9 of the most underrated horror films, and where to watch them

You’ve seen the classics already, everyone has.

Every film fan worth their salt knows the old favourites – your A Nightmare on Elm Streets, Halloweens and Exorcists – but finding hidden gems can be difficult.

For starters, there’s so many of them. They’re often pretty cheap to make, and horror films get pumped out all the time and released in cinemas without much fanfare.

But sift through the pile and there’s endless gold to be found, with obscure and often esoteric would-be classics just waiting to be discovered.

This is our pick of the most underrated horror films and where to watch them online.

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His House (2020)

HIS HOUSE | Official Trailer | Netflixwww.youtube.com

There aren’t many films that impart biting social commentary while managing to be genuinely creepy at the same time, but His House certainly does.

This 2020 film focuses on a young couple from war-torn South Sudan who make a new home for themselves in northern England. They face a sinister force inside their home, coupled with the trauma of losing their daughter following an accident at sea, all making for one of the most intriguing takes on the haunted house genre of recent years. It’s claustrophobic, chilling and thought-provoking, with brilliant performances from Ṣọpẹ́ Dìrísù and Wunmi Mosaku.

Where to watch: Netflix

The Vanishing (1988)

The Vanishing Trailerwww.youtube.com

The kind of movie that stays with you; Dutch film The Vanishing features one of the most terrifying final reveals you’re likely to see, plus an unsettling central villain who will leave a mark.

It’s a film about obsession and depravity, following a young man who spends years searching for his girlfriend after she goes missing following a routine stop at a rest area during a road trip through France. All kinds of disquieting, steer clear of the English language remake and seek out the 1988 original.

Where to watch: Apple TV

Creep (2015)

CREEP (2015) Official Trailer - Mark Duplass, Patrick Brice - Blumhouse Horror!www.youtube.com

This story of a videographer who heads into the sticks to work for a mysterious client with an unsettling brief is an odd one for sure. The cult 2014 film saw Mark Duplass take a big departure from his previous comedy roles to play the eponymous creep in this psychological horror, with intriguing results.

It’ll take you by surprise with its unusual pacing and atmosphere, with the off-beat, found footage film getting under your skin and playing with your expectations. The sequel starring Desiree Akhavan is also on Netflix and worth catching up on.

Where to watch: Netflix

Gerald’s Game (2017)

GERALD'S GAME Trailer (2017) Netflixwww.youtube.com

Hollywood enjoyed a wave of Stephen King hysteria a few years back, and while the likes of IT might have made the headlines, it was Gerald’s Game which arrived with haunting and unsettling imagery to rival that of any King adaptation.

Couple Jessie and Gerald, played by Carla Gugino and Bruce Greenwood, are in need of a new start and they head to an isolated lake house for a romantic weekend. Only, after tying Gugino’s to the bed in a bid to spice up their marriage, Gerald suffers a seizure. With no-one from miles around, Jessie is left to fend for herself as her mind goes into overdrive and ghostly apparitions appear to her. People are sleeping on this film, and it deserves far more recognition than it got back in 2017.

Where to watch: Netflix

Drag Me To Hell (2009)

Drag Me To Hell (2009) - Official Trailer (HD)www.youtube.com

Sam Raimi followed up the hugely popular Spider-Man films with this twisted little ditty of a horror back in 2009, which sees a loan manager cursed by a Gypsy after failing to approve her application. Cue poltergeist hauntings, grotesque nightmares and a whole load of dread.

It saw the Evil Dead director return to the schlocky horror with which he first made his name, with bombastic visuals, pleasingly gross-out moments and a nasty edge that made for propulsive viewing back in 2009.

Where to watch: BBC iPlayer

In the Earth (2011)

IN THE EARTH - Official Trailerwww.youtube.com

Unearth this Ben Wheatley gem which didn’t get the love it deserved when it came out in 2021. This low-budget folk-horror tells the story of a researcher, played by Joel Fry, who heads on a Heart of Darkness-style journey towards an outpost in a deserted forest. It’s both trippy and brutal in equal measure, matched with visceral body horror and frenzied, psychedelic direction.

The film came out in and around lockdown, and a mysterious pandemic hangs over the events of the story too. The timing of its release may have harmed its chances of success a little, but it's prime for rediscovery on streaming services now.

Where to watch: Now TV

Saint Maud (2019)

Saint Maud | Official Trailer HD | A24www.youtube.com

A film about trauma, mental illness and profound loneliness as much as it is a bone-chilling horror, Saint Maud is one of the most unnerving British films of recent years. The debut from filmmaker Rose Glass follows a hospice nurse (Morfydd Clark, excellent) who converts to Catholicism and comes to believe she is possessed.

Bubbling dread, a powerful central performance from Clark and a searing finale make it a must-watch.

Where to watch: Amazon Prime Video

Near Dark (1987)

Near Dark - Official Trailer [HD]www.youtube.com

Kathryn Bigelow’s back catalogue is full of underrated films – not least the superb, underappreciated Detroit – and Near Dark might be one of the perfect cult films of its era. The 1987 movie is a delicious blend of neo-western and bloodthirsty horror, and stars Adrian Pasdar, Jenny Wright and Bill Paxton in a tale of a small American town and the vampires who stalk it. If you’re a vampire fan and you’ve not seen this yet, treat yourself to a viewing – it’s worth it to relive one of the finest performances of the late, great Paxton alone.

Where to watch: Amazon Prime Video

The Ritual (2017)

The Ritual | Official Trailer [HD] | Netflixwww.youtube.com

Another folk-horror worth revisiting, The Ritual is a smart take on the lads’-trip-gone-wrong subgenre with a host of strong performances.

Rafe Spall, Rob James-Collier, Arsher Ali and Sam Troughton are four mates who head to remote Sweden on a hiking trip to honour their late friend, who died when the group became entangled in a robbery after a night out.

Grief and guilt run through the spine of the film, which heads in unexpected directions and offers up enough alarmingly grim visuals to haunt viewers for a good while afterwards. Chuck a big dollop of The Blair Witch Project into the mix and you’re on to a winner.

Where to watch: Netflix

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