Filmmaker Dima Barch opens up 😍, Our favorite modern horror movies 🎥, & more!

Hey to the best community on planet Earth – to everyone out there looking for a zombie BFF for the apocalypse, who once wrapped themselves in toilet paper to become a mummy, or secretly dreamed of being abducted by aliens. In short: the ride-or-dies of horror.

Today, I’m taking over the Horrorverse Newsletter to bring you a little Gen Z energy. I’m almost 27, but like the poor souls trapped in a time loop in Benson & Moorhead’s The Endless, I feel like I’ve already lived a dozen lives. If I were even slightly more like Natasha Lyonne, I’d be cast as her sibling in Russian Doll—no audition needed.

I became a journalist in Russia at 14, and by 22, I’d done over 150 interviews, written hundreds of reviews, curated a legendary Moscow cinema (LA folks, think something vibey like the Vista), and was a loud voice for LGBTQ+ rights.

Only when I started making films did the real horror begin—real enough to get me prosecuted and pushed out of my own country. I came to the U.S. with nothing: no money, no plan, no place to sleep. Two years later, somehow, after 15 countries in a row, I ended up in Los Angeles. My first short, Dead End, became the most recognized Russian horror film to date. My second, The Power of the Strike, drew comparisons to legends like Gregg Araki, Brian De Palma, and Nicolas Winding Refn. Both screened at Beyond Fest—the best genre film festival in the world. Not bad for a queer immigrant who once thought they’d never touch a camera again. Or maybe I always knew I would.

When you lose everything, you also gain a brutal kind of clarity. You find out what truly matters. For me, that’s filmmaking. It’s not just what I do—it’s who I am.

My films are out there—watch them, share them, scream about them. Find me on Twitter (fuck the new name) and Instagram. I don’t have representation yet, but I’ve got stories to tell and no intention of shutting up. Hopefully my work finds its way into some of your hearts.

But enough about me. Let’s talk horror.

We’ll get into specific titles in a minute, but first: horror—no matter how it changes—is always of the moment. It’s always relevant, always speaking to the now. It’s a place to hide, or a place to scream your guts out. And whenever someone tells me you can be apolitical in horror, I genuinely want to laugh (or cry, or scream again). Especially right now. Especially in the world we’re living in.

So here’s my little message today: be aware. Whether a film was made in 1965 or 2018 doesn’t matter. Horror knows what time it is.

Issue 040’s Letterboxd list can be found here

Welcome back! I wasn't sure what this week's Double Trouble would look like. I considered pairing 2004's Calvaire up with a modern pick, something as agonizingly intense and disturbing. But then I watched this year's The Wild, and it call clicked into place. As such, I chose The Wild and Birdeater, two films that feel like spiritual siblings. You could argue they straddle the horror/thriller line pretty well - the emotional and psychological horrors are extreme, so it feels appropriate I landed on these two.

In Birdeater, Louie (Mackenzie Fearnley) invites his bride-to-be Irene (Shabana Azeez) along for his bachelor's party - which is weird, right? It's far more than a bachelor's party; it's a gathering of Louie's closest friends for an entire weekend of fun. Well, fun isn't the word Irene would eventually describe it. Featuring one of the most awkward dinner scenes ever, Birdeater tests your patience, but I promise you it's totally worth it. As things unwind and screws come loose, the film nose-dives into a psychological prison that threatens to tear Irene apart. Will she survive?

The Wild bears a striking resemblance to Birdeater, at least in tone and mood. After the tragic death of their friend Bea, Emilia (Sunita Mani) and her friends Finn (Kate Easton) and Lucey (Kayla Foster) head out on their annual camping trip. Despite the psychological toll Bea's death still carries, the group attempts to have a good time. But as emotions explode, secrets come out and more death follows. It's like a spectre, hanging around and dragging all their baggage along. The filmmakers yank the rug from under your feet at the last possible second, surprising you and keeping you glued to the screen. Don't sleep on this one!

Since Dima is our guest contributor this week, he asked that his favorite film, It Follows, be this week’s Recommended If You Like feature. Check out the list on Letterboxd.

Shudder's The Creep Tapes, one of its most-streamed series, is heading to Blu-ray and DVD on June 10th. A second season will be premiering later in the year.

Wolf Man hits streaming service Peacock on April 18th.

Chuck Russell’s Witchboard remake will release on August 15th, according to Fangoria.

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