All through October, I’ll be posting reviews of the best of the best films in the horror genre released since October 1, 2024, through September 30, 2025. As an added bonus, I’ll be adding a secondary review that may be somewhat related to the main review or slightly missed the countdown by inches. Follow along the countdown every day in October. Feel free to agree, disagree, or better yet, give me your own picks for your favorite horror movies of the year. Happy Halloween!

26. ALMA AND THE WOLF (2025)

Released on June 20, 2025, and streaming on Amazon Prime from Republic Pictures and Three Point Capital !
Directed by Michael Patrick Jann.
Written by Abby Miller.
Check out the trailer here!!

In a small Oregon town, police officer Ren Accord (Ethan Embry) struggles with alcoholism, a failed marriage, and a small-town mentality where everyone knows his moments of stardom in high school but are savvier on his series of failures his life has been plagued with since then. Ren is sent to investigate a disturbance on a country road and runs into Alma (Li Jun Li), another local has-been who was popular in high school, but has since become a drunk herself. But when Ren runs into Alma, she is bloody and in tears as her dog has been devoured by a strange wolf. Distraught, Alma guilts Ren into hunting down the wolf, a job that becomes more serious when Ren discovers that his son may have been taken by that same creature. Soon wolf and goat men are chasing Ren through the woods, the townsfolk are coming down with a strange virus, and at the heart of all of this strangeness is Alma.

Mix PRISONERS with THE WOLF OF SNOW HOLLOW and then douse it with an LSD fever dream and you might get the potent cocktail that is ALMA AND THE WOLF. I don’t know if this film works all the way through, but this is definitely a movie like very few others. I could also liken it to the 90’s films BRAIN DEAD or THE VAGRANT, where the film starts out with a firm foothold on reality, but soon the sweater unspools into a mess of marvelous madness and mayhem by the end. One of the things I look for in horror is the unpredictable and boy howdee, is ALMA AND THE WOLF full of that.

I really love Ethan Embry. He’s just a likable actor with a genuine smile and eyes that emote exponential heartache and pain. As Ren, he is a very flawed man, but to see the joy and pride in his eyes when he watches his son play baseball and you can’t help but root for the actor to succeed and overcome any obstacle in his way. Unfortunately, this is not that kind of movie and seeing Ren fail as the down-to-earth hero is something the actor does extremely well. Embry was great in THE DEVIL’S CANDY a few years ago, and here he is offering up another great character in ALMA AND THE WOLF. Any movie would be lucky to have this relatable star in it.

SINNERS’ Li Jun Li delivers another powerful performance as Alma, who like Embry’s Ren is another lost soul who exudes a likable side despite some big mistakes she’s made in life. There are only a few quiet moments between Embry and Li but both actors shine during them. LEGION’s Jeremie Harris and THE STATE’s Kevin Allison also offer up some wonderful comedy relief as Ren’s fellow cops.

ALMA AND THE WOLF is full of trippy visuals that feel like true surreal and primal nightmares. The images of the goat and wolf people are creepy enough, but there’s also a scene where a person with a flaming head chases Ren around his home that is original and terrifying. While it doesn’t look like a lot of money was spent on this film, the effects are surprisingly good, as are the costumes of all monsters involved.

But like THE WOLF OF SNOW HOLLOW, what distinguishes this film from most is how funny it is. Once I saw that the director, Michael Patrick Jann directed many segments in the aforementioned THE STATE as well as many episodes of RENO 911, I knew why the comedy was so prevalent and potent. Usually, comedy is used as a way to punctuate a nightmarish scene in horror. But not here. In ALMA AND THE WOLF, the comedy is used to bring out character and while some of it may be over the top at times, it only adds to the madness this whole story descends into. I seriously laughed aloud numerous times at some throw away lines that made these characters worth investing in.

ALMA AND THE WOLF devolves into absolute madness by the end. There is a development that may turn off more concrete thinkers, but from the way the world around Ren was crumbling, it all ends in a way that made sense to me. I really liked the film and the ending took me a bit to warm up to as it uses a trope that usually infuriates me. Still, for me it was the horrifying imagery, the unconventional humor, and the wonderful performances that stood out to me in ALMA AND THE WOLF. Be sure to trip out with this one.

Worth Noting: CUSTOM (2024)

Released on August 19, 2025, and streaming on Amazon Prime from Obliquebleak Films and Paranoid Android Films!br>
Directed/Written by Tiago Teixeira.
Check out the trailer here!!

Harriet (Abigail Hardingham) and Jasper (Rowan Polonski) are a desperate couple who produce custom erotic films for paying customers. The couple come in contact with a high paying client through a sleazy middleman named Bishop (Brad Moore). The buyer wants them to perform a sexual ritual, no questions asked. But after blacking out during the ritual, Jasper and Harriet break the rules and watch the playback and see strange acts they don’t remember doing, As Harriet becomes more enthralled with these rituals, Jasper seeks answers to what exactly is going on with their strange client and what these rituals are doing to him and Harriet.

CUSTOM is a naughty little film from the UK. This is a mature and complex dissection of a relationship that seems to be getting torn apart from every direction. The temptation of the flesh is prominent through most of the film. First addressed through Harriet and Jasper’s online sex movies they make. Then through what seems to be other temptations Harriet is experiencing outside of the relationship that is kept vague. Finally, this ultimate temptation regarding this mysterious masked buyer who requires the couple to perform this strange sexual ritual. Take away the strange buyer, the strobe lights, and the odd draining effect the tapes have on the viewer and this is a subtle and tragic drama about the hardship of relationships.

But this isn’t MLMILLERDRAMAS, so thankfully there is just enough weirdness to make it stand out as a wonderful mix of complex body horror themes. While the film focuses on a modern couple facing modern problems, the film feels like a natural predecessor to Cronenbergian themes developed in VIDEODROME and CRASH, with a little bit of Clive Barker tossed in for more perversity and the macabre. there are truly strange scenes seemingly whittled together on a low budget, but the intimacy shared between this couple and Tiago Teixeira’s excellent direction. The otherworldly scenes shown in the video tapes are sensual and primal, making you feel a bit dirty after watching, but shown through a well-crafted horror lens.

CUSTOM is also acted to perfection with a stellar trio at the forefront. I just saw EVERYONE IS GOING TO DIE with Brad Moore and while that one was a bit too cruel for my comfort level, Moore excelled in the film. He provides the same powerful presence in CUSTOM as a sleazy promoter of smut. This is a guy who is great at playing bad. We see this film through Jasper’s eyes though and Rowan Polonski is great in the role, bringing out the paranoia and maintaining it at exhausting levels for the bulk of the film. But it is Abigail Hardingham that shines brightest here. I last saw her in the under-seen ghost story NINA FOREVER, but here she delivers a support, yet surprisingly fragile performance as Harriet. Hardingham is unbelievably sexy in this role, and makes every scene sweat and ache when she’s present. Hers is a tragic story that is not completely revealed, but still fleshed out perfectly by the actress.

CUSTOM is a wonderfully unique film. Its themes feel lifted from some of the best body horror, exploring temptation, sensuality, and the limits of pleasure and pain. The imagery is strong throughout. the endgame of the buyer is left vague and the film doesn’t necessarily resolve everything by the last act, but you’re not going to forget CUSTOM once experienced.

The Best in Horror Countdown 2024-2025
#31 – GET AWAY (DARK MATCH)
#30 – PABRIK GULA (#MISSINGCOUPLE)
#29 – YULE LOG 2: BRANCHIN’ OUT (THE LAST VIDEO STORE)
#28 – FREWAKA (THE SURRENDER)
#27 – FINAL DESTINATION: BLOODLINES (V/H/S/BEYOND)
#26 – ALMA AND THE WOLF (CUSTOM)