Movies
Death Race (remake)
“Even though DEATH RACE is pretty bloody, and had some cool moments, the overall experience is mind numbing and a little depressing. It’s sad to think that this is Anderson’s best effort since 2002, and that it’s still as bad as ever.”
With the exception of EVENT HORIZON – and maybe RESIDENT EVIL – director Paul W.S. Anderson has quickly become labeled by horror fans as one of the worst A-list directors in Hollywood. Quickly jumping in the trend of remakes, Anderson has popped out his version of the classic 1975 film, DEATH RACE 2000, entitled simply DEATH RACE. While remaking a film over 30 years old with new technologies seems like not only an obvious and inherently good idea, but it also seemed like a no-brainer. Any chump should have been able to deliver an action-packed, power punch of adrenaline… but we’re not talking about anyone, we’re talking about Paul W.S. Anderson.
In the remake, ex-con Jensen Ames (Jason Statham) is forced by the warden of a notorious prison (Joan Allen) to compete in our post-industrial world’s most popular sport: a car race in which inmates must brutalize and kill one another on the road to victory. Jensen is taking over for the deceased Frankenstein, the most popular of all racing personalities, by wearing the mask and parading around as the crowd fav. The deal, win the final game and be free… or so he thinks.
The main problem with the film is immediately obvious as instead of saving the Frankenstein twist for the finale (like in the original), we learn almost immediately that Jason Statham is in fact the NEW Frankenstein. All of the mystery is removed instantaneously from the remake and it becomes a lowbrow action movie with little to no thought involved. It’s even worse when Hennessey (Allen) continually boast about her viewers and numbers, which make it unclear “why” she cares so much about Frankenstein continuing on. It’s also frustrating that there’s no reference to the US government on how or why this even is taking place (on National television none-the-less).
It’s obvious that DEATH RACE isn’t supposed to be a “thinker” or a “slow burn”, so in all honesty all the film needed was a few awesome action scenes and some boobs (like a true Corman film), then it would be at least redeemable. But Anderson even fails to deliver the promise of an over-the-top action film as he loses every moment in his f*cking goddamn annoying camerawork and hyper editing. It’s nearly impossible to see what the heck is going on during the race sequences and it’s incredibly frustrating. The camera zooms in and out, and then slams left and right, shacking uncontrollably. Watching DEATH RACE is like being on the Tea Cups ride at Disney; you think you’re having fun, but after vomiting all over the place you realize that you have just been cheated out of a bunch of time, and now the rest of the day you’re going to be nauseous – and maybe the nausea is caused by knowing you just dropped $12 on this heap of moving images.
Even though DEATH RACE is pretty bloody, and had some cool moments, the overall experience is mind numbing and a little depressing. It’s sad to think that this is Anderson’s best effort since 2002, and that it’s still as bad as ever. It’s recommended that you completely avoid this race and take a trip back to 1975 and revisit a well-crafted classic like DEATH RACE 2000. If you’re looking for that thoughtless, quick-cut, energy jolt of a film, you’ll get what you’re looking for in FAST AND THE FURIOUS, or one of it’s sequels (all three are better).
The holiday weekend means a light week for new horror releases, but it does bring the return of Dark Castle Entertainment to select theaters. It’s being joined by 6 new horror movies.
Here’s all the new horror releasing June 29, 2026 – July 3, 2026!
For daily reminders about new horror releases, be sure to follow @HorrorCalendar.
You wished for it. The highest-grossing horror movie of the year (so far), Curry Barker’s Obsession, arrived on Digital on June 30.
In Curry Barker’s theatrical debut Obsession, after breaking the mysterious One Wish Willow to win his crush’s heart, a hopeless romantic finds himself getting exactly what he asked for but soon discovers that some desires come at a dark, sinister price.
Michael Johnston (“Teen Wolf”), Inde Navarette (“Superman & Lois”), Cooper Tomlinson (“That’s a Bad Idea,” Milk & Serial), Megan Lawless (The Death That Awaits), and Emmy Award-nominee Andy Richter (“Conan,” Elf) star.
Based on a story by director James Kondelik (Behind The Walls) and a screenplay by Canadian writer Victor Rose, survival thriller Pitfall headed home to Digital on June 30. Family is murder in this Cineverse release.
In Pitfall, a young man becomes separated from his friends in the woods and plunges into a ten-foot pit lined with spikes, impaling his leg and leaving him helpless. As reality sinks in and his situation grows dire, he realizes the fall wasn’t an accident.
The film stars Richard Harmon (Final Destination: Bloodlines), Alexandra Essoe (The Pope’s Exorcist), and UFC champion Randy Couture (The Expendables) as the ruthless killer who stalks his prey in the woods. Marshall Williams (The Ice Road), Jordan Claire Robbins (The Umbrella Academy), and Matt Hamilton (Murder for Sale) also star.
The Amityville IP leans into Jaws with Amityville Shark House, just in time for the Fourth of July holiday too, as it released on Digital June 30.
Will Collazo Jr. (Amityville Thanksgiving) and Shawn C. Phillips (Amityville Karen) co-direct from a script they wrote with Julie Anne Prescott.
In the movie, after discovering an ominous shark idol hidden beneath the decaying floorboards, Richard unknowingly awakens an ancient and savage force. As the entity begins to merge with him, a quiet coastal town descends into blood-soaked chaos.
With each victim claimed, the monstrous predator grows stronger, fueling a cult’s belief that their dark god has been reborn. Now, the race is on to stop the carnage before evil consumes everything in its path.
Phillips and Prescott also star alongside Tasha Tacosa, Maritza Brikisak, Gigi Gustin (The Retaliators), Adam Marino, and Carl Solomon.
Available on Digital, Blu-ray, and DVD as of June 30 is Jacked, directed by John Fucile from a script he co-wrote with Simon Fraser.
The synopsis: “Set in the summer of 1987, JACKED follows two small-town teenagers whose day at the lake turns into a fight for survival after their car breaks down and they encounter a violent stalker.”
Marla Jean Robison, Tom Koch, Anthony Cipriani, Wynn Reichert, Kam Perez and Bella Marie star.
Get ready to work up a killer sweat and maybe spill some blood with Slashercise, a workout meets slasher hybrid that arrived exclusively on Bloodstream on July 1.
Written and directed by Ama Lea (Deathcember), the retro-styled feature follows “a masked killer known only as Meathead as he stalks the fitness clubs of Los Angeles, turning workout sessions into blood-soaked nightmares. As the city’s top trainers are picked off one by one, a group of determined fitness fanatics must fight back before they become the next bodies on the mat.”
Vanessa Decker (Stiletto), John Bloom (The Last Drive-In With Joe Bob Briggs), Spencer Charnas (Ice Nine Kills), Sarah French (Blind), Kelli Maroney (Night of the Comet), Sarah Nicklin (V/H/S/Halloween), Diana Prince (The Last Drive-In With Joe Bob Briggs), Jared Rivet (The Once and Future Smash), Felissa Rose (Sleepaway Camp), Tiffany Shepis (Victor Crowley), and Lisa Wilcox (A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master) star.
After a record-breaking box office run, A24 and director Kane Parsons’ feature debut is heading back to theaters with bonus footage. AMC Theatres is unleashing Backrooms: Everything Must Go Editiontoday, July 3.
In the film written by Will Soodik, the owner of Cap’n Clark’s Ottoman Empire discovers a strange doorway in the basement of the furniture showroom. He sets out to explore the mysterious, liminal space, walking headfirst into a creepypasta nightmare.
Chiwetel Ejiofor and Renate Reinsvestar.
AMC describes this release as a “theatrically exclusive post-credit” with additional footage from Kane Parsons. Expect 16 minutes of bonus footage, with the new version clocking in at 2 hours and 6 minutes.
The Last Exorcism director Daniel Stamm and Dark Castle Entertainment are back with Lockbox, in select theaters July 3. It adapts Soren Narnia‘s Knifepoint Horror Podcast story “Winthrop” by Emmy-winning playwright Justin Yoffe.
In Lockbox, “Seeking peace after her mother’s death, Ellen retreats to a rural town and takes in her severely traumatized cousin Winthrop. Their fragile domestic balance shatters when an erratic neighbor warns that Winthrop is dangerous. As strange phenomena escalate, Ellen must put everything on the line to defend Winthrop from a dangerous otherworldly entity determined to track him down.”
Lou Taylor Pucci (Touch Me, Evil Dead), Carla Gugino (The Haunting of Hill House, Gerald’s Game, The Fall of the House of Usher) and Katharine Isabelle (Ginger Snaps, Backrooms) star.
This week’s new release roundups are presented by Lockbox.
Be careful who you let in. Carla Gugino and Lou Taylor Pucci star in Lockbox, only in select theaters this Friday. Get tickets.
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