October 22, 2020 | dw_richards
Welcome to our final week! We've spent much of this month looking towards the past and at some horror masterpieces. So, for this final week I thought it was only fitting to look at the 21st century with some films already considered or destined to be modern classics. Everything comes to a head on the big day, Halloween, with a double feature of two of the most unsettling and scary films released in the past three years
Monday, October 26th- The Descent (2005)
Available via Hoopla
The Descent is one of all my time favorite horror films. Partly because it's a masterclass in building tension, and partly because it features some fantastic character arcs. It's a film about a group of women spelunkers who find themselves trapped in a cave with a mysterious, monstrous, and very hungry force. The reveal of exactly what is in the caves with them is one of the best jump scare reveals of any horror movie, IMO.
Tuesday, October 27th- A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night (2014)
Available via DVD Hoopla Kanopy
A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night is an Iranian vampire movie, but that's not all it is. It's also got elements of romance, spaghetti westerns, and crime stories. So it's an incredible cocktail of Persian flavored pulp. The film is about a skateboarding, female vampire living and feeding in a fictional district of Iran called "Bad City," which is home to all sorts of down and out ne'er do wells, and a man she meets who is struggling to survive.
Wednesday October 28th- The Witch (2015)
This film debut from writer/director Robert Eggers is an incredible slow burn horror movie. It's set in 1630 and tells the tale of a religious family who's built a farm on the outskirts of a large, secluded, forest in New England. One day, the youngest family member vanishes and his disappearance causes the family to unravel. The film is full of creepy twists and turns, and features a powerful and unnerving climax.
Thursday, October 29th- Underwater (2020)
Available via DVD
Horror is all about exploring primal fears, and there is no phobia more potent than that of the unknown. So, it makes sense that there would be an entire subgenre of horror dedicated to the unknown things that lurk in the depths of one our world's last frontiers, the oceans. This film from director, William Eubank is a perfect example of why the aquatic horror subgenre has such a passionate fan base. It features incredible effects and great performances. It follows a team of ocean researchers literally plunged into a desperate fight for survival when their undersea drilling disturbs something that lurks in the deep, dark depths of the Marianas Trench.
Friday October 30th- Extra Ordinary (2020)
Our final horror comedy is sweet, silly, Irish film about a lonely, small-town driving instructor with supernatural talents. An equally lonely widower calls on her to use her otherworldly gifts to save his daughter who's been ensnared in the black magic machinations of a washed up rock star looking to reignite his fame with a satanic pact. The film is laugh out loud funny and features a number of great performances. Maeve Higgins is excellent as the lead character, but SNL's Will Forte and Claudia O'Doherty steal every scene they're in. They play the film's villain and his very demanding wife.
Saturday October 31st- Hereditary (2018) & Midsommar (2019)
Available via DVD: Hereditary Midsommar Kanopy: Hereditary Midsommar
We've arrived at the big day, and our final double feature. I think it's only fitting that we close out Halloween and our week of soon to be and contemporary classics with a double feature by a writer/director who took the horror world by storm with a back to back release of two of the scariest films of the 21st century. I'm talking about Ari Aster. In his debut film, Hereditary, he chronicled a family's struggle against mysterious forces with sinister designs on them. Then, one year later, he gave horror fans, Midsommar, a film about an American couple in a floundering relationship that travels with their friends to a mysterious Swedish midsummer film. The result is a film that plays like a mash up of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and The Wicker Man. Yes, it's that intense.