Fessenden chumming it up with Jack Nicholson…

Happy April Fools!

By Tycho Dwelis, Robert Vaux & Arthur Goyaz

Horror movies often find themselves judged by how well they can maintain suspense, deliver jump scares and make the audience’s skin crawl. While some classics like Psycho and The Exorcist achieve this and become box office hits, many horror films that are equally flawless from start to finish often slip under the radar. These underrated gems offer everything a horror fan could want — strong performances, creepy and well-crafted lore, and terrifying scares — but for one reason or another, they haven’t garnered the widespread recognition they deserve.

These films might have been overshadowed by more mainstream releases, suffered from limited marketing, or were simply ahead of their time. Each one delivers a masterclass in horror filmmaking, maintaining tension and engagement without a single misstep. Some have gone on to become justified cult classics, while others are hidden gems in need of discovery. They run the gamut of horror’s history and make terrific viewing for any genre fan looking for something new.

#20 Wendigo
Explores a Well-Known American Myth:
A Trip to the Countryside Takes a Dark Turn

The Wendigo is an overlooked figure in American folklore when it comes to its presence in horror cinema, even with the current rise of folk horror. Larry Fessenden found a rather delicate and immersive way to deal with the mythical creature while evoking an eerie atmosphere of isolation. His 2001 movie Wendigo follows a family from the city who travels to the countryside to breathe some fresh air, only to be confronted by a malevolent force from the nearby woods.

Wendigo shines in its interpretation of the half-man, half-deer beast as seen through the eyes of a child, George, who begins to have vivid dreams about the Wendigo. Set in freezing Upstate New York, the viewer will feel the gusts of harsh wind and the dreadful power emanating from the woods depicted in the movie as if they were there themselves. It’s a truly atmospheric horror movie that does justice to one of the most fascinating pieces of American folklore.

Check out the List at CBR

This Sunday in Brooklyn, see a selection of Short Films from Glass Eye friends
and collaborators at the 11th screening of FILM UNDERGROUND.
Followed by a conversation with actor Karren Karagulian, star of Oscar-favorite ANORA.
Curated by TZVI.

featured works include:

a short film from Nira Burstein starring Lorraine Farris (CRUMB CATCHER)
a short thriller from GEP Intern Alumn Luke LeCount starring Rigo Garay (BLACKOUT, CRUMB CATCHER)
a secret work from GEP pal James Siewert (animator & dp. DEPRAVED, THE RANGER, LIKE ME)

RSVP for location: thefilmundergroundrsvp@gmail.com

“I truly believe that in an era where CGI bland productions seem endemic, revisiting this type of work could show us a direction which is unattainable for corporate greed and AI technologies”

by Ben Pearson

The concept of being trapped with no way out taps into one of humanity’s most primal fears: claustrophobia and the loss of control. Horror filmmakers have long recognized the potent terror of inescapable situations, crafting narratives where the walls—whether physical or metaphorical—slowly close in on characters desperately searching for exits that don’t exist. 

These “no escape” scenarios prove particularly effective because they mirror our own deepest anxieties about mortality and helplessness. The trapped protagonists become surrogates for our fears as we vicariously experience their mounting dread while safely watching from theater seats. From underwater cave systems to mysteriously aging beaches, these settings create pressure cookers of anxiety that force characters into psychological breakdowns and desperate survival tactics.

‘Beneath’ Is A Breathtaking Blend Of Aquaphobia And Anxiety

In the 2013 horror film Beneath, a group of high school graduates celebrating at a remote lake become stranded when their rowboat is attacked by a massive, man-eating fish. Trapped in the middle of the lake with limited supplies and no way to call for help, the friends face both the aquatic predator below and their own deteriorating social dynamics as survival instincts override friendship and morality.

Director Larry Fessenden uses the limited setting to explore how quickly civilization breaks down when escape routes disappear. As the day progresses and rescue seems increasingly unlikely, friends begin turning against each other, making calculated decisions about who might be sacrificed to distract the creature. The monster in the water sometimes proves less frightening than the monsters emerging from within the stranded teens themselves.

Happy to be on a pretty awesome list, though they got the credits wrong;
still think they are describing our movie BENEATH…

RANKER list

from RANKER by Jason Bancroft

#12 The Movie Was Way Ahead Of Its Time – And That Affected Its Success

Session 9 may have been made and released in the midst of the post-Scream slasher boom, but its focus on interiority and building an atmosphere of crawling unease rather than body counts or jump scares feels of a piece with the so-called “elevated horror” of the last few years. Which is to say that it’s closer in tone and style to flicks like Hereditary, The Witch, The Babadook, and maybe especially Blackcoat’s Daughter or Devil’s Candy, than some of the other films that came out the same year it did, such as Jeepers Creepers or Jason X.

“We definitely set out, consciously, when we were writing the script and making the movie, to subvert the conventions of the so-called horror genre that exists now, which, in my opinion, is less horror than it is teen thriller,” Brad Anderson said in a round table discussion. “True horror, I think, deals with dread and menace, you know? It gets under your skin and sort of infects you. Because it’s about … because it should be about characters, I think.”

Unfortunately, the very traits that make Session 9 such an ideal film to revisit today made it a tough sell back in 2001. “Anderson gives Session 9 a different feel than the average horror movie or whodunit,” Scott Tobias wrote at The AV Club, “which may partially explain why it frustrated so many critics at the time, and limped into only a few theaters. Its effects are more subtle, insinuating, and mysterious.”

#10 Indie Horror Legend Larry Fessenden Has A Small Role

A jack of all trades, Larry Fessenden has worked as an actor, director, and/or producer on more than a hundred films, many of them independent horror features. His credits behind the camera include Habit, Wendigo, and Depraved, while his Glass Eye Pix production company has put out films like The House of the Devil, Stake Land, The Innkeepers, Late Phases, and The Ranger. As an actor, he recently played the cat-loving motel owner in Jim Jarmusch’s unlikely zombie comedy The Dead Don’t Die.

In Session 9, he appears near the end of the film as the ill-fated Craig McManus, a figure that the other characters have talked about – David Caruso’s Phil wants to bring him onto the job to replace Hank, even before Hank goes missing – but one that we have never seen. He arrives at the hospital in the film’s final reel, just in time to receive an awl (of the type used in frontal lobotomies, which were supposedly pioneered at Danvers) in his eye for the trouble.

Read All the reasons this movie still lands at Ranker

Wishing Good Luck to Ana Asensio whose Glass Eye Pix-produced debut film
MOST BEAUTIFUL ISLAND won the Grand Jury Prize at the 2016 SXSW film Festival.
Her sophomore effort GOAT GIRL premiers at the Málaga Festival 3/18/25

La niña de la Cabra | GOAT GIRL

SYNOPSIS Madrid, 1988. Elena faces the recent loss of her grandmother
as she prepares for her First Communion. Her new friendship with Serezade
leads her to question whether the world is really as she has been told it is. 

ANA ASENSIO Spanish actress, screenwriter, and director based in New York. She began her career in Spanish television series. Her first feature film as a screenwriter and director, Most Beautiful Island, won the Grand Jury Prize at SXSW and was nominated for the John Cassavetes Award at the 2018 Film Independent Spirit Awards. It was presented at over 50 international festivals. She is currently writing her third feature film, developing a television series, and will return to Spain in the spring to participate as an actress in a Netflix series. Her second feature film, La niña de la cabra, is produced by Aquí y Allí Films, Avalon, La niña de la cabra AIE, Avanpost, and financed by ICAA, EURIMAGES, the City of Madrid, the Community of Madrid, RTVE, and FILMIN.