Halloween and the 10 best horror movies to watch on Shudder

5.  Summer of ’84

This 2018 Canadian film is part Goonies, part Silence of the Lambs. It’s a movie that starts out as one type of film, and ends up as something entirely different.

Esquire named it one of the scariest movies of 2018, and it was Shudder’s #2 biggest premiere last year, with only Mandy beating it. It deserves the accolades, it’s a movie that throws a few unexpected fast balls right at your face.

Fifteen-year-old Davey and his three best buds are enjoying a typical summer. When the local paper receives an anonymous letter from someone claiming to be responsible for the disappearances of thirteen boys in nearby Cape May, Davey starts to suspect his neighbor Mr. Mackey. Even his friends don’t take him seriously, especially since Mackey is not only popular, but also a police officer.

His friends finally start to believe him when Davey sees a boy in Mackey’s kitchen whose face later shows up on a milk carton, and the boys start their own investigation. They go through Mackey’s trash, dig in his back garden and follow him around, trying to prove that he is the kidnapper, while also navigating their own teenage lives.

Davey and his former babysitter Nikki have a little flirtation going on, Woody takes care of his alcoholic mother, Eats is dealing with parents who fight constantly. It’s easy to get lulled into the coming-of-age side of this film, but then things take a sudden, very nasty turn.

Suffice it to say, we don’t recommend watching this one when you are home alone.