2024 was an odd year for horror. We didn’t see many sequels and those that did come out were surprisingly good. We witnessed a lot of faux horror movies. Movies that claimed to be horror movies but were really some kind of drama, mostly of the family or relationship kind. There was also the continued rise of Goosebumps horror, movies really made for tweens not even teens.
Here at Binge News we made every attempt to check out, to screen every horror movie of note this year and rank them by grade. There are some exceptions though:
If the film wasn’t available in English, had no subtitles or dubbing we had to pass.
If the film was so low, low, low budget that the “filmmakers” couldn’t even get the simple things like editing, continuity or lighting right, we had to pass.
If the film was not widely released in 2024 and was only screened at the Monster Horror Mystery Fan Festival in Buckfuck, Montana, we don’t consider that RELEASED. Sorry, no.
Also, each grade installment is listed from best to worst. So, the last entry in F Grade is what we consider the worst Horror movie of the 2024 and in turn the first entry in A Grade is what we consider the best of 2024.
Here are the C Grades.
Synopsis: An author returns to his hometown of Jerusalem’s Lot in search of inspiration for his next book, only to discover that the townspeople are being attacked by a bloodthirsty vampire.
Review: ‘Salem’s Lot was supposed to receive a theatrical release but was dumped on HBO Max instead. Now, we know why. Everything that made King’s story so great has been exorcised making Dauberman’s Lot nothing more than a shallow, run-of-the-mill vampire movie. Nothing beyond the atmosphere stands out. Nothing at all.
Full Review:
Synopsis: Soulmates Eric and Shelly are brutally murdered. Given a chance to save the love of his life, Eric must sacrifice himself and traverse the worlds of the living and the dead, seeking revenge.
Review: It isn’t as bad as you have heard but totally unnecessary, unwanted. The saddest part is that it was missed opportunity. They could have shot it in black and white, made it really shadowy and gothic, like the graphic novel. Except for a very long and very gory action scene’s creative use of a sword there was more imagination in the movie poster below. It is unexpectedly bland but expectedly bloody. I have to agree with the original film’s director Alex Proyas who also made the amazing Dark City. “It’s not just a movie that can be remade. It’s one man’s legacy. And it should be treated with that level of respect.”
Synopsis: A group of college friends rent an Airbnb for the biggest music festival of the year. A weekend of partying quickly takes a turn, as the group is murdered one by one.
Review: Even though it is clearly a low budget entry in the slasher genre it is cleverly edited and put together using imagination to compensate for lack of funds. It does try a bit too hard to be current though and there is so much humour it is hard to take it seriously as a slasher. Seven meets Saw meets Scream.
Synopsis: Not wanting to live in the shadows any longer, Winnie-the-Pooh, Piglet, Owl, and Tigger take their fight to the town of Ashdown, leaving a bloody trail of death and mayhem in their wake.
Review: A bigger budget doesn’t necessarily mean a better experience. I rather liked the original film because of its edginess. Now that all those rough corners have all been sanded down and polished, the series has lost a bit of what made it special. I suspect this is only a set-up for a kick ass finale.
Synopsis: Two scientists try to stop a mutation that turns people into werewolves after being touched by a super-moon the year before.
Review: A really clever premise and convincing performances from all the leads is hampered by sub-par creature effects.
Synopsis: Residents of a rundown French apartment building battle against an army of deadly, rapidly reproducing spiders.
Review: Well done in every respect but it doesn’t offer anything really new to the ‘animal horror’ genre.
Synopsis: A married couple, Jay and Beth taking a celebratory camping trip a year after Beth’s cancer remission but they find themselves trapped between a wild madman and a skin stealing monster.
Review: The premise raises curiosity and then disappoints. I wanted more. I wanted more than a creature who is a puff of smoke when hunting its prey in the forest. I wanted more than just Bigfoot from The Six Million Dollar Man when it is in corporal form. I wanted more than a silly slimy slug which gave me Jason Goes to Hell PSTD. I wanted more than a husband being dumped by the script just because he wants to help out his wife who just survived cancer by taking some of the load out of her backpack into his own and other gestures which are kind not overbearing. I wanted more than that lame, predictable ending.
Synopsis: In a world where no one speaks, a devout female-led community hunts down a young woman who has escaped imprisonment. Recaptured, Azrael is due to be sacrificed to an ancient evil in the wilderness, but fights for her own survival.
Review: I will give it to the talent. Being in a world where nobody speaks they have to do a lot of storytelling through their facial expressions and gestures. This makes the movie universal though, no language barriers to fret about. It is also cool how the characters in the film communicate without being able to speak to each other. Scream Queen extraordinaire Samara Weaving puts in another fantastic performance and there are some great, gory effects. The story itself though is fairly formulaic though.
Synopsis: A masked maniac targets cast members at a suburban Halloween haunt attraction, turning their staged injuries into gruesome real-life horrors. As the terror escalates, the lines between performance and reality blur.
Review: Having a budget equal to that of a late night trip to the Taco Bell drive-thru didn’t stop Jake Jarvi from producing a decent tribute to the Halloween season. In the last few years we have seen a number of these haunt attraction movies. This one though comes straight from the heart, has some wicked kills and unexpectedly good performances. A real diamond in the rough.
Synopsis: In pursuit of a serial killer, an FBI agent uncovers a series of occult clues that she must solve to end his terrifying killing spree.
Review: Far too much like Silence of the Lambs. The atmosphere is creepy but one of the crucial plot points sends the movie rocketing into absurdity.
Synopsis: Obsessed with living up to her dead father’s legacy, a young sheriff finds her mettle tested when locals are found ripped to shreds.
Review: Although this movie is about a mutated kangaroo mauling people to death and everyone involved takes the material very, very seriously, it is still a movie about a killer kangaroo.
Synopsis: A gang of bank robbers take shelter in a motel after a Christmas Eve bank heist, unbeknownst to them they are not the most dangerous thing seeking refuge on this cold Christmas night.
Review: It just missed being better than average because of some obvious mistakes, like a vampire taking a bite out of someone and there being not blood on the victim or the bloodsuckers, some of the over the top acting and the fact that this is more of a heist movie than a horror movie. It takes quite some time before the horror element becomes present.
Synopsis: Tells the story of Graham, Jake and Phillip Reilly and their deceased father. Their pasts collide when a family secret is discovered, leading their father’s garage to become the site of revenge from beyond the grave.
Review: An inventive film, especially the special effects, but the pacing, momentum is way off.
Synopsis: Martin’s daughter, Emma, takes up a night watch job to find out what happened to her parents almost thirty years ago. A meeting with Wörmer in his cell pulls the serial killer out of his coma and sets in motion a chain of fateful events.
Review: A forgettable sequel to a movie nobody remembers.
Synopsis: A group of homeless misfits must fight for survival when they discover a plot to exterminate every homeless person in the city.
Review: A remake, retooling, rewriting of a cult classic that some love and some loathe. The special effects are amazing and what will keep most fans watching.
Synopsis: Cecilia, a woman of devout faith, is warmly welcomed to the picture-perfect Italian countryside where she is offered a new role at an illustrious convent. But it becomes clear to Cecilia that her new home harbors dark and horrifying secrets.
Review: An interesting twist on religious horror. Sweeney does well but the film as a whole doesn’t really deliver. Hint. Hint. Nudge. Nudge.
Synopsis: Follows a struggling father who purchases a domestic SIM to help care for his house and family, unaware she will gain awareness and turn deadly.
Review: Megan Fox. In the not-too distant future androids (SIMs) have assumed all sorts of jobs such as performing surgeries, household duties and bartending. Megan Fox. A spiraling father whose wife has been hospitalized buys a SIM (Megan Fox) to help around the house. As dad becomes more and more stressed with work, the kids and his wife, he and the SIM grow closer. Megan Fox. You can probably guess what happens before and after the wife comes home which includes some inter species funtime, if you know what I mean and I think you do. A decent time-waster that doesn’t bring anything new to the table but…Megan Fox.
Synopsis: A couple who find their jovial cab driver diverts them to a remote, haunted road, revealing disturbing motives and his true intentions.
Review: Nick Frost is plenty creepy as a cab driver who kidnaps a troubled young couple. Black Cab is a meandering ghost story that runs out of stream and chills rather quickly. After investing all that time the ending is nothing but exasperating. This is a very slow ride to nowhere.
Synopsis: A troubled actor begins to exhibit a disruptive behavior while shooting a horror film. His estranged daughter wonders if he’s slipping back into his past addictions or if there’s something more sinister at play.
Review: You have seen it all before and better. Falls apart at the big wind up.
Synopsis: A boy and his stepmother fear for their safety after an eerie creature resembling the boy’s recently deceased father visits them.
Review: Rupert Turnbull and Julia Brown deliver strong performances here. The story is what lets them down. I don’t want to get too morose but are Millennials at the stage of their lives where they are losing their parents? Is that why we are getting these types of films? Sorry, the world doesn’t need anymore Babadook clones, thanks.
Synopsis: A 17-year-old girl is forced to move with her family to a resort where things are not what they seem.
Review: Captures your attention until what’s really going on is revealed. The scenario is just way too over the top to be taken seriously and that drives a stake right through the heart of this movie despite the strong performances.
Synopsis: When a mysterious force begins to disrupt their big summer fun, Noah and his friends team up with a retired police detective to embark on a monstrous adventure to save their island. process of excavating an ominous grave unleashes dreadful consequences buried underneath.
Review: A mish-mash of Stephen King’s greatest hits…and not in the Stranger Things way either. The main character is not only an aspiring writer but naturally he is a Boston Red Sox fan too. A little too on the nose, a little too dull and a little too reprocessed.
Synopsis: On a hot summer day in Oslo, the dead mysteriously awaken, and three families are thrown into chaos when their deceased loved ones come back to them. Who are they, and what do they want?
Review: It is a different take on a zombie movie but like so many other “horror movies” released this year it is NOT a horror movie. It is a drama, this one of the family kind.
Synopsis: A struggling young dancer finds herself drawn in by dark forces when a peculiar, well-connected older couple promise her a shot at fame.
Review: Although it is promoted as a prequel this is in reality another needless remake produced by Michael Bay. Apartment 7A is a recycling of Rosemary’s Baby. Despite strong performances old people may be strange or weird but they are not scary.
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