For those who don’t know, I am the unofficial horror reviewer at The Scarlet. To greet a new spooky school year, here are the movies I watched from last semester to the summer.
Night Swim: 2/10
This is likely the most boring movie I have watched this year. It takes the barely interesting concept of an evil wishing well pool and does nothing with it. The strange, almost comically poor acting and the unimpressive scares make for an incredibly disappointing watch, especially when I liked the trailer fairly enough. If you’re wondering if there’s any more to the plot, don’t worry. There isn’t.
Imaginary: 3/10
When single mother Jessica returns to her childhood home with her two daughters, she discovers the imaginary friend she left behind. The first hour or so is mindless and uninteresting, while the last few scenes are a strange CGI nightmare landscape of such an uncreative spirit dimension that we don’t even get to see past one hallway. The plot includes the extremely overused trope of ‘ritual to summon/destroy the entity,’ which gets increasingly dull every time it’s used and turns the movie into a repetitive scavenger hunt.
Immaculate: 4/10
American nun Sister Cecilia is invited to a convent in Italy to care for elderly nuns when she becomes part of a sinister plan to birth the messiah. The invoking of the Virgin Mary is not very compelling and reads as more pretentious than poignant. Spoiler alert, but I’m pretty sure every priest is aware that artificial insemination and immaculate conception are not the same, even if the people at this spooky Italian convent beg to differ.
Late Night With The Devil: 7/10
Late Night With The Devil is like being in a trance in all the best ways. The dreamy retro aesthetic of a 70’s television show turns into a nightmare when charismatic host Jack Delroy, played by David Dastmalchian, is faced with a possible demon in his studio. Following the death of his wife and the hiatus of his show, Jack returns to the screen with a special Halloween episode. Dastmalchian perfectly sells a sympathetic man trying to move past his grief, convincing the audience that he is just another victim in this tragedy… or so he says.
Longlegs: 9/10
FBI agent and ‘half-psychic’ Lee Harker is investigating a series of murder-suicides, and all clues lead back to her. The chilling atmosphere and disturbing imagery paired with the only dolls I’ve ever feared make this film worth the watch. While Nick Cage’s performance leaves a little to be desired, the rest of the film makes up for it multiple times over. If you want to be scared, watch Longlegs.
