Unexpected sequels, gruesome gore-fests, and horrifying beings living in the basement.
Some terrifying horror movies came out in 2022.
Here are some of the best.
"Terrifier 2" is a surprisingly fun splatter sequel that improves on the first film in
every single way.
The original "Terrifier" is very watchable, but the sequel is simply a blast.
Once again, Art the Clown, played by the ever creepy David Howard Thornton, is up to his
old tricks, which mainly involves horribly murdering people.
"Terrifier 2" is still rough around the edges, and at times, features some admittedly poor
acting.
But the film has such a zest for its over-the-top splatter-punk vibe that it's easy to get swept
up in it all, even as the film clocks in at well over two hours.
The Senegalese film "Saloum" is loaded with style and confidence on a minimum budget.
The story concerns a group of mercenaries hired to transport a drug lord.
But nothing goes according to plan, and the group is forced to land their leaking plane
in a remote region, where something supernatural awaits.
Slick as hell and featuring more life and energy than most modern releases regurgitated
by Hollywood, "Saloum" is probably the coolest movie on this list.
"Smile" is a surprisingly nasty studio horror picture, filled with shocking gore and a frequently
nihilistic tone.
It was also a huge hit with audiences, and references a plethora of popular films such
as "The Ring."
Kevin Bacon's daughter, Sosie Bacon, plays a doctor who witnesses one of her patients
die violently by suicide.
She begins being haunted by visions of people grinning at her.
"It's smiling at me.
But not a friendly smile.
The worst smile I've ever seen."
At first, it's unclear whether the visions are simply triggered by trauma, or if she's
actually witnessing a malevolent supernatural force.
Viewers quickly learn that the lead is all but doomed, which makes the film all the more
urgent, as time is running out, and evil is getting closer with every second.
The "Predator" series has had its ups and downs, but "Prey" gets back to basics.
Jumping back in time to the 1700s, "Prey" pits one of those hunt-loving Predator aliens
against Naru, played by Amber Midthunder, a young Comanche who wants to prove she's
just as tough a warrior as her brother.
Rather than exploring even more Predator mythology, "Prey" keeps the plot simple.
The Predator comes to earth, starts killing, and then comes up against a fighter who gives
it a run for its money.
What elevates that simple set-up is Midthunder's instantly likable performance as the lead,
coupled with the interesting ways a Predator would operate in the past.
"Something In the Dirt" is a funny, strange story about two guys who are obsessed with
conspiracy theories and doing "research" on Wikipedia and YouTube.
The two guys live in the same building, and start to notice strange phenomena occurring
in one of their apartments.
Their solution is to capture these unbelievable occurrences on film and sell the footage to
someone like Netflix.
Viewers are forced to consider what is real and what is fabricated, as well as what might
be causing the strange goings on in the first place.
The majority of "Something in the Dirt" revolves around the characters talking about what sounds
like nonsense, but somehow it's strangely compelling.
Surgery is the new sex in "Crimes of the Future," David Cronenberg's hilariously twisted return
to feature filmmaking.
In the future, pain is all but an afterthought.
As a result, people are able to disfigure and modify their bodies without blinking.
Meanwhile, a performance artist is growing new, seemingly useless organs in his body,
which are perfect objects to be surgically removed as a sort of live theater.
Throw in sex, murder, mayhem, children eating plastic, and a guy named Earman, and you have
yourself a wild and wacky extravaganza.
Many critics weren't won over by "Crimes of the Future," but the enjoyable film certainly
showcases Cronenberg's funny side.
Phil Tippett's "Mad God'' is almost impossible to describe.
The stop-motion nightmare took the legendary FX artist 30 years to complete, and the results
are stunning.The film follows a character through a hellish underworld where giants
are strapped to electric chairs and unnecessary surgeries are abundant.
Disgusting, revolting, hypnotic, and oddly beautiful, "Mad God" is artistry at its finest
and most repulsive.
Horror comedy is a very tricky genre, usually because filmmakers lean too heavily into the
comedy side of things and forget the scares.
Thankfully, "Deadstream" is a reminder of how fun the subgenre can be when it's done
right.
"I hope you all appreciate the public service I'm doing by being here."
Shawn, a very annoying YouTuber, has returned after a scandal and plans on spending the
night in a supposedly haunted house.
However, the house turns out to really be haunted, and Shawn is in deep trouble.
It's a very simple setup executed to perfection as Shawn encounters "Evil Dead II"–like
mayhem from the supernatural forces that dwell within the house and beyond.
The splatterpunk mayhem of "The Sadness" is not going to be for everyone, and instead
feels tailor-made to infuriate and disgust people, at which it succeeds.
"The Sadness" may not be a work of high art, but there is a deliberate, unique style on
display in the film, as a mysterious illness turns people into crazed homicidal maniacs.
It's undeniable that the film is made for gore-hounds, and those who love to watch practical
make-up effects create traumatic wounds and gushing blood.
The film is also darkly funny, and it grows increasingly unhinged and disgusting as the
considerable body count piles up.
"Bones and All," a film about fine young cannibals, may not seem like a horror movie to the uninitiated,
but there's enough blood and guts here to change that opinion.
Taylor Russell is a young girl who can't help wanting to eat people.
She has an intense compulsion, and she's not alone.
There are "eaters" all over the country, and Russell's character sets out on the road,
and soon finds Timothée Chalamet's Lee, who is just as hungry as she is.
The two fall in love, moving from one location to the next and encountering other cannibals
along the way.
Both romantic and unapologetically gruesome, "Bones and All" is heartbreaking and beautiful
in its own gory way.
"Never, never, ever eat an eater."
Ti West's "X" is a sexy, bloody, highly enjoyable slasher.
The story follows a crew of amateur filmmakers who head to a secluded farm to shoot a porno.
Unfortunately for them, the old woman who lives on the farm has other ideas.
Mia Goth plays both Maxine, one of the porn stars, and Pearl, the old woman who starts
brutally killing the horny visitors.
What's so refreshing about "X" is that it's just a fun, old-school horror flick, and highly
rewatchable, to boot.
David Gordon Green's "Halloween" reboot trilogy could've ended with the same old Michael Myers
stalking people through Haddonfield.
Indeed, it seems like that's exactly what people wanted.
Instead, Green decided to try something different with "Halloween Ends," crafting a film where
evil is contagious and spreading like a sickness.
While Michael Myers is still lurking in the background, the film focuses on a new character,
a lonely, shunned guy named Corey, who essentially becomes the Shape's apprentice.
Laurie Strode is still in search of closure after all these years, and Green gives it
to her.
The film also leans into the idea that the people of Haddonfield are just as bad as the
monster they hate, and they're willing to give in to mob justice because they think
they're morally superior.
Needless to say, "Halloween Ends" is a shockingly complex entry in the franchise, and perhaps
the most interesting sequel since "Halloween III: Season of the Witch."
"He's dead."
"Not dead enough."
Jordan Peele's "Nope" is a tribute to all of the crew members who work on movies, such
as the grips, the gofers, and the people who set things up and rarely get any credit.
Daniel Kaluuya is OJ, the owner of a horse ranch that rents horses out to the movie studios.
OJ becomes aware of something in the skies over his ranch, and his sister Emerald, played
by Keke Palmer, gets the idea that they should try to capture it on film.
However, the siblings get way more than they bargained for, because this isn't some flying
saucer.
This is Peele in Spielberg mode, staging a huge blockbuster-style scare.
"Nope" is full of big laughs and big chills, and includes one of the scariest scenes of
the year, involving an unlucky audience being slowly digested as they hopelessly scream
for their lives.
"Nope" may be a better movie than "Barbarian," but "Barbarian" is probably a better horror
movie than "Nope."
"Barbarian" is one of the best surprises of the year, and truly felt like it came from
nowhere.
A funny, scary, shout-at-the-screen horror pic, the likes of which we don't see much
of these days.
Writer-director Zach Cregger plays with our expectations and assumptions from the jump,
dropping Tess, played by Georgina Campbell, at an Airbnb that's already been rented.
The other renter is Keith, played to perfection by Bill Skarsgård, and everything inside
Tess tells her that she should get the hell out of there.
Instead, she accepts Keith's invitation into the house.
"Barbarian" is one of those films where the less you know about it going in, the better.
However, thanks to social media spoilers, you probably already know what's lurking at
the heart of the film.
As it transpires, Keith isn't a problem, but the basement of the house is.
There's someone or something horrifying living down there.
Just when the horror ramps up, the action cuts to what feels like an entirely different
movie, instead showing us the story of an actor, played by Justin Long, whose career
is ruined by a rape allegation.
As for what Long's storyline has to do with the rented house, you'll simply have to wait
and see.
"Barbarian" is tense from the very beginning and never lets up, unleashing humor and horror
while shocking and thrilling us every step of the way.