Atmosphere plays a crucial role in Gothic Horror in a way that complements Fall well. That’s also reflected in Gothic horror’s themes of death or good versus evil, made more ominous by gloomy settings filled with dark passages, cobwebs, and hidden secrets. Crumbling interiors filled with ghosts and skeletons in the closet match the protagonists’ […]
Atmosphere plays a crucial role in Gothic Horror in a way that complements Fall well. That’s also reflected in Gothic horror’s themes of death or good versus evil, made more ominous by gloomy settings filled with dark passages, cobwebs, and hidden secrets. Crumbling interiors filled with ghosts and skeletons in the closet match the protagonists’ unraveling psychology.
Now that Fall has officially arrived with October hot on its heels, this week’s streaming picks are dedicated to atmospheric Gothic horror movies that bring cooler temps and moody fog.
Set in 1921, Rebecca Hall stars as paranormal debunker Florence Cathcart. She accepts an invitation from war vet Robert Mallory (Dominic West) to stay at the boarding school where he teaches, to determine if the place is indeed haunted. The more she encounters strange phenomena, the more her skepticism gets shaken. The realization that the hauntings exist comes with frightening reveals about Florence’s past.
The Awakening
bears a stronger resemblance to
The Devil’s Backbone
than The Others, in terms of period supernatural movies. There are genuine paranormal frights, but there’s more than meets the eye to this spectral tale.
Dawn Breaks Behind the Eyes – Fandango at Home, Hoopla, Kanopy, Prime Video
An unhappy woman and her irritable husband have just inherited a rundown mansion, but reality and time cease to hold meaning the longer they stay and realize something is amiss with the place. Kevin Kopacka directs a sumptuous visual feast, channeling the likes of Mario Bava and capturing a psychedelic, ’70s Italian occult aesthetic. What begins as a bizarre, disjointed movie that favors style over coherent story quickly gives way to something far more unexpected and extensive in scope. In other words, it’s a gorgeous, ethereal movie full of surprising twists that deftly shift genres in a clever deconstruction of Gothic horror.
The Others – AMC+, Shudder, Criterion Channel (starting October 1)
Director Alejandro Amenábar’s atmospheric horror movie brought the haunted house back to its gothic roots. Set in 1945, a mother (Nicole Kidman) cares for her light-sensitive children while her husband is away at war. Things start going bump in the night, and soon the children claim to see other people inhabiting their home with threats that the house actually belongs to them. This traditional ghost story eventually gives way to tragedy, one that changes the perspective of the entire film. If there’s one recurring theme of haunted houses, it’s residual grief that refuses to mend.
Sleepy Hollow – Hoopla, Kanopy, Paramount+, Pluto TV
Fallen leaves, gnarled trees, and a constant roll of fog leave the small town of Sleepy Hollow steeped in the autumn air. That’s where police constable Ichabod Crane (Johnny Depp) winds up on an assignment to investigate a series of beheadings. The culprit, of course, is the legendary Headless Horseman. Based on Washington Irving’s “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow,” Tim Burton’s Gothic tale is intertwined with Halloween and the Fall season. Look for new twists and updates to the iconic story, with a witchy take on the iconic headless foe.
The Woman in Black – Hoopla, Kanopy, MGM+, Paramount+
This Gothic horror movie adapts Susan Hill’s 1989 novel and follows recent widower and lawyer Arthur Kipps (Daniel Radcliffe) as he’s sent on assignment to sort the affairs of a deceased client. The caveat, of course, is that the client’s home is a desolate manor on a gloomy marsh. Oh, and it’s deeply haunted. Director James Watkins (Eden Lake, Speak No Evil) maintains a dreary, foreboding atmosphere from the moment Arthur arrives at the estate. From there, Watkins keeps escalating the chills with spectral encounters and terrifying things that go bump in the night.
