Let’s be real. Few of us have as many vacation days as we’d like. But hey, at least we can see the world through horror movies this summer while we’re on the couch pining for a hotel pool.
To help you plan your horror itinerary, this month’s round-the-world release round-up features films hailing from every corner of the globe. Beat the heat this July with 13 new international horror movies guaranteed to chill you to the bone (or at least give you the shivers).
1. Bad Girl Boogey (Australia)
After a deranged killer wearing a cursed, parasitic mask slaughters their mother and best friend, Angel (Lisa Fanto) must overcome their fears and struggles in queer slasher film Bad Girl Boogey.
The sophomore feature of Aussie filmmaker Alice Maio Mackay (So Vam), who was just 17 at the time of production, Bad Girl Boogey is getting a digital release on July 4 before coming to select theatres on July 7. And if you’re a physical media fan, you can snag it on DVD from July 11.
2. The Breach (Canada)
In his final days as the police chief of a small town, John Hawkins (Allan Hawco) faces a grisly investigation when a mangled body washes up on the shores of the local river. What follows is a goopy Lovecraftian nightmare in The Breach, the latest film from Rue Morgue founder Rodrigo Gudiño (The Last Will and Testament of Rosalind Leigh).
The Breach brings cosmic horror (and music from Slash) to Digital and VOD platforms on July 11. Whet (or perhaps lose) your appetite by checking out this gory exclusive clip!
3. We Might Hurt Each Other (Lithuania)
Formerly titled Pensive, Lithuania’s first-ever slasher film, We Might Hurt Each Other, arrives as a SCREAMBOX Original on July 11.
Directed by Jonas Trukanas, We Might Hurt Each Other follows a group of privileged students who destroy a set of life-size wooden statues during their high-school graduation party, only to find themselves stalked by a mysterious masked killer intent on picking them off one by one. The film takes cues from classic slasher films while infusing the flavor of local folklore.
4. Bird Box Barcelona (Spain)
Remember that film where Sandra Bullock was terrorized by an entity that drives those who see it insane? Well, the sequel is heading to Spain for more unseen scares!
Called Bird Box Barcelona, the fearful follow-up was written and directed by Alex and David Pastor and stars Barbarian’s Georgina Campbell. The film follows new characters Sebastian and daughter Anna as they navigate the post-apocalyptic streets of Barcelona, forming uneasy alliances with other survivors on the treacherous path to a safe haven. Take a peek at the trailer here, and catch Bird Box Barcelona on Netflix July 14.
5. Final Cut (France)
Cult Japanese zom-com One Cut of the Dead is the latest horror film getting the remake treatment. French director Michel Hazanavicius is behind the new film, which is getting a theatrical release on July 14.
It’s hard to describe the plot of Final Cut without giving the game away, but you can expect a love letter to filmmaking that’s packed with laughs (and zombies). Do yourself a favor and go in with as little knowledge as possible— but if you can’t resist a trailer, you can watch it here.
6. Quicksand (Colombia)
An American couple on the brink of divorce becomes trapped in quicksand while hiking through the Colombian rainforest in director Andrés Beltrán’s survival thriller Quicksand. As if that wasn’t bad enough, a venomous snake is slithering nearby…
Carolina Gaitàn (Encanto) stars alongside The Breach’s Allan Hawco in Quicksand. Get sucked in when the English-language film makes its streaming debut on Shudder on July 14.
7. Skinford: Death Sentence (Australia)
Here’s an unusual plot: a con artist forced to dig his own grave unearths an immortal woman in Skinford: Death Sentence, a new Aussie horror flick from director Nik Kacevski. What’s more, her touch can grant immortality to others.
Intrigued? You can dig up Skinford: Death Sentence on VOD and Digital platforms from July 18—no shovel required!
8. What the Waters Left Behind: Scars (Argentina/Italy/New Zealand)
On July 19, writer-director Nicolas Onetti is bringing us a sequel to his 2017 debut, What the Waters Left Behind.
In the follow-up film, the members of an Anglo-American indie rock band are plunged into bloody hell after becoming stranded in the Argentinean ghost town of Epecuén, which spent almost a quarter of a century underwater after being flooded in the 1980s. What the Waters Left Behind: Scars will be available on VOD, Blu-ray, and DVD.
9. Mad Heidi (Switzerland)
Blood and curds will fly on July 21 when modern grindhouse epic Mad Heidi gets a wide release. The film had a one-night-only theatrical engagement last month, but you’ll soon be able to watch it on Blu-ray, Digital HD, and VOD outlets.
Directors Johannes Hartmann and Sandro Klopfstein are behind the Swissploitation film, which is set in a dystopian Switzerland that has fallen under the fascist rule of an evil cheese tyrant (Casper Van Dien). Alice Lucy stars as the titular Heidi, who embarks on a quest for vengeance after government thugs murder her goat-herding lover. Yodel-ay-hee-holy-shit!
10. Night Explorers: The Asylum (United Kingdom)
Looking a little like Britain’s answer to Grave Encounters, writer-director John K. Webster’s Night Explorers: The Asylum is getting an On-Demand release on July 25.
The film follows a group of urban explorers who visit abandoned and haunted properties for their popular YouTube channel. When an opportunity arises to explore one of the world’s most haunted properties—a disused mental hospital in Poland—they jump on it. But it quickly becomes clear that something evil lurks within those crumbling walls…
11. Repulse (Czechia)
Bleak and brutal, Czech horror Repulse arrives as a SCREAMBOX Exclusive on July 25.
Two dysfunctional families intersect in disturbing ways in writer-director Emil Krizka’s boundary-pushing feature debut. Stepán Kozub and Pavla Gajdosíková star in Repulse, which is said to harken back to films like The Hills Have Eyes.
12. Resident Evil: Death Island (Japan)
Has there been a T-Virus-shaped hole in your life since Netflix canned its Resident Evil series after just one season? Here’s something to fill that void: an R-rated CGI animated feature called Resident Evil: Death Island!
Still not sold? The “Death Island” in question is the notorious Alcatraz Island, where a new evil has taken residence. Join Jill Valentine, Leon Kennedy, Rebecca Chambers, and Chris and Claire Redfield in the Eiichiro Hasumi-directed film, which you can find on Blu-ray and Digital platforms from July 25.
13. Talk to Me (Australia)
Surely one of the most hotly anticipated horror films of the year, Oz horror Talk to Me creeps into theatres on July 28.
From directors Danny and Michael Philippou, Talk to Me sees a group of friends using an embalmed hand to conjure spirits. Naturally, when you fuck around with the spirit world, what you find out is truly terrifying. Be sure to grab a copy of FANGORIA Vol 2 Issue #20 for the inside scoop on the buzzy film!
That’s all we’ve got for you for July! Once you’ve unpacked this suitcase full of scares, why not revisit our June round-up? And as always, we’ll see you at the boarding gate next month for more gruesome global finds.
