Sinners

Black Panther director Ryan Coogler takes a bite out of the vampire-horror genre in his fifth film collaboration with actor Michael B. Jordan.

In the Deep South during the Jim Crow era, twin brothers Smoke and Stack (Jordan in a dual role) return to their hometown in Mississippi, where Stack runs into his old flame Mary (Hailee Steinfeld) and Smoke reunites with his estranged wife Annie (Wunmi Mosaku).

But it’s not just long-buried relationships that are being reawakened — the brothers’ brand-new juke joint soon attracts the attention of the undead, led by the Irish bloodsucker Remmick (Jack O’Connell), on opening night. They’re thirsty as hell, and it’s not for the moonshine …

Sinners isn’t just a scare-fest — Coogler smuggles in hefty themes, such as the oppression of Black people in America, into the movie. But none of its thematic explorations feel heavy-handed or clunky. At turns terrifying, sexy, and smart, Sinners is, as trade magazine Variety says, a “wild throat-ripping blowout”.

The Gorge

In this high-concept Apple TV+ horror-romance from Doctor Strange director Scott Derrickson, Miles Teller (Top Gun: Maverick) and Anya Taylor-Joy (Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga) play two elite snipers from different worlds finding common ground. Sent to guard opposite sides of a top-secret, foggy chasm for a year, Levi (Teller) and Drasa (Taylor-Joy) are forbidden from communicating with their counterpart. Their mission: keep whatever is in the gorge from getting out.

As the days turn to months and fleeting glances become longing gazes, the two strangers begin to set their sights on each other. One of them attempts to bridge the gap in their literal long-distance relationship by scrawling messages to the other party, and quickly, friendship — maybe even a romance — blossoms. But as sparks fly, the threats also mount, and they will both have to face the abominable horrors that lie between them.

Locked

Self-driving cars may be the future, but in this twisted sci-fi horror, they’re straight out of a nightmare.

Eddie (Bill Skarsgård), a small-time crook with a soft spot for his daughter, thinks he’s scored big when he stumbles upon an unlocked luxury SUV in an empty parking lot. But the moment he gets inside, the doors seal shut — and the nightmare begins. With no phone signal, no way out, and windows that block all view from the outside, Eddie is trapped in a high-tech prison on wheels.

Then comes the voice. Enter William (Anthony Hopkins), the car’s unseen owner, who begins a sadistic game of psychological and physical torment — remotely controlling the car’s systems to freeze, fry, and electrocute Eddie at will. What follows is a tense, claustrophobic battle of wits and willpower, as Eddie fights to survive the ultimate vehicular hell.

A remake of the Argentinian thriller 4x4, Locked cranks up the tension with a chilling concept and a powerhouse solo performance by Skarsgård, who’s now a certified horror heavyweight thanks to roles in It, Nosferatu, and Barbarian. If you’re into tech nightmares and slow-burn dread, buckle up: Locked is one wild, white-knuckle ride.

Nosferatu

Leave it to Robert Eggers to find new terror in an old boogeyman.

The vampire, Nosferatu, isn’t a new invention. Originally a character in Bram Stoker’s 1897 novel Dracula, he first appeared on the big screen in 1922’s Nosferatu. That silent film was one of the first popular horror movies and would become a milestone in cinema history.

Initially portrayed as an evil monster villain, Nosferatu has evolved over several movies centred around him. In 1979, the character returned in Nosferatu the Vampyre, this time as a creature that was — yes — still evil but also vulnerable and sensual.

So, after countless vampire films, can Eggers shock or awe audiences with another iteration of Nosferatu’s tale? The answer is a resounding yes.

The latest Nosferatu (Bill Skarsgård) is a monster of multitudes — he’s intimidating, cunning, crafty, and seductive. Despite his monstrous looks, Ellen (Lily-Rose Depp), an innocent and lonely woman, tries to understand the man beneath the monster. Big mistake — it turns out that her attempt to connect with a stranger unleashes a curse that will change the course of her life.

Nosferatu is full of atmospheric, creepy scares — an Eggers signature — and it’s consistently tense and suffocating. Its horror comes from both interior and exterior: the threat that Nosferatu poses to the village that he plans to invade and occupy, as well as Ellen’s internal battle against Nosferatu for her body and soul. Plague-ridden rats, cultish strangers, dead bodies, rivers of blood — Nosferatu has it all and so much more.

Trap

Director M. Night Shyamalan is known for the twists in his movies, having made his name with The Sixth Sense. Trap mixes things up by having its big twist happen early, even revealing it in the movie’s trailer.

In Philadelphia, firefighter Cooper (Josh Hartnett) takes his teenage daughter Riley (Ariel Donoghue) to a Lady Raven (M. Night’s daughter, Saleka Night Shyamalan) concert at the Tanaka Arena. Cooper notices a heightened police presence, and it turns out that the FBI is using the concert as a trap to catch the serial killer known as ‘The Butcher’, whom the police know is in attendance. It so happens that Cooper himself is The Butcher. He tries to evade capture and avoid alerting his daughter as the manhunt for him heats up.

Trap is a showcase for Hartnett’s acting prowess. The actor, once poised to be a typical Hollywood heartthrob, has deliberately sought out weirder, smaller projects and has recently regained prominence with roles in movies like Oppenheimer and the TV show The Bear. Cooper is both a loving, doting dad and an unhinged murderer, and watching Hartnett play those shades of the character is a big part of the joy of Trap.

Describing the movie as “a coming-of-age story for a serial killer”, Hartnett tells Rolling Stone: “This is a character that thinks of himself in a certain way and has been putting on this front. Underneath it, he’s been consistent in believing he’s this abomination, this monster. This is the day that he finds out that maybe there’s a part of himself that’s not.”

While some might find several of the plot turns implausible, Trap is still a deviously entertaining watch and delivers scares aplenty.

The Watchers

Ishana Night Shyamalan makes her feature debut as the writer and director of this supernatural horror movie, with her famous father, M. Night Shyamalan, on board as a producer.

Adapted from the novel by A.M. Shine, The Watchers stars Dakota Fanning as Mina, an American woman living in Galway, Ireland. She is haunted by her mother’s death 15 years earlier. Mina gets lost in a mysterious forest and follows an old woman named Madeline (Olwen Fouéré) to a shelter.

There, she meets Ciara (Georgina Campbell) and Daniel (Oliver Finnegan), who explain to Mina that they are trapped by enigmatic creatures called the Watchers. Mina, Madeline, Ciara, and Daniel must abide by certain rules to avoid being captured and killed. They must try to escape, but the Watchers, true to their name, see the group’s every move.