6 Terrifying Latin American Horror Films From 2023 Streaming Now
Mikey Peralta Jr
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When it comes to watching Latin American horror cinema, half of the battle includes researching a country’s filmography. Following that is to find a physical or digital copy of said film. Luckily newer releases have been easier to track down and watch thanks to streaming services such as Shudder. This year has been a great outcome for Latin American horror. And you can see for yourself, as these six Latin American horror films released in 2023 are currently available to stream.
When Evil Lurks (Argentina)
Streaming on Shudder
We’re going to start off this list with a strong entry from Argentine director Demián Rugna. His debut film Terrified (Aterrados) from 2017 left plenty of people shocked with his brutal imagery and effective style of storytelling. Now with his sophomore entry When Evil Lurks, Rugna takes the horror community back to Argentina to continue his perspective on the world around us. And just what kind of story does Rugna make? A nihilistic portrayal of evil infecting humanity. The film takes us through a journey of sadistic sequences as the protagonist Pedro (Ezequiel Rodríguez) attempts to save his children from the atrocities occurring around them. Rugna does not take his foot off the pedal once the action is in motion and the story descends further into more chaos and depravity.
El Conde (Chile)
Streaming on Netflix
Pablo Larraín has been active in Chile’s film industry since 2006. He’s also responsible for creating Fabula, one of the most prolific production companies in Latin America. Even then it wasn’t until these last ten years that Larraín has been making a name for himself within Hollywood with his biopics Spencer (2021) and Jackie (2016). What makes Larraín a unique director is how he manages to create horror-esque sequences out of everyday life. This is why Larraín speaking against Augusto Pinochet’s regime, something he is no stranger to with No (2012), while using the horror genre is appealing.
In El Conde, dictator Pinochet is an aged vampire. To avoid the consequences of his human rights abuse trials, he goes into hiding on a remote farm. Having an ex-dictator portrayed as a blood-sucking monster with a hunger for power is only one of the film’s many metaphors. Juxtaposed with these dark themes is the breathtaking black-and-white cinematography that lets the viewers sit in this figurative and literal eternally cold setting.
Quicksand (Colombia)
Streaming on Shudder
Quicksand deserves to be on the list as director Andres Beltran is Colombian, the film is set in Colombia, and the protagonist Sofia is played by Colombian actress Carolina Gaitan. Quicksand follows a pair of divorced American parents, Sofia and Josh (Allan Hawco), who travel to Colombia for a work convention. As their separate plans begin to fall through, Sofia and Josh decide to go hiking together to Colombia’s largest waterfall, La Chorrera. But, they both end up trapped in quicksand during their hike. Now they must think quickly on their feet if they want to survive the cold and venomous wildlife.
V/H/S/85 (Mexico)
Watch on Shudder
The V/H/S series has such a unique concept of creating an anthology with solely found footage segments. Their 2023 release V/H/S/85, which is one of the strongest entries, continues the legacy of the franchise with more horrific and disturbing stories. While the majority of the shorts in V/H/S/85 are set somewhere within the United States, there’s one segment that deserves to be highlighted in this list. And that is Gigi Saul Guerrero’s God of Death.
Guerrero’s segment is important to the list as God of Death is the first V/H/S segment to be entirely in Spanish. It’s set within a Latin American country and depicts a historical event that changed Mexico. The 1985 earthquake in Mexico City caused widespread panic, death, and destruction as massive buildings crumbled down within this highly populated area. Guerrero uses this as the catalyst for her story as we follow a rescue crew attempting to escape a collapsing building.
Huesera: The Bone Woman (Mexico)
Watch on Shudder
Director Michelle Garza Cervera shook the horror community at the beginning of the year with her debut film Huesera: The Bone Woman. The film follows Valeria (Natalia Solián) as she maneuvers as an expecting mother. But the further along her pregnancy goes, a faceless humanoid entity begins to threaten them. As she seeks help from the local curandera, Valeria undergoes a journey that will change her forever. Huesera: The Bone Woman manages to create and sustain an unnerving dread through the entirety of the film. Cervera does this while examining the reality of conforming to societal standards and the struggles of motherhood.
Satanic Hispanics (Latin America)
Watch on Amazon Prime
We are ending the list with a film that is a celebration of Latine culture, folklore, and its people. Satanic Hispanics is an anthology film composed of Latin American directors spanning from multiple countries. The impressive list of directors varies from Gigi Saul Guerrero and Demián Rugna who have already appeared on this list as well as Alejandro Brugués, Mike Mendez, and Eduardo Sánchez. Each segment is a proud reminder of how different each country is and that Latin America is not a monolith.
As a note, Satanic Hispanics was released by Dread, a sister company to Dread Central.
Categorized:Editorials Horror En Espanol
