The scary season is almost upon us, and that usually means a frightfully good choice of films in the cinemas! Fear fans will be able to get their fill of shockers, while there are some gently spooky spills and thrills for little ones too.
1. Joker
Out now
Joaquin Phoenix picks up the late Heath Ledger's baton and runs with it in a harrowing, nightmarish vision of mental illness in Gotham City.
2. Annabellum: The Curse of Salem
Out now
A creepy doll horror with a similar title to the massively successful Annabelle series – coincidence? Maybe not, but fans of scary toys might still get a kick out of this indie chiller. Listen out for the Hitchcock-style strings on the trailer...
3. Zombieland: Double Tap
Release date: Friday 18 October
Woody Harrelson, Emma Stone, Jesse Eisenberg and Abigail Breslin are all back for another spin around the zombie-strewn dancefloor. The original Zombieland was 10 years ago but if you’re a fan you can expect more wise-cracking, zombie-mashing action as the dysfunctional family make their way through the apocalypse.
4. Maleficent: Mistress of Evil
Release date: Friday 18 October
Michelle Pfeiffer does battle with Angelina Jolie and Elle Fanning in the sequel to Disney’s dark fairytale Maleficent, which was loosely based on Sleeping Beauty.
5. A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon
Release date: Friday 18 October
It’s a close encounter of the furred kind, as our hero Shaun befriends Lu-La the alien and tries to get her home – before the bad guys get to her. Warm-hearted fun with plenty of classic sci-fi references for the grown-ups.
6. Doctor Sleep
Release date: Friday 18th October
The sequel to The Shining is based on Stephen King’s 2013 novel and stars Ewan McGregor as the traumatised, alcoholic Danny – the little boy from the original story. The director is Mike Flanagan – best known for the Netflix series The Haunting of Hill House.
7. IFI Horrorthon 2019
Runs: Thursday 24 to Monday 28 October
Serious horror junkies might want to camp out in Temple Bar for the week, as the IFI puts on more than 30 screenings of all things creepy.
It starts on Monday 24 with the Irish premiere of the new zom-com Little Monsters (above), starring Oscar winner Lupita Nyong’o and also includes Nicolas Cage in HP Lovecraft's Color Out of Space; Michael Smiley and Elijah Wood in Come To Daddy; Oscar winner Helen Hunt in I See You; as well as short films and Sunday evening’s Horrorthon Surprise Film.
Five-day passes and multi-film passes are on offer. More here.
8. Countdown
Release date: Friday 25th October
Popcorn horror time! What if an app could tell you exactly when you are going to die – and it happens to be in less than three days’ time? A young nurse gets her friends together to try to beat the clock – and survive.
9. The Addams Family
Release date: Friday 25th October
They're creepy and they're kooky – and they’re back on the big screen. This animated version has an all-star voice cast including Charlize Theron, Chloë Grace Moretz, Bette Midler and Snoop Dogg. Halloween fun for all the family.
