Alphabetical Horror Films - M Trivia Quiz

Answer: Malignant

Releasing in 2021 during the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, "Malignant" was a return to form for director James Wan who, while making it big in the "Fast and the Furious" and "Aquaman" franchises, cut his teeth on genre films like "Saw" and "The Conjuring". "Malignant" released in open theatres and on HBO Max simultaneously and starred Annabelle Wallis as a woman suffering from the torment of a murderous spectre in her life.

This brooding tale was said, by Wan, to be inspired by the Giallo horror films of Dario Argento.

Answer: Midsommar

The follow-up to Ari Aster's hit indie horror film "Hereditary", "Midsommar" was a unique take on folk horror and dysfunction as a group of friends travelled to Sweden to participate in a remote midsummer festival only to find that the customs attended to under the midnight sun were much more shocking and dangerous than ever expected.

While set almost entirely within Sweden, this movie, starring Florence Pugh and Jack Reynor, was filmed in Hungary. For an A24 horror, it turned a modest profit at the box office though only grossed half as much as "Hereditary" a year before.

Answer: Martyrs

Considered one of the high water marks of discomforting 'New French Extremity', "Martyrs" shocked audiences at a time when torture porn and graphic horror films went mainstream. It stood up at the time when "Hostel" and "Saw" hit theatres and when other French films like "Haute Tension" were making the rounds in indie horror circles and film circuits.

In "Martyrs", a family is attacked by a couple of young women who find that their house is much more nefarious than thought. "Martyrs" also saw a remake in 2015 though it never received the critical interest that the first one saw on its release.

Answer: Ma

Director Tate Taylor, who filmed "The Girl on the Train" and "The Help", brought frequent collaborator Octavia Spencer back for another round in front of the camera in 2019 for "Ma". Playing the role of Sue Ann, Spencer acted as an obsessive woman whose attempts to get a group of neighbourhood kids to spend time with her led to outright terror.

The movie was a financial success and had the makings of a cult classic, especially when considering Spencer's performance in this otherwise silly, low-stakes horror outing.

Answer: The Monster Squad

Regarded as a cult classic, this late-'80s horror comedy pitted classic cinematic horror monsters against a group of kids who set out to protect their town from the evildoers and a magical amulet. Though a bit of a silly film, even in its day, the movie was one of the earliest in the filmography of a number of significant figures having been written by Shane Black (who would go on to write "Lethal Weapon" in the same year and direct "Iron Man 3") and directed by Fred Dekker (who wrote for "Tales from the Crypt"). Oh yeah, and it contains the classic line "Wolfman's got nards!"

Answer: Martin

Cited by director and writer George A. Romero as one of his favourite films in his body of work, "Martin" pertained to the titular individual who, when it boiled down, believed himself to be a vampire. Much of the movie followed Martin as he navigated what he thought was a thirst for blood and an aversion to vampire tropes while his landlord, a man named Tateh Cuda, acted as his Van Helsing. Released in 1977, "Martin" was regarded as a classic in its later years and lauded for its strong influence on the vampire cinema.

Answer: My Bloody Valentine

One of the countless holiday horror films of the 1980s, "My Bloody Valentine" flipped the love-filled holiday on its head when it followed a masked madman going after the residents of the mining town of Valentine Bluffs during a (gasp!) unprecedented Valentine's Day dance.

The movie became a cult classic after its release, being a fairly well-celebrated slasher in the horror sphere. It was amongst a handful to receive a remake, doing so with "My Bloody Valentine 3D" in 2009.

Answer: Monkey Shines

Though all the others have the King touch, "Monkey Shines: An Experiment in Fear" which released in 1988, was made by George A. Romero. It seems like it would be a King short story, but it was actually based on a novel by British writer Michael Stewart. Romero made the film, featuring a paralyzed man facing off against a rogue, murderous helper monkey, between "Day of the Dead" and "Two Evil Eyes"-- not necessarily his finest works.

The other three are King works with "The Mist" being based on a novella (and later directed by Frank Darabont), "The Mangler" being based on a short story (and directed by Tobe Hooper), and "Maximum Overdrive" being the only movie King wrote and directed himself.

Answer: Misery

Based on the 1987 novel by Stephen King, "Misery" followed the story of romantic novelist Paul Sheldon in the weeks following his awful car crash in the Colorado Rockies and his time in the care of his 'biggest fan', Annie Wilkes, who turned out to be a bit more unhinged than your average former nurse. James Cann starred as Paul while Kathy Bates won the Best Actress Oscar for her role as Annie. By this point, director Rob Reiner had already done "Stand By Me", "When Harry Met Sally...", and "The Princess Bride".

Answer: Mad God

Being storyboarded, filmed, and pulled together over the course of three decades, "Mad God" was a passion project by special effects artist Phil Tippett, perhaps best known for his work on "Jurassic Park", the "Star Wars" films, and the "Twilight" series. Critically lauded for its ingenuity and its experimental storytelling, "Mad God" only managed to come to pass as a result of a modestly successful Kickstarter campaign.

It was finally released in film festivals in 2021 and became a Shudder exclusive in 2022.