BUT Here Is Why It Is A Prime Destination For Horror Fans

Article by StaceMeister0

The amount of flack Tubi gets for its acceptance of mediocre and subpar content is not news. And…I get it. There have been plenty of movies or shows that I have watched on the platform that are comical, to say the least. This, especially if you are splurging in the Romance genre. However, the platform comes through in the Horror, Thriller, Psychological, and surrounding genres. It is a prime destination for those “WTF” films.

So, let’s put aside for a moment - the notable films that are on the Tubi platform, such as Tobe Hooper’s The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Clive Barker’s Hellraiser, Adam Green’s Hatchet, and Marcus Dunstan’s The Collector. And let’s delve into the collection of underrated films they have on the platform - the classics, the old, and the new.

In my struggling search for different, “out there” horror, I’ve had to circle back to the old and the “classics” that I have avoided for so long because the publicity and controversial hype didn’t appeal to me at the time. Especially with the way some of the trailers play out. Yet, with the way a lot of these modern day movies have been going, it has forced me to travel back in time, if you will, to get “back to the roots”, so to speak.

Now, for the “old-timers” out there; you may think; “Is she just now watching these movies?” In my defense, I’m an 80s baby, so I grew up with the 80s, 90s and beyond. Likewise, my favorite decade has to be the 80s and some of the 90s. Think Wes Craven’s A Nightmare on Elm Street, Tom Holland’s Child’s Play, Mark Jones’ Leprechaun, Stephen Herek’s Critters… You get my drift. So, at this stage in my life, the 70s and earlier wasn’t even a thought in my head.

Fast-forward almost four decades (damn, does that make me sound old) and, yes, I am finally coming around to the old-school and the classics. And, I have to say that I have been quite pleased and even asking myself; “Why have I not watched this sooner?”. But, over the years, I’ve also learned to avoid movie trailers, to not think too much into it, and to just hit play. A lot of times, when you watch trailers and read reviews - especially for the “controversial” movies out there - you set yourself up for disappointment because you have high expectations going in. Especially when a lot of the reviews are saying; “This movie is F’d up!”, “WTF did I just watch?!”, “DO NOT watch this movie!”, “BANNED in 19 Countries.”

These kinds of reviews only make you even more intrigued at what all the “hype” is about. And, a lot of times, I get high off anticipation and anxiety and I just look at the screen like…huh…?? {scratching my head}. So, lately, I’ve been swaying away from trailers and reviews and just going in blind…and sometimes I have been delighted to have actually found a decent film.

*The Dunwich Horror*, Daniel Haller, 1970

One movie that is widely known as a classic is Daniel Haller’s Dunwich Horror. Now, before I first watched it, I was a bit swayed by the trailer. The cinematics literally screamed the 70s or older. The cinematography, the acting, the tone. Something I definitely wasn’t used to, being spoiled by the 2000’s and modern-day technology and casting, especially A-listers.

Albeit a slow start - as most horror movies have, anyway - the more the film progressed, the weirder it got. The acting was still mediocre, but the film itself grew psychologically intense and dark in nature. A very vivid, lucid and hallucinogenic vibe. It caught me off guard and was not what I expected when I watched the trailer for it. I was so mentally stuck after the first watch that I had to watch it a second time to make sense of what I was even watching. What’s more, the movie doesn’t have any over the top violence or gore; it isn’t extreme in the slightest sense. It’s just visually and psychologically dark and OUT THERE - and it works, especially for its time.

*Livescream*, Michelle Iannantuono, 2018

I have been fascinated with the Dark Web for a few years now. All of the controversial lore surrounding it has piqued my interest to delve further and research these claims. No, I, myself have not accessed the Dark Web, nor do I intend to. I will just entertain myself with the hearsay and the entertaining movies that filmmakers have been coming out with - which get very dark in nature, by the way.

Case-in-point: Michelle Iannantuono’s Livescream starts off innocently enough. A famous gamer and social media influencer starts playing a random horror computer game suggested by one of his followers. The game starts off as your innocent, horror game with scattered monsters and jump scares. However, the more he plays, the darker the game - and the story - gets. Until it’s no longer just a game. When he loses a “life”, the cost is the life of one of his followers.

So, the movie - and the game - takes a dark, insidious, psychological and supernatural turn at that point. The game has its own nefarious agenda. It makes me think of that quote in Nick Simon’s Truth Or Dare: “Play the game or the game plays you.”

And, one good thing about this movie is that it doesn’t take too long to get to the point. Maybe about 10 minutes in, and it starts “heating up”. The pro to these kinds of movies is that they don’t linger unnecessarily too long. The con is that there is no time to build up any kind of backstory, so a lot of questions go unanswered. The middle of the spectrum is that; maybe that’s the whole point of it all in the first place. It’s supposed to be a mystery. Gotta love those cliffhangers.

Now, off to the darker corners of Tubi. First off, Arthur Cullipher’s Headless is not currently available on the Tubi platform. I am only mentioning it because it is the sequel to Scott Schirmer’s FOUND - which is available on Tubi. I actually have a buddy of mine to thank for introducing me to these movies. We are quite kindred spirits in the sense that we both enjoy the dark, twisted, deranged, and extreme side of cinema entertainment.

FOUND is a prequel to Headless. The story follows a young boy who discovers his older brother is a serial killer. In Headless, that young boy - now all grown up - is basically following in his brother’s footsteps. So, FOUND - in a sense - is kind of “the making of a monster”. You can see the estranged and lonely life of the boy creeping, seeping and protruding throughout the film. You can sense his distraught physique slowly unleashing. It feels like a slow descent into the impending madness and lingering darkness.

*Antrum: The Deadliest Film Ever Made*, David Amito, Michael Laicini, 2018

I remember when publicity around David Amito’s and Michael Laicini’s ANTRUM: The Deadliest Film Ever Made first arose, and I was anxious and nervous beyond measure to watch it - keeping up on all of the news, updates, rumors, reviews, and controversy of the movie. I won’t lie, the team definitely did a great deal, sparking controversy. It was a great marketing and publicity strategy.

So, when it finally released on Tubi, I was at a crossroads - should I watch despite all of the controversy surrounding it and the supposed rumors of bad things happening? Or should I heed the “warnings” and stay away? After days of going back and forth with myself, I finally decided to just sit back and hit play.

Fortunately, nothing bad happens. In fact, I even proceeded to watch the film three more times. One of the slowest progressing films I have ever watched, but it definitely builds up to a frightening grand scheme. It’s one of those slow burns, but it’s very visually and mentally subliminal - as you can expect with like-minded films. The added touch is that - even though the film is 2018, it plays like a 70s film, which gives it a special creep factor.

In a nutshell, the story follows a young boy and his older sister who - after discovering the passing of their pet dog - travel deep into the woods to give him a proper burial, and end up digging a hole to hell. As one can expect, the events that ensue after that become dark and creepy in nature. The creepy part is that these events are subtle - not intense or extreme like in other films - so it gives off a somber, lingering, uneasy feeling of dread and doom. And it’s all psychological.

The cherry on top with this film’s prelude is that it plays as a documentary, and those cast of actors are being presented as “real” people - historians, archivists, etc. - who depicts the film as a long-lost film and the “dangers” the film has caused to people who have watched it. This is the part that really stumped me with the trailers for the film. Superb marketing strategy there.

These are just a handful of movies on the Tubi platform that make giving it a chance so much worth it. Not to mention, the platform is starting to add more and more obscene content. And, with the way they categorize their collection now, you just have to know where to look. And, even if a movie doesn’t look all that good…sometimes you just have to wing it, go in blind, and just press play.

Tubi Gets So Much Hate…

BUT Here Is Why It Is A Prime Destination For Horror Fans

So, the movie - and the game - takes a dark, insidious, psychological and supernatural turn at that point. The game has its own nefarious agenda. It makes me think of that quote in Nick Simon’s Truth Or Dare: “Play the game or the game plays you.”

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