Over the holidays, I found myself hunkered down in a quiet corner of Heathrow Airport watching Swedish slash-fest The Conference. As I enjoyed a particularly creative death involving sharpened sticks driven through the crash pad at the end of a zip line, I reflected that I might never have witnessed this moment if I hadn't set out last January to watch more worldly horror fare. I would have missed the killer duck in Wreck, the supernatural scares of Sister Death, and THAT scene in When Evil Lurks (you know the one). My year would have been worse off for it.
So, let's do it all over again for 2024. Start the new year right and earn a few more stamps in your horror passport with these five international frights releasing this month.
Underground (UK/Guernsey)
Inspired by true events, found footage nightmare Underground arrived on SCREAMBOX on January 9.
Lars Janssen directed Underground and co-wrote the script with Charlotte Dawn Potter, who also stars. The film is set and was shot entirely in Guernsey, making great use of the eerie German Underground Hospital, which was used as a ward and ammunition store during the German occupation of the Channel Islands in World War II. After a wild hen party (that's a bachelorette party for the Americans) takes a turn for the worst, a group of young women find themselves trapped in the underground tunnels, where they soon make a disturbing discovery. Can they escape, or will the bunker complex become their concrete grave?
Underground is now streaming on Screambox.
The Human Trap (South Korea)
It's taken a while for director Lee Moon-young's 2021 horror-thriller The Human Trap to make its way overseas, but you can finally watch it on VOD from January 12.
In the film, four naive city teens are thrust into a fight for their lives when their camping trip goes awry. If you're saying, "I've seen that premise before!" you might be surprised to learn that the synopsis on IMDb includes the words "makeshift medical lab," "deranged 'doctor,'" and "shocking medical experimentations." Grab your tent and check it out.
Rent The Human Trap on VOD.
Aberrance (Mongolia)
After becoming the first Mongolian horror feature to get a US theatrical release back in October, director Baatar Batsukh's Aberrance is coming to VOD on January 16.
The film follows Erkhmee (Erkhembayar Ganbat) and Selenge (Selenge Chadraabal), city dwellers who head to an old cabin deep in the chilly Mongolian wilderness. But something foreboding seems to settle over the couple and a quizzical neighbor starts to observe odd behavior from Erkhmee. The deeper they dig into the situation, the more questions—and trouble—arise.
Rent Aberrance on VOD January 16.
Spring Lakes (UK)
On January 16, take a refreshing dip in Spring Lakes, a mysterious new horror film written and directed by Ranjeet S. Marwa, from a story he concocted with Charmaine Binji and David Lamont.
James Jaysen Bryhan stars in Spring Lakes as Marcus, a struggling filmmaker on the hunt for his missing sister, Shiela (Samantha Loxley). But something culty is afoot, and if Marcus doesn't find his sister soon, the living forest may engulf him. Catch the film on all good VOD platforms.
Sunrise (US/UK)
Shot in Northern Ireland (despite what the accents in the trailer might suggest), director Andrew Baird's Sunrise is getting a theatrical and on-demand release on January 19.
The plot centers around Fallon (Alex Pettyfer), a rural town deputy sheriff who has a horrific encounter with a beast (Guy Pearce) that the locals have been feeding. Now Fallon must make a difficult choice: revenge or redemption? Olwen Fouéré (Mandy) also stars in Sunrise, which looks like it drips with atmosphere (and blood).
Watch Sunrise on digital and on demand January 19.
New Year's resolution to watch more horror: sorted. Check back in February for even more recommendations hailing from all around the world!
