Hello readers, and welcome to June. This month has a few horror titles worth talking about. Whether they are headed to your local theater or streaming service, these films should be on your radar since they cover a variety of things.

Perhaps the biggest news is the return to horror for mastermind David Cronenberg. It’s been about 20 years since his last proper contribution to the genre and lucky for you it starts off the month.

Crimes of the Future June 2, 2022, in theaters

As the human species adapts to a synthetic environment, the body undergoes new transformations and mutations. With his partner Caprice (Léa Seydoux), Saul Tenser (Viggo Mortensen), celebrity performance artist, publicly showcases the metamorphosis of his organs in avant-garde performances.

Timlin (Kristen Stewart), an investigator from the National Organ Registry, obsessively tracks their movements, which is when a mysterious group is revealed… Their mission – to use Saul’s notoriety to shed light on the next phase of human evolution. Cannes Competition Official Selection 2022. Directed by David Cronenberg Starring Viggo Mortensen, Léa Seydoux, and Kristen Stewart.

Our Thoughts: There are only two words needed to get you to buy a ticket: David Cronenberg. Hit send.

The Watcher, June 3, only in theaters

As a serial killer stalks the city, Julia – a young actress who just moved to town with her boyfriend – notices a mysterious stranger watching her from across the street in this terrifying thriller. Director: Chloe Okuno Starring: Maika Monroe, Karl Glusman, Burn Gorman

Our thoughts: This movie was a popular one at Sundance 2022. It’s a slow burn with one helluva ending. Here’s our review from Sundance.

After Blue VOD on June 3

On After Blue, a virgin planet where only women can survive in the midst of harmless flora and fauna, a hairdresser and her teenage daughter hunt a notorious killer.

Our thoughts: This might be one of the biggest WTF cinematic moments of 2022. This title was an interesting choice at Sundance 2022.  Diehard fans of director Bertrand Mandico were probably first in line for tickets, and the rest might have been intrigued by the images. Either way, we had a writer review it at the festival and now you can tell us what you think after it hits VOD on June 3, 2022.

 

Tales From the Other Side, June 6 on VOD

Three kids sought out to have the most legendary Halloween night ever. Their Trick-or-treat adventure brings them to the home of the local town legend Scary Mary.

Our thoughts: Anthology alert! What would a horror calendar year be without a good anthology movie? We’ll have to find out if Tales From the Other Side (I’m hearing Adele in my head for some reason) understands the assignment. Based on the trailer it looks promising, but then again the Netflix TCM reboot looked promising from the trailer. Too soon?

 

First Kill Netflix Season 1, June 10, on Netflix

You never forget your first. Teenage vampire Juliette sets her sights on a new girl in town Calliope for her first kill. But much to Juliette’s surprise, Calliope is a vampire hunter. Both find that the other won’t be so easy to kill and, unfortunately, way too easy to fall for…

Our thoughts: Netflix is usually at the forefront of LGBTQ content. With June being Pride and only four months till Halloween, why not cross the two? That’s no longer a question as First Kill drops its first season on the streamer. It looks interesting, but we’ll see how it goes.

 

Abandoned is in theaters on June, 17  & VOD on June 24

Abandoned follows the sharply intense lives of Sara (Emma Roberts), her husband Alex (John Gallagher Jr.), and their infant son as they move into a remote farmhouse, which harbors a dark, tragic history. As their home’s past is revealed, the mother’s fragility escalates to a state of psychosis that jeopardizes her own safety and that of her newborn son. Directed by Spencer Squire, the film stars Emma Roberts (American Horror Story, Nerve), John Gallagher Jr. (Peppermint), and Michael Shannon (Heart of Champions).

Our thoughts: It’s good to see Emma Roberts step outside her comfort zone. Just kidding. The scream queen looks great here as a mother being tormented by what appears to be an earthbound entity inside her new house. This film is the first feature from actor Spencer Squire.

Cyst  June 21 on VOD

Cyst is an old-school monster movie in which an enthusiastic plastic surgeon will stop at nothing to patent his latest cyst-removal machine. What started out as Patricia (Eva Habermann) the nurse’s last day turns into a battle for survival when the doctor’s machine inadvertently turns a patient’s tumor into a cyst monster that terrorizes the office.

Our thoughts: Practical effects, gooey discharge, and body horror? It’s the trifecta of summer horror! This one looks interesting and just messed up enough to become a cult-ish classic. Who hasn’t watched those viral videos of people expressing pus out of enormous boils, or Botfly larvae squirming their way out of their incubation pustules? Me, that’s who!

 

Cryo, June 24

Sometimes the real nightmare is being awake. Five scientists awake from cryogenic sleep and find themselves trapped in an underground facility. With no memory of who they are or how long they’ve been asleep, they begin to realize they may have been part of a scientific experiment gone wrong. After a series of strange events, the scientists find themselves being hunted. They do not know who is hunting them or for what reason, but the scientists begin to suspect that one of them may be the killer.

Our thoughts: Cube, Saw, Oxygen; we’ve been here before. But as we know, imitation is the highest form of flattery. Now we can’t say this is for sure the Best Value version of any of those films, but we are curious to find out.

 

The Passenger 28 June on VOD

Strangers who are sharing a ride have their trip interrupted when the driver hits a woman who’s hiking in the dark of night. They decide to help her but quickly learn that something is wrong and they shouldn’t have let her in.

Our thoughts: Woah. Take a look at this trailer and tell us you’re not interested in this creeper. Practical effects are the theme of the season it seems and The Passenger doesn’t appear to disappoint. This looks like a mix of Carpenter’s The Thing and Wrong Turn. Maybe it’s neither, maybe it’s both. Maybe you shouldn’t pick up hitchhikers! But we’re glad they did.

 

Where the Scary Things Are June 28 on VOD

Ready for Stand by Me or The Goonies with a deliciously dark twist? The horror begins as Ayla and her high school friends discover a hideous, semi-human mutant. They keep it prisoner while shooting repulsive viral videos, with the gang’s hunger for “likes” driving them to film the beast performing murderous acts.

When one boy sees that Ayla is using the monster’s gruesome violence to settle her own vendettas, he threatens to tell the authorities—but is he too late to save his friends?

Our thoughts: Are you really considered an influencer if you make viral videos of the monster you’re holding captive kill people? I mean, who would sponsor that? MyPillow maybe? At any rate, this is another one of those teen collectives where a group of friends battles a menacing force. Maybe the font in the title will give us a clue. No, wait.

 

The Black Phone, in theaters June 24

Director Scott Derrickson returns to his terror roots and partners again with the foremost brand in the genre, Blumhouse, with a new horror thriller.

Finney Shaw, a shy but clever 13-year-old boy, is abducted by a sadistic killer and trapped in a soundproof basement where screaming is of little use. When a disconnected phone on the wall begins to ring, Finney discovers that he can hear the voices of the killer’s previous victims. And they are dead set on making sure that what happened to them doesn’t happen to Finney. Starring four-time Oscar® nominee Ethan Hawke in the most terrifying role of his career and introducing Mason Thames in his first-ever film role, The Black Phone is produced, directed, and co-written by Scott Derrickson, the writer-director of Sinister, The Exorcism of Emily Rose and Marvel’s Doctor Strange.

Our thoughts: If this isn’t the most talked-about mid-year horror release I don’t know what is. Remember when Ethan Hawke was the cute tween in Explorers? No? Okay so then maybe his role in Sinister is your starting point. Wherever you place his career canon, he’s giving us serial killer realness in this twisted movie. This is appointment cinema! Mark your calendars.