With Halloween last week, watching horror movies is one of the most popular activities during the spooky season. However, horror movie fans like myself have believed that the genre has not been as scary lately, especially with the rise of slasher films instead of just horror films. However, this year’s lineup of horror movies: “Sinners,” “Weapons,” “Good Boy” and “The Black Phone 2,” has proven that horror movies are not only scary again but also good films.
But the question is, how did each of these movies reignite the love that horror fans have missed?
“Sinners”:
This film was released earlier this year and is considered one of the best horror films of the year, mainly because it’s a vampire film with a lot of eerie vibes. However, the main reason this horror film was great is that it was character-driven and told an interesting story about music and culture, while also being a solid vampire film, especially since the vampire sub-genre has been experiencing a huge comeback.
“Weapons”:
This film was released at the end of the summer and is now streaming on HBO MAX just in time for spooky season. This film was also a really good horror film because it was character-driven, with each character’s narrative building to the main film’s story. But the scary vibes this film had, especially in the first ten minutes, were eerie, with several jump scares. All of which shows that “Weapons” is, in fact, one of the scariest films of the year, while also having a meaningful message about trauma.
“Good Boy”:
Despite this film not being on my watchlist, this indie horror was amazing, especially since the story is told through the eyes of a dog rather than a human character. This is not only a creative idea but also dives into the theory that dogs can see things the human eye can’t, in this case, the supernatural. Not to mention that Indy the dog in this film was not trained and still gave an amazing performance.
“The Black Phone 2”:
It is common for a horror film sequel to be either bad or not as good as the original, but in this case, “The Black Phone 2” may not have been better than the original, but it was still a good sequel. Especially Ethan Hawke’s performance as the grabber, because he was still just as terrifying as he was in the first. Not to mention the supernatural and eerie elements were still there, as in the first film.
In the end, as a horror fan, horror films have gotten scarier again and the horror genre is focusing on making genuinely good films as well. Definitely a great way to end the spooky season!
Peter Caram is a columnist. Contact him at [email protected]