With fall officially upon us, it's time to fire up the horror classics like Halloween, Nightmare on Elm Street, and Friday the 13th. Revisiting these films we’ve seen over and over gets us into the Halloween spirit!
However, it is not just a time for reliving our spooky childhood memories. It is also a time for exploring new, unseen horror movies. Few cinematic experiences rival seeing a good horror movie for the first time.
Nothing says Halloween like sitting in suspense as scares lurk around the corner and disturbing new visuals engrave themselves in our brains forever.
There are plenty of good horror movies on the docket in 2024, many of which are coming out this fall, but the under-the-radar titles are where the real scares lie. Some of the best new horror movies are the unexpected ones that come out without a ton of fanfare.
I think back to seeing The Blair Witch Project in 1999, Paranormal Activity in 2007, or even 2022’s Smile and yearn for that experience every year!
Finding those hidden gems, from big studios and indie filmmakers alike, has become a favorite pastime for horror lovers. It is certainly one of my favorite things to do every August and September!
There are quite a few promising titles on the horizon that fit this bill, but here are three upcoming films that have the best chance to become true staples in the horror genre for years to come:
Little Bites
Written and directed by Spider One, the frontman for Powerman 5000 and the younger brother of Rob Zombie, Little Bites features a chilling premise that is sure to leave parents uneasy for a long time.
This film centers around a protective widow and a young daughter who have a terrifying monster living in their home. In order to spare her daughter, the mother allows this monster to slowly eat her alive by taking little bites of her flesh.
As if allowing your flesh to be eaten by a monster isn’t terrifying enough, the mother in this movie also makes the decision to tell her daughter that the monster in their house is real.
At one point in the trailer, we see this monster ask for the little girl. That moment was what solidified this as one of the scariest trailers in recent memory.
Concluding with a panicked mother and daughter staring at an open door wondering where the monster got to, this movie is sure to be one that has audiences sleeping with the lights on.
Little Bites seems to tap into the fear and dread of impossible choices. It forces the viewer to put themselves in the mother’s shoes.
Then once you’re incredibly uncomfortable, powerful imagery and tense music drive your heart rate through the roof. This has potential to be the best horror movie of 2024.
Little Bites comes to theaters on October 4th.
Bagman
Apparently, the theme of this fall is the lengths parents will go to and the fears they will face in order to protect their kids. Bagman tells the story of a horrifying monster, called The Bagman, who preys on and eats scared and anxious children.
He lures them to remote areas with candy and snatches them in what appears to be a body bag. Sam Claflin plays a father who grew up with a dad who used tales of The Bagman to make sure he and his brother behaved.
Now, with a child of his own, he learns that this monster is real. He and his wife go to great lengths to protect their son.
The Bagman character seems to follow a long line of terrifying fables told to children, such as the Boogeyman, Slenderman, and Bloody Mary. Based on some exposition from what appears to be a therapist in the trailer, the movie does a pretty solid job explaining the lore of this child-eating monster. This gives the villain depth and draws the viewer into the story from the jump.
Tapping into the scary nostalgia we felt as kids when we believed in such stories is a surefire way to scare us as adults and to get the audience on your side early.
The Bagman could become a classic horror villain in the same vein as some of our other favorites! I can see haunted houses incorporating him into their schemes and people turning to this horrifying character for Halloween costume inspiration.
Bagman is in theaters now.
Never Let Go
Never Let Go centers on a mother, played by Halle Berry, and her two young children. They have been haunted by a mysterious evil force for years.
In a chilling scene in the trailer, the three of them are seen tethering to one another with a long rope and walking out in varying directions.
Before they leave, Halle Berry asks them to “remind the house why we deserve its protection.” Then they recite a prayer or poem of some sort that they believe will protect them.
While the viewer watches the three family members walking we get very quick cuts of some creepy monsters and pure chaos.
The setting of this film will only add to the experience. It is in an old house set deep in the woods. It also seems to be the centerpiece of their protective prayer/poem/chant/incantation or whatever it is their reciting.
While the film was originally titled Motherland, Never Let Go seems to be more appropriate as this is the motto this family uses before their tethered excursions. Halle Berry’s character reminds them not to let go of the rope!
Her warning to them “One touch, without a rope on, is all it takes” is ominous and engaging because we don’t know what she means.
One touch of what? And what happens if you touch it without a rope?
This was a great trailer for a film that looks like it is going to be an underrated addition to the great history of horror filmmaking.
Never Let Go is in theaters now!
