The Top 10 Coming Soon Horror Films of (May-August) 2012

The Avengers has grossed a believe-it-or-not $1billion¹ – and it’s only 14 days since its release. That makes The Hunger Games 2012 with its $519million take look like slim pickings. Moreover Hollywood still has The Amazing Spider Man 2012 and The Dark Knight Rises 2012 to look forward to. It’s going to be a cashbox summer.

Meanwhile in the real world horror fans can take refuge in theatres that find the screen space to show the following films. The selection criteria are buzz, star power and story potential. They are the best of the next four months².

2 Films mentioned in The Top 10 Coming Soon Horror Movies of 2012 are not repeated here. All release dates are North American and wide unless otherwise stated. Each date is subject to change at an executive’s whim.

Dark Shadows [May 11]

Hollywood has a tendency to feast on ingénues and then to cast them asunder. Lindsay Lohan is today’s cautionary tale but what if said ingénue is a man? His name would be Tim Burton.

Hollywood cannot cast him aside which may well be a shame because this man-child refuses to grow up. Edward Scissorhands 1990 was cute in its day but post 9-11, post Financial Crises and with Burton over 50 years old you’ve got to be kidding. Even teenagers laugh at emo.

The Road [May 11 Limited]

J-Horror is not yet dead. It’s alive and well in Asia; that’s the Philippines in the case of The Road 2012. After the bait-and-switch curtain fluttering of The Woman in Black 2012 it’s a about time a ghost story was made by the experts.

The Chernobyl Diaries [May 25]

The Chernobyl nuclear reactor disaster was a bigger story in 1986 than Japan was last year. The effects and impact of the accident are grist to the horror mill. The Wrong Turn series could easily relocate here. This is inspired premise. Genre storytelling par excellence is to be expected.

The Pact [May 25 Video-On-Demand]

At first glance this film may look formulaic but the best formulae solve the equation. The horror genre thrives on formula. There’s a moment in the trailer that pushes The Pact into eureka.

Red Lights [July 13]

click for preview

[●REC³] Genesis [Aug 3 VOD]

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Juan de los Muertos aka Juan of the Dead [Aug 14 VOD & DVD premiere]

The American websites are hailing this as a Cuban anti-Castro zombie horror. It’s as if they’re predicting that upon release the revolution will fail and their version of democracy – capitalism and racism – will colonise the republic.

Wrong.

The days of Havana as an outpost of Las Vegas are confined to 20^th century history. ¡Viva la revolución!

ParaNorman [Aug 17]

In a forever evolving technological medium and a constantly shifting culture this is the kind of film that befits the horror genre.

This is the kind of film Tim Burton wishes he could make.

The Possession [Aug 31]

Formerly known as Dibbuk Box this film is a long time coming to theatres. The name change is probably due to marketing which is a shame because the legend of the Dibbuk box³ is a talking point in itself. Film stars Kyra Sedgewick – an actress who is one degree from Kevin Bacon.

V/H/S [Aug 31 VOD]

Regular readers are aware of the admiration Thrill Fiction has for Ti West. One day one of his films is bound to make a lot of money; the day after that he is bound to make a big budget horror film. Before then there is V/H/S – bound to be a highlight of the year.

August looks like a better month than October right now. It finally looks like 2012 will deliver. If not then at least the trailers look good.

Read more Thrill Fiction: TheBest Horror Films of 2008

1 The Avengers Box Office Mojo

3 Dibbuk box

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