The genre has a lot to offer in March as we see the release of some very interesting indie titles as well as a sequel to one of the very best home invasion films ever made. Most notably, however, is Steven Soderbergh’s iPhone-shot horror film Unseen, which looks just as crazy as it sounds, is out later this month. But before we get started, here’s what I watched in February:

The Ritual (review): Soaked in tension and a Lovcraftian atmosphere, David Bruckner’s latest is a nightmarish good time with a hell of a final act.

Dead Shack (review): While it certainly has its issues, and a lot of the comedy feels forced, Dead Shack is packed with plenty of gore and ridiculous undead shenanigans. Definitely a fun watch.

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March 2

The Midnighters (Theaters & VOD)

Director: Julius Ramsay

Cast: Alex Essoe, Perla Haney-Jardine, Dylan McTee

Midnight, New Year’s Eve: when all the hopes of new beginnings come to life – except for Lindsey and Jeff Pittman, whose strained marriage faces the ultimate test after they cover up a terrible crime and find themselves entangled in a Hitchcockian web of deceit and madness.

The Lullaby (Theaters & VOD)

Director: Darrell Roodt

Cast: Brandon Auret, Reine Swart, Thandi Puren

Chloe is overwhelmed by the birth of her first child. The incessant crying of her baby, the growing sense of guilt and paranoia sends her into depression. With a heightened urge to protect her son, Chloe sees danger in every situation. She starts to hear voices, the humming of a childhood lullaby and sees flashes of a strange entity around her child. Convinced that the entity is real, Chloe will do everything in her power to protect her son. Is she haunted by evil or is it just the baby blues?

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March 6

Flay (VOD)

Director: Eric Pham

Cast: Violett Beane, Elle LaMont, A. Michael Baldwin

After the death of her mother, an estranged daughter struggles to save her brother, and those around her from a malevolent faceless spirit.

The Terrible Two (VOD)

Director: Billy Lewis

Cast: Donny Boaz, Cari Moskow, Reid Doyle

This horror/paranormal thriller follows the lives of Albert and Rose Poe over the course of 4 days that happens to include the one year anniversary of their 5 and 6 year old daughters deaths. The day the girls died was their birthdays too. We soon learn there is more to the girls deaths and the house the Poe’s thought was their safe haven.

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March 9

The Strangers: Prey at Night (Theaters)

Director: Johannes Roberts

Cast: Christina Hendricks, Bailee Madison, Martin Henderson

A family staying in a secluded mobile home park for the night are visited by three masked psychopaths, to test their every limit.

Thoroughbreds (Theaters)

Director: Cory Finley

Cast: Anya Taylor-Joy, Olivia Cooke, Anton Yelchin

Two upper-class teenage girls in suburban Connecticut rekindle their unlikely friendship after years of growing apart. Together, they hatch a plan to solve both of their problems-no matter what the cost.

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March 15

Compulsion (Theaters)

Director: Craig Goodwill

Cast: Analeigh Tipton, Marta Gastini, Jakob Cedergren

After a fight with her boyfriend, successful female erotic novelist on a book tour in Europe joins her ex and his female friend, with whom she falls madly in love, for a party at a castle owned by a dangerous cult.

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March 16

Apartment 212 (VOD)

Director: Haylar Garcia

Cast: Penelope Mitchell, Sally Kirkland, Chris Johnson

Jennifer Conrad is a small-town girl starting over in the big city. Fleeing an abusive relationship, all she wants is a chance to begin again. But it is hard to start over when something is eating you while you sleep . . . one painful bite at a time.

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March 23

Pyewacket (Theaters & VOD)

Director: Adam MacDonald

Cast: Nicole Muñoz, Laurie Holden, Chloe Rose

A frustrated, angst-ridden teenage girl awakens something in the woods when she naively performs an occult ritual to evoke a witch to kill her mother.

Unsane (Theaters)

Director: Steven Soderbergh

Cast: Claire Foy, Joshua Leonard, Jay Pharoah

A young woman is involuntarily committed to a mental institution, where she is confronted by her greatest fear–but is it real or a product of her delusion?

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Predictions

What you shouldn’t miss:

Definitely some great looking films to look forward to here, but I have to go with Unsane and Thoroughbreds.

• As I stated before, Steven Soderbergh’s Unsane has to be the most interesting looking film of the month (and maybe the year) because not only did he essentially drop this film out of nowhere, but he shot the entire thing an iPhone. What if it’s actually good, too?

• Thoroughbreds stirred up quite the buzz out of its festival debut and it’s easy to see why—the film is just brimming with talent, featuring the late great Anton Yelchin as well as Anya Taylor-Joy and Olivia Cooke. Can’t pass this one up.

What you should take a chance on:

The films that stand out to me here are both The Strangers: Prey at Night and Compulsion.

• It’s been 10 years since the release of  Bryan Bertino’s The Strangers, a film that many will tell you is the best of the best when it comes to the home invasion subgenre. While sequels generally disappoint, I’m curious to see how this one stands up to its counterpart.
• Compulsion is one of the biggest question marks of the month because I’ve heard next to nothing as far as hype for this movie (usually a bad sign) but it looks pretty crazy and is giving off some strong Eyes Wide Shut vibes. It’s certainly one of the stranger looking films of the bunch.

Which film are you looking forward to the most?

It’s a tie between Thoroughbreds and Unsane.