HONEY BUNCH (2025)

New streaming on Shudder!
Directed/Written by Dusty Mancinelli, Madeleine Sims-Fewer.
Check out the
trailer here!!

A devoted husband Homer (Ben Petrie) takes his wife Diana (Grace Glowicki) who is recovering from a near-fatal car crash, to a secluded clinic in the woods run by the enigmatic Dr. Trephine (Patricia Tulasne) and her nurse Farah (Kate Dickie). Immediately, Diana feels that something is off, but she has no idea what horrors await her during her therapy.

That is an overly simplified description of a very complex movie about love, devotion, hope, letting go, and appreciating what you have. HONEY BUNCH is a gift best left unwrapped with spoilers. It is a soulful and often macabre and gruesome film that says a whole lot about love. It’s an unconventional one, but this is probably the most touching and romantic horror film I’ve seen in ages.

What sets this film apart from most is that it handles so much of these soulful in such a short span. The setup is perfect. You have the mysterious hospital in the woods. The strange staff. The husband who is acting sus. And at the heart of it all, Diana who doesn’t know exactly what it is that is wrong, just that there is something very wrong here. Even halfway through when the curtain is opened and the viewer is shown exactly what is happening here, there is another curtain in need of pulling. The final revelations at the end are orchestrated perfectly. As if all of the threads are pulled together into one amazing tapestry of body horror, high drama, and a heart as sweet as you’re going to find in horror.

I’m being vague on purpose. The secrets of HONEY BUNCH shouldn’t be spoiled. I will, though, praise the cast. I’ve never seen Grace Glowicki or Ben Petrie before, but they give performances as Diana and Homer that are unique and memorable. We experience this mystery through Diana’s eyes and though she is quirky and definitely in need of some kind of therapy (both mental and physical), you still believe she is in some kind of trouble and can’t help but be pulled into her plight. Equally fascinating is Ben Petrie’s performance, who supports his wife as Homer and doted upon her, yet seems to be carrying a burden of truth that he is holding back. Whether it is for insidious or altruistic purposes, I won’t say—it’s part of the mystery, but once revealed, it’s hard not to get misty about this whole mess this couple is in. Grace Glowicki and Ben Petrie are partners in real life, and it seems they bring this familiarity to these performances.

Even the subplots, involving Jason Isaacs and India Brown as a father and daughter in a similar situation as our primary couple, and Kate Dickie and Julian Richings who play a couple much further on in their relationship and coping with the treatment, are fascinating dissections of how relationships function, endure, and fall apart.

As I said before, if I wasn’t sold on HONEY BUNCH before, the way it all wraps up is near perfection. It deals with all of the dangling threads and questions in an epic and operatic climax that had me on the seat’s edge. Top to bottom and side to side, HONEY BUNCH is a body horror masterpiece. It’s like a Cronenberg film (both Brandon and David), but overflowing with quirk and soul, which is something I often find Cronenberg films lacking in. HONEY BUNCH is a story expertly constructed around fully realized characters. I’m keeping a keen eye on directors/writers Dusty Mancinelli and Madeleine Sims-Fewer, and especially actors Grace Glowicki and Ben Petrie. All involved have crafted a horror film like no other. HONEY BUNCH will revolt and intrigue you. It will make you love and hate the characters. It will thrill you and make your heart ache, and somehow leave you feeling hopeful and positive about love and the human spirit. When was the last time a movie did all of that to you?