Katie Rife

Katie Rife is a writer and critic specializing in genre cinema. She was on staff at The A.V. Club from 2014 to 2022, and currently covers film and TV for Inverse as well as outlets like Indiewire, Vulture, Rolling Stone, Letterboxd Journal, and RogerEbert.com.

NYFF 2026 Review

'Godzilla Minus Zero' Is A Worthy Follow-up to 'Godzilla Minus One'

Although the human elements aren’t as cohesive as in Godzilla Minus One, Godzilla Minus Zero is still a world-class blockbuster spectacle.

By Katie Rife
The Inverse Interview

“Someday We Will Be Voices From The Past.”

As the period political thriller enters the Criterion Collection, writer-director Kleber Mendonça Filho talks to Inverse about the pulpy poetry of The Secret Agent.

By Katie Rife
Fantastic Fest 2026 Review

Flying Saucers Meet ‘50s Bikers in the Absurdist Sci-Fi Comedy 'Alpha Gang'

Riley Keough leads a committed cast in this slight, but strange, sci-fi comedy from the directors of Sasquatch Sunset.

By Katie Rife
Fantastic Fest 2026 Review

'Wild Horse Nine' Is An Unbridled Triumph

Not a single shot or line of dialogue is misplaced in this masterful comedic thriller, about a sundowning CIA agent and his frazzled partner.

By Katie Rife
First Impressions

Mike Flanagan's 'Carrie' Is A Pitch-Perfect Adaptation — With One Big Flaw

Bringing the classic Stephen King thriller to contemporary times works surprisingly well.

By Katie Rife
Rewind

40 Years Ago, 'Blue Velvet' Caught Detective Movies with Their Pants Down

“I don’t know if you’re a detective or a pervert.”

By Katie Rife
TIFF 2026 Review

'The Face of Horror' Is a Feminist Art-Horror Fairytale Like No Other

Based on an iconic Japanese ghost story, the heightened aesthetics and tragic fatalism of Anna Biller’s latest feminist art-horror film are nothing less than sublime.

By Katie Rife
TIFF 2026 Review

Get Swept Up in the Terrifying Current of 'River,' Horror’s Next Big Thing

Premiering in the Midnight Madness section at TIFF, this excellent new slasher is horror filmmaking at its most elemental.

By Katie Rife
Review

'Chronovisor' Is The Year’s Most Absorbing — and Unusual — Mystery

The Da Vinci Code meets Tenet in this odd and appealingly literate mystery-thriller hybrid.

By Katie Rife
Review

'Fall 2: Deadpoint' Lands With A Splat

The term here is “unforced error.”

By Katie Rife
Review

'Onslaught' Is an Action Movie for Today’s America

Adam Wingard and Simon Barrett’s bullet-riddled John Carpenter homage gets its kicks from gun fetishism and conspiracy theories.

By Katie Rife
Review

'Idiots' Is Kind of Dumb (Not That There’s Anything Wrong with That)

Likable leads and silly stoner humor make for agreeable comedy, if you don’t think about it that hard.

By Katie Rife
Review

Robert De Niro Hunts the Same Killer Twice in the Netflix Crime Thriller 'The Whisper Man'

“Daddy issues” doesn’t even begin to cover it.

By Katie Rife
Review

'Colony' Resurrects Some of Zombie Cinema’s Greatest Hits

Zombies? In a shopping mall? Groundbreaking.

By Katie Rife
Hail to the King

Bruce Campbell Announces Ash Williams’ Retirement

It’s time to lay down the boomstick.

By Katie Rife
Inverse Recommends

RIP Screaming Mad George. If You Don’t Know That Name, Watch 'Society' Immediately.

Pure goopy genius.

By Katie Rife
Review

'Insidious: Out of the Further' Digs Up a Few Good Scares

Six movies in, the Insidious series digs into its lore for a sequel marked by fresh scares and stale characterizations.

By Katie Rife
Rewind

10 Years Ago, Two Indie Juggernauts Got Off To A Flatulent Start

Swiss Army Man has way more fart and boner jokes than you might expect from two future Oscar-winning directors.

By Katie Rife
Under the Radar

I Spent 10 Days at the Fantasia Film Festival. Here Are 10 Films To Watch Out For.

North America’s largest genre film festival screens hundreds of movies every year. Here are 10 to look out for.

By Katie Rife
The Inverse Interview

Chris Carter Wants To Believe

With the director’s cut of I Want to Believe now on streaming, the creator of The X-Files talks faith, Frankenstein, and whether he misses 24-episode seasons of TV.

By Katie Rife