10 best horror films to watch on Netflix right now

10. Hush

Other than being a tightly-wound thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat for the entirety of its hour-and-a-half run time, Hush also puts a new spin on the old home invasion trope in the way it utilizes sound.

The premise is simple: alone in her house in the woods, deaf and mute writer Maddie is stalked by a masked killer. What makes this movie pull ahead of the home-invasion pack is the way it uses sound. Because the protagonist is deaf, there are moments when we can quite clearly see or hear the danger that she is unable to perceive.

Like so many of the best slashers, what makes Hush so satisfying is the way the power dynamic turns on its head. The killer initially sees Maddie’s inability to speak or hear as a weakness, and decides to psychologically terrorize her as a result. But it isn’t long before he realizes one important thing: Maddie is a total badass. A minor but worthwhile spoiler: at one point she literally writes “do it, coward” on a window in her own blood. The killer targets her and underestimates her because of her disability, and in the end that may be his biggest mistake.

But more than possessing a will to live of reinforced steel, Maddie is no Terminator. She’s a normal person in an awful situation, with a serious disadvantage compared to her opponent. And that’s what makes the movie so intense. Maddie has her smarts, her fighting instinct, and not a whole lot else.

The Takeaway

Perfectly balanced action and suspense plus a novel take on an old concept keep this fast-paced thriller chugging along right up to the nail-biting conclusion.