Best Horror films of 2015
So as 2015 comes to a close, we must all assess what this year was to us? Personally for me it was a year of ups and downs. Some very low lows and some absolutely fantastic highs. The horror films of the year seemed to follow that same pattern. There were quite a few horror films that were released this year, however they seemed to be more misses than hits. I also noticed that some of them really divided audiences. We definitely had debates and discussions about what was good and what wasn't, so lets just get down to it, shall we?
WHAT WE DO IN THE SHADOWS
I almost left this off the list this year, not because I didn't like it, but because I actually forgot it came out this year since I saw it in theaters in it's initial limited release. Special thanks to Ryan Turek for the reminder, because I would have been extra pissed at myself if I didn't include this one. What We Do in the Shadows is first and foremost a comedy, a brilliant and hilarious comedy. Still, it is also a vampire movie and one of the best I have seen. The documentary styled story of 4 vampire roommates and their newly turned "friend" sets the stage for a film that respects the vampire stories and myths that have come before and manages to show just how inconvenient being a vampire can actually be. The cast are all brilliant, it would be hard to choose a favorite here as Clement, Waititi, Brugh and the rest of the bunch are all at their best, with their comedic timing being impeccable. There is plenty of blood shed in this film that help it fall in the horror genre and it is simply genius the way it infuses vampire lore from different time periods, and laugh out loud comedy all into one amazing package.
As a huge fan of Flight of the Conchords I was excited to see this film and so glad I got to see it in a packed theater as the crowds obvious enjoyment of it made it that much more of an enjoyable experience. I will say it isn't for everyone and the understated humor will go over a lot of peoples heads and the A.D.D. viewers will undoubtedly miss some of the funnier and subtle jokes when they aren't paying attention. This is the first of THREE horror comedies we have on our list this year, which says something about the quality of serious horror films released this year. What We Do in the Shadows is a must see for vampire and horror fans.
THE FINAL GIRLS
I would classify the Final Girls as a horror comedy, which generally are not my thing, but this one is more than just your run of the mill horror comedy. This film is a passionate love letter to Friday the 13th, The Burning and other camp slashers of the 80's. We unfortunately did not have a chance to review it at the time we saw it, but we did make sure to spread the word.
The Final Girls tells the story of a group of friends who end up inside a fictional 80's camp slasher and have to figure out how to make it home while trying to survive the attacks by the hulking masked, machete wielding, Jason Voorhees homage, Billy Murphy. That is about all I really want to give away for those that haven't seen it.
Director Todd Strauss-Schulson delivers stylish and vibrant visuals that make the film jump off of the screen. He truly delivers one of the most beautiful looking films we have seen this year and we look forward to seeing what he does next. The films score by
Full of laughs (many of which, expertly delivered by Workaholics Adam Devine), the Final Girls is still at it's core a story about a mother and her daughter, and it is this story that injects the film with a great deal of heart, that will certainly cause some viewers to tear and choke up. Much credit must be given to Taissa Farmiga and Malin Ackerman, who anchor the entire film with their heartfelt performances.
While many will say it's not a full on horror film, and shouldn't be on this list, particularly with it's PG-13 rating. The Final Girls is just a really well put together film and quite possibly in a sense, the best Friday the 13th film made in years. If that is not worthy of year end, best of horror list. I don't know what is.
KRAMPUS
Last Shift was probably the surprise of the year for me. I knew absolutely nothing about it as it snuck under my radar and I opted to just go in blind without so much as a trailer watch. What followed was a simple yet effectively creepy tale of a rookie police officer Jessica Loren on her first night on the job, in an empty police department on it's final night of operation. As you can imagine, things go bad as Jessica begins to encounter strange and horrific occurrences as the night goes on.
In our review for the film (which you can read here ) I likened it to the type of horror and storytelling found in the best of the Silent Hill video games. Which is about the highest praise I can give something given that I hold those in high esteem as some of the greatest horror experiences available. Much of director Anthony DiBlasi's film hinges on the performance of it's lead Juliana Harkavy. The rest of the small cast deliver solid performances, but Harkavy is especially up to the task and delivers a well balanced, believable performance while carrying the majority of the film on her shoulders. With a lesser talent this role could have crippled the film, and it would have failed, but she holds everything together. Much needs to be said about DiBlasi's restrained approach to the direction, as the film unfolds and the horror escalates, it never feels cheesy or laughable, the serious tone is kept throughout and just as with the lead actress, with a lesser talent in the directors chair the film could have stumbled greatly.
While this years crop of horror was in my opinion not the strongest, Last Shift would have ended up high on our list no matter it's company, it's a strong and serious horror film, that plays up the creepy imagery and gives us something a fresh as well with the police horror angle. Last Shift is also proof again that going into a horror movie knowing nothing about it can easily yield the best results. It must also be noted that the consensus from friends and people on social media seem to be mostly positive. Which is no small feat, but well deserved.
OUR HORROR FILM OF THE YEAR : IT FOLLOWS
Well, here it is. Our 2015 horror film of the year. IT FOLLOWS. One of the most divisive horror films I can remember in recent years. It Follows split audiences down the middle, those that loved it and those that hated it. I have heard all the complaints and reasons from the "Hate it" camp and I could not disagree more.
It Follows (which we reviewed here ) for us, was akin to watching someones nightmare unfold on screen. The overwhelming sense of dread that permeates the film is just one part of that. It Follows explores death and the realization of ones own mortality through the eyes of a group of teenagers (played to realistic perfection by Maika Monroe and the rest of her fellow castmates). It Follows doesn't rely on gore for its horror but rather a restrained sense of impending doom and an underlying creepiness throughout, capped off with what has to be considered the horror score of the year by Disasterpiece. The camera work here by director David Robert Mitchell is superb and has a vibe reminiscent of the original Halloween, particularly the opening scene. I don't want to simply rehash our review for the film so I will end by saying that It Follows landed it's spot as our horror film of the year because it delivered everything we hoped for when we sat down in the theater. A creepy, haunting film that was well directed, acted and scored. Everyone is entitled to their opinions on what a horror movie should be, and we hope and wish for more to be like It Follows. Maybe next year,
Honorable Mentions:
ASH VS THE EVIL DEAD
I don't think anyone really held out hope for a new Ash-centric Evil Dead movie after the release (and lackluster fan response to 2013's Evil Dead remake/reboot film. While I happened to enjoy it quite a bit upon that first viewing, and loved the look of it, it simply wasn't the Evil Dead without Ash. I have never been a big Army of Darkness fan as I prefer Evil Dead 1 and 2, but was happy and surprised to see that Ash was actually returning to the Evil Dead franchise. Of course I didn't think it would be any good. So after I watched the first episode, I was surprised by how much I enjoyed it and how much "Old Ash" worked. It was as good a sequel that we could have hoped for and every time I watch an episode I find myself thinking "I can't believe I am watching an Evil Dead TV series and it's good." The show manages to keep all the trademarks of the films and the humor more often than not is spot on. There are a few weak spots here and there and not every episode has been great, but they have all been entertaining and seeing Ash back in action is really just a great deal of fun. While granted, it is a TV show and not a film, I think most Evil Dead and Ash fans will agree this is a legitimate sequel to the Evil Dead franchise and it is a satisfying one at that! That is something I don't think anyone would have expected a year ago and makes it deserving of being on this list without a doubt.
WE ARE STILL HERE
We Are Still Here was a film I was really hoping to love when I sat down to watch it. I didn't watch any trailers (and as usual I was glad I didn't) and I was just anticipating it based on the poster alone. In the end I ended up thinking it was only okay after my initial watch. I couldn't put my finger on why it didn't necessarily connect with it initially, but I do remember having somewhat of an issue with the performances, as something just felt off to me. With more time to think about it I opted to give it another watch and found I enjoyed it much more on my second viewing with most things coming together for me. It is in fact a classy old fashioned ghost story that takes it's time setting up it's brutally impressive payoff. This is one of those instances where perhaps I hoped for something else and didn't get what I wanted initially. Ultimately though, director Ted Goeghegan and his cast that includes horror regulars Barbara Crampton and Larry Fessenden put together one of the better genre entries of this past year. It may not be for everyone, especially those with a shorter attention span, still it's worthy of a look as I think most horror fans will find something to like about it.
INSIDIOUS CHAPTER 3
Insidious chapter 3 was not everything I had hoped it would be prior to seeing it, but it did enough things right to warrant this honorable mention. I was actually very much into it 2/3 of the way through it, then it kind of veered off into the Elise doing hand to hand combat with ghosts stuff I didn't care for in the previous installment and that kind of took me out of it. Still for much of it's early running time I found it to be quite an effective horror film. It was obvious that there was a lot of love put into it by director Leigh Whannell, his cast and his crew, who got the most out of their budget. That went a long way for me to focus more on the positives of the film. Granted for those that don't care for the series this one probably won't change any opinions on it, still, Whannell crafts some genuinely cool and inventive sequences throughout and Insidious Chapter 3 ended up being a story worth telling after all.
CREEP
A late entry to this list, but still deserving. As a fan of Mark Duplass I was interested in seeing what he could do here, as I mostly associate him with his character Pete on FX's Fantasy Football Comedy The League. So I as usual went in knowing little to nothing about it and was caught off guard by it being a documentary styled found footage flick. This worked well though as the set up calls for it and explains why everything is being filmed in the first place. To be totally honest, about 1/3 of the way through Creep, I was saying to myself "This is dumb" yet I also noticed that as the film proceeded on I became more and more on edge. The tension and suspense was all there and that meant the film was doing it's job. Duplass plays the titular creep to perfection and the entire film keeps you guessing as to what he will do next. Everyone who has seen the film knows about peachfuzz, Duplass characters werewolf mask, which I bring up because even though I knew it was coming the second "peachfuzz" reveal is chilling. Creep is an effective little film that won't be for everyone, especially the anti-found footage crowd, but for those who can give it a chance, they may find it to be a frighteningly uneasy watch.
EX MACHINA
The only reason Ex Machina is not in the actual best of list and only an honorable mention is because for me while it certainly has some horrific aspects, it is first and foremost a sci fi film. So with that being said, it is a fantastic sci fi film that features brilliant performances by all 3 of it's lead actors who are all at the top of their game here. Particularly Alicia Vikander who is a revelation here. The production design coupled with Alex Garlands razor sharp direction all led to a very personal and quaint story about god complex and the age old questions about the dangers of Artificial Intelligence. Ex Machina is a must watch.
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