K.T Simpson
Okay so we’re half way through the year, and lucky for all you horror nuts (myself included), the second half promises to deliver a bunch of awesome looking horror flicks to spook you, shock you and perhaps even make you shit yourself.
I’ve compiled a list of horrors to anticipate, so make sure you have some spare pants on hand, and take a look at what there is to look forward to on the back half of 2017.
Annabelle: Creation
If there’s one thing we can all agree on, it’s that dolls are creepy. Even the sweet looking ones that pee themselves, c’mon. All I can see is a potentially dangerous toy wreaking havoc when the lights go out. “Annabelle: Creation” is a follow up to 2014’s “Annabelle”, but will appear as a prequel. It’s also a spin-off from “The Conjuring”, making it the fourth film in the franchise. “Creation” will tell the story of the origin of the possessed Annabelle doll.
The plot will focus on a dollmaker and his wife who open up their home to a nun and some girls from an orphanage. The possessed doll sets its sights on one of the girls, and generally will scare the crap out of everyone. “Annebelle: Creation” hits theatres August 11 and stars Talitha Bateman, Stephanie Sigman, Anthony LaPaglia, and Miranda Otto.
Amityville: The Awakening
Moving from creepy dolls to creepy houses, “Amityville: The Awakening” is the tenth installment in the “Amityville” franchise and is the nineteenth of the films since 1979, which goes to show that a haunted house never seems to get old.
The movie sees single mother Juliet move into a new house with her three kids Belle, Juliet and James – who is in a coma – as they try to save money to pay for James’ healthcare. After strange things start to happen, like the brother’s miraculous recovery and some horrifying nightmares, Belle discovers they’ve moved into the infamous Amityville house. The flick stars Bella Thorne, Cameron Monaghan, Jennifer Jason Leigh and Mckenna Grace, and is set for theatres June 30.
Saw: Legacy
The sequel trend continues with “Saw: Legacy”, the eighth installment of the “Saw” movies. The flick picks up 10 years after the death of the Jigsaw killer, during the investigation of deaths that fit the Jigsaw modus operandi. It seems that even after death, Jigsaw continues to terrorise and kill, which is kinda terrifying.
The last few Saw films lost me a bit, as they seemed to lose their way in creativeness and make up for it in maximum gore, which my precious little stomach can’t handle. So I’ll be interested to see how this one goes, and if it’s just a rehash of previous Jigsaw terror. I’ll try and see it on the big screen, but someone will need to hold me. See it in cinemas October 27, with a cast including Tobin Bell, Mandela Van Peebles (probably the coolest name I’ve ever heard), Laura Vandervoot, Brittany Allen and Matt Passmore.
It Comes at Night
Finally, an original horror without a predecessor. “It Comes at Night” stars Aussie legend Joel Edgerton and sees a family put to the test when a younger family arrives at their home seeking refuge. Of course nothing comes without condition, and horror starts to seep out and the man of the house learns that the protection of his family may come at the cost of his soul.
The psychological horror will be released June 9th, and also stars Christopher Abbott, Carmen Ejogo, Kelvin Harrison Jr and Riley Keough.
Flatliners
Despite having the same name as the 1990 movie, “Flatliners” is actually a sequel, not a reboot. It has a similar plot to the original, seeing medical students experiment with “near death” experiences that involve past tragedies. The dark consequences soon begin to jeopardise their lives.
Kiefer Sutherland returns for the sequel, and joins Ellen Page, Diego Luna, Nina Dobrev, James Norton and Kiersey Clemons. The flick is out September 29.
It
Pretty sure most people associate clowns with horror, so “It” will likely be a huge success this year. The movie is based on the Stephen King novel, and is the first installment of a planned duology. The story was also told in 1990 in a miniseries, and sees seven children (outcast group the Losers’ Club) get terrorized by an eponyomus being (Pennywise the clown) and also face their own demons in the process.
“It” has made Pennywise look a lot more terrifying than the 1990 version, and the trailer sees him lurking in sewers, drains and other such hidden crevices. Starring Bill Skarsgard as Pennywise, alongside Jaeden Lieberher, Jeremy Ray Taylor, Sophia Lillis, Finn Wolfhard and Nicholas Hamilton, the film is out September 8th. I think I might skip the circus this year.
Jeepers Creepers 3
“Jeepers Creepers 3”, as the title would suggest, is the 3rd film of the “Jeepers Creepers” series. However, it is set in between the first and second movie. Making it “Jeepers Creepers 1.5”, in reality. Following so far? The creeper is back (played by Jonathon Breck) and is terrorising a local farming community, so Sgt Davis Tubbs (Brandon Smith) assembles a task force to destroy the Creeper once and for all, all the while learning about his dark origins.
The movie also stars Meg Foster, Gabrielle Haugh and Jordan Salloum, and includes a cameo of Gina Phillips, who was in the first film. It’ll creep you out in theatres from 1st September.
Wish Upon
“Wish Upon” starts of innocently enough, with a girl being granted her every wish from a mysterious music box. She soon discovers that wishes come with consequences, sometimes quite bloody. It’ll probably turn every viewer off the dream of being able to get everything you’ve ever wanted.
The cast includes Joey King, Sherilyn Fenn, Ryan Phillippe and Ki Hong Lee, and will be released July 14.
47 Metres Down
If there’s one thing we haven’t seen enough of, it’s shark movies. Of course “Sharknado 5” is coming, and we saw Blake Lively battle a giant ferocious fish in “The Shallows”, and now there’s another film to turn us all off going swimming, like Jaws did to my mother back in the day. “47 Metres Down” sees two sisters go for a cage dive with great white sharks, which is all fun and games until the cable snaps and they plummet 47 metres down to the ocean floor. The race is on to escape the cage, fight off sharks and return to the surface before their air supply runs out.
The movie will be released theatrically on June 16, and stars Mandy Moore, Claire Holt, Chris J. Johnson and Yani Gellman.
Leatherface
Guess what people, gardening isn’t safe either, especially when there’s a chainsaw lying around. The 8th film in the “Texas Chainsaw Massacre” franchise sees Leatherface front and centre, in a prequel to explain his origins. The film tells the story of a teenage psychopath who ultimately becomes the infamous chainsaw wielding killer Leatherface.
Leatherface escapes from a mental institution and begins his reign of terror as the masked killer. See it in cinemas in October, starring Stephen Dorff, Lili Taylor. Sam Strike, Vanessa Grasse and James Bloor.
Other films to look forward to in the near future – “Insidious Chapter 4” in early 2018, “The God Particle” (4th film in the Cloverfield franchise), “Keep Watching” (another Bella Thorne-starred movie), and “He’s Out There”.
