From Trash to Treasure (or: The Rare Horror Prequel That Works) Let’s be clear right from the jump: Ouija: Origin of Evil had no business being good. It’s a prequel to Ouija—a 2014 horror movie so bland it could’ve been used as anesthesia. That film was a cynical studio cash grab based on a board … Read More “Ouija: Origin of Evil (2016): When Your Kid Talks to Demons and You Call It a Business Strategy” »
The Case of the Missing Plot Let’s start with the good news: No Reasons exists. That’s about it. Spencer Hawken’s 2016 independent thriller—written, directed, and produced under his own company, Views From The Edge Films—tries valiantly to tell a story about grief, mystery, and suburban despair. Unfortunately, it feels less like a thriller and more … Read More “No Reasons (2016): A Thriller That Vanishes Without a Trace—And Maybe That’s a Good Thing” »
When Corporate AI Goes Full Emo Ah, Morgan. The 2016 sci-fi horror film that asks the age-old question: what if your company HR department also had to handle homicidal robots? Directed by Luke Scott—yes, the son of Ridley “I Made Blade Runner So My Kid Could Have Career Expectations” Scott—this sleek little nightmare blends ethical … Read More “Morgan (2016): Blade Runner’s Awkward Niece Who Just Discovered Murder” »
There Are Monsters—And Then There Are Moms Let’s be honest: The Monster sounds like the kind of straight-to-streaming creature feature you’d scroll past on a rainy night—right between Sharktopus 3: Tentacles of Destiny and Attack of the Mutant Deer. But Bryan Bertino, the twisted genius behind The Strangers, decided to play emotional Russian roulette with … Read More “The Monster (2016): Motherhood, Mayhem, and the Best Use of a Flashlight Since E.T.” »
Midnight Mediocrity Every horror fan knows the rules: don’t split up, don’t read from the ancient book, and for the love of Lin Shaye’s career, don’t open mysterious boxes full of bloodstained parchment. The Midnight Man—directed by Travis Zariwny and released in 2016—breaks all three of these commandments and pays the ultimate price: 90 minutes … Read More “The Midnight Man (2016): A Game You Lose Just by Watching” »
Welcome to Istanbul, Population: You and the Jinn Some horror films invite you to question reality. Magi invites you to question your Airbnb choices. Written and directed by Turkish horror maestro Hasan Karacadağ, this 2016 supernatural fever dream mixes demonic possession, sisterly love, Middle Eastern folklore, and a dash of “What the hell is Stephen … Read More “Magi (2016): When Family Visits and Demons RSVP Too” »
Once Upon a Time in Bargain Bin Land Let’s get this out of the way: Little Dead Rotting Hood is not Red Riding Hood. It’s the Red Riding Hood that got bitten by a werewolf, dropped out of community college, and now works nights at a haunted lumberyard. Directed by Jared Cohn and written by … Read More “Little Dead Rotting Hood: The Big Bad Wolf Finally Gets a Union Job” »
Let’s talk about Day of the Dead: Bloodline—or as I like to call it, the horror movie equivalent of an unfinished sandwich. It’s a reimagining of George A. Romero’s Day of the Dead (the ’80s classic), but instead of the usual brain-churning, blood-gushing zombie fare we’ve come to expect, this film serves up a soggy, … Read More “Day of the Dead: Bloodline – Zombies, Underwhelming Action, and A Whole Lot of Regret” »
Danur (translated to “I Can See Ghosts”), the Indonesian horror film that managed to spook its way into becoming the highest-grossing horror movie in the country, has officially earned a place in the ranks of horror cinema. And let me tell you, this movie’s got it all—ghosts, creepy kids, a tree that seems to be … Read More “Danur – Ghosts, Ghouls, and Uncomfortably Friendly Spirits” »
Ah, The Cured, a movie that takes the ever-popular “zombie” genre, slaps a PTSD sticker on it, and tries to make us feel bad for the infected. This 2017 Irish horror-drama directed by David Freyne has all the right ingredients—plenty of moral ambiguity, PTSD-laden characters, and a plague that turns people into murderers. What could … Read More “The Cured – A Horror Drama That Could Use a Cure Itself” »