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Manchester Evening News
Manchester Evening News
Entertainment
Elly Rewcastle

Top Halloween films to watch on Netflix for every kind of horror fan

Spooky season is upon us. Whether it's the plague of pumpkin-decorated things that have sprung up from out of nowhere or the masses of fake spider webs on your neighbour's garden fence, when Autumn comes, so does Halloween.

Nothing says Halloween season like settling down on the sofa with tonnes of snacks and snuggling in for a scary movie. There have been some incredible offerings over the years, with everyone picking their favourites.

So if you're setting up for a ghoulish night at your home cinema, here's a selection of features to add to the bill. We have picked 10 films to get every kind of horror fan ready for the spooky season.

Read more: Savvy Manchester mum shares how to save £90 on Halloween festivities while keeping the kids happy

Family-friendly frights

For those with little ones, or who hide behind pillows at the slightest bit of tension Netflix has many options. Monster House is an excellent choice for younger ones as a trio of friends sets out to expose the terrors of an empty house, which appears to have a craving for people and a life of its own.

While American Netflix viewers have the pleasure of the live-action Scooby-Doo films, the UK Netflix is still waiting for their arrival. Instead, we're happy to sit down with Jack Black's live-action Goosebumps , in which an author's scary stories come to life, complete with a creepy ventriloquist doll out for revenge.

Paranormal chills

If ghosts and beings from beyond the grave are more up your alley, Paranormal Activity 2 has everything you need. The best-selling franchise returned with this second instalment that saw a family's new home already occupied.

Along similar themes, when a family moves into a new home in spooky Insidious , their son falls into a coma. Soon, something more sinister living in the walls emerges.

Absolute classics

Sometimes, we like the traditional and that's OK but annoyingly, Netflix is a bit thin on the ground for our favourite all-time classics. The 2012 retelling of The Woman in Black , a classic British ghost story, stars Daniel Radcliffe and the slow-burning methodical build-up is enough to keep you awake for hours afterwards.

The original Halloween still stands the test of time, terrifying audiences for decades, and its many sequels are excellent choices for a Halloween scream fest. The hardest part of a Halloween film festival is finding them on streaming services.

Thankfully, H20 is available and Laurie Strode is back two decades later avoiding the crazed attacks of the knife-wielding Michael Myers. Now the headmistress of a school, she has more to worry about this Halloween than her students' costumes.

Folk horror

Surprisingly there are a lot of very good contenders for this category. This time, Midsommar is a must-watch as an American couple journey to a fabled Swedish midsummer festival and their dream holiday turns into a nightmare.

In The Wretched , idyllic-sounding festivals make way for an old witch who has possessed a teenager's neighbour. Critics describe it as "a savoury blend of witch-in-the-woods horror ingredients that should leave genre fans hungry for a second helping".

Teen scream

Who doesn't love a scream fest? Netflix offers up some classics with the first Final Destination , a horror franchise that has lasted more than 10 years and attracted a cult following of fans.

And would any film list in the run-up to Halloween be complete without a mention of Scream ? The first one was an absolute classic and its following instalments keep up the slasher chaos, with Netflix offering up Scream 4.

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