FOUR HUNDRED EPISODES? WOOOHOOOO!
We’ve got a baby and family-themed episode this week. We’ll start off with the folk-horror “Nightborn” from this year. We’ll go with some meta-slasher fun with “Big Baby” next. “Son of Sara” gives us a slightly different take on the birth of the antichrist. All three of those are new this year. “Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation” is our oldie for the week, starting the careers of a couple of actors you might have heard of.
And we’ve got a creepy short film this week as well.
All this, plus the latest issue of “Horror Monthly,” issue #59, for August 2026, is out now! Check out all the back issues, as well as our other books, with one easy link: https://horrormonthly.com
Mainstream Films:
2026 Nightborn
Directed by: Hanna Bergholm
Written by: Hanna Bergholm, Ilja Rautsi
Stars: Seidi Haarla, Rupert Grint, Pamela Tola
Run Time: 1 Hour, 32 Minutes
Trailer:
Spoiler-Free Judgment Zone
A young couple moves to her childhood home in the Finnish woods, has a kid, and lives happily ever after. Well, actually no. The kid ain’t quite right and things get progressively worse as the story progresses. It’s kind of slow moving and talky in places, but the dread and horror builds nicely. We were both entertained, Brian more than Kevin.
Spoilery Synopsis
Jon and Saga drive their car through the woods toward their new, isolated home. It’s her childhood home. It looks an awful lot like a haunted house. Credits roll.
They go inside, and it’s really torn up. There’s a tree growing in the bedroom floor. For some reason, they seem happy to be in this mess.
Out in the woods, the trees look like people, with faces and bony hands. Jon gets creeped out, but Saga rubs the belly of the pregnant-looking tree. “Grandma forbid me to come” to the forest, she explains. Then they have sex under the tree.
We cut to Saga giving birth, and it’s a bloody mess. “What is this?” asks the nurse, and then they sedate Saga. When she wakes up, Jon explains that the baby is fine. The nurse says she’s never seen such a hairy baby before; it’s all down his back.
The trio goes home, and we see that Jon’s been busy renovating. Breastfeeding hurts, as the baby draws blood, and she can’t make eye contact with the baby. The baby’s got a tiny little tail sprout growing on his backside. We soon see that Saga is a little afraid of the baby, who hurts her every chance he gets.
They have a party for Saga’s family to come over and meet the baby. Saga explains that she plans to have two more babies before going back to work. Mother explains that Saga was always a weird kid, and then the baby pulls her earring, and a big chunk of her ear, off. “Why did it look so weird?” asks one little girl visitor. “Babies are usually cute.”
The wind blows from the forest, and it tells Saga to name the baby, “Kuura.” The sunlight burns the baby, so Saga takes him inside. The parents argue over her not being able to do anything right. She starts calling the baby, “It.”
Saga’s sister comes over and explains how “cold iron burns them” about something in the woods that scared their grandmother.
Jon comes to the conclusion that there’s something wrong with Saga. She soon finds out that the baby is quite eager to lick up blood after an accident. They go to counseling, and Saga says the problem is the baby.
Jon’s parents come for a visit, and his father is a priest. “If you don’t bless a child, a troll will take them,” someone jokes. The blessing is completely uneventful, which shocks Saga, who expected something bad to happen. The baby touches some iron and burns his hand. “It’s just cold. Cold iron.” After that, Saga realizes she’s given birth to a troll. She gives it a baby bottle filled with blood, and the baby loves it. She hides the bottle and remaining blood from Jon.
Later they have a rough evening of discussion and arguing, and Jon leaves for work in the morning without saying goodbye. Saga and the baby then roar at each other as the trees encroach right up to the house. Then things get a little rough.
Saga wakes up outside in the snow-covered woods. She hears the baby squealing out there somewhere, and the trees themselves try to slow her down. She tracks down little Kuura, who is eating a dead deer.
Jon comes home, and he knows about the blood the baby drinks. They argue some more.
Jon wants to watch the baby while she goes into town once in a while– which she does. Her fingernails look like they’re turning into wood, and her stomach has rings like a tree. She meets up with some old work friends, “None of us really knows you,” one says. All through lunch, she hears babies crying. The vegetarian menu does not agree with her anymore.
Back at home, Jon takes care of the baby, and it all seems normal. Saga comes home from town, on foot, through the snow. She’s physically changing, which reverts back as soon as she gets near the baby.
Saga’s sister comes over for a visit, and things get nasty. Anna, her niece, seems normal; “I got that monster,” Saga whines. The sister says there’s nothing wrong with Kuura, it’s all her. Then the baby bites off Anna’s finger.
Eventually, she embraces the monstrosity of the whole situation , and she starts getting along with the baby. Jon finds the mother and child sleeping in a hole under the floor where the tree grows. He just rolls with it. Jon wants to set “human limits” on child raising. “This child can’t be raised,” she says.
Jon’s had enough and says he’s taking Kuura away from Saga. They physically fight over the baby. Kuura gets upset, and the forest goes wild, invading the house. Jon gets impaled on a tree and dies. Then the baby starts eating on him. Saga then pulls out his heart and shares it with Kuura.
Saga goes outside and watches Kuura run toward the forest and the tree people inside.
Brian’s Commentary
If the sound of crying babies bothers you, stay as far from this one as possible.
If this movie teaches us anything, it’s that babies will suck the life right out of you. If you’ve ever even considered having children, watch this film first. It’s all very mother-metaphorical, but it’s also a good horror movie.
It’s slow-moving and predictable, but it’s very well made and kept me entertained.
Kevin’s Commentary
So much crying baby in this one.
It didn’t have a long run time, but it felt long to me. Slow, quiet, and talky for a lot of it, but the undertone of dread is there almost from the beginning and the horror does build. I’d say I liked it more than disliked it.
2026 Big Baby
Directed by: Spider One
Written by: Spider One
Stars: Brandon Scott, Krsy Fox, Torio Van Grol
Run Time: 1 Hour, 43 Minutes
Trailer:
Spoiler-Free Judgment Zone
Horror writer Adam is struggling a bit to make it big, but he comes up with a great idea to create a new slasher character, Big Baby. As he gets into it, reality and fiction starts to blur. This is loaded with horror tropes, and the meta vibe of horror story within horror story, leaving us wondering what’s real or not. It’s a little on the talky side at times, but overall really well made and entertaining. Better than both of us expected.
Spoilery Synopsis
We open to Adam listening to a podcast of horror movie reviews, and it’s NOT OURS. Turns out, they really hate the movie that Adam wrote. Adam gets really angry (he shoulda been listening to The Horror Guys). Adam’s girlfriend, Kate, gives him a pep talk. Adam is sooo tired of criticism; everyone hates everything. He makes good money writing horror films, but he’ll never win an Academy Award.
This, naturally, gives Adam writer’s block. He has a nightmare about a serial killer who looks like a huge baby who kills Kate. The next morning, he’s really excited about his new idea. Kate wants him to write a slasher film from the idea. He hates slasher films, but maybe he could elevate it.
Then again, writing isn’t easy, and he’s still got writer’s block. He does laundry instead. He finds the bedsheet cut up, just like in his dream, but it’s probably just a coincidence. At the coffee shop, he runs into the same two horror movie podcasters, and they’re idiots in person as well. They say his movie, “The Blackest Moon” was just plain boring.
Adam and Kate get drunk and talk about cats and monkeys building roller coasters. Adam gets all philosophical about it, mentioning that people create reality from their own thoughts. That night, Adam gets a visit from a little boy who explains the origin of Big Baby; he was a bullied boy who nearly drowned and vowed to get revenge. Wait– was that a dream, or was it real?
He writes the story so far, but Kate doesn’t think that origin was enough to explain a serial killer. Adam makes excuses and wonders what level of revenge can be considered acceptable. Adam then writes about how Big Baby gets his mask; Kate comes home wearing that exact same mask and scares the crap out of Adam.
He runs into a woman at the convenience store and starts stalking her as she walks home. He watches as Big Baby comes out of nowhere and hacks the woman to pieces with an ax. “He’s real,” he tells Kate, who wants to go to the alley and see for herself. Of course, there’s no sign of anything there. Adam thinks writing about Big Baby made it actually happen; he manifested it.
Kate convinces Adam to put the story away for a while. A few weeks later, they have friends over for dinner. Adam and James talk about their work, and “Big Baby” comes up, which gets awkward. Kate really thinks Adam’s losing his mind, and she’s not happy about it.
That night, Big Baby comes to Adam and says “She doesn’t want you to succeed. She’s in our way.” He won’t promise not to hurt Kate. Kate wakes up halfway through the conversation, and she sees that Adam is alone, talking to himself. In the morning, Kate leaves him.
Amanda, one of Big Baby’s victims, comes to visit Adam, and he wants him to save her. She wants out of the story. Big Baby calls from Kate’s phone, “Finish the story or she dies.” Adam then writes another scene, one where Kenny and Julia argue and are killed. He quickly writes another, where Graham gets it. Big Baby impales Graham with a cross and then beheads him. Theo and Nicky are next.
In the real world, James comes to the door to talk about what’s been going on. James leaves, and Adam gets back to work, finally writing Amanda’s death scene. Before he can finish, Amanda appears to Adam and begs to live. If he writes her death, Adam will be no better than the killer. Adam writes of her death anyway. “Sorry.” The story now ends, and Adam laughs that he’s completed it.
Adam goes to James’s house to see Kate, and he’s got a knife. He gives her the knife, and they talk. “There’s only one way for all this to stop,” he says. He calls upon Big Baby to appear, so we can get a proper horror movie ending. She sees the killer as well this time as Big Baby slashes Adam with his ax. Jaes and Patrice break down the door, but only Kate is there, saying Big Baby did it.
As the end credits roll, we get back to those two FAKE podcasters, reviewing the new film, “Big Baby.” They talk about their encounter with the crazy writer, Adam and how he was mysteriously murdered by his girlfriend. After the podcast, Big Baby shows up and starts stalking them both…
Brian’s Commentary
It picks on all the horror tropes, including a lot of behind-the-scenes filmmaking and writing stuff. The critics… well, at least I’ve never had coffee thrown in my face– yet. There’s a lot to say about revenge killings and who actually deserves it in horror movies.
On the other hand, it’s got some long, talky bits. It’s got the usual amount of kills and gore for a slasher film, but the killings aren’t even the real story; it’s all about Adam’s descent into madness.
I liked this way more than I thought I would. Very nice!
Kevin’s Commentary
This was a really cool one. Being a horror reviewer and podcaster knowing as many movies as I do bumped up my enjoyment of it.
And it had an ending I didn’t expect, that’s always a nice bonus. It was really good.
2025 Son of Sara
AKA “Son of Sara: Volume 1”
Directed by: Houston Bone
Written by: Houston Bone
Stars: Chloe Van Landschoot, Tymika Tafari, Garrett Hnatiuk
Run Time: 1 Hour, 25 Minutes
Trailer:
Spoiler-Free Judgment Zone
A very pregnant woman having visions and unusual cravings gets invited to a dinner that ends up being one of the worst ever. It has a shock beginning, then a long time where not a lot happens. We both thought it had an interesting ending, but it was kind of boring getting there.
Spoilery Synopsis
We open on a woman giving birth, but she’s chained to the bed and pretty unwilling to be there. They do something to the baby, and it stops crying, then they cut the mother’s throat.
Three weeks later, Sara is pregnant, and Carol is there to help. They’re lesbians, so we don’t immediately know who the father is. Sara’s in a lot of pain, which somehow leads to a sex scene.
Later, she eyes the raw ground beef in the fridge hungrily. In the middle of the night, she comes back for the meat and digs in– raw. She knows that’s weird but does it anyway. Not long after she pukes up a long string of hair and pointy teeth.
Then she sees the devil in the hallway and screams. Carol says there’s no one there. The next day, she stops by the store and buys more raw meat that she eats on the way home.
She bumps into Troy on the way home as well, and we see that he’s the father. He barely remembers her name. He’s found someone else and ghosted her, but also says it’s complicated. He wants to know why she kept the baby, and she says it’s because of Carol. He wants to be friends, but she asks him to leave. He says he can’t wait to meet the baby and generally doesn’t seem like a bad guy. Carol shows up, and she doesn’t like Troy.
Troy leaves, but first, he invites Sara to a dinner party and to meet his mother. Carol says she has to work and cannot go, but Sara really wants to do it. They argue about Troy. Sara then rides out into the country with Troy to his remote house.
Sara and Troy make it to his mother’s house, and Agnes welcomes them inside. He seems a little sketchy, and his mother is even weirder.
After drinking some clearly drugged milk, Sara tries to call Carol, who ignores the phone call. She soon face-plants into the table.
Carol finally finishes work and checks her phone messages. She calls Sara, but it goes right to voicemail. Agnes explains to Troy that he’s here on Earth for a purpose and it’s not to spread his seed all willy-nilly. He says Sara isn’t like any of the other girls. This sixth try is going to be the best!
Yes, Sara is going to have Satan’s child, and if it happened in the hospital, that’d be a real mess. Then both Agnes and Troy get naked and admire themselves in the mirror.
Sara wakes up out in the barn, tied to a bed. Agnes explains the whole situation to Sara, who isn’t pleased. She explains about the first five failed attempts; those women just weren’t right. Sara sees the devil there in the room with them, but Agnes and Troy don’t see anything.
Carol arrives outside in a taxi, and the driver says he can wait around a bit. Troy leads her into the house. He attacks her, so she pepper-sprays him. Troy does, however, manage to kill the tax driver and tie up Carol. Meanwhile, inside, Sara starts to give birth, with only Agnes there to help. Troy shows up in time for both of them to get splattered with blood that Sara coughs up. Carol gets untied and grabs a pitchfork.
Rather than have a normal birth, the baby comes up out of her mouth, and it’s in a cocoon or something. The baby’s got little horns and claws. He’s hungry and takes a big bite out of Agnes’s neck. As Troy tries to kill the little monster, Carol comes in and stabs him in the back.
Carol unties Sara, and they leave together… with the baby, who is obviously some kind of demonic thing.
Brian’s Commentary
Who puts onions in the fridge?
As an almost sixty-year-old guy who never had kids, pregnancy horror just does not do anything for me. I guess pregnancy in general is body-horror of a type, but… yawn.
The last twenty minutes were fine, but the rest was just boring.
Kevin’s Commentary
This is one of those movies where they have a shocking horror opening so they can get away with an hour of build-up afterward where nothing much happens. But eventually things get somewhere, and it has an interesting ending. So mixed feelings on it. Well made, dull path to an ending that I enjoyed.
That baby was the cutest little demon ever.
1994 Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation
AKA “The Return of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre”
Directed by: Kim Henkel
Written by: Kim Henkel, Tobe Hooper
Stars: Renee Zellweger, Matthew McConaughey, Robert Jacks
Run Time: 1 Hour, 27 Minutes
Trailer:
Spoiler-Free Judgment Zone
Leatherface is hanging out with a new family again, and on prom night a group of lost teens tangles with him and his family. Matthew McConaughey’s performance is over the top and a bright spot in a movie that drags and is kind of dull. Neither of us was very entertained overall.
Spoilery Synopsis
We hear a voiceover about the previous crimes from the previous movies. Credits roll.
It’s prom night, and Jenny and Sean show up and encounter all the weird “high school students.” Heather catches Barry cheating on her and speeds off with Jenny and Sean in the backseat. They take a detour and get lost.
Another car comes out of nowhere and smashes into them. The driver says “I’m not hurt,” and then passes right out. As they walk to call an ambulance, Heather tells creepy monster-in-the-woods stories to cheer them up. They stop in a place and meet Darla, who has boobs and isn’t afraid to flash them. She calls Vilmer, a tow-truck guy, to come help.
Vilmer shows up, but it’s not to help. He kills the injured guy and then chases Sean. Barry and Heather chase after another car, leaving Jenny behind. Yes, the group splits up in a Leatherface movie.
Heather and Barry come to an old house, and run into Leatherface and W. E. There’s lots of screaming on Heather’s part as Leatherface tosses her around and locks her in a freezer. Barry doesn’t care about the walls covered in human skin because he’s just gotta pee. Leatherface gets him as well.
Jenny gets picked up by Vilmer, and she soon learns that she doesn’t like him much. He dumps her on the side of the road and then chases her with his truck. She eventually runs into Leatherface, who’s got his saw with him this time. This leads her to Darla and W.E., who are also involved with the baddies.
Jenny finds herself tied up in the family kitchen with the whole gang. There’s a lot of arguing between the group.
As is the custom, the whole group ends up around the dinner table, along with several corpses.
Suddenly, a limousine drives up. Mr. Rothman and his driver come inside. He tries to calm Jenny down. “This is appalling. You are here for one reason,” he tells Vimer. “I want these people to know the meaning of horror.” Rothman then licks Jenny all over and leaves.
Vilmer finishes off Heather and then goes crazy cutting himself. In the confusion, Jenny runs out the front door and out into the woods. She’s soon picked up by a pair of old people in an RV, but they don’t last long. Somehow, an airplane dives at Vilmer, chopping him up in the propeller.
Jenny runs to the limo and gets in, where Rothman apologizes for how this has all been run. He takes her to the hospital, but Leatherface is still out there…
Brian’s Commentary
Is the Illuminati behind Leatherface? I did not see that coming.
It’s a very early breakout role for both Renee Zellweger and Matthew McConaughey, neither of whom had done much prior to this. His performance is way over the top, and he steals the show. Otherwise, it’s all pretty forgettable.
Meh.
Kevin’s Commentary
I had seen this one before in the 1990s, and before we started this rewatch I was thinking it wasn’t very memorable. Well into it this time, I was thinking “this really isn’t very good.” The supporting cast isn’t impressive, the pacing and script are clunky. Though I can see why Renee Zellweger and Matther McConaughy went on to do many other things. I think they salvaged the movie from being truly awful. Plus his motorized leg brace was quite the DIY project.
Definitely my least favorite of the Chainsaw movies so far.
Short Films:
2023 Short Film: Mamu
Directed by: Michael Skanes
Written by: Michael Skanes and Jessica Skanes
Stars: Emma Bellomy and Eden Ritter
Run Time: 8:21
Watch it:
What Happens
A mom at home alone at night keeps getting motion alerts on her phone from the baby monitor system, which has a camera pointed at the crib upstairs. But the baby is in her arms now. Is that something lurking there by the crib? Better go upstairs to take a look for herself…
Commentary
It’s very well made, creepy and suspenseful without dialogue. Especially impressive considering the minimal special effects, an ordinary house, and a small cast (one cast member being especially small). The music is very effective too. And even when things are dark, we can still see what’s going on, which is always appreciated. We’d call it a winner worth checking out.
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