Best of Independent Horror · Annual Edition
2019
The ten indie films that earned the year outside the system.
The horror that never reached the multiplexes but earned its place in the catalog. Anthologies, pastoral folk horror, domestic thrillers, and small-budget films with oversized ambition. This is the 10th Circle's 2019 independent ranking.
Nightmare Cinema (2018)
Mick Garris
The best horror anthology released this year. Mick Garris, Joe Dante, Ryûhei Kitamura, and David Slade divide the shorts, with topics ranging from psychological illness to possession to aliens. Consistent quality across the whole thing.
The Golem (2018)
Doron Paz
The Paz brothers bring the creature of Jewish mysticism to a threatened community where a grieving mother summons it in the form of a child. Rarely seen on screen and with more potential than it has been given.
Pilgrim (2019)
Marcus Dunstan
The Thanksgiving entry in Hulu and Blumhouse's 'Into the Dark' anthology. Marcus Dunstan keeps the holiday comedy running without softening the savagery. Creative madness that takes its own celebration seriously.
Daniel Isn't Real (2019)
Adam Egypt Mortimer
Adam Egypt Mortimer uses mental illness as a frame for supernatural horror, with a striking visual set and a smart script that holds attention from start to finish. Strong performances that earn every twist the story delivers.
Monster Party (2018)
Chris von Hoffmann
Three young thieves take a catering job at a wealthy family's mansion and discover the party has another purpose. Once the chaos starts it doesn't stop. Solid plot, extensive gore, pure entertainment.
The Perfection (2018)
Richard Shepard
Richard Shepard divides opinion with a story as creative as it is twisted, about cellists and inherited trauma. Standout performances, graphic when it needs to be, and twists that reorder the film several times without losing the thread.
The Head Hunter (2019)
Jordan Downey
Jordan Downey signs a minimalist production with a single character and sparse dialogue that holds itself up entirely on atmosphere. Mixes epic-videogame imagery with artisanal horror and captures attention from the opening frame.
Echoes of Fear (2019)
Brian Avenet-Bradley
The Avenet-Bradley brothers prove no budget is needed to scare. Patient atmospheric construction and well-planted jump scares. The film arrived without noise and collected awards at every festival where it appeared.
Bloodline (2019)
Henry Jacobson
Seann William Scott carries the entire film with a performance nobody expected from him. Excellent audiovisual work and a plot that treats family as the engine of horror. Deserves more eyes than it got.
Best of the Year · 8/10
The Wind (2018)
Emma Tammi
Emma Tammi mixes folk horror with western in a desolate 19th-century American prairie, narrated by an unreliable protagonist who carries the entire film on the doubt between supernatural and psychological. Exquisite cinematography, a smart script that only improves on a second viewing, and easily above most of 2019's major releases.
No comments:
Post a Comment