As much as I love Netflix, I hate the hassle of searching through a sea of movies for the diamond in the rough. These are just a few horror gems that I’ve found over the past couple of years that are worth checking out. From horror/black comedy to truly frightening, there’s something for everyone on this list. There are quite a few more movies that I would have loved to add, and they’ll definitely be noted in other posts that I make in the future. It should also be noted that this list doesn’t include any movies pre-2006, but I’ll probably do a list of older horror on Netflix as well. Enjoy!

1. The Host (2006)

Director: Bong Joon-ho

Starring: Song Kang-ho, Byun Hee-bong, Park Hae-il, Bae Doona, Go Ah-sung

Plot: A monster from the depths of the Han River captures a girl and her family bands together to save her.

Personal notes: The Host is the perfect blend of horror and comedy full of genuine scares, and laughs that don’t detract from the overall feel of the film. Seeing members of a dysfunctional family come together and do whatever it takes to save one of their own really struck a chord with me, and the superb acting made it believable. Chock full of symbolism and political undertones, it’s not your average creature feature. By admissions, it’s the highest grossing South Korean film of all time, and rightfully so.

2. Pontypool (2008)

Director: Bruce Mcdonald

Starring: Stephen McHattie, Georgina Reilly, Hrant Alianak, Rick Roberts, Boyd Banks, Tony Burgess, Rachel Burns

Plot: Residents of a small Ontario town are stricken with a deadly virus that spreads through spoken word.

Personal notes: Aside from a scene in the beginning of the film, Pontypool takes place in one location, a radio station. A DJ, producer, and production assistant are learning, from the studio, the terrors that are taking place in their small town. This movie, in my opinion, is a success because it leaves a lot to the imagination. The characters in the film are learning things from the outside world at the same time that we are, and the whole time I was watching I was anticipating the next piece of information that would tie everything together. It’s definitely a thinking man’s movie. If you’re in it for the gore, you’ll be let down as there isn’t much at all. The chilling descriptions of what is happening outside of the station are pretty chilling though. It is definitely an interesting take on the basic “virus outbreak” story line.

3. House of the Devil (2009)

Director: Ti West

Starring: Jocelin Donahue, Tom Noonan, Mary Woronov, Greta Gerwig, Dee Wallace

Plot: Set in the early ’80s, a girl takes a babysitting job in hopes of making some money to help pay her rent, but when she arrives at the house she finds that she’s actually being hired to care for an old woman that never leaves her room.

Personal Notes: The fact that this is the only Ti West film on this list shows great restraint on my part. It was a close call between this movie and The Innkeepers, but HotD won by a very small margin. This movie accomplishes perfectly everything it sets out to do, and what more can you ask for, really? The look, pacing, score, and general feel of the movie are spot on with films of the ’80s and I can almost guarantee that if you came across this movie knowing nothing about it, you’d think it was 30 years old. I mean that in the best way possible of course. Though it has a very simple plot, the buildup and dramatic conclusion make this a must see. Definitely my favorite horror movie of 2009.

4. I Saw the Devil (2010)

Director: Kim Ji-woon

Starring: Choi Min-sik, Lee Byung-hun

Plot: A secret agent sets out to find the killer of his pregnant wife.

Personal Notes: I was really excited to watch this movie after seeing A Tale of Two Sisters, and I was not disappointed. It can be simply described as unapologetic and violent, though not for shock factor. All of the brutality in the movie served a purpose to the storytelling. It’s rare that I find myself wincing at gore/violence in movies, but this movie accomplished that on multiple occasions.

5. Tucker & Dale vs. Evil (2010)

Director: Eli Craig

Starring: Tyler Labine, Alan Tudyk, Katrina Bowden, Jesse Moss

Plot: On vacation to their fixer upper cabin, Tucker and Dale are mistaken for killers by a group of teenagers which leads to confusion and death.

Personal notes: This is one of my favorite horror/comedy movies. It definitely falls more towards the comedy side, but I don’t have a comedy blog and it’s too good to go unmentioned. Aside from the humor, it’s full of ridiculous and gory deaths so that alone makes it a contender. Tyler Labine and Alan Tudyk both play their roles as simple country folk quite well, and some of the scenes are actually pretty endearing. I think that’s what sets it apart from a lot of other movies in this genre. It’s got a kind of sweetness to it between the humor and gore. From suicide pacts to murderous hillbillies, Tucker & Dale vs Evil is full of confusion but in the end it has great deaths, lots of laughs, and a good message.

6. Berberian Sound Studio (2012)

Director: Peter Strickland

Starring: Toby Jones, Antonio Mancino, Fatma Mohamed, Tonia Sotiropoulou, Cosimo Fusco

Plot: Gilderoy, a British foley artist, takes a job working on what he thinks is a film about horses that turns out to be an Italian giallo horror.

Personal notes: Of the movies on this list, this is the one I’ve seen most recently. I hadn’t heard about it until a few weeks ago and decided to give it a shot. I have to say that it has impacted me much more than I thought it would. I guess before I get into what I enjoyed about it, I’ll say that this movie is not for everyone. The story line is not very conventional and it’s sometimes hard to make out what’s real from what is imagined. That being said, the film is beautifully shot and the sound is incredible. Toby Jones does a fantastic job at playing Gilderoy and portraying his moral conflicts with the film he’s working on. Watching him create the sounds in the movie and seeing the discomfort he is feeling with what he is doing made me feel equally uncomfortable. Despite seeing that he’s hacking away at a cabbage, the tone of the movie makes it impossible not to associate the sounds he is creating with his intended purpose for them. I also really enjoyed being able to see what the movie making process was like in that time and the different struggles they faced creating the film within the film.

7. Maniac (2012)

Director: Franck Khalfoun

Starring: Elijah Wood, Nora Amezeder, Jan Broberg, Liane Balaban, America Olivo

Plot: Anna meets Frank and enlists him to help her with her art exhibit by loaning her some mannequins from his shop. Little does she know that Frank has a troubled past and isn’t the sweet guy she thinks he is.

Personal Notes: The first time I saw Maniac (1980) was about 10 years ago when I was attempting to marathon everything that Tom Savini did special effects for. I was mesmerized. The scalping scenes in that movie are pretty amazing even by today’s standards. When I heard about the 2012 version being made I was extremely skeptical, but I have to say that I was not at all let down. The practical effects in this movie are phenomenal. My biggest fear in remakes is CGI, so I was delighted. Another element that I was really impressed with was the POV. The movie really captured the feeling of being trapped inside a killer’s body, and at some points caused you to sympathize with him. This version’s Frank is much easier to relate to and Elijah Wood played the role fantastically. There haven’t been too many slasher movies lately that have wowed me, so this was definitely a breath of fresh air.

8. Bad Milo (2013)

Director: Jacob Vaughan

Starring: Ken Marino, Peter Stormare, Gillian Jacobs, Stephen Root, Mary Kay Place, Patrick Warburton

Plot: Duncan is suffering from intestinal pain that he soon learns is caused by a bloodthirsty demon that is living in his intestinal tract.

Personal Notes: I initially read about this movie in an issue of Fangoria and I instantly thought that it looked awesome. I love gross comedy, add some gore to that and I’m sold. Though the plot might sound absolutely ridiculous, and it is, Bad Milo is a fun ride. It’s definitely got a future as a cult classic. This movie is so gross but in the best way possible, and for a demon that came out of someone’s butt, Milo is kind of adorable.

9. Let the Right One In (2008)

Director: Tomas Alfredson

Starring: Kåre Hedebrant, Lina Leandersson, Per Ragnar, Ika Nord, Peter Carlberg

Plot: Oskar, a 12 year old boy that’s bullied frequently, falls in love with Eli who teaches him to fight back. He soon finds out that she’s not your average girl.

Personal Notes: This is one of few vampire movies that I enjoy. Let the Right One In is a very dark, grim movie that is extraordinarily acted. The cinematography is amazing and the movie has a truly haunting feel without relying on jump scares. One of the things I loved the most about the movie is that the ending can be interpreted in two ways depending on your take of the relationship between the two characters. I’ve never read the book or seen the American remake, so I am solely basing my thoughts off of this version alone.

10. Grabbers (2012)

Director: Jon Wright

Starring: Richard Coyle, Ruth Bradley, Russell Tovey

Plot: Mysterious sea creature washes ashore and turns out to be a bloodsucking monster.

Personal Notes: This could have been a very cookie cutter monster movie. The twist that made it entertaining to me is that the monsters react negatively to blood with a high alcohol content. Watching people attempt to survive a monster invasion is ten times more interesting when they’re all drunk. It was the first time that I didn’t find myself yelling at the T.V. for the stupid actions of the characters, but instead laughing because they had a reason not to be logical or rational. The acting was pretty spot on, and Ruth Bradley is gorgeous. Overall a fantastic and fun film.