Mario Bava’s horror classic “Black Sunday” is available for streaming on Netflix Instant
Each week, the Cap Times’ Rob Thomas posts a rundown of Netflix Instant recommendations over at his Madison Movie Blog, where he packages each film suggestion with nuggets of information, prior reviews, or in this week’s Halloween-themed post, an interview with The Innkeepers star Pat Healy. In short, they’re a reliable and informative source for quality streaming titles — and really, if you haven’t seen Ti West’s take on the haunted house, please watch The Innkeepers immediately.
In honor of Rob’s weekly recommendations, here are a few more Halloween-y titles currently available for streaming on Netflix Instant. No, none of them are I Spit On Your Grave:
Black Sunday (1960) — From criminally underrated Italian director Mario Bava comes the story of a witch put to death by her own brother, only to return centuries later to seek revenge on his descendants. Like Giallo director Dario Argento, Bava blends the beautiful with the macabre in his films and would prove to be an undeniable influence on directors like Martin Scorsese and Guillermo Del Toro.
The ABCs of Death (2012) — As the title suggests, this 2012 Drafthouse Films release takes the idea of anthology horror to ridiculous, horrifying, and occasionally sickening lengths. 26 letters. 26 interpretations of death.
The Serpent and the Rainbow (1988)— You’ve seen zombie movies, but probably not like this. In Wes Craven’s The Serpent and the Rainbow, Bill Pullman’s anthropologist journeys to Haiti to investigate rumors of mad witch doctors who bury alive victims and then resurrect them as the living dead. After this one, prepare to hate tarantulas even more than you already do.
Slither (2006) — Even before taking the director’s chair with Marvel’s upcoming Guardians of the Galaxy, James Gunn has shown a flair for genre filmmaking. In Slither, intergalactic alien parasites try to take over a small town’s denizens for an experience that’s one part “Cronenbergian” body horror, one part Sam Raimi camp, and all parts disgusting.
Re-Animator (1985) — Now regarded as a cult classic, Stuart Gordon’s update of H.P. Lovecraft’s story was pretty well received by critics upon its release and for good reason. Re-Animator’s grotesque peaks occasionally blend into black comedy as an ambitious med student experiments on his claims that he can return life to the deceased.
The Woman (2011) — Never one to shy away from controversy, Lucky McKee brought his feminist extremism to this story of an abusive husband who brings home the last member of a country clan in an attempt to “civilize” her. Considering The Woman’s provocative reaction, it’s safe to say that doesn’t go well for the involved parties.
Ju-on: The Grudge (2002) — Takashi Shimizu’s Japanese ghost film isn’t the first in the Ju-on series, but it’s arguably the most influential and among the best J-horror has to offer. See what spawned a string of Japanese theatrical Ju-on releases and those two American remakes with Sarah Michelle Gellar with Shimizu’s 2002 film, in which six short ghost stories intertwine in supernatural and horrifying ways.