***I ran back through the streaming services for May, deleted what was removed since March, and added a couple of new things. I also decided to add some franchise slasher movies. ***
Are you self isolating? Are you thinking about broadening your cinematic horizons? Perhaps you’d like to learn about a specific genre? I’m here to help. Let's talk about some North American (as in the United States and Canada) horror and cult movie titles available to stream RIGHT NOW.
Netflix and Hulu fall short again and Amazon Prime and the various free streaming services available via Roku, Amazon Fire, Chromecast, et cetera, pick up the slack. I compared a bunch and, for the sake of simplicity, I found the best in terms of content and video quality to be Tubi, Midnight Pulp (a "+" will be included wherever subscription fees apply), VUDU’s free selections, The Roku Channel, Shout Factory TV (though most of their titles can also be watched via Amazon Prime), Popcorn Flix, Crackle, Dark Matter TV (again, a "+" will be included wherever subscription fees apply). And, of course, boutique pay services the Criterion Channel, Shudder, and Fandor do well. I've tried to break things down to the popular filmmakers and some underseen titles I'd love people to enjoy for all their quirk and unique beauty/ugliness.
Be warned – all of the free apps have ad breaks (I know, it sucks) and the video quality is inconsistent from app to app. Sometimes it's genuine HD, other times, it's sub-VHS. Apologies if I’ve suggested something with particularly grim A/V quality and be aware that the availability is based on the research I did on May 8, 2020. Given the nature of streaming media, I imagine very few of these titles will be available in perpetuity. I've included links to my own reviews of some of these films and be aware that, despite my classifications below, complete director filmographies are not currently available free/subscription streaming.
The Masters of Horror (so-called)
Clive Barker Movies
I know he’s British, shhhh...
Hellraiser (1987) – Amazon Prime and Shudder
Hellbound: Hellraiser 2 (directed by Tony Randel, 1988) – HULU, Amazon Prime, Shudder, and Tubi
Nightbreed (1990) – Amazon Prime and Shout Factory TV (director’s cut)
Candyman (directed by Bernard Rose, 1992) – Netflix
The Midnight Meat Train (directed by Ryûhei Kitamura, 2008) – Amazon Prime and Tubi
John Carpenter Horror Movies/Thrillers
Dark Star (1974) – Criterion Channel, Fandor, and The Roku Channel
Assault on Precinct 13 (1976) – Shout Factory TV and Popcorn Flix
Halloween (1978) – Shudder
The Fog (1980) – Shudder
Escape from New York (1981) – Shudder
Christine (1983) – Crackle
Body Bags (with Tobe Hooper, 1993) – Amazon Prime, Shudder, The Roku Channel, VUDU Free, Shout Factory TV, and Popcorn Flix
In the Mouth of Madness (1994) – Shudder and VUDU Free
Escape from L.A. (1996) – Tubi
Vampires (1998) – Crackle
Ghosts of Mars (2001) – Crackle
Larry Cohen Horror Movies (RIP)
God Told Me To (1974) – Criterion Channel and Shudder
Q: The Winged Serpent (1982) – Amazon Prime, Shudder, Shout Factory TV, and Tubi
The Stuff (1985) – Amazon Prime, Shudder, and Tubi
Maniac Cop (directed by William Lustig, 1988) – Midnight Pulp
Maniac Cop 2 (directed by William Lustig, 1990) – Amazon Prime, VUDU Free, Tubi, and Popcorn Flix
Maniac Cop 3 (directed by William Lustig, 1992) – Amazon Prime, VUDU Free, and Popcorn Flix
Don Coscarelli Horror Movies.
Phantasm (1979) – Amazon Prime, Shudder, VUDU Free, Crackle, and Tubi
Phantasm III: Lord of the Dead (1994) – Amazon Prime, Shudder, VUDU Free, Crackle, and Tubi
Phantasm: OvlIVion (1998) – Amazon Prime, Shudder, VUDU Free, Crackle, and Tubi
Phantasm: RaVager (directed by David Hartman, 2016) – Amazon Prime, Shudder and Tubi
Bubba Ho-Tep (2002) – VUDU Free
John Dies at the End (2012) – VUDU Free and Tubi
BONUS: The Beastmaster (1982) – Amazon Prime
Wes Craven Horror Movies (RIP)
The Last House on the Left (1972) – Amazon Prime
The Hills Have Eyes (1977) – Shudder
The Hills Have Eyes Part 2 (1984) – Amazon Prime
Invitation to Hell (1984) – Amazon Prime and VUDU Free
Chiller (1985) – Amazon Prime
The Serpent and the Rainbow (1988) – Shudder
Shocker (1989) – Shudder
David Cronenberg Horror Movies
Shivers (aka: They Came From Within, 1975) – HULU, Popcorn Flix, and Tubi
Rabid (1977) – Shout Factory TV and Dark Matter TV
The Brood (1979) – Criterion Channel
The Dead Zone (1983) – Amazon Prime
Dead Ringers (1988) – Amazon Prime, Popcorn Flix, and Shout Factory TV
Brian De Palma Horror Movies/Thrillers
Sisters (1972) – Criterion Channel
Obsession (1976) – Amazon Prime
Dressed to Kill (1980) – Amazon Prime
Blow Out (1981) – Amazon Prime
Body Double (1984) – Crackle
Raising Cain (1992) – Netflix
Snake Eyes (1998) – HULU
Passion (2012) – Amazon Prime
Stuart Gordon Movies (RIP)
Re-Animator (1985) – Shudder and Midnight Pulp+
Daughter of Darkness (1990) – Tubi
The Pit and the Pendulum (1991) – Tubi
Castle Freak (1995) – Shudder and Tubi
Dagon (2001) – Tubi
King of the Ants (2003) – Amazon Prime, VUDU Free, and Tubi
Edmond (2005) – Amazon Prime, VUDU Free, and Tubi
Stuck (2007) – Shudder
BONUS: Bride of Re-Animator (Brian Yuzna, 1995) – Amazon Prime and Shudder
Tobe Hooper Movies (RIP)
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974) – Shudder
Eaten Alive (aka: Slaughter Hotel; 1976) – Amazon Prime
Invaders from Mars (1986) – Tubi
Body Bags (with John Carpenter, 1993) – Amazon Prime, Shudder, The Roku Channel, VUDU Free, Shout Factory TV, and Popcorn FX
The Mangler (1995) – VUDU Free
Sam Raimi Movies
The Evil Dead (1981) – Netflix
The Quick and the Dead (1995) – Crackle
George A. Romero Movies (RIP)
Night of the Living Dead (1968) – Criterion Channel (best transfer), Amazon Prime, Shudder, VUDU Free, The Roku Channel, Midnight Pulp +, and Dark Matter TV
Season of the Witch (aka: Hungry Wives, 1972) – Amazon Prime, Shudder, and Midnight Pulp
The Crazies (1973) – Amazon Prime, VUDU Free, and Midnight Pulp
Knightriders (1981) – Amazon Prime, VUDU Free, The Roku Channel, Popcorn Flix, and Shout Factory TV (including commentary track version)
Day of the Dead (1985) – The Roku Channel, Popcorn Flix, and Tubi
Two Evil Eyes (Italian: Due occhi diabolici; co-directed with Dario Argento, 1990) – VUDU Free and Popcorn Flix
Tales from the Darkside: The Movie (1990) –Crackle
Bruiser (2000) – VUDU Free and Tubi
BONUS: Night of the Living Dead 1990 (directed by Tom Savini) – Crackle
Vincent Price Movies
(I realize some of these are British-made)
The Baron of Arizona (1950) – Criterion Channel
House on Haunted Hill (William Castle, 1959) – Amazon Prime, Fandor, Dark Matter TV, and Midnight Pulp
The Tingler (William Castle, 1959) – Tubi and Popcorn Flix
The Comedy of Terrors (Jacques Tourneur, 1963) – Amazon Prime
Diary of a Madman (Reginald Le Borg, 1963) – Amazon Prime
The Last Man on Earth (Ubaldo Ragona and Sidney Salkow, 1964) – Amazon Prime, Fandor, The Roku Channel, Tubi, Midnight Pulp, and Dark Matter TV
Dr. Goldfoot and the Girl Bombs (Italian: Le spie vengono dal semifreddo; Mario Bava, 1966) – Amazon Prime
The Oblong Box (Gordon Hessler, 1969) – Amazon Prime
Cry of the Banshee (Gordon Hessler, 1970) – Amazon Prime
Scream and Scream Again (1970) – Amazon Prime
Theatre of Blood (Douglas Hickox, 1973) – The Roku Channel
Madhouse (Jim Clark, 1974) – Amazon Prime
The Monster Club (Roy Ward Baker, 1981) – Amazon Prime
From a Whisper to a Scream (Jeff Burr, 1987) – Amazon Prime
Roger Corman’s Poe Cycle
The Pit and the Pendulum (1961) – Amazon Prime
Tales of Terror (1962) – Amazon Prime
The Mask of the Red Death (1964) – The Roku Channel
The Masters of Trash (so-dubbed by myself)
Al Adamson Movies
Psycho a Go-Go (1965) – Fandor
Five Bloody Graves (1969) – Fandor
Horror of the Blood Monsters (1970) – Fandor
Hell’s Bloody Devils (1970) – Fandor
Brain of Blood (1971) – Amazon Prime
Herschell Gordon Lewis Movies
Blood Feast (1963) – Shudder, Criterion Channel, Fandor, and Midnight Pulp +
Two Thousand Maniacs (1964) – Criterion Channel
Moonshine Madness (1964) – Amazon Prime
Color Me Blood Red (1965) – Criterion Channel
The Gruesome Twosome (1967) – Criterion Channel
The Wizard of Gore (1970) – Criterion Channel
The Gore Gore Girls (1972) – Criterion Channel
Frank Henenlotter Movies
Basket Case (1982) – Midnight Pulp +
Brain Damage (1988) – Shudder and Midnight Pulp
Ted V. Mikels Movies
The Corpse Grinders – Fandor and Midnight Pulp
The Astro-Zombies (1968) – Amazon Prime and Midnight Pulp (Midnight Pulp also has the modern sequels)
Blood Orgy of the She Devils (1973) – Fandor and Midnight Pulp +
The Doll Squad – Midnight Pulp +
Angel of Vengeance (1987) – Amazon Prime
The Corpse Grinders II (2000) – Midnight Pulp
Cauldron: Baptism of Blood (2004) – Midnight Pulp
Andy Milligan Movies
The Body Beneath (1970) – Amazon Prime
Guru, the Mad Monk (1970) – Amazon Prime
Blood (1973) – Amazon Prime
Carnage (1986) – Amazon Prime
Underseen North American Underground Horror Classics
These are a series of relatively deep cuts that offer unique, sometimes surrealistic alternatives to the more popular American (and Canadian) horror movies of the ‘70s (and early ‘80s). I can’t guarantee everyone will like them, but, for better or worse, I think of them as vital pieces of Americana and, uh, Canadana(?).
Let’s Scare Jessica to Death (John D. Hancock, 1971) – Popcorn Flix
Images (Robert Altman, 1972) – Amazon Prime, Shudder, and Midnight Pulp
Grave of the Vampire (John Hayes, 1972) – Amazon Prime and Midnight Pulp
Ganja & Hess (Bill Gunn, 1973) – Amazon Prime, Shudder, and Popcorn Flix
Messiah of Evil (Willard Huyck and Gloria Katz, 1973) – Midnight Pulp and Dark Matter TV
Malatesta’s Carnival of Blood (Christopher Speeth, 1973) – Midnight Pulp
The Baby (Ted Post, 1973) – Fandor, Shudder, and Midnight Pulp
Deranged (Jeff Gillen and Alan Ormsby, 1974) – Amazon Prime
Deathdream (aka: Dead of Night; Bob Clark, 1974) – VUDU Free
Devil Times Five (aka: People Toys; Sean MacGregor, 1974) – Amazon Prime
Alice Sweet Alice (aka: Communion; Alfred Sole, 1976) – Amazon Prime, The Roku Channel, and Midnight Pulp +
The Witch Who Came from the Sea (Matt Cimber, 1976) – Amazon Prime and Midnight Pulp +
Spider Baby (Jack Hill, 1976) – Amazon Prime, Fandor, Midnight Pulp, and Popcorn Flix
Cathy’s Curse (Eddy Matalon, 1977) – Popcorn Flix
Rituals (aka: The Creeper; Peter Carter, 1977) – Fandor and Midnight Pulp +
Death Bed: The Bed that Eats (George Barry, 1977) – Amazon Prime and Midnight Pulp
Tourist Trap (David Schmoeller, 1979) – Shudder and Tubi
Christmas Evil (Lewis Jackson, 1980) – Shudder, Dark Matter TV, and Midnight Pulp
Franchise Horror
Currently, the A Nightmare on Elm Street, Scream, and Saw movies are not available with any free or subscription streaming service.
Friday the 13th
Friday the 13th (Sean Cunningham, 1980) – Amazon Prime and Crackle
Friday the 13th Part 2 (Steve Miner, 1981) – Amazon Prime and Crackle
Friday the 13th Part III (Steve Miner, 1982) – Amazon Prime and HULU
Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter (Joseph Zito, 1984) – Amazon Prime and HULU
Friday the 13th: A New Beginning (Danny Steinmann, 1985) – Amazon Prime and Crackle (remember to watch this one with Gabe and Patrick's commentary track)
Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives (Tom McLoughlin, 1986) – Amazon Prime
Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood (John Carl Buechler, 1988) – Amazon Prime
Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan (Rob Hedden, 1989) – Amazon Prime
Halloween
Halloween (John Carpenter, 1978) – Shudder
Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers (Dwight H. Little, 1988) – Shudder Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers (Dominique Othenin-Girard, 1989) – Shudder
Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers (Joe Chappelle, 1995) – VUDU Free
Halloween (David Gordon Green, 2018) – Amazon Prime
Child's Play
Child's Play (Tom Holland, 1988) – Netflix, Amazon Prime, The Roku Channel, and VUDU Free
Cult of Chucky (Don Mancini, 2017) – Netflix
Final Destination
Final Destination (James Wong, 2000) – Netflix and HULU
Final Destination 2 (David R. Ellis, 2003 – Netflix and HULU
Final Destination 3 (James Wong, 2006) – Netflix
The Final Destination (David R. Ellis, 2009) – Netflix and HULU
Non-Franchise Slashers and Other Mad Killers
Invasion of the Blood Farmers (Ed Adlum, 1972) – Amazon Prime and Midnight Pulp +
Black Christmas (Bob Clark, 1974) – Shudder, VUDU Free, The Roku Channel, Shout Factory TV, and Popcorn Flix
Drive-In Massacre (Stu Segall, 1976) – Amazon Prime and Midnight Pulp +
Don’t Go in the House (Joseph Ellison, 1979) – Amazon Prime
Savage Weekend (David Paulsen 1979) – Amazon Prime
Driller Killer (Abel Ferrara, 1979) – Amazon Prime, The Roku Channel, Midnight Pulp +, and Popcorn Flix
Maniac (Bill Lustig, 1980) – Shudder
Prom Night (Paul Lynch, 1980) – Shudder and VUDU Free
Terror Train (Roger Spottiswoode, 1980) – Amazon Prime and Tubi
Madman (Joe Giannone, 1981) – Amazon Prime and Shudder
Bloody Birthday (Ed Hunt, 1981) – Shudder and Midnight Pulp
My Bloody Valentine (George Mihalka, 1981) – Popcorn Flix
The Dorm that Dripped Blood (Stephen Carpenter and Jeffrey Obrow, 1982) – Midnight Pulp
Sleepaway Camp (Robert Hiltzik, 1983) – Amazon Prime, The Roku Channel, VUDU Free, and Shout Factory TV (the sequels are on Tubi)
Slumber Party Massacre (Amy Holden Jones, 1983) – Amazon Prime, Shudder, Shout Factory TV, Tubi, and Popcorn Flix
The Final Terror (Andrew Davis, 1983) –– Amazon Prime, Shout Factory TV, and Popcorn Flix
Curtains (Richard Ciupka, 1983) – Amazon Prime
The Mutilator (Buddy Cooper, 1984) – Amazon Prime and Shudder
Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer (John McNaughton, 1986) – Amazon Prime and Shudder
Sorority House Massacre (Carol Frank, 1986) – Amazon Prime, Shout Factory TV, and Tubi
Blood Rage (John Grissmer, 1987) – Amazon Prime, Shudder, and Midnight Pulp
Doom Asylum (Richard Friedman, 1987) – Midnight Pulp
Slaughterhouse (Rick Roessler, 1987) – Amazon Prime and VUDU Free
Hello Mary Lou: Prom Night II (Bruce Pittman, 1987) – Amazon Prime, Shudder, VUDU Free, and Popcorn Flix
Slumber Party Massacre II (Deborah Brock, 1987) – Amazon Prime, Shudder, and Shout Factory TV
Jack's Back (Rowdy Herrington, 1988) – Amazon Prime and Shout Factory TV
White of the Eye (Donald Cammell, 1988) – Amazon Prime and Shout Factory TV
Intruder (Scott Spiegel, 1989) – Midnight Pulp and Tubi
Underseen American Creature Features
Squirm (Jeff Lieberman, 1976) – Midnight Pulp (worms)
Shriek of the Mutilated (Michael Findlay, 1974) – Amazon Prime, Midnight Pulp, and Popcorn Flix (yeti)
Track of the Moon Beast (Richard Ashe, 1976) – Amazon Prime, Tubi, and Dark Matter TV (lizard man)
The Incredible Melting Man (William Sachs, 1977) – Amazon Prime (melting man, naturally)
Slithis (aka: Spawn of the Slithis; Stephen Traxler, 1978) – Amazon Prime, Shout Factory TV, and Popcorn Flix
Prophecy (John Frankenheimer, 1979) – Amazon Prime (giant mutant bear)
Night of the Demon (James C. Wasson, 1980) – Amazon Prime (penis-tearing Bigfoot)
Without Warning (Greydon Clark, 1980) – Tubi (proto-Predator)
Rana: The Legend of Shadow Lake (Bill Rebane, 1981) – Amazon Prime and Tubi (WARNING: this killer frog movie is quite, quite terrible)
The Slayer (J.S. Cardone, 1982) – Amazon Prime and Midnight Pulp (dream monster)
Nightbeast (Don Dohler, 1982) – Amazon Prime (janky alien)
The Being (Jackie Kong, 1983) – Amazon Prime (toxic waste monster)
Neon Maniacs (Joseph Mangine, 1986) – Amazon Prime, Shout Factory TV, and Tubi (mutants)
The Nest (Terence H. Winkless, 1988) – Amazon Prime (giant cockroaches)
The Terror Within (Thierry Notz, 1989) – Amazon Prime (mutant creature)
Shakma (Hugh Parks, 1990) – Shout Factory TV and Popcorn Flix (baboon)
Project: Metalbeast (Alessandro De Gaetano, 1995) – Amazon Prime (seriously if you only watch one movie on this list, watch this one, it’s about a genetically engineered, bulletproof werewolf)
Beneath (Larry Fessenden, 2013) – Amazon Prime (giant lake fish)