Editorials
The 12 Best Genre Films Released in the First Half of 2020
We’re halfway through what’s been the strangest year in recent memory. What was once a promising slate of upcoming 2020 horror releases instead became an empty void thanks to pandemic-induced theatrical closures. In an alternate universe, we would’ve seen A Quiet Place Part II, Saint Maud, Antlers, Antebellum, Spiral, and Candyman and had our sights set on the enticing genre fare scheduled for release in the second half of the year already. Now, nearly everything has been pushed back to the late third quarter and beyond.
That’s if current pandemic-related events don’t cause further postponements.
If there’s a silver lining, it’s that horror tends to thrive in nearly all scenarios and formats. The theatrical slate might’ve shifted dramatically, but there was no shortage of genre offerings on VOD and streaming services. Horror even dominated at the drive-in. Horror has still managed to have a solid year so far. These are the best genre films of 2020’s first half.
Underwater
For a movie released in the dumping ground known as January, after sitting on the shelf for a couple of years, expectations were exceedingly low. As a result, one of the year’s best horror movies also happens to be one of the most slept on. Wasting zero time getting straight to the action and horror, Underwater sees a group of researchers working at a deep-sea drilling station scrambling to get to safety after an Earthquake wreaks havoc. Naturally, they’re not alone on the ocean’s floor. This lean, mean action-horror machine may borrow from notable horror classics, but it still offers some major jaw-dropping third act surprises. In other words, Underwater is a blast.
Come to Daddy
Producer Ant Timpson‘s directorial debut is one demented thriller full of shocking surprises and biting humor. Elijah Wood stars as Norval Greenwood, a quirky 30-something desperate to reconnect with his estranged father to the point of traveling a great distance to spend time with him. When he arrives, however, he finds his father less than welcoming. Things go from uncomfortable to downright violent. Expect thrills, some chills, and an insane number of laughs. Just be sure to expect a lot of eccentricities with both the plot and its very peculiar characters. If you missed it, Come to Daddy is currently available on Prime Video.
Gretel & Hansel
The latest by Oz Perkins (The Blackcoat’s Daughter, I Am the Pretty Thing That Lives in the House) continues his streak of divisive horror. Targeting the young adult demographic, however, means that Gretel & Hansel might be his most accessible yet. Still, this polarizing film reconfigures the classic Grimm fairy tale for a much moodier horror story that favors style over the narrative. Think unparalleled production design with impressive sound design and score to match, but with its story told in an unconventional and sometimes muddied way. Sophia Lillis stars as Gretel, the elder sister tasked with protecting her brother from Alice Krige‘s mesmerizing Witch.
The Platform
This Netflix original centers around a strange, vertical prison facility with one cell per floor, and two inmates per cell. Every day, food is lowered through the levels via a platform, with the inmates only allowed to eat whatever is left on the platform for a fixed period. Every month, the inmates are randomly reassigned to a new floor. Those at the top level gorge while those many floors down starve, or worse. There’s no subtlety to this film’s overt metaphor, but that doesn’t make it any less effective. Things get brutal and repulsive.
Swallow
Existing on the far margins of the genre space, this psychological thriller stars Haley Bennett as a newly pregnant housewife, Hunter. Married into an affluent family, Hunter finds herself growing fixated on swallowing dangerous objects the more control over her life slips away. In other words, Hunter’s husband and in-laws treat her as a material possession at best, and her newfound coping mechanism gets bizarre. Again, this isn’t so much horror as it is a moody, psychological thriller, but it’s a potent one nonetheless. Bennett delivers a powerful performance, and her new addiction makes for some cringe-worthy moments.
The Lodge
Veronika Franz and Severin Fiala’s follow-up to Goodnight Mommy carries over the theme of children misbehaving. A holiday trip to the remote family lodge becomes a harrowing voyage into potential madness when soon to be stepmom Grace (Riley Keough) is left alone to take care of siblings Aidan (Jaeden Martell) and Mia (Lia McHugh). When the children seem to be making peace with Grace, a blizzard knocks the power out, trapping them all in isolation with Grace’s dark past. Moody and atmospheric, The Lodge is bleak horror. It’s also one of the more divisive entries of the year, so far, depending on how well you can overlook Franz and Fiala’s heavy-handedness in foreshadowing. Regardless, Keough once again proves a force of nature with her portrayal of the fragile Grace. The Lodge is currently streaming on Hulu.
We Summon the Darkness
Sometimes all you need to make a film worthwhile is one no-holds-barred performance by a lead. We Summon the Darkness has two with Alexandra Daddario and Maddie Hasson. As for the plot, this irreverent, ’80s-set horror comedy sees a trio of friends invite a trio of guys they met at a heavy metal concert to their country home for an after-party. With the area plagued by Satanically inspired murders, the after-party turns into a fight for survival. It doesn’t reinvent the wheel, but it does offer a highly entertaining horror-comedy in large part due to Daddario and Hasson having a ball with their characters. Throw up some devil horns, order up a pizza, and have a ball with them.
Why Don’t You Just Die!
So, this movie isn’t horror at all, but rather a crime thriller. Still, its nonstop, bone-crunching violence and bloodshed and pitch-black humor make it a visceral powerhouse that genre fans are likely to fully embrace once they give it a shot. Matvey goes to his girlfriend’s parents’ apartment with a hammer, hellbent on murdering the father to restore his girlfriend’s honor. He doesn’t anticipate that her father is a ruthless detective and that things aren’t as they seem. This small apartment becomes ground zero in an epic brawl for life and death as more people show up with revenge on their minds. The gore flows free here, and it’s a delight.
Color Out of Space
Richard Stanley‘s long-anticipated return to feature-length filmmaking, outside of documentaries that is, delivered a gonzo visual spectacle with a gonzo performance by lead Nicolas Cage. No surprise there. When a meteorite crashes into their yard, transforming flora and fauna into a technicolor nightmare, the Gardner family is forced to confront horrors both real and imagined. Stanley adapts H.P. Lovecraft‘s beloved short story with a modern edge, bringing it to life while simultaneously confronting the horror author’s infamous bigotry. Stanley’s idiosyncratic style and Cage’s eccentricities as a performer mean that Color Out of Space refuses to cater to the mainstream; Stanley’s never been one to bow to Hollywood convention after all. The result is a vivid nightmare with the seeds planted for an even more massive Lovecraftian franchise.
Scream, Queen! My Nightmare on Elm Street
Upon release, hotly anticipated sequel A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy’s Revenge was ravaged by critics and maligned by fans. Often cited as the gayest horror movie ever made, it became the butt of jokes. So much so that its lead, Mark Patton, saw his career permanently stalled, and he retreated from the public eye. This documentary, which gives Patton the platform to set the record straight and tell his perspective of the sequel, also explores the life of a gay actor attempting to carve out a living during the height of the AIDS crisis in the ’80s. All it takes is one fresh, unexplored angle to shed new insight on one of horror’s most beloved franchises, even 35-years later. Scream, Queen offers heartbreak and triumph, and a lot of surprises in between.
Shirley
Based on the novel of the same name by Susan Scarf Merrell and adapted by Sarah Gubbins, Shirley relays a captivating fictional tale about the author and her husband. Much in the same way that Mike Flanagan reinterpreted Jackson’s The Haunting of Hill House to relay an entirely fresh story, Shirley uses Jackson’s life to create something new. In this case, a spellbinding psychodrama that bends reality. Young newlyweds Fred (Logan Lerman) and Rose (Odessa Young) move to a college town in Vermont, where Fred takes a job as an assistant professor while Rose enrolls in classes. Through Fred’s job, they meet Stanley Hyman (Michael Stuhlbarg), college professor and husband to renowned author Shirley Jackson (Elisabeth Moss). Complex bonds are forged that threaten to tests the limits of love and derail all of their lives. This psychologically twisted biopic offers an engaging depiction of the destructive nature of relationships and muses, and it’s full of layers and references only Jackson’s fans will get. Above all, though, it’s another breathtaking showcase of Moss’s talent. Even better, it’s available to stream on Hulu now.
The Invisible Man
Leigh Whannell is a magician, especially with tech horror. Not only can he turn a low budget into luxurious gold, but he makes breathing new life into a Universal Horror classic seem effortless. Throw in an Oscar-worthy performance by Elisabeth Moss, and you have a fantastic movie that would sweep all of the awards, were it not for its attachment to horror. The Invisible Man opens with a nail-biting sequence that sees Cecilia escaping her abusive lover, Adrian. Though physically free, he’s still got a firm grip over her mind, compounded by his unexpected demise. A series of increasingly dangerous events, however, lead her to believe Adrian’s death was a hoax, and that an unseen presence is targeting her. Suspenseful, innovative, and with masterful leads, this psychological thriller gets in your head and has you questioning the corners of every frame.
Editorials
‘Bloodstone: Subspecies II’ Revisited: A Bigger, Bolder Follow-Up to Full Moon’s Vampire Cult Classic
Horror sequels are a peculiar thing. In most cases, follow-ups to scary movies tend to retread the same formula with different victims and more over-the-top scares. This is because audiences tend to be more interested in the antagonists of these pictures than anything else, with even main characters becoming disposable when the time comes to produce a sequel.
That’s why some of the most memorable horror sequels are the ones that actually manage to hold onto interesting survivors from previous films while also pushing the story forward instead of having the same thing happen again to a different group of people. From Scream 2 to Dream Warriors (and arguably even The Exorcist III: Legion), there are quite a few of these innovative sequels to go around.
However, if there’s one franchise that deserves more attention when discussing bigger and better continuations that make the most of episodic filmmaking, it has to be Ted Nicolaou’s Subspecies.
The Full Moon classic spawned an indie horror icon, but bizarre sequel Bloodstone: Subspecies II is even more beloved than its predecessor.
Building a Bigger Vampire Saga
While the film itself takes place almost immediately after the events of the first movie, Bloodstone only entered production a couple of years after the release of the original as both Charles Band and Nicolaou weighed the pros and cons of returning to Romania to continue the series. In an effort to maximize efficiency, the team decided to invest in a trilogy where parts II and III, now fully written by Nicolaou, would be filmed simultaneously over the course of a single grueling shoot.
Much like the first Subspecies, Bloodstone’s low budget meant that the filmmakers once again had to cut corners and re-use as many of their resources as possible. Thankfully, the process was much easier this time around as Nicolaou, with the help of Romanian cinematographer Vlad Paunescu and his wife Oana, became more acquainted with local customs and made new friends. Shooting abroad still came with its own unique set of challenges due to a lack of translators and the occasional safety concerns, but the crew managed to make things work by filming things guerrilla-style and setting up shop in abandoned caves and real medieval ruins.
The director’s newfound contacts, coupled with the relative success of the first movie, meant that he was basically given free rein over an assortment of shooting locations usually considered off-limits for indie horror. That’s why Bloodstone features insanely ambitious lighting and effects work even during scenes shot in the middle of a bustling Bucharest. The filmmakers went so far as to project Radu’s Nosferatu-like shadows over local monuments as if he were a Romanian boogeyman, an idea that was actually encouraged by local cinephiles.
In fact, many of the more elaborate scenes here had originally been planned for the first movie before being discarded due to the lack of available resources. It was only with the support of Romanian fans and filmmakers that Bloodstone was able to give Radu a chance to be even more menacing the second time around.
Michelle’s Transformation Takes Center Stage
However, when it came to the American part of the crew, not everyone was able or willing to return for another round of Romanian adventuring. That’s why Radu’s human-loving half-brother Stefan (Michael Watson) is unceremoniously killed off at the beginning of the film while the role of Michelle had to be recast. Denice Duff took over for Laura Mae Tate, with the character now being joined by her sister, Rebecca, played by Melanie Shatner (yes, that Shatner).
In the finished film, we follow Michelle as she awakens to her new life as a vampire and discovers that Radu has murdered her lover. Struggling with grief and her newfound bloodlust, Michelle contacts her sister overseas, with Rebecca soon travelling to Romania on an ill-advised rescue mission. Meanwhile, Radu (Anders Hove) reaches out to his undead Mummy (Pamela Gordon, underneath heavy layers of impressive makeup effects) and promises to deliver her the coveted Bloodstone artifact while also making Michelle his eternal consort.
Revisiting the movie, I was impressed with how introspective this story is when compared to the original. The sequel assumes that you’re already familiar with the previously established characters, so the story wastes no time in exploring the immediate aftermath of the previous film’s events. From Michelle’s reluctant transformation into a creature of the night to Radu’s obvious mommy issues, Nicolaou is way more interested in pushing these characters into new and uncharted territory rather than recycling existing plot points.
Practical Effects and Gothic Atmosphere Still Impress
Yet, much like the first film, it’s Romania itself that makes the movie worth watching. The ruins of Castle Vladislav are even more majestic now, and visiting the moody streets of Bucharest with its surprisingly punk-rock nightlife made for a nice change of pace when compared to the original film’s quiet village setting. Once again, the abundance of interesting locations makes the movie feel much more expensive than it really is, with the filmmakers surrounding our characters with a living, breathing environment that would be impossible to recreate in a studio.
The increased freedom also allowed Nicolaou to flex his filmmaking muscles and tackle more ambitious blocking/composition in the sequel. The low budget and tropey script mean that the visuals don’t always work, but it’s consistently clear that this neo-expressionist style could only come from a passionate team attempting to pay homage to the shadowy horror classics of yesteryear. If the retro atmosphere isn’t enough for you, there’s enough practical gore here to satisfy even the most demanding of horror hounds!
Radu himself is also far more interesting now that Hove is more comfortable working alongside an international crew, with the actor having gone on record explaining that, while he spent more time drinking vodka than working while shooting the first movie, the sequel was a much more creatively satisfying experience for everyone involved. The character’s relationship with his abusive Mummy is also a highlight of the expanded mythology, especially since the practical effects that bring her to life are just as freaky now as they were back in ’93.
My only real gripe with the horror elements of the picture comes from the glaring absence of the diminutive stop-motion minions from the first film, though I guess the surprisingly entertaining addition of Professor Popescu (Michael Denish) and his archeological antics mostly make up for that.
Bloodstone: Subspecies II is obviously the middle chapter of a trilogy, with the ending feeling a lot less definitive than its predecessor as several plot threads are left to dangle in the wind, but I appreciate how the flick explores new ground while remaining faithful to nearly all the ideas that made the original such a good time. While I don’t think it’s as big of an improvement over the first movie as some fans make it out to be, Bloodstone is definitely worth revisiting if you’re a fan of old-fashioned vampire yarns.
Tune in next time for the thrilling conclusion to this initial trilogy, Bloodlust: Subspecies III!
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