2014 Horror Movies

If you’ve been feeling a little underwhelmed by the state of contemporary horror, it’s fair to say that you’ve had every reason to be. As a genre, it seems somewhat devoid of fresh and original ideas, and there tends to be maybe two, or three films each year that restore our faith in horror filmmakers. In 2014, however, so far there hasn’t been much to run home about.

So what have we been confronted by thus far? We’ve, surprise surprise, delved into the Paranormal Activity franchise with The Marked Ones. To further extend the point that there is a lack of ideas, we’ve also had found footage pictures in the form of Devil’s Due, The Borderlands and Willow Creek. Even when we do see a film that appears to be a little more original, such as We Are What We Are, it’s only to then discover it’s actually a remake.

That’s not to say there hasn’t been anything noteworthy, as Hammer Film’s continuing return, following on from the likes of The Woman in Black, was The Quiet Ones – a spooky, poltergeist-themed picture set in 1970s England. Another hugely enjoyable horror is that of Mike Flanagan’s Oculus, which, with shades of the Ethan Hawke starring Sinister that came out the year before last, has the potential to be one of the most accomplished offerings this year.

But in truth, to fully appreciate horror these days, it tends to be the subversions of the genre and hybrids with other cinematic styles that provide the winning formula. You may not necessarily brand films such as Under the Skin, Cheap Thrills or Blue Ruin as being horror movies as such, but they certainly explore elements of the genre, and are all brilliant, creative pieces of cinema. Ti West’s The Sacrament is another example. Perhaps that’s what horror needs: to branch out and not remain so conventional and archetypal of the genre at hand. As a society we’ve become rather desensitised given the wealth of real life horror on the internet, and there are few ways of telling supernatural ghosts stories in a way that hasn’t been told before.

So what of the rest of the year? Is there anything that could buck the trend and prove to be a shining light in the genre, paving the way for more ingenious endeavours? Well, we have As Above, So Below taking place in the catacombs below Paris, which has certainly piqued our interest. Not to mention Scott Derrickson’s forthcoming picture, as the man who brought us Sinister returns with Deliver Us From Evil, starring Eric Bana and Olivia Munn. Meanwhile, we have a more traditionalist turn in Gary Shore’s Dracula Untold, and Austrlian production The Babadook is also on our radar, as a film that explores the notion of monsters lurking in a house; a production that holds some promise, by infiltrating the place we feel most safe and at ease, which can often make for chilling cinematic territory.

Talking of which, you’ll be shocked and surprised to hear that we are set for yet another Paranormal Activity film this Autumn. Unoriginal and tired as the concept may now be, the fact of the matter is that it’s a safe bet which is likely to take more at the box office than the majority of the aforementioned titles. It’s giving people what they want, granted, but the question is, is this really what people need?