A new year is upon us. It’s a time for renewal and change for many people. We scare ourselves into thinking we have to come up with these grand, life-altering resolutions in time for the new year. However, for a lot of people, change is scary.
Horror movies all but have a monopoly when it comes to scares. And, they are no strangers to subverting winter holiday cheer. This includes New Year’s Eve, a time when people should be celebrating and preparing for what’s to come. Rather, the characters in these ten horror films are just trying to survive so they can see the New Year.
The Exhibitionists (2012)
Orange in the New Black’s Laverne Cox is possibly the only recognizable actor in this little-known, indie thriller from 2012. Michael Melamedoff’s film brandishes a loathsome main character who doubles as the antagonist. In the thirty-six hours leading up to the New Year, a neophyte director indulges his perversions by taping and exposing the dark secrets of those around him.
As stated in some reviews, The Exhibitionists is so reviled because it may possibly hit too close to home with its sordid behavior.
New Year’s Evil (1980)
In this New Year’s Eve-set crime-thriller with slasher elements, a masked killer is murdering women at the stroke of midnight in every time zone. And, it’s now up to a punk rock television host to stop him.
New Year’s Evil is notable for its unique if not convoluted premise. We can’t say too many other horror movies are featuring killers who schedule their homicidal deeds either. However, that’s about all there is to New Year’s Evil—a gimmicky plot device. Otherwise, the film is poorly paced, and there’s not a lot of scares either.
Steel Trap (2007)
This German torture flick, directed by Luis Cámara, is fairly unheard of, even by the horror community. It chronicles several strangers being invited to what seems like a private New Year’s Eve party in a high-rise building. Little do they know, this is really a trap. Hence, the title of the movie.
With Saw and other gory horror movies being the rage in the mid-2000s, Steel Trap was obviously trying to cash in on the trend. Which necessarily wouldn’t be a bad thing, but the movie suffers from poorly written characters. Makes it hard to root for any of these obnoxious partygoers.
Midnighters (2017)
New Year’s Eve is a night of fun for many, but it’s also a time for instant regrets. This is true for the couple at the center of the thriller Midnighters. Initially, there is no external threat in the movie other than the one brought upon by the husband and wife. They create their own horror story.
In Midnighters, a troubled couple finds themselves in a horrible predicament—they ran over someone on New Year’s Day. Instead of doing the right thing and reporting the accident, they try to cover up the crime. Things exponentially worsen as they get involved in a tangled web of lies connected to the murder.
Jaws: The Revenge (1987)
It seem odd to defend a movie like Jaws: The Revenge, but hear us out. Not only does the final installment in the maritime franchise boast a terrifying opening scene — one that, honestly, outdoes the original’s — it possesses some alarmingly realistic depictions of grief. Lorraine Gary is a total show-stealer in the way she conveys her character’s anguish. That being said, the movie fails for a number of reasons. Some of which include the dubious action sequences and outlandish shark behavior. Do sharks even roar? Not at all.
If you’re looking for even more wackiness, check out the novelization by Hank Searls. Apparently, there’s a subplot, exclusive to the book, about a curse placed on the Brody family. Which explains why they’re being targeted by these vengeful sharks. Yep.
In Jaws: The Revenge, the Brody matriarch escapes to the Bahamas to spend Christmas and New Year’s with her son after her other son, Sean, is killed in a freak accident. Her holiday getaway is far from festive, though. For her son’s murderer has followed her.
Ghostkeeper (1981)
In spite of the fact that Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining is considered an horror movie, there aren’t nearly as many copycats as you would expect there to be. Then comes in Ghostkeeper, which was released a year after Kubrick’s movie. This low-budget obscurity will challenge some viewers who expect non-stop thrills and excitement, but Ghostkeeper bides its time. The film effectively builds atmosphere.
In this slow burn, inclement weather forces a group of people to seek shelter at a deserted Rocky Mountains hotel. In time, they eventually realize the place isn’t so empty after all.
Bloody New Year (1987)
Also known as but rarely referred to as Time Warp Terror, Bloody New Year is an incoherent, mind-bending horror movie. It pays homage to The Evil Dead, but it’s not anywhere as understandable. Whatever the plot here is, it’s threadbare and hard to grasp. There are some memorably cheesy scenes and commendable practical effects, though.
In Bloody New Year, some teens find themselves sent back in time to a 1959 hotel on New Year’s Eve. They’re soon attacked by an evil entity that won’t let go of the past.
Into the Dark: New Year, New You (2018)
Actor-turned-director Sophia Takal revisits a theme, from the highly underrated psycho-thriller Always Shine, in New Years, New You. Some may not have enjoyed her Black Christmas remake, but it’s clear she has a better and more nuanced understanding of women’s relationships with other women than some other directors today. She underlines the competitive streak among friends in her Into The Dark installment. What begins as mere jealousy quickly spirals into acts of betrayal and murder.
In New Year, New You, four estranged friends get together on New Year’s Eve at one of their childhood homes. As they get reacquainted and dig up the past, it becomes clear one of them has ulterior motives for this reunion.
Into the Dark: Midnight Kiss (2019)
Into the Dark is blessing us with these holiday-themed horror telemovies. Just when you think the anthology series could not live up to last year’s entry, they dropped this surprise ahead of the New Year. What starts off as a potentially vapid slasher ends up being more deep than we could have ever asked for. Openly gay director Carter Smith (The Ruins) captures the subculture with know-how while delving into the delicate intricacies of queer friendships. The horror aspects are less than novel here, but Midnight Kiss makes up for it in other ways.
Friends celebrating New Year’s Eve together find themselves the targets of a masked killer, who has an unknown grudge against everyone in this tight-knit group.
Terror Train (1980)
One film that helped Jamie Lee Curtis win her title of ‘Scream Queen’ is Terror Train. This 1980 Canadian slasher came to be during the sub-genre’s golden period. John Carpenter and Debra Hill’s Halloween as well as Sean S. Cunningham’s Friday the 13th influenced Terror Train and other similar whodunits. What makes this 1980 entry stand apart from its peers is the location and killer’s clever way of evading capture.
In Terror Train, a mean-spirited prank haunts several college students. Years later, they celebrate New Year’s Eve aboard a train. Without their knowing, someone has infiltrated the costume party, and he’s out for revenge.
