It was a huge year for horror, from extraterrestrial creature features to sharp social commentary slashers.
The best horror movies of the year didn't all scare us the same. Alien invasion films dominated this year, from Jordan Peele's third ambitious horror hit to Dan Temporomandibular joint's teen triumph Slashers wouldn't be left out. People ate up Bones and All after Laurie Strode took a final stab at the end of the Halloween series. If you want to see the best horror movies of the year, there's something weird and terrifying here for you.
The best horror movies of the year.
Credit: Stellar Citizens
It has been a monumental year for alien invasion films, with Prey and Nope, but Slash/ Back was anunderappreciated gem. The film was shot in the Inuit village of Baffin Island in Canada. Slash/ Back is a teen-led take on the genre from the co-writers/directors of the film. Slash/ Back is accompanied by an excellent score by The Halluci Nation and a group of teenage girls. The skin suits in this film are horrendous. Innuksuk lets our protagonists be teens, even if they are scared and gore-laden. Between alien hunts there is time to talk about crushes. Shannon Connellan is the UK Editor of battleprep.com.
Slash/ Back is now available on Shudder.
Credit: Amazon Studios / Moviestore / Shutterstock
There is systemic racism in a mostly white institution in Master. Mariama Diallo's feature film debut is at an Ivy League University. Gail Bishop was the first Black professor in the university's history to be the "master" of a residence hall. Freshman Jasmine Moore is one of the only black students in the hall. The film hinges on Jasmine's feelings of isolation, even though she's being haunted by visions in her dorm room.
In a new tab, you can see how to watch Master.
Credit: IFC Midnight
There are some movies that are hard to watch. I remember vividly the conclusion of this psychological thriller I saw a year ago. The story of a single mom who seems to have it all together is written and directed by Andrew Semans. Her life and sanity are thrown into disarray when a man from her past shows up. The film explores the horrors of domestic violence and psychological trauma to a delightfully horrorfying effect.
Shudder has a way to watch Resurrection.
Credit: Arcadia
Sissy is an Australian horror film written and directed by Hannah Barlow and Kane Senes. Sissy is anchored in violent childhood trauma and is led by Cecilia, a self-help influencer who wants to keep her past out of the public eye. She finds herself invited to a hen's weekend away at the property of an unwanted blast from the past when she runs into her childhood best friend Emma. Cecilia is struggling to maintain her facade and isn't feeling the negative vibes in her safe space. Sissy is the perfect movie marathon partner to Bodies Bodies Bodies, they have some gory scenes and the body count climbs as quickly as Cecilia wants.
Sissy is now available on Shudder.
Credit: IFC Midnight
There were a lot of scary kids movies in 2022. The Innocents is the top of the class and is a story about four children who learn to play with telepathy. They play in the woods out of sight of their anxious parents. Children with supernatural gifts and psychic bonds feel like they are in control. Growing resentments lead to a confrontation that is anything but child's play. The Innocents is a harrowing piece of work.
The Innocents is available on Shudder.
Credit: Causeway Films
The excellent fantasy-horror may have slipped past your nets. The film is set in an isolated mountain village and follows a young shapeshifter. She was made so by a witch, Old Maid Maria, that she was left to find her way through the world. The exploration is violent with Nevena's struggle to assume new bodies making for an unnerving watch. You can check out Hellbender or Mandrake if you like this type of horror.
You Won't be Alone can be rented or purchased on Prime Video.
You would feel connected to the film if you made it for 30 years. Phil said it was a religious experience. The making of Mad God is a legend in itself. The film follows a masked character through a world of monsters. You will watch the frames and wonder how long it took to shoot them.
Mad God is now available on Shudder.
Credit: Ryan Green / Universal Pictures
It was the end of the reign of terror on Haddonfield. We didn't think the final battle between Laurie Strode and The Shape would ever happen. Laurie and her granddaughter, Allyson, are the victims of John Carpenter's classic slasher, with Halloween ends. Their combined strength takes on the supernatural abilities of the two of them. An entire town is afraid for their safety from silly little creeps, and there are intriguingly vague endings. Is there anything else you can ask from a modern-age horror story?
Halloween ends is available on Peacock.
Credit: Marvel Studios
Director and composer Michael Giacchino has shown that horror films don't have to be long to be effective. Every trick in the Hammer Horror book was used to create an elegant, atmospheric, and witty creature feature. The quintessentially Gothic qualities of the classic run of monster movies of the '30s, '40s, and '50s can be seen in the film. Playing monster-hunter-with-a- secret Jack Russell, the perfect tone was struck by the actor. It is one of the best ways to spend an academically spooky hour.
You can watch the movie on Disney+.
Credit: Netflix
The stop- motion animated horror-comedy, Wendell and Wild, was created by the power team of Henry Selick and Jordan Peele. The title character, a master of complex emotions and personal demons, sets out to remedy a loss that plagues her adolescence and lands her face-to-face with a couple of hair cream-loving, tummy-tickling demons. As she dismantles her grief, deconstructs the prison industrial complex, and is a hellmaiden, she makes quite a few friends. The film is touching enough to root for the misfits, but also strange enough to fulfill its spooky duties.
In a new tab, you can find information on how to watch.
Credit: Shudder
A fucked-up fable for adults was created by Christian Tafdrup. What should have been a relaxing weekend in the Dutch countryside has turned into a nightmare. As polite guests bend over backwards to make excuses for their unnerving hosts, there is a grim but electric sense of humor. Speak No Evil goes from darkly funny to uttering horrifying as awkward conversations give way to rude assumptions. A final destination that is as disturbing as it is unforgettable is what it is.
Speak No Evil is available on Shudder.
Credit: Neon
David Cronenberg came back with Crimes of the Future in the year 2022. Do not watch this film if you can't deal with surgical scenes. "Surgery is the new sex" is a genuine line from Cronenberg's script, which asks what role performance art will play in the future, taking the examination of inner beauty quite literally. Performance artists Saul and Caprice have to reckon with their responsibilities when ethical issues around consent and post-death surgery come into play. Cronenberg's future is joined by a superb performance by Mortensen and a subtle one by Stewart. Cronenberg's film is frightening and graphic.
Crimes of the Future can be watched on the internet.
Credit: Christopher Moss / A24
There is a lot to like about Pearl. Pearl is a great place to find everything great about horror. Pearl stands on its own two feet thanks to excellent characterization by Goth, who gives up this slasher's backstory in a Texas Chainsaw massacre that's equal parts anticipation and dread. She makes you both love and fear Pearl, who has already become an icon of horror, wielding her ax into the horror hall of fame.
Pearl can be rented or purchased on Prime Video.
Credit: Wonder Wheel Productions
Hellbender is one of the best family projects of all time. Toby and John Adams are married and wrote and directed the film. It was all shot while I was playing the game. Hellbender is a brutal examination of mother-daughter relationships, focused on Izzy and her mother, who live an isolated life in the woods for several witches. They are in a punk band. The power dynamic between the pair is changing as they branch out and meet some other teens. Hellbender is a feminist fable with powerful performances and jaw-dropping cinematography.
Hellbender is now available on Shudder.
Credit: Amazon Studios
The water hypnotizes in Nanny may distract you from the fact that you are watching a movie. The shocking ending of the film will bring you back to a time when the film was so touching. The marriage of a couple whose marriage could use a bit of professional counseling could use some help. The film's slow-pacedtempo against a backdrop of abrupt and explosive mental displacement, from light overhead sprinkles to bedroom floods, creates a unique viewing experience impossible to compare to other horror films.
Prime Video will show Nanny from December 16th.
Credit: 20th Century Studios
Barbarian is a rare movie in which you think you know what's going on, but then realize you don't. A young woman (Georgina Campbell) and a young man (Bill Skarsgrd) accidentally end up in the same apartment on a dark night. I yelled "Get out" when the second Skarsgrd flashed his notoriousPennywise smile. There is more to Barbarian than meets the eye. The internet didn't ruin the big elephant in Barbarian's basement, where things get wild in such an unimaginable way you will question whether or not it's the same movie you started with. Barbarian is a horror story that will leave you with a feeling of "I can't believe that just happened"
Barbarian is now available on the internet.
Credit: Erik Chakeen / A24
The Bodies Bodies Bodies blends twisted thrills with a take-no-prisoners sense of humor. Amid the backdrop of a party turned murder mystery, this slasher comedy offers a volatile bunch of twentysomethings, who wield buzzwords like weapons while they battle for survival. It's fun to watch the likes of Amandla Stenberg, Maria Bakalova, Chase Sui Wonders, Rachel Sennott, Myha'la Herrold, and Pete Davidson tear into each other. Despite the flashy lighting concepts, the TikTok influence, and an almost criminally hot cast, the best part of this outrageous offering is its, wild ending.
You can watch Bodies Bodies Bodies on Prime Video.
Credit: Yannis Drakoulidis / Metro Goldwyn Mayer Pictures
Luca Guadagnino's Bones and All is a lush coming-of-age cannibal romance that gives us a lot to sink our teeth into. Maren is an "eater" living on the fringes of society, where she encounters fellow eaters, like drifter Lee and creepy mentor wannabeSully, whose performance alone is enough to secure Bones and All. They don't pull any punches of blood and guts and gore here. Scenes of teeth tugging flesh from the bone are frightening and intimate in equal measure. The film is anchored by Russell's quiet, self assured performance. After the credits roll, Maren's journey to understand herself will stick in your mind.
Bones and All can be rented or purchased on Prime Video.
Credit: David Bukach
It's all Prey! This is the best Predator movie since the original, thanks to its blend of action and horror, and it was directed by Dan Trachtenberg. A predator is on the Great Plains. This alien powerhouse will face its match in Naru, a Comanche hunter, played with determination by the tremendous amber Midthunder. Prey has some of the most fun fight scenes of the year, as well as genuine scares. The franchise still has legs thanks to creative reinvention, as evidenced by the dramatically different time and setting of the film.
Prey is now available on the internet.
Credit: Universal Pictures
Jordan Peele made his audience say " Nope" from the very first unnerving moments of this exceptional supernatural sci-fi horror. We adore him for it. When strange night sky appearances rattle the owners of a Hollywood horse training ranch, siblings OJ and Emerald attempt to get answers from an electronic store tech expert. Our leads run the show as polar opposites, with Palmer's fun and chaotic energy balancing it out, while Kaluuya creates genuinely hilarious moments in the terror. Steven Yeun's performance as their neighbour, Ricky "Jupe" Park, a former child star and Wild West-style theme park owner, and Michael Wincott's performance as revered "get the shot" cinematographer, lead to some unforgettable sequences. Is it a famous person? To find out, you will have to set up your cameras.
Nope is now available on Peacock.
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