Let me just make one thing clear; yes I know Stevan Mena, he is a fellow Long Islander and I have been to most of the premieres for just about all of his films. Except Bereavement! Which I happen to think is his best film to date and the best horror film I have seen in 2011. This film was just perfect in so many ways that it blew away it's competition this year by miles. I was so skeptical because the trailer to this film did not look all that great, but if I learned one thing this year about film, it's that you cannot judge a film by it's trailer. Bereavement is by far the best horror film I have seen in 2011.

    I know, I know! Technically this is a Science Fiction film, but this year I'm combining both the genres as I do review more than just horror on the site. Anyway, this is one of the best films I have seen all year and it does have some horrific elements and after that women in Connecticut got her face ripped off by a chimpanzee a few years ago, some people have developed a fear of apes.  Needless to say, this film was great, well written and the effects were out of this world.

I loved the way in which this film presented itself. It was like The Sandlot with Monsters. You can tell that Stephen Spielberg was the producer of this film because it screamed his talent as well as the Director, J.J. Abrams. It a fun film that bought me back to my childhood when I used to religiously watch  films like The Goonies and Monster Squad. This film has that same childhood goodness but with more of a scare.

I know I bitch and complain about vampire movies a lot. However, this film, with the exception of Let the Right One In and it's Remake Let Me In is by far one of the best vampire films in the last ten years.  This is the way all vampire films should be made.

Attack the Block  Director: Joe Cornish

What a great horror/sci-fi comedy from the United Kingdom. I wish it had a wider release and more press here in the U.S.A. Instead it quietly had a limited release and went right to DVD. Treat yourself to this one. It is as fun as Super 8, but with more blood, gore and mayhem.

A Horrible Way To Die  Director: Adam Wingard

    This has got to be one of the best independent Serial Killer films I've ever seen.  A.J. Bowen gave one hell of a performance and the ending was just grand.

The Clinic:  Director: James Rabbitts 

 There is no one more dangerous to deal with than a woman who has had her child taken from her.  Disagree with me all you want, but unless you’re a parent, it’s something you can never understand. As a parent myself, this film kept me on edge the whole time. It is a true horror film in the sense that it can happen. This was more of a psychological horror flick than anything, especially for parents.

Insidious:   Director: James Wan

 This was a surprise being that most people I know didn't care for it. As for myself it scared the hell out of me. Insidious did for me in 2011 what Poltergeist did to me as a child.

  I can understand why most people didn't like this film. The little monsters were not all that scary, however being a fan of H.P. Lovecraft; this film reminded of one of his stories. It also had that great feel to it that producer/writer Guillermo del Toro gave us with Pan's Labyrinth. Throw in the fact that my four year is convinced their is monster in her room at night, and yes as a parent I've been dealing with it, then you got a film that kind of puts me in my place and makes me think; Is she telling me the truth?