If you’re getting sick of the summer heat and looking for something to send shivers down your spine instead, Netflix just added a scary flick that will definitely do the trick.
Watch With Us recommends The Cursed, a Gothic horror film starring Boyd Holbrook.
Set in the 19th century, The Cursed uses excellent worldbuilding and terrifying imagery to create an immersive horror experience, despite its relatively low budget.
Find out why you should watch The Cursed on Netflix.
The Story Is a Clever Entry Point Into Werewolf Storytelling
In 1881 rural France, brutal land baron Seamus Laurent (Alistair Petrie, playing a far darker character than his role in Sex Education) orders the massacre of a Romani clan who’ve settled on his estate. But the slaughter comes at a cost: the Romani curse the land with an evil that soon begins to infect the villagers — particularly Laurent’s family.
This chilling backstory gives the werewolf lore a fresh and morally charged twist, grounding it in colonialism, guilt and revenge. It’s a slow-burn setup that pays off with devastating horror. The arrival of pathologist John McBride (Holbrook), who has his own secrets, adds a layer of mystery as he tries to diagnose the strange “disease” transforming people into monsters.
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It Makes Werewolves Genuinely Scary Again
Werewolf movies have been around for so long — The Wolf Man debuted in 1941 — that they can sometimes feel a little goofy or cheesy. We’re used to the tropes of transformation under the full moon, but The Cursed flips that script. Its creatures are horrifying and visceral, brought to life through a mix of practical effects and CGI that emphasize grotesque realism. (We’re fairly certain a scene in which McBride performs an autopsy on one of the wolf creatures will appear in our nightmares for a very long time.)
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Director Sean Ellis reinvents the werewolf transformation with disturbing originality. Instead of relying on full moons and hairy limbs, the metamorphosis here involves roots, soil and sinew — grounding the curse in nature and blurring the line between human and beast in disturbing new ways. This werewolf curse literally consumes its victims, swallowing them up deep inside a body that doesn’t belong to them.
It’s a Beautifully Shot Period Horror
In addition to the chilling story and memorable monsters, The Cursed is visually stunning. Ellis, who also served as cinematographer, creates a bleak yet beautiful Gothic atmosphere with muted colors, fog-drenched landscapes and period-accurate costumes that transport viewers straight into the 1800s.
The movie also cleverly uses other horror iconography — a terrifying scarecrow and a set of silver fangs in particular — to build out the mythology of the curse, evoking fear with every scene.
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Every frame feels painterly — and that quiet beauty only makes the moments of violence and transformation even more jarring. The contrast between elegance and horror elevates the film beyond standard creature feature territory, making it a must-watch for fans of arthouse horror like The Witch or The Others.
The Cursed is now streaming on Netflix
