because his body was never properly destroyed, so he pursues Nadja.  Meanwhile, Nadja wants to improve her twin brother Edgar’s health.  But can she resist the temptation to intercede in the relationship Edgar has with his nurse Cassandra?

Nightbreed (Kanopy)--Horror legend Clive Barker writes and directs this adaptation of his novella “Cabal.”  Why does Aaron Boone have recurring nightmares of a place called Midian?  What connection does Boone have to a serial killer of families?  What are the Nightbreed?  Finally, can Boone stay alive long enough to claim his destiny?

One Cut Of The Dead (Shudder)--Shinichiro Ueda’s hilarious zombie apocalypse movie involves the shooting of low-budget zombie film “True Fear” at an abandoned (and supposedly haunted) water filtration plant.  Chaos erupts after director HIgurashi orders a blood pentagram be painted to liven the film up with real zombies…and the zombies actually pop up.  However, there’s more to the story even after “True Fear”’s credits start rolling.

Seed Of Chucky (Amazon)---It’s 6 years since the events of the previous “Child’s Play” film.  S**tface, the peaceful genderfluid doll who’s the child of the Chucky and Tiffany dolls, escapes from the abusive clutches of the ventriloquist Psychs when they realize their true parentage.  Making their way to Hollywood and eventually resurrecting their parents doesn’t mean a happy ending.  The older dolls’ delight soon clashes with the battling desires of being a responsible parent and the appeal of killing. How does Jenniffer Tilly (who plays both Tiffany and a heightened version of herself) fit into director Don Mancini’s tale?

Stake Land (Tubi)--Jim Mickle directs this post-apocalyptic vampire horror film.  Thanks to the vampirism pandemic, surviving humans have fled the cities for rural enclaves but still fear sundown.  Mister is a veteran vampire hunter who has taken the recently orphaned Martin under his wing.  The duo start wandering north through America’s heartland, hoping to find a place to stay in the legendary New Eden.  Along the way, the duo take down bloodsuckers and try to avoid the fundamentalist militia known as The Brotherhood, who treat the vampire plague as proof of God's will.

Stuck (Criterion)--Stuart Gordon’s last film is a black comedy thriller based on an unfortunately true incident.  Thomas “Tom” Bardo (Stephen Rea) is a man whose bad day is about to get worse.  Not only has his unemployment run out, but he gets evicted from his apartment.  The capper comes when Bardo gets hit by a car driven by Brandi Boski (Mena Suvari).  The impact doesn’t kill Bardo, but it does leave him impaled on her windshield.  However, instead of rescuing Bardo, Boski leaves him to bleed to death lest her chances for a work promotion be dashed by her having been drunk and on ecstasy at the time of the accident.  Can Bardo find a way to survive?

Tigers Are Not Afraid (Shudder)--Issa Lopez’ stunning directorial debut takes place in an unnamed Mexican city devastated by the country’s drug war.  When little Estrella’s class gets disrupted by outside gun fire, the girl’s teacher gives her three pieces of chalk, each of which will grant the user a wish.  Estrella will certainly need the wishes, as her mother has gone missing probably due to drug-cartel related violence.  But the teacher’s gift turns out to not be the girl’s magic genie but a monkey’s paw, which grants wishes in a dire manner.

Titane (Kanopy)--Julia Ducournau’s body horror tale takes the cars and sex association into decidedly uncharted realms.  Alexia’s passion for automobiles began when, as a child, she had a titanium plate installed in her skull.  As an adult, she’s become a car show model who has sex with cars.  She’s also a serial killer.  But when one killing goes wrong, events truly start going off the rails.

Tucker And Dale Vs. Evil (Amazon)--What do you get when you put together an abandoned lake front cabin in the West Virginia woods, a group of not very bright college kids on a camping trip to that same area, a couple of well-meaning hillbillies named Tucker and Dale, and the story of the notorious hillbilly attack known as the Memorial Day Massacre?  In the hands of director Eli Craig, the answer is definitely not the umpteenth remake of “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.”  Horrible deaths still occur, but it’s more the result of misunderstandings among both hillbillies and college students.

What Keeps You Alive (Kanopy)--Colin Minihan’s psychological suspense thriller begins with Jackie and Jules celebrating their first wedding anniversary at a remote cabin.  However, Jules starts suspecting Jackie is hiding some important secrets.  Why does old childhood friend Sarah refer to Jackie as Megan?  Was the drowning death of Jenny really an accident?  By the time Jules realizes the truth about her wife, the vacation has turned into a fight for survival.

When Evil Lurks (Hulu)--Will you think of the COVID pandemic as you watch Demian Rugna’s tale of demonic possession?.  The discovery of a disemboweled corpse leads brothers Pedro and Jaime to a neighbor’s son, who has become a “Rotten.”   That’s the term for a being possessed by a demon awaiting physical birth.  When the authorities refuse to take action and efforts to remove the demonic possession only succeed in spreading it further, what can the brothers and their loved ones do?