JANUARY 6 — If you missed it, my favourite films of 2023 list came out last weekend, so you can check that out for a more general overview of things.
I just watch (and love) too many genre films that it would be a crime to not also make a list for it.
In fact, there were arguably two genre films in my list last week, Godzilla Minus One and Talk To Me, and I still struggled to decide which films to put in and which films to leave out for this list.
For the record, my definition of “genre film” for this list is the same one that’s used by all the major genre film festivals out there like Fantastic Fest, Sitges Film Festival and Fantasia International Film Festival, which covers the gamut of horror, sci-fi, supernatural, fantasy and the fantastic.
I’m not saying that these are the best genre films of 2023, hence my usage of the word “favourite”, but they’re all great enough that I loved them to bits last year.
Evil Dead Rise
It’s a miracle how good all the Evil Dead films have been, even the much dreaded but surprisingly great remake from 2013. Maybe it’s the simplicity of the concept? Or maybe it’s the one common element that unites all the films — graphic gore?
Evil Dead Rise is much closer in spirit to the 2013 remake than Sam Raimi’s original trilogy, which means there’s not that much room for humour and cartoony fun, but this latest misadventure involving the Necronomicon is so full of creatively conceived carnage that it’s every bit as fun as any film in the franchise.
In fact, it’s probably the most fun I had in the cinema with a horror movie in 2023.
John Wick: Chapter 4
Say what you want about the John Wick franchise and its influence on the current action movie landscape, but I don’t think anyone can deny the fact that to have a fourth instalment that’s every bit as good as the first movie, and maybe even better (given what the bigger budget allows the filmmakers to do), is something of a rarity in the world of franchise filmmaking.
Packed front to back with one mind blowing action set-piece after another (that overhead shootout made me squeal with delight), John Wick: Chapter 4 is quite simply an incredible feat of action filmmaking.
Shin Kamen Rider
As a kid growing up in the 80s and early 90s, when it comes to tokusatsu TV series, I was very much a Kamen Rider fan instead of an Ultraman geek.
Of course, both of these would be beaten if there’s a new Space Cop Gaban movie out there, but the kind of giddy joy I felt when watching the absolutely wonderful Shin Kamen Rider is a unique kind of special that made me feel like a kid watching the Masked Rider Black TV show all over again.
You simply can’t put a price on that, because not many movies can conjure that kind of feeling these days, and this one does so effortlessly.
Brooklyn 45
This single location thriller/ghost story is further proof that writer-director Ted Geoghegan (who previously made the outstanding We Are Still Here and Mohawk) is definitely a name to look out for when it comes to horror/genre films.
It’s about a small group of World War II veterans caught in the middle of a séance and locked inside the living room of one of their closest friends.
There are ghosts/spirits involved, but the film’s true terror comes from the people themselves, with paranoia and xenophobia raising their ugly heads.
Ninety-two minutes that will just fly by, even when the film is set inside a single location, this is pure filmmaking brilliance.
Skinamarink
There’s only so much one can do within the found footage horror sub-genre and it’s only a matter of time before it undergoes some sort of evolution.
That evolution happened in 2023, when the genre delivered two absolutely radical found footage flicks, both veering into experimental film territory with their bold and fearless approach to inducing sensory mayhem.
It’s really hard to pick between the two films — Skinamarink and The Outwaters — but since Skinamarink is the more radical and even more unique of the two, playing as if Michael Snow made a found footage horror flick, I think it more than deserves its place on this list.
The Channel
Fans of DTV (direct-to-video) movies should be familiar with the name William Kaufman, who did films like One In The Chamber, The Marine 4: Moving Target and The Prodigy, but The Channel, one of two movies he released in 2023, is surely his best and most well-crafted yet, despite the obviously pretty low budget.
A cops-and-robbers tale shot with great muscle and ingenuity, beefed up by a surprising emotional core, this is probably one of 2023’s finest examples of what legendary critic Manny Farber used to call termite art.
Eye For An Eye: The Blind Swordsman
There are tonnes of wuxia or period martial arts films being made in China every year, and there are even more of these nowadays once streaming platforms enter the picture.
Eye For An Eye: The Blind Swordsman is one of these direct-to-streaming films, initially released in China in 2022 and only making its way into the international market in 2023.
But don’t let its humble origins fool you, for this is a beautifully lensed film that’s visually on par with classy Korean period actioners like The Swordsman and even Japan’s Rurouni Kenshin movies, with beautifully choreographed action that’s also on par with them. A really, really pleasant surprise from the land of streaming.
Thanksgiving
One of the most gloriously gnarly horror flicks of 2023, this latest film (and hugely welcome return to form) from Eli Roth would be deserving of its place on this list just for the outlandish Black Friday sale set-piece that opens the film.
A beautifully nasty love letter to the holiday-themed slashers of 80s horror cinema, this will surely be a new cult classic in the very near future.
Its very creative kills will definitely reward repeat viewings, and the way Roth builds the film’s suspense with plenty of foreshadowing sprinkled throughout for the more alert viewers will also guarantee plenty of fresh new fans every time someone views this for the first time.
When Evil Lurks
This strikingly unique mash-up of possession flicks and apocalyptic horror movies confirms the exciting promise of Argentine director Demian Rugna, whose previous film Terrified was and still is one of the best horror films in recent memory.
Imagining an end of the world where evil is contagious and where using guns against the possessed will only make it spread faster, this is chock full of sights and sensations that we rarely see. Not as great as Terrified, but still damn good when compared with other horror flicks.
Candy Land
Some of the most striking and eloquent shots you’ll see in a genre film last year can be found in this, the latest film from director John Swab that I’m sure will be his calling card to the big leagues very soon.
A truck stop slasher flick that’s more or less highly faithful to the rules of the genre, with a killer twist that I’m sure many will be able to telegraph in advance, what makes this one special is the surprisingly strong acting, especially from Owen Campbell and Olivia Luccardi, who gave this film its beating heart, which will in turn leave its mark on you long after you’ve finished watching it.
Honourable Mentions: The Outwaters, Tiger Stripes, Sorry About The Demon, Suitable Flesh, M3GAN, Sisu, Bad City, Silent Night, Resurrected, Loop Track.
* This is the personal opinion of the columnist.
