It’s that time of year again. That special time of year where we decorate with a bright orange fruit and little ghosts and scare the crap out of each other for fun. Happy Halloween! What better way to get in the spirit than to binge watch scary movies with friends? Or alone if you’re brave enough. Here are seven creepy classic thrillers to check out on Netflix.
‘Carrie’ (1976)
Carrie, played by Sissy Spacek, is an outcast with telekinetic powers and an overbearing mother. The kids at school don’t just dislike Carrie, they hate Carrie. After a traumatic experience in gym class Carrie is skeptical of her classmates, but reluctantly accepts an invitation to prom from a popular jock she barely knows. Havoc ensues due to teenage hatred, a strict religious mother, farm animals and Carrie’s unpredictable temper.
Although this R-rated movie isn’t particularly suspenseful, there are a select few horrific scenes that will keep you up at night.
“Carrie” gets 3/5 stars.
‘Steven King’s Children of the Corn’ (1984)
What’s creepier than a cult of small children killing everyone over 18 in various gory ways? Almost nothing.
In the R-rated film, a young couple tries to take a road trip but they are interrupted by an “accident,” causing them to venture through a ghost town. It is here that they discover demented pagan children and a monster living among the cornfields. Will they survive?
If you can handle some serious blood-and-guts action, then grab some popcorn and stream this gory flick.
“Steven King’s Children of the Corn” gets 4/5 stars.
‘Scream’ (1996)
Talk about drama and deception. While the rated-R storyline can get a little confusing, this thriller combines suspense and betrayal like no other.
Sidney Prescott, played by Drew Barrymore, is recovering from the loss of her mother, who was brutally murdered a year earlier. Soon, other teenagers in town are killed off one by one, leaving Sidney and her friends to pool together their knowledge of scary movies in order to guess what the masked killer plans to do next.
“Scream” gets 4/5 stars.
‘American Psycho’ (2000)
Even though he is the aforementioned “psycho,” Christian Bale is no doubt a nice piece of eye-candy, especially in all those business suits. His character, Patrick Bateman, leads a double-life as both a wealthy investment banking executive and a serial killer. He must remain in control of even the most minute details of his life, striving for perfection. Even his business cards must be top notch. Such type-A tendencies cause stress for Bateman, leading to his violent outbursts behind closed doors. He is selfish, sneaky and egocentric.
This R-rated movie will leave you wondering about every random stranger on the street. Are they crazy too? Some scenes caused me to cover my eyes due to explicit gore.
“American Psycho” gets 3/5 stars.
‘The Silence of the Lambs’ (1991)
FBI trainee Clarice Starling, played Jodie Foster, is in charge of getting pertinent information from an incarcerated serial killer who doubles as a psychiatrist, making Clarice’s job even harder. She needs Hannibal Lector, played by Anthony Hopkins, to help her find and arrest a newer serial killer, Buffalo Bill, who seems to be connected to Lector and has just kidnapped a senator’s daughter.
Can we ever trust Lector? Is he leading us in the wrong direction? Plus, the way he hisses her name will make your skin crawl. This R-rated film perfectly combines crime solving with suspense to create one of the most well-known horror movies of our time.
“The Silence of the Lambs” gets 5/5 stars.
‘The Blair Witch Project’ (1999)
Three film students venture into the woods of Maryland to an old “town,” formerly known as Blair. The students plan to make a documentary about a rumored witch said to have lived in Blair in the 18th century, and recount the stories from locals of a hermit who murdered children after claiming to have been forced to commit the crimes by the witch.
The beginning of the film lets us know that the students never came out of the woods, but their film was discovered and will help us find out what really happened. Although this R-rated movie is a bit slow moving for my taste, the idea of this being a “true story” is exciting, especially with the viewer seeing the students’ supposed raw film.
“The Blair Witch Project” gets 2/5 stars.
‘Rosemary’s Baby’ (1968)
Rosemary, played by Mia Farrow, is a naïve young wife who moves into a new apartment building with her husband, an aspiring actor played by John Cassavates. She notices that her new neighbors behave strangely, but she dismisses it. Her husband decides they should have a baby, and while Rosemary doesn’t remember conceiving, she becomes pregnant.
The pregnancy is rough on Rosemary, and she begins to wonder if her perils are normal. She gains clues about those living around her and begins to wonder if her baby will be safe.
This R-rated psychological thriller still gives me chills long after I’ve turned off Netflix.
‘Rosemary’s Baby’ gets 3/5 stars.
Bradie Armstrong is a freshman in biology.
