Another year has come and mostly gone and hundreds, if not thousands, of young, stupid, misbehaving teenagers have been lost at the hands of ghosts, apparitions, psychos, monsters, animals, and families with strange murder dynamics.
Like any responsible site, it’s now our job to look back on a year of cinematic chaos and movie madness and sort all of this into an easy digestible list full of horrors! And family films! Because really, 2012 in horror wasn’t all that violent, but it was reflective and satisfying in a familiar way.
Onward!
12. REC 3: Genesis
REC3 starts off horribly enough, still clinging to the found footage motif of the previous films as all zombie-ish hell breaks loose at a wedding. Luckily, relatively early in the film the movie becomes an actual movie, with a real cinematographer and logic actually dictating what we see rather than a camera on a string randomly swung around, or however films like that or normally made. While definitely not groundbreaking, there is a sexy lead in a bloody wedding dress, some neat use of armor and swords, and a generally satisfying amount of gore and violence.
11. Citadel
This feature debut from Ciarán Foy follows an agoraphobic father as he tries to protect his son from the evils that want to take him for their own. Managing a tense and atmospheric vibe throughout, the short film does good work in using the main characters weakness to create a sense of fear that mostly explains his poor decision making.
10. The Woman in Black
When it was announced that Harry Potter himself (Daniel Radcliffe) would be making a horror movie, I’m sure someone was excited. The results, while not perfect, are a throwback to the Hammer Films of old, an effective if not imaginative horror film that follows the formula and creates a spooky experience.
9. Frankenweenie
Director Tim Burton’s return to stop-motion animation after the lackluster Corpse Bride is one of his better efforts. Channeling a love for both a boy and his dog stories and the classic horror movies of old, Frankenweenie (2012) expands greatly on the original short and brings in more family friendly horror elements with great creature design. A heart warming story that gets me, since I’m a sucker for classic monsters and dogs.