5 Lesser Known Horror Movies To Check Out This Halloween
- Will Johnson
- Oct 29, 2021
- 2 min read
Updated: Dec 21, 2021
Amongst a plethora of big franchises, many brilliant horror movies can get lost in the ether. Cult followings and English-language re-makes can bring these films more attention, so here are five of the best lesser known horror movies to watch this Halloween.
1) Tombs Of The Blind Dead / La Noche Del Terror Ciego (1972)
Iconic in its way, the first of the 'Blind Dead' series introduced the blind zombie knights that have gained a strong cult following amongst '70s horror movie fans. Adding some historical themes to Night Of The Living Dead's template, this is a mystical, spooky and atmospheric zombie film that also has plenty of the flesh eating gore we expect. It's slower pace might not be for everyone, but there's a ghastly vibe to this film that sends shivers down the spine perpetually.
2) Street Trash (1987)
The only film to be directed by Hollywood's Steadicam maestro Jim Munro, Street Trash is the best of the 'melt movies' which, as you might have guessed, are horror films that involve people melting. In Street Trash's case it's by way of drinking some mysterious old booze found in someone's basement. It's true '80s grindhouse chic with it's bizarre effects, over-the-top New York characters and ridiculous levels of gore. The film actually has a surprisingly dark humour to it as well, making it entertaining beyond it's pure absurdity.
3) Phase IV (1974)
Sci-fi and horror are genres which often work well together, and although Phase IV isn't the best example of this genre splicing it is well worth a watch. Focussed on an uprising of intelligent and highly evolved ant colonies, the film isn't as ludicrous as that premise might seem. While the visuals tend to take precedence over the narrative and the ending is frustratingly ambiguous, Phase IV manages to be a creepy, claustrophobic and horrifying thriller with an eeriness that alludes to a petrifying future.
4) The Platform / El Hoyo (2019)
Despite winning several awards and being a bit of a Netflix hit when it saw UK release in early 2020, this is a film which should be far better known, and in my eyes is one of the greatest horror films of the 21st century. The Platform's depressing dystopian plot is full of political and social allegory that's intertwined with a story of individual tragedy and just the faintest glimmers of hope. There's some terrifying scenes of human-perpetrated horror and a constant sense of trepidation that makes it absolutely captivating.
5) Inside / À l'intérieur (2007)
Alongside the more well-known Martyrs, Inside is one of the best entries to the French New Wave of Horror that also has a terrible American re-make. That version only acts as encouragement to watch the original, a deeply intense and unsettling pregnancy themed thriller with a whole heap of disturbing gore. Inside manages to be both utterly gripping and completely repulsive at the same time, which is what the best gory horror movies should always strive to be.
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