As the year draws to a close, I thought it would be an interesting task to provide a sort of organization of the year’s movie monsters—a quick analysis of what is still considered scary. However, if you think about it, what were thought of as 21st century animals started to look a little like Dungeons & Dragons Monster Manual and more like the aisles of our local Walmart. As the old world dies and the new world struggles to be born, it seems that the monsters of 2024 may represent the same fears, but have taken on a familiar hue. Since I’m not sure what to do with this information, submitted for your approval is io9’s 2024 monster revue.
Ordinary
In a year that saw the re-election of a former president, ongoing war in the Middle East, growing nuclear brinksmanship, and the return of bird flu, 2024 carried a grim sense of repetition. The feeling is that we will double down on what we have tried before, especially, with a full trilogy of material in mind so it will pay off like never before, right?
It is not clear which year saw the new variation of A Quiet Place, Alien, The Omen, Rosemary’s Baby, Beetlejuice, Ghostbusters, Godzilla, Hellboy, Salem’s Lot, The Crow, The Strangers– even A board of witchesthe likes of which we haven’t heard since the direct-to-video sequel in 1995.
Right now, there seems to be no end in sight to the return of well-known old and new IP Saw, Conjuring, Insidious, Fear Street, I Know What You Did Last Summeragain Final Destination films scheduled for release next year. Don’t take it anymore After 28 yearsis another nostalgia episode that boasts a trailer that is well on its way to becoming the most watched horror trailer of all time.
As we enter 2025, this “devil you know” attitude will carry over to Universal and it’s doubling down on its stable of classic monsters, trading the company’s previous foray into shared cinema for a bespoke one. Frankenstein, Bride of Frankenstein, Wolf Man, again Mother from no less than the likes of Guillermo del Toro, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Leigh Whannell, and Lee Cronin, respectively.
Today even a new release Nosferatucomplete with a marketing campaign that hopes to make gothic sophistication a new Christmas tradition. It’s interesting, then, that movie audiences have largely rejected vampires—so emphatically this a vampire, especially—the last few years with similar films Abigail, Renfield, again The Last Journey of Demeter failing to make a significant impact on culture or the box office.
Symptoms of Dracula and/or Nosferatu-to feed on the blood of others, to isolate oneself, yet to maintain great wealth and influence over others – these are good things that are completely sanctioned by culture. The kids call it “sigma.”
What feels especially new about this continued tendency to stick with what we know is the sudden respect we’ve developed for the slasher genre—which is legitimately considered the essence of horror’s barrel. While yesterday’s culture has become tomorrow’s critical darlings it’s nothing new (recent Best Picture winners have included stories about a fish-loving man who falls in love with a human woman; a universe where people swap pork products for phalanges; and the community-minded ABC Movie of the Week, Bad Ronald), nothing has been achieved at this level of cultural importance that is so focused on harmful effects. Two and a half hours The scary one movies more like the films of Herschell Gordon Lewis than Dario Argento. In a state of violence, who reimagined the film as Friday the 13th or You are crazy from the point of view of its undead killer, it adds a touch of research to the simplistic narrative of the genre, underscoring the thin wall that separates films like these from the French New Wave that are indeed occasional bloodbaths.
Although he pushes the envelope The scary one The franchise may appear to be a litmus test of human empathy, worthy of legitimate recognition for people like Art the Clown and his unlimited Harpo Marx-meets-Freddy Krueger routine. Anything too revolutionary will not find this audience. This is why I’m legitimately surprised by the movie that didn’t come out this year: The Macon Blair remake The Venomous Avenger. Something about a politically motivated judge, judge, and big business outfitter was deemed too radioactive to release. I wonder why…
Media
The combination and continued popularity of the slasher film has been a torturous way to have prominent child actors just entering the public eye. Last year, new cartoons were announced featuring Winnie the Pooh, Peter Pan, Bambi, Popeye, Steamboat Willie, Pinocchio, Sleeping Beauty, the Little Mermaid, and Mad Hatter. Something about the transfer of bullets meant to attract as much money as possible to the land of bloodthirsty killers feels “right” in a timely and inevitable way—not to mention punk rock. If IP falls into people’s hands, isn’t the only moral thing you can do to turn into a monster? Especially if all roads lead to 2024, the consensus should be Mickey and the company has sold the property building for the first time.
One only needs a light dusting of YouTube these days to find an endless stream of dark stories The Pokémon ideas or an unusual horror game for the PlayStation 2 starring Piglet. In these circles, a lost Cartoon Network bumper or an unproduced episode of SpongeBob Squarepants it is discussed in the same way as the nuclear laws that have not yet exploded. When everything is online, something that’s missing—no matter how innocent—is suspicious and controversial. If we were telling children scary stories so that they would not enter wood alone, lost media hunters should at least refrain from sharing their credit card information with black net seed collectors.
Recent films are similar I Saw The TV Was On they understand the kind of fanatical devotion that over-investment in children’s media can bring—the kind people used to describe as “Lovecraftian,” but now refer to by terms like “Disney Adult.” In a generation where Cthulhu is available as a rich doll for life, the Great Old Ones may be Garfield and friends, all the time. Smile 2 it is another film from last year to understand this, following on the heels of similar films A ring again It followswhere curses are spread like transmissible memes that move like viruses—even our immunized celebrities.
As of 2024, “cosmic” horrors pervade the world and even if the beliefs of their news-savvy cults may seem silly to you, you don’t need to believe in the destructive power of their fandom as long as they do.
Technology
The past year has also seen a slew of monster-ifying AI and bleeding-edge technology—movies like Humility again He was afraidwhere machines meant to improve our quality of life are personally invited home, like vampires, to reveal their other unpleasant passions.
However, as we are increasingly terrified of robots taking over our jobs, ironically we have also lost faith in the idea of technological progress. We’ve had movies about killer robot babysitters, toys, smart homes, and personal assistants, but we’re yet to reach that “oneness” where these emerging technologies do anything more terrifying than become better at something you’ve vaguely defined. you are.
As our government continues to admit that our airspace is and has always been filled with unscientific aircraft, I am reminded of Jordan Peele’s 2022 feature. Nowhich suggested that UFOs are an insatiably hungry, aerial beast that our zoologists have yet to see or list. In a way, it’s easy to believe. Which brings us to…
Your Life/Adults
As if AI is taking the place of human beings, one of the most interesting trends of the past year has been the series of monster movies that focus on—in some ways—doppelgängers. Whether it’s a previously unknown biological entity like this one Cucumberdemonic presence as in Never Let Go again Father’s heador an optional built-in proxy like this Somethingthe concern at the heart of these stories hinges not on being a monster, per se, but on occupying one—and possibly missing out on the good things the monster does.
Night dogthe latest film in which Amy Adams turns into a dog as a way to express her repressed anger, is considered a good net. The idea of losing control is very popular lately. Like Demi Moore’s fear of disrespect Somethingreal fear remains.
Speaking of which, if 2024 can be defined by one continuous boogeyman, the title should be given to adults unanimously. The movies are similar The Heretic, Apartment 7A, again Alien: Romulushave shown the elderly (if not directly late, as the poor Specter Ian Holm e Romulus) abuse young people for many reasons, varying from making money to simply showing that they are still important from the comfort of their cramped homes.
People often fail to see the difference between corpses and corpses, but the difference between them is noticeable. Mummies differ from zombies in that a zombie is something that is clinically dead, but somehow still behaves as if it were alive. A mother is something that should definitely be dead, but in some way biologically is something is still alive—as Kharis’ heart continues to pound because of tana’s departure from Universal Mother’s hand, Mother’s grave, Spirit of Mother, as well as Mother’s Curse.
With the release of Nosferatu today, in Count Orlok we have a familiar, grown-up, copyright-infringing ghoul from the beginning of the film who simply refuses to go away. A man worth the time, indeed.
Looking for more io9 news? Check out when you can expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe in film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.
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