The best horror movies to watch on Netflix this August

Summer is coming to an end and that means it’s the perfect time to get ready for Halloween. And there’s no better way to get ready than by watching some horror movies when the sun goes down a little early.

Each month we select some of the best horror movies Netflix currently has to offer. Sometimes we pair them with another recent release or suggest a title that’s new to the platform this month.

Here are just some of the scariest movies on Netflix, including an absolutely terrifying Wild West tale, a haunting exorcism film in a style you’ve never seen before, and a good old-fashioned shark movie that’s a lot more fun than you might expect.

Editor’s recommendation: Bone Tomahawk

Image: RLJ Entertainment

Director: S. Craig Zahler
Pour: Kurt Russell, Patrick Wilson, Matthew Fox

There are far from enough horror films set in the Wild West, but Bone Tomahawk is both a great example of what this setting has to offer and perhaps a good reason why more films aren’t set in this brutal time period.

The film is about a small group of men who go in search of some kidnapped locals. Legends suggest that they were kidnapped by a vicious and murderous tribe hiding in the valley. And the legends are right.

Bone Tomahawk is not for the faint of heart, a particularly bloody and brutal film that highlights just how terrifying the American frontier can be. It’s also one of the most violent, scary and disturbing horror films of the last decade, making it well worth a watch.

The Lamentation

Image: Well Go USA Entertainment

Director: Na Hong-jin
Pour: Jun Kunimura, Hwang Jung-min, Kwak Do-won

Part crime, part exorcism film, The Lamentation is probably one of the most unique films you’ve ever seen. The film is mostly set in a small village where an infectious disease breaks out, causing those infected to lash out violently and attack those around them. Although the cause of the infection is not clear, many soon believe it to be a demonic form of possession, a curse placed on the village for unknown reasons.

That is when The LamentationThe story of really ventures into uncharted territory. As soon as the concept of demons enters the story, it stops being a procedural police thriller and turns into a battle to the death between the forces of good and evil, even if it is not always clear who is on which side. All this makes The Lamentation a breathtaking, incredibly ambitious horror film that is comparable to pretty much any other film ever made.

47 Meters Down: Uncaged

Image: Entertainment Studios Motion Pictures

Director: John Roberts
Pour: Sophie Nélisse, Corinne Foxx, Brianne Tju

The first 47 meters down The film was about two divers trapped in a shark diving cage – you guessed it – 150 feet underwater. That should explain to you why “uncaged” is an absolutely perfect subtitle for this sequel. While the characters of the film are completely different, what we need to know is still the same: a group of people are being held captive by a whole lot of sharks in a very horrific place.

This time, the unfortunate shark victims are a group of teenage girls who find an underwater cave and decide to take a very dangerous detour on their swimming trip to explore the caves. Cave diving is dangerous enough under the best of circumstances, but as you might expect, this particular group of caves is absolutely full of very scary sharks. From then on, the whole film is full of thrilling dives, dark caves, and many, many extremely thrilling and extremely funny shark attacks.