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Intensity and effectiveness of jump scares
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Oddity is the horror who-done-it, supernatural, revenge thriller, comedy you have been waiting for!
The Overlook Film Festival is an event that is near and dear to The Scariest Things. Eric and Liz will be there live and in person to review their slate of horror films, which always represent the best of the independent horror scene. They just released their initial slate of films, including a few we eagerly anticipated.
We have the trailer and poster drop for Barbara Crampton's new film SNOW VALLEY.
You have our apologies in advance. Mike challenged us to record a podcast where we discuss movies with "Haunting" or "Haunted" in the title. If you search "Haunting" in IMdB, there are well over 4000 films with that word in the title. Sadly, only a few of them are any good. Or, at least from what we've been able to determine so far. There are only so many "Haunting of" movies that a critic can stomach in a month.
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In a genre overloaded with movies inspired by the Frankenstein story, Lisa Frankenstein fails to catch a spark.
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If fear of the unknown is the most primal of horrors, imagine living in a prehistoric world and arriving on a new barren continent. In the new British Paleolithic horror film Out of Darkness, a group of stone-age nomadic survivors cross the sea and find a land bereft of resources and quarry. Everything is unknown, their worldview is limited to their tribe and the stories passed down from their elders. Their only protection is a spear and a campfire. Scary times, indeed.
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I will give points to A Creature Was Stirring (2023) for trying to do something that was original. A were-porcupine (A Porcupinecanthrope?) is a new addition to the monster lexicon. It's a parenting horror piece. Also, a home invasion. And a drug horror story. The problem is that in execution, it never finds its proper footing, and the narrative gets lost.
Preview of A Night of Horror, which makes its initial run in the United States from March 1–3, 2024, in Eau Claire, Wisconsin.
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Joseph reviews Robert Morgan's UK macabre horror film STOPMOTION, a body horror movie full of unsettling stop-motion animation.
Joseph reviews three Romford Horror Festival shorts: Fuse, Bisected, and Spiral to the Center
Australia's Dark Nights Film Festival inaugural edition has been announced and is calling for entries.
True Detective Season 4: Night Country has just completed its run on MAX, and it is totally worth stealing your neighbor's MAX... I mean, BUYING a month of MAX... to binge the series. As satisfying as it can be to binge a series, having this as a weekly water cooler show was a great way to build anticipation and chatter. Chatter like our Spooky Time 26!
Make Believe Seattle Film Festival announces its full lineup for its second edition
Combining both body horror and creature feature elements, Malaysian film TIGER STRIPES is a unique effort and an intriguing feature debut from a promising new directorial talent..
"Dario Argento: Panico" delves into the enigmatic world of horror maestro Dario Argento, chronicling his influence on the genre. While shedding light on Argento's creative process and personal influences, the documentary overlooks pivotal aspects like his iconic soundtracks and collaboration with George Romero. The film explores the intricate duality of Argento's artistic vision and personal intricacies.
The Scariest Things brings you the trailer for THE ACTIVATED MAN, which screens at the U.K.'s Romford Horror Festival.
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HBO's acclaimed series True Detective returns to the horror roots it developed in season 1. In Season 4: Night Country, the franchise brings screen legend Jodie Foster to the TV streaming powerhouse production. Foster is paired with up-and-coming talent Kali Reis. They are investigating a grotesque mystery where a research station's entire crew is found frozen, naked, and apparently terrified out in the Alaskan tundra just as the permanent night of the polar winter is settling in.
The Scariest Things eagerly awaits the slate of films for 2024. We are thrilled to cast our eyes forward to the scary films to come. Sadly, if years prior are any indicator, our ability to spot the best of what is to come is unfortunately spotty. That isn't to say that we won't make the attempt to predict horror movies that we think we will enjoy!
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No One Will Save You is an ambitious and curious film. It is a tightly wound home invasion film with an Alien Invasion theme. That's not uncommon. What makes this film unique is that it has no dialogue. Actress Kaitlyn Dever carries this film, her emotional performance winning the day. That, and top notch sound and production values makes this worth a watch on HULU.
Check out the trailer for You'll Never Find Me coming to Shudder in March.
★★ out of ★★★★★
Wait 30 minutes after eating before going for a Night Swim.
The Worst Horror Movies of 2023. It's an unfortunate but needed exposure of what was awful in 2023. What is more unfortunate is that we had to watch these movies last year. You may consider this a warning. A red flag. But admit it, many of you like to kick a bad movie when it's down. Our advice? Kick away! You love this. We know you do.
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It Lives Inside is a fresh look at the assimilation of an Indian family into the United States that pits a teenage girl against a demon that feeds on loneliness and despair. The story is resonant, and the examination of Southern Asian -American culture is nicely done. The scares are as much as you can hope for in a PG-13 film, and the non-cultural elements feel a bit mechanical. Still, for those of us who have lived this experience, it is a welcome entry into the genre.
Joseph lists his top 10 horror films of 2023.
For the Best Horror Shorts of 2023, we cherry-picked our favorite short films from the festivals we attended this year. We also selected a few films from the game-changing streaming short film distributor Alter. We've got many of these full short films linked to this post. Give them a watch!
One of our favorite annual happenings! Picking the BEST horror movie posters of the year. It’s fair to say that graphic design in 2023 came in like a little sheep, but left as a full-blown lion. From the outrageous and grotesque to the sublime and beautiful, designers really offered some interesting stuff in 2023.
2023 has come to an end and it was another great year for horror! The Australians dominated the genre this...
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Quicksand (2023) is a straightforward wilderness survival horror movie that pits a struggling married couple in a pool of quicksand in a Columbian mountain bog. It's a stylishly shot film and features a pair of fine acting performances. However, to call the quicksand quick would be a misnomer, as the couple struggles... slowly... against the fate of getting sucked to the bottom of this quagmire.
The Scariest Things writing team didn't have a consensus #1 film, but all four of the films that reached the top spot are likely to become instant classics, remembered for decades to come. If you want a sampler platter of tasty tasty horror, then listen to the FIVE top ten lists in our roundtable discussion in Podcast Episode 177: The Best Horror Movies of 2023.