Fossil Dig 2024 - Gruesome Gazette

As we celebrate the end of another year, I’m always excited to put together our top 10 lists of the year. But before I dive into my favorite new films of 2024 next week, this week I wanted to do my annual ‘Fossil Dig’. For those of you who are new around here, this is where we showcase our favorite films of the year that are older releases but brand new to us. It’s just another way to celebrate movies (both beloved and hidden gems alike) while giving some flowers to films that are not going to be in the usual end-of-year conversations.

Most of this year’s list contains films from the last couple of years that I was simply late to catch up on, but I’m overly excited to briefly discuss them. So without further ado, here’s Mike’s list:

10. “Into The Storm” (2014) – In the span of just a few hours, an unprecedented onslaught of powerful tornadoes ravage the town of Silverton. As terrified residents seek shelter, professional storm-chasers run toward the danger, and storm trackers predict the worst is still to come, they are all unaware of the mayhem Mother Nature plans to unleash. This film was powerful and took me by surprise. The cover art and title make it seem like a typical SyFy ‘bad weather’ movie, but it’s shot so well, contains some intense action and dramatic pieces, and even some terrifying found footage shots in increments. I couldn’t help but marvel at this. I didn’t get a chance to catch ‘Twisters’ this year, so this was a very pleasant substitute.

9. “Knock at the Cabin” (2023) – M. Night Shyamalan’s thriller about a gay couple and their child who rent a cabin for holiday, only to have their peace interrupted by a group of strangers who force their way in with a mysterious motive. For a film that everybody made points to either shit-talk or call ‘mediocre at best’, this film was really surprising. The suspense is palpable, the story is earnest, and it’s beautifully shot. It blew me away when I went in with the low-hanging-fruit approach people chalked it up to be.

8. “You Won’t Be Alone” (2022) – A Macedonian folk tale of a shape-shifting witch as she traverses from one life to another. It’s a gorgeous, haunting tale of isolation, misunderstanding, and evolution. It feels timeless and modern all at once.

7. “The Untamed” (2016) – This Mexican psychological creature feature is 100% the brother of Andrzej Zulawski’s ‘Possession’, (yet, definitely the weaker of the two), centering around a mysterious lust-filled creature that secretly lives in a shack. People only find out about it when directly introduced to it via another person for the sole reason of fulfilling sexual fantasies. It’s bizarre, kinky, and certifiably insane.

6. “Dark Harvest” (2023) – Had I seen this Halloween-centric film from David Slade last year, it would’ve easily been in my top 10 of 2023. It’s a fun, vicious story about a small town’s annual tradition to hunt and kill a monster that resurrects on Halloween, and threatens the towns future crops if it succeeds on encroaching the church at the heart of the town. Better than expected, delightfully violent, and beautifully shot, this movie is festive fun.

5. “Bones and All” (2022) – Who doesn’t love a cannibal love story? I’m a sucker for them, I’ve learned this year. This one is a pretty traditional lovers-on-the-road story, but with the implementation of director Luca Guadagnino’s beautiful eye for details, the impressive acting of Timothee Chalamet, and a gripping amount of visceral gore, this one really took me by surprise.

4. “Monster” (2023) – Japan sure knows how to tell creative stories in unconventional ways. When a young boy begins acting weird at home, his mother begins to learn that he may be being bullied. But things cannot be that simple, and the deeper we cut the more we reveal about ourselves. Beautiful, twisty, and melancholic, this one was fantastic.

3. “Lamb” (2021) – This one’s a bit of a cheat: I saw it when it first came out, but I was half-asleep the whole time so I hardly remembered anything about it – so when I did finally sit and watch it, it was with fresh eyes. This is an Icelandic tale about a farming couple who mysteriously find a lamb-human hybrid child in their barn one evening, and the beautiful, twisted tale that follows that as they essentially adopt her as their own. Prepare for gorgeous cinematography and fantastical charm that accompanies a rather bleak, depressing film.

2. “The Outwaters” (2023) – Four friends go out into the desert to film a music video, only to wake up in Hell. Go read my revision review on this film, because I have too much to say. But I hated this film upon release, and after revisiting it after a really deep depression, it became one of the scariest things I experienced this year.

1. “When Black Birds Fly” (2016) – An animated tale of philosophy, poignant nonsense, violence, Heaven, and faith that really needs to be experienced to be understood. I have not stopped thinking about this film since seeing it. It’s very personal at this point, and I have nothing but love for anyone whose tried to see it.

Are you familiar with any of these titles? Anything you’d recommend based off what you see here? Talk to us in the comments!

Tune in next time for Tha Thrilla’s “Top 10 of 2024” list, and next week for Mike’s “Top 10 of 2024”.

‘Til Next Time,
Mike Cleopatra