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When dealing with a contained story, you have to get creative. There needs to be some kind of countdown or plot device that creates tension and keeps the audience in suspense. You can't go anywhere new or exciting, and you can't introduce many outside characters. This was exactly the challenge director Ian Tuason had in front of him. Undertone follows a woman named Evy who lives with her ailing mother. During the day she takes care of her mother, and at night she cohosts a po

Michael and Danny Philippou proved they were the real deal with Talk to Me, but following up a smash hit like that would be a daunting task for anyone. Did they match it, or did they fall short? Bring Her Back follows siblings Andy and Piper who encounter a sinister ritual at the secluded house of their new foster mother, Laura. The story takes place in modern day Australia. Sally Hawkins (Made in Dagenham, Paddington, Wonka) leads a cast of young actors. Sora Wong who plays

It takes a deep-rooted visionary to pierce through the heart and soul of society the way Ryan Coogler just did with Sinners. In his fifth film working with Michael B. Jordan, he again delivers. A film steeped heavily in a singular culture; one might expect the reach be limited to a minority. They'd be wrong. This film is breaking records, and breaking barriers. Sinners is a period piece set in the South during the Jim Crow Era. The story centers on mysterious twin brothers,

Rule of thumb when writing a script: don't toy with your audience. Apparently, writer Sam Stefanak did not get this memo, and the result was dissatisfied viewers. Film is subjective though, and you can still find some good in the bad. Sometimes a closer look is warranted. The Woman in the Yard follows Ramona and her two children, Taylor and Annie, as they encounter a mysterious figure cloaked in black on their family farm. The visitor says very little and does not reveal her

Writer/director Oz Perkins is on a roll with his second horror film in two years. Last year we got Longlegs, and this year we got The Monkey. There's been some divisiveness surrounding The Monkey since its release and I can understand why. Was this supposed to be an adventure comedy, a coming-of-age movie, a possessed doll film, or even a slapstick comedy? Perkins himself probably doesn't even know. But I digress... The Monkey is an adaptation of one of many Stephen King nove

Was this the best year of horror in the last decade? Possibly. You certainly can't deny the powerhouse it was. Whether you craved a fresh perspective on a subgenre, a return to a classic franchise, or an intense standalone horror flick, this year had it. Listed below is our official TOP TEN, with a few honorable mentions. Honorable Mentions Longlegs A hot topic leading up to its release, Longlegs grossed nearly $75M domestically. But hype alone will only get butts in the seat

Let me start this review off by saying, yes, Presence is a horror movie. Its story is tragic, and tragedy can be a horrifying thing to experience. It can be horrifying for the person going through it, and those watching from afar (me in a theater seat). This genre is not built upon scares and gore alone but rather upon death and the idea of it. All horror ties back to death in one way or another, and Presence focuses heavily on it. As a director Steven Soderbergh has little

Well, the results are finally in! The third installment in the Quiet Place Franchise performed... just OK. After the success of the first two films, it was reasonable to be enthusiastic. With star power in Lupita Nyong'o as the lead, and John Krasinski and Michael Sarnoski writing and producing, you'd expect great things. The end product was a movie that rushes to tell its story. Whether due to budget constraints or not, it's frustrating to see play out. I was fully anticipat

I'm a simp for M. Night Shyamalan. There, I said it. So, when I heard his daughter, Ishana Night Shyamalan, would be making her directorial debut with The Watchers, I was excited. The trailer was intriguing, and I like Dakota Fanning's stuff, but the biggest concern was the plot. How were they going to make a fully fleshed story with a single location in the woods of Ireland? Well, many of Shyamalan's films have been structured similarly with a single location, so we know it

Many think we watch horror for gore, violence, and scares only. They would be wrong as most horror fans have a soft spot for good characters, namely protagonists. These characters are normally the final boy or girl in the film, defying all odds and surviving to see another day. Most protagonists possess a combination of wit and determination, often taking the role of leader reluctantly. As the going gets tough other characters look to them for answers. It can be a macho man,

Holy cow. That was a fun time. In a Violent Nature gave us one of the more memorable horror films of the past decade. Now, I'm not saying this movie is perfect... don't attack me, please! I agree there were plenty of areas that could have and should have been better. Still though, this new release ultimately works. In a past article I noted a fear of too much meandering between kills that could make or break the film. Luckily, Chris Nash made sure to implement beautiful cine

The 1920's is an interesting decade of horror. We must acknowledge the lack of technology available at the time to fully appreciate these...

What was once excitement for this new trilogy has quickly become indifference. An issue with trilogies is expectations get set higher; when you don't start out with a bang, people begin to worry. Instead of providing a fresh perspective on the masked killers, we are given a complete and utter rehash of The Strangers. Beat for beat we follow the original story with similar characters and a similar setting. Overacting was on display from the entire cast, especially the townsfol

With the upcoming release of A Quiet Place: Day One I decided to take a look at the box office standings for horror movies. It's been rather quiet since Five Nights at Freddy's eclipsed 12th highest grossing worldwide. The upcoming film with the most potential to follow in suit is this one. In fact, both A Quiet Place and A Quiet Place: Part 2 are top fifteen all time in the genre. Although the sequel sits lower on the charts than the original, it was well received critically

One of my favorite aspects of a slasher is the POV shots. If I'm going to spend time in this subgenre, I'm fully expecting there to be some sprinkled throughout. Fortunately, the upcoming release of In a Violent Nature is supposed to give us plenty of it. The synopsis is very reminiscent to the legend of Jason, an entity of sorts that is risen from the dead with murderous vengeance on its mind. Our villain's name is Johnny, a man who was killed horrifically and entombed under

In May of 2008 The Strangers hit theaters across the country. The cult classic gave audiences a memorable experience, accurately depicting the fear involved with home invasions. The director, Ryan Bertino, stated the film was inspired by true events, namely the Manson family Tate murders and some break-ins that occurred in Bertino's hometown growing up. What The Strangers did well was play on that fear of being home alone at night. We've all had instances where we spooked our

Six years ago, I watched the 1979 film Alien. Since then, I've spent countless hours consuming all the sequels, prequels, and books related to the franchise. No movie has hooked me quite like Alien. From the set and creature design to the characters and rather poetic dialogue, it's a masterclass in cinema. Who can forget lines like "perfect organism" or "this is Ellen Ripley, signing off"? Or moments of shock including the facehugger and chestburster scenes. Oh, and that Xeno