Connect with us

Editorials

[Fantastic Fest] 10 Upcoming Horror Films You Have to See!

Published

on

The last week of September is a busy one for horror fans in Austin, Texas because of Fantastic Fest, a film festival that focuses on screening horror, science fiction, fantasy, action, Asian and cult films. The 8-day festival takes place at the Alamo Drafthouse South Lamar and sees over 100 feature films screened for attendees. Each day has five time slots, with five or six films playing during each time slot. It’s an exhausting but incredibly fun week.

I managed to see 25 films during Fantastic Fest, but there were significantly less horror films than usual this year. It made it significantly easier to cover than last year’s festival (which saw the likes of The Invitation, The Witch and February The Blackcoat’s Daughter screen), but I couldn’t help but wish there were more notable horror films present this year. Still, there were a handful of amazing films, a lot of really good ones and just two or three total duds.

The 10 horror films listed below were among the strongest present at Fantastic Fest this year and should absolutely be on your radar. You won’t want to miss these when they eventually get released


Safe Neighborhood 

It’s no secret that Chris Peckover’s Safe Neighborhood was one of my favorite films of the festival. It provides a bonkers twist on the home invasion sub-genre that had me squealing with glee from start to finish. It has earned its place with Gremlins, Krampus and Batman Returns as part of my annual holiday viewing tradition. Just don’t let anyone spoil the twist for you. It’s a doozy.

Safe Neighborhood Poster


Colossal 

Nacho Vigalondo’s (Timecrimes, Open WindowsColossal (review) is a pleasant surprise. Billed as the “Anne Hathaway kaiju movie,” it actually has a lot more on its mind than monster mayhem. While it’s hardly a horror film (it’s more of a comedy with dramatic elements), I couldn’t resist including it on this list. The first half of the film is near perfect as Hathaway (who is outstanding) learns that a giant monster attacking Seoul is directly linked to her. The film earns plenty of laughs before some abrupt shifts in tone during its second half. These tonal shifts don’t always work, but the ending is so perfect that it’s almost enough to excuse the film’s flaws. COLOSSAL may be too quirky to get a wide release, but this could easily turn into the feel-good movie of the year. If it ends up in a theater near you make it a point to seek it out.

Colossal Poster


The Lure

If you’ve ever wanted a more faithful adaptation of Hans Christian Anderson’s The Little Mermaid, give Agnieszka Smoczynska’s The Lure a watch. A Polish mermaid cabaret horror musical (the horror aspect comes from the fact that the mermaids like to eat human hearts), The Lure follows two mermaids who decide to work at a cabaret before swimming to America. It’s bizarre in the best way. It has an amazing soundtrack, striking visuals and gore to boot. It won’t be for everyone, but I can guarantee you’ve never seen anything like it.

The Lure Poster


Another WolfCop

The original WolfCop (review) got bogged down with an origin story that took up too much of the film. It also tried a little too hard to be a cult film, Another WolfCop (read my review)succeeds at having no goal other than to entertain. It’s a total blast of a film that is a significant step up from the original and should be seen with a large group of friends and a lot of drinks. The jokes come fast and furious, with almost all of them landing (except one gag involving an anthropomorphic penis that gets stale after two minutes). This isn’t high art here, it’s Another WolfCop!

Another WolfCop Poster


The Autopsy of Jane Doe

The Autopsy of Jane Doe has such a spectacular premise and truly great first two acts that it’s a shame the third act fails to live up to the quality of what came before (though our own Joe Lipsett gave it a perfect score). It’s still a fun little roller coaster ride of a horror movie that is bolstered by two strong performances from Brian Cox and Emile Hirsch. There is an over-reliance on jump scares but director André Øvredal keeps the tension going throughout (barring one major misstep in a scene that bridges the second and third acts…you’ll know it when you see it). The autopsy itself is a gruesome extended sequence that is reason enough to see the film. Fun fact: The Autopsy of Jane Doe won the award for best horror film at Fantastic Fest.

The Autopsy of Jane Doe Poster


Raw

A coming-of-age via cannibalism tale, Raw is a unique little body horror film, though it is surprisingly tame considering its subject matter (or maybe I’m just a jaded horror fan who has seen one too many gore-fests). Still, the acting is top notch and the story will always have you wondering where it’s going to go next. While I didn’t love the film as much as others seemed to, I still enjoyed it quite a bit. The final moments of Raw are simply delightful so it’s no wonder that audiences voted Raw the 3rd best film of the festival.

Raw Poster


The Eyes of My Mother

A disturbing little film that follows a young girl into adulthood after the murder of her mother, The Eyes of My Mother runs a brief 77 minutes so it doesn’t overstay its welcome. The camerawork is masterful and Nicolas Pesce’s direction is fantastic. It’s definitely one of the prettiest films I’ve seen recently. Come for the gore; stay for Kika Magalhaes’s haunting performance. You’ll want to keep an eye on her career after seeing her in this film.

The Eyes of My Mother Poster


Don’t Kill It

Don’t Kill It (read my review) is incredibly fun B-movie trash that is a hoot from start to finish. Lundgren is really in his element here and gets to show off his skills as a comedian (the guy is hilarious). Director Mike Mendez (Big Ass Spider!, The Gravedancers) gets a lot of mileage out of a gimmicky villain. The film does peak about halfway through with a town hall meeting and never fully recaptures the batshit insanity of that scene, choosing to play the ending a little too seriously. Still, it’s a fun popcorn movie that deserves to be seen with a crowd.

Don't Kill It Poster


Sweet, Sweet Lonely Girl

A melancholy and atmospheric film with two great performances from its lead actresses, A.D. Calvo’s Sweet, Sweet Lonely Girl tells the story of a friendship that blooms between two young girls when one of them moves in with her agoraphobic aunt. The film is deliberately paced but never boring, telling a clever story with some very creepy moments.

Sweet, Sweet Lonely Girl Poster


We Are the Flesh

I swear I was going to give this film a half a star when I walked out of it (I ended up giving it two), but the more I think about it the more I realize just how deeply it affected me. Emiliano Rocha Minter’s WE ARE THE FLESH is a graphically violent and sexually explicit (it’s basically pornography) film that will no doubt leave audiences divided. Is it profound or pretentious? What does it all mean? Why is there a 15-second static shot of a vagina? Why is there a 15-second static shot of a penis? I’m sure I don’t know, but I do know that it will stick with you long after you leave the theater and for that alone it deserves some recognition. I don’t want to say it’s “good”, but it sure is powerful.

We Are the Flesh Poster

A journalist for Bloody Disgusting since 2015, Trace writes film reviews and editorials, as well as co-hosts Bloody Disgusting's Horror Queers podcast, which looks at horror films through a queer lens. He has since become dedicated to amplifying queer voices in the horror community, while also injecting his own personal flair into film discourse. Trace lives in Austin, TX with his husband and their two dogs. Find him on Twitter @TracedThurman

Editorials

‘Leprechaun Returns’ – The Charm of the Franchise’s Legacy Sequel

Published

on

leprechaun returns

The erratic Leprechaun franchise is not known for sticking with a single concept for too long. The namesake (originally played by Warwick Davis) has gone to L.A., Las Vegas, space, and the ‘hood (not once but twice). And after an eleven-year holiday since the Davis era ended, the character received a drastic makeover in a now-unmentionable reboot. The critical failure of said film would have implied it was time to pack away the green top hat and shillelagh, and say goodbye to the nefarious imp. Instead, the Leprechaun series tried its luck again.

The general consensus for the Leprechaun films was never positive, and the darker yet blander Leprechaun: Origins certainly did not sway opinions. Just because the 2014 installment took itself seriously did not mean viewers would. After all, creator Mark Jones conceived a gruesome horror-comedy back in the early nineties, and that format is what was expected of any future ventures. So as horror legacy sequels (“legacyquels”) became more common in the 2010s, Leprechaun Returns followed suit while also going back to what made the ‘93 film work. This eighth entry echoed Halloween (2018) by ignoring all the previous sequels as well as being a direct continuation of the original. Even ardent fans can surely understand the decision to wipe the slate clean, so to speak.

Leprechaun Returns “continued the [franchise’s] trend of not being consistent by deciding to be consistent.” The retconning of Steven Kostanski and Suzanne Keilly’s film was met with little to no pushback from the fandom, who had already become accustomed to seeing something new and different with every chapter. Only now the “new and different” was familiar. With the severe route of Origins a mere speck in the rearview mirror, director Kotanski implemented a “back to basics” approach that garnered better reception than Zach Lipovsky’s own undertaking. The one-two punch of preposterous humor and grisly horror was in full force again.

LEPRECHAUN

Pictured: Linden Porco as The Leprechaun in Leprechaun Returns.

With Warwick Davis sitting this film out — his own choice — there was the foremost challenge of finding his replacement. Returns found Davis’ successor in Linden Porco, who admirably filled those blood-stained, buckled shoes. And what would a legacy sequel be without a returning character? Jennifer Aniston obviously did not reprise her final girl role of Tory Redding. So, the film did the next best thing and fetched another of Lubdan’s past victims: Ozzie, the likable oaf played by Mark Holton. Returns also created an extension of Tory’s character by giving her a teenage daughter, Lila (Taylor Spreitler).

It has been twenty-five years since the events of the ‘93 film. The incident is unknown to all but its survivors. Interested in her late mother’s history there in Devil’s Lake, North Dakota, Lila transferred to the local university and pledged a sorority — really the only one on campus — whose few members now reside in Tory Redding’s old home. The farmhouse-turned-sorority-house is still a work in progress; Lila’s fellow Alpha Epsilon sisters were in the midst of renovating the place when a ghost of the past found its way into the present.

The Psycho Goreman and The Void director’s penchant for visceral special effects is noted early on as the Leprechaun tears not only into the modern age, but also through poor Ozzie’s abdomen. The portal from 1993 to 2018 is soaked with blood and guts as the Leprechaun forces his way into the story. Davis’ iconic depiction of the wee antagonist is missed, however, Linden Porco is not simply keeping the seat warm in case his predecessor ever resumes the part. His enthusiastic performance is accentuated by a rotten-looking mug that adds to his innate menace.

LEPRECHAUN RETURNS sequel

Pictured: Taylor Spreitler, Pepi Sonuga, and Sai Bennett as Lila, Katie and Rose in Leprechaun Returns.

The obligatory fodder is mostly young this time around. Apart from one luckless postman and Ozzie — the premature passing of the latter character removed the chance of caring about anyone in the film — the Leprechaun’s potential prey are all college aged. Lila is this story’s token trauma kid with caregiver baggage; her mother thought “monsters were always trying to get her.” Lila’s habit of mentioning Tory’s mental health problem does not make a good first impression with the resident mean girl and apparent alcoholic of the sorority, Meredith (Emily Reid). Then there are the nicer but no less cursorily written of the Alpha Epsilon gals: eco-conscious and ex-obsessive Katie (Pepi Sonuga), and uptight overachiever Rose (Sai Bennett). Rounding out the main cast are a pair of destined-to-die bros (Oliver Llewellyn Jenkins, Ben McGregor). Lila and her peers range from disposable to plain irritating, so rooting for any one of them is next to impossible. Even so, their overstated personalities make their inevitable fates more satisfying.

Where Returns excels is its death sequences. Unlike Jones’ film, this one is not afraid of killing off members of the main cast. Lila, admittedly, wears too much plot armor, yet with her mother’s spirit looming over her and the whole story — comedian Heather McDonald put her bang-on Aniston impersonation to good use as well as provided a surprisingly emotional moment in the film — her immunity can be overlooked. Still, the other characters’ brutal demises make up for Lila’s imperviousness. The Leprechaun’s killer set-pieces also happen to demonstrate the time period, seeing as he uses solar panels and a drone in several supporting characters’ executions. A premortem selfie and the antagonist’s snarky mention of global warming additionally add to this film’s particular timestamp.

Critics were quick to say Leprechaun Returns did not break new ground. Sure, there is no one jetting off to space, or the wacky notion of Lubdan becoming a record producer. This reset, however, is still quite charming and entertaining despite its lack of risk-taking. And with yet another reboot in the works, who knows where the most wicked Leprechaun ever to exist will end up next.


Horror contemplates in great detail how young people handle inordinate situations and all of life’s unexpected challenges. While the genre forces characters of every age to face their fears, it is especially interested in how youths might fare in life-or-death scenarios.

The column Young Blood is dedicated to horror stories for and about teenagers, as well as other young folks on the brink of terror.

Leprechaun Returns movie

Pictured: Linden Porco as The Leprechaun in Leprechaun Returns.

Continue Reading