As the nights get colder and unknown creatures begin to stir, the hallowed season draws near. With witches, skeletons and spiders webs already adorning our walls, we can only sit and wait for that long awaited date to arrive and for the witching hour to begin.
Of course, when the day finally arrives and strange entities begin to call around the neighborhood for gifts of candy, you will want to revel in the delicious horrors that only Halloween can provide by sinking your fangs into some scary movies to really get you in the mood. Here’s a selection of malevolent movies coming out on the run up to the devilish day.
Smile 2
Opening Oct 18
Based on the 2020 horror short, Laura Hasn’t Slept, Smile followed an interesting concept that took something innocent and turned it into the stuff of nightmares. Smile 2 looks to bring us more of the same as original director, Parker Finn, lines up his sights and shoots his shot at a much-welcomed sequel.
With the return of Kyle Gallner in the role of the original movie’s protagonist’s ex-partner, Joel, Smile 2 is confirmed to be a direct follow-up to the 2022 fan favorite.
This time, however, the focus looks to be set on an up-and-coming popstar named Skye Riley (played by Naomi Scott) who, after witnessing the harrowing death of her friend while on a world tour, begins to see people all around her wearing grotesque grins. In a turn of events so familiar to the horror genre, Skye learns she needs to confront her dark past if she is to survive an otherwise inevitable death.
By watching the trailer, it becomes increasingly apparent that Finn has turned the terror dial to all the way to 11 for the follow-up. It seems that the famous sinister smirk will be far more prevalent and the scares going by the age-old adage of “‘P’for Plenty”, as opposed to the slow and steady pace of the first movie.
After giving Smile a massive score of 9/10 way back in 2022, Smile 2 is a sequel I have been waiting for for nearly two years; I can’t wait for this one.
Ghost Game
Opening October 18
While the details are sparse, Ghost Game looks set to follow an interesting premise. Taking its inspiration from the many idiotic “challenge” trends plaguing the internet today, the movie follows the events caused when a thrill-seeking couple take the challenge to new heights and across the threshold of an infamously haunted house.
The “Ghost Game” challenge involves breaking into an occupied house and living among the residents unseen. To throw the proverbial spanner in the works, the challengers are set tasks that need to be undertaken without being seen or detected by the residing family, like a ghost and hence the challenge’s name.
Ghost Game stands out to me due to the premise, which has all the nuts and bolts of a staple Halloween horror while still bringing something fresh to the All Saint’s Eve banquet. I live in hope that this isn’t destined to be yet another clever premise ruined by a lack of imagination.
Die Alone
Opening October 18
Set in a world where nature has reclaimed the lands and strange creatures roam the lands, Die Alone is landing on VoD on October 18. When a young man crashes his car, he wakes up in an apocalyptic world with a searing headache and a bad case of Amnesia. He does, however, remember his girlfriend being in the car.
After his search leads him to an old and eccentric survivalist lady, the two team up to survive the dangerous lands and find his lost love.
