2018 has already delivered a number of standout horror movies, many of them flying under the
radars of most moviegoers.
These are some of the very best that the year has had to offer.
Beautiful, awesome, restrained and challenging, Annihilation is the best film of 2018 that
you more than likely haven't seen.
The movie takes place in the aftermath of a meteor strike that has given rise to an
inexplicable phenomenon: an ever-expanding shimmer that no human being has entered and
left alive.
When five female investigators enter the boundary of the shimmer in an attempt to pin down exactly
what's going on, they find themselves deep inside a disorienting and ever-changing pocket
world.
Here, they discover biological and geological matter fused into impossible hybrids, and
watch as living things combine with one another in gorgeous, disturbing, and ultimately perilous
ways.
But Annihilation is also a deeply personal story about its explorers, all of whom embark
on their mission with detailed motivations that are all quietly and effectively explored
by the film’s script.
Directed by Ex Machina’s Alex Garland, Annihilation is a masterfully creepy movie that lingers
in the minds of viewers long after they watch it, which makes it such a shame that almost
nobody did.
The Strangers became something of a surprise hit when it invaded theaters back in 2008,
making back its production budget nine times over by the time the final box office returns
were tallied.
Curiously, however, it took a full decade for a follow-up to become reality.
Unsurprisingly, enthusiasm for the franchise had faded during the wait between releases,
and the sequel landed in theaters with a much more muted splash.
Despite this, fans of the original Strangers shouldn't ignore this second go-around, which
is just as strong as the original, if not better.
Moving the action from a couple's home to an empty trailer park, Prey at Night builds
on the original's premise of home invasions characterized by pointless, random violence.
“Leave us alone!"
"But we've just started.”
However, the sequel gains points over the original for the victims’ tendency to fight
back, making Prey at Night’s ensuing game of cat-and-mouse far more of a level playing
field than it was in the previous film.
In many ways, this makes it even more of a rewarding watch.
Indie filmmakers Justin Benson and Aaron Scott Moorhead have spent their careers putting
together a respectable catalog of genre-bending films, but The Endless might just be their
best offering yet.
Casting themselves in the lead roles, the writer-directors tell a story of two brothers
who, having fled a UFO cult as young men, return years later to reevaluate the way of
life they left behind.
They soon discover that there may be real magic at the heart of this hippie collective,
as well as the machinations of a malevolent and mysterious force.
“Saying more would be like trying to explain an impossible color.”
Made on a shoestring budget, The Endless makes artful use of CGI, careful framing and a range
of other resources to come across as a bigger production that it actually is.
It's also thoroughly engrossing, bringing viewers into a strange and lived-in world
that really shouldn't feel as realistic as it does.
A pseudo-sequel to the duo's directorial debut Resolution, The Endless tells a heady story
about time, choice and free will.
Jump scare fans need not apply, this is horror by way of H.P.
Lovecraft.
The Hellraiser franchise lost most of its respectability some 20 years and five movies
ago, so it’s no surprise that there wasn't much fan goodwill left with which to greet
the series' tenth installment.
Against all expectations, however, the filmmakers behind 2018's Hellraiser: Judgment actually
went out and made themselves a real movie.
Anything would look good coming after the completely abysmal Hellraiser: Revelations,
which was the first movie in the series to be bad enough that Pinhead actor Doug Bradley
didn't even want anything to do with it.
But while the second movie also features a non-Bradley Pinhead, there's a lot going on
here that warrants a closer look.
Written and directed by Gary J. Tunnicliffe, Hellraiser: Judgment was designed to work
with or without the Hellraiser brand attached, featuring a strong central premise that doesn't
rely on nine movies' worth of franchise history.
The plot of the movie is simple, examining the dead and the damned as their sins are
tallied and they head off to eternal torment.
But what elevates this simple premise is the care given to the set pieces, which are deeply
surreal and truly sickening.
A lot of thought clearly went into designing the freaky netherworld between here and Hell,
and the result is far, far more compelling than it has any right to be.
It's not a great movie, but it is a legitimately good one, and for the Hellraiser franchise,
that's practically a miracle.
Mandy stars Nicolas Cage as a logger living with his girlfriend, Mandy, in a strange,
almost mythical version of 1983 America.
The film initially devotes itself to exploring their isolated, woodsy domestic life, with
a particular focus on Mandy herself, played to haunting perfection by Andrea Riseborough.
That groundwork finds a violent pay-off at the movie's midpoint, however, when the couple
faces a horrifying home invasion.
“You think you’re so...in love...I'll show you love.”
The devastating consequences of this encounter set up a final act of vengeance, violence
and horror, all presented in a hypnotic and deeply atmospheric manner.
Mandy is the second film from writer-director Panos Cosmatos, whose previous film, Beyond
the Black Rainbow, is a similarly challenging and slow-moving trip.
More than its predecessor, however, Mandy is led by character and humor, most of which
is capably provided by Cage in a highly self-aware performance.
It may not be for everyone, but if you can get on its level, it’s bound to be a uniquely
rewarding watch.
Sometimes a horror fan wants something intellectual and challenging, and sometimes they just want
to watch innocent people get murdered by an insane clown.
A spinoff of the 2013 horror anthology All Hallows' Eve, Terrifier puts a feature spotlight
on the killer Art the Clown, a one-note character who exists only to torment others.
Trashy, exploitative, and mean-spirited, Terrifier is the sort of movie that's meant to be discovered
on a beat-up VHS tape, except instead of being pumped out into dollar theaters in the '80s,
it was somehow released in 2018.
They don't make them like this anymore.
Terrifier commits to its trashiness from every angle, the rare grindhouse tribute that actually
feels truly authentic.
It's simplistic, low-budget, and sometimes questionably acted, which is not to say that
it's a bad movie, because it isn't.
While it's certainly not for everybody, slasher fans should feel confident giving this punchy,
predatory thrill ride a late-night spin.
Blumhouse's Truth or Dare was a springtime-release horror movie that got savaged by critics when
it came out, with professional reviewers pointing moviegoers toward A Quiet Place instead.
The derivative movie notched only 15 percent on Rotten Tomatoes by the time 104 reviews
were in.
But all the negative reviews took this movie a little bit more seriously than was actually
warranted.
Sure, if you want interesting characters, strong performances, and atmosphere, there
are plenty of quality horror movies that provide that.
But if you want to just holler at a movie with your friends, Truth or Dare was made
just for you.
All the common critiques are there, this movie does rip off It Follows, and it's not exactly
top-notch horror, but it's bad in the same way most of the Friday the 13th movies are
bad.
Regardless, Truth or Dare is pretty fun to watch, flaws included.
Who can argue against some good, dumb fun?
Filmed in quick and dirty fashion with an iPhone camera, Unsane is the story of a supposedly
well-adjusted woman who becomes involuntarily committed to a psychiatric facility.
Unfortunately, her stalker is on staff.
The movie is much more than just a technical show-off piece for director Steven Soderbergh,
an expert movie craftsman who doesn't need gimmicks to be interesting.
In fact, the "filmed-on-an-iPhone" conceit actually enhances the movie, with the camera's
limitations amplifying the sense of being trapped in a small space.
A loopy, claustrophobia-inducing thriller, Unsane takes a campy, simplistic concept and
elevates it with technical mastery.
Soderbergh acts as his own cinematographer to make a movie that looks as good in theaters
as it would on the device that filmed it.
Netting south of $8 million in box office returns in its first month of release, it's
a movie that many slept on, but it's still a ride worth taking for fans of psychological
horror.
If you missed out on it in theaters, use the opportunity to take the project full circle
by watching it on your own phone.
We're sure the director would appreciate that.
Wildling isn't just an underappreciated horror movie, this unsung character study is one
of the best movies of 2018.
The story of a young woman raised in captivity who enters the real world as a teenager, it's
a feral child story that takes its premise very literally.
Wildiing is a supernatural horror movie that brings out its fantastical elements slowly,
drawing you into its world of believable characters well before it reveals what it really is.
To boil it down to its core concept, it's a movie of adolescent self-discovery with
a particularly wild twist.
The film features a very good performance by its lead, Bel Powley, as well as one from
producer Liv Tyler, who makes an understated turn as an inscrutable police officer.
Together, they make Wildling something to see.
The movie speeds up quite dramatically in its third act, but it's an appropriate transformation,
given the subject matter, resulting in a movie that would work for lots of different viewers.
Tilt is a movie that feels all too easy to skip.
Politics?
No thank you, we're trying to escape reality.
But Tilt is much more than its hooky selling point, telling the story of a man trying to
make sense of the world, failing, and then falling apart.
The movie follows a documentary filmmaker as he tries to put together a movie about
the United States' "golden age," falling down a rabbit hole as his pregnant wife indulges
him.
The creative process drives him more than a little crazy.
But rather than being for politics nerds, Tilt is a movie for anyone who's ever tried
and failed to create something.
The movie has flaws, but the story of a man who feels like the secret to all life is right
on the tip of his tongue will stay relevant long after the current events the movie revels
in are gone.
Look past its most obvious touches, the Donald Trump masks, convenient graffiti, and pointed
archival clips, and you'll find a story that's about something much bigger, and much scarier,
than a mere political moment.
It's not often that you get to call a movie "unhinged" and really mean it, but Ryan Prows'
remarkable directorial debut Lowlife more than fits the bill.
A violent, genre-bending near-farce that straddles the border between horror, high comedy, and
human drama, Lowlife is admirable for being audaciously plotted and technically slick.
Set in the scummy underbelly of Los Angeles, Lowlife focuses on a number of small-time
criminals whose stories all converge around an organ-harvesting plot gone wrong.
The movie feels like a nightmare inspired by Pulp Fiction while still standing on its
own.
The movie is stylish at every turn, but nothing comes across as being done just for the sake
of being cool.
Instead, every insane character feels like they have a beating heart, from the gun-toting
recovering addict, the legendary luchador, and even the guy with the gigantic swastika
on his face.
The end result is intense, hilarious, and gross, with effective moments of pure horror
reminding you of the human stakes at the center of the story.
Despite feeling like it shouldn't work at all, Lowlife is one of the year's best and
most savage thrill rides.