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New Year, New Fears: Horror Movies for Resolution Season

Published

4 months ago

December 31, 2025

January has a way of turning the volume up on everything. Promises to be healthier, stronger, more disciplined start to feel unavoidable. There is an unspoken pressure to fix something, to prove that the new year means progress. Horror has always been good at noticing that tension and using it to point out our flaws.

These movies fit resolution season because they understand how easily self improvement can slide into punishment. They are not anti change, but they are skeptical of the idea that becoming better always means becoming stricter or smaller. In horror, transformation rarely comes without consequences, and that makes these films especially interesting to revisit when January expectations start to weigh heavy.

American Mary

American Mary is not about working out or dieting, but it is deeply concerned with the desire to change yourself in order to survive. Mary believes that taking control of bodies, her own included, will give her power and distance from the harm done to her. Change becomes a tool, something sharp and deliberate, meant to keep pain at bay.

What makes the film unsettling is how calm it is about that process. Transformation is not framed as a victory or a failure, just something that happens when people believe they have no other options. Watching it in January, when control is often praised, the movie quietly asks whether reinvention actually heals anything or creates a new kind of isolation.

The Neon Demon

In The Neon Demon, beauty is treated like a resource that can be measured, ranked, and taken away. Everyone is watching each other, waiting to see who slips or fades away. It captures the exhaustion of constant comparison in a way that feels uncomfortably familiar.

That feeling hits harder during resolution season, when self improvement can start to feel like a competition instead of a personal choice. The film understands how chasing an ideal can hollow you out, turning the desire to improve into the fear of not measuring up. It is cold and distant by design, reflecting how empty perfection can feel once you get close to it.

Raw

Raw begins with structure and restraint. Clear rules about behavior, food, and control give the main character a sense of order in a new and overwhelming environment. That sense of discipline feels comforting at first, especially to anyone who has tried to reset their life by tightening the rules around it.

As the film unfolds, it becomes clear that denial does not remove desire. It only twists it into something harder to manage. Raw is less about shock than it is about pressure, showing how pretending not to want something can make it grow louder and more dangerous the longer it is ignored.

Saint Maud

Saint Maud explores the belief that pain leads to growth and that strict routines are a sign of purpose. Maud clings to structure as a way to give her life meaning, and at first, it looks like devotion and discipline are working exactly as intended.

Over time, the film shows how quickly that discipline turns inward. Without compassion, routine becomes punishment, and purpose becomes isolation. It is a quiet, unsettling movie that asks why we so often trust suffering more than care when we talk about becoming better people.

The Fly

Few horror films capture the excitement of change as clearly as The Fly. Seth Brundle becomes stronger, sharper, and more confident, and for a while it looks like everything is working. This is the version of transformation most people hope for when they decide to improve themselves.

Then the change keeps going. Watching The Fly during resolution season highlights how easy it is to push past warning signs when progress feels good. The film reminds us that improvement without limits can become destructive, especially when no one stops to ask what is being lost along the way.

Starry Eyes

Starry Eyes is about ambition built on endurance. The film reflects the belief that success must be earned through discomfort, rejection, and pain, and that wanting something badly enough justifies almost anything.

What makes it unsettling is how familiar that mindset feels. The movie shows how self worth can become tied to how much someone is willing to endure, turning suffering into a measure of value. It is horror rooted in the idea that if you hurt enough, it must mean you are getting closer to who you want to be.

Why These Movies Fit January

New Year’s resolutions often begin with the assumption that who you are right now is not enough. Horror tends to challenge that idea by focusing on the cost of constant self correction. These films do not say change is wrong, but they do question who benefits from it and who gets hurt along the way.

Sometimes the most frightening part of January is not giving up on a resolution. It is holding onto one that slowly drains you while promising improvement. Horror understands that tension and sits with it, offering no easy answers, just the reminder that not every kind of change is worth chasing.

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‘Behind the Mask 2’ Slays Kickstarter

Published

2 hours ago

April 22, 2026

Piper St. James

If you are hardwired into the horror community there is no doubt you heard the gasp around the internet earlier this month when Behind the Mask II: The Return of Le s lie Vernon was announced. The announcement of the long anticipated sequel came at a screening of the original at American Cinematheque in Los Angeles.

That same evening we also learned that Behind the Mask’s director Scott Glosserman as well as writer David J. Stieve will be returning to the film. Furthermore, cast members Nathan Baesel, Angela Goethals, and Robert Englund will be reprising their roles from the original.

*Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon*

A Kick into Overdrive

While the sequel is happening one way or another, a Kickstarter campaign was established. The money pledged would allow the filmmakers to create a movie that goes above and beyond their original budget.

As the campaign’s page states;

“The film is happening, that’s no-take-backs. If we hit these goals, it makes it possible to do it bigger, bloodier, and bolder.”

The campaign goes on, saying;

“This is not a “save the movie” campaign. The movie is happening. Kickstarter is how we make it our way. “

Roughly two weeks after the sequel’s announcement, the campaign launched with a modest day one goal of $20,000. To say that fans crushed this number is an understatement. In 9 minutes they reached their goal. In less than 24 hours the amount of backers climbed to over 300, and the pledges donated totaled more than $100,000!

Get to the Good Stuff!

For pledging, the moviemakers have included incentives that are truly in line with what the horror community wants.

The rewards begin at $25 with a digital streaming link of Behind the Mask II: The Return of Leslie Vernon. Tiers continue on as the pledge amounts increase. T-shirts, posters, Blu Rays and scripts are just some of the middle tier goodies. The larger donation amounts are rewarded with on screen “Special Thank You”s and various producer credits.

Nathan Baesel as Leslie Vernon in *Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon.*

It is the ‘Exclusive Add Ons’ where things get really interesting. Once a backer has already pledged, they can add on additional perks. These additions include

“accessories, autographs, props, and truly unique, fan forward in-person experiences… all intended to complement your chosen reward tier!”

One of the unique add on perks includes VHS tapes of the original Behind the Mask or the sequel, your choice! Given the fact the first movie was created right on the heels of when VHS was truly dead, older horror fans will especially find this perk an exciting addition to their vintage collection.

The reward add-ons also have the horror prop collectors in mind. You can purchase Leslie Vernon’s weapon of choice, a scythe, as well as his mask. Both of these are signed by actor Nathan Baesel.

For more personal experiences, you can add on a visit to the Behind the Mask II set during filming! You can also choose a cast and crew screening in LA or New York, complete with an after party. Finally, for the crème de la crème; you can be killed onscreen by Leslie Vernon himself!

Powered by the Fans

Behind the Mask II: The Return of Leslie Vernon is the little slasher movie that could!

For two decades the creators tried to find ways to make Leslie’s legacy continue. A failed first Kickstarter, rumors, teases, and false starts all led to the delay of a dream.

For twenty years the movie’s cult gathering slowly formed, cultivated, and grew louder and louder. Too loud to be ignored.

From the set of *Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon.*

As soon as the campaign went live, horror fans donated their hard earned money. And let’s face it; we are currently living in a time where the dollar doesn’t stretch as far. The fact that the long awaited sequel gained so much traction and backing, so quickly, really demonstrates the community’s love, support, and anticipation for Behind the Mask II: The Return of Leslie Vernon.

It looks like Leslie Vernon will finally be returning!

News

The Best Possible Person Is Directing A24’s Texas Chainsaw Massacre

Published

8 hours ago

April 22, 2026

Luna Gray

A24 went into a competitive auction, beat out Blumhouse, acquired one of the most difficult pieces of IP in the genre, and then gave the job to a director with one feature film to his name. That is a wild risk to take on such a young talent. But also, it’s Curry Barker, so we get it.

Curry Barker is writing and directing a reimagining of the 1974 original created by Tobe Hooper and Kim Henkel. As we have talked about before, A24 announced the acquisition back in February with no director attached. At least we have that figured out.

Who Curry Barker Is

Barker got here through Obsession, a film he made for under a million dollars that played TIFF Midnight Madness and sold to Focus Features for north of $14 million. He built the career that got him into that room starting on YouTube, which is the kind of origin story that should not end with A24 handing you a legacy franchise before your first wide release even opens. And yet, here we are.

The Franchise and the People Behind It

The 1974 original has since produced eight sequels and remakes. Some are far better than others. The franchise has been a problem for a long time and everyone who has touched it since the original has found a different way to confirm that.

A24 formally announced the acquisition earlier this year after winning the rights in a competitive bid. The producers are Roy Lee, Steven Schneider of Spooky Pictures, and Kim Henkel through Exurbia Films. Henkel co-created the original with Tobe Hooper.

One More Thing

There is also a separate Texas Chainsaw Massacre TV series in development at A24 from JT Mollner. Different project. The film and the series are happening at the same studio simultaneously, which means A24 now has more Leatherface in development than anyone has since the franchise was actually relevant. Barker’s film has no release date yet. Obsession opens May 15.

News

ITCH Is the Outbreak Film That Actually Gets Under Your Skin

Published

12 hours ago

April 22, 2026

Luna Gray

No one would blame you for looking at ITCH and filing it under zombie film. Because it is. The outbreak spreads person to person. People stop being people. The world ends a little bit. You know how it goes.

What Bari Kang actually made is something with a different mechanism at its center. The contagion does not spread through biting. It spreads through scratching. You scratch yourself. This makes you sick while it is happening. You scratch because someone near you scratched and something in your brain said that looks right.

I talked to Kang about it. Turns out it was not a deliberate subversion. “It was never meant to be a zombie film,” he told me. “That happened along the way.” The idea came during COVID. He watched someone scratching in a store and could not stop thinking about it. “What if that’s how something spreads?” He started writing from there and somewhere in the process the zombies arrived. “All of a sudden I had these zombies running around.” He went that route without going that route.

Why the Scratch Works

We all get how zombies work. They bite, someone hides their bite, sometime later everyone is dead. Kang’s instinct was that the scratch would do something different. “It’s really visceral and contagious,” he said. “I figured if I could lean into that, that might work well.” He was right.

There is something about watching someone scratch that is harder to look away from than watching someone get bitten. You feel it on your own skin. The sympathy itch is real and ITCH knows it and uses it without being cute about it. That is craft. For a film Kang wrote, directed, produced, and starred in himself, that is not a small thing.

Who Is Bari Kang

The short version: he decided he wanted to be an actor, spent a year auditioning and booking nothing, and then casting director Judy Henderson, who was in the middle of casting Homeland at the time, told him to go write his own stuff. “I was like, oh, you can do that,” he told me.

He said: “Nobody’s coming to give you a hand. There’s no handouts. It seems like we need permission or something to do it, but you just gotta get out there.” Yeah. That.

The Rule About Lore

There were versions of ITCH that explained what the itch was, where it came from, who started it. Kang cut all of it. The less he showed, the more the film asked audiences to do the work themselves. And audiences who do the work are more scared than audiences who are shown everything.

ITCH does not explain itself and it does not need to. A film about a contagion that spreads through something you cannot stop yourself from doing, made in the aftermath of a pandemic everyone lived through, does not require a mythology breakdown. It requires you to sit with what it is suggesting. Which is worse.

ITCH is available now.