Minimalist Horror
Host (2020) d: Rob Savage
Hell House LLC (2015) d: Stephen Cognetti
The Invitation (2015) d: Karyn Kusama
Honeymoon (2014) d: Leigh Janiak
Creep (2014) d: Patrick Kack-Brice
They Look Like People (2015) d: Perry Blackshear
All of these are intimate, small budget, small cast gems. Host was filmed during quarantine and takes place entirely on a Zoom call – horrifying. This isn’t exactly groundbreaking plot-wise, but it's tight, timely, and full of effective jump scares. It’s a lot of fun.
While a well-executed jump scare can still get me good, I generally don’t get lingeringly scared by horror movies anymore. Enter Hell House LLC. To be honest, I did not expect this to be good, merely entertaining. A found footage entry following the creation of a haunted house Halloween attraction, it didn’t exactly sound revolutionary. But it scaaaaaaared me. I’ve never been actually scared by clowns in a horror movie before, so content warning if you need it (you know who you are).
The Invitation is about a dinner party with friends - remember those? It’s a tense, slow build that takes full advantage of the increasingly claustrophobic setting. Honeymoon is the story of two young lovers on their - you guessed it - honeymoon at a remote cabin in Canada (interesting choice). The chemistry between the leads is great (why don’t we see more of Rose Leslie?) and it ramps up to some pretty squishy body horror.
Creep was a real unexpected treat. It’s found footage, centered on just two people. I found it very clever and twisty, I genuinely wasn’t sure where it would go. They made a surprisingly great sequel if you like it.
The minimalest of this minimal-list (ba-dum chhhh) is They Look Like People. It was shot, edited, written, produced, and directed by one guy working on a micro-budget (eat your heart out, Tommy Wiseau). It crackles with tension, the main characters have great chemistry, and it’s a surprisingly nuanced look at mental health.
(If you’re digging the vibe, you could always add in good ‘ol Blair Witch Project)