★★★★ out of ★★★★★
If you are looking for something outrageously different, you need look no further than this mind-boggling slice of surreal Japanese comedy.
The Scariest Things Review: Candyman (2021)
★★★★1/2 and ★★★★ out of ★★★★★
A powerful sequel of a beloved classic slasher movie that establishes that this franchise is perhaps the headiest and most nuanced of all the slasher movies. Director Nia DaCosta shows real visionary talent, and with co-writer Jordan Peele, adds updated depth and texture to an already fascinating urban legend.
Eric’s Review: Blood Conscious (Popcorn Frights 2021)
★★ out of ★★★★★
Blood Conscious is a movie whose ambitions exceed the execution of the film. This cabin-in-the-woods thriller treads familiar territory and sets up some recognizable trope concepts but never really pays them off.
Joseph’s Review: On the 3rd Day (Fantasia 2021)
★★★★ out of ★★★★★
Macabre, mysterious, imaginative, and a delight to watch unfold, this Argentinian chiller is must-see viewing for fans of horror cinema.
Joseph’s Review: Night at the Eagle Inn (Popcorn Frights)
★★★ out of ★★★★★
This frenetic independent chiller is a fun entry in the hotel-horror subgenre.
Eric’s Review: The Night House (2021)
★★★★ out of ★★★★★
The Night House is a serious, heavy, and somber film full of mystery and dread. Rebecca Hall turns in a powerhouse performance of a woman trying to overcome her grief and understand why her husband killed himself at their idyllic lakeside house. As she uncovers the horrible truth, the secrets unleash a wrathful spirit who wants to claim her as well.
Robert’s Review: Spontaneous (2020)
★★★1/2 out of ★★★★★
The directorial debut of super-scribe Brian Duffield is a splatterific horror-adjacent rom/com that brings the feels along with exploding teens.
Joseph’s Review: Hellbender (Fantasia 2021)
★★★1/2 out of ★★★★★
A true family effort, Hellbender sees a mother and daughter at odds when the youngster discovers a secret that her mother kept from her and the power that it involves.
The Scariest Things Podcast Episode CXXIX: Tricks, Traps, and Puzzle Horror
Shall we play a GAME? For some of the brainiest horror movies, go to the tradition of tricks and traps horror. The punishment for not figuring out how to win the game is often painful and deadly. And face it, you watch reality TV shows to see people get eliminated, right? This horror sub-trope takes that idea to the next bloody level.
Eric’s Review: Val (2021 Popcorn Frights)
★★★★1/2 out of ★★★★★
Come for the promise of a devilishly sexy good time. Stay for some fantastic character arcs and hugely expressive acting performances. Val, which had its world premiere at Popcorn Frights is colorful, saucy, and snappy, with an undercurrent of something dark and ominous just underneath the surface.
Joseph’s Review: The House at the End of the Forest (2021 Popcorn Frights)
★★1/2 out of ★★★★★
Swedish puzzler The House at the End of the Forest serves up more head scratching than it does hand wringing.
Liz’s Review: It Came From Below (Popcorn Frights 2021)
★★ out of ★★★★★
Lace up your hiking boots and grab your headlamp for a journey underground in It Came From Below.
Mike’s Review: The Last Matinee (Popcorn Frights 2021)
★★★★ out of ★★★★★
The Last Matinee is a loving homage to film. More to the point it’s a loving homage and exploration of Argento, Fulchi, grindhouse cinema, slashers, grimy movie theaters, and quite possibly the great Lamberto Bava film Demons. Don’t be fooled though. While The Last Matinee pulls from many of the classics, it’s got its own unique style and flavor, and it’s cram-packed with EYEBALLS.
Mike’s Review: Dashcam (Popcorn Frights 2021)
★★★★ out of ★★★★★
The son of De Palma’s Blow-Out! The grandson of Michelangelo Antonioni’s Blow-Up! A new vision of paranoid conspiracy theories as told through the latest fandangled piece of technology! Or in this case technologies.
Eric’s Review: The Ex (2021 Popcorn Frights)
★★★1/2 out of ★★★★★
This sexy Russian thriller morphs into the supernatural when a youthful indiscretion comes back to haunt a young engaged couple. This movie packs a lot in: A false villain, a foolish internet posting, a love triangle, and a vengeful ghost. It doesn’t always patch its plot holes, but it is entertaining. The Ex has gorgeous cinematography, and, did I mention it’s sexy? I think I did.
Eric’s Review: Ditched (2021 Popcorn Frights)
★★★ out of ★★★★★
After finding themselves upside-down in an ambulance, a group of paramedics, cops, and prisoner patients realize that they are the victims of an ambush, with the mysterious forces closing in around them. This siege thriller goes heavy with gore and extended exposition before settling in on a brutal and memorable final moment.
Liz’s Review: Keeping Company
★★★★ out of ★★★★★
The insurance game has never been more cut-throat than it has in Keeping Company!
Joseph’s Fantasia 2021 Reviews: We’re All Going to the World’s Fair, Kratt, and Ultrasound
We’re All Going to the World’s Fair, Kratt, and Ultrasound screen as part of Montreal’s Fantasia 2021, which runs online from August 5–25, 2021.
Eric’s Review: Superhost (2021 Popcorn Frights Film Festival)
★★★★1/2 out of ★★★★★
Smash that Like Button! Two travel YouTubers on a mission to bolster their diminishing viewer interest visit a vacation rental cabin with an eccentric “superhost” who transforms from an off-putting oddball to imminent threat over their vacation stay. This movie has inertia like a locomotive covered in razor blades, with a near-perfect build of tension and release.
Eric’s Review: Take Back the Night (2021 Popcorn Frights)
★★★★ out of ★★★★★
A not-veiled at all analogy to sexual assault, Take Back the Night relects on the horrors of being attacked by a monster before, during, and after the event. This is a make-a-statement horror movie on a miniscule budget that is fighting well above its weight class, thanks to some standout acting performances and emotional resonance.
Liz’s Review: Howling Village (Popcorn Frights 2021)
★★★★ out of ★★★★★
Fans of classic J Horror rejoice! Howling Village takes you back to the golden age and your guide is Horror master and Ju-on creator Takashi Shimizu.
Eric’s Portland Horror Film Festival Review: The Horror Crowd (2020)
★★★1/2 out of ★★★★★
There have been a multitude of horror documentaries that chronicle the classic and most famous films of the genre, and there have been documentaries that celebrate certain favorite eras within horror. Director Ruben Pla focuses his efforts on the Independent films and shines a light on a number of the up-and-coming influencers within today’s horror.
Eric’s Portland Horror Film Festival Review: Red Snow (2021)
★★★★ out of ★★★★★
A struggling horror novel author catches a fortuitous break, when a dashing young vampire crashes into her life. Red Snow is a cheeky and wicked little horror-romcom with great character chemistry that doesn’t always go where you would expect.
Mike’s Portland Horror Film Festival Review: Red River Road (2020)
★★★★ out of ★★★★★
It’s fair to say that we might not know the full impact of the global pandemic tragedy for years or even decades. Some have been tragically impacted by the pandemic, some have wandered in a face-covered fog, and others have irresponsibly stuck their heads in the sand. Everyone has had choices to make during the pandemic and those choices have manifested in the horrible, but they’ve also been used for creativity and good.
The Scariest Things Podcast Episode CXXVIII: The Best Horror Films of the First Half of 2021
2021 has delivered a number of films that were held in reserve over the awkward year that was 2020. The studios held back some of their most proven titles, and when the theaters opened up a slew of them hit the theaters, and several of them were worth the wait.
Mike’s Portland Horror Film Festival Review: The Stairs (2021)
★★★★ out of ★★★★★
Straight outta the Pacific Northwest comes another joint from the same team that brought you 2018’s Big Legend. A far more daring, if not a little less linear, than their first outing with Bigfoot, 2021’s The Stairs is a complex bit of business wrapped up in a cautionary camping tale.
Joseph’s Review: Man Under Table
★★★ out of ★★★★★
Man Under Table is a surreal, darkly comic commentary on the trials and tribulations of independent filmmaking. It has an air of dread and bleakness of the horror-adjacent kind.
A Half-Dozen Horrors We Can’t Wait to See at Fantasia
Every year, Montreal’s Fantasia International Film Festival serves up North America’s largest selection of genre-film goodness, and this year’s 25th edition running August 5–25 is no exception. Along with science fiction, thriller, dark comedy, action, animation, and other exciting genres, horror has always been a big part of Fantasia. Here are six of Fantasia’s exciting fear-fare feature offerings on tap this year.
Liz’s Review: Mareld (Portland Horror Film Festival)
★★★1/2 out of ★★★★★
Throw the script overboard and set sail with Mareld!
Trailer Alert: We Need To Do Something (2021)
Just off of a buzz generating debut at the Tribeca Film Festival, the trailer for Sean King O’Grady’s feature film […]