If you’re a horror fan, you owe it to yourself to check out some of these Shudder Originals. In case you’ve never heard of it, Shudder is a streaming service dedicated to horrors and thrillers. Not only do they boast a catalog full of classic films from the likes of Rob Zombie, Dario Argento, John Carpenter, and more, but they also have a decent amount of original programming.
Oftentimes, these Shudder originals will spend a few months on the festival circuit, premiering at places like Sundance or SXSW before finally making its home on the streaming service. I’m usually a bit snobby about direct-to-streaming releases – there are definitely a lot of doozies out there that get quietly released on things like Amazon Prime – but I’ve found that the Shudder films are usually pretty solid. Just last year, the service released The Host, a very low-budget film made during the pandemic lockdown that ended up being one of my favorite horror films of last year!
On top of that, Shudder nabs quite a few international releases. These are movies that probably would have never ended up on my radar if they hadn’t been streaming. One example is the Guatemalan film, La Llorna – not to be confused with the not-very-scary 2019 American film, The Curse of La Llorona. The movie I’m talking about was released on Shudder in Summer of 2020 and was directed by Jayro Bustamante. The film is a political horror film that examines intergenerational trauma through a supernatural lens. It’s a really refreshing take on the genre and the history of the La Llorona superstition, and the movie was actually Guatemala’s entry for the Academy Awards that year.
Probably my favorite international release to come from Shudder, though, was 2017’s Revenge. The French film starred Matilda Lutz as Jen, a woman who is sexually assaulted by one of her lovers’ friends during a hunting trip. Her lover tries to pay her off and tells her to forget about the assault, before eventually pushing her off a cliff and leaving her for dead. Jen survives, though, and she is dead-set on her revenge (hence the movie’s name). So begins an intense film filled with brutal violence and intense thrills.
The service also helmed a documentary called Horror Noire: A History of Black Horror. Without a doubt, this is a must-watch for horror fans. The documentary examines films like Candyman, blaxploitation movies, Attack the Block, and more. Notably, it features interviews from people like The Craft’s Rachel True, Blacula director William Crain, Jordan Peele, and more. It’s a really eye-opening work, and its success also kick-started a Black horror anthology project that will also be produced by Shudder.
Of course, as much as I’ve praised these movies, there are certainly a few stinkers among the group. They can’t all be winners, right? Especially not when your service boasts over forty original films, all released in just the last few years – Shudder only started in 2016. Two of the more skippable features include The Beach House and the Shudder exclusive Verotika. Verotika was actually directed by rock legend Glenn Danzig, but unfortunately, that big name is about all it’s got going for it.
Just this March alone, Shudder is bringing four new original features to the platform. Here’s a run-down of those movies, and my thoughts on the trailers I’ve seen so far.
Lucky – Released March 4th, 2021
Natasha Keramani directed this horror film, and Brea Grant both stars and wrote the screenplay. I’m excited about this one, as Grant had directed last year’s 12 Hour Shift with Angela Bettis, which I enjoyed thoroughly. Lucky is being marketed as a “feminist slasher” and admittedly, I don’t really know what that means, but hey! I’m excited.
The trailer features multiple people minimizing the experience of May (Grant), who is constantly being attacked by a mysterious man. The trailer also has some lush, neon lighting in a few scenes, and I’m a sucker for lush, neon horror.
Stay Out of The F**king Attic – Releases March 11, 2021
This movie is a slasher involving ex-convicts getting trapped inside an old Victorian mansion that’s decked out with traps, Nazi experiments, and torture devices. It seems like a Saw type of torture flick, which is admittedly not my thing, but this could be a fun one to throw on while doing the laundry or something. Written and directed by horror newcomer Jerren Lauder.
Slaxx – Releases March 18th, 2021
This right here is the kind of goofy movie I love. Slaxx is about a killer pair of pants. Yeah, you read that right, a killer pair of pants. The murderous jeans in question have a killer AI stitched into them, and the clothing company refuses to acknowledge the fatal flaw in their design. The trailer features pants strangling people, dancing to Bollywood music, and chopping fingers off. As one character puts it, “it’s a small price to pay for a nice ass.” This probably won’t be the kind of movie for everyone – it’s more comedy than horror, it seems – but it definitely seems like a great thing to watch with friends. Directed by Elza Kephart.
Violation – Releases March 25th, 2021
Out of all the movies dropping on Shudder this month, this one looks like it’s the scariest. The other three seem to have some quirky comedy elements to them, but this one seems like a straight up thriller. It’s about a woman named Miriam who returns to her hometown to visit her younger sister and brother-in-law after realizing her marriage is about to end. Something happens while she’s home that sparks a deep desire for revenge within her. The trailer is fuzzy on the details, but it definitely got me hooked – I immediately want to know more about what will happen during this trip.
This is the first feature from director team Madeleine Sims-Fewer and Dusty Mancinelli, and Sims-Fewer also stars in the film. The film premiered at Sundance back in February in their “Midnight” section and apparently made a pretty big impression. It won the Emerging Canadian Director Award at the Vancouver International Film Festival and earned Madeleine Sims-Fewer the TIFF Rising Star award. Definitely excited to see what the film has in store.
Be sure to check out Shudder and keep an eye out for the movies they have releasing this month!
