#Great Horror Movies Streaming Right Now – /Film

(Welcome to Now Scream This, a column where horror experts Chris Evangelista and Matt Donato tell you what scary, spooky, and spine-tingling movies are streaming and where you can watch them.)

Matt: Since this is a streaming horror column, it’s hard not to tumble into a Shudder recommendation pattern. There have been times where “Now Scream This” favored mainstream streamers or even free streamers, but I took it upon myself to explore another Tubi appreciation entry. Quietly, without paywalls, Tubi continues to amass a collection of horror titles that rivals, or in some cases overshadows  the competition thanks to a vastly more expansive and eclectic catalog. We’re here to expand your horizons, whether that’s selections or providers. Not every “What to watch?” answer can be found on Netflix, Hulu, or Amazon Prime.

Chris: Matt did not make me aware of his plan to include only Tubi movies for his choices, so I’m caught off guard here! Had he told me, I might’ve said, “Tubi, or not Tubi?” But seriously, folks, while Matt’s picks this week have some sort of loose theme (they’re all on Tubi!), mine do not. I guess it’s because I’m such a rebel; a bad boy, if you will. And I guess that means Matt is a square. That’s how it goes, daddy-o! Now excuse me while I hop onto my motorcycle and ride on down to the juke joint for an egg cream. 

The Editor

Now Streaming on Tubi

Matt: With Psycho Goreman on the mind, tying back to Aston-6, may I recommend Adam Brooks and Matthew Kennedy’s The Editor? Those of you lucky enough to catch Censor at Sundance might consider this the satirical, comedy-first take on similar setups (the same goes for Berberian Sound Studio). The “greatest editor in the world” loses his hand in a freak accident and now must cut trashy pulp cinema with his wooden replacement, and while slicing his latest project, is accused of murder after the lead actress is found dead. It’s bonkers, filled with filmmaking meta-humor, and is a rather ridiculous yet righteous Giallo homage. One that grew on me after its festival run, as commentary and spoofability get sloppy-silly under horror’s crimson faucet.

Chris: This is so much fun; just stylish and funny and full of great gags. I love me some Astron-6. 

It Follows

Now Streaming on Tubi

Matt: Tubi gets a bad rap for promoting Walmart dollar bin titles like Werewolf Island or Ouija Shark, but there are legitimate overnight sensations and festival darlings like It Follows available. David Robert Mitchell’s experiment in hopelessness and one-step-behind suspense admirably intensifies from its body-pretzel open to final lurching paces forward. Alongside The Guest, It Follows made Maika Monroe’s name common in horror-focused households as Mitchell’s narrative may or may not be a metaphor for sexually transmitted diseases. Perhaps it’s just symbolism about the unending existential dread that will follow us to our final resting place? In any case, critics (including myself) lauded It Follows with heaps of praise you can now either justify or bemoan from the comfort of your couch without breaking the bank. Can you really outrun…blah blah blah just watch and experience for yourself!

Chris: I remember when It Follows came out, and everyone was raving over it. “I gotta see this for myself!” I said. The end result: I really liked this movie until the last twenty minutes, at which point I felt like it completely went off the rails. Still, everything before that is fucking solid. 

The Poughkeepsie Tapes

Now Streaming on Tubi and Amazon Prime

Matt: Chris and I welcomed 2021 with a list of picks that we made our New Year’s Resolutions, and on that list sat the Dowdle Brothers’ The Poughkeepsie Tapes. Thanks to another episode of my podcast Certified Forgotten (which Chris still needs to guest on), I scratched this off my hit list with haste. As the son of a detective who investigated, tracked, and brought a New Jersey serial killer to justice (true story), and proud found footage appreciator, I find The Poughkeepsie Tapes is evil that nails so many true crime aspects uncomfortably well. “But the talking head acting is hokey.” Have you ever watched a History Channel docuseries and the specialists enlisted to speak about the topics on hand intelligently? The Dowdles’ presentation is awkwardly natural, psychopathically unhinged, and criminally repulsive concerning the smallest details. A nerve-shredding example of what found footage and “mockumentary” filmmaking conveys best.

Chris: I’m not sure what the consensus is on The Poughkeepsie Tapes these days, but I think it works exceptionally well. Some of the interview subjects are a little wooden and give away that this is all BS, but there are a series of genuinely disturbing moments in this film that have stuck with me ever since I saw it. 

Blair Witch

Now Streaming on Tubi

Matt: Yes, Adam Wingard and Simon Barrett’s Blair Witch. As revealed above, my soft spot for found footage is squishier than melted brie. For all the ways that The Blair Witch Project shocked audiences with horrific witchcraft footage in isolated woodlands, Blair Witch attempts the same with a modern bend. Stickman ornaments once again dangle, the signs point towards another altercation with an urban legend, and then the third act manifests a wickedly upsetting haunted house finale. As the camera jostles and reveals a gangly cryptid thumping its strides not far behind, it’s pure, adrenaline-excitement horror. Not many critics agree, but that’s unfortunate. Found footage horror is always one of the most challenging subgenre sells, doubly so when creators tie to a beloved original or franchise. In my mind, the hate here is misguided and preconceived.

Chris: I was so excited for this bad boy when it arrived. I love The Blair Witch Project, and I have respect for Book of Shadows: Blair Witch. On top of that, I’ve enjoyed much of Adam Wingard’s work. So the idea of having him make a new Blair Witch sequel was pretty damn exciting. Alas, I found this entire movie a bit of a bust. It adds nothing new to the mythology and none of the gritty, grainy realness of the original film comes through. Everyone feels like they’re playing dress up. 

The Golem

Now Streaming on Tubi

Matt: With The Vigil now on digital (SEE IT), I wanted to highlight an underseen Jewish horror film. Doron Paz and Yoav Paz’s The Golem turns back the clock on a bit of mysticism that summons protection in the form of the title’s entity. Gentiles battle contamination, a Jewish village fights off invaders, and farmland justice becomes supernatural. Details gear towards old-country generations—plague doctor getups, plagues, Kabbalah texts—but it’s deceptively tense despite the minimal landscape. Call upon devils to do your dirty work, and they’ll get the job done, but consequences are part of the pact. The Golem is a tale bound to unique Israeli experiences that’s still understood by mass viewership, not to be ignored as Jewish-forward horror.

Chris: Ah, shit, here I thought this was going to be the first Now Scream This in a while where I’ve actually seen all of Matt’s picks. Nope. Guess I better start watching Tubi… 

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