Fear is a big part of everyday life – Humans are born with fight or flight responses to be ready for a harmful event or attack. Our ancestors were not going to be given over easily to be a dinosaur dinner! The tigers were not getting a look in either!

This increased heart rate, rise in adrenaline, sweating and burst of body heat can now be triggered from everyday situations but even more when watching a blood curdling horror! Whether it’s a Stephen King classic or a Jordan Peele original, a real scare puts us at the edge of our seats or potentially half hidden behind our pillow.

Here are some of the many menacing features that are showing at VIFF this year:

Koko-Di Koko-Da

In Johannes Nyholm’s ethereal drama, we see a couple’s camping trip turn into a hypnotic nightmare. Tormented by wicked psychopathic characters, they are lured into a bizarre traumatic show which they repeat endlessly in a haunting loop.

Watch the trailer. Purchase your tickets for Saturday, September 28 at 430pm or Wednesday, October 2 at 645pm at the Rio Theatre.

Boyz in the Wood

Fancy some rowdy-mouthed youths causing chaos in the Scottish Highlands? Then Ninian Doff’s horror comedy might veer you in the right direction. The riotous expedition taken by a group of teenagers leaves them in the middle of nowhere with nothing but a map. They must work together to get to the campsite before dark while facing the crazy predatory members of the upper class.

Watch the trailer. Purchase your tickets for Fri, Sep 27 at 7pm or Thu, Oct 3 at 930pm at the Rio Theatre.

Knives and Skin

Knives and Skin follows the anguish and heartbreak that family and friends have to face when a young girl disappears. Suspicion and fear grows in the small rural town in Ohio where the investigation is taking place. The town’s dysfunction becomes clear which Jennifer Reeder experiments with in the thriller genre by using magical realism, cappella 80s pop songs and a feminist twist.

Watch the trailer. Purchase your tickets for Sunday, October 6 at 645pm or Wednesday, October 9 at 630pm at the Rio Theatre.

The Lighthouse

Robert Eggers’ strips away the colour for an ominous, gothic terror set in 19^th century New England. A follow up from the beautifully controlled horror The Witch. William Dafoe and Robert Pattinson are two lighthouse keepers trying to maintain their sanity on the desolate, lonely island.

Watch the trailer. Purchase your tickets for Saturday, September 28 at 6pm at The Centre.

Blood Quantam

Jeff Barnaby delivers a hyper-intelligent, gleefully gory feature full of zombies, chainsaws, shotguns and a samurai sword! The plague that is turning the population into a butcher’s block is surprisingly having no affect on the isolated Mi’gmaq community. The immune citizens must fight for their life, mainly with the help of stylish choreographed violence to search for refuge from the outbreak.

Purchase your tickets for Wednesday, October 2 at 9pm or Saturday, October 5 at 930pm at the Rio Theatre.

Don’t miss the chance to see all of these sensational films at VIFF 2019!