Welcome to October! It’s the most wonderful time of the year, when I mitigate my seasonal depression by going all in on gothic literature and horror films. The good people at the world’s best video store, Scarecrow Video, have put together their 2026 Psychotronic Challenge, which contains 31 prompts for a movie each day throughout the month.
The rules are simple: watch at least one film each day that falls under the psychotronic category “in whatever order suits you,” and “have fun and get weird.”
Scarecrow defines “psychotronic” as “denoting or relating to a genre of films that typically have a science fiction, horror, or fantasy theme and were made on a low budget.” But the staff also notes that they don’t necessarily subscribe to the “low budget” definition in order to allow more diversity in the selection. “That being said,” they write, “we do like an underdog more often than not” so “you might as well have a lot of fun pushing yourself to new lows.”
My colleague Audrey Vann and I compiled a list of our picks for the second week, which includes our favorite genres: creepy dolls, homoeroticism, and witches who worship Marilyn Monroe. Stay tuned for weekly posts with suggestions throughout the month, and catch up on week one if you haven’t already. Support your local video store, and happy viewing! –Julianne Bell
8. SWIMMING AGAINST THE CURRENT: Someone/something gets electrocuted and lives.
Audrey’s pick: Bride of Chucky (1998)
Tiffany (the doll) is my girl, and we would have no Tiffany (the doll) if Chucky didn’t electrocute that Tiffany (the woman) by knocking a television (appropriately playing Bride of Frankenstein) into her bubble bath. Watch Bride of Chucky for an amazing soundtrack (Blondie, Judas Priest, Slayer, Billy Idol) and an even more amazing makeover scene.
More ideas: Shocker (1989), Frankenhooker (1990), Pet Sematary 2 (1992), Re-Animator (1985), Blackenstein (1973)
9. SHOWER POWER: Bathe your eyeballs in a shocking shower scene.
Julianne’s pick: Brain Damage (1988)
Last fall I saw Basket Case director Frank Henenlotter’s 1988 horror comedy Brain Damage for the first time, and I would recommend going in as blind as possible. Keep your eyes peeled for a steamy homoerotic shower scene starring beefcake bodybuilder Joe Gonzalez, who also appears as a pimp in our upcoming Day 17 pick, Frankenhooker (also directed by Henenlotter).
More ideas: Psycho (1960), The Evil Dead (1981), Carrie (1976), Nightmare on Elm Street 5 (1989), Arachnophobia (1990)
10. HOWLOWEEN: Dig up a flick with some canine inclusion, bones and all. Now who wants a belly rub?
Julianne’s pick: Ginger Snaps (2000)
I am utterly in love with the 2000 Canadian cult classic Ginger Snaps. In a sleepy Ontario suburb, misfit teen sisters Brigitte (Emily Perkins) and Ginger (Katherine Isabelle) have a pact to either move out or kill themselves together by age 16. When Ginger is bitten by a werewolf, choas and violence ensue. Many people have noted the film’s themes of feminism and female puberty, but I recommend you also check out Letterboxd user Sally Jane Black’s trans analysis. By the way, Brigitte and Ginger would make a killer Halloween costume duo if you’re looking for ideas!
More ideas: Cujo (1983), The Company of Wolves (1984), Dracula’s Dog (1977), Frankenweenie (1984)
11. AT THE MAUL: There will be some slashin’ at the center of fashion, whether it’s prices, throats or big winter coats.
Julianne’s pick: Forbidden Fruits (2026)
I’m obsessed with malls, so I was always going to love the Diablo Cody-produced comedy horror film Forbidden Fruits. Director Meredith Alloway co-wrote the screenplay with playwright Lily Houghton, based on Houghton’s 2019 stage play Of the woman came the beginning of sin, and through her we all die. The film follows a clique of three fruit-named cool-girl employees of a Free People-esque store who rule the mall: queen bee Apple (Lili Reinhart), bimbo Cherry (the inimitable Victoria Pedretti), and brainy Fig (Alexandra Shipp). New girl Pumpkin (Lola Tung) is initiated into the girlboss crew and learns that they’re actually a feminist coven of witches who worship Marilyn Monroe and stage occult rituals in the mall basement. It’s the perfect combo of The Craft, Jennifer’s Body, and Mean Girls—my only complaints are that the dialogue falls a bit flat at times and it should’ve been much gayer, but I’ll let it slide.
More ideas: Chopping Mall (1986) Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1992), Night of the Comet (1984), Phantom of the Mall: Eric’s Revenge (1989), Dawn of the Dead (1978)
12. BACK IN THE SATELLITE: Rope yourself into a space western.
Audrey’s pick: Nude on the Moon (1961)
Nude on the Moon is Doris Wishman’s second of eight (!) nudist films that she co-directed and produced in the early 1960s. The premise is simple: a man inherits a ton of money and decides to invest in the development of a rocket (many such cases, unfortunately). Once he and his mentor land on the moon, they discover a civilization of topless women who worship at the foot of the Moon Queen (another topless woman, but she has her own throne).
More ideas: Galexina (1980), The Phantom Empire (1935), Barbarella (1968)
13. THIS IS A TINY TOWN: The sheriff would prefer you left before “something bad” happens.
Julianne’s pick: Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma (2026)
I Saw the TV Glow director Jane Schoenbrun’s latest film, Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma, contains all my favorite things: queer horror, summer camp, psychosexual obsession, a sultry sapphic age-gap pairing, snacks, dipping sauces, X-Files icon Gillian Anderson, and Hacks actress Hannah Einbinder. As the credits rolled, I just sat there in silence thinking, “Well, this is it for me. I’ll probably never see a movie this catered to my specific interests ever again.” Einbinder stars as Kris, an up-and-coming queer filmmaker who is enlisted to direct a reboot of the slasher series Camp Miasma. She becomes fixated on casting the reclusive Billy Presley (Anderson), who played the franchise’s original final girl back in the day and now lives on the abandoned sleepaway camp set with her own private theater. The movie evokes the cozy-scary vibes of a small-town slasher, complete with convenience store cashiers who ask things like, “Where is it that you kids think you’re going?” Frankly, I want to live there!
More ideas: The Birds (1963), Cherry Falls (2000), House of Wax (2005), Stepford Wives (1975), Disturbing Behavior (1998)
14. SUBJECT TO SURVEILLABILITY: Ever feel like you’re being watched?
Julianne’s pick: Perfect Blue (1997)
I saw Satoshi Kon’s anime psychological thriller Perfect Blue at SIFF on Audrey’s recommendation two years ago, and it is easily one of the most disturbing and terrifying films I have ever seen in my life. The movie revolves around Mima, a member of a J-pop girl group who leaves to become a full-time actress. However, this career move upsets her fanbase, and as a mysterious stalker begins targeting her, she begins to lose her grip on reality. Darren Aronofsky licensed the rights for this film to recreate a bathtub scene in Requiem for a Dream and clearly took more than a little inspiration from it for Black Swan, although he denies the latter—I’ll direct you to this shot-for-shot comparison and let you be the judge. (Major content warning for depiction of sexual assault—Mima films a graphic rape scene for a movie role, so please take care of yourself and choose one of our alternative picks if this one isn’t right for you.)
More ideas: Peeping Tom (1960), Body Double (1984), Blue Velvet (1986), The Watcher in the Attic (1976), Private Parts (1972)
