10 Best Horror Movies On Paramount +

The horror genre seems to be perennially popular, and there are few decades that haven’t seen quite a few horror movies that have gained attention and become classics in their own right. The various streaming services that are currently available have made many of these movies even more accessible, but it can sometimes be difficult to determine which of them to watch.

Paramount+ has an extensive library of horror movies, from various periods of Hollywood horror history, that makes for a good watch, both during Halloween and throughout the year. From zombie movies in the 1960s to Stephen King adaptations from just a few years ago, these films have enough scary moments to frighten even the most jaded moviegoer.

10 A Quiet Place (2018)

Any good horror movie has a central premise, and in A Quiet Place, it’s all about sound, as a family struggles to survive after the planet has been taken over by murderous creatures that hunt by sound. Its first half is especially unsettling, as the various characters try to keep from making a sound while also dealing with their own inter-family drama. It’s also a remarkably touching movie, filled with human touches that makes it more than just a horror flick.

9 A Quiet Place Part II (2021)

At the end of the first movie, the surviving members of the family were determined to fight back against the alien invaders, and the sequel shows them continuing to do so. It’s not quite as suspenseful as the first movie–it would be difficult to keep that up–but it does give more screen time to the monsters themselves, which are some of the most disturbing creatures to have emerged in recent horror movies. Aside from anything else, it’s a testament to the human desire to survive despite the odds.

8 Night of the Living Dead (1968)

There are numerous zombie movies out there, but there is only one Night of the Living Dead. Though it wasn’t the first zombie movie, it was arguably the most influential, casting a shadow that most subsequent entries in the genre have failed to surpass.

George Romero proved that he had a knack for creating a horror movie that not only was truly terrifying but also offered a biting commentary about the status of race relations in 1960s America. Night of the Living Dead effectively created the key tropes of the zombie movie genre, which still flourishes today on the big screen (The Dead Don’t Die) and television as well (The Walking Dead).

7 The Omen (1976)

The Antichrist is another figure that has made repeated appearances in horror movies, but few are as genuinely unsettling as The Omen. It’s a brooding, atmospheric movie that relies more on hints and suggestion than outright scares. The central figure, Damien, is a boy who is more than what he appears, which gradually is revealed to Gregory Peck’s Robert Thorn. The movie is full of horror flourishes, and the death that happens at the end remains one of the most unsettling in the history of horror movies. The film is also famous for its unsettling score by Jerry Goldsmith, who won his only Oscar for creating such memorable suites as “Ave Satani.”

6 The Ruins (2008)

The Ruins is a horror movie that flew largely under the radar when it was released in 2008, but it has moments of true horror in the midst of its genre conventions. It focuses on a group of tourists who go to an abandoned temple in the jungle, only to discover that the ruins are haunted by a carnivorous plant that devours any human that comes into contact with it (and, in addition, has the ability to mimic human sounds). The movie has some truly disturbing moments, and even the conclusion isn’t the happy ending it initially appears to be.

5 Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956)

Invasion of the Body Snatchers is a book that has been adapted several times, but in many ways, the original 1956 set the mold for the movies that came after. It’s one of those horror movies that perfectly captures the anxieties of Cold War America, particularly the fear that one’s neighbors might actually be a hidden enemy.

As alien pods start to take over a small California town, only a small group of people discover the truth and attempt to stop the invasion before it spreads to the rest of America and the world. It might not be quite as viscerally frightening as its amazing 1978 horror remake also titled Invasion of the Body Snatchers, but this version still holds up remarkably well.

4 The Ring (2002)

The Ring is a horror movie that relies less on gore and blood and more on atmosphere and tightly woven tension. With its story about a videotape that seems to kill anyone who watches it, it’s also a commentary on the power of the media to affect those who sit and watch it.

In addition to its twists and turns and its thrilling moment, it’s a movie that also features some truly visually stunning moments, and Naomi Watts’ performance is sure to go down as one of the best that she has delivered. The Ring is the rare remake that matches, and some argue surpasses, the original’s unsettling power.

3 Whoever Slew Auntie Roo? (1972)

Paramount+ also has some older horror genre fare, including Whoever Slew Auntie Roo?, which is a bit of a campy foray into the horror movie trope of the “psycho-biddy.” In this case, the character of the title is an old woman who develops an obsession with a young girl that she yearns to replace her deceased daughter. Even though it tends to lean into its camp, the movie also allows Shelley Winters’ Auntie Roo to become something more than just a stereotype.

2 Pet Sematary (2019)

Many of Stephen King’s books have been adapted into movies and TV series, but not all of them have been a success (and only some of which he actually likes). Fortunately, the 2019 version of Pet Sematary is in its own way even more frightening than its predecessor, due in large part to the tremendous performances from the talented cast.

The film is largely faithful to the novel as it tells the story of a family who gradually become involved with, and is destroyed by, a haunted local cemetery for pets. What’s more, it also has an ending that is sure to stay with the audience long after the movie is over, a reminder that not every horror movie has a happy ending.

1 Arachnophobia (1990)

It’s easy to see why movie makers would decide to make a movie based on a fear of spiders, given how widespread (and sometimes justified) that fear is among many people. This movie definitely leans into creature horror, but what makes it so frightening is the fact that, for the most part, the deaths seem so natural. It’s not until near the end that the movie unleashes hordes of spiders that overwhelm the central protagonist and his family. It’s the type of movie that it’s almost impossible to look away from, no matter how scary it is.

About The Author