Step into the darkness as we delve into the spine-chilling realms of the latest horror masterpieces, a cinematic tour that will leave you gripping the edge of your seat. In our 2023 scary movie review, we navigate the eerie corridors of fear, exploring the bone-chilling narrative, heart-pounding suspense, and hair-raising twists that make this film a must-watch for thrill-seekers and horror enthusiasts alike. Brace yourself for an adrenaline-fueled journey into the unknown, where every shadow conceals a sinister secret and every moment is laden with the ominous echoes of terror. Welcome to the nightmare that is 2023's most haunting cinematic experience.

The Pale Blue Eye

Few names in horror fiction are as beloved as Edgar Allen Poe, but The Pale Blue Eye isn’t a typical adaptation of one of his most famous works. Instead, Scott Cooper’s chilly murder mystery casts Poe (Harry Melling) as a supporting character in the story of the mysterious deaths of several cadets at the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York. Cooper reunites with Christian Bale after 2017's Hostiles, who delivers another outstanding, reserved performance as the grizzled detective Augustus Landor. While The Pale Blue Eye begins as a straightforward investigative thriller, Cooper incorporates elements of gothic horror as the murders get more gruesome. While it may not pack a lot of jump scares, the shocking ending is the type of real horror that will stick with you far after the credits have rolled.

The scares in The Pale Blue Eye are psychological; what are people willing to do to each other out of revenge, and how does obsession begin? It’s a particularly interesting work of biographical fiction that explores how these traumatic events inspired Poe and shaped his worldview; Melling’s idiosyncratic, mannered performance is perfect for the reclusive author. Cooper once again puts together fantastic production design that captures the eerie atmosphere of a frosty 19th-century military academy. The woodland environments are perfect for the film’s themes about mankind’s inherently animalistic nature. It’s unflinchingly brutal, never drawing attention to the carnage, which somehow manages to make it even more disturbing. With stellar, creepy supporting work from Lucy Boynton and Harry Lawtey, The Pale Blue Eye is a new winter-bound horror favorite and one of the stronger Netflix originals. - Liam Gaughan

M3GAN

Killer dolls have been done in horror many times over the decades. Chucky and Annabelle anyone? It takes a unique concept to create a film with a similar villain and not have it come off as a clone. M3GAN succeeds at standing on its own by creating a character we’ve never seen before. M3GAN (Amie Donald and Jenna Davis) is a life-sized A.I. doll programmed to speak and walk like a real person.

Her implanted purpose is to be a friend for a recently orphaned child, but she takes her mission a little too seriously and ends up becoming overprotective to the point of murder. Allison Williams and young Violent McGraw are great as the aunt and niece trying to stop M3GAN’s murderous ways. The film is both scary and funny, and while the third act bloodbath is hindered a little by its PG-13 rating, the creepy dance sequence is so unique that it went viral before the film was ever released. Let’s see Annabelle do that. - Shawn Van Horn

Skinamarink

From its disquieting beginning all the way to its petrifying end, Kyle Edward Ball's feature debut Skinamarink is a modern horror masterpiece. Telling what could be a simple story of two siblings who find themselves trapped in their home after all the windows and doors vanish, it thrives in its precise presentation that is unlike anything else out there. Specifically, it is a very restrained yet no less riveting work of horror where what we don’t see is just as scary as what we do. Taking place entirely in this single location that increasingly feels as though it has been removed from time and space, it plunges into the darkness that threatens to swallow you whole.

As voices begin to echo throughout the house and figures appear where there were once none, it settles into a rhythm that is as mesmerizing as it is maddening. It's not a film for everyone, but it rewards those who take the plunge along with it. If you find yourself brave enough, you’re going to want to turn off all the lights in your house and put on headphones to fully immerse yourself in what proves to be a distinctly evocative vision. - Chase Hutchinson

Infinity Pool

What is it that you like to experience on vacation? Perhaps it is to see the sights, try the local food, or just get a chance to relax. That is unless you are one of the depraved characters in Brandon Cronenberg’s Infinity Pool where you go to get away with gruesome acts of violence before gleefully observing your clone get executed in your place. You know, just normal vacation stuff that we all love. Any other information about the experience of this film would spoil the fun but suffice it to say that there are macabre revelations to be found in this darkly delightful work. More than a bit grim as it unflinchingly observes how the wealthy can get away with anything due to their wealth, it also has a wonderfully bleak sense of humor woven throughout as well.

The very first trailer for the movie was just unveiled, and like the animated version you've seen a billion times, it's going to be all sorts of magical. There's a whole lot of CGI wizardry involved, from the friendly grinning mice to the glistening glass slippers, but it's the top-notch acting that'll really make this one a must-watch. (Well, that and the costumes. Because: LOOK AT THOSE COSTUMES.) Just try and not tear up when Young Ella's mother says, "Where there is kindness, there is goodness, and where there is goodness, there is magic." That feeling you feel? That's your heart bursting.