5 films of 2024 to watch for Halloween

David Ho gives you his picks of five new movies to watch for a scary Halloween

The Substance

The Substance is an instant classic. The body horror movie starring Demi Moore has a straightforward enough plot on the surface – ageing actress is offered and takes a mysterious substance that allows her to live in a separate “improved” body, with the caveat that she needs to alternate bodies every 7 days. But what happens when the balance is not respected? The Coralie Fargeat written, directed, and co-produced film is a visceral masterpiece that shows what self-loathing and unrealistic beauty standards can do to someone. Read our full review.     

Smile 2

After killing it as the Pink Ranger, Princess Jasmine, and a Charlie’s Angel, Naomi Scott is on to another plum role. This time, Scott flexes both her acting and vocal chops as Skye Riley, a troubled pop sensation trying to shake off her personal demons and an actual demon. The sequel film has already earned much praise for being a step above its predecessor, much of it due to Scott’s solid performance. The film also features a fair amount of music, sung and composed by Scott for her character.

Also see: #review: Is Joker: Folie à Deux to be hyped or hated?

Alien: Romulus

The seventh entry in the Alien franchise is set between the events of the first and second movie. This film follows the orphan Rain Carradine (played by Cailee Spaeny) and her adoptive robot brother Andy (David Jonsson), who join friends on a scavenging mission to look for cryonic stasis chambers in a stray spacecraft as they escape to the remote planet Yvaga. But they encounter some familiar figures that make it a deadly mission. Romulus works great as a standalone film, but there are certainly enough Easter eggs and references that would make fans of the original Alien happy. Read our full review.       

Blink Twice

Zoë Kravitz’s directorial debut Blink Twice took seven years to reach the silver screen, but the dark psychological thriller is well worth the wait. Frida (Naomi Ackie) and her friend Jess (Alia Shawkat) are down on their luck cocktail waitresses, who get invited by a billionaire playboy (Channing Tatum) on a tropical getaway. The film plays on tension superbly when things are not what they seem. Read our full review.         

Speak No Evil

The psychological horror film follows an American family who are invited to stay at a remote farmhouse of a British couple for the weekend, where things start to get weird and tense. Based on a 2022 Danish-Dutch film of the same name, this remake changes up the ending of the original but still delivers on the scares.  

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