 Hundreds of standalone horror films are released in theaters and on streaming each year, and a huge portion of the genre that keeps people coming back is its franchises. Casual and dedicated fans alike swarm around long-running sagas, and a lot of the time, studios prioritize them. Whether it be through a new trilogy, a Golden Age series, or a legacy sequel from this current trend, one common thread ties them all together: queer coding, and this list of titles can prove it.
0 Comments
It’s been eight years, but David Cronenberg is back with a vengeance, and he has returned to the subgenre he’s synonymous with. Following Titane’s historic Palme d'Or win last year, it’s safe to say that body horror is bigger than it has ever been, so it’s natural to assume we’ll be seeing an influx of these films in due time. But Cronenberg returning from his assumed retirement is surprising, especially given his track record through the 2000’s. After eXistenZ, he no longer seemed interested in how the body works and moved on to how the brain works. Every journey though, must come full circle, and Cronenberg is bringing it back to where it all began with Crimes of the Future, a film that takes its name from one of his earliest films (I too, initially thought this was a remake). Still keeping with the times, Cronenberg brought back actor Viggo Mortensen, who became his heavy hitter throughout the new millennium, with the two churning out a hat-trick of films from 2005-2011. So how does this new pulsating parable stack up in a career that spans half a century?
Men is, by design, the sort of film meant to cause discussion and controversy. That it does so with fine acting and a good visual lens is a big thumbs-up. That it has the bravery to confront one of society’s issues with a slow-burn plot is admirable. Perhaps it was inevitable that it would stumble a little in it’s finale but overall, it still is a good ride while it lasts.
Doctor Strange 2 opens many portals to a fun and exciting film but doesn’t stay in most of them long enough. After the fun and intrigue of the first entry, there was a lot of hype and curiosity for the sequel that saw original director Scott Derrickson leave and be replaced by horror veteran Sam Raimi. Both are fine directors that have managed to bring superheroes to the big screen but as I sat watching the spectacle of Multiverse of Madness, I couldn’t help feeling like something was missing.
 In the trailer for A24’s Men, beyond the sinister, inescapable grin of Rory Kinnear, there is a much darker presence: trauma. Having seen her partner (Paapa Essiedu) fall to his death, the film’s protagonist, Harper (Jessie Buckley), is clearly not coping well as she tries to enjoy her countryside getaway. In this village, is every man actually Rory Kinnear? Of course not. So why does Harper see his face everywhere she turns? Something much stranger is going on here, and it’s pretty clear that the site of this supernatural occurrence is (at least partially) in Harper’s mind. Trauma will do that.
There’s an AutoZone in my small Missouri town that I have passed all of my life. I’ve only been inside a few times, but every single time that I pass it, I am suddenly struck by a rather strong malaise. Imagine my surprise, when about halfway through Jane Schoenbrun’s We’re All Going to the World’s Fair, Casey (Anna Cobb, in her feature film debut), focuses her small video camera on an AutoZone. What we can primarily hear is the rush of cars, and what we can primarily see is the blinding haze of the sun shine. What honesty.
X opens in the endearing fashion of showing the conclusion to the story and then prompting us to ask what had happened on the secluded farm property that serves as the main setting. There are signs of violence and bloodshed as buzzards fly overhead and a sheriff arrives on the scene. We’ve heard the same lines before. “What the hell happened here,” or “sheriff, you’ve got to see this.” Hardcore horror fans may be rolling their eyes at the devices at play because they are all well-known to those who’ve seen The Texas Chainsaw Massacre or similar country-based gore-fests. Set a few decades back with a van full of young adults, the story premise is playfully straight-forward. However, Ti West’s newest film doesn’t just jump into the known sandbox, but plants its own flag firmly and proudly, expanding on the subgenre with style.
 French director Julia Ducournau’s latest film, Titane (2021), is even more bizarre than her last, Raw (2016). The films cover quite different subject matter, but at their core both films function on the same level. Titane, and Raw are both concerned with becoming; becoming something monstrous, something socially unacceptable, but something we can’t help feeling is justified.
We’re living through some weird times right now, with weekly chaotic developments that can be easy to miss. You’d be forgiven for not hearing the news that Uwe Boll is making a directing comeback. During the 2000’s, Boll was the internet’s love to hate director for his involvement in various video game adaptations during the new millennium. About a third of IMDB users had a pot shot to take at him. But unlike many filmmakers who make flops and are rarely heard from, Boll has directed thirty films to this point, along with his name on others. He’s covered an impressive range of genres during that time: boxing dramas, war films, slashers, prison films, and slapstick comedies. But it’s the ten video game adaptations that put him on the map with critical revile, while he pressed on, proving he could make a film fast and cheap, almost rivaling Corman in his prime. Unlike other directors who want to fight their critics, Boll actually did, in the boxing ring. He has a unique personality to say the least, and the way he feeds into the hate attitude has earned him a fanbase, both passionate and ironic. After angrily announcing his retirement in 2016, some audiences moved on while others waited patiently. The wisest of us know, you can’t keep a good villain down. And his return is perfectly timed, as we are reaching the 20-year anniversary of House of the Dead, the film that started it all. With the remaster of the original game launching as well, this low hanging fruit is too ripe to pass up. Maybe this movie is better than we gave it credit for. Yeah, SPOILER ALERT, and APRIL FOOLS!
Let’s be real, everyone loves a good mystery. Thankfully, the world is in no shortage of them for people looking to fill that void. You know, the ones who once had a dream of becoming the next Sherlock Holmes. Many on the internet like to think that dream has become a reality, with how quickly a crime story or bizarre piece of media can spread online, flooding message boards and social media with discussion. We’re naturally drawn to try and peel back the layers of what we find frightening from the safety of our own home, searching for clues to debunk the creepy video or photo of the week. Broadcast Signal Intrusion is a film that uses that concept and takes it back to a simpler time, the “wild west” days of the internet where not everything was just a click away and the true crime community was in its chatroom infancy.
|
RSS Feed
Site powered by Weebly. Managed by SiteGround