By Kai Curry
NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY
This Halloween season, if you are looking to get your scare on, this list should help. There is something for everyone, from zombies to haunted forests, in diverse locations from Japan to Thailand. There is sure to be a movie here that scratches that Halloween season scary movie itch.
New in 2026
Korea: Hope
Korea is keeping up its game in the horror genre with a creature horror film starring Hwang Jung-min, Zo In-sung, and Jung Ho-yeon. A town near the demilitarized zone between North and South Korea is cut off by a wildfire and must face a monster on its own without reinforcements. It was directed by Na Hong-jin, who did “The Wailing,” a well-known Korean horror movie.
How to watch: Still in theaters, and streaming on Apple TV
Korea: Colony
Just the title is creepy. It’s got all the classics: people locked inside a confined space; a virus infecting and mutating an increasing number of people; swarm intelligence, eww. A biotech conference gets out of hand and they have to seal everyone off. Let the games begin.
How to watch: Streaming on Prime Video, Apple TV, Fandango at Home, Plex
Recent
Japan: Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead (2023)
I cannot not mention this one because the premise is so hilarious. The main character, “Akira,” is happy there’s a zombie outbreak because it means he doesn’t have to go to work. I mean, relatable!!! Now, he can take advantage of the time off to do everything he always wanted to do. This is an exaggerated, silly movie, but also very clever and gross, with zombies. It’s fun, really.
How to watch: Streaming on Netflix
U.S.: Trap (2024)
The “trap” is a set up by police to catch a killer at a concert, directed and written by M. Night Shyamalan. His daughter, Saleka Shyamalan, plays the headliner, “Lady Raven.” The suspense is formed because a dad is trying to get his daughter out of danger without letting her know that this is not a legit concert. That’s a super frustrating storyline to me but works for some people.
How to watch: Streaming on Prime Video, HBO Max, and Fandango at Home
U.S.: Knock at the Cabin (2023)
Famously features Dave Bautista as the leader of a group of house crashers who are kind of like (or actually like) the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. They descend on an unlikely couple and their kid and try to convince them that one of them has to die as part of the end of the world.
How to watch: Streaming on Netflix and Fandango at Home
Taiwan: Incantation (2022)
A “mockumentary,” based on a real cult family that existed in Taiwan, known for breaking the “fourth wall” to the audience by repeatedly asking the viewer to participate in the story by chanting an “incantation.” Use of “found footage” heightens the feeling that this is real.
How to watch: Streaming on Netflix
U.S.: Fantasy Island (2020)
Grabs you with the ironic title based on the old TV series. The island is not fun anymore. Now the guests’ fantasies are turned into nightmares. Oops. Significant Asian cast. Maggie Q plays a businesswoman hoping for love. Jimmy O. Yang plays one of two brothers there to party.
How to watch: Streaming on Hulu
Korea: Train to Busan (2016)
Another movie by writer and director Yeon Sang-ho. My favorite part of this movie is the stellar heroic casting of Ma Dong-seok, who has been named Korea’s film actor of the year three times. When a zombie outbreak occurs, passengers on a train from Seoul to Busan gotta figure it out. How to watch: Streaming on Peacock, Apple TV, Prime Video, and HooplaU.S.: The Forest (2016)
Set in Japan. Although the main character is not Asian, the guide who helps her, “Michi,” is. The main character is one of a set of twins and the other twin disappears. The plot involves wandering in a forest and not being sure what is real.How to watch: Streaming on Xumo Play, Prime Video, Apple TV, and Fandango at Home
Classic
Thailand: Shutter (2004)
A milestone of Thai horror film. The title alludes to both the creepy photographs taken by a photographer after he and his girlfriend hit someone with their car and the film’s eerie, unique cinematography. Original and there is a U.S. remake. Multiple Asian actors in the remake.
How to watch: Streaming on Kanopy, Hoopla, or Fandango at Home. 2008 U.S. remake streaming on Prime Video and Fandango at Home.
Japan: The Grudge (2002)
Japanese ghosts, called onryō, are believed to come back to harm the living if they died under the influence of negative emotions. “Kayako” is killed by her husband, who thinks she’s having an affair because he found her crushing on another guy in her diary. Kayako’s ghost goes on a haunting spree. Original and many remakes. 2019 remake features Asian cast member, John Cho.
How to watch: Original is streaming on Prime Video, Apple TV, and Fandango at Home. 2019 version with John Cho is streaming on Hulu, Fandango at Home, Google Play, and Apple TV.
Kai can be reached at newstips@nwasianweekly.com.
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