*Keep up with our ongoing end of the year coverage here*
2019 delivered a surplus of top-notch horror releases with all the bleak subject matter, memorable jolts and gory kills a genre fan could ask for. Yet some of the year’s scariest moments were located in completely unexpected places – like upbeat superhero romps, brightly coloured animations and breezy hangout comedies. Indeed, the last 12 months have been so densely packed with disturbing moments cropping up in non-horror films, that we decided to compile a list.
Now, bear in mind these sequences might not get under your skin in the same way as Midsommar or It Chapter 2 (some of them won’t phase you in the slightest if you’re over the age of 10) but they did manage to surprise us by coming totally out of nowhere. And that deserves some recognition.
Also, before you ask: No, the Cats trailer does not make an appearance. Tempting though it was.
Shazam! – ‘’Outlook, not so Good’’
David F. Sandberg obviously believes that contemporary kids movies don’t have nearly enough grisly decapitations in them. Why else would he go out of his way to include this startling boardroom massacre in the otherwise good-natured Shazam?
Having just made a covenant with the seven deadly sins (visualised in the DCEU as Harryhausen-esque creatures), the first order of business for Thaddeus Sivana is to pay his disapproving father a special Christmas visit, so that he can exact retribution for years of childhood neglect. Naturally this translates to him interrupting an exec meeting, making boastful threats, and then summoning his newfound demonic pals to wreak havoc on his behalf. The ensuing bloodshed is relatively explicit for a PG-13, hearkening back to the distressing material you used to get in squeaky clean classics like Who Framed Roger Rabbit or Raiders of the Lost Ark.
If you go through it frame-by-frame, you can even see a headless corpse being flung out a window at one point. Wholesome family fun!
Dumbo – Welcome to Nightmare Island
Tim Burton might have mercifully reigned in the unadulterated terror of the infamous Pink Elephants number for his live-action Dumbo remake, but that doesn’t mean he skimped on the frights altogether. On the contrary, the ‘’Nightmare Island’’ portion of the film is pretty disquieting even by Disney’s standards.
A house-of-horrors that seeks to pass-off mistreated zoo exhibits as mythical beasts, there’s a pleasingly old-school vibe to this creepy setting, what with the chiaroscuro lighting, ghostly Danny Elfman music and gothic iconography. Special mention should go to production designer Rick Heinrichs (Sleepy Hollow) for creating such a classically spooky environment: one that boasts medieval torture devices, gloomy flora and a volcanic rock formation in the shape of a menacing skull. It looks wonderful! In fact, were it not for the deplorable animal welfare conditions, this would probably make for a pretty fun attraction at the Magic Kingdom.
Jurassic World: Battle at Big Rock – Allosaurus Assault
Say what you want about Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, but its cliffhanger ending did establish an intriguing direction for the rest of the series to follow, one in which prehistoric monsters are liberated from their enclosures and set loose upon the United States. The ending supplied us with a brief taste of how that premise would eventually pan out, but this year we were given a far juicer appetizer in the form of direct-to-YouTube short Battle at Big Rock.
The majority of the action here concerns a close-knit family under siege from a hungry allosaurus that is trying to tear its way into their upturned RV. In terms of sheer intensity, it honestly outclasses many of the set-pieces we’ve seen in recent Jurassic movies, easily standing shoulder-to-shoulder with The Lost World’s long grass hunt or the otherworldly Pteranodon attack in JP3. The key element that makes it feel so perilous is the ground-level camera work, which frames everything from a human perspective and lends the carnivore a formidable sense of scale.
On that note, Larry Fong’s cinematography is definitely Big Rock’s greatest asset, producing amazing shots that help make the dinosaur feel properly intimidating (such as when the focus shifts from a character in the foreground, to a fearsome row of teeth in the background). Let’s just hope this is indicative of what’s in store for Jurassic World 3.
Terminator: Dark Fate – You’re Dead Already
Whilst the follow-ups became increasingly bombastic, many forget that the original Terminator had its feet planted firmly in the horror genre. It was therefore encouraging to see the franchise’s newest installment, Dark Fate, pay homage to that fact with its foreboding prologue.
Reminding us just how terrible the apocalyptic future ought to be, it kicks off with footage of Sarah Conner raving about judgement day, before cutting to a static shot of waves lapping against the beach. As the sands are gradually pulled back, we realise that they are concealing the last vestiges of human resistance in this forthcoming war – with buried skulls, spinal cords and rib cages all being uncovered by the tide. It’s a supremely haunting image and, when combined with Sarah’s grim prophecy, it makes for an effective-as-hell reintroduction to this iconic world.
Toy Story 4 – Dead Silence
Whoever had the idea to insert malevolent ventriloquist dummies into Toy Story 4 deserves all the Oscars. Like every last one of them. Because the inclusion of these hair-raising villains was an absolute stroke of genius, totally in keeping with the rules of Pixar’s universe, to the point where you find yourself wondering why no one else had ever thought of it before.
More so than any other entry on this list, the appearance of these freaky dolls caught us completely off guard. After all, who really expected to see something this alarming in a Toy Story sequel? Everything about the dummies is disconcerting, from their lifeless eyes, to their unnatural movements, to the way that their mouths are permanently agape, right through to the 360° head spins they do when patrolling the antique store. Seriously these guys put Annabelle to shame!
Hellboy – Meet Baba Yaga
Although the cards were admittedly stacked against 2019’s Hellboy from the very start – by virtue of it not being the conclusion to Guillermo Del Toro’s would-be trilogy – it was nevertheless a huge disappointment for fans. Indeed, whatever potential the reboot might have possessed was ultimately squandered on a choppy-edited mess that was plagued with production troubles, iffy VFX, and borderline incoherent storytelling. Still, there was at least one scene where all the ingredients came together in a wholly satisfying way, that being when Big Red came face-to-face with the legendary Baba Yaga.
Here, director Neil Marshall put the convoluted plot and OTT action on the backburner so that he could finally indulge in his horror roots, and the end result was, far and away, the peak of this comic-book adaptation. There’s a terrific sense of atmosphere, as a deliciously dark subplot unravels about the witch feasting on human infants, and we are treated to some truly macabre imagery (few blockbusters have the cojones to show dead children swinging from meat hooks). Plus, we also get to marvel at top-notch contortionism from performer Troy James, whose work is complemented by expressive makeup effects that bring the folkloric hag to life. From the hairy-tongue, to the Cheshire cat grin, skeletal frame and off-centred eyes, every grotesque detail of the prosthetic is absolutely spot-on. If only the rest of Hellboy was able to live up to this incredible standard.
Once Upon a Time in… Hollywood – Touring Spahn Ranch
Quentin Tarantino flicks are typically constructed around a series of drawn out, suspense-filled dialogue exchanges. You know, those taut conversations that only he is capable of writing, wherein characters are either openly or covertly at each other’s throats. But as many people have already pointed out, his latest offering is uncharacteristically laid-back, mainly comprised of people shooting the breeze against the idyllic backdrop of 60s L.A. In fact, narrative jeopardy doesn’t really kick in until the halfway mark, when the fictional lives of our protagonists begin to intersect with the true story of the Manson family.
The first time this happens – with Cliff stumbling upon Spahn Movie Ranch, the real-life headquarters of the notorious cult – makes for a distinctly nerve-wracking experience, and what’s so brilliant about it is that Tarantino leaves us to simmer in the raw tension of the moment. Without the comfort of the auteur’s trademark flourishes (like a pop-infused soundtrack or witty banter), we’re on tenterhooks throughout, as Cliff scours the ranch for its original owner, all whilst under the watchful eyes of the furtive commune.
Granted, nothing actually happens to him in the end but the unbearable sense of dread presiding over the sequence keeps you on edge and it’s enough to make you wonder what Tarantino would be capable of if he ever did decide to make a full-blown horror film.
Joker – ‘’You’re Awful Murray’’
Another pressure cooker situation here, but unlike the ranch bit in OUATIH this one isn’t so neatly diffused. Throughout Joker we have witnessed misfortune after misfortune befall the pitiful Arthur Fleck (Joaquin Phoenix) and it’s at this juncture that he finally reaches his breaking point, launching into a frenzied rant on live TV. Mouthing off about the hypocrisy of civilised society and the upper classes, it’s evident that he’s lost all his inhibitions and isn’t going to hold back anymore.
However, it’s not until the vitriol is redirected at his former idol Murray Franklin (Robert De Niro) that things get legitimately scary. Tired of all the lies and insincerity, Arthur calls out the late-night host for trying to humiliate him under the pretense of inviting him onto the show. It’s a nail biting tête-à-tête, one that is anchored by Phoenix’s utterly bloodcurdling performance (note how his voice starts to break when he really starts to lose it) and Hildur Guðnadóttir’s propulsive score, which almost seems to be counting down to the inevitably violent conclusion.
The aftermath of the confrontation is especially chilling, as we look upon the horror through studio cameras, in a way that uncomfortably recalls the kind of televised atrocities that we see so often on the news.