Here are Cinephile Corner’s 10 recommendations for movies like Army of Darkness:
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice
Tim Burton didn’t need to revisit the Beetlejuice universe—but here we are. In an era when nearly every beloved classic is revived, it was only a matter of time before Burton reached into his own catalog, which includes hits like Batman, Edward Scissorhands, and Sweeney Todd.
MadS
MadS reminds me of the joys of finding undiscovered independent horror movies. Although it’s gained some steam within the genre’s diehard community, MadS still feels as though it’s being underappreciated. Because for a film as muddy and down-to-Earth as this one is technically, it’s a thrill ride about as absurd as anything you’ll see in 2024.
The Blackening
Tim Story‘s The Blackening is a movie that doesn’t hold back any punches, offering biting commentary on pop culture and the experience of being black. The film lacks in some technical departments, but it’s still a supremely funny effort.
V/H/S/Halloween
V/H/S/Halloween feels like the most obvious swing this long-running Shudder anthology could take, and the holiday framing mostly works. After a few detours to specific years and even outer space, this film plants every vignette on October 31, stitching them together with a proper wraparound about The Octagon Corporation’s cursed “Diet Phantasma” soda that kills its taste testers in escalatingly nasty ways. Bryan M. Ferguson leans into splattery punch lines here, and the carnage sets the tone for a lineup that ricochets between gross-out mayhem and quieter, queasier terror.
Evil Dead Rise
There aren’t many horror franchises able to reinvent themselves as often as Evil Dead does while still maintaining relevancy and quality. Maybe it’s because Sam Raimi holds his creation so close to his heart that only a select few are able to take on the premise, or maybe it’s because the premise seems simple and malleable enough to make nearly anything work. It can shoot for the downright zany and ludicrous with Evil Dead II or Army of Darkness, or it can strive to be like Lee Cronin’s newest spin Evil Dead Rise – a movie so sick and twisted that you can’t help but give it its dues by the time the credits roll.
In a Violent Nature
In a Violent Nature didn’t blow me away, but it’s creative enough to have me intrigued with where Chris Nash will set his sights next. The movie is made specifically for the hardcore sickos out there that love to see how far a creative can go to make an audience feel queasy.
Barbarian
Zach Cregger‘s Barbarian is still refreshing and thrilling, and it’s easily one of my favorite theater experiences of 2022. Films try over and over again to use the schlocky marketing bit of audiences screaming in theaters only to be disappointing in actual terror when places in front of you – but Barbarian is genuinely jaw-dropping.
Christmas Bloody Christmas
Joe Begos’ Christmas Bloody Christmas offers much that his first two films offer – retro colors that are intoxicating to look at, dialogue that oozes with acid and crassness, and a few kills with excellent practical effects. While the elements are pieces that I prefer quite a bit, the film loses me in forgettable character arcs and an overall sense of purposelessness.
Cocaine Bear
Cocaine Bear reinvents the boundaries of cinema and what’s possible for the medium moving forward. An absolutely groundbreaking work that sets the tone for 2023. Just kidding. But it’s still goofy and wild. And a bear does cocaine, confirmed.
Sorry About the Demon
In its final moments, I was surprised how remarkably unremarkable Sorry About the Demon actually was. I liked many of the stylistic choices and tonal elements that came together in a neat way, but it’s overpowered by a story that lacks any real teeth or grit. With that being said, I’m interested in the future career paths of both director Emily Hagins and leading actor Jon Michael Simpson. There’s enough in this movie to build on in future releases. Some finetuning to story and themes may push both of them to further heights in the future with better outcomes.
READ MORE: Army of Darkness (1992)
