Near Dark is back on Shudder… plus more horror gems to stream in April!
April is already upon us, and the various streaming services are preparing accordingly with a ton of new additions to their platforms. That means a whole bunch of horror movies to check out from the comfort of home, from classics to rare gems to brand new releases.
Here are the ten most noteworthy horror titles coming to some of the most popular streaming services and when/where you can watch them.
Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956) – Prime Video
The first adaptation of Jack Finney’s sci-fi novel set the tone for all adaptations that followed. The book’s ending saw the aliens leaving Earth after deciding they couldn’t handle man’s resistance in a tidy, happy ending; the 1956 film kicked off the trend of darker, more ambiguous endings. Well, for its era anyway. Initially, the lead protagonist Dr. Miles Bennell was to end the film screaming as truckloads of pods passed him on the road, but an epilogue was added to instill a semblance of hope for humanity. It’s a worthy entry often overlooked in favor of its more practical effects-heavy siblings.
Krull – HBO Max
Hear me out on this one. This wild swashbuckling fantasy adventure with love at its core doesn’t scream horror. But have you seen it? A prince and his allies set out on a quest to save his true love from a fortress of alien invaders. The inclusion of aliens already sets this apart from your usual fantasy fare. But there’s also deadly quicksand, doppelgangers, a friendly cyclops, a giant man-eating spider, bloody demises, and more. Also, look for a young Liam Neeson as a bandit. It’s a kitchen sink type of genre movie, making for a wildly entertaining ride.
Near Dark – Shudder
“Howdy. I’m gonna separate your head from your shoulders. Hope you don’t mind none.” Severen (Bill Paxton) is one mean, scene-stealing vampire. So is the rest of his nomadic clan in 1987’s Near Dark. Poor midwestern cowboy Caleb had no idea the beautiful drifter that came into his life was a vampire. After being turned by her, he’s reluctantly forced to join her bloodthirsty family as they travel across the country in an RV, leaving a path of destruction and dead bodies. Katheryn Bigelow’s neo-western blends horror with western and biker movies, and the result is one of the most savage vampire movies of all time. Near Dark doesn’t pop up too often on streaming, so don’t miss it.
Sunshine – Paramount+
28 Days Later director Danny Boyle reteams with star Cillian Murphy for a stunning sci-fi horror epic that sends an ill-fated crew on a vital mission to restore the sun before humanity becomes extinct. The journey is perilous, though, and prone to human error that puts their lives at risk. So, too, does the threat of madness. While a third act shift in genres tends to polarize, it’s hard not to fall under the mesmerizing spell of Sunshine. The earworm score, the hypnotic visuals, and the affecting meditation on humanity make for one of Boyle’s most gripping and overlooked genre-benders.
The Purge: Anarchy – Peacock
James DeMonaco created a home invasion film in 2013 set around an exciting concept; for twelve hours each year, all crime is legal, and all emergency services are unavailable. But the home invasion kept the focus within a single location while the Purge chaos raged outside and unseen. Thankfully, DeMonaco upped the ante with the survive-the-night sequel The Purge: Anarchy. He took it to the next level with Frank Grillo’s antihero, The Sergeant. Characters we root for, with an action-heavy, siege thriller focus, made for an engaging, unexpected sequel that remains the best of the series.
The Night House – HBO Max (April 8)
Writers Ben Collins and Luke Piotrowski (Super Dark Times, SiREN) and director David Bruckner (The Ritual, Southbound, V/H/S) explore the potential for an existence beyond the grave in a haunting portrait of loss and grief. What’s more, Bruckner delivers a constant level of pulse-pounding terror with one unsettling, spooky atmosphere. Emphasis on continuous; The Night House begins its nonstop barrage of intense scares almost immediately, and it never ceases. Bruckner once again demonstrates a talent for scare crafting and unsettling atmosphere.
Braid – Screambox (April 15)
Two women on the run seek out their wealthy childhood friend, hoping to steal her cash. To obtain it, they’ll have to rekindle their imaginative childhood game with three simple rules; everyone must play, no outsiders are allowed, and nobody leaves. Their game of make-believe naturally runs out of control, causing dangerous but creative results. The psychological horror movie stars Cam‘s Madeline Brewer in a delightfully unhinged role.
Choose or Die – Netflix (April 15)
This brand-new Netflix original stars Robert Englund and Asa Butterfield. Formerly titled CURS>R, the plot sees a young coder unleashing a hidden curse from within an ’80s survival horror game that threatens to tear reality apart. The coder will be forced to make difficult choices. ’80s corruption, a cursed video game, and Englund sounds like a solid mix for an intriguing horror movie.
Compliance – Hulu (April 15)
Sometimes fact is stranger and scarier than fiction. Based on a strip search phone scam in Kentucky, Craig Zobel’s chilling thriller sees a fast food restaurant torn apart by a phone caller (Pat Healy) claiming to be a police officer. The man reports that an employee (Dreama Walker) stole from a customer, using coercion and threats to get the workers to do his bidding, subjecting the employee to humiliating, dehumanizing, and uncomfortable acts. It’s intense and shocking, made even more so because it’s based on actual headlines.
Ouija: Origin of Evil – Netflix (April 16)
The follow-up to the maligned 2014 film rewound the clock to 1967 for an almost unrelated prequel, save for one visual tie-in post-end credits. It follows a single mother and her two daughters, who run a séance scam business from their Los Angeles home. When mom Alice (Elizabeth Reaser) decides to incorporate an Ouija board in her act, things get spooky fast. Director Mike Flanagan injects clever little visual cues to the period, like cigarette burns to mark the frame, and hides the Oculus mirror within plain sight. Lulu Wilson demonstrates her chops for horror straightaway, stealing scenes as the creepy youngest child Doris. Think of this as a warm-up for “The Haunting of Hill House,” with some of Flanagan’s recurring players.
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