Lists
5 Must-See Cosmic Horror Films
Stare into the void with me: a look into cosmic horror
Cosmic horror has been having a resurgence as of late, and horror nerds like me couldn’t be happier. Inspired by the works of H.P. Lovecraft, cosmic horror explores concepts of an uncaring universe filled with ancient gods and those who worship them. Imagine that you are having a great day doing some yard work. The sun is shining as you push your lawn mower down the lawn, and you feel content as some music plays in your headphones. Now imagine this serene day from the viewpoint of the ants that live in the grass.
Creating the perfect blend of horror and science-fiction, cosmic horror has gifted us some of the best horror films ever made. Movies like The Thing, Event Horizon, and Cabin in The Woods are just a few. If you haven’t seen any of these films, turn off whatever you have on in the background and do so now. As always, my goal is to bring something new to your watchlist. So, follow me down the rabbit hole but stay close; we won’t need eyes where we are going.
In The Tall Grass
Once upon a time, Stephen King terrified his readers with a tale about some kids and their corn god. Feeling that he set the bar too low, he teamed up with his son Joe Hill to pose the question “What if grass were evil”? Proving they can work with any premise handed to them, they created the short story In the Tall Grass. Starring Laysla De Oliveira (Lock and Key) and Patrick Wilson (Insidious), this film is a powerhouse of emotion and scenery.
This film shows why cosmic horror is so important. What other genre would dare to explore a concept like evil grass that can control time? What this movie lacks in plot, it makes up for in questions. Luckily for us, it isn’t slowed down by anything close to answers. Like a clown car jam-packed with horror tropes, In the Tall Grass is a fun surprise for people who stumble across it.
Last Shift
It would be sacrilege to talk about cosmic horror and not include a movie about cults. Cosmic horror and cults go together like tentacles and madness. For almost a decade Last Shift has been considered a hidden gem in the genre. The movie has gained such a following that it is receiving a facelift under the title Malum and is set to be released on March 31, 2023.
Starring Juliana Harkavy (The Flash) and Hank Stone (Santa Girl), Last Shift pulses with anxiety from its opening scene and never stops. The film wastes no time with trivial things like backstory and character development and chooses instead to jump right into its gritty tale of illusions. Director Anthony Diblasi (Midnight Meat Train) gives us a bleak and terrifying look into the limits of our own sanity.
Banshee Chapter
Horror films have always drawn deep from the well of unethical government experiments, but none more than MK Ultra. Banshee Chapter mixes Lovecraft’s From Beyond with a Hunter S Thompson acid party, and the results are spectacular. Not only is this a terrifying film, but it doubles as a great anti- drug PSA.
Starring Katia Winter (The Wave) as our heroine and Ted Levine (Silence of the Lambs) as the Wish.com version of Hunter S. Thompson, Banshee Chapter takes us on a paranoia-fueled adventure into a conspiracy theorist’s dream. If you’re looking for something a little less campy than Stranger Things, I recommend Banshee Chapter.
John Dies at The End
Let’s look into something a little less bleak, shall we? John Dies at the End is a smart and hilarious example of how cosmic horror can be taken in new directions. What started as a webseriel by the brilliant David Wong evolved into one of the wackiest films I have ever seen. John Dies at the End opens with a reference to the Ship of Theseus, to show you it has class, and then spends the rest of its runtime stripping away that mirage.
Starring Chase Williamson (Victor Crowley) and Paul Giamatti (Sideways), this film emphasizes the weirdness that comes with cosmic horror. David Wong shows us that if you break the rules of reality not only would it be terrifying, but it would probably also be hilarious. If you want something a little lighter to add to your watch list, I recommend John Dies at the End.
The Endless
The Endless is a masterclass in how good cosmic horror can be. This movie has everything, a giant sea god, time loops, and your friendly neighborhood cult. The Endless manages to have everything while sacrificing nothing. Building on the craziness that was Resolution, The Endless manages to create an atmosphere of absolute dread.
This glorious film is written by, directed, and stars Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead. These two creators manage to give us a haunting and hopeful tale of what family really means. Not only do our characters have to tackle concepts beyond their comprehension, but they must also face their own guilt and resentment. If you want a film that will fill you with both despair and anguish, check out The Endless.
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Lists
New to Netflix (U.S.) This Month [May 2024]
Another month means fresh additions to Netflix. Although there aren’t many new horror titles this month, there are still some notable movies well worth your time. For instance, you can watch Karen Black try to land a 747 jet in Airport 1979, or Casper Van Dien kill giant insects in Paul Verhoeven’s bloody sci-fi opus Starship Troopers.
We are looking forward to the Jennifer Lopez sci-fi action movie Atlas. But let us know what you are going to watch. And if we have missed something, put it in the comments.
May 1:
Airport
A blizzard, a bomb, and a stowaway help create the perfect storm for the manager of a Midwestern airport and a pilot with a messy personal life.
Airport ’75
When a Boeing 747 loses its pilots in a midair collision, a member of the cabin crew must take control with radio help from a flight instructor.
Airport ’77
A luxury 747 packed with VIPs and priceless art goes down in the Bermuda Triangle after being hijacked by thieves — and time for a rescue is running out.
Jumanji
Two siblings discover an enchanted board game that opens a door to a magical world — and unwittingly release a man who’s been trapped inside for years.
Hellboy
A half-demon paranormal investigator questions his defense of humans when a dismembered sorceress rejoins the living to wreak brutal vengeance.
Starship Troopers
When fire-spitting, brain-sucking bugs attack Earth and obliterate Buenos Aires, an infantry unit heads to the aliens’ planet for a showdown.
May 9
Bodkin
A ragtag crew of podcasters sets out to investigate mysterious disappearances from decades earlier in a charming Irish town with dark, dreadful secrets.
May 15
The Clovehitch Killer
A teenager’s picture-perfect family is torn apart when he uncovers unnerving evidence of a serial killer close to home.
May 16
Upgrade
After a violent mugging leaves him paralyzed, a man receives a computer chip implant that allows him to control his body — and get his revenge.
Monster
After being abducted and taken to a desolate house, a girl sets out to rescue her friend and escape from their malicious kidnapper.
May 24
Atlas
A brilliant counterterrorism analyst with a deep distrust of AI discovers it might be her only hope when a mission to capture a renegade robot goes awry.
Jurassic World: Chaos Theory
The Camp Cretaceous gang come together to unravel a mystery when they discover a global conspiracy that brings danger to dinosaurs — and to themselves.
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Lists
Thrills and Chills: Ranking ‘Radio Silence’ Films from Bloody Brilliant to Just Bloody
Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, Tyler Gillett, and Chad Villella are all filmmakers under the collective label called Radio Silence. Bettinelli-Olpin and Gillett are the primary directors under that moniker while Villella produces.
They have gained popularity over the past 13 years and their films have become known as having a certain Radio Silence “signature.” They are bloody, usually contain monsters, and have breakneck action sequences. Their recent film Abigail exemplifies that signature and is perhaps their best film yet. They are currently working on a reboot of John Carpenter’s Escape From New York.
We thought we would go through the list of projects they have directed and rank them from high to low. None of the movies and shorts on this list are bad, they all have their merits. These rankings from top to bottom are just ones we felt showcased their talents the best.
We didn’t include movies they produced but didn’t direct.
#1. Abigail
An update to the second film on this list, Abagail is the natural progression of Radio Silence’s love of lockdown horror. It follows in pretty much the same footsteps of Ready or Not, but manages to go one better — make it about vampires.
#2. Ready or Not
This film put Radio Silence on the map. While not as successful at the box office as some of their other films, Ready or Not proved that the team could step outside their limited anthology space and create a fun, thrilling, and bloody adventure-length film.
#3. Scream (2022)
While Scream will always be a polarizing franchise, this prequel, sequel, reboot — however you want to label it showed just how much Radio Silence knew the source material. It wasn’t lazy or cash-grabby, just a good time with legendary characters we love and new ones who grew on us.
#4 Southbound (The Way Out)
Radio Silence tosses their found footage modus operandi for this anthology film. Responsible for the bookend stories, they create a terrifying world in their segment titled The Way Out, which involves strange floating beings and some sort of time loop. It’s kind of the first time we see their work without a shaky cam. If we were to rank this entire film, it would remain at this position on the list.
#5. V/H/S (10/31/98)
The film that started it all for Radio Silence. Or should we say the segment that started it all. Even though this isn’t feature-length what they managed to do with the time they had was very good. Their chapter was titled 10/31/98, a found-footage short involving a group of friends who crash what they think is a staged exorcism only to learn not to assume things on Halloween night.
#6. Scream VI
Cranking up the action, moving to the big city and letting Ghostface use a shotgun, Scream VI turned the franchise on its head. Like their first one, this film played with canon and managed to win over a lot of fans in its direction, but alienated others for coloring too far outside the lines of Wes Craven’s beloved series. If any sequel was showing how the trope was going stale it was Scream VI, but it managed to squeeze some fresh blood out of this nearly three-decade mainstay.
#7. Devil’s Due
Fairly underrated, this, Radio Silence’s first feature-length film, is a sampler of things they took from V/H/S. It was filmed in an omnipresent found footage style, showcasing a form of possession, and features clueless men. Since this was their first bonafide major studio job it’s a wonderful touchstone to see how far they have come with their storytelling.
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Editorial
7 Great ‘Scream’ Fan Films & Shorts Worth a Watch
The Scream franchise is such an iconic series, that many budding filmmakers take inspiration from it and make their own sequels or, at least, build upon the original universe created by screenwriter Kevin Williamson. YouTube is the perfect medium to showcase these talents (and budgets) with fan-made homages with their own personal twists.
The great thing about Ghostface is that he can appear anywhere, in any town, he just needs the signature mask, knife, and unhinged motive. Thanks to Fair Use laws it’s possible to expand upon Wes Craven’s creation by simply getting a group of young adults together and killing them off one by one. Oh, and don’t forget the twist. You’ll notice that Roger Jackson’s famous Ghostface voice is uncanny valley, but you get the gist.
We have gathered five fan films/shorts related to Scream that we thought were pretty good. Although they can’t possibly match the beats of a $33 million blockbuster, they get by on what they have. But who needs money? If you’re talented and motivated anything is possible as proven by these filmmakers who are well on their way to the big leagues.
Take a look at the below films and let us know what you think. And while you’re at it, leave these young filmmakers a thumbs up, or leave them a comment to encourage them to create more films. Besides, where else are you going to see Ghostface vs. a Katana all set to a hip-hop soundtrack?
Scream Live (2023)
Ghostface (2021)
Ghost Face (2023)
Don’t Scream (2022)
Scream: A Fan Film (2023)
The Scream (2023)
A Scream Fan Film (2023)
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