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Hellraiser

What do we know about Elijah Wood? For starters, he was propelled into A-list gold after starring in Peter Jackson‘s Oscar-gobbling The Lord of the Rings trilogy. We also know he refuses to pigeon-hole himself into any one genre; instead, he’s built a strong career by continually choosing multi-dimensional, complicated roles to play. Yes, Wood is picky, but in the best way, because he’s given Decider his curated list of his favorite horror movies on Netflix.

If you had the chance to see Wood star in Maniac, a remake of the 1980 horror thriller, you might have an inkling of what kind of scares he has in store for your queue. His picks are not of your typical slasher fare, but rather unsettling, powerful, and downright frightening psychological thrillers. Sure, some of them feature gore, but his picks are refreshingly unique in a genre notorious for overdoing it.

Wood has provided commentary for each of his Top 5 picks of scary movies currently available on Netflix. Do yourself a solid and queue these now.

'Hellraiser' (1987)

“‘It’s just a puzzle box!’ ‘Oh, no. It is a means to summon us.’ Brilliant film from the mind of Clive Barker that introduced us to Pinhead and the Cenobites, who are waiting to be called upon for your suffering.”—Elijah Wood

If you’ve never seen this cult classic, Hellraiser follows a married couple who discovers their estranged relative living in their attic. Though, he’s not how they remembered him at all: creature-like and slightly demonic. To rebuild his mangled body, he needs human sacrifices. [Where to stream Hellraiser]

'Let the Right One In' (2008)

“This is easily one of my favorite horror films of the last 15 years. A remarkable tale, as much about a friendship between a young boy and girl as it is about vampirism. Ultimately, it is isolation and solitude, they both share. It also strips away much of the cliché we associate with vampire. Beautiful.”—E.W.

Young Oskar spends his time plotting revenge against ruthless school bullies and collecting news clippings about the epidemic of murders plaguing his tiny town. Things are looking bleak for Oskar until he meets Eli, a misfit vampire who steals his heart. [Where to stream Let the Right One In]

'Kidnapped' (2010)

“Visceral and intense home invasion film from Spain that never lets up.”—E.W.

A beautiful family is celebrating moving into their dream house when three armed robbers invade their home, hold them hostage, and refuse to leave until they get exactly what they want. [Where to stream Kidnapped]

'The ABCs of Death' (2012)

“A mad collection of short films from many of the genre’s best directors, each assigned a letter of the alphabet and a corresponding way to die. An insane pastiche of gore, fluid, humor, shock, and creative ideas!”—E.W.

Twenty-six horror film directors each received a letter of the alphabet meant to inspire a story about death in this totally unique compilation film that explores the all aspects of the inevitable journey we all must take. [Where to stream The ABCs of Death]

'The Frighteners' (1996)

“This is an underrated masterpiece. Before the last and current decade’s spat of horror comedies, Peter Jackson crafted this, which truly balances horror, comedy and the spirit of adventure (no pun intended). We don’t make movies like this anymore!”—E.W.

Peter Jackson’s outlandish horror-comedy focuses on detective Frank Bannister (Michael J. Fox), who uses his pseudo-psychoanalytical ability to communicate with the dead to boost his business. But when an actual spirit comes knocking and members of the community start mysteriously disappearing, Frank needs to channel some actual powers to make the horror stop. [Where to stream The Frighteners]