10 Recent Horror Films That Didn't Insult Your Intelligence

Combining elements from American Graffiti, The Twilight Zone and The X Files, this film is a love letter to fifties sci-fi and Cold War paranoia movies. What could have just as easily been a fairly generic teen horror high school movie like The Faculty or even Heathers (which are both fine genre examples) instead stands on the lofty shoulders of Scorsese (exemplified in a standout one take shot in the school's gymnasium) or even Richard Linklater's insightful portrayals of what it is like to be young and carefree.

Dialogue heavy and budget light, the central plot concerns the events of one night in Small-Town USA (Cayuga, New Mexico) and a mysterious radio signal, picked up by local girl and switchboard operator Fay, also a high school student and friend to the town's radio DJ, Everett. After persuading Everett to broadcast the strange sound on air, he receives a call from a retired military man and the plot thickens - have these visitors been here before and what do they want?

Shot in three weeks on a reported budget of $700,000, The Vast Of Night shows what can be achieved with the absolute basics of movie making 101 - great characters, a polished script and a gripping hook. The use of the 'the whole town is watching the game' cliché works so well here and leaves the story free of pesky adult rationalisation; those present are either too stupid to be concerned or at least have a direct relevance to the story.

Shamelessly enjoyable.