Low-Budget Horror Films That Freak Us Out

"They're coming to get you, Barbara"

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Sep 16, 2022

As the weather cools down and October approaches, we’re getting a head start on spooky season. With a couple smaller new horror movies out recently – rental home thriller Barbarian (in theaters now, read our review here) and Danish shocker Speak No Evil (in theaters and streaming on Shudder, read our reviews here and here) – it’s a good time to recommend a few low-budget horror flicks that are worth checking out. Even working with little money, these films managed to freak us out and/or influence entire subgenres. Thanks for reading!

Billy recommends…

Creep & Creep 2

The original Creep and the subsequent sequel are necessary companions so instead of writing about one and ignoring what came before or after I will be convincing you to spend 160ish minutes watching these low-budget horror movies. It’s been hard for me to track down the budget for this movie, but one article by Brett Arnold for Business Insider called the original a “no budget horror,” a term that I will be stealing often. That phrasing should hopefully set up what to expect. This is a found footage two-hander movie with only two characters shown the whole time. Our desperate documentary filmmaker is played by Patrick Brice as Aaron (the director as well) and Mark Duplass as Josef.

Josef lists a Craigslist ad looking for a filmmaker to document his final times on earth. The project seems made up, but $1,000 has been offered so Aaron lends his skills. Josef’s odd sincerity sets the audience at ease for a bit because the circumstances are easy to explain any weird behavior. As things move further on and trust has been established that trust begins to be used against Aaron. But the artist that he is, he stays longer than he should to get the material. The tension on when/if Josef will snap and his true intentions creates a non-stop white knuckling experience. I won’t spoil the ending or any of the big scares, but there is a sequel, so natural spoilers are ahead.

Josef snaps, the ending is a bit ambiguous, and Creep 2 is completely different because we know that Josef is an absolute nut. Therefore, allowing Mark Duplass to cook the entire time. Performance amped up to 11 and the tension comes from what we know he can do. Also, makes for a much funnier experience. Nervously laughing in my living room to distract from the impending doom. The Creep duo is seemingly simple filmmaking that is effective at exactly what it is going for. And inspiring in that it feels like this type of art is attainable to make. No experience makes me want to talk about a movie after being legitimately scared for a couple hours. Creep and Creep 2 are perfect movies for this fall season.

Streaming on Netflix

Drew recommends…

Night of the Living Dead

There’s very few shoestring budget films (if any?) that can claim to be as influential as Night of the Living Dead. Back in 1968, TV commercial director George Romero somehow cobbled together $100,000 (equivalent to $850,000 in 2022) to make his little movie about flesh-eating ghouls. The resulting product ended up one of the most profitable movies of all time, earning $18 million (180 times its budget!), and establishing the modern zombie horror subgenre.

By today’s standards, Night of the Living Dead isn’t all that frightening or shocking. The action almost looks like it’s in slow-motion compared to the fast-paced contemporary horror flicks with track star zombies. The miniscule budget forced Romero and his team to use chocolate syrup for blood and roasted ham for human flesh and to shoot on 35 mm black-and-white film. However, this handmade quality has only made Night of the Living Dead more of a cult classic. The gory practical effects and documentary-like feel has stood the test of time and inspired countless imitators.

In addition to the low-budget style and innovation, it should be noted that this film is now seen as a subversive take on 1960s America. Horror movies have always been a good vessel for social messaging, and Night of the Living Dead was made during 1967-68, an incredibly tumultuous time in our history. Various interpretations have noted that the film recalls some of the carnage of the Vietnam War news footage, and that certain events and characters reflect the reality of racism in the civil rights era. It doesn’t matter the extent to which Romero intended to critique our society. He made his film during a time where it probably seemed like all social order was breaking down, and that’s exactly what is happening in his low-budget horror classic.

Streaming on HBO Max, Peacock, and YouTube