Looking for some entertainment? Take a look at this week's lineup of horror movies showing on the big screen in and around Columbus.
Read on for the highest-rated horror films to catch in theaters, based on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes' Tomatometer Score, which reflects the opinions of hundreds of film and television critics.
(Movie descriptions courtesy The Movie Database; showtimes via Fandango. Movie ratings and showtimes are subject to change.)
Jaws
An insatiable great white shark terrorizes the townspeople of Amity Island, The police chief, an oceanographer and a grizzled shark hunter seek to destroy the bloodthirsty beast.
With a Tomatometer Score of 97% and an Audience Score of 90% on Rotten Tomatoes, this '70s throwback boasts plenty of accolades. Newsweek's Arthur Cooper said, "'Jaws' is a grisly film, often ugly as sin, which achieves precisely what it set out to accomplish-scare the hell out of you," while Gary Arnold of Washington Post noted, "I don't think there's a more exciting talent at work right now than Spielberg, an authentic moviemaking prodigy, and perhaps his worst problem from June 20, 1975, on will be preventing success from making a nervous or artistic wreck of him."
You can catch it at Gateway Film Center (1550 N. High St.) through Tuesday, July 2. Click here for showtimes and tickets.
Midsommar
A young couple travels to Sweden to visit their friend’s rural hometown and attend its mid-summer festival. What begins as an idyllic retreat quickly descends into an increasingly violent and bizarre competition at the hands of a pagan cult.
Set for wide release on Wednesday, July 3, "Midsommar" already has a Tomatometer Score of 94% and an Audience Score of 90% on Rotten Tomatoes.
"This is, in other words, a less perfectly crafted nightmare than Aster's last one. But there's a deranged integrity to its sprawl, and to the filmmaker's willingness to embrace the darkest, most unsparing aspects of human desire," according to A.A. Dowd of the AV Club, while Entertainment Weekly's Leah Greenblatt said, "The skin-pricking pleasures of 'Midsommar' aren't rational, they're instinctive: a thrilling, seasick freefall into the light."
Get a piece of the action at AMC Starplex Columbus 10 (5275 Westpointe Plaza), AMC Lennox Town Center 24 (777 Kinnear Road), Gateway Film Center (1550 N. High St.), and Cinemark Polaris 18 and XD (1071 Gemini Place) on Wednesday, July 3. Click here for showtimes and tickets.
The Shining
Jack Torrance accepts a caretaker job at the Overlook Hotel, where he, along with his wife Wendy and their son Danny, must live isolated from the rest of the world for the winter. But they aren't prepared for the madness that lurks within.
With a Tomatometer Score of 87% and an Audience Score of 93% on Rotten Tomatoes, this '80s throwback has proven a solid viewing choice.
"When you sit down to 'The Shining,' you sit down with normal expectations of being diverted, perhaps even being gripped, but not being undermined. But the film undermines you in powerful, inchoate ways," noted Bruce McCabe of the Boston Globe, while Time Out's Ben Walters said, "A masterpiece."
It's screening at Gateway Film Center (1550 N. High St.) through Sunday, June 30. Click here for showtimes and tickets.
Child's Play
The story follows a mother named Karen, who gives her son Andy a toy doll for his birthday, unaware of its sinister nature.
With a Tomatometer Score of 61% and an Audience Score of 63% on Rotten Tomatoes, "Child's Play" is well worth a watch. Tribune News Service's Katie Walsh said, "Who would have guessed that a 'Child's Play' film would leave us with less popcorn-rattling jump scares and more existential questions about the role of Alexa in our lives?" and RogerEbert.com's Nick Allen noted, "Nastier, more playful, and just as good if not better than the original film."
It's screening at AMC Starplex Columbus 10 (5275 Westpointe Plaza) through Wednesday, June 26; AMC Lennox Town Center 24 (777 Kinnear Road) through Wednesday, June 26; Gateway Film Center (1550 N. High St.) through Thursday, June 27; and AMC Dine-in Easton Town Center 30 (275 Easton Town Center) through Wednesday, June 26. Click here for showtimes and tickets.
This story was created automatically using local movie data, then reviewed by an editor. Click here for more about what we're doing. Got thoughts? Go here to share your feedback.
