The January 2023 movie calendar is taking shape, and horror fans already have something to look forward to. In many ways “Megan” looks very much like a January movie release. But it also looks like the kind of schlocky B-movie horror that I tend to have fun with. The film has several interesting names attached. It’s Blumhouse produced. James Wan gets a story credit. Akela Cooper (“Malignant”) wrote the screenplay. It stars Allison Williams (“Get Out”).

The story is undeniably goofy, but in a pretty entertaining way. Williams plays Gemma, a high-tech toy maker who uses artificial intelligence to create M3GAN (Model 3 Generative Android), a life-like prototype doll programmed to be a child’s best friend and protector. When her niece suddenly loses her parents in a terrible accident, Gemma is given custody. Overwhelmed, she brings home M3GAN to help care for her niece. Guess how that goes. M3GAN evolves and bloodshed ensues. The trailer’s second half looks absolutely bonkers which is kinda what you want from a movie borrowing from so many others that came before it. We’ll see.

“Megan” hits theaters January 13th. Check out the trailer below and let me know if you’ll be seeing it or taking a pass.

Tis the season…well, almost. With only a couple of months to Christmas, it makes sense that we’re starting to get trailers for this year’s stock of new Christmas movies. But one that sticks out from the usual holiday fare is “Violent Night”, a goofy black comedy action-thriller from director Tommy Wirkola (“Dead Snow”, “The Trip”). The film stars David Harbour as jolly old Saint Nicholas and lets just say he has “a particular set of skills” that goes beyond delivering toys.

It’s Christmas Eve and Santa (Harbour) is going about his routine – sliding down chimneys, munching cookies, and leaving gifts for all the good boys and girls. But while stopping at a wealthy family’s mansion, he encounters a group of heavily armed mercenaries led by John Leguizamo. They’re holding the family hostage, and are caught off guard when Santa shows up. Suddenly it’s up to him to save the night (and I suppose Christmas). The trailer is loaded with big bloody action and plenty of laughs. Hopefully there’s enough to fill a feature length movie.

“Violent Night” opens in theaters December 2nd. Check out the trailer below and let me know if you’ll be seeing it or taking a pass.

It has been less than a year since the Oscar night ‘slap heard around the world’ – that ludicrous moment when Will Smith walked onto the stage during a live Oscar broadcast and slapped host Chris Rock across the face. Most of us felt it could be a while before we see Will Smith anywhere around the Academy Awards. But yesterday Apple dropped the new trailer for “Emancipation”, a historical thriller that will be releasing right during the heart of awards season.

“Emancipation” is based on a harrowing yet important true story. Smith plays Peter, a slave who escapes from a Louisiana plantation after being scourged nearly to death. With hunters chasing after him, Peter makes his way North where he eventually joins the Union Army. Images of Peter’s hideously scarred back were eventually published, offering proof of the brutal treatment of slaves by Southern slave owners. Directed by Antoine Fuqua, the film looks intense and Smith looks completely invested in the role. Hopefully it delivers.

“Emancipation” opens in theaters December 2nd before streaming on Apple TV+ December 9th. Check out the trailer below and let me know if you’ll be seeing it or taking a pass.

Ethan Hawke and Ewan McGregor. That pairing was all I needed to be excited for the upcoming dramady “Raymond & Ray”. It’s the latest film from writer-director Rodrigo García, and it recently had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival. From the first trailer, the movie looks to be telling a pretty familiar story. But with big names like Hawke and McGregor leading the way, you know that you’re going to get something worth seeing.

The two co-leads play the titular half-brothers, Raymond (McGregor) and Ray (Hawke). They come together to handle the affairs of the estranged and recently deceased dead father. They learn it was their father’s dying wish that his sons attend his funeral. They begrudgingly go and learn it was also their father’s wish that they dig his grave (“What?” Raymond asks as if reading our minds). Along the way, the brothers are brought closer together while learning more about their father and coping with the pain that comes with his memory. I love the look of this.

“Raymond & Ray” streams on Apple TV+ starting October 21st. Check out the trailer below and let me know if you’ll be seeing it or taking a pass.

I’m curious to see how many people will be turned off by this description alone – a cannibal love story. Yes, that sounds utterly ridiculous, but I guess human flesh-eaters need love too. “Bones and All” is the latest film from Luca Guadagnino, and it stars Taylor Russell and Timothée Chalamet. If I’m honest, the two leads don’t really excite me. Russell wasn’t great in the two “Escape Room” movies (but how much of that was horrible material?). And while I know this is considered sacrilege, I like Chalamet’s work more than I love it. But I’ll give the pair this, they’re really going for it here.

“Bones and All” follows two lovers with a shared fondness for eating people as they make a road-trip across America during the 1980s. The new trailer shows the film to be a queasy mix of romance and horror all with Leonard Cohen’s “You Want It Darker” bopping in the background. Most attractive is the interesting supporting cast that includes Mark Rylance, Michael Stuhlbarg, André Holland, Chloë Sevigny, David Gordon Green, and Jessica Harper among others. This looks like a movie with a lot of potential to go either way.

“Bones and All” hits theaters November 23rd. Check out the trailer below and let me know if you’ll be seeing it or taking a pass.

Since premiering in May at this year’s Cannes Film Festival, the autobiographical drama “Aftersun” has earned itself an enthusiastic following. The early buzz from first viewers is exciting, and critics have sang the film’s praises calling it “sensuous”, “visually arresting”, “extraordinary”, and “devastating”. A24 has shared the film’s first trailer, and while it’s hard to gain a cohesive grasp of the film, it gives us a good sense of what has the critics so enamored.

“Aftersun” is the feature film debut of writer and director Charlotte Wells. Her movie sees a woman named Sophie reminiscing about her childhood, specifically a vacation to Turkey with her father, Calum. The memories begin warm, sweet, and joyous. But 20 years later Sophie is struggling to reconcile the father of her memories with the man he is today. The film stars Paul Mescal & Frankie Corio and looks to be a real heartbreaker. I can’t wait to see it for myself.

“Aftersun” is set to release October 21st. Check out the trailer below and let me know if you’ll be seeing it or taking a pass.