The Long Walk (2025): A classic Stephen King book gets a new adaptation, one that’s been nearly forty years in the making. In a postapocalyptic world with Hunger Games vibes, compounded by the fact that it’s also directed by HG franchise helmsman Francis Lawrence, a group of young men gets picked by lottery to go on “the long walk” together, until just one is left standing. The others, one by one, get executed, when they in any way stray from the one, true directive: keep moving down the path, while staying above the minimum pace. Written in the wake of the trauma of the Vietnam war, this is a haunting and heart-breaking allegory. The movie is led by Cooper Hoffman and David Jonsson, with a strong supporting cast. Where it falls short is in going outside its own, clear path, finding a deeper truth that’s more than just interesting and a satisfying finale. That said, it all comes together nicely, so it’s safe to say this is a good transition to the screen. 7
Fear Street: 1994 (2021): It’s hard for me to watch most Netflix productions and not think of them as content. The Fear Street series is Scream for Gen Z, and to be fair, I was never really a big fan of Scream either. I just don’t get the appeal of slashers and there’s too much running around to just reach a twist and a reveal. Then again, Fear Street 1994 is more straight than that. It follows a handful of friends who are faced with the machinations of a vengeful witch. Said witch is plaguing Shadyville, the place for social pariahs and evildoers; or do we have a correlation causation problem here? Well, the movie takes few chances and never feels very fresh, but it does have a moody neon look and a cool soundtrack. I’ve always thought of R.L. Stine’s work as YA material, which lacks that little something that makes scary stories scary to adults. I don’t think this set-up delivers on anything more than the expected. 6
Fear Street: 1978 (2021): In the second of the (original) trilogy, we go back to the 70s, for what’s essentially a detour and a prequel. Another set of obnoxious teenagers aim to prove they are wiser and more entitled, but what keeps this one a bit above basic is, once again, the looks-soundtrack combo. It also helps that we’re introduced to what I would say is the most iconic villain of the series, McCabe Slye’s Tommy Slater. Slye has a real Robert Pattinson vibe about himself and the transition from boyfriend material to nightmare material proves very satisfactory. That said, it just feels like there’s an artificial ceiling to Fear Street, both set by the target audience of Stine’s books and the filmmakers’ willingness to go beyond the mainstream. 6
Fear Street: 1666 (2021): Which is a bit of a red herring, because this is as much about the origin of evil, as it is about the “present day” conclusion. Once again, some gruesome scenes and effective creepiness is offset by just the most middle-of-the-road story about witches. Using the same cast from the previous movies is a nice and, presumably, cost-conscious touch, with the whole series really having this trimmed down feel. In spite of almost six hours of runtime, we don’t focus on that many characters, especially in the opening and closing films. The ultimate premise of evil proves to be disappointing, only to validate common narratives about empowerment and the patriarchy, making most characters void of agency and meaning. It all feels like the most fundamental introduction to otherwise decently executed folk-horror elements, the kind that would leave some deeper impression if you haven’t seen many movies in your lifetime. Alas, I have the misfortune to have done that, so need to embrace the mid-ness. 6
The Conjuring: Last Rites (2025): While I liked the first two movies in the series, it feels like since the spin-offs descended upon us, everything Conjuring related has become very mid. This one focuses on the Warrens and the looming demonic dangers pertaining to their daughter. In parallel, we follow the Smurls, a sizable family that has just become victims of the same demonic spirits that haunt Judy Warren. The whole story takes us through the long-winded steps of the two families coming together, the Warren’s getting their A-game together and saving the day. It’s all terribly somber and bleak, with a few scares littered along the way and a bombastic finale. Somehow, we’ve seen it all, but as long as the series keeps making money, we’ll be reminded of how much we’ve already seen. And they did just announce a prequel, so, yeah. This one remains interesting just for the die hard fans. 5
tributary stu 