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.

Fantasia 2026

'Thrilling Bloody Sword' Is Utterly Ridiculous. That’s What Makes It So Great.

Evil wizards! Magical swords! Paper-mâché monsters! Dwarves trained in martial arts! This gonzo Taiwanese fantasy film has it all.

By Katie Rife
Blu-rays

'In The Mouth of Madness' Is Here to Drive You To The Brink In 4K UHD

You can read Sutter Cane more clearly than ever on Arrow Video’s new 4K UHD disc.

By Katie Rife
Cheatsheet

Here’s Everything You Need to Know About 'They Follow'

It’s taken 12 years for a sequel to It Follows to get off the ground. Here’s everything we know so far.

By Katie Rife
Hail to the King

'Godzilla Minus Zero' Announces a Kaiju-Sized Premiere at New York Film Festival

Toho is following up Godzilla Minus One’s Oscar win with a splashy gala premiere at the New York Film Festival.

By Katie Rife
Review

'The Samurai and the Prisoner' Blends Agatha Christie And Akira Kurosawa — And It Really Works

Fans of cozy mysteries and samurai dramas will both find much to appreciate in Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s cleverly executed period whodunnit.

By Katie Rife
Fantasia 2026 Review

'Hot Spot’s Vision of an AI-Controlled Future is Frustratingly Unclear

Despite a premise that combines Blade Runner and Dune, this Noomi Rapace sci-fi movie starts wacky and ends incoherent.

By Katie Rife
They're All Going to Laugh at You

Mike Flanagan’s 'Carrie' Trailer Teases a Radical Reimagining of the Horror Classic

Revealed at San Diego Comic-Con, the trailer updates Stephen King’s 1974 tale of vicious bullying and fiery revenge for the smarthpone era.

By Katie Rife
Fantasia 2026

'Strange: Junji Ito's Tales for Sleepless Nights' Is a Promising New Adaptation

Capturing Junji Ito’s uncanny style is a difficult task, but “The Rib Woman” comes close.

By Katie Rife
Rewind

55 Years Ago, Godzilla Entered The Psychedelic Era

Smog monsters meet groovy tunes in the cult classic Godzilla Vs. Hedorah.

By Katie Rife
Review

'Her Private Hell' Will Be Heaven to Some, and Hell to Others

Nicolas Winding Refn’s return to feature filmmaking is a dreamy, detached aesthetic exercise that’s for fans only.

By Katie Rife
Lost Classics

How Roger Corman’s Zany B-Movies Invented The Modern Blockbuster

From ‘50s monster movies through ‘90s superhero fare, B-movie king Roger Corman was the invisible force behind the creation of the blockbuster.

By Katie Rife
Best Of

The Best Horror Movies And TV Of 2026 So Far

Inverse’s writers rank the best horror films and TV series of 2026 (so far).

By Katie Rife, Hoai-Tran Bui, Lyvie Scott and Chrishaun Baker
Best Of

The Best Sci-Fi Movies And TV Of 2026 So Far

Inverse’s writers rank the best sci-fi films and TV of 2026 (so far).

By Katie Rife, Ryan Britt, Lyvie Scott and Dais Johnston
The Inverse Interview

The Director Of 2026’s Most Provocative Erotic Thriller Is Quite Wholesome

“Whenever something felt too much like real life, it broke the spell of the movie.”

By Katie Rife
Review

'Evil Dead Burn' Is Extremely Gory — and Weirdly Dull

French director Sébastien Vaniček’s take on the Deadites is too numbing to truly shock.

By Katie Rife
Fembot Nation

Blumhouse’s Ill-Fated 'M3GAN' Spinoff Finally Has A Release Date

Does Soulm8te look good? Not really. Does it look fun? Possibly!

By Katie Rife
Blu-rays

Is 'The Evil Dead' Still The Ultimate Experience In Grueling Terror?

While not as intense as the gore, the story behind Sam Raimi’s game-changing The Evil Dead is pretty wild.

By Katie Rife
Rewind

'Terminator 2: Judgment Day' Is Still An Unbeatable Action Spectacle

Thumbs up for the GOAT.

By Katie Rife
Opinion

When Did 'Jackass' Become So Wholesome?

This is not a complaint, to be clear.

By Katie Rife
The Sounds of Scary

How Horror Movies Like 'undertone' Use Sonic Science To Scare The Hell Out Of Us

Hoarse whispering and harsh static are practically guaranteed to scare audiences. But what is driving these reactions?

By Katie Rife