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Horror News Network’s Ten Best Horror Movies of 2019

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Welcome to Horror News Network’s Ten Best Horror Movies of 2019, a series where our staff writers offer their top three picks of the year, which are then calculated using the data gathered to compile a ranked ultimate top ten list of 2019.  Each entry below contains excerpts from the staff members who included each film in their personal top three individual picks.  Some of the choices were clear cut, and some ties had to be broken, but what you have before you represents many of the best horror films of the year. read more

Horror News Network’s Best Horror Movies of 2019: Nick’s Top 3 Picks

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Welcome back to Horror News Network’s Best Horror Movies of 2019, a series where our staff writers declare their top three picks of the year and use the data to compile an ultimate top ten list of 2019. Be on the lookout for a new “Top 3” list from an HNN writer every day in early January, and stay tuned for our ultimate list at the end of the series!

Nick’s Top Three Picks of 2019

#1: Midsommar 

Ari Aster’s follow up to the gut wrenching Hereditary proved to be another uncomfortable and devastating film, and effectively avoided “the sophomore slump” that plagues young filmmakers.  Shifting his sights to folklore and pagan ritual, Aster brought horror into the sun with gruesome sights as well as the slow burn (get it?) of a burgeoning trip into madness. read more

Horror News Network’s Best Horror Movies of 2019: John’s Top 3 Picks

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Welcome to Horror News Network’s Best Horror Movies of 2019, a series where our staff writers declare their top three picks of the year and use the data to compile an ultimate top ten list of 2019. Be on the lookout for a new “Top 3” list from an HNN writer every day in early January, and and stay tuned for our ultimate list at the end of the series!

John’s Top 3 Picks of 2019

#1: The Lighthouse

Not only do I find The Lighthouse to be the best horror movie of the year, I place it just behind Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood as the second best movie of 2019. Featuring powerhouse performances by Willem Dafoe (who deserves a Best Actor nomination for this performance) and Robert Pattinson and expertly directed by Robert Eggers, The Lighthouse is classic cinema at its best. Yes, an actual sequel to The Shining came out this year… but The Lighthouse is the true spiritual successor to Kubrick’s cabin fever masterpiece to debut in 2019. Repeat viewings of this film open up its brilliant sound design and allow the viewer to catch every visual detail, absorb every nuance, and chortle at every absurdity. It simply doesn’t get better than this! read more

What to Expect in the World of Horror in 2020

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On the first day of this glorious new year, I thought I’d do my best impression of The Legendary Criswell and make some horror predictions for 2020. These aren’t necessarily wild ideas I’ve pulled out of thin air… they’re simply my expectations based on the trends I’ve observed developing over the course of 2019. I’ll document my thoughts now, and then revisit my premonitions in December to see how I did! So, without further ado, let’s peer into the wonderful world of tomorrow!

2020: The Year We Stopped Editing Movies read more

Buy / Wait / Rent: October 2019 Blu-Ray Releases

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We sift through the new release heap so you don’t have to!

Welcome to Horror News Network’s Buy / Wait / Rent, a monthly article devoted to the most highly-anticipated horror releases on blu-ray. Here you will find the best home video releases of each month, along with our opinion on whether each film is a must-own on the first day of release, something you should wait to buy until it goes on sale, or something you’re better off renting for a one-time watch. And now, on to the notable new releases of October 2019! read more

‘Crawl’ Stays Afloat at Weekend Box Office

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Crawl took advantage of the lack of head-to-head competition this weekend to hover near the surface and finished in fourth place with an estimated $6 million at the weekend box office.

Crawl’s take dropped a respectable 50%, and the alligator starring jump scare factory only slipped once place, down from its debut in third place last weekend.  The Alexandre Aja film also has managed to play well with audiences over the course of the week, and the total box office sum is already over $23 million in the United States, with an additional $9.9 million from overseas markets (with Indonesia and Malaysia leading the way).  Crawl should continue to bank horror dollars until August, (when four horror films are slated to be released) and it has an outside chance of hitting $40 million domestically. read more

‘Crawl’ Swims Away With Third Place at Weekend Box Office

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Alexandre Aja’s creature feature Crawl latched onto third place at the box office this weekend with an estimated total of $12 million, becoming one of the many horror films this summer to snag a high spot on the countdown despite underwhelming returns.

Paramount’s Crawl entered a crowded swimming pool this weekend with Annabelle Comes Home and Midsommar (both continuing to make decent, but not great money at the box office), and further divided the amount spent on individual horror films.  Many industry insiders predicted a bigger debut from Aja’s alligator rampage, but the top heavy summer box office of 2019 struck again, siphoning the majority of the funds into only two releases (Spider-Man: Far From Home and Toy Story 4).  While super-hero stories and family-friendly films are not direct competition for horror films, it appears that they are limiting the amount spent on them, with parents and baby-sitters deciding to bring children to “sure things” rather than finding entertainment for themselves at the cineplex. read more

‘Annabelle Comes Home’ Takes Fourth, ‘Midsommar’ Shines Bright in Sixth Place at Weekend Box Office

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With a glut of horror releases (let alone all of the releases) this summer, it has been hard for any film to sustain momentum at the box office.  This weekend was no different with a film predicted to dominate the box office (Annabelle Comes Homes) falling short of expectations and a new entry (Midsommar) further adding to the logjam at your local cinema.

WB’s Annabelle Comes Home dropped into fourth place with an estimated $9.8 million, dipping  an expected 52% in its second weekend. The film’s domestic total now stands at $50 million, which is certainly good for any horror film, but the figure is below Conjuringverse expectations.  Annabelle Comes Home currently ranks third in the Annabelle series, $34 million out of second place. Internationally, the film is performing better and added over $20 million overseas for a total of $85 million, which equates to a worldwide total of $135 million.  Again, these numbers are admirable for a horror film, but with increased horror competition next week, expect Annabelle Comes Home to remain in 3rd place in what has become the most profitable series of horror films of all time (and be sure to check out our review right here). read more

‘Midsommar’: The Horror News Network Review

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After bringing one of the greatest horror films of the decade to the silver screen last year with Hereditary, writer/director Ari Aster returns with a sophomore film which reinforces his status as an important filmmaker of our time and continues to reveal his inspirations and his style as a filmmaker. Midsommar won’t please everyone- especially those who are looking for standard summer movie fare or a modern day spectacle of “jump scare” hijinks- but its challenging subject matter and hypnotic auditory and visual design certainly won’t be easily forgotten by anyone who sees it. read more

Horror News Network’s Summer 2019 Movie Preview Guide

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After a rather lackluster spring, studios are ready to start churning out horror films for the starving, sweating masses this summer.  At least eight films in the horror genre are slated for release in June, July, and August this year (a slight increase from year’s past) in hopes that one or two can capture the attention of movie-goers who are already worn out by sequels and mega-budget action and sci-fi epics.

Horror fans have a lot to choose from this summer; everything from classic 1980’s remakes (Child’s Play), another entry from the ever-popular Conjurverse (Annabelle Comes Home), giant critters with a taste for human flesh (Crawl, 47 Meters Down: Uncaged), Ari Aster’s creepy follow-up to last year’s critical smash Hereditary (Midsommar), and a host of supernatural and survival horror originals. read more