Features and Columns · Lists · Movies

The 50 Best Sundance Horror Movie Premieres

‘Hereditary’ made a big splash at last year’s Sundance, but it’s not the only horror movie to have premiered at the film festival. Here are 49 others.
Sundance Horror Movies
By  · Published on January 23rd, 2019

40. Hellions (2015)

Hellions

A pregnant teenager is terrorized by trick-or-treaters on Halloween night. As the night goes on it becomes clear that these little demon kids are after more than candy. While the story is incoherent, with little distinction as to what’s real and what isn’t, the film effectively musters up a number of scares making it a great Halloween watch. (Chris Coffel)


39. In Fear (2013)

In Fear

A couple en route to a music festival decide to spend the night in a remote hotel. The only downside is that some mysterious prankster has changed the road signs to send them on a wild goose chase. Then trees start mysteriously falling, people appear in the woods, and they pick up a mysterious hitchhiker. After that, the intrigue and mystery built during the early stages culminate in a predictable and underwhelming finale. (Kieran Fisher)


38. Donkey Punch (2008)

Donkey Punch

Three silly women make the mistake of joining four pricks on a boat trip, and soon the ladies are fighting for their lives after an accidental death ruins the mood for everyone. Director Olly Blackburn delivers a very attractive movie thanks to the bright, sunny seascape and visually appealing cast, but hoo boy are these people obnoxious and unlikable. A film like this needs characters worth rooting for, but instead, we’re hoping the boat sinks and takes them all with it. (Rob Hunter)


37. Psycho Beach Party (2000)

Psycho Beach Party

Horror/comedies are a tough nut to crack, and full-on spoofs are ever more difficult to get right. This stab at it blends a Gidget-like world with a slasher film, and while it doesn’t always hit its target — roughly half of the gags truly land — there’s definite fun to be had here. Lauren Ambrose, Thomas Gibson, and Nicholas Brendon are the familiar faces having fun while Charles Busch delivers the most memorable character as police captain Monica Stark. (Rob Hunter)


36. Life After Beth (2014)

Life After Beth

While out on a hike alone, Beth falls victim to a snake bite, leaving her parents and her boyfriend, Zach, in a state of disarray. A few days after the funeral, Beth reappears alive and well. Zach sees this as a chance to fix his past relationship problems, but things head south when he discovers Beth is now a bloodthirsty zombie. Aubrey Plaza gives a knockout performance in this charming, fun zom-rom-com. (Chris Coffel)


35. The Broken (2008)

The Broken

Lena Headly is always reason enough to watch a film, especially when she’s in a lead role as juicy as she is in this psychological horror thriller. She plays a woman who one day sees her own doppelganger, and while the possibility exists that she’s simply going mad a far darker explanation rears its head to satisfy Twilight Zone junkies like myself. It’s a solid little chiller and well worth seeking out. (Rob Hunter)


34. The Violent Kind (2010)

The Violent Kind

This is one of those movies that aims to pack as many ideas into the blender as possible because why not. Most viewers will find the genre-hopping and tonal shifts too much, but there’s a subset of film fans out there who appreciate ambitious messes like this. The basic premise revolves around a biker gang whose lives are rocked when some hillbillies from the 1950s appear to make their lives a nightmare. After that, the movie becomes something else entirely. The Violent Kind isn’t a coherent movie, but it certainly isn’t a boring one. (Kieran Fisher)


33. 7 Days (2010)

Days

Ah yes, the distant cousin of the rape-revenge film: the avenging dad film. The first feature from Quebecois director Daniel Grou, 7 Days isn’t for the weak stomach’d. The film follows a doctor who kidnaps and tortures his daughter’s assailant and while decidedly not a fun watch, 7 Days is more reflexive than its torture porn precedent would suggest. We’ve seen this story many times, but 7 Days delivers an unnerving study of violence that feels far more meditative and dramatic than those of its peers. If you’re in the right mood, 7 Days is a rewarding watch. (Meg Shields)


32. Frozen (2010)

Frozen

Many horror movies have premiered at Sundance. Few have been as primed from the start for a snowy Sundance premiere more than Frozen. The film takes a simple idea — a group of skiers get trapped on a ski lift overnight — and turns it into one of the most unnerving film experiences you could imagine. It’s no surprise that there were reports of audience members fainting from tension when the film screened at the festival in 2010. I can’t imagine anyone being capable of making it through Frozen without biting their nails down to the skin. (Anna Swanson)


31. The Hallow (2015)

The Hallow

Towards the beginning of The Hallow, husband Adam discovers a strange, decomposing animal carcass while on a walk in the woods. With the fungal aberration growing from the dead thing, Corin Hardy has already done what makes the film so memorable: building the world with an unusual mythos that stokes the curiosity of its viewer. The film, about a couple fighting to protect their baby from carnivorous forest creatures, casts a dour note across its story with pointed sound design that racks up the films unbreakable tension. Most effective though are Hardy’s elaborately calculated scare set pieces which undoubtedly gave way to his Conjuring-verse film, The Nun, filled with similar atmospheric frights. (Jacob Trussell)


Next Page

Pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6

Related Topics: , ,

An author similar to Hydra. Its articles have many authors. It has many heads. Please don’t cut off any of its heads, we’re trying to work here.