8 Modern Horrors to Watch NOW

If you’re visiting this site, then you are more than likely a fan of the genre. Maybe a casual fan that checks out whatever creepy releases have hit your local Redbox. Maybe an enthusiast that spends a great deal of time scouring the web in search of something new. No matter the case – it’s pretty tough to not miss a gem here and there. Here’s some of my favorite “underrated” flicks that you may have missed :

 Afflicted

Parading around as yet another generic Found Footage release – Afflicted is something else entirely. If you read our (mostly positive) review for Wer – you learned that there is still room for some of the classic monsters that were once staples of our beloved genre. This one provides a fresh take on Vampires. I know what you’re thinking, and no one has grown more tired of vampire related media than I – but this (again, like Wer) brings a kind of logic that we rarely get from this sub genre. Perhaps best of all – it’s a found footage flick that has a reason for why they are filming EVERYTHING, and how the hell they get some of the awesome shots that they do.

Aftershock

Natural disasters are scary. Eli Roth has a leading roll. Escaped convicts are roaming around the destroyed city streets….. that’s about all I needed to sell me on Aftershock. The characters are likable, the violence is brutal, and the presentation is mostly impressive. It’s not like anything else I have seen lately. Check it out.

The Children

Believe it or not – with all of the macabre things we see in movies these day – acts of violence against young children are still taboo. Not many studios are brave enough to open that can of worms – even if they are infected with something and you know, trying to fucking kill you. It’s not like The Children goes too far. The violence portrayed is completely logical. Given the situation, I probably would resort to the same a hell of a lot sooner.

Contracted

Have you ever seen box art circulating for a while, but you never really explore the movie? That happened for several weeks with me and Contracted. One night I decided to give the creepy girl a shot. My god am I glad I did. Not only is it insanely gross, but it had an ending that I legitimately did not see coming. In fact, I was so into the events going on in the story – I wasn’t even thinking about how things were going to wrap up. Thats a good sign.

Munger Road

Munger Road has an interesting story. Not so much in the movie itself, but the history of the film. Its a low budget movie about my favorite thing: A non paranormal lunatic that kills people. Complete with escaped convict cliche and all. It also touches on the urban legend of having your stopped car pushed up  train tracks by ill-fated children. A nice (if unnecessary) touch. Interestingly enough, the film makers knew they couldn’t make the movie they wanted with the funding they had. They released Munger Road as sort of a prequel to the movie they wanted to make. Hoping it would help them secure funding. Unfortunately, that still hasn’t happened.

Open Grave

Remember how I was talking about box art earlier? Well, Open Grave’s was pretty bad in my opinion. I was shocked when I started the movie to find excellent production value and strong performances all around. I was insanely high on this film after completing it. Perhaps due to the fact that it made me like an entry into a sub genre that I absolutely hate. I was impressed all around.

Static

It’s disappointing that horror villains have to have some vain attempt at being iconic these days. It always seems like they have to have some gimmick. A completely unpractical weapon, a vision hindering mask, or something of the like. Thats why my first look at Static had my eyes looking at the back of my skull. But it was a gloomy day and I had absolutely nothing else to do. Quite frankly – I was out of quality material to watch. Static does absolutely nothing to separate itself from the pack for the majority of the film. In fact, a lot of it had me squinting at the TV at some of the logic that I was just supposed to accept. Then comes the ending. Every stupid decision that had me rolling my eyes – and I mean all of them – were explained by the time the credits rolled. One of the very few films that when you go back to poke holes in the occurrences…. they kind of make more sense in hind site.

Would You Rather

Jeffery Combs. Need I say more? I know this is Modern Horrors, but lets give respect where its due. At its core, I suppose Would You Rather is Torture Porn. Speaking of Porn – Sasha Grey is one of the dinner guests, and don’t act like you don’t know who that is. Pervs. Thankfully, Combs takes this to a whole other level with an unbelievable amount of charm. His character very much takes this film from being senseless (albeit, cool) violence to a film worth watching.