Fraidy-cats: Humanist Vampire Seeking Consenting Suicidal Person (2023). A quirked-up romcom version of Let the Right One In, and I mean that in the best way possible. And honestly? If asked? I would joyously consent to drain my blood into juice boxes for Sasha, the humanist vampire in question. I could save her.

Terror tourists: Your Monster (2024). Scream queen (and erstwhile Scream queen) Melissa Barerra plays Laura, a theatre kid/doormat whose theatre kid boyfriend breaks up with her in the hospital because her cancer treatment is too much for him. As she recovers in her childhood home, Laura reconnects with the monster living in her closet, and with her sense of self. This one has a controversial ending that I’m still split about myself, so I’m eager to hear your thoughts!

Thrill-seekers: Stoker (2013). Stoker is a movie for the freaks, like most of Park Chan-wook’s movies. Our gothic queen Mia Wasikowska stars as a little weirdo mourning her father’s death, and judging mother Nicole Kidman’s noted lack of mourning. Into this uneasy family dynamic slides hot uncle Matthew Goode, who seems like at least as much of a weirdo as his niece. Is he dangerous? Is she dangerous? Is this beautiful a match cut even allowed??

Fraidy-cats: Sleep (2023). Hyeon-soo is a struggling actor, though he doesn’t seem to feel the “struggle” part of anything—consciously, anyway. Consciously, he’s a cheerful guy and a sweet, doting partner. But when he’s unconscious, he becomes a sleepwalking stranger, prone to eating raw meat from the fridge and clawing at his face. This would be bad enough on its own, but his wife Soo-jin is expecting a baby, and would rather not raise this child with someone who may be turning into some kind of were-zombie.

Terror tourists: Exhuma (2024). One of my favourite watches of 2024. A weird, gnarly, and unexpectedly funny ghost story about how the un-interrogated sins of the past can doom the future. One of those sins is colonialism, so be prepared to dive into Korea’s colonial history with Japan once the credits roll.

Thrill-seekers: The Wailing (2016). The lingering scars of colonialism also play a big part in this supernatural noir epic. We follow police officer Jong-goo as he investigates a mysterious illness that infects his young daughter, and appears tied to some equally mysterious murders in his village. It’s impossible to know who to trust or what to be afraid of, which makes for a relentless viewing experience. Thrilling and absorbing, to be sure; but utterly relentless.

Fraidy-cats: Final Destination: Bloodlines (2025). Its surprising to me, actually, that I haven’t ranked the Final Destination series here yet. I can do that this month if y'all want, but just know that Bloodlines would be right at the top of the list. It took this franchise six movies to realize that we don’t need detestable characters to make these Rube Goldberg murder machinations incredibly fun to watch. In fact, making the characters relatable and likable actually makes the whole movie better. Who woulda thought?

Terror tourists: The Ugly Stepsister (2025). This Cinderella adaptation is not what I expected it to be. For some reason, I expected the ugly stepsister, Elvira, to go on a roaring rampage of revenge for most of the film. There’s definitely rampaging, but it’s more of the self-mutilation variety—specifically, the emotional and physical self-mutilation that impossible beauty standards endorse and enforce. If you’re a fan of the original story’s grotesque roots, I think you’ll love this one.

Thrill-seekers: Talk to Me (2022). I will never watch the sequel, Bring Her Back, because apparently the sequel divests itself of all the fun and lightness of the original. Which seems like a pretty tall order, because I wouldn’t call this movie light. It’s definitely fun, considering it’s about what happens when you let angry demonic spirits possess you for too long at a house party. But it’s also pretty grim!

Fraidy-cats: Influencer (2022). I find most complaints about influencers to be pretty dull, unexamined misogyny, and that’s honestly what I was expecting from this movie. How refreshing, then, that this brisk little travel horror flick was much more about the kind of isolation that a social media-centered life both obscures and enables, and how loneliness makes all of us a bit careless and easy to manipulate.

Terror tourists: Companion (2025). If you’ve managed to avoid trailers and promo images for this movie so far, I urge you to keep it that way. The only trailer worth watching is this one. Other than that, I’ll just say this: Sophie Thatcher is the coolest girl in school, Harvey Guillén is my favourite little fussbudget, and Jack Quaid continues to do exactly what I want him to do. This movie also contains one of my fave needle drop jokes of the year—IYKYK.

Thrill-seekers: Cure (1997). If there are any jokes in this movie, I can’t remember them. I just remember this movie absolutely throbbing with loneliness, and being genuinely alarmed every time someone in this literal murder mystery gets murdered. And I’ve said it before, but I’ll say it again—Starring my one true love, The Gangster from Tampopo.

Fraidy-cats: Werewolves Within (2021). I didn’t realize this movie was based on a video game until I was about halfway through it, so I cant speak to whether it’s a good adaptation. I can say that it’s a really good time, though! Because any movie that has the good sense to cast Sam “Splett” Richardson and Milana “AT&T” Vayntrub as the leads is pretty committed to showing you a good time. This one falls pretty squarely on the “comedy” side of horror-comedy, so even the werewolf violence is silly rather than scary.

Terror tourists: An American Werewolf in London (1981). A moldy oldie, perhaps, but a goodie in my book. Everything about this movie is super ‘80s, in that everyone is wearing a million shades of brown, the tonal shifts are abrupt, and the makeup effects are so practical that you want to reach out and touch them. Those practical effects are what this movie stays known for, as it contains the best werewolf transformation scene of all time; but it is also sweet, and funny, and melancholy, the way a werewolf movie should be.

Thrill-seekers: The Wolf of Snow Hollow (2020). This werewolf movie really leans into the melancholy. Something that seems an awful lot like a werewolf is menacing Snow Hollow, UT, a reality that threatens Deputy Sheriff Marshall’s already shaky grasp on his sanity. Every death weighs heavily on the town and on his unspooling mind, but the dark humour keeps things from being too haunting.

Terror tourists: Watcher (2022). Another scream queen enters the villa! Maika Monroe moves to Bucharest for her unimpressive husband’s job. The two of them have a classic horror movie apartment—cold and lonely, with a massive picture window that defies curtains or blinds. It would be creepy enough even if there weren’t a serial killer going around and decapitating women, a fact that Maika’s husband seems determined to minimize.

Terror tourists: Resurrection (2022). Yet another from my beloved Depressed Rebecca Hall Cinematic Universe. In this movie, she plays a Woman Who Is Doing Just Fine about her daughter’s impending departure for college, until she starts seeing—or thinks she starts seeing—an abusive man from her past. This man is played by Tim Roth, an actor I absolutely loathe, which helped!1

Thrill-seekers: Speak No Evil (2024). Look. Apparently this English language remake of the 2022 Danish original really defangs the original’s ending. Having read the recap of the original, I can own that I’m completely fine with that! I have limits! James McAvoy has a typically great time playing an incredibly charming and increasingly unhinged man, who his new vacation buddy Scoot McNairy finds equally alluring and emasculating. One thing about Scoot McNairy—he is never playing someone who has a good handle on things. In this case, he does not have a good handle on how to stick up for himself, his wife, or his daughter, even when their lives are in danger. Get it together, Scoot!