Best Horror of December: ‘Nosferatu,’ ‘Squid Game’ Season 2, ‘Y2K’ With Rachel Zegler and More
Welcome to Horror Explorer, a curated column showcasing the month’s best movies, series, books and everything else spooky worth checking out. I’m William Earl, the editor of Variety.com and the publication’s resident horror enthusiast. Please drop me a line at wearl@variety.com if there’s something I should check out for next month’s missive.
Werewolves (In theaters on Dec. 6 from Briarcliff Entertainment) — The premise of “Werewolves” is magnificently bonkers: During a supermoon one year ago, a dormant gene awoke in humans, which caused a mass werewolf transformation, resulting in a billion (!) deaths. One year later, the supermoon is coming back, and Frank Grillo has to survive the night. If this description doesn’t make you want to stand up and cheer … I can’t help you.
Nightbitch (In theaters on Dec. 6 from Searchlight Pictures) — Amy Adams is ferocious in this meditation on motherhood and identity. Only known as Mother, Adams’ character finds herself losing a grip on her reality as she settles into being a stay-at-home mother, and in place of her old life, she believes she’s turning into a dog at night. A wholly unconventional horror story, it’s not for fans of gore and destruction, but rather those looking at genre as a device to tell deeper truths.
Y2K (In theaters on Dec. 6 from A24) — Kyle Mooney’s directorial debut is an alt-history version of New Year’s Eve 2000. Although the Y2K bug didn’t end up causing worldwide calamity, “Y2K” asks…what if it did? In this darkly comedic vision, devices come to life with murderous intentions and go after a cast including Rachel Zegler, Tim Heidecker and, amazingly, Limp Bizkit frontman Fred Durst playing himself.
Get Away (In theaters on Dec. 6 from IFC Films and Shudder) — Nick Frost wrote this horror-comedy that takes place on an island with a dark history. Unfortunately, Frost and his family are clueless tourists who come to observe some gruesome traditions they definitely do not understand. This fleet take on films like “The Wicker Man” and “Midsommar” weaves some big twists with deft humor and surprising bloodshed to deliver something fresh.
Nosferatu (In theaters on Dec. 25 from Focus Features) — The year’s last big horror event is Robert Eggers’ remake of the vampire classic. The stacked cast includes Nicholas Hoult, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Emma Corrin and Willem Dafoe. Yet the key electricity is between the horrifying Count Orlok (Bill Skarsgård, pulling off another all-time villain after Pennywise) and his eternal love, Ellen Hutter (Lily-Rose Depp). Every shot is gorgeous, and the bloody action, mixed with dreamlike eroticism, makes for a hell of a picture. The last shot alone will leave audiences breathless.
The Girl with the Needle (In theaters on Dec. 6 from Mubi) — Magnus von Horn’s gorgeous and tragic depiction of Danish child serial killer Dagmar Overbye is a must-see, humanizing a murderer as never before. Seen through the eyes of her young associate Karoline (a shattering Vic Carmen Sonne), Dagmar (Trine Dyrholm) helps women with nowhere to turn to get their babies adopted into wealthy families. Unfortunately, what actually happens to these young ones is much more grim. It’s a bleak and suffocating masterpiece, with just a glimmer of hope at the end.
The Man in the White Van (In theaters on Dec. 13 from Relativity) — This thriller, which runs with the adage to “never trust a man in a white van,” spins a pulpy tale out of a real-life 1974 stalking case in Florida. The tension simmers nicely and the cast — including “Conjuring 2” alum Madison Wolfe, Ali Larter and Sean Astin — draws sympathy. While a PG-13 rating keeps things a bit too sanitary, this indie is still worth a watch.
Squid Game (Season 2) (Available on Netflix on Dec. 26) — The second season of the disturbing global phenomenon is sure to be filled with more jaw-dropping games and huge twists, with creator Hwang Dong-hyuk back on for another set of episodes.
Pumpkin Guts (now available to watch on Vimeo) — This spooky effort from director Bryan M. Ferguson turned heads at Fantastic Fest and Beyond Fest, and is now being developed into a feature film. It’s now available to watch for free, a bite-sized jolt of horror when you’re in need of a fright. The most shocking part? This stylish project only has a price tag of $800.
Werewolves (In theaters on Dec. 6 from Briarcliff Entertainment) — The premise of “Werewolves” is magnificently bonkers: During a supermoon one year ago, a dormant gene awoke in humans, which caused a mass werewolf transformation, resulting in a billion (!) deaths. One year later, the supermoon is coming back, and Frank Grillo has to survive the night. If this description doesn’t make you want to stand up and cheer … I can’t help you.
Nightbitch (In theaters on Dec. 6 from Searchlight Pictures) — Amy Adams is ferocious in this meditation on motherhood and identity. Only known as Mother, Adams’ character finds herself losing a grip on her reality as she settles into being a stay-at-home mother, and in place of her old life, she believes she’s turning into a dog at night. A wholly unconventional horror story, it’s not for fans of gore and destruction, but rather those looking at genre as a device to tell deeper truths.
Y2K (In theaters on Dec. 6 from A24) — Kyle Mooney’s directorial debut is an alt-history version of New Year’s Eve 2000. Although the Y2K bug didn’t end up causing worldwide calamity, “Y2K” asks…what if it did? In this darkly comedic vision, devices come to life with murderous intentions and go after a cast including Rachel Zegler, Tim Heidecker and, amazingly, Limp Bizkit frontman Fred Durst playing himself.
Get Away (In theaters on Dec. 6 from IFC Films and Shudder) — Nick Frost wrote this horror-comedy that takes place on an island with a dark history. Unfortunately, Frost and his family are clueless tourists who come to observe some gruesome traditions they definitely do not understand. This fleet take on films like “The Wicker Man” and “Midsommar” weaves some big twists with deft humor and surprising bloodshed to deliver something fresh.
Nosferatu (In theaters on Dec. 25 from Focus Features) — The year’s last big horror event is Robert Eggers’ remake of the vampire classic. The stacked cast includes Nicholas Hoult, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Emma Corrin and Willem Dafoe. Yet the key electricity is between the horrifying Count Orlok (Bill Skarsgård, pulling off another all-time villain after Pennywise) and his eternal love, Ellen Hutter (Lily-Rose Depp). Every shot is gorgeous, and the bloody action, mixed with dreamlike eroticism, makes for a hell of a picture. The last shot alone will leave audiences breathless.
The Girl with the Needle (In theaters on Dec. 6 from Mubi) — Magnus von Horn’s gorgeous and tragic depiction of Danish child serial killer Dagmar Overbye is a must-see, humanizing a murderer as never before. Seen through the eyes of her young associate Karoline (a shattering Vic Carmen Sonne), Dagmar (Trine Dyrholm) helps women with nowhere to turn to get their babies adopted into wealthy families. Unfortunately, what actually happens to these young ones is much more grim. It’s a bleak and suffocating masterpiece, with just a glimmer of hope at the end.
The Man in the White Van (In theaters on Dec. 13 from Relativity) — This thriller, which runs with the adage to “never trust a man in a white van,” spins a pulpy tale out of a real-life 1974 stalking case in Florida. The tension simmers nicely and the cast — including “Conjuring 2” alum Madison Wolfe, Ali Larter and Sean Astin — draws sympathy. While a PG-13 rating keeps things a bit too sanitary, this indie is still worth a watch.
Squid Game (Season 2) (Available on Netflix on Dec. 26) — The second season of the disturbing global phenomenon is sure to be filled with more jaw-dropping games and huge twists, with creator Hwang Dong-hyuk back on for another set of episodes.
Pumpkin Guts (now available to watch on Vimeo) — This spooky effort from director Bryan M. Ferguson turned heads at Fantastic Fest and Beyond Fest, and is now being developed into a feature film. It’s now available to watch for free, a bite-sized jolt of horror when you’re in need of a fright. The most shocking part? This stylish project only has a price tag of $800.