Horror movies aren't always about big budgets, major studios, and star-studded casts. Much more often, deeply personal, acutely social, intimate films made for pennies appear on screens. But they induce no less fear than the works of recognized maste...

Start your Halloween movie marathon with a slow-paced but quite eerie work by Damian McCarthy. Though, no matter where you start, it will still be scary.

1. «Caveat» (Caveat, 2020, dir. Damian McCarthy)

A slightly lost young man named Isaac agrees to look after a friend's niece, who lives alone in an empty house after her mother's death and father's suicide. But there are a couple of nuances: the dwelling is located on a remote island, and the night watchman must wear a special suit with a chain. He can move freely around the house, but he is strictly forbidden from entering one room. That's where the unfortunate niece, who also has mental issues, resides.

So, Isaac, in a creaking leather suit with a chain, much like the hero of the space horror Dead Space, will wander through the empty house, trying to find an explanation for what's happening. A blend of genres—mystery and horror—along with creative freedom, allowed director Damian McCarthy to make a truly frightening and inventive film in the spirit of Nicolas Roeg's «Don't Look Now».

2. «His House» (His House, 2020, dir. Remi Weekes)

A couple of emigrants—husband and wife—arrive from riot-torn Nigeria to the UK. They are not particularly welcomed by the immigration service, which openly tries to distance itself from any help. As temporary housing, the couple is given a cluttered apartment somewhere on the outskirts of London. Nevertheless, Bol and Rial are happy even with this, planning to renovate and furnish the place in the future. But on the very first night, frightening things begin to happen in the tiny apartment, and the head of the family gradually goes insane.

«His House» is a briskly crafted supernatural horror with an unpredictable plot, where even turning on the lights doesn't save the family from an evil pursuer. Moreover, Remi Weekes has made a deeply personal story about the problems of emigrants in a foreign country and the carefully hidden skeletons in the closet. This horror film will go down a treat on Halloween night.

3. «Koko-di Koko-da» (Koko-di koko-da, 2019, dir. Johannes Nyholm)

A couple on the verge of divorce after a tragedy involving their daughter decide to mend their relationship on a joint trip through picturesque forests. During one overnight stay, the husband and wife encounter a sinister group of circus performers who begin to torment them. Attempts to escape are futile; wherever the couple goes, all roads lead back to the cursed clearing, where the nightmare repeats over and over.

Despite its amusing title, the film by Swedish director Johannes Nyholm is by no means entertaining. Minimum light, rustling trees in the night, beams from a flashlight, infernal circus performers, and a closed time loop in which the nightmare will repeat until the couple stops hiding their feelings from each other. Perfect for watching on Halloween.

4. «Kill List» (Kill List, 2011, dir. Ben Wheatley)

One of Britain's most talked-about directors also started his career with low budgets. His «Kill List» is very reminiscent of the cult classic «The Blair Witch Project» (which, by the way, is also suitable for Halloween), where practical realism collides with something chthonic and irrational. The plot follows a retired soldier who becomes a hitman, and one day he is given a list with names of people to eliminate.

In the process of carrying out the assignment, the hero realizes that he won't make money on this job, but losing his life is all too easy. Despite the almost amateurish cinematography, choppy editing, and elusive plot threads, one of Wheatley's early works turned out to be contradictory but surprisingly cohesive.

5. «Color Out of Space» (Color Out of Space, 2019, dir. Richard Stanley)

A meteorite falls onto the Gardner family farm. At first, it doesn't affect the daily life of the homeowners. Well, except that the fallen rock glows and emits a foul smell. A couple of days after the fall, the meteorite disappears, and the farm's inhabitants suddenly start behaving strangely, while the surrounding vegetation takes on a bright purple hue.

An adaptation of the eponymous story by Howard Lovecraft (what's Halloween without him) starring Nicolas Cage. A strange meteorite, something like an infectious disease causing redness, itching, and mass hysteria. Mysterious triangles, occultism mixed with science fiction, body horror in the style of David Cronenberg, an unrelenting rise in tension, and a pulsating synthesizer soundtrack—everything you need for an evening viewing with friends.