With all of the horrors Americans are facing daily — a gun crisis, attacks on women’s rights, a supreme court hell-bent on legislating back to the olden days — it can be a difficult to engage with the artificial terror of scary movies.
Fittingly, many of the year’s best titles tapped into this anger and fear. Themes of environmental decay (“Crimes of the Future”), the oppression of women (“Men”), toxic internet culture (“Scream”), surveillance (“Watcher”) and sexual repression (“X”) loomed large, linking fantastical scares to very real fright.
The rest of the year is packed with many more high-profile titles, including a “Predator” prequel (“Prey”), Jordan Peele’s latest film (“Nope”), Michael Myers’ return (“Halloween Ends”) and a standout Sundance title (the Rebecca Hall thriller “Resurrection”). But until then, Variety has ranked the best horror of the year so far.
Before the countdown, some honorable mentions:
*Mariama Diallo’s “Master” doesn’t deliver the scares, but it’s a compelling haunting tale which explores big ideas, held together by a strong lead performance from Regina Hall.
*Toby Meakins’ “Choose or Die” has some compelling imagery and a charming throwback premise, but the killer video game script can’t sustain a feature-length runtime.
*Though overlong and in need of a script doctor to punch up the jokes, “Studio 666” is a fun romp for rock fans — and a charming showcase for the Foo Fighters’ late drummer Taylor Hawkins.
*David Blue Garcia’s “Texas Chainsaw Massacre” was a disappointment, but featured one of the year’s best gore scenes, courtesy of Leatherface invading a party bus.