The only thing I love more than horror movies is horror anthologies. It’s like sampling a bunch of scary stories at once instead of a huge feast. Something about this has always fascinated me, and I think it’s because I don’t have an attention span. Or maybe the first time I watched Creepshow as a kid just really left an impression. At any rate, I make it my business to check out anthology films, and I have a few that have a special place in my heart. So, I decided to share the creepy songs in my heart in this streaming guide. After all, sharing is caring. Plus, we are officially in Halloween season, so we are obligated to yeet all genre films we can onto our screens.
Scare Me
Where You Can Watch: AMC+ and Shudder
Two strangers tell each other scary stories during a power outage. However, the more they commit to their tales, the more they begin to take on a life of their own in the secluded cabin. This was one of my favorite movies of 2020 and is easily one of my favorite anthologies. I should be embarrassed about how many times I watched this movie while living the quarantine life in Indiana. However, shame went out the window around the 20th time. Not only is it fun, smart, and cool, but Scare Me is also a baller approach to pulling off an anthology as an indie filmmaker. It’s like a weird feminist love letter to theater kids, which is, apparently, my brand.
P.S. Check out Josh Ruben’s 5 Favorite Horror Movies.
Southbound
Where You Can Watch: AMC+
Weary travelers must confront their deepest nightmares on a stretch of desert highway. These five interlocking stories happen over one long night, and this movie is surprisingly unsettling. I know many people will see that Radio Silence, Roxanne Benjamin, and David Bruckner are involved, then skip down to see what I wrote about V/H/S. I recently watched it as part of the 100 Horror Movies in 92 Days Challenge, and it was cool to see where that found footage series started. However, it’s not here because while that franchise keeps pulling us back in, the first entry doesn’t feel as sinister as this movie. So, while it’s probably in my top 20, and some of the stories are admittedly distressing, it’s not in my top 5 anthologies.
P.S. Check out Radio Silence’s (Chad Villella, Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, and Tyler Gillett) 5 Favorite Horror Movies.
Tales From The Hood
Where You Can Watch: VOD
A funeral director shares four tales of horror with three drug dealers who think they’re picking up drugs at his funeral home. Rusty Cundieff fully snapped with this movie. The first time I saw it, I was way too young to watch it, and it has been my favorite anthology ever since. While a few movies have tried a similar setting for the wraparound story, no anthology can ever be this amazing. Clarence Williams III’s performance as Mr. Simms is legendary, and we should all hope anything we create will ever have even half of the impact he did in this role. Everyone should rent or buy it immediately.
Twilight Zone: The Movie
Where You Can Watch: Plex and Tubi
Four directors take a crack at the world Rod Serling built in this 1983 version of The Twilight Zone. What filmmakers would people alive in that era expect to attempt to fill those shoes? Why John Landis, Steven Spielberg, Joe Dante, and George Miller obviously. As a sci-fi and horror nerd who grew up thinking holidays existed for The Twilight Zone marathons, this movie lives in my heart. I have only seen it twice, but I get giddy thinking about the 80s tech, 80s actors, and the huge whiff of nostalgia from a time before I was born. I highly recommend you take advantage of this one while it is streaming for free this month.
XX
Where You Can Watch: Hulu
This woman-led horror anthology features four creepy stories by four badass horror ladies. I only saw this movie for the first time last year, and I have been salty I was late to this party ever since. Not only am I always screaming for more horror movies helmed by women, but this one goes hard. We have short films by Roxanne Benjamin, Sofìa Carrillo, The Karyn Kusama, St. Vincent, and Jovanka Vuckovic. There are even more badasses in front of the camera because Sheila Vand and Melanie Lynskey are definitely in this cast. This movie deserves so much more attention than it typically gets, and I need everyone to check it out tonight.
I was late to a few of these titles, so I have made it my responsibility to make people watch them. Hopefully, I can help some of you find them sooner rather than later. I also hope this streaming guide helps shake up your Halloween watch list. Sweet screams, kids!
