Hiking, Therapy, and One Very Bad Forest Spirit Bruce Wemple’s The Retreat is the kind of movie that starts like a low-budget outdoorsy hangout film and gradually mutates into “what if guilt had antlers and liked to stalk you in the snow?” On the surface: two dudes go winter backpacking in the Adirondacks. Underneath: grief, … Read More “The Retreat (2020) Bro trip, but make it eldritch” »
The Plague Is Catchy, But the Movie Isn’t Neil Marshall once gave us The Descent, one of the best claustrophobic horror films ever made. Fifteen years later, he gave us The Reckoning, which feels like someone fed The Crucible, Braveheart, and a perfume commercial through a plague-ridden blender. It’s technically about a woman accused of … Read More “The Reckoning (2020) Witch trials, but make it boring” »
A Ghost Story That Starts in a Mass Grave Péter Bergendy’s Post Mortem does not waste time easing you in. It opens on a World War I battlefield where Tomás, a German soldier, is quite literally tossed into a pile of corpses and left for dead. Then a little girl appears in a vision, and … Read More “Post Mortem (2020) Beautifully sad, aggressively haunted Hungary” »
A Western That Rode Straight Into a Horror Movie The Pale Door is what happens when someone asks, “What if Young Guns took a wrong turn and rode into a Salem reunion?” and then actually made the movie. Aaron B. Koontz’s horror Western isn’t subtle, polished perfection—but it’s enthusiastic, bloody, and surprisingly heartfelt, like a … Read More “The Pale Door (2020) Six-shooters, saloons, and screaming witches” »
Conservatory Drama, but Make It Cursed Nocturne is what happens when you take a cutthroat arts academy movie, smash it into a supernatural pact-with-the-devil story, and then film the whole thing like a melancholy breakup with reality. Zu Quirke’s feature debut is stylish, moody, and petty in exactly the right ways. It’s not just about … Read More “Nocturne (2020) Classical ambition quietly loses mind” »
Vampirism, But Make It Emotionally Exhausting Jonathan Cuartas’ My Heart Can’t Beat Unless You Tell It To is the kind of horror film that doesn’t jump out and scare you so much as sit quietly in the corner and emotionally blackmail you for 90 minutes. It’s technically about a sick kid who needs blood to … Read More “My Heart Can’t Beat Unless You Tell It To (2020) Tender family drama with murder” »
When in Doubt, Add More Screaming Timo Tjahjanto’s May the Devil Take You Too is the cinematic equivalent of turning your amp from 10 to 11 without noticing the speakers were already blown. It’s louder, bloodier, and more chaotic than the first film—but not necessarily better. It’s as if someone took the original, circled everything … Read More “May the Devil Take You Too (2020) Demonic sequel with diminishing returns” »
A Quiet Vacation in Emotional Damage If you’ve ever thought, “What I really need is a peaceful lakeside hotel where I can process my trauma,” Lingering is here to lovingly slap that thought out of your head. Yoon Eun-gyeong’s supernatural horror film looks, at first glance, like a quiet retreat drama—misty water, cozy hotel, childhood … Read More “Lingering (2020) Grief, ghosts, and lakeside dread” »
A Tiny Short With Big, Nasty Teeth There are horror shorts that feel like calling cards, and then there are horror shorts that feel like fully formed nightmares someone accidentally left on your doorstep. Laura Hasn’t Slept is definitely the latter. Written and directed by Parker Finn, this 11-ish minute film is the seed that … Read More “Laura Hasn’t Slept (2020) Insomnia with a demonic grin” »
A Pregnancy Horror That’s Uncomfortably Plausible If you’ve ever worried that your in-laws might be a bit too invested in your life choices, Kindred will either validate your instincts or ruin family dinners forever. Joe Marcantonio’s 2020 British mystery horror drama is a slow-burn psychological thriller that trades jump scares for steady, suffocating dread—and pulls … Read More “Kindred (2020) Cozy gaslighting in country manor” »