Photo by Proyecto Asis,  CC by 2.0 on Flickr

By: Noelle Yeung

It’s October. Which means Halloween has finally arrived. From free buckets of candy to spooky decorations to creepy costumes, none of them beat cuddling up in your blankets testing your courage as you binge horror movies on a Halloween night.

Featuring slasher gorefests to classic jumpscares, here are the four newest Halloween films recommended for you to add to your horror movie marathon.

  1. Pearl

Starring Mia Goth’s Oscar-worthy performance in this second chapter to A24’s most acclaimed horror film of 2022, Pearl displays the deadly consequences of dreaming big. We follow Pearl, whose life unwinds into a chromatic and iconic villain origin story rooted in her relatable lust for a glamorous movie-like life. Distinct from classic slasher films, Pearl leaves viewers unsettled, not through gore, but through Goth’s anticipated and infamous chilling smile.

  1. Smile

Speaking of smiles, this psychological chiller circling around on social media is one packed with jumpscares, ensuring you to be kept on the edge of your seat. Still showing in theatres, bring along your friends to test each other’s nerves as you follow this wild motion picture together.

  1. Terrifier 2

This movie is not for the weak-stomached. Following a deranged killer clown named Art, Terrifier 2‘s incredibly gruesome special effects have caused viewers to pass out, vomit, and walk out of the theatre entirely. Do you have to guts to sit through this year’s most brutal horror movie?

  1. Barbarian

Critically acclaimed to be the “most shocking horror movie of the year”, this must-see horror film starring Georgina Campbell and Bill Skarsgård, who played the notorious Pennywise in It, is one better watched without prior explanation. The only hint we give to you is that the story begins with a relatable nightmare of an accidental double-booking in an Airbnb rental. The story unfolds into a perfect madness one hard to explain and one, you really have to see for yourself. 

Citations:

Peterson, J. “Fans push for vomit-inducing horror film Terrifier 2 to win an OSCAR as it continues to rake in millions at the box office despite causing viewers to pass out from the extreme violence.” Daily Mail UK, 26 Oct. 2022, http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-11355399/Terrifier-2-Oscar-buzz-begins-vomit-inducing-horror-movie.html.

Hamman, Cody. “Pearl: Mia Goth on the scripting process, the monologue, and that Smile.” JoBlo, 26 Oct. 2022, http://www.joblo.com/pearl-mia-goth-smile/.

Allen, Nick. “Pearl movie review & film summary (2022).” Roger Ebert, 26 Sept. 2022, http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/pearl-movie-review-2022.

“Smile Movie Review.” Common Sense Media, www.commonsensemedia.org/movie-reviews/smile.

Sandwell, Ian. “Barbarian is the must-watch horror movie this Halloween.” Digital Spy, 24 Oct. 2022, www.digitalspy.com/movies/a41736283/barbarian-review-uk-release/.