It’s been a really great year for horror movies. Some say they haven’t seen a bumper crop like it since the 80s. But just like that decade, not every horror movie was a winner among audiences. However, there is one tool we have now that we didn’t have back then: Rotten Tomatoes.
Whereas in the 1980s, we had to wait for the Friday newspaper to read a movie review, Rotten Tomatoes gives them to us daily. They also do something that wasn’t available back then: allow audience reviews in the form of something they label a Popcornmeter. This is an aggregate section of the site for non-professional critical reviews epitomizing the idiom “Everyone’s a critic.”
But as we have stated many times on this site: Art is subjective: what is considered bad for one viewer might be great for another. The Popcornmeter tallies up those sentiments and slaps a percentage, good or bad, on it in the form of a splattered green tomato emoji.
Below we have listed 10 of the lowest audience-scored horror movies of 2024. We have paired them with their trailer and one good, and one bad, audience review.
Keep in mind labeling something with a stale, splattered green tomato means positive reviews are less than 60%. The ones below are based on audience scores.
The Platform 2 (Netflix) 26%
The Good: ignore everyone else— this movie is an amazing follow-up to the original. I literally made an account just to say this. Everyone who says otherwise is allergic to critical thinking and metaphors, because this movie did nothing but expand upon the original in a way that enriched the narrative instead of diminishing it.
The Bad: “I have to be honest and admit that I could only get through half of the film, without finishing it. What I saw was almost like Blair Witch Project 2: Book of Shadows level of badness. This sequel throws out everything that works about the original and adds extra layers of narrative devices (much like Blair Witch 2) that stunt the story rather than add to its mystery and developing plot.
Salem’s Lot (Max) 40%
The Good: I don’t get why people don’t like it if you liked the original. Yes, they made it more diversive but it still had that cool creep factor the original had. I thought they were going to go all over the top with special effects etc just because of the times and how they do horror movies now. I was so glad they kept it looking pretty old school. Also glad I didn’t listen to the score posted here for this movie. I really enjoyed it.
The Bad: Boring, bad performance of the Actors, lazy writing and unfaithful to Stephen King’s Novel. Waste of Time.
The Deliverance (Netflix) 41%
The Good: Pretty good. Well conceived characters, the mom is believably flawed and all the more relatable to the viewer for that. In terms of the drama it goes deeper than most horror films into the background and interactions of the family members. The supernatural aspect was run of the mill cliches but it held together.
The Bad: Starts off good but then drags on and eventually turns into a cliched schlocky possession movie that we’ve all seen too many times before.
Night Swim (rent) 43%
The Good: I was scared. I was entertained. 5 stars
The Bad: Very ‘Amityville’ like but instead of a haunted house it’s a haunted pool and a former pro-baseball player with MS along with his family. Other than that it’s a basic run-of-the-mill haunted horror with nothing truly shocking or twisted.
The Strangers: Chapter One (Starz) 44%
The Good: Although the strangers chapter 1 doesn’t offer anything new and is essentially the first film just remade now it’s still entertaining. I’m not really a fan of the new costumes and I know I’m being a little bias but although this might not be the best entry in the franchise it does pave the way for the sequels to come in the new trilogy.
The Bad: This movie is pure trash. There is nothing new or interesting to see here. There is seemingly no point to this movie and I won’t be bothering to watch any sequels.
The Watchers (Max) 52%
The Good: Loved it. Amazing dark fantasy with a great premise. I will be reading the book. A lot of hate in these reviews about pacing and script. It is written in a classic fairytale style.
The Bad: Horrible acting, horrible script, thought there was a plot twist but i actually ended up laughing at how bad the movie was for the rest of it.
Hold Your Breath (Hulu) 53%
The Good: I thought this movie was scary AF. Sarah Paulson is a scary actor and I loved her in this. The story is so mind-twisting, and if you’re not paying attention then you’ve really not understood how the game of mind plays so heartfelt in the worst scary moments.
The Bad: Failed to achieve its ambition by having confusing themes and narrative and generic direction, fortunately, the cast still did incredible performances.
Imaginary (Starz) 54%
The Good: Loved it! One of the scariest movies I’ve ever watched. Hands down.
The Bad: The movie seemed promising but then it just turned into one of those goofy horror movies that I used to watch on Elvira’s show when I was a kid. If horrible acting is what you like… If you enjoy a good chuckle while watching a “horror” flick, then this is the movie for you.
Never Let Go (rent) 56%
The Good: I never seen it in the movies but sure wish I did. It was amazing. Loved every bit of it. Kids who acted in the movie..amazing job. Halle Berry f-ing awesome.
The Bad: M. Night Shyamalan wannabe, but much worse!
Tarot (Netflix) 58%
The Good: The themes of comedy, cinematography style, and performance by Jacob Batalon provided a fresh, modern feeling to the psychological horror.
The Bad: What the hell was that? Everything is stereotypical. The only cool thing here were the ‘monsters’. The acting and everything else were terrible.
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