Movies
The Cell 2 (V)
“In the end, there is nothing to recommend about The Cell 2. It teases at the hope that inside the box we’d discover another trip into the twisted surrealistic mind of a serial killer—replete with otherworldly imagery in the greatest senses that Tarsem brought to the original film and his later production The Fall. What it delivers is just another cop drama, by the producer of a cop drama.”
When word came down the old electronic mail pipeline that whatever was left of New Line Cinema’s distribution unit was releasing a sequel to Tarsem Singh’s 2000 visual stunner The Cell, and that the film would be available on Blu-ray, we’ll, even though I thought the original film was a mess (gorgeously photographed, but a mess none-the-less) I was pretty psyched about checking it out. I mean, even if the story was pretty poor at least it would look awesome right? Wrong…oh so very, very wrong.
First off – and I’ve made this argument many times before – this is not a sequel to The Cell. In fact, if it was even conceived as a sequel to The Cell, I’ll eat my keyboard. This film reeks of the old b-movie tradition: If we don’t know what the hell to do with it, we can call it a sequel to another film. The Cell is a great film to piggyback on to, since no one saw it anyway. And, if you did, you probably can’t remember what it was about – since it didn’t make a hell of a lot of sense to begin with. So, the studio’s got a film, with some lame CGI effects (seriously lame CGI effects) and a serial killer. Part of the film takes place in the serial killers mind and there is a psychic involved in the hunt for the serial killer. Call it a sequel, and we’ll have a built in audience. If nothing else, maybe we can move some back catalogue of the original flick by reminding audiences that one still exists. Got the plan? Good. Now, go forth and pulleth the wood down over the sheep’s eyes.
Maya (Tessie Santiago) survived the wrath of a maniacal serial killer known only as The Cusp. The Cusp kills his victims and then brings them back to life over and over and over again only to keep killing them until they beg to die. Maya was presumed dead and dumped. But, she survived and the mental anguish of the constant rebirths triggered a psychic reaction in her mind. She can now experience the events of others as they are happening. Using this dark gift, she is determined to help the FBI find and capture The Cusp, before he can continue his killing spree. Sheriff Harris (Chris Bruno) doesn’t have a lot of faith in psychic assistance but when his niece is kidnapped by The Cusp, he has little choice but to take his chances on Maya’s visions.
Directed by veteran TV Producer Tim Iacofano (24, Profiler), The Cell 2 has all the visual appeal of a bad network cop drama. The only interesting effects work (no doubt added to tie the film to the original flick) occurs in the films opening scenes. The rest of the effects work would look right at home in a 1980’s New Wave video. The overriding visual look of the film – which supposedly shot in Salt Lake City—is as dreary as any 500 other television productions shot anywhere in Vancouver. It’s all very mundane and formulaic. On top of the lackadaisical visuals, the script is a masterpiece of tediousness. The identity of the killer is thinly veiled and the discovery is of as little revelation to the viewer as it is to the cast of the film. The mystery of who the killer is—which should have been a major plot point—since Maya could not remember, or see, the killers face in her visions—is glossed over by the script and the performances from the cast when the discovery is made. Even the explanation The Cusp later gives Maya for her inability to recognize him is boring.
In the end, there is nothing to recommend about The Cell 2. It teases at the hope that inside the box we’d discover another trip into the twisted surrealistic mind of a serial killer—replete with otherworldly imagery in the greatest senses that Tarsem brought to the original film and his later production The Fall. What it delivers is just another cop drama, by the producer of a cop drama. But, The Cell 2 isn’t even 24 on its worst hour ever. It’s more like one of those third tier cop shows that gets greenlit five years and two dozen lesser imitators later. It’s just a shell of a movie, with a premise as thin as a razors edge. Skip it!
This week’s new releases offer everything from giant monsters to Spielberg aliens to ass-kicking martial artists and even an ash-eating medical student. Do we have your interest?
Here’s all the new genre movies that released on Friday, June 12, 2026!
These aren’t all HORROR movies, but we want you to be aware of them all the same…
Norwegian creature feature Kraken is now available on Digital.
The film was also unleashed in select theaters. Check your local listings.
In the monster movie Kraken, “unnatural behavior in wild salmon, followed by inexplicable deaths in Norway’s deepest fjord, points to the mythical Kraken. The ancient, multi-armed monster has awakened, ready to crush everything that moves or makes a sound.”
Pål Øie (The Tunnel) directs Samuel Goldwyn Films’ Kraken from a script by Vilde Eide, Kjersti Jelen Rasmussen, and Natasha Arthur. Sara Khorami, Mikkel Bratt Silset, Øyvind Brandtzæg, Jenny Evensen, Ingvild Holthe Bygdnes, Jon Erik Myre, Hans Morten Hansen, Steinar Klouman Hallert, and Filip Bargee Ramberg star.
An all girls trip into the desert for escapism fun instead implodes in violence in the revenge thriller Find Your Friends, now streaming only on Shudder.
In the film, “Amber and her four best friends flee Los Angeles for a girls’ trip in Joshua Tree, only to find themselves unwelcome in a desert town simmering with quiet hostility. As isolation sets in and encounters with aggressive locals grow more threatening, festering resentments within the group begin to surface.
“What begins as fun and reckless escape spirals into a violent struggle for control and survival, as past wounds and present dangers collide in a night that turns their trip into a nightmare.”
Bella Thorne (The Babysitter), Chloe Cherry (“Euphoria”), Helena Howard (I Saw the TV Glow), Sophia Ali (Uncharted), Zion Moreno (“Gossip Girl”), and Chris Bauer (“True Blood”) star in the feature debut by writer/director Izabel Pakzad.
Steven Spielberg is more sure today than he was when he made Close Encounters and ET that aliens are very real, and with Disclosure Day, he aims to make you a believer too.
Okay so it’s not a horror movie, but the sci-fi blockbuster is now playing in theaters.
The vague synopsis for Disclosure Day reads: “If you found out we weren’t alone, if someone showed you, proved it to you, would that frighten you? This summer, the truth belongs to seven billion people. We are coming close to Disclosure Day.”
The film stars SAG winner and Oscar® nominee Emily Blunt (Oppenheimer, A Quiet Place), Emmy and Golden Globe winner Josh O’Connor (Challengers, The Crown), Oscar® winner Colin Firth (The King’s Speech, Kingsman franchise), Eve Hewson (Bad Sisters, The Perfect Couple) and two-time Oscar® nominee Colman Domingo (Sing Sing, Rustin).
Based on a story by Spielberg, the screenplay is by David Koepp, whose previous work with Spielberg includes the scripts for Jurassic Park, The Lost World: Jurassic Park, War of the Worlds and Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. Combined, those films earned more than $3 billion worldwide. Koepp also wrote the script for Jurassic World Rebirth.
Steven Spielberg is of course no stranger to extraterrestrial encounters, directing two of the greatest alien movies of all time: Close Encounters of the Third Kind in 1977 and E.T. in 1982. It’s an arena he returned to in 2005, directing an adaptation of H.G. Wells’ War of the Worlds.
Here in 2026, Steven Spielberg sees hope in the existence of aliens. He notes in the final trailer for Disclosure Day, “How will disclosure change us? I believe for the better.”
Another movie that’s not a horror movie but worth mentioning here is the violent martial arts revenge thriller The Furious, which is now playing in theaters from Lionsgate.
Xie Miao (The New Legend of Shaolin) and Joe Taslim (Mortal Kombat) star.
After his daughter is kidnapped by a criminal network and he receives no help from the corrupt police, Wang Wei sets out on a rampage to find her himself.
His only ally is Navin, a relentless journalist whose wife has mysteriously disappeared. Fueled by a furious vengeance, the unlikely duo ruthlessly fights against the kidnappers.
Kenji Tanigaki (Enter the Fat Dragon) directs from a script by Mak Tin Shu (Kung Fu Jungle), Lei Zhilong, Shum Kwan Sin (Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In), and Frank Hui.
A disturbing weight loss craze involving human ashes opens up a haunting world of hurt for a young woman in Saccharine, which is now available on Digital outlets at home.
From writer/director Natalie Erika James (Relic, Apartment 7A), the Australian supernatural body horror film follows lovelorn medical student Hana, who becomes terrorized by a sinister force after taking part in an obscure weight loss craze: eating human ashes.
Midori Francis (“Grey’s Anatomy”), Danielle Macdonald (Patti Cake$), and Madeleine Madden (“The Wheel of Time”) star in Natalie Erika James’ latest nightmare.
From directors Arturo Ambriz and Roy Ambriz, I Am Frankelda is billed as the first ever full length stop motion movie from Mexico, and it’s now streaming on Netflix.
The history-making stop-motion film is a dark fantasy set in a world of monsters.
Here’s the synopsis: “In 19th-century Mexico, Frankelda is a gifted writer whose dark tales are ignored and dismissed. Forced to suppress her voice, she refuses to give up, even as many try to silence her. But when she is thrust into her subconscious, the very monsters she created come to life.
“Guided by Herneval, a tormented prince trapped between dreams and nightmares, she must restore balance between fiction and reality before both realms collapse. Meanwhile, the sinister writer Procustes and his conspirators plot to seize control. As Frankelda and Herneval grow closer, their bond becomes both a strength and a curse.
“To rewrite their fate, she must confront a love that defies existence and reclaim her power as a storyteller—before dark forces consume her imagination and reveal horrors beyond her creation.”
The directors said in a joint statement, “As brothers, we grew up inventing worlds together, drawing, playing, imagining. Over time we understood that fictional characters were not only companions but guides. Sometimes they felt closer than the people around us. They provided us courage, wisdom, and solace. We believe fiction is not an escape from reality but a way of understanding it. A way of converting truth into palatable chunks. I Am Frankelda comes from a lifelong love of storytelling.”
Mireya Mendoza, Arturo Mercado Jr., and Luis Leonardo Suarez lead the voice cast.
Meagan Navarro writes in her review for Bloody Disgusting, “Mexico’s first stop-motion animated feature is a macabre beauty.” Meagan also notes in her review, “I Am Frankelda is a gothic fantasy feature whose boundless creativity is matched by its ambition.”
The lines of reality and delusion blur in Time of Death, now available on Digital.
Michael Kelly (“The Penguin,” Dawn of the Dead 2004) stars with Kevin Pollak (End of Days), Mena Suvari (Vampires of the Velvet Lounge), and Dennis Haysbert (Send Help).
In the horror-thriller, “When a prisoner vanishes without a trace, Detective Frank Morley (Michael Kelly) is sent to a decaying prison on the verge of shutdown. What begins as a routine investigation quickly spirals into a dangerous search for answers.”
Will Wernick (Escape Room 2017, Follow Me) directs from a script by Jason Rosen. They also produce alongside Kelly Delson, Jeff Delson, and Kyle David Crosby.
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