The Nine New Horror Movies Metallica’s Kirk Hammett Wants You to See
Metallica guitarist and horror movie buff Kirk Hammett recently sat down with Gibson TV and offered recommendations for nine new horror movies he wants everyone to see.
An avid collector of horror memorabilia, Hammett first launched the "It's Alive!" exhibit in 2017 to publicly showcase his wares, which includes dozens of posters and, of course, a handful of his prized guitars with painted bodies to commemorate some of his favorite classic horror flicks.
Beyond the horror genre, he's a big fan of film in general and, earlier this year, released his first-ever solo EP, Portals, which delivered music that was written with a cinematic/soundtrack mindset. The work was initially inspired by Hammett's need to create a soundtrack for the "It's Alive' exhibit.
What this all says is that he's someone who can give movie recommendations with some authority. And instead of rehashing some of his all-time favorites, on Gibson TV's "Metal and Monsters" series he shouted out some new age favorites, ranging from 2013 through the current day.
"Current movies today I think are significant, have something different to offer, have a degree of originality that I think is worth paying attention to," Hammett urges.
In no particular order, view his recommendations below and watch the full interview further down the page.
Kirk Hammett's Favorite New Horror Movies
Gatlopp (2022)
Director: Alberto Belli
Writer: Jim Mahoney
Cast includes: Emmy Raver-Lampman, Jim Mahoney, Jon Bass, Sarunas J. Jackson, Shelley Hennig and more
Kirk says, "It's about a board game... it's so original."
You Won't Be Alone (2022)
Director: Goran Stolevski
Writer: Goran Stolevski
Cast includes: Noomi Rapace, Alice Englert, Carloto Cotta, Anamaria Marinca, Arta Dobroshi and more
Kirk says, "I can't understand why this film hasn't gotten more attention... It's based in 19th century Macedonia, and it's about a 200-year-old witch."
In Fabric (2018)
Director: Peter Strickland
Writer: Peter Strickland
Cast includes: Sidse Babett Knudsen, Marianna Jean-Baptiste, Julian Barratt, Steve Oram, Jaygann Ayeh and more
Kirk says, "It's about this fashion house in Europe that's run by witches. I'm really into this folk horror thing now. I really love it because it's a subgenre that's not been beaten into the ground like zombies or creepy kids or any of the other stuff you always see in horror films."
A Dark Song (2018)
Director: Liam Gavin
Writer: Liam Gavin
Cast includes: Steve Oram, Catherin Walker, Susan Loughnane, Mark Huberman, Nathan Vos and more
Kirk says, "It's a crazy film because it's about two people who day a three-day Satanic ritual. It's about the effects of that ritual on them."
The Evil Within (2017)
Director: Andrew Getty
Writer: Andrew Getty
Cast includes: Sean Patrick Flanery, Dina Meyer, Frederick Koehler, Michael Berryman, Francis Guinan and more
Kirk says, "It showed up as an independent. Not a whole lot of people have seen it. The director made it and passed away like literally within the same year."
Get Out (2017)
Director: Jordan Peele
Writer: Jordan Peele
Cast includes: Daniel Kaluuya, Allison Williams, Catherine Keener, Bradley Whitford, Caleb Landry Jones and more
Kirk says, "It's so original as a modern horror film. I really like Jordan Peele's work. I really think he understands it fully — knows where the genre started, where it's been and where it's going. You can tell."
Rigor Mortis (2013)
Director: Juno Mak
Writer: Philip young, Lai-Yin Leung, Juno Mak
Cast includes: Siu-Ho Chin, Kara Wai, Hee Ching Paw, Anthony Chan, Hoi-Pang Lo and more
Kirk says, "[It's] a Japanese film that was, again, a real surprise. I don't want to tell you too much about it, but it's intense."
Tiny Cinema (2022)
Director: Tyler Cornack
Writer: Tyler Cornack, Ryan Koch, William Morean
Cast includes: Khaliel Abdelrahim, Robert Ackerman Moss, Kimberly Alexander, Luisa Alzate, Kristina Clifford and more
Kirk says, "It follows the lines of Tales From the Crypt where you have a host who is taking you through each little story. It's great because it's a throwback to those kind of films that came out in the '70s, those anthology films..."
Overlord (2018)
Director: Julius Avery
Writer: Billy Ray, Mark L. Smith
Cast includes: Jovan Adepo, Wyat Russell, Mathilde Ollivier, Pilou Asbæk, John Magaro and more
Kirk says, "It starts off like a World War II movie until they can't come to this building and what are they doing in the basement? They're reanimating corpses [laughs]."
In Conclusion
Thrilled to be able to highlight the lesser-known flicks, Hammett concludes, "These are movies not a whole lot of people know about, but are really, really entertaining and fun. I think people should definitely check [them] out. Each one of these are fun and original in their own way."
And you might even be able to catch Hammett playing one of his horror-themed guitars live next year as Metallica embark on a world tour in support for their 2023 album, 72 Seasons. See all the upcoming stops here and head to this location for tickets.
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