Two ice storms in two weeks has been too much for yours truly. I am so over winter! Luckily, we never lost power, but both my husband and I have slipped and fallen. Our lawn is a skating rink. Since spring starts in two weeks, I figured a little end-of-the-season homage is in order. Hence, horror for the end of winter.
The Wolf of Snow Hollow (2020)
This hidden gem caught my eye a few months ago when I was looking at Amazon Prime’s collection of horror. Set in a small Utah town, this comedy/horror movie follows a series of brutal murders that the locals blame on a werewolf. Even as he struggles with his own life challenges, the current sheriff has to remind himself that there are no such things.
I loved this movie. The wry humor was right up my alley. Jim Cummings wrote, directed, and starred in it. I’d never heard of him before, but I’ve added a few of his other movies (such as The Beta Test) to my must-watch list.
Frozen (2010)
This literal cliffhanging survival movie plays to one of my great fears: heights. It starts off simply enough. A trio of friends goes skiing and get stuck on the chairlift after the slope closes. From there, it’s a matter of survival as they try to stay alive for five days in the sub-zero temperatures.
Whenever I watch survival horror, I constantly ask myself what I would do in that situation. (Although, I’ve never skied in my life, so this probably would never be me!) I spent the entire movie guessing what would happen next. Despite the simplicity of the cast and setting, the plot did take some unexpected turns. Definitely a must-watch horror for the end of winter.
The Retreat (2020)
This movie follows two best friends as they backpack in the Adirondacks during winter. When they decide to enhance their experience by taking peyote, things get strange. The entire movie leaves its viewers wondering if the two are really being stalked by a wendigo, or if it is merely the result of the drug.
I’ve always liked the surreal aspect of horror, especially when hallucinations come into play. I think it makes things even creepier. This tense movie kept me guessing, and even by the end I wasn’t sure what had happened.
The Retreat has been criticized for being too interpersonal at the cost of being less scary. However, I like deep dives into the human psyche and found the relationship between the two friends interesting and compelling.
Last but not least—The Thing (1982)
This, of course, is the obvious choice for horror for the end of winter. I saved it for last because this is one of my favorite horror movies of all time. Everything about it works for me. Kurt Russell has always been one of my favorite actors, and John Carpenter one of my favorite directors. The way the Arctic researchers are cut off from communications while a monster ravages them one by one makes for epic thrills. And the ending…perfection. If you haven’t seen this movie yet, I suggest that you immediately stop what you’re doing and watch it. No, I’m not kidding.
So there it is—enough horror to keep you occupied until the beginning of spring (I hope). Stay warm and stay scared.
If you like tales of shifters, try my newly-released Radish serial story: The Alpha Outcast.
Grey Silverstone, a rouge shifter with a checkered past, isn’t looking for trouble when he wanders into Mason City. He also isn’t looking for love. Yet when he comes to the rescue of a young woman named Kennedy Lorde, that’s exactly what he finds. Bad boy or not, Kennedy immediately falls for Grey – both for his body and mind. And while Grey worries that an uptown professional like Kennedy would never deign to pair up with an outcast like him, he can’t stop thinking about her. As Kennedy and her friends help Grey forget his violent past and step into a promising future, Armand Hammersmith – the city’s alpha – isn’t so forgiving. When Grey and Kennedy try to prevent Armand’s plan of taking over the city, Armand declares war. A war that Grey knows he can win if Kennedy is at his side.
The Thing is one of my favorite horror/science fiction movies and I’ve watched it many times. We are going on ski-trip soon but I’ll think I watch Frozen after the ski-trip.