In a decade of remakes, reshoots, and revisits (yes, we're looking at you Marvel) cineastes can rejoice in the knowledge that some original movies are growing in the cracks. However, a large portion of the releases coming out this year will most likely appeal to fans of horror and depravity. It could be an unconscious side effect of the pandemic but 2022 might be the year psychohorror and grueling thrillers make their comeback.
The line-up includes a porno set in a (obviously creepy) cabin in the woods, a masked villain with a penchant for child torture, mass murderers, and a deranged billionaire who thinks he's a bat. So, take a gander at the top ten films coming out this year, which for levity's sake, also includes movies that don't rely on a jump scare to shock its audience into submission.
1. Everything Everywhere All At Once
If there is only one film you see this year it has to be the science fiction adventure comedy of the decade (even if we're only two years deep) written and directed by Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, who go by the mononym, Daniels. After Marvel's Shang-Chi (2021) broke ground for casting its first East Asian superhero, cinema land is still feeling the aftershock of this cultural earthquake.
Everything Everywhere All At Once stars the extraordinary Michelle Yeoh (Crazy Rich Asians, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon) as a 55-year-old Chinese American mom who is simply trying to file her taxes. The universe, however, has other plans as he gets swept along on a timey wimey, interdimensional quest to save the world. Release: 25 March
2. Don't Worry Darling
Harry Styles and Florence Pugh are playing a married couple in a psychosexual thriller with appearances from Chris Pine and Dita Von Teese? There must be a god. For Stylers—as Harry Styles's fans call themselves—the date of October 23, 2022, will be bigger than Christmas as that is when Don't Worry Darling hits the cinema.
The plot revolves around a 1950s housewife who is living in a utopian experimental community with her husband. Pugh, who plays the unhappy housewife, starts to question her sanity when she starts to notice strange occurrences in her small community out in the California desert. Gemma Chan (Eternals, Humans) and Kiki Layne (If Beale Street Could Talk) also star.
3. Nitram
Admittedly, Nitram has been available to watch since September 2021, but for anyone living outside of Australia, it has been nigh on impossible to find a cinema or streaming platform that has been licensed to screen Justin Kurzel's harrowing drama. That should all change later this year as Nitram comes to theaters on March 30.
Nitram retells the events leading up to the 1996 Port Arthur massacre in Tasmania. The movie was hailed by critics as an extraordinary and sensitive portrayal of the making of a mass murderer. Without glorification or fetishization, Nitram (which is Martin backward, the name of the killer) Kurzel's film simply attempts to understand why the atrocity happened and how it led to one of the biggest reforms in Australian gun control legislation. Caleb Landry Jones won the best actor award at Cannes 2021 for his raw portrayal of killer Martin Bryant.
4. When You Finish Saving the World
Jessie Eisenberg's directorial debut When You Finish Saving the World stars Finn Wolfhard (Stranger Things, It) and Julianne Moore (Still Alice, The Hunger Games: Mockingjay). The movie, which is set to premiere at Sundance, is based on an audio show of the same name. The film is about a mother and son who fail to understand each other’s values while reflecting on internet fame and youth activism. Release: 20 January
5. X
In 1979, a group of young filmmakers set out to make an adult film in rural Texas, but when their reclusive, elderly hosts catch them in the act, the cast find themselves fighting for their lives. Release: 18 March
6. The Black Phone
This slasher-horror by filmmaker Scott Derrickson (Sinister, Doctor Strange) sets up Ethan Hawke (The Magnificent Seven, Tesla) with the most terrifying role of his career. The actor, who up until this film had a "no bad guys" acting policy, plays a child killer who abducts a boy and locks him in a soundproof basement. However, the 13-year-old boy starts receiving calls on a disconnected phone from the killer's previous victims, who are hellbent on helping him escape. Release: 24 June
7. The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent
Nicholas Cage movies are usually hit or miss but The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent lands straight in the sweet spot for being "the most Nicolas Cage movie ever," as described in the trailer. The actor plays himself, a debt-riddled actor who accepts $1 million to attend a super fan's birthday party. The catch is that this billionaire fan is also a drug lord and Cage must work as a CIA informant while delivering the performance of a lifetime. Release: 22 April
8. The Batman
Casting Robert Pattison as the next Capped Crusader was a bold move from director Matt Reeves. The decision provoked many hardcore DC fans to take to the Twitterverse to make their displeasure known. The backlash was so virulent that even the producer had to step and give a message of support saying "trust the filmmaker and give the filmmaker, and the filmmaker’s vision, the benefit of the doubt.”
The release day is almost upon us and audience excitement is starting to grow as more details of the plot are revealed. Pattinson promises that his incarnation of Bruce Wayne will be unlike any other as this film will focus more on the deranged madness that drives the Protector of Gotham. Release: 4 March
9. Nope
Not much is known about this film other than it's a horror reuniting Get Out's Jordon Peele and Daniel Kaluuya. Palmer and Yeun were all meant to be part of the cast. Barbie Ferreira, Keke Palmer, Michael Wincott, Brandon Perea, and Steven Yeun have also been confirmed as stars. Release: TBC
10. The Runner
Written, directed, and produced by Jae Matthews and Augustus Muller of US-based electronic music duo Boy Harsher, The Runner follows a strange woman as she travels to a secluded, rural town where her violent compulsions are slowly revealed. The movie is intercut with a meta-style documentary about Boy Harsherʼs recording process and uses their club-ready music as the soundtrack. Ultimately, this novel project is about lust, compulsion, and the horrific tendencies of seduction. All things the band's cult following will be eager to see. Release: 16 January