Top 20 Horror Movies

1. Beyond the Black Rainbow – the strangest movie I saw this year is also my favorite horror film this year. This is a slow burn, but the slowness added to the foreboding feeling, and the overall uneasy and creepy feel. I won’t revisit this film often in the future, but when I do, I think Im going to enjoy it more each time.

2. Excision – this was one of my few blind buys this year after Chuck and Jason described it to me. I love how the tone of the movie is just a little off throughout, and the end was a punch in the stomach.

3. The Bay – This was my favorite movie that we reviewed this year. In a time where found footage films have over saturated the market, this film worked for me on every level.

4. REC 3 – This was the ballsiest entry into the REC series because they decided to change both the format of the series, and the tone. The image of the bride running around with a chainsaw is one of the images I will think of when remembering the movies of 2012.

5. Cabin in the Woods – this contained some of the smartest writing of any of the 2012 horror films. To take genre tropes and use them in a fun, but not schlocky way was ingenious. Plus it was a nod to all of us horror fans.

6. Midnight Son – I went into this not knowing anything about it, and what I found was a breath of fresh air infused into a pretty stale classic horror genre. The lead character deals with trying to sustain a relationship which has its challenges, and he is coping with his body transforming into something he has no control over.

7. Sleep Tight – Man this was pretty awesome. A nice character study of an obsessive creep. The lead chick was pretty awesome and hot. I thought the scenes when he visits his mom were really effective. Its a really simple story but its just done so well.

8. Lovely Molly – This movie contains my favorite performance of the year. Watching Molly quickly spiral out of control was like watching a car crash. You wonder if she’s really dealing with the issues you see, or maybe she’s just crazy. You don’t know until a reveal at the end that is not graphic, but reveals whether Molly was crazy or haunted.

9. The Collection – I had to put this in my top ten because this really gave me what I was looking for: A ton of deaths in various manners, and I was able to shut my brain off for 90 minutes. The opening death scene is almost like if you were to combine Saw with Final Destination. Most of the movie takes place in a location that doesn’t feel like it could legitimately exist, but it didn’t matter because you knew that many elaborate deaths were coming.

10. Chained – Jennifer Lynch did a good job creating this film about a serial killer than raises a kidnapped child, and trains him to become a serial killer. Vincent D’Onofrio is really creepy as the serial killer, and it had an end that really worked for me.

11 (2 way tie) Rabies and Father’s Day

12. The Revenant

13. Underworld Awakening

14. Alien Opponent

15. The Divide

16. The Pact

17. Absentia

18. Sinister

19. Grabbers

Most Disappointing: VHS, Wrong Turn 5, Grave Encounters 2

Top 10 Non-horror Movies

1.The Raid – This is the best action film I’ve seen in years. It has everything. Blood, shoot outs, martial arts. It had everything I wanted. And what is often overlooked is it is beautifully shot. Plus one of the villains is one of the most badass dudes I’ve ever seen on film.

2. The Yellow Sea – We are used to Korean directors pushing out intense crime thrillers, but this is the best I saw this year. One of the aspects I liked the most were the hatchets. Its a weapon that a lot of films don’t use, but it was used incredibly here.

3. The Avengers – It’s hard enough to pull off a successful action hero movie, but to interweave all of these action heroes together, and come out with a film like this is exactly what all of us were waiting for when we heard this was going to be made.

4. Chronicle – this was one of the biggest surprises of the year for me. I really enjoyed all of the performances and I loved the arc of the main character.

5. Looper – Great performances by everyone involved. I was happy to see Noah Segan getting a role in a huge film. I really enjoyed the entire world they created, and it had one of the more bad ass little kids Ive seen in a while.

6. Flight – It seems as though I enjoy almost anything Denzel is in. I really enjoyed his portrayal of Whip, and the first half hour of this film is truly amazing.

7. Holy Motors – this is a film Im going to have to watch a few times in the future to fully understand everything going on here. It feels almost Lynch-ian at some points, that is if Lynch actually made films you could somewhat understand.

8. Total Recall – I really expected to dislike this film but I was surprised at how enjoyable it was. It also features one of my favorites, Kate Beckinsale and it also has Jessica Beil, so you get plenty of eye candy to go along with the impressive locations.

9. Killer Joe – This was my favorite dark comedy of the year. Everyone plays roles akin to cartoon characters, but it works on so many levels. I will never look at a chicken leg the same way again.

10. The Amazing Spiderman – I think most of us were shocked when we heard this series was being rebooted after the success of the Raimi Spiderman movies. As for a first installment in a series, I think this tops Raimi’s initial Spiderman. 

Check out Brandon’s detailed thoughts on his top 10 picks on Horrorphilia Podcast by clicking here.

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• Jeremy’s Top 20 Horror Movies of 2012 (horrorphilia.com)
• Gonzo’s Top 20 Horror Movies of 2012 (horrorphilia.com)
• The Best and Worst Movies of 2012 (zombiesdontrun.net)