Whether you squirm at the thought of a scary movie, are sick of the clichés of the horror genre, or are simply looking for something to watch that’ll put you in the Halloween spirit, you’ve come to the right place! Each day from now through Halloween, I’ll post about a movie or TV show that is emblematic of the season, free of slashing, spurting, or exorcising. The only requirements are thus: it must be available on a major streaming service (Netflix, Hulu, Prime Video, or Disney Plus), and it mustn’t be a well-known blockbuster. Sorry, Harry, Ron, and Hermione. With that out of the way, let’s jump into the list!
Entry 1: Nightcrawler (2014)
Truth can be stranger, and at times, scarier, than fiction, and although Nightcrawler was born from the minds of screenwriters, its unsettlingly plausible plot leaves the audience pondering the line between what they see on the screen and the what waits for them outside their door.
Nightcrawler delves into the mind of Lou Bloom, an unemployed yet ambitious 30-something who makes a modest living as a petty thief in Los Angeles. One night Lou comes across a car wreck on the side of the road, and he meets an ambulance-chasing video production company who sells their footage to local news stations. This encounter inspires Lou to start his own crime journalism production company, and as he gains greater knowledge and experience within the industry, he pushes moral boundaries to a point of shocking reprehensibility that will send chills up your spine.
Many films follow mentally unstable men who are either pushed to the brink by abuse or finally lash out after a long period of neglect. Last year’s billion-dollar grosser Joker falls firmly into this category. Nightcrawler, however, is not a story of oppression. It instead focuses on how a corrupt system glorifies a man who is morally bankrupt, dangerously manipulative, and mentally unwell. It shines a light on our greed-driven society and gives us an extreme yet entirely believable example of how a “results at all costs” attitude towards business can destroy even the most basic level of morality. Our antihero Lou shatters the fragile foundation of decency and becomes nothing less than a terrifying agent of chaos. Nightcrawler doesn’t have jump scares, ghoulish fiends, or shrill musical cues, but its premise and main character comprise a perfect creepy combo for horror lovers and haters alike.
Nightcrawler is streaming now on Netflix.
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