Film

Strangers in the Night

A twelve-minute Irish horror-comedy about an awkward man who meets a banshee on a lonely night and falls in love anyway. It's tender and weird in equal measure, built on the absurdist charm of expecting a monster to solve your loneliness. Perfect for anyone who likes their romance strange and their horror funny.

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you like your horror-comedy small, dry and a little melancholy, where a spectral visitor's romantic woes are played straight for laughs.

Skip it if you want a full-length story with room to settle in, since this is over almost before its premise has finished unfolding and it leans on one joke.

What it asks of you: A tidy twelve minutes, played with a straight face and a light touch, so there is little to carry once the credits roll.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

What We Do in the Shadows2014

A mockumentary about vampires struggling with everyday life and modern dating. It has the same warm-hearted approach to monsters as people, finding humour in their mundane desperation.

But The found-footage style can feel stale if you've seen a lot of comedy documentaries. Some jokes repeat across the runtime.

What We Do in the Shadows poster

Housebound2014

A New Zealand horror-comedy about a woman under house arrest who discovers her home is haunted. It balances genuine scares with laugh-out-loud character moments and real emotional stakes underneath.

But It takes a while to find its tone, and the plot mechanics can feel contrived in places. Pacing dips in the second act.

Housebound poster

Tucker and Dale vs. Evil2010

A horror-comedy that flips the slasher formula: two hillbillies are mistaken for killers by college kids. It's genuinely funny and surprisingly tender about its characters.

But Some of the horror elements are played too straight for pure comedy fans. The middle sags a bit.

Tucker and Dale vs. Evil poster

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Strangers in the Night

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Late Night with Conan O'Brien1993

Both find comedy in the bizarre and ugly, refusing to punch down or be cynical about their strange characters.

A late-night talk show where real weirdness lived. Conan's absurdist comedy sketches have the same off-kilter charm as a twelve-minute romance with a banshee—surreal, earnest, and totally committed.

But Talk show formats haven't aged gracefully unless you're nostalgic for 1990s-2000s television. Whole segments feel dated and slow.

Late Night with Conan O'Brien poster
More like this (8)

The Addams Family1991

Darkly comic, beautifully designed, and genuinely weird without trying too hard. It finds humanity in the monstrous and plays the romance between Morticia and Gomez with real affection.

But It's now thirty years old and some references are dated. Kids' film sensibility may feel soft to you.

The Addams Family poster

Fright Night1985

A vampire comedy-horror from the 1980s that's playful and scary in turns. The central friendship between the boy and the magician is oddly touching beneath the monster movie.

But The practical effects look dated now. Some sequences drag, and the tone can feel uncertain about what it wants to be.

Fright Night poster

Young Frankenstein1974

Mel Brooks at his best: a loving parody of classic monster films that understands what made them work. Affectionate without being cynical.

But If you don't know the originals, a lot of the jokes fall flat. It's very of its era, which can feel slow to modern audiences.

Young Frankenstein poster

An American Werewolf in London1981

A horror-comedy masterpiece that doesn't flinch from either mode. Real dread and real laughs, with makeup effects that still hold up.

But The body-horror transformation is genuinely disturbing. Some sexual content and violence feel gratuitous rather than necessary.

An American Werewolf in London poster

Warm Bodies2013

A zombie romance that takes its silly premise seriously. It's earnest and pretty, with genuine charm and a sweet central relationship.

But The plot is predictable. The 'forbidden love' angle feels overworked by now, and the dialogue can be heavy-handed.

Warm Bodies poster

Ghostbusters1984

A comedy-horror classic that's genuinely fun and clever. Smart writing, perfect casting, real warmth beneath the supernatural chaos.

But You've probably seen it already. It's widely loved to the point where it feels inevitable rather than surprising.

Ghostbusters poster

The Goblin Market2013

Both use Irish folklore and see monsters not as evil but as lonely, complicated beings worthy of empathy and strange connection.

A beautiful, strange Irish folk-horror animated series about a woman lured into an underground realm. It has the same dreamlike blend of threat and tenderness, grounded in Irish mythology.

But Animation quality is deliberately rough and hand-made, which some find ugly rather than atmospheric. Very slow-paced.

The Goblin Market poster

In Fabric2018

Both are under fifteen minutes of runtime when you account for the structure, and both understand that romantic or emotionally intimate cinema can be horrifying at the same time.

A surreal horror film about a cursed dress and the people it claims. It's visually gorgeous, deeply weird, and builds its own logic. Unrelentingly strange in the best way.

But It's deliberately obscure and non-narrative. If you want plot clarity and payoff, this will frustrate you deeply.

In Fabric poster

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Christine, Catfish: The TV Show, The Town That Dreaded Sundown, Fallen, Jack the Ripper: London's Most Notorious Killer, Siren, Snapped: Behind Bars, The Divided, What Have You Done to Solange?, Before the Fire, Christmas Evil, The Vanishing