This Halloween, you’re definitely entitled to one good scare. Whether you’re hanging out with the fam, a significant other, or with your friends, horror night on October 31st should be a night to remember.
Check out our list of hair raising Filipino horror films that are bound to send chills down your spine.
The long-running Filipino horror anthology film franchise will always be remembered for such iconic episodes such as “Aswang” starring Manilyn Reynes, “Yaya” starring Kris Aquino and Lilia Cuntapay, and “Pridyider” starring Janice de Belen and Charito Solis, among others.
An underrated installment in the modern Shake, Rattle, & Roll era featured quite solid and memorable episodes. Shake, Rattle & Roll 8 starts off with “13th Floor,” where a group of party organizers arranges a children's party on the 13th floor of a new condominium. However, they soon realize that the cursed number 13 superstition is more real than they anticipated.
Nothing quite new for a comedy-horror story featuring ghosts, it sets the atmosphere for the latter episodes. This brings us to the second episode “Yaya,” which shares the same name of the episode with Aquino and Cuntapay. The episode follows a newly-hired nanny named Cecil (Iza Calzado), who turns out to be an aswang, taking care of a troublesome kid (Nash Aguas) and his younger sister.
What’s so special about this episode is a very menacing performance from Calzado as a soft-spoken woman who is secretly inhuman. Nothing is scarier than inviting the danger inside your home, who’s hungry to do some killing. Through the perspective of a young boy fearing for his life and his sister’s, it really takes some guts to go toe-to-toe with a notorious mythological creature.
Lastly, the episode “LRT” takes the cake for a story you don’t want to experience while commuting at night. 13 passengers of the Light Rail Transit (LRT) train are left abandoned at almost midnight. To make matters worse, an unknown monster-like creature hunts them one-by-one, with what was to be a trip back home turns into a blood slaughter.
Binge all Shake, Rattle, & Roll films on their YouTube channel with one entry premiering each day starting from Oct. 25. Shake, Rattle, & Roll 8 premieres on Nov. 1 at 6 p.m.
In TBA Studios’ psychological thriller Bliss, director Jerrold Tarog (Heneral Luna, Goyo: Ang Batang Heneral) flexes his horror expertise.
An accident during a film production leaves successful actress Jane Ciego (Calzado) crippled and secluded at her own home to heal. But Jane slowly slips into madness as she experiences the true horrors that bounces between reality and fantasy, while being taken care of by her husband, Carlo (TJ Trinidad), and a peculiar nurse named Lilibeth (Adrienne Vergara).
Our second recommendation starring Calzado on our list shows that she doesn’t hold herself from taking on different personas in her performances. Resonating with Jane, a film actress, Calzado knows what it's like to live in the horrors of the film industry as evil continues to run free in our world.
It’s film-within-a-film narrative extends the many layers of a mind-bending reality. But the true horrors lie within the abusive reality in the entertainment industry.
Bliss is currently streaming on Netflix.
Directed by Erik Matti (Tiktik: The Aswang Chronicles, Kuwaresma), Seklusyon follows a group of deacons who are sent to an isolated convent for seven days of seclusion. As they strongly shield themselves from evil, a little girl named Anghela, believed to be a living saint who possesses the ability to heal, disrupts their solitude. However, the deacons aren’t sure whether Anghela was sent by God or by the devil himself.
Nothing is more “Filipino horror” if not for stories with supernatural religious themes. What drives the terror is the blatant idolatry that this film showcases. Rhed Bustamante as Anghela and Phoebe Walker as Sister Cecilia gave spine-chilling performances that elevated the eerie atmosphere surrounding the religious theme.
It wouldn’t be a Matti film if it didn’t feature a thought-provoking ending that extends the horrors even after the film has ended.
Sadly, Seklusyon isn’t available to legally stream online.
A horror-comedy from director Jade Castro represents the LGBTQIA+ community in a bonggacious Filipino zombie flick.
A young Remington (Martin Escudero) has the habit of insulting gay men and call them the derogatory term “bakla!” However, on a trip to the cemetery, a grieving drag queen (Roderick Paulate) feels insulted, and curses Remington to become gay on his 21st birthday. A couple of years later, Remington’s curse starts to haunt him, with the small town of Lucban disturbed by a series of murders involving gay men, the undead Zombadings will soon rise.
The film tackles the homophobia experienced by the LGBTQIA+ community and injected with the zombie genre, fusing both the gore and glamor. Even featuring homophobic and problematic characters, Castro’s direction balances the humor and horror elements in an interesting, clever way.
It’s a unique spin in the mythology of zombies as undead drag queens terrorizing those that see them as undead even though they were still living. A sprinkle of poetic justice, indeed.
Zombadings 1: Patayin sa shokot si Remington is currently available for streaming on Netflix.
This supernatural horror film directed by Carlo Ledesma (The Tunnel) utilizes cinematography and musical score to visually and audibly present a frightening encounter with the supernatural.
Desperate to find a cure for her daughter’s illness, a mother (Carmina Villaroel) takes a job at a call center, only to be haunted by a ghost living in the building.
With a mother fighting to save her daughter’s life, the stakes feel higher and the motivations are much clearer. To add with this, the backstory of the building the call center agency currently stands, adds to the level of mystery. A suspenseful third act involves a lot of suspenseful cat-and-mouse chases and effective scares.
Sunod is currently available for streaming on Netflix.
