With Weapons, Sinners, And Bring Her Back, This Is A Great Year For Horror, But It's Still Not Better Than 1999

The year isn’t even over, and we’ve already gotten several horror bangers in Weapons, Sinners, Bring Her Back, and 28 Years Later. I mean, honestly, there’s a case to be made that this is the best year for horror movies ever.

That said, even WITH the upcoming horror movies we’re still getting this year, I honestly don’t think it will surpass 1999, which I consider the GOAT year when it comes to the horror genre. Just due to the fear of Y2K, we also got an abundance of quality horror movies in 1999.

So, even though Sinners is now one of my favorite movies ever, and I’m super looking forward to Predator: Badlands, here’s why I don’t think any year, including this one, will be able to top 1999 when it comes to horror.

Sinners Was Huge, But It Still Doesn’t Match The Phenomenon That Was The Blair Witch Project

By all accounts, April probably kick-started the steamroller when it came to horror, as that’s when Sinners debuted. It had a good first weekend at the box office and an excellent second one. And, from there, it just seemed to get bigger and bigger. I’ve even heard people call it the best movie of the year.

But let me just tell you that the hype for Sinners is nothing compared to the phenomenon that was The Blair Witch Project. Because while Sinners is arguably superior to TBWP, it didn’t have nearly the impact. I mean, TWBP pretty much invented the found footage horror genre. What made it really big was that many of us thought it was real!

Yes, it sounds silly today, but back when TBWP came out, a lot of us thought that the people in the film were actually missing, and that the film documented that.

We’d later learn that it was all a publicity stunt, and that what we saw on the early internet was just a hoax, but a lot of us didn’t know that at the time, which made the film super big. So, yes, Sinners is more justifiably popular for just being a good movie, but I can’t think of any other horror film that swept the nation like The Blair Witch Project. Well, except for maybe one…

We Also Got The Sixth Sense, Which Brought Genuine Prestige To The Genre

Much like how we’re getting banger after banger this summer with horror movies, we also got The Blair Witch Project in late July 1999, and then The Sixth Sense in early August, and oh, man. This was something.

Because in a lot of ways, TBWP felt kind of “cheap” back then. Of course, that was part of its charm, but it didn’t really add any prestige to the horror genre like, say, The Exorcist or The Silence of the Lambs. Then The Sixth Sense came along, and that changed everything.

I’ll never forget how into The Sixth Sense people were. Of course, everybody knows the big twist now, but back in 1999, people tried NOT to spoil the twist that genuinely swept the nation. That twist being: Bruce Willis…is a ghost? The entire time? No way! That said, the film as a whole was just inherently spooky. Plus, it was PG-13 (a legitimately scary PG-13!), which meant that more people got to see it.

So, with TBWP coming out in July, and The Sixth Sense dominating August, it truly felt like horror ruled the summer back in 1999. That said, it wasn’t only the summer where we got horror, especially since movies that weren’t necessarily scary were infused with horror elements, which brings me to my next point…

Horror Also Comfortably Seeped Into Other Genres

You know what movie I loved back in 1999? The Mummy, starring Brendan Fraser. Traditionally a Universal horror movie, The Mummy was brought back as an action franchise in the late 90s, and it spawned two sequels…and a less-than-stellar reboot starring Tom Cruise, but that’s neither here nor there.

What’s important to note, though, is that The Mummy, while an action-adventure movie, retained a lot of horror elements from the 1932 movie, and there were many genuinely scary moments in the film that definitely gave it that spooky edge.

Or, what about the Arnold Schwarzenegger vehicle, End of Days? Yes, it’s probably more in line with Last Action Hero (which I actually like) than something like Terminator 2: Judgment Day when it comes to popular Arnie films, but End of Days is still a really cool action flick that veers heavily into the horror genre, making it feel unique when it comes to his filmography.

And, how about one of the best Stephen King adaptations, The Green Mile? Yes, the film may be more “fantasy” drama than “horror” drama, but like I said before, horror had a way of slipping into a lot of different movies in 1999, giving an unsettling tone to the entire year when it came to a lot of movies, which was awesome.

There Was Also Such A Wide Assortment Of Horror Movies, And In Theaters!

Do we still get horror movies? Sure. As I already mentioned, we got Weapons, 28 Years Later, and Sinners this year, and they were all pretty big. However, these days, it seems like a lot of horror movies get limited releases or their big releases go to streaming services, like Fear Street: Prom Queen, or the upcoming Frankenstein from Guillermo del Toro.

In this way, I feel like horror movies are kind of splintered between bigger and smaller releases. Not so in 1999, though, where even the “smaller” horror films still found a way to make it to the big screen. Like one of my favorite horror comedies, Lake Placid, which is really goofy, but also really fun. 1999 also blessed us with the old school creature feature, Bats, starring Lou Diamond Phillips, which I’m pretty sure would be relegated to a streaming service and be forgotten about if it came out today, rather than getting a wide release.

Sleepy Hollow was a unique, gothic horror movie from Tim Burton, and we also got both the more classic supernatural movie with The Haunting, as well as the much creepier supernatural movie, House on Haunted Hill.

And honestly, I could go on and on. Cult classics Ravenous, Terror Firmer, and Takashi Miike’s Audition ALL came out in 1999, and this brings me to my last point about why it’s the GOAT horror year.

In Short, 1999 Is One Of The Best Years In Film, Period, And Horror Is No Exception

There’s a case to be made that 1999 is the best year in American film history, so it only makes sense that horror would be included in that. And, I think the main reason for this is just the sheer volume, and that there was something for everybody.

Because yes, I will give you that we have plenty of great horror movies this year, and that many of them are actually scary. However, it seems like these movies stand out because this is so rare. Plus, even though this year itself has been pretty good overall for films, I don’t think anybody would call it one of the greatest years in cinema history. That said, many people can claim that about 1999.

For instance, people like to mention movies like The Matrix, Fight Club, and The Iron Giant when they bring up the best movies of that year, but in the same sentence, they’ll also bring up The Sixth Sense, The Blair Witch Project, and Sleepy Hollow, so there’s no real separation from “serious” movies and “horror movies.” In 1999, horror films WERE the serious movies.

But, what do you think? I’d love to hear your thoughts.