For those who haven’t been counting down the days — guess what — Halloween is coming up! Everyone’s favorite spooky holiday falls on a Wednesday this year so many will probably want to skip the raging parties and just stay home.
Those planning a movie marathon probably already have a line-up of classics like The Exorcist or new releases like Netflix’s The Haunting of Hill House on their lists but may have overlooked a worthy sub-genre — Filipino Horror.
It’s not exactly top of mind for many, as Filipino cinema has mostly churned out romantic comedies in recent years, but there’s actually plenty to choose from. From stories about ghosts, Filipino folklore, and even a possessed doll, these films will surely give you goosebumps come Oct. 31st.
Seklusyon by Erik Matti (2016)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iw5kUvIDePc
Set in a far-flung monastery in 1947, Seklusyon revolves around Miguel (Ronnie Alonte), a deacon who needs to live in seclusion to be shielded from the world’s evil.
While Miguel and other deacons struggle with their inner demons, a girl with miraculous powers named Anghela (Rhed Bustamante) disrupts their week-long isolation with much stranger occurrences.
Feng Shui by Chino Roño (2004)
Although it only came out in 2004, Feng Shui is now considered a modern classic. The film stars Kris Aquino who unwittingly acquires a cursed Chinese bagua mirror that kills anyone who looks into it. Like Freddy Krueger and Sadako, Feng Shui’s ghostly villain Lotus Feet is now a local pop culture icon.
This film is directed by Chito Roño, who is behind many classic Filipino horror movies; he directed three films on this.
The Ghost Bride by Chito Roño (2017)
A series of unfortunate events leads Mayen (Kim Chui) to accept an unusual business proposal: a “ghost wedding” in exchange for a comfortable life for her family. Things don’t go as planned though, as she eventually starts experiencing strange paranormal activities.
Magandang Hatinggabi by Laurenti Dyogi (1998)
Magandang Hatinggabi is a comedy-horror anthology film about a group of friends’ road trip gone wrong. The journey takes them to a creepy inn owned by a deformed man named Fatman (Noni Buencamino).
Fatman tells the group two spine-chilling stories. The first is about a family of four traveling with their newly-bought second-hand van. Of course, the van turns out to be haunted.
The second story is about a provincial woman with a hunchback who moves to the city to study. A young man is drawn to her but eventually realizes that the woman he’s falling in love with has a dark secret.
Tiyanak by Peque Gallaga and Lore Reyes (1988)
A tiyanak is a vampiric creature in Philippine mythology that comes in the form of a baby. It cries to attract unwary passersby; once people fall prey to its trap, the monster attacks and kills them.
Yes, it’s very creepy.
In the film Tiyanak, Julie (Janice de Belen) is a childless wife who adopts an abandoned baby. This proves to be the wrong move, though, because — you guessed it — the baby isn’t as innocent as she initially thought.
The movie is called tiyanak, so obviously, y’all know what’s about to go down.
Shake, Rattle & Roll 2 by Peque Gallaga and Lore Reyes (1990)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ArDhvi6ESro
Shake, Rattle & Roll is a popular anthology franchise that now has 15 installments. While they vary in quality (some are just horrible), some of the classics still hold up.
The best among the bunch is Shake, Rattle & Roll 2. Like the other installments, this one is also an anthology film with three stories.
The first titled Multo (Ghost) is about newlyweds who spend their honeymoon in a haunted home. The second titled Kulam (Witchcraft) tells the story of a female doctor who puts a hex on her crush after witnessing him have sex with another woman.
The last one is titled Aswang. An aswang is a flesh-eating, shapeshifting monster that is part of Philippine folklore. In daylight, they appear as regular people, but at night, they hunt human prey.
Aswang is about a woman who goes to her friend’s barrio in the province to attend a fiesta. She eventually finds out, though, that the sleepy town isn’t what it seems and that everyone there has a dark secret.
The Healing by Chito Roño (2012)
The powers of a mysterious healer become overwhelming when it starts to cause paranormal events and a series of suicides and murders.
Sukob (2006)
Another Roño film starring Aquino, Sukob focuses on a longstanding Filipino superstition.
In the Philippines, siblings are not allowed to get married in the same year, or they risk receiving bad luck. In the film, Sisters Sandy (Aquino) and Diana (Claudine Barretto) deal with the consequences of the curse and are terrorized by a flower girl ghost.
Patayin Mo Sa Sindak Si Barbara by Celso Ad. Castillo (1974)
Ruth (Rosanna Ortiz) commits suicide after suspecting that her husband and sister Barbara were having an affair. After her death, Ruth’s spirit possesses a murderous doll that seeks revenge on Barbara.
