Movies
[Review] ‘Boxtrolls’ Is An Insane, Creepy, Hilariously Dark Fairytale
I’m a lifelong fan of animated cinema, and while I sometimes lament how Pixar-style CG epics have trampled many of the medium’s more traditional methods, I still appreciate the artistry, skill and incredible patience that goes into it. That’s probably why I have an intense love of stop-motion (well, that and all those Ray Harryhausen epics that helped shape my imagination), which is arguably the most time-consuming and meticulous animation technique of them all. Long before fully-rendered digital imagery became the standard, stop-motion features have still been fairly rare over the past few decades; despite the cult popularity of Tim Burton’s gothic masterpiece A Nightmare Before Christmas, the labor- and time-consuming technique of animating puppets or clay figures probably tries the patience of most studio execs. But for me, that makes the arrival of dark fantasy gems like Corpse Bride, Coraline and Frankenweenie all the more special.
LAIKA, the studio behind Coraline and 2012’s Paranorman, are rolling out their latest feature The Boxtrolls, and I’m celebrating all over again. It’s not only their finest achievement to date, but I daresay it’s the most entertaining animated film to be released by a major studio in the past few years. Based on the book Here Be Monsters by Alan Snow, Boxtrolls is the deceptively simple tale of a young boy raised from infancy by the title critters – a kindly but secretive community of blue-skinned, glowing-eyed imps clad in cardboard boxes, who maintain their vast subterranean society by salvaging and re-purposing junk left behind by the oddball citizens of Cheesebridge (a town so named because their entire economy is based on importing exotic cheeses).
The tale itself draws from a deep well of classic tales (Kipling’s The Jungle Book and Dickens’ Oliver Twist come to mind), but the real joy here is in the telling. The world LAIKA has crafted is barely grounded in reality, opting for a highly stylized version of a late-19th-century European town that’s still making the transition from steam power to electricity (providing for some memorable steampunk set-pieces, including a towering coal-fueled robot), but it’s a touch more down-to-earth than Neil Gaiman’s surreal dreamworld depicted in Coraline. The elaborate sets – a combination of intricate models and digital artwork – seem to stretch on endlessly, and every nook and cranny is stuffed with weird little details: for example, the trolls’ underground city is a Rube Goldberg explosion of improvised machinery and flickering electric lights; Cheesebridge’s winding cobblestone streets (with pun-filled names like “Curds Way”) seem to defy gravity, twisting back on each other and folding into rooftops like an M.C. Escher landscape. The depth of detail is enhanced by quality 3D photography (not post-converted), which creates some dizzying moments, including an insane chase across city rooftops.
Of course, the lion’s share of the credit goes to the character animation team: the incredibly detailed puppets are sculpted with exaggerated facial and body features, decked out in highly detailed period costumes and rendered in high-contrast shades, reminiscent of hyper-stylized silent classics like Nosferatu and The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. The young hero “Eggs” falls closer to the softer, more traditional style usually reserved for child characters – which is probably a smart choice, as kids should identify with the likable leads. While played mostly for broad laughs, the characters’ faces cover the full spectrum of emotions, and the little nuances of their expressions are amazing to watch.
Accompanying this visual smorgasbord is one of the best voice casts I’ve heard in years: Oscar-winner Ben Kingsley rules them all in a mad, campy performance as the scenery-chewing villain Archibald Snatcher, who bamboozles the town’s moronic, cheese-obsessed elders into hiring him to eliminate the Boxtrolls; his musical number in absolutely hideous drag as a shrieking diva is totally hilarious (and a bit terrifying, if you ask me). Isaac Hempstead Wright (Game of Thrones) plays Eggs (named by the trolls after the egg crate he was found in), while other standout roles include Shaun of the Dead‘s Simon Pegg & Nick Frost and 30 Rock‘s Tracy Morgan as Snatcher’s addled sidekicks; Elle Fanning (Maleficent) nabs some of the film’s biggest laughs as the cute but morbidly curious Winnie, daughter of the dairy-obsessed Lord Portley-Rind (Jared Harris). Intricate sound design and a darkly whimsical score, plus song lyrics by Monty Python’s Eric Idle, add the final touches to this eccentric, comically macabre little universe.
With Halloween just around the corner, I can’t recommend this film highly enough. It’s got nostalgic references and knowing in-jokes to warm the hearts of classic horror fans; it’s packed with enough wild action, playful music and comic pratfalls to delight young ones (though maybe not too young – there are some shocking moments, including Snatcher’s monstrous allergic reaction to cheese); and it’s laced with tons of irreverent, macabre and droll humor for the grownups – including a surprising share of bodily-function and gross-out jokes and a wonderfully subtle meta-moment during the credits that actually got a round of applause. The Boxtrolls is not only the year’s best animated feature, but it’s sure to be a perennial favorite among fans of vintage horror and dark fantasy. It may give you a case of whiplash (and possibly put you off your cheese), but you’ll enjoy every minute of it.
Ghostface is back on the big screen this weekend… well, sort of… with the release of Scary Movie, which marks the Wayans brothers’ return to the horror spoof franchise for the first time since Scary Movie 2 back in the day. It’s likely to be the talk of the horror community for the weekend, but don’t overlook the other six genre movies that were freshly unleashed today.
Here’s all the new horror that released on Friday, June 5, 2026.
The horror spoof franchise is back with Scary Movie now playing in theaters!
Marlon Wayans (“Shorty”), Shawn Wayans (“Ray”), Anna Faris (“Cindy”), and Regina Hall (“Brenda”) reunite for the new Scary Movie, with the cast also including Dave Sheridan, Lochlyn Munro, Cheri Oteri, Chris Elliott, Jon Abrahams, Damon Wayans Jr., Gregg Wayans, Kim Wayans, Benny Zielke, Cameron Scott Roberts, Heidi Gardner, Olivia Rose Keegan, Ruby Snowber, Savannah Lee Nassif, Sydney Park, and Felissa Rose.
Twenty-six years after outrunning a suspiciously familiar masked killer (“Ghostface”), the Core Four are back in the killer’s crosshairs and no horror movie IP is safe…
Scary Movie will slash through reboots, remakes, requels, prequels, sequels, spin-offs, elevated horror, origin stories, anything with the word legacy in it, and every “final chapter” that absolutely isn’t. A whole lot has changed in the horror genre since the Wayans Brothers were in charge of the franchise; their involvement ended with Scary Movie 2 back in 2001!
Michael Tiddes (A Haunted House) directs Scary Movie 6 from a script written by Marlon Wayans, Shawn Wayans, original Scary Movie director Keenen Ivory Wayans, Craig Wayans (Scary Movie 2), and Rick Alvarez (A Haunted House).
From IFC, shark attack movie Chum is now available on Digital.
Alice Eve (Haunting of Queen Mary) stars in shark attack movie alongside Eric Michael Cole, Jim Klock, Elle Haymond, Lisa Yaro, Johnny Gaffney, and Sarah Siadat.
This one sounds very similar to last year’s Dangerous Animals…
Here’s the plot: “A newlywed couple joins friends on a Mediterranean yacht excursion, only to find themselves caught between a predatory shark and a psychopathic killer in their midst-transforming a sun-drenched escape into a fight for survival.”
Jonathan Zuck directs Chum, from a script by Jonathan Zuck and Joe Leone.
Samara Weaving (Ready or Not 2: Here I Come) and Kyle Gallner (Strange Darling) come together in Carolina Caroline, a sexy crime thriller now playing in theaters.
It’s not a horror movie, mind you, but it’s worth a mention here all the same.
Kyra Sedgwick (Family Movie) and Jon Gries also star in the romantic crime thriller.
Director Adam Carter Rehmeier’s film stars Samara Weaving as Caroline Daniels, whose desire to leave her small Texas town brings her into the orbit of a charismatic con man (Kyle Gallner), and together they weave a path of crime and passion across the American Southeast.
Adam Rehmeier previously directed the films Dinner in America and Snack Shack.
Tom Dean wrote the screenplay for Carolina Caroline.
Similar to Steven Spielberg’s upcoming big screen blockbuster Disclosure Day, Signal One explores humankind’s enduring question: what if we aren’t alone in the universe?
The sci-fi thriller is now available on Digital.
Isabelle Fuhrman (Orphan), Josh Hutcherson (Five Nights at Freddy’s), David Thewlis (Harry Potter), Raoul Bhaneja (Possessor), Emma Ho (“The Expanse”), and Dennis Quaid (The Substance) star in Signal One from director Jonathan Sobol (The Art of the Steal).
When tech billionaire Sam Houston (Quaid) hires the brilliant computer scientist Annika (Fuhrman), she ventures to an isolated facility run by the brilliant, nihilistic creator of LITTLEMOUTH, a machine which can communicate with alien intelligence.
Annika soon learns some humanity-altering facts: that we are not alone in the universe, that alien intelligences are communicating around us at every moment, and that we are likely too primitive to even remotely understand what they are trying to tell us.
When the goal of the endeavor shifts from listening to talking back, the project rapidly devolves into chaos. With contact comes consequences, and soon Annika and the team must work to ensure the very survival of our species.
A schoolyard dare becomes an urban legend in the creepypasta-inspired horror anthology The Summoning. The indie film is now available on Digital from Brainstorm Media.
“A babysitting gig becomes a nightmare of urban legend when three teens summon Baby Blue. Survival depends on uncovering the past to escape a mother’s wrath from beyond the grave.”
Felipe Vargas (Rosario, Hive), Sergio Gonzalez, Brandon Piskorik, Corey Benson Powers, and Brian Sepanzyk direct the segments. Valeria San Martín, Justina Ceballos, Daniela Flombaum, Nannu Spannauss, Agustín Olcese, and Giovanni Onetti star.
The Summoning is written by Camilo Zaffora.
Happy Death Day actress Jessica Rothe stars as a mom struggling to keep her grip on her sanity and memory in the mind-bending Affection, now available on Digital at home.
In Affection, “Afflicted by a mysterious condition that resets her memory, Ellie becomes trapped in a cyclical nightmare with a man who claims to be her husband. She soon must uncover the horrifying truth of her existence—before she forgets it all again.“
Joseph Cross (“Big Little Lies”) and Julianna Layne (“Chicago P.D.”) also star in the sci-fi horror thriller. Affection marks the feature debut by writer/director BT Meza.
Daniel Kurland wrote in his review out of the film’s premiere, “Affection is steeped in existential questions and fears that plague modern society, while it embraces the ethos of the ’80s through bold body horror. Add to that Rothe’s revelatory performance, and Affection is a hidden gem that will connect with your mind, body, and soul.”
Lucile Hadžihalilović’s latest dark fairy tale, The Ice Tower, loosely reimagines Hans Christian Andersen’s fable “The Snow Queen,” and it’s now streaming on Shudder.
In the ’70s set film, “Jeanne, a 15-year-old orphan, witnesses the shoot of a film adaptation of the fairy tale The Snow Queen, and she becomes fascinated by its star Cristina (Marion Cotillard), an actress who is just as mysterious and alluring as the Queen she is playing.“
Clara Pacini stars as Jeanne. August Diehl and Marine Gesbert also star in The Ice Tower, and look for a cameo from director Gaspar Noé (Climax, Irréversible).
“For me, The Ice Tower solidified Lucile Hadžihalilović’s place amongst the most fascinating creators of fairy tales today,” said distributor Yellow Veil Pictures co-founder Joe Yanick.
You must be logged in to post a comment.