Certified Forgotten
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certifiedforgot.bsky.social
Certified Forgotten
@certifiedforgot.bsky.social
Certified Forgotten is a writer-owned horror publication focused on the little movies that leave a big impression. We publish essays on the underseen and underappreciated horror films of the 21st Century.

www.certifiedforgotten.com/newsletter
Pinned
Do we need exploitation cinema to remind us of half-forgotten, real-life horrors? That’s the big question in this week’s episode with @harmonycolangelo.bsky.social, who joins the podcast to talk about ghost Nazis and DEATH SHIP.
Podcast: Harmony Colangelo on 'Death Ship' - Certified Forgotten
Harmony Colangelo joins Certified Forgotten to discuss Alvin Rakoff's 'Death Ship,' a Nazi-sploitation feature with surprisingly sharp teeth.
certifiedforgotten.com
Reposted by Certified Forgotten
Now that we've fully migrated over to our new newsletter platform at @certifiedforgot.bsky.social, we can do something we weren't able to do before: share a link to our newsletters each week.
The Rewind
Your Certified Forgotten newsletter for Friday, February 13.
certified-forgotten.beehiiv.com
February 13, 2026 at 6:39 PM
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Always a joy to join the Matts, especially something like Death Ship which has a lot more going on than practical effects, haunted boats, and Nazi ghosts. There is deep intentionally to why there is so much suffering in DEATH SHIP that goes beyond many haunted or even horror movies in general.
Do we need exploitation cinema to remind us of half-forgotten, real-life horrors? That’s the big question in this week’s episode with @harmonycolangelo.bsky.social, who joins the podcast to talk about ghost Nazis and DEATH SHIP.
Podcast: Harmony Colangelo on 'Death Ship' - Certified Forgotten
Harmony Colangelo joins Certified Forgotten to discuss Alvin Rakoff's 'Death Ship,' a Nazi-sploitation feature with surprisingly sharp teeth.
certifiedforgotten.com
February 7, 2026 at 12:14 AM
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I'm really glad that my wife's latest hyperfixation (boats/ships) joined forces with her evergreen love of hating Nazis to bring this movie to The Matts™.
Do we need exploitation cinema to remind us of half-forgotten, real-life horrors? That’s the big question in this week’s episode with @harmonycolangelo.bsky.social, who joins the podcast to talk about ghost Nazis and DEATH SHIP.
Podcast: Harmony Colangelo on 'Death Ship' - Certified Forgotten
Harmony Colangelo joins Certified Forgotten to discuss Alvin Rakoff's 'Death Ship,' a Nazi-sploitation feature with surprisingly sharp teeth.
certifiedforgotten.com
February 6, 2026 at 9:24 PM
Do we need exploitation cinema to remind us of half-forgotten, real-life horrors? That’s the big question in this week’s episode with @harmonycolangelo.bsky.social, who joins the podcast to talk about ghost Nazis and DEATH SHIP.
Podcast: Harmony Colangelo on 'Death Ship' - Certified Forgotten
Harmony Colangelo joins Certified Forgotten to discuss Alvin Rakoff's 'Death Ship,' a Nazi-sploitation feature with surprisingly sharp teeth.
certifiedforgotten.com
February 6, 2026 at 5:37 PM
"Fischbach gambled on himself and won - and audiences won too, as there is now one more piece of truly original sci-fi horror worth adding to the rotation." @monagle.bsky.social just haaaaaaad to see what all the fuss was about with IRON LUNG.
'Iron Lung' Review: Markiplier Shines in His Video Game Adaptation
Mark Fischbach (Markiplier) writes, directs and stars in 'Iron Lung,' an adaptation of the popular indie video game of the same name.
certifiedforgotten.com
February 5, 2026 at 2:41 PM
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Dropped a podcast somewhere between coming home from #Sundance and immediately moving across LA!

I haven’t even shared all my reviews yet (finally catching up), but if you wanna hear my take on the entire Midnight slate…
February 2, 2026 at 3:25 PM
In this week's edition of the podcast, @donatobomb.bsky.social gives us a full rundown of the horror films at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival.
Podcast: The Best Horror at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival
From 'Leviticus' to 'Saccharine,' Matt Donato shares his picks for the standout horror films of the 2026 Sundance Film Festival.
certifiedforgotten.com
January 30, 2026 at 8:42 PM
"As Jay falls over, his blood starts pooling in the deep, dermal-ridged track left by Bigfoot. It’s a simple kill, but one that acts as a beautifully bloody overture for what’s to come." New at the site: here's @brendanjesus.bsky.social on NIGHT OF THE DEMON, your new Bigfoot slasher obsession.
‘Night of the Demon’ Is The Bigfoot Slasher You've Always Wanted
Brendan Jesus unearths the troubled history of James C. Wasson's 'Night of the Demon,' a video nasty with Bigfoot as the star.
certifiedforgotten.com
January 30, 2026 at 3:51 PM
"It’s less storytelling and more a Silent Hill theme park ride, one that highlights standout moments from the game for curious audiences." Here's @monagle.bsky.social on why RETURN TO SILENT HILL isn't QUITE as bad as it's been made out to be.
'Return To Silent Hill' Review: Uncanny Valley of Game Adaptations
Christophe Gans's 'Return To Silent Hill' is better than you fear, but still gets caught in the uncanny valley of video game adaptations.
certifiedforgotten.com
January 23, 2026 at 4:39 PM
This week on the podcast, @ryanprows.bsky.social talks with @donatobomb.bsky.social and @monagle.bsky.social about NIGHT PATROL, his latest mashup of vampires and cops. He also shares his enduring appreciation for Amat Escalante's LOS BASTARDOS.
Podcast: Ryan Prows on 'Los Bastardos'
Writer-director Ryan Prows ('Night Patrol') joins the podcast to talk about vampire cops and Amat Escalante's 'Los Bastardos.'
certifiedforgotten.com
January 16, 2026 at 10:47 PM
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X-CROSS is very “It Was Made For Me! This Is My Hole!” **

** hits like an adaptation of a non-existent PS2 survival horror game and is super wlw coded
"X-CROSS is completely bonkers. It’s girly-pop, over-the-top folk horror that ends with an Aly & AJ needle drop." Reports of her writerly demise were greatly exaggerated: we've got @theworstnun.bsky.social on the site today talking about her favorite retro survival horror wannabe.
'X-Cross': The J-Horror Gem That Feels Like A PS2 Horror Game
Meg Shields explains why Kenta Fukasaku's 'X-Cross' is the closest we'll ever get to a faithful adaptation of PS2 J-horror.
certifiedforgotten.com
January 15, 2026 at 9:58 PM
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I love X-CROSS so so so much. Please watch X-CROSS. You certainly won't have a bad time watching X-CROSS.
"X-CROSS is completely bonkers. It’s girly-pop, over-the-top folk horror that ends with an Aly & AJ needle drop." Reports of her writerly demise were greatly exaggerated: we've got @theworstnun.bsky.social on the site today talking about her favorite retro survival horror wannabe.
'X-Cross': The J-Horror Gem That Feels Like A PS2 Horror Game
Meg Shields explains why Kenta Fukasaku's 'X-Cross' is the closest we'll ever get to a faithful adaptation of PS2 J-horror.
certifiedforgotten.com
January 15, 2026 at 10:01 PM
"X-CROSS is completely bonkers. It’s girly-pop, over-the-top folk horror that ends with an Aly & AJ needle drop." Reports of her writerly demise were greatly exaggerated: we've got @theworstnun.bsky.social on the site today talking about her favorite retro survival horror wannabe.
'X-Cross': The J-Horror Gem That Feels Like A PS2 Horror Game
Meg Shields explains why Kenta Fukasaku's 'X-Cross' is the closest we'll ever get to a faithful adaptation of PS2 J-horror.
certifiedforgotten.com
January 15, 2026 at 9:16 PM
"In HELLO DRACULA as in other jiangshi films, the 'dead' hop along behind the sorcerer, each of them with a paper talisman attached to their head to keep them under the holy man’s control." We're kicking off a new series in 2026 from the one and only @fakerobhunter.bsky.social. It's gonna get weird.
Grief, Horror, and Netherworld Breakdancing in 'Hello Dracula'
Rob Hunter explores the whacky and wonderful world of 'Hello Dracula,' a kids' movie with '80s style and a lot of heart.
certifiedforgotten.com
January 14, 2026 at 6:56 PM
"DaCosta may not break new stylistic ground the way Boyle has in the past, but her skillful balance between the extremes of misery and euphoria makes for a rapturous studio oddity." We've got @siddhantadlakha.bsky.social on this site this week with his review of 28 YEARS LATER: THE BONE TEMPLE.
‘28 Years Later: The Bone Temple’ Review: Beauty & Misery Collide
Siddhant Adlakha explains how '28 Years Later: The Bone Temple' follows up 2025's sequel in ways both gloomy and surprisingly intimate.
certifiedforgotten.com
January 13, 2026 at 9:07 PM
Did you really think we weren't going to record a podcast episode about a killer monkey movie? C'mon. Here's @donatobomb.bsky.social and @monagle.bsky.social in conversation on PRIMATE.
Podcast: 'Primate' Gets Uncertified
Matt Donato and Matthew Monagle sit down to discuss 'Primate,' Johannes Roberts's killer 'killer monkey' movie.
certifiedforgotten.com
January 9, 2026 at 11:11 PM
Support writer-owned publications. Always.
January 9, 2026 at 9:12 PM
"PRIMATE is a small miracle of costume design and performance, turning a silly concept into a genuinely tense game of cat and mouse (or, well, monkey and human)." Here's @monagle.bsky.social on this weekend's much ballyhooed simian slasher cinema.
'Primate' Review: Creature Feature Meets Monkey Slasher
'Primate,' the latest film from Johannes Roberts, is a gnarly (complimentary) mashup of slasher and creature feature tropes.
certifiedforgotten.com
January 9, 2026 at 5:08 PM
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Right? It was a pandemic discovery from me off of a recommendation from @slimyswampghost.bsky.social.

Absolutely love it, wrote a little thing on it for Certified Forgotten:

certifiedforgotten.com/the-horrors-...
'Savageland' Offers Real-World Horrors | Certified Forgotten
Sarah Miles explains how 'Savageland' uses the faux documentary subgenre to craft a perfect political horror story for modern America.
certifiedforgotten.com
December 31, 2025 at 3:15 PM
"Hilditch’s latest fails to meet the moment in a genre increasingly dominated by post-pandemic allegories for survivor’s guilt." @monagle.bsky.social finds the good (and the not-so-good) in WE BURY THE DEAD, now playing in theaters.
'We Bury the Dead' Review: Apocalyptic Scale Minus the Stakes
'We Bury the Dead,' the latest film from 'These Final Hours' director Zak Hilditch, offers apocalyptic scale but little human connection.
certifiedforgotten.com
January 4, 2026 at 2:46 AM
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Absolutely lit on fire about this movie after seeing it at Telluride Horror Show. Can’t wait for a rewatch.
I think IT ENDS is going to be a movie people talk about for a long, long time. So why not listen to me and Donato talk about it right now?
"We get up and we find out something terrible has happened almost every single day, and we just have to go do our job." In this week's episode of the podcast, @donatobomb.bsky.social and @monagle.bsky.social discuss the numbing, existential horror of Alexander Ullom's IT ENDS.
January 2, 2026 at 9:41 PM
"We get up and we find out something terrible has happened almost every single day, and we just have to go do our job." In this week's episode of the podcast, @donatobomb.bsky.social and @monagle.bsky.social discuss the numbing, existential horror of Alexander Ullom's IT ENDS.
Podcast: 'It Ends' Gets Uncertified
Matt Donato and Matthew Monagle talk Letterboxd and high-concept horror in their discussion of Alexander Ullom's 'It Ends.'
certifiedforgotten.com
January 2, 2026 at 9:19 PM
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It’s a Christmas edition of #UterusHorror! Be sure to go to @certifiedforgot.bsky.social to read all about THE SACRIFICE GAME and how it finally gives us the UH movie ending we want.
December 23, 2025 at 5:39 PM
“THE SACRIFICE GAME shows two very different girls at different stages of self-discovery.” It wouldn’t be the holidays without a Christmas-themed column from @mollyhenery.bsky.social.
'The Sacrifice Game' Brings Horror Home for the Holidays
Molly Henery shares horror for the holidays with her essay on Jenn Wexler's Christmas film 'The Sacrifice Game.'
certifiedforgotten.com
December 23, 2025 at 4:42 PM
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Went to @moviemadness.org to visit my shelf! Loved seeing a couple of the films rented out and people perusing the shelf while I was there. Thanks so much to the MM team for inviting me to curate this selection of #UterusHorror films I love. Be sure to visit MM and rent from my shelf while you can!
December 21, 2025 at 2:43 AM