New year, new fear. With all the associated dread that being a quarter of the way through a century incorporates
In shocking news, the 2025 release slate contains an absolute slew of remakes and sequels (Two Renny Harlin directed The Strangers sequels? Two?!?) but also some genuinely exciting stuff from some proven directors:
Feels like 2024 saw horror get more than its fair share of mainstream attention for a change, be it through crossover films (Late Night With The Devil, Immaculate, In A Violent Nature, Longlegs, The Substance) or proven franchise stuff (Smile 2, Alien Romulus, Quiet Place Day One, Terrifier 3, First Omen - was there any Insidious/Conjuring stuff released; not gonna bother to check). 2025 kicks off with a big release in Nosferatu which has been generating interest across the board. Horror is back baby!
Well, that first link in the OP embedded like shit. Here’s a slightly better link (better in that it doesn’t feature two (!) Renny Harlin Strangers sequels)…
Nice, didn’t realise Edgar Wrights next film was going to be a running man reboot. Also I wish M3gan 2.0 was called M3gagain, embrace it ye cowards. =P
Nosferatu - was really quite excited about this, but I think it was a failure. Had its moments - the sequence roughly from the crossroads to the nuns got me back on board, and I was really very impressed by the first encounter with Orlok -, but ended up tonally confused and overlong, and imo there was a complete mismatch between the script (deliberately stilted and theatrical, I think) and the cast. Willem Dafoe was the only one who could really say the lines properly. Nicholas Hoult and Ralph Ineson were all right and pretty watchable I suppose; the less said about Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Simon McBurney the better. I wasn’t really convinced by Lily-Rose Depp either, but that at least is debateable. Should have gone the whole way and just done a Wes-Anderson-makes-a-vampire-film film instead.
Watched Shadow of the Vampire in preparation, now that I enjoyed. Maybe Willem Dafoe should be in every film.
I’d been holding off saying anything about this here because I didn’t want to be the first one to say I didn’t like it (I’m such a coward!) but I agree, this didn’t do much for me. Too long, and Lily Rose Depp spent most of the film looking like she’d just found a turd in her fridge. Far from terrible but I’m getting less and less excited about new Eggers’ movies the further we get from The Witch…
I have started the year with 2 metal themed horrors by coincidence
Invoking Yell - follows the ever increasing FF trope of nothing happening for first 2/3 then a bog standard conclusion. I’d love a FF film this year to just go all out from minute 1 and actually try be entertaining
Devil’s Candy - from the guy who made The Loved Ones. Just one of those which takes a not particularly new premise but does it extremely well. And 79 minutes! Much better
Totally agree with everything said here. Didn’t think it was as bad as The Northman but for a film with that much vampire terror in it I was amazed by how dull it was for stretches. I would be won over for some chunks just due to the visuals and then get bored again by lack of tension/character/narrative.
Felt like there was a really good film in this one that didn’t quite stick the landing. Apparently it had a troubled release, being extensively recut between it’s first showing in 2015 and eventual release in 2017 which might explain things. Director has done nothing since
Read this (Headful Of Ghosts) the other year. Really enjoyed it, probably one of my favourite Tremblay books I’ve read. Coincidentally just started the audiobook of A Horror Story by the same author.
Look forward to hearing your thoughts on Headful Of Ghosts.
It’s a crime that they’ve left Bloody New Year off this list, but other than that, there looks to be some great stuff on there. New Year’s Evil has always appealed for some reason…
