The Weekly Horrorscope

The Best Stephen King Movie Adaptations

Horror and all of pop culture would not be the same without the prolific influence of Stephen King. Authoring countless classics and best sellers, his work is ripe for translation to television and film, if the material is handled properly. With such a vast library to draw from, there are plenty of duds with his name attached but also a treasure chest full of classics. Jerry and Matt choose their top twenty King movies and discuss while celebrating episode 100.

Best of the Decade- 2010's

The 2010's were a great decade for horror with the emergence of prestige horror and larger budgets pushing studio projects to greater quality levels. We saw movies like Hereditary, Get Out, A Quiet Place, Let Me In, as well as the highest grossing horror movie of all time, It. Independent, smaller films thrived in this new environment and well-made and intelligent films became the standard. Jerry & Matt look at two diverse examples of great movies from this decade with Green Room from 2015 and The Conjuring 2 from 2016.

Best Movie Series Finales

In a landscape littered with bad sequels and reboots, it was a challenge to seek out the very best end movies of a series. Often times, a successful series only ends because the films stop making money, usually because the quality has diminished dramatically and the audience moves on. In the best scenarios, filmmakers have a defined vision that is completed or they don't want to repeat themselves and dilute their own art. Jerry & Matt look at two films that closed out series and did so on a high note with Army of Darkness from 1992 and MaXXXine from 2024.

Best of the Decade- 2000's

The ought's brought a big shift in horror, leaving the stale 90's way behind them. Several new avenues for modern or elevated horror emerged, from French New Wave, to the found footage surge, the J-horror invasion and the torture porn era. New voices emerged and pushed the genre forward, some of whom still shape the landscape of horror today. Jerry & Matt look at two influential movies that greatly impacted the decade with American Psycho from 2000, and 28 Days Later from 2002.

2024 Year in Review

2024 was a monumental year for horror, with an impressive array of outstanding films. The year brought us the usual order of sequels, prequels, and remakes, but many of these were outstanding in their own right, not just quick cash grabs with diminished quality. We were also treated to original ideas and concepts that remind us how fresh and innovative horror can be. Jerry & Matt discuss some of the top films from 2024 and spend extra time with their top choices, Late Night with the Devil and Nosferatu.

Best of the Decade- 1990's

The 1990's saw a transition in horror, as the most predominant films split into either edgy thrillers, such as The Silence of the Lambs, Se7en, and Misery, or into teenage driven franchises like I know What You Did last Summer, Final Destination, and Scream. Pure horror films struggled to find a foothold in this environment, but like a beloved Final Girl, horror always survives. This week, Jerry & Matt look at two intelligent and layered movies that have great stories and scares with Exorcist III from 1990 and Candyman from 1992.

Best of the Decade- 1980's

With the proliferation of home video and lower barrier of entry to filmmaking, the 1980's were a decade inundated with horror movie releases. Within this volume, we saw masses of cheap and poorly made films, but also examples of great creativity and ingenuity. Streaming has replaced the direct-to-video model, but in many ways the 80's created the format for how we access horror movies to this day. As one of the most prolific, the decade offers many of the best horror of all time. Jerry and Matt discuss the dark and creepy A Nightmare on Elm St, from 1984, as well as the iconic and outstanding sequel, Aliens, from 1986.

TV Terror

As Dr. Oblivion stated in the film Videodrome, "the television screen has become the retina of the mind's eye". This is a frightening idea without even applying the concept to horror films. From scratchy static allowing entity's into our homes, to mind altering signals that warp our brain, television has become a technological touchstone ripe for allowing terror into our lives. Jerry & Matt look at two very different films where TV is a focal point of horror, with The Howling, from 1981 and The Ring from 2002. Remember, too much TV can be deadly!

All is Not What it Seems

Plot twists and misdirection have long been a hallmark of horror films. Fantastical imagery and haunting, dream-like sequences blur the lines between reality and fiction, often leaving viewers guessing at where the story is headed. Jerry & Matt look at two very different films where all is not what it seems, with David Cronenberg's mind-melding exposition of media, Videodrome, from 1983, and M. Night Shyamalan's disjointed return to film with 2015's The Visit.

Primate Party

Being so closely related on the evolutionary scale, man has always been fascinated with primates and love putting them in films. They can be shown as cute or silly in roles played for humor (Right turn, Clyde), sent into space, spread diseases, or evolve beyond man into a dominate human species. They present a mystery to us, a link to what we may have been in the past and unknown potential of what they may be capable of. It is this mystery that can provide grounds for horror. Jerry & Matt look at two diverse examples of primates in horror with the iconic and transcendent King Kong, from 1933 and bio-engineered Ella in George Romero's Monkey Shines, from 1988.