Summer’s coming to an end, and you know what that means: Spooky season will be here before you know it.
But even though the Halloween merch hasn’t replaced the back-to-school supplies just yet, 2023 has given horror movie fans plenty to love so far. There’s been a killer robot doll spawning online memes, an embalmed hand that’s the next best thing to a seance, the pope’s exorcist (who looks an awfully lot like Russell Crowe) and a demonic maggot mommy.
With Dracula-filled period thriller “The Last Voyage of the Demeter” in theaters this weekend, we’re ranking the best horror movies so far this year:
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15. ‘Insidious: The Red Door’
Patrick Wilson directs and stars in the fifth “Insidious” as haunted dad Josh Lambert, who alongside his now-estranged college-age son Dalton (Ty Simpkins) has to venture back into the frightening realm of The Further. The infamous Lipstick-Face Demon also shows up in a rather insightful outing about dealing with your past traumas in the present rather than ignoring them.
Where to watch: Apple TV, Vudu, Amazon
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14. ‘The Blackening’
A group of old friends gathering for a Juneteenth reunion find a board game that wants them to pick the Blackest member of their group – or else! (Did we mention they’re being stalked by a killer in a blackface mask?) Director Tim Story’s horror satire nods to flicks like “Scream” and “Saw” with a clever script and sharp social commentary.
Where to watch: Apple TV, Vudu, Amazon
13. ‘Scream VI’
Jenna Ortega and Melissa Barrera’s survivor sisters escaped 2022’s fifth franchise film alive but aren’t pleased that stabby antagonist Ghostface has followed them from Woodsboro to New York City. Full of meta riffs and self-references, the latest chapter doesn’t break the mold but uses its franchise history in an intriguing way to craft the most vicious “Scream” of them all.
Where to watch:Paramount+, Apple TV, Vudu, Amazon
12. ‘Skinamarink’
Those needing a creepy, discombobulating experience, come on down for this polarizing found-footage-esque film. Two young kids wake up in the middle of the night and can’t find their dad, leading to an unnerving time spent watching cartoons and wondering what the heck’s wrong with mom. It’s a kid nightmare come to sleepless life where even a toy phone gives you the heebie-jeebies.
Where to watch:Shudder, Hulu
11. ‘Beau Is Afraid’
Ari Aster is a go-to filmmaker for enjoyably batty and deranged narratives. His newest, a dark comedy with elements of horror and epic adventure, stars Joaquin Phoenix as a middle-aged sad sack who learns his mom has died and takes one seriously weird Homeric journey home that puts his life and mental health in danger. It doesn’t make a whole lot of sense but works as a relatably gonzo tale about anxieties and parental issues.
Where to watch: Apple TV, Vudu, Amazon
10. ‘Brooklyn 45’
Set just after the end of WWII, this mix of supernatural thriller and locked-room spy mystery centers on a widowed colonel (Larry Fessenden) who invites pals, including an interrogator (Anne Ramsay) and an accused war criminal (Jeremy Holm), to his home − but not just for any old reunion. He’s planned a seance to talk with his dead wife, leading to a frightful night dealing with sins of the past and ghosts of war.
Where to watch: Shudder
9. ‘The Pope’s Exorcist’
Russell Crowe splendidly takes on the role of Father Gabriele Amorth, a real-life figure who worked as the Vatican’s resident exorcist, in this nifty hell-raising franchise starter. In the 1980s-set biopic/mystery/scare fest, Crowe’s whiskey-drinking, scooter-riding Italian holy man travels to Spain to deal with a possibly possessed boy and uncovers a centuries-old conspiracy.
Where to watch: Apple TV, Vudu, Amazon (and on Netflix Aug. 16)
8. ‘Final Cut’
The Oscar-nominated director and supporting actress of best picture winner “The Artist’ – Michel Hazanavicius and wife Bérénice Bejo – return with this downright hilarious French meta zombie comedy redo of Japan’s “One Cut of the Dead.” Romain Duris plays a filmmaker hired to do a live one-take 30-minute horror show and chaos reigns when many things go awry, from camera mishaps to an undead extra’s bout with diarrhea.
Where to watch: In theaters
7. ‘Evil Dead Rise’
The latest delightfully demented “Evil Dead” film centers on a LA family, where a bit of teenage curiosity unlocks the Book of the Dead and unleashes dark demonic forces once again. Alyssa Sutherland’s possessed, tormenting mom is a phenomenally nasty piece of work, there’s one exceptional use of a cheese grater, and the endlessly bloody finale is a must-see.
Where to watch: Max, Apple TV, Vudu, Amazon
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6. ‘Huesera: The Bone Woman’
In director Michelle Garza Cervera’s wicked debut feature, Natalia Solián stars as a pregnant young Mexican woman who becomes cursed by a dark supernatural force. She reaches out to a group of witches for help in an impressive body horror film full of disturbingly freaky imagery that doubles as a thoughtful look at motherhood and queer identity.
Where to watch: Shudder
5. ‘Knock at the Cabin’
M. Night Shyamalan throws together an apocalyptic doozy of an existential nightmare. Jonathan Groff, Ben Aldridge and Kristen Cui star as a family vacationing at a Pennsylvania cabin that’s invaded by armed strangers – including their massive leader (Dave Bautista) – with a stomach-turning order: sacrifice a loved one or doom mankind. Bautista is fantastic in a well-crafted thriller that’s less bleak than it sounds.
Where to watch: Prime Video, Apple TV, Vudu
4. ‘M3GAN’
In a thriller armed with slasher gusto, “Black Mirror”-esque satire and social media savvy, a robotics engineer (Allison Williams) creates a cutting-edge android doll, “pairs” it with her 9-year-old orphaned niece, and discovers that wasn’t a great idea. M3GAN herself is a hoot as a 21st-century mean-girl version of Chucky starring in a sharply satirical take on parenting and modern technology.
Where to watch: Prime Video, Apple TV, Vudu
3. ‘Cobweb’
Eight-year-old Peter (Woody Norman) is bullied at school but finds no sanctuary at home either: Constant taps arise from inside his bedroom wall and his cold parents (Lizzy Caplan and Antony Starr) would rather that he knock it off, thank you very much. But after the mysterious presence begins talking to him, Peter acts out violently and starts to think his mom and dad are hiding something in this effective family horror show.
Where to watch: Apple TV, Vudu, Amazon
2. ‘The Angry Black Girl and Her Monster’
This is how you resurrect a classic horror story: In Bomani J. Story’s timely modernization of the “Frankenstein” myth, a gifted teen girl (Laya DeLeon Hayes) is horrified when her big brother is gunned down in a gang shooting and experiments on his and other body parts to bring him back to life. He does return, to a monstrous degree, and she’s forced to face the ramifications of her creation.
Where to watch: Apple TV, Vudu, Amazon
1. ‘Talk to Me’
Australian twin brothers Danny and Michael Philippou announce themselves as essential young horror voices with this unforgettable indie chiller (which already has a sequel on the way). And Sophie Wilde is this year’s top new scream queen starring as a teen attending a party where kids gets high by inviting spirits into their bodies via a mysterious embalmed hand. She bends the “rules” and everyone’s lives turn ghastly in a film that brilliantly blends old-school frights with fears for the TikTok generation.
Where to watch: In theaters
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