The Envelope, Please!

There was a strong youth movement in the horror movie offerings of 2022. Breakout stars who received prominent roles in major studio productions factored significantly in the 2023 Thingy Awards. This was a great year for the big studios, who brought us multiple original stories bolstered by studio budgets and talented directors.

As usual, The Scariest Things had an open invitation to our fan base to participate in the voting, and we also recruited a number of jury members from our friends in the media whom we know have seen at least a majority of the horror films that were issued in 2022. Our only regret this year is that we didn’t have enough short films to respond to, and that is always a difficult film to select a winner from with a broad audience, and we will be looking for a way to re-integrate best Horror Short for the future Thingy Awards.

This year, we have a formal tie-break methodology. Every so often, The Scariest Things has an in-house competition to decide who the Mayor of Tropetown will be. This year the Mayor’s scepter was passed to Liz Williams in the recent Spooky Time 15 Episode because she made the better Tubi film recommendations. (The best way to select a mayor!) As such the Mayor is given the responsibility to break any ties that happen in the Thingy Award selections.

A quick note, if you are an avid Podcast listener and want to hear the winners announced by Eric and Liz, step away from this post, and load up your podcast feed, and then come back.

With that said, I think I see a limousine pulling up…

The 2023 Thingy Awards:

Best Actress in a Leading Horror Movie Role

It seems like it has to be said every year, but the best actress is the hardest and most jam-packed of the nominee groups.  It’s the same story for 2022. There were so many great performances by actresses in 2022 where these women simply owned the genre. This year, a definitive new wave of young actresses is on the scene. Rebecca Hall holds down the fort for the veteran actresses, but there is a generational push that has arrived, so much so that we couldn’t include everybody.

• Mia Goth as Maxine* in X
  
• Rebecca Hall as Margaret in Resurrection
  
• Sose Bacon as Rose Cotter in Smile
  
• Maika Monroe as Julia in Watcher
  
• Jenna Ortega as Wednesday Addams in Wednesday
  
• Anya Taylor Joy as Margot in The Menu
  
• Taylor Russell as Maren in Bones and All
  

Winner: Mia Goth as Maxine* in X

Mia Goth in 2022 became a top-of-the-call sheet actress, and she is now in the upper echelon of final girls with her performance in X, and her convincing portrayal of the elderly Pearl in the same movie. I had no idea that she was both women. (Also a testament to the makeup crew.) Her followup as the young Pearl also secured some write-in votes.

Best Actor in a Leading Horror Movie Role

These actors anchored their films in 2022.  The generational change in the male side of the horror genre is also going through a youth movement. Though a couple of veteran actors had a great showing (Tim Roth and Ralph Fiennes) this was largely a young man’s game in 2022.  It bodes well for the future, doesn’t it?

• Jacob Anderson as Louis de Point du Lac in Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire
  
• Timothee Chalomet as Lee in Bones and All
  
• Ralph Fiennes as Chef Slowik in The Menu
  
• Daniel Kaluuya as OJ Hayward in Nope
  
• Ryan Kwanten as Wes in Glorious
  
• Tim Roth as David in Resurrection
  
• Mason Thames as Finney in The Black Phone
  
• Joseph Winter as Shawn Ruddy in Deadstream
  

Winner by Mayor’s Tiebreaker: Ryan Kwanten
Losing the tiebreaker: Ralph Fiennes

Two actors with very different pedigrees came out on top for Best Actor this year. The highly accomplished thespian Ralph Fiennes, was at his regal intimidating best as chef Slowik in a role that oozed wit and menace. Ryan Kwanten, heretofore an actor known for his good looks, took the challenge of what is essentially a one-man stage play (along with J.K. Simmon’s vocal talents as a Cosmic Evil force in a roadside toilet stall.) Mayor Liz broke the tie, picking Kwanten’s one-man showcase over the ensemble lead of Fiennes.

Best Actress in a Supporting Horror Movie Role

Supporting actresses often get some of the best roles.  Roles where the actress can just unleash her inner method. Villains and colorful companions are often the domain of the supporting actresses and we got some great ones this year.  The nominees for best supporting actress in a Horror movie are:

• Gwendoline Christie as Jan Stevens in Flux Gourmet
  
• Madeline McGraw as Gwen Blake in The Black Phone
  
• Keke Palmer as Emerald Hawyood in Nope
  
• Noomi Rapace as Novena /Bosilka in You are Not Alone
  
• Katey Sagal as Harper Dutch in Torn Hearts
  
• Brittany Snow as Bobbie-Lynne in X
  
• Jena Malone as Alice in Swallowed
  
• Laura Donnelly as Elsa Bloodstone in Werewolf by Night
  

Winner: Madeline McGraw in The Black Phone

Every once in a while, a child actor provides a performance that is truly transformative. Madeline McGraw takes a supporting role and flushes it out with a tour-de-force of emotional power. She is clever, tough, and feisty. When she gets punished (abused) by her drunken father, it will break your heart. Truly powerful stuff, and she ran away with this vote.

Best Actor in a Supporting Horror Movie Role

Are you looking for comic relief?  Your antagonist?  Your foil?  The best friend who tells it like it is?  Look no further than the best supporting actor. These often scene-chewing performances may leave a lasting impression long after the film is done, even if the character was not the central figure of the film.  This year’s supporting actors are made up of veteran actors. These guys flesh out the movie and are the extra flavor needed to make the story work.  Our favorite supporting actors for 2022 are:

• Jose Colom as Dom in Swallowed
  
• Burn Gorman as Daniel Weber in Watcher
  
• Ethan Hawke as the Grabber in The Black Phone
  
• Nicholas Hoult as Tyler in The Menu
  
• Justin Long as AJ Gilbride in Barbarian
  
• Alastair Petrie as Seamus Laurant in The Cursed
  
• Jack Quaid as Richie Kirch in Scream
  
• Steven Yuen as Jupe Park in Nope
  

Winner: Ethan Hawke as The Grabber in The Black Phone

Ethan Hawke didn’t say much in The Black Phone, but his portrayal as The Grabber will go down as one of the most memorable horror movie villains of the last ten years. For a man in a mask for 75% of his time in the movie, it is his body language that sells the monster. Even sitting still in a chair, he is truly menacing.

The Fay Wray Award: The Breakout Rising Star

You don’t have to be a youngster to be a breakout rising star, but it helps.  Many of these performers are in their first dramatic roles in an independent feature film.  In 2022, most of these nominees are in are getting their first lead roles… or first movies ever.  These are actors who deserve to reap the rewards of bigger and better jobs due to their great performances in 2022 Horror:

• Madeline McGraw as Gwen in The Black Phone
  
• Mason Thames as Finney in The Black Phone
  
• Jenna Ortega in X, Wednesday, and Scream
  
• Georgina Campbell as Tess in Barbarian
  
• Laura Galán as Sara in Piggy
  
• Mary Glen Frederick as Jenny in Stag
  
• Aisha Dee as Cecile in Sissy
  
• Amber Midthunder as Naru in Prey
  

Winner: Jenna Ortega in X, Wednesday, and Scream

A Star was born in 2022. Perhaps even more than Mia Goth, this was the year of Jenna Ortega, and it was all in Horror. Her performance in Scream was not particularly memorable, but her turn as the at first curious and then traumatized Lorraine in X, and most significantly her pitch-perfect inhabitation of Wednesday Addams completely blew her up. She also had a quick cameo in Studio 666. Will she stay in Horror now that she is an icon of young girls everywhere? We hope so.

The Gateway Award: Best Horror Film for Young and/or New Horror Fans

We all have to start somewhere, and these nominees are your on-ramp to the horror genre.  Not as gory or as viscerally intense as much of horror, these movies still bring some scares, but often bring a lot of fun to the proceedings.  These films would be (mostly) kid-friendly, but would also be applicable for the scaredy cat adults out there who need a fun entry point when picking a horror film. Honestly, this year, not a lot of kid’s fare, but a bunch of films that would be “low impact” for horror Newbies, and per usual, it’s largely the big studios providing the more accessible fare.

• The Black Phone
  
• Nope
  
• Werewolf by Night
  
• Bones and All
  
• Smile
  
• Torn Hearts
  
• Prey
  
• Who Invited Them?
  

Winner: Prey

The Scariest Jury is sticking with the familiar. Prey is a CROWD PLEASER. The action is fantastic. It looks great. It is FUN. Now, this should not be a movie that you show a ten-year-old, but Amber Midthunder could prove to be a horror role model for teenage girls for years to come. It should also be said that there weren’t any notable horror movies for truly young audiences last year.

The Abbott and Costello Award: The Best Use of Humor in a Horror Film:

Horror and Comedy. Peanut Butter and Jelly.  These are compliments to each other and try to draw the two great and powerful emotions out of you in quick succession.  Humor and glee, with dread and terror.  When it doesn’t work, it’s almost palpably painful.  But when it works: pure gold!  Our favorites in horror comedies from 2022:

• Who Invited Them?
  
• When the Screaming Starts
  
• Deadstream
  
• Cult Hero
  
• Glorious
  
• Stag
  
• Violent Night
  
• Yule Log
  

Winner: Violent Night

Did anyone expect this movie to be this good? In hindsight, Violent Night probably should also have been nominated for best Wide Release feature. This gonzo-fun-violent film was so late to the party that it just squeezed into the end-of-year considerations, but it was SO WORTH IT. I think you can bet there will be a sequel. David Harbour, you earned your genre cred back after the disappointment that was Hellboy.

The Best Horror Movie Poster of the Year:

The art of the movie poster isn’t dead yet!  Horror films have always had some of the best movie posters.  In an era where movie marketers want to pitch the headshots of the big stars in their movies, horror movies rely upon the story and the feels of the films to draw you to them.  

• The Accursed
  
• Fall
  
• Prey
  
• Who Invited Them
  
• Prey for the Devil
  
• Smile
  
• Studio 666
  
• Terrifier 2
  

Winner: Fall

Perhaps no movie sells its plot to its audience better than Fall. Everything you want to know is right there. The acrophobia. The stunning visuals. The completely precarious and impossibly difficult situation at the top of that tower. The 1970s are calling and wish to congratulate the artist. This is a movie poster that absolutely nails its message.

Best Looking Horror Movie (Cinematography) of 2022:

Often known for cheap production values, the genre is capable of showing off the beauty of the scary. When horror brings quality Cinematography to the table the experience is much more powerful.  These 2022 films were able to show the beauty to juxtapose or heighten the sense of terror and dread in their films in 2022:

• Fall
  
• Watcher
  
• The Menu
  
• You Won’t Be Alone
  
• Nope
  
• X
  
• Flux Gourmet
  
• Prey
  

Winner: Nope

Jordan Peele and a THX camera setup, with a Western vibe. Say no more. Being the most in-demand horror director has its privileges, and Peele was able to capture this panoramic tale with epic sweeping wide shots, while still capturing the little details required for maintaining the mystery of this movie. The Chimp’s eye view shots of the B-story were particularly compelling. Perhaps only Guillermo Del Toro has as much trust from Hollywood’s big studios to produce a big-budget horror film, and to do it his way.

The Harryhausen Award: The Best Visual Effects of 2022:

And here is the other side of that visual experience.  In a Kaiju-less year, the nominees were quite varied in 2022.  The acrophobic and queasy situation in Fall, the bizarro world of Phil TIppet’s Mad God, a rejuvenated take on the Predator, the hypnotic angelic alien of Nope, an indestructible vengeful lion in Beast, and a couple of creepy lycanthrope films highlight last year’s offerings.

• Fall
  
• Prey
  
• Hellraiser
  
• Mad God
  
• Nope
  
• Werewolf by Night
  
• The Cursed
  
• Beast
  

Winner: Fall

The Best Sounding Horror Movie: (Including SFX, Mixing, Soundtrack)

Sound plays such an important role in horror movies.  From the snap of a branch to the nap of a neck, the right audio clue at the right moment makes all the difference in the world.  Sometimes you are looking for the jump scare, and other times you are setting up the ominous build-up, and you need the right audio score to hammer this home.  This category also recognizes movies that have strong original soundtrack ties or a great original score.

• The Black Phone
  
• Bones and All
  
• Flux Gourmet
  
• Nope
  
• Pearl
  
• Prey
  
• Werewolf by Night
  
• X
  

Winner: The Black Phone

I credit our Scariest Jury for rewarding the subtleties of how sound makes a powerful impact on a horror movie. The Black Phone created a subtle yet dynamic sound environment. The jump scares were not merely presented as a loud and unexpected bang, they were expertly crafted… just add The Scariest Thing’s Mike Campbell (GOTCHA!). Also, the soundtrack brilliantly weaved in Pink Floyd’s haunting and propulsive “On The Run” to set the mood. Edgar Winter’s “Free Ride” date stamps the opening scene in the film, firmly establishing the ’70s vibe, and the carefree summer setting that quickly snaps to something sinister. Composer Mark Korven displays homage to that industrial track in his concussive original soundtrack.

The Best International Horror Film of 2022:

Where would the horror genre be without movies like Martyrs, Ju-On, Train to Busan, Suspiria, Nosferatu, or Pan’s Labyrinth?  Get to know other cultures by what scares them the most!  It’s the most fun you can have learning about another culture and getting your socks scared off. Get to know your social studies by learning what scares them! The nominees for this year’s best International Film are:

• Hatching (Finland)
  
• The Innocents (Norway)
  
• It Hatched (Iceland)
  
• Moloch (Netherlands)
  
• Mal de Ojo (Evil Eye) (Mexico)
  
• Saloum (Senegal)
  
• Speak No Evil (Denmark)
  
• You Won’t Be Alone (Montenegro)
  
• Zalava (Iran)
  

Winner: Speak No Evil

In what proved to be a banner year for Scandinavian Horror (Iceland, Denmark, Norway, and Finland all represented on the ballot), Speak No Evil is likely to be the one that stands the test of time. A cultural study of Danish and Dutch cultures, it goes from amusing to gut-punch brutality over the course of the story. We dare not spoil it, but the ending is a downer for the ages. This was Liz William’s favorite film of the year.

The Depends Award: What Movie Crapped its Pants and Disappointed the Most in 2022:

We are careful to point out here, that this isn’t the WORST movie of 2022, but the most DISAPPOINTING movie of 2022.  The Thing is, you have to have the semblance of expectations to begin with, in order to make this list. A movie that sounded like it was going to be entertaining, but ended up being a letdown.  That’s not to say that some of these moments don’t have some good moments (See below), but as a whole, not what we wanted from them. Then again, a couple of these movies do suck, and we’re here to point this out.  Your nominees for the 2022 Depends Award are:

• Firestarter (RT 10%)
  
• Halloween Ends (RT 40%)
  
• Jeepers Creepers Reborn (RT 8%)
  
• Morbius (RT 18%)
  
• The Munsters (RT 53%)
  
• Prey for the Devil (RT 17%)
  
• The Requin (RT 19%)
  
• Studio 666 (RT 56%)
  
• Texas Chainsaw Massacre (RT 32%)
  
• They/Them (38%)
  

Loser: Halloween Ends

Was it the WORST horror movie of 2022? No. Probably not. The RT scores alone can attest to that. But, when a diehard Halloween supporter/apologist like Mike Campbell gives up on a Jamie Lee Curtis-headed Halloween film, something is seriously off. All the promise of the rebooted 2018 Halloween that felt like a re-grounding of the franchise got eroded from a needless second act with Halloween Kills, and is further sullied by the regrettable misuse of Michael Myers and the substitution of a wanna-be serial Killer. To be fair, the production values were still good. Laurie Strode was fine, but not given enough to do. It all felt like the air went out of the balloon. This was a failure on a promise, undelivered.

The Bloodbath Award: The Best Use of Exploitation or Gore in a Horror Movie in 2022:

2022 for gore hounds will be forever known as the year of Terrifier 2. It is relentlessly gory and the violence stacks upon violence in a way that I have difficulty figuring out how it managed to show in theaters.  No doubt this is NC-17 material, and frankly, this appears to be Art’s party and everyone else is happy to be here.  But who knows?  The rest of these scenes were pretty intense.

• Prey – Predator tears up an entire fur trapper company
  
• Mad God – The pooping giants scene. Ohhhh yuck.
  
• Hellraiser – Vight gets skinned and turned into a Cenobite
  
• Nati Morti – Dealing with the Greedy Sister
  
• Swallowed – Digging out the “Packages” out of Dom
  
• Terrifier 2 – Art butchers Allie.
  
• Terrifier 2 – Art dismantles the coroner’s head.
  
• Terrifier 2 – Art butchers Ricky the Halloween shop clerk.
  

The Winner: Art butchers Allie. (Allie clearly the loser here. Ugh!)

All hail the new King of Horror Gore, the Terrifier franchise. The kills in this movie are so egregiously over-the-top that it ALMOST becomes numbing. But it just keeps going and going, upping the level of depravity with each subsequent move of mutilation. If this is your bag, this franchise will be put on a pedestal. Be warned though, if senseless and horrific gore is not your favorite thing, this will likely throw you off of the Bridge too Far. EASILY a