April means we are halfway to Halloween, which means we have another six months to wait until spooky season finally comes back around again. Fortunately, the folks at Shudder aren’t making us wait until then to celebrate. The streaming service is once again holding its Halfway to Halloween celebration and, throughout the entire month, they will be bringing us a selection of genre films, from brand new originals to forgotten classics that we can all enjoy to commemorate the halfway mark to the most wonderful time of the year.
Today, we’re here to highlight some gems from this year’s collection, ranging from ’80s classics to forgotten favorites and everything in between. So, here are some of the films horror fans can (and should) look forward to on Shudder this month.
The Devils
Horror has a rich history of movies that are difficult to find for various reasons. Perhaps something aired as a TV movie and never made it to another medium. Or, in many other cases, a movie gets banned – and that is exactly the case with 1971’s The Devils from director Ken Russell. Starring Oliver Reed and Vanessa Redgrave, this horror film wrapped in a historical drama is widely considered a masterpiece of British genre film, yet it’s not available on home video. Luckily, Shudder will be making it readily available on streaming, allowing a wide audience to see this twisted tale of a religious leader who is accused of witchcraft by a sexually-repressed nun.
Intruder
Few subgenres of horror have endured quite like that of the slasher. While it had a significant dip in the ’90s until Scream came along, pretty much ever since Halloween hit theaters in 1978, this has been a mainstay vehicle for genre storytelling. And the ’80s were truly the heyday for slashers on the silver screen. Unfortunately, some of the films not connected to big names like Jason Voorhees and Michael Myers have managed to slip through the cracks over the years. Such is the case with 1989’s Intruder, directed by Scott Spiegel of From Dusk Till Dawn 2 and Hostel: Part III fame. This slasher, in particular, focuses on the overnight stock crew at a grocery store that finds themselves on the wrong end of a mysterious maniac’s bloodlust. Intruder is here to help fill the slasher hole in your horror-loving heart.
The Funhouse
Speaking of slashers, The Funhouse is yet another entry in the genre, this time from the early ’80s, and hailing from one of horror’s most influential filmmakers. The name Tobe Hooper is one that will ring true for just about any fan of blood on film, as he is the man behind The Texas Chain Saw Massacre. But Hooper did much more with his illustrious career, and 1981’s The Funhouse is lesser-seen, but not less worth one’s time. This is a mean little murder fest set in an amusement park from the man who created Leatherface. What more could one ask for?
Jamie Marks Is Dead
Fortunately, as the times have started changing, genre films have changed right along with them. Horror has truly started to embrace LGBTQ themes and characters openly, and Jamie Marks is Dead is an excellent example of an earlier entry into the canon of modern queer horror cinema. The film features a great cast including the likes of Judy Greer and Liv Tyler. Directed by Carter Smith, the movie centers on a high-school student (Cameron Monaghan) who, despite warnings to the contrary, becomes friends with the ghost of a misfit classmate (Noah Silver) who, as it turns out, might have been murdered.
Rocktober Blood
In the ’80s, metal went mainstream, and, as anyone might suspect, that means the music also began to permeate the films being made at the time. Horror was no exception, and a prime example of ’80s metal horror exists in the form of the delightfully titled Rocktober Blood, which will be part of this year’s offerings on Shudder. This little resurrected nugget first came to life in 1984 and was directed by Beverly Sebastian, serving as yet another example of horror being a place where female filmmakers could have a voice in Hollywood. As the title implies, music is at the very heart of the picture as it sees an executed former rocker (Tray Loren) come back to haunt a current rock star (Donna Scoggins) who betrayed him, though it may not be as simple as all of that.
Session 9
Some movies are either ahead of their time, or maybe even simply out of time entirely. Whatever the case, they don’t always find the audience they deserve when they first make their way out into the world, but time proves kind to them anyhow. Such is the case with Session 9, director Brad Anderson’s atmospheric spookfest that first arrived rather quietly in the summer of 2001. Starring the likes of David Caruso and Peter Mullan, this slow-burn creepy masterwork sees an asbestos removal crew tasked with cleaning up an abandoned mental asylum. They will be unlucky enough to find out just why the people of Danvers, Massachusets are so adamant about avoiding the place. This movie’s reputation has truly grown over the last two decades, and for those who still haven’t had the chance to take in its bloody, moody delights, now is the time.
Near Dark
Vampires are as much a mainstay in the horror genre as just about any creature or other method of on-screen murder for the sake of cinematic entertainment. Dating back to Nosferatu 100 years ago, we’ve seen many, many takes on the fanged beings of the night. But Kathryn Bigelow’s 1987 creative masterpiece of the vampire subgenre is an underseen gem that has never quite received the home video release it so sorely deserves. Luckily, Shudder includes this Bill Paxton-starring tale of love and the need for blood as part of this year’s festivities, and there is no better time like the present to give Near Dark some of your time.
Subspecies
What would this list be without some classic direct-to-video goodness that managed to spawn an entire franchise? Such is the case with the other vampire offering on this list, 1991’s Subspecies. Hailing from the DTV masters at Full Moon Video, this is a downright masterwork of low-budget horror. Directed by Ted Nicolaou, it sees several college students caught in the battle between good and evil vampire siblings in the heart of Transylvania. Everything from the ripe-for-video-story box art to the admirable attempts at every turn to make the most of what they had, this is what low-budget offerings should aspire to be. To that point, it spawned several sequels and spin-offs that were released throughout the ’90s, but Shudder is here to let you sink your teeth into the movie that started it all.
Stream the Halfway to Halloween titles now on Shudder.
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