Addicted to Media

Horror Film Review: I Know Exactly How You Die (2026)

2026-04-06T10:00:00.011+01:00

What would you do to overcome writer’s block? With a looming deadline and freshly ghosted by his girlfriend, struggling horror novelist Rian (Rushabh Patel) retreats to a remote motel to finish writing his book. Caught between a storyboard populated only by the first and last scene and bouts of frenzied bathtub writing, Rian begins to hatch a story about drug counsellor Katie on the run from an increasingly violent stalker (and possibly serial killer).

It soon becomes clear that Rian’s story is unfolding in real time.

As his path collides with the real Katie, can they stop the stalker before it is too late? And what exactly is Naja, the mysterious hotel manager, hiding?

Directed by Alexandra Spieth (Stag) and written by Mike Corey, I Know Exactly How You Die is a darkly comic nod to classic slasher cinema, blending metafiction and visceral gore to warn about the perils of weaponised storytelling. The familiar warning to be careful what you wish for pales beside the risks writers face when confronting what they create.

For an 88-minute film, I Know Exactly How You Die packs in an impressive amount of story. Where many horror films, regardless of budget, falter with thin backstories, this film takes care to flesh out the antagonist, exploring who he is, how both his past and profession fuel his violence, and why Katie becomes his focus.

The local history of the crumbling motel is also explored, deepening the atmosphere of the film. In fact, the motel deserves a mention in the final credits because it was absolutely a main character. Cinematographer Michael Kohlbrenner does a great job of capturing the grime and sleaze of this dead-end motel with its cheap furnishings, broken lamp shades, peeling paint and tangibly sticky carpets.

Stephanie Hogan is excellent as Katie. She has such great on-screen presence and she steals the show as she wrestles the title of protagonist from the hapless and morally beige Rian (played by Rushabh Patel). Rawya El Chab was also great as hotel manager Naja, hinting throughout as to something that lies beneath the surface (what exactly does she know?) but revealing nothing until the very end.

Where I Know Exactly How You Die trips up is in its structure. Some parts of the film are hard to follow, particularly in how the opening scene connects to later events and in clarifying the slasher’s actions. This lack of cohesion undercuts the tension, making key moments feel more confusing than suspenseful.

Ultimately, I Know Exactly How You Die is a reminder of what independent horror can achieve with a strong concept and a limited budget. There’s ambition here, and plenty to admire in its performances and ideas, but its uneven structure ultimately blunts the impact of its most interesting idea: the danger of weaponised storytelling.

I give I Know Exactly How You Die a good 3 out of 5 stars, a compelling and inventive horror that doesn’t quite stick the landing.

★★★☆☆

Acting ★★★★☆ | Plot ★★★★☆ | Scares ★★★☆☆| Structure ★★☆☆☆ | Execution ★★☆☆☆

Beginning April 7, audiences across the US will be able to rent or own I Know Exactly How You Die on Digital HD, including Prime Video and Fandango at Home. The film will also be available on DVD.

Trailer: I Know Exactly How You Die, dir. Alexandra Spieth

Glasgow Film Festival 2026 Review: Satisfaction

2026-03-08T14:28:00.005+00:00

Quietly devastating and utterly spellbinding, Alex Burunova’s Satisfaction is screening at the Glasgow Film Festival this weekend. Fans of Mayor of Kingstown on Paramount+ will recognise lead actress Emma Laird from her role as Iris, and know that she doesn’t shy from difficult material, though this performance ventures into particularly dark territory.

Set against the sun-washed beauty of the Greek Isles, British composers Lola (Emma Laird) and Philip (Fionn Whitehead) exist together in a relationship defined less by love than by distance and silence. For all the tranquillity of their surroundings, an unbreachable divide spans between them. When Lola meets the enigmatic Elena (Zar Amir Ebrahimi), the fragile equilibrium between Lola and Philip begins to fracture, revealing a much darker portrait of people bound together by trauma.

Before the darkness suddenly descends on Satisfaction, Burunova lingers on Lola’s extraordinary talent and her creative process. She listens to the world around her and transforms it into music: footsteps splashing in puddles, dog walkers beneath a bridge, a truck reversing in the street outside.

Sound becomes composition and composition becomes a way of understanding life itself. Is this how great composers hear the world, every fragment of noise forming a greater harmony?

But then the film turns and Lola’s music is taken from her not once, but twice as she is betrayed by the person closest to her

The performances in Satisfaction carry the delicate emotional weight of the film with grace and restraint. Emma Laird is incredible and Zar Amir Ebrahimi mesmerising. One unforgettable scene between Lola and Elena unfolds without audible dialogue. We know what Lola is telling Elena, and what Elena says in reply, yet all we hear is the crash of waves against the rocks. It is a remarkable moment of trust between filmmaker and audience.

Visually, Satisfaction is stunning. The coastal location and luxury villa are beautifully captured, breathing with the characters where they stagnate. Sound plays a vital role too, in the near-silences where the world around Lola becomes audible, and in Midori Hirano’s ethereal score.

Contrasted against the idyllic location, the film reveals something far darker. Burunova explores betrayal and the ways in which we rewrite our own trauma in order to survive. Satisfaction is billed as a romance but it is not. It is an unromance, a story about something beautiful being stolen and almost destroyed. One line, quietly spoken, says it all: the night I said no.

Yet Satisfaction ultimately finds catharsis. Sunlight, wind, waves. Fingers gently caress the air, as if searching for notes only she can hear.

I give Satisfaction a full five out of five stars and expect this haunting film to become a festival standout and a serious awards contender in 2026.

★★★★★

Content note: Satisfaction includes an extended scene that may be upsetting for some viewers.

Satisfaction enjoys its UK film festival premier at Glasgow Film Festival on 7 & 8 March and will screen at BFI Flare London LGBTQIA+ Film Festival on 22 & 23 March and Manchester Film Festival on 23 March.

Trailer: Satisfaction, dir: Alex Burunova

FrightFest Glasgow 2026 Review: Bone Keeper

2026-03-06T17:00:00.073+00:00

So there's a mythical monster lurking in a cave and your father vanished trying to prove it existed. Thirty years later, your mother goes looking for it and disappears too. You decide to gather a few scientist friends to mount a rescue and naturally, one of them invites a vlogger known as the Bitch Hiker. What could possibly go wrong? Quite a lot, as it turns out, in Howard J Ford's Bone Keeper.

It does not begin badly. The opening scenes boast genuinely striking cinematography and intriguing effects work. With visual effects supervisor Giorgio Anita and prosthetic makeup effects Max van de Banks credited early on, my expectations rose sharply.

But there is also some really disorienting camera work, perhaps warning of what is to come. From that shaky foundation, Bone Keeper begins to unravel.

The characters in Bone Keeper know they are in a horror set up. They comment on the tropes, they clock the warning signs. And yet they still do exactly what they should not, most notably splitting up. Even if you're exploring caves without a legendary monster, you do not leave people behind. Honestly, the scariest thing here is the arrogance and stupidity of the characters.

Well, not quite. There are some deeply terrifying and grim scenes, credit again to the effects department and to the sound and music team, but you're rarely given enough time to fully take in what you are seeing.

Until you are.

That nest. That bone shrine. Those tentacles.

Ultimately, Bone Keeper earns few points for originality. The music and the cinematography are beautiful at times, shaky at others, but there is nothing particularly fresh about the plot. It is scary, of course it is, it is a monster horror. But it's also a monster horror that's uncomfortably aware of itself, and that makes the characters’ poor decisions harder to forgive.

To the cast's credit, they do a great job of portraying some thoroughly dislikable characters. John Rhys-Davies was criminally underutilised but I did like Nadia and Ravi, played by Sophia Eleni and Danny Rahim. Their scientific analysis, and what they uncover under the microscope, are genuinely compelling.

In the end, Bone Keeper wasn't wrapped up in a particularly satisfying way and, without giving anything away, it also made me want to scream, "That's not how things work here!"

As excited as I was to see a British monster horror premier at Glasgow Film Festival this year, Bone Keeper earns a slightly disappointed three out of five stars from me.

★★★☆☆

Scares ★★★☆☆| Love ★★☆☆☆ | Design ★★★☆☆ | Acting ★★★★☆ | Plot ★★☆☆☆

Bone Keeper will have its World Premiere on 6th March at FrightFest Glasgow, followed by a UK Digital Release on 6th April

Trailer: Bone Keeper (2026), dir. Howard J Ford

Frightfest Glasgow 2026 Review: Bury the Devil

2026-03-06T15:00:00.009+00:00

Now I lay me down to sleep. I pray for all the souls I keep

I love it when a film takes me by surprise. I went into Bury the Devil with modest expectations, shame on me, but it quickly became clear the film was something special. Adam O’Brien’s one-shot possession horror Bury the Devil is a standout at this year’s Frightfest Glasgow festival and comes from the team behind the 2024 festival favourite Mom.

On a dark and stormy evening, young hospice nurse Julia (Emmanuelle Lussier Martinez) helps her client Evelyn (Dawn Ford) prepare for bed for the night. Evelyn is slightly strange, but that is nothing out of the ordinary for someone with dementia. Following a visit from her estranged husband Randall (Bill Rowat), Evelyn's behaviour takes a turn for the worse and Julia begins to realise that all is not well in the house.

As the evening descends into chaos and violence, Julia must fight to survive the night and protect Evelyn. But what is she fighting against? What does Randall want from Evelyn? And is he the most dangerous entity in the house?

Bury the Devil is an intensely creepy film, so much so that the old house and the storm outside deserve credits of their own at the end. As Julia and Evelyn navigate the house, with all of its creaking floorboards and disturbing knocks, we begin to learn more about Evelyn through her artwork and the knickknacks that she collects.

The dynamic between the two women is powerful, despite their having met only that evening, and Canadian-born Martinez is flawless as Julia. Julia’s compassion and Evelyn’s rare moments of clarity contrast sharply with the palpable fear that grows as the film progresses.

What makes the film even more impressive is how it is constructed. After watching both Presence and Bury the Devil, I think one-shot horror might be my new favourite subgenre. Director Adam O’Brien uses the technique to create a deeply claustrophobic experience, with the camera trailing the actors through every corridor and room of the house and rarely allowing either them or the audience a moment to breathe.

It is an exhausting watch, as you cannot lose focus for a second lest you miss the craft, but it is also exhilarating. I counted just two cuts in the camera work, one through a keyhole and another through a window. While Presence had the advantage of a larger budget and big names attached, Bury the Devil is a truly independent film with a tiny budget, which only adds to its charm.

Not satisfied with this technical feat, O’Brien takes it further through his use of sound. Even when the screen falls into darkness, what we hear becomes as important as what we see. Instead of flashbacks, the backstory emerges through recordings and illustrated diaries, revealing the narrative as the tension continues to build in real time.

For a perfect performance from Emmanuelle Lussier Martinez and for blowing me away in terms of technique, sound and cinematography, I give Bury the Devil a resounding five out of five stars and name it the must-see film of Frightfest Glasgow 2026. In an interview with The Hollywood News, O’Brien shared that the film is the first in an intended trilogy. I very much hope that is the case!

★★★★★

Bury the Devil receives its world premiere at FrightFest Glasgow on 6 March

Trailer: Bury the Devil 2026, Dir. Adam O’Brien

Horror Film Review: Dolly (2025)

2026-02-23T09:00:00.008+00:00

What is horror? Is it what scares us? Makes us uneasy? Or is it the thing that makes our skin crawl as we recoil with revulsion? With disembodied doll parts, swarming flies and an unmistakeably foul atmosphere, Rod Blackhurst’s Dolly opts firmly for the latter from its opening scene and doesn’t relent for 82 minutes.

For lovers Chase (Seann William Scott, American Pie) and Macy (Fabianne Therese), a proposal at a scenic lookout spirals into nightmare when they’re attacked and Macy is abducted by a grotesque, oversized doll determined to raise her as its own child. Stripped of agency and trapped in a decaying domestic hell, Macy quickly realises that survival means playing along.

Have I mentioned how genuinely hideous her captor is?

Played by Max the Impaler, Dolly is awful in every detail: the cracked doll’s-head mask, the socks and heavy boots, the unsettling Red Riding Hood-esque babydoll top and pantaloons. The limp, blonde hair. The missing eye. It’s a carefully curated catalogue of wrongness and credit is due to the costume department.

Let’s talk about fear. I like scares and always jump at the chance to go to horror mazes and attractions. The closest I’ve ever come to genuine fear (not exhilaration) was at the London Bridge Experience, navigating a tunnel packed with mannequin limbs. So I already have form. It didn’t take long for that discomfort to transfer to Dolly’s parade of broken porcelain and grime-soaked costumes.

And there is a lot of grime. Filth. Rot. I watched most of this film with a grimace on my face. I’m not entirely convinced it’s gone.

Rancid food. Sour milk. Stitches pulled with cotton and no anaesthetic.

That jawbone.

Through it all, Dolly keeps coming, seemingly unassailable. Max the Impaler is magnificent in their portrayal of Dolly. For a character who never speaks and performs behind a fixed doll’s head, Max projects a world of menace and torment.

Love or Fear?

When I rate a film, I always weigh how much I loved it. Sometimes technical flaws fade because the film filled a deep, emotional need. I didn’t love Dolly so much as I feared it. Properly. And on that level, it absolutely delivers.

The weakness lies in the script. You’ll learn more about the plot from the logline than the film itself and the refusal to dig deeper into Dolly’s origins or motives becomes frustrating. I also didn’t love the ‘Father’ aspect.

But moving past those two weaknesses, Dolly still delivers sustained, sensory horror.

For sheer vileness, Dolly earns an excellent four out of five stars. I hope that this film signals the beginning of a long and fruitful run in horror for Max the Impaler, and I’ll be keeping a close watch on what director Rod Blackhurst does next.

★★★★☆

Scares ★★★★★| ~~Love~~ Fear ★★★★★ | Design ★★★★★ | Acting ★★★★☆ | Plot ★★☆☆☆

Dolly will be in UK Cinemas from 6th March

Trailer: Dolly (2025), dir. Rod Blackhurst

Fantastic Fest 2025 Review: The Vile

2025-09-21T06:11:00.006+01:00

There's something uniquely compelling about foreign-language horror films, how they blend culturally specific fears with those that are universally terrifying. In The Vile, an Arabic-language first for me, Emirati filmmaker Majid Al Ansari drives the audience to the edge of their seat from the very first scene and doesn't let go for the rest of the film.

Mother and daughter Amani (Bdoor Mohammad) and Noor (Iman Tarik) enjoy an afternoon of fun in suburban Abu Dhabi while waiting for husband and father Khalid (Jasem Alkharraz) to return home. Joy turns to horror in the blink of an eye when Khalid arrives with a pregnant second wife, both without the consent nor knowledge of Amani.

As Amani's sense of betrayal deepens, she becomes increasingly alienated in her own home and begins to suspect that something far more sinister flutters behind the seemingly innocent eyes of second wife Zahra (Sarah Taibah). Try as she might, her efforts to reach out to Noor fail as the teen, struggling with schoolyard bullying, finds solace in the younger wife's company.

Viscerally unsettling and deeply uncomfortable, The Vile is an intense reflection on gender and power, and the demons we let into our lives with our insatiable appetites for more.

A self-proclaimed "huge horror fan" Majid Al Ansari's passion for the genre is evident throughout this feature. Casting his eye on polygamy, which remains a cultural norm in the UAE, Al Ansari asks what happens when consent is removed from the equation and what monsters does this betrayal manifest?

The Vile rises on the strength of Bdoor Mohammad and Iman Tarik’s performances. There is one scene in particular, with Mohammad slowly turning her head to look backwards over her shoulder, which continues to haunt me long after the credits rolled.

With top marks for scares, acting and themes, it's the execution that trips The Vile up. For a film that so successfully blends psychological and paranormal horror, the resolution seemed a little heavy-handed, undermining the subtle tension built throughout. Nevertheless, it's a terrifying, thought-provoking and powerful film.

For an unsettling introduction to the world of Arabic-language horror, I give The Vile an excellent four out of five stars. I'll definitely be keeping an eye on what Majid Al Ansari, Bdoor Mohammad and Iman Tarik do in future.
★★★★☆

Following the World Premiere Screening at Fantastic Fest tonight, The Vile will enjoy a second screening at the Alamo Drafthouse on Wednesday 24 September before heading off to the BFI London Film Festival in October.

Trailer: The Vile (2025), dir. Majid Al Ansari

Frightfest 2025 Review: Super Happy Fun Clown

2025-08-25T01:00:00.004+01:00

Sometimes watching horror is remarkably like witnessing a high speed train wreck. You can see it coming from a mile away, the sirens in your head are blaring, and you’re desperately hitting imaginary brakes, but there’s nothing you can do to stop it. That’s the feeling I had in one particular scene in Super Happy Fun Clown (no spoilers, but it involves a spoon). I simply sat there with my mouth agape for a stupidly long time because I couldn’t believe they actually went there.

Directed by Patrick Rea, Super Happy Fun Clown is a carnivalesque exploration of revenge, rage and the search for infamy. It is full of moments that you may see coming but which are no easier to digest because of it.

Perpetual outsider Jen (Jennifer Seward) has been abused all of her life, by her mother who scapegoated her and favoured her sister, by her jealous classmates, and by her disgraced-now-unemployable loser of a husband. As a child, her only happy places were in her love of clowns and a healthy, growing interest in serial killers and classic film monsters.

Jen rises above it all. An anonymous office worker by day, she balances the mundane by moonlighting as children’s mime artist Jenn-O the Clown, a wholesome persona that is a tribute to the one shining beacon of her childhood.

But no matter how clever her disguises, she cannot make the most important people in her life see her. Asking herself what would John Wayne Gacy do?, Jen decides to turn that frown upside down.

What starts off slowly, almost reasonably, ramps up in the weeks leading up to Halloween as Jen prepares for one night of mayhem that will elevate her amongst those she most reveres.

"The idea of acquiring power through consumption, even if it means taking it from those you love"

Super Happy Fun Clown is a wild ride with fantastic performances from both Jennifer Seward (adult Jen) and Violet Rea (young Jen). Seward is magnetic and utterly convincing as the lovely, friendly, miming clown.

The clown that steps over the line

As a horror film, this one is not so much about the scares and more about the gore; it is gratuitous and disturbing in the most violent of ways.The soundtrack was very well chosen too, elevating the mayhem of the film and underlining Jen’s descent into chaos.

It is wish fulfilment at its darkest and the message here is clear: if you’re going to snap, you may as well ensure the world never forgets it. But it is also what will make Super Happy Fun Clown controversial. This film opens up a whole lot of questions, especially around why we love Jen so much. With her little smiley faces and cute-as-a-button makeup, she is almost impossible to hate.

It is also impossible to ignore that this film is heavily influenced by Joker (alongside countless other pop culture references), and the undertones inevitably brought to mind the 2012 Aurora massacre.In that tragedy, the perpetrator was quite rightly reviled and universally despised. It is a disturbing contradiction, and one that Super Happy Fun Clown leans into unapologetically.

For sending me down an unexpectedly self-reflective rabbit-hole of why I enjoyed this gratuitous and violent film so much, I give Super Happy Fun Clown an excellent four out of five stars. It is clearly my kind of horror and I look forward to seeing what the future holds for Patrick Rea, Jennifer Seward and Violet Rea.
★★★★☆

Super Happy Fun Clown enjoyed its international premier at London’s Frightfest on Sunday 24 August

Horror Film Review: Dead Mail (2024)

2025-04-13T08:38:00.015+01:00

Have you ever wondered what happens to letters that can't be delivered? Probably not, snail mail is a relic of the 80s along with other horrifying concepts such as fax machines, shoulder pads and permanent waves. The producers of Shudder's Late Night With the Devil deliver Dead Mail, a chilling study of obsession, possession, and captivity. What begins as a desperate letter dropped into a USPS mailbox soon spirals into a nightmare, with the Dead Letters team battling to locate a kidnap victim.

Written and directed by Joe DeBoer and Kyle McConaghy, Dead Mail stars Sterling Macer Jr (Where the Crowdads Sing) as keyboard technician Josh; Tomas Boykin, Susan Priver and Micki Jackson as postal workers Jasper, Bess and Ann; and John Fleck as Trent.

For the love of horror

Dead Mail is one of those films that reminds me why I love horror and just how rich and varied the genre can be. It brims with retro 80s detail and is clever and well-crafted. It's an immersive experience, right down to the oversized wire-rimmed specs, keyboard synthesisers and touch-tone phones.

Writers and directors Joe DeBoer and Kyle McConaghy make a genuine effort to flesh out both the plot and characters in Dead Mail. From street maps and encyclopaedias to shady Nordic data brokers, it captures the analogue limitations of pre-internet detective work perfectly. The atmosphere is pitch-perfect too, shot in a grainy, installation-style aesthetic that feels like it’s been dug out of a lost archive reel from 1980.

I always appreciate it when horror films feature an actual plot and motive. In Dead Mail, the antagonist isn’t just a shadowy menace; there’s a fully realised motive here, and an intriguing exploration of insecurity, rejection, and how obsession twists perception.

No cheap jump scares

The scares in Dead Mail are subtle yet potent; no cheap jump scares, just the slow, creeping dread of a story that feels as terrifyingly plausible today as it might have 45 years ago. This is balanced by an unexpectedly emotional arc as you piece together why Jasper lives in a men's home.

Dead Mail is buoyed by great performances throughout. Relative newcomer Micki Jackson shines in her role as the determined and observant Ann. But it’s John Fleck as Trent who truly lingers. Creepy, obsequious, and unnervingly genial, it's difficult not to truly hate him.

The best part about Dead Mail is the extremely satisfying ending and the faux-true-stories in the credits sequence. (If you're still wondering if Dead Mailis based on a true story, it's not. It's entirely a work of fiction, but the "where are they now" sequence was a lot of fun).

Minor historical nitpicks aside (the fax should’ve used thermal paper, and those phones are a bit too 1985), Dead Mail is a triumph of atmosphere, character, and storytelling.

I give Dead Mail an excellent four out of five stars. Directors Joe DeBoer and Kyle McConaghy continue with the retro vibe they established in BAB (2020), and I hope to see them collaborate on more retro horror.

★★★★☆

A Shudder Original, Dead Mail premieres Shudder and AMC+ Friday 18 April 2025.

Trailer: Dead Mail, Directors Joe DeBoer and Kyle McConaghy

Horror Film Review: The Dead Thing (2024)

2025-02-14T21:16:00.008+00:00

In a deliciously atmospheric nod to Dario Argento, director Elric Kane’s Shudder Original, The Dead Thing, plunges us into the bleak world of internet dating, with a twist of horror that’s equal parts stylish and sinister.

Night after night, Alex drifts through a parade of fleeting internet dates, each encounter as transient and hollow as the last. These ephemeral moments of contact are the only sparks in a relentless routine: a slow, almost ritualistic waltz from dimly lit bars to the antiseptic hum of her nightshift as an office document scanner, before she retreats into the cold glow of her SAD lamp and finally, into sleep.

But everything shifts when Kyle enters the scene - a spark that cuts through the monotony and ignites a connection on a profoundly unexpected level. Almost instinctively, they find themselves tangled in a web of raw emotion, baring their souls before the night even draws to a close.

And then the inevitable happens. Kyle ghosts her.

The insidious thing about ghosting is this: you might not even particularly like somebody, but the moment they ghost you, the power shifts, control slips through your fingers, and obsession takes the wheel, accelerating into overdrive.

As Alex’s obsession tightens its grip, she starts crossing lines that should never be crossed. Then she makes a terrible discovery. Can she find her way back to Kyle? And more importantly, should she? For Kyle is harbouring a dark secret and will stop at nothing to reclaim his life.

The Dead Thing is a beautiful film. Elric Kane has captured Argento's visual aesthetic with lurid colours and deep shadows that accentuate a film set mostly at night. The signature violence takes its time to appear, but when it finally erupts, it’s as jarring as it is disorienting.

This isn’t your typical gore-fest or jump scare parade. Instead, it’s a slow-burning exploration of rejection, the loss of control when you let someone in, and the obsessive aftermath when it all unravels. The plot may appear deceptively simple at first, but a cleverly placed twist midway transforms the narrative into something both haunting and unexpectedly captivating.

Blu Hunt (The Originals) delivers a standout performance as Alex, perfectly matched by Ben Smith-Petersen’s enigmatic Kyle. The pair share undeniable chemistry, though in this film, they seem to spark with everyone they encounter.

I give The Dead Thing an excellent four out of five stars and recommend it for fans of lurid and slow-burning horror. I'll be interested to see what Elric Kane delivers next and whether he continues his dedication to Argento.

★★★★☆

A Shudder Original, The Dead Thing premieres 14 February 2025.

Trailer: The Dead Thing, dir: Elric Kane

Horror Film Review: Street Trash (2024)

2025-02-13T13:05:00.006+00:00

Cape Town, The Future: social problems, energy crises, daily curfews and rising instability. The rich are getting richer, the middle class is shrinking, and only those in bed with the government are getting anywhere. In Street Trash, Ryan Kruger's follow up to Fried Barry, a ragtag group of homeless misfits stumble upon a horrifying conspiracy: a ruthless plan to exterminate every homeless person in the city. Thrown into a desperate fight for survival, these outcasts must band together, outsmart their hunters, and live to party another day.

There's just one thing (and if you've seen Fried Barry, you will know this): things are going to get weird.

Based on the 1987 film by Roy Frumkes and J. Michael Muro, Street Trash is part horror, part damning indictment of the rich, and part psychedelic trip into Cape Town's seedy underground.

Street Trash is not for the faint of heart; in the opening scenes you will see some of the worst body horror ever seen on screen. It certainly not safe for people with emetophobia, or people with whatever the fear of skin-melting-off-bodies is called. If I’m honest, this isn’t my usual kind of horror. But with Ryan Kruger attached, I had to watch. His brand of irreverent, subversive chaos never fails to deliver a hallucinogenic trip through urban mayhem.

I say this because I suspect Street Trash isn't going to be everyone's cup of Klippies and rooibos tea. You're either going to love it or hate it and it definitely helps if you can speak street South African.

Ryan Kruger has a bold, anarchic vision for a dystopian South Africa, one that instantly earns its place alongside District 9 and Chappie as a new sci-fi cult classic. He doesn’t just craft a grimy, neon-soaked future; he fills it with unforgettable characters.

Fried Barry alumni Sean Cameron Michael and Gary Green return as Ronald and 2-Bit, bringing their signature weirdness to the mix. Donna Cormack-Thomson (Catch Me a Killer) is a standout as the fierce and compelling Alex, while Joe Vaz brings mystic hilarity as Chef. But it’s Shuraigh Meyer and Lloyd Martinez Newkirk as twins Pap and Wors who steal every scene with their comedic brilliance, injecting moments of twisted levity into the chaos.

Street Trash is an absolute blast. Sure, it’s not winning any awards for narrative complexity, but who needs a sophisticated plot when you’ve got over-the-top absurdity, gloriously grotesque set pieces, and enough belly laughs to keep you hooked?

I give Street Trash an excellent four out of five stars and recommend it to fans of trippy, psychedelic, comedy horror. Bonus points if you're a fan of body horror and red paint. Extra bonus points if you get South African humour. Ryan Kruger is definitely on my to-watch list now.

★★★★☆

Street Trash will be available on limited edition Blu-ray from 17th February. Pre order on HMV & Amazon here

FB: @lightbulb_films | TW: @Lightbulb_Films | Web: Lightbulb Film Distribution

Trailer: Street Trash (1987), dir. Ryan Kruger

Horror Film Review: Companion (2025) ★★★★★

2025-01-30T13:49:00.011+00:00

There was never any question that I’d be watching Companion. As a massive Yellowjackets fan, much of my love for the show comes from Sophie Thatcher’s incredible performance as Natalie. So when Showcase Cinema announced mystery horror screenings, I had a strong suspicion that Presence and Companion would be on the lineup, and I didn’t hesitate to book my tickets immediately.

In Drew Hancock’s feature directorial debut, Josh (Jack Quaid) and Iris (Sophie Thatcher) first cross paths in an ordinary grocery store encounter before heading off for a weekend retreat at a secluded lakeside cabin. Hosted by Sergey (Rupert Friend), the billionaire boyfriend of Josh’s friend Kat (Megan Suri), the getaway quickly takes a tense turn as it becomes clear that not all of Josh’s friends welcome Iris.

The situation escalates when Sergey is murdered, but this shocking event is only the beginning. As secrets unravel, each guest is forced to confront unsettling truths, turning the weekend into a nightmarish descent into chaos.

Companion is a visually striking film, with every detail meticulously crafted from the stunning cinematography and breathtaking scenery to Iris’s impeccable costumes and the seamless special effects. I almost let my guard down, questioning whether this was truly a horror film, until the moment a certain characters was bathed in blood, in scenes that instantly evoked memories of Carrie.

The performances are top-tier across the board. Sophie Thatcher is phenomenal as Iris, but it’s Jack Quaid and Megan Suri who truly excel at making Josh and Kat almost unbearably loathsome.

More than anything, it was just great to watch a horror film with a solid, well-thought-out plot. I won’t lie, I spent most of the night after watching Companion running it over in my head, not just caught up in the twists but totally unsettled by the moral dilemmas it dredges up.

As always with horror films, I made sure to go in knowing as little as possible, and I firmly believe that this is the best way to experience Companion. The twists and revelations hit hardest when discovered in real time on the big screen, completely free of spoilers.

Blending elements of sci-fi, horror, and dark comedy, Companion explores themes of artificial intelligence, morality, and the darker aspects of human nature. An excellent five out of five stars. Director Drew Hancock already has another horror film in the works, here’s hoping it delivers the same thrilling originality and sheer entertainment as this debut.

★★★★★

Trailer: Companion (2025), dir. Drew Hancock

Horror Film Review: Steven Soderbergh's Presence (2024) ★★★★★

2025-01-23T20:09:00.002+00:00

Steven Soderbergh famously talked about the three-shot rule in a 2017 interview with Amy Taubin. "After the first three shots, I know whether this person knows what they’re doing or they don't", he explained. I was reminded of this as I watched the opening scenes of Soderbergh's latest film, Presence, this film is masterful.

Presence kicks off in an eerily vacant house. The camera moves through its empty rooms, gliding from floor to floor, lingering at windows just long enough to hint at what’s going on outside. It took me a minute to catch on, but by the second scene, it hit me: these shots are long. Really long. Characters drift in and out of view, and conversations are captured almost by accident, like the camera’s just there, quietly eavesdropping.

An estate agent arrives, followed by a family of four who buy the house. Slowly, it transforms from a barren shell to a cozy, lived-in space. Everything seems perfectly normal except for Chloe (Callina Liang, Tell Me Everything), the teenage daughter. She keeps staring directly into the camera, wide-eyed and visibly unsettled. There’s also a painter who refuses to step foot in one of the rooms.

A creeping unease settles in as it becomes unmistakably clear thar the camera is no mere observer. It’s a silent participant, a character in the film with its own fears, its own motives. And as the story unfolds, you can’t help but feel that its gaze is anything but neutral; its intentions are rooted in a darker and more disturbing truth.

Presence taps into fear on multiple levels. It’s got the familiar ghost-story thrills - jumps, creaks, that creeping tension - but it’s also something deeper, the insidious sense of the true potential for evil that resides in ordinary human beings.

The cast is small, with a core cast of just five people, but it’s a powerhouse ensemble. Lucy Liu and Chris Sullivan, as Rebecca and Chris Payne, bring a perfect contrast. Their characters are polar opposites: different personalities, opposite moral compasses, wildly conflicting parenting styles. It’s a subtle but brilliant dynamic that anchors the tension in the film.

Callina Liang owns the screen as Chloe, and it’s impossible to look away. The young actress commands every moment, effortlessly blending a haunting sense of innocence with the heavy weight of grief. It’s clear from the start that Chloe figures everything out long before anyone else does, and Liang nails that subtle shift perfectly. She doesn’t need to say much, her facial expressions say it all, capturing that eerie awareness that they are not alone in the house.

For a while, I thought I had the mystery figured out, but there was something oddly satisfying about getting it wrong. I was close but Soderbergh succeeded in concealing his final hand.

As the credits rolled, I realised one final thing, and I was totally fine with it. Fine with all the unanswered questions, the plotlines left to wither. I wouldn't call them 'red herrings', but there were many threads left up to the audience to answer on their own. It was a subtle message that much of what happens inside our homes is noise, that we need to focus on what truly matters, because life’s way too short to add more to our burden.

With impeccable direction (and some clever misdirection), stunning camerawork, strong performances, and enough scares to keep you on edge, Presence has it all. Consider this my enthusiastic five-star rating, along with a full mea culpa, because I genuinely didn’t think Steven Soderbergh had it in him to nail a ghostly horror film with this much finesse. I was wrong, and I’m here for it.
★★★★★

Trailer: Presence (2024), dir. Steven Soderbergh

Horror Film Review: Blackwater Lane (2025) ★★★☆☆ (Independent Film)

2025-01-21T08:03:00.005+00:00

Driving home on a rural road one stormy evening, teacher Cass (Minka Kelly) passes an accident but decides not to stop. Her decision comes back to haunt her when it transpires that the victim was actually murdered and Cass might be next. Also starring Dermot Mulroney and Maggie Grace, Blackwater Lane is based on the BA Paris novel Breakdown.

In the aftermath of the accident, Cass’s world starts to spiral into chaos. Strange accidents keep happening in her home, eerie visions of her deceased mother haunt her, and an unsettling feeling creeps in—someone else is in the house. As she grapples with these terrifying experiences, Cass slowly begins to doubt the people closest to her. Are these just hallucinations, or is there something much darker at play, threatening her every move? The line between paranoia and danger starts to blur, and Cass is left wondering if she can trust anyone, even herself.

Blackwater Lane straddles the line between supernatural horror, psychological thriller, and crime drama. The twist and central premise are surprisingly clever, delivering a satisfying payoff that keeps you guessing until the very end.

Sadly, it seems that the film was directed by somebody who believes England is a tiny island where Yorkshire, Cambridge, Suffolk and London are all within a stone's throw from each other. Filmed on location in Suffolk, Blackwater Lane features sweeping aerial shots of the autumnal landscape and village scenes on the streets of Framlingham.

It should have worked but then Cass goes for a psychiatrist's appointment in London and is later "rushed" to a hospital 90 minutes away in Cambridge. Coupled with the unusually electric storm in the opening scenes of the film (gale force winds are more Suffolk's style) and the fact that the murder is being investigated by a DC from Howden Moor (4 hours drive away), it's all a bit of a mess geographically.

The editing is slightly odd too. Camera angles switch mid-sentence, often leaving head and body positions out of sync. There are also several glaring mistakes, particularly when it comes to how emergency services operate in England, which definitely pulls you out of the experience.

I give Blackwater Lane an okay three out of five stars. The film proved compelling enough to hold my attention to the end and I was satisfied by the core conceit. I enjoyed the blend of thriller and horror too, but feel that director Jeff Celentano should perhaps have moved the setting of the film to a location he is more familiar with.
★★★☆☆

Blackwater Lane will be available on Digital Download from 27th January

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Late one night a woman drives by a stranded motorist who is later revealed to have been murdered. After a series of terrifying events the woman believes she is the killer's next victim.

Trailer: Blackwater Lane (2025), dir. Jeff Celentano

Horror Film Review: The Damned (2024) ★★★★★ (Independent Film)

2025-01-10T19:12:00.004+00:00

The inhabitants of a remote Icelandic fishing village are no strangers to hardship. Reeling from the loss of one of their own, they are cut off from the outside world during an especially hard winter, with temperatures plummeting and provisions scarce. As they gear up for a perilous journey out to sea, young widow Eva and the fishermen are faced with an impossible choice when they witness a shipwreck before their eyes: do they save the doomed sailors and risk depleting their meagre resources, or do they prioritise their own survival?

Sometimes there is no right answer and once the crew make their decision, they have to live with the consequences of what they have allowed in to their tiny community.

Set in the 19-century and starring Odessa Young (The Stand) and Joe Cole (Peaky Blinders), The Damned is a slow-burn folk horror that is as shocking as it is frightening. It is a keen character study as we witness how the morality of their actions weighs so deeply on the crew.

Rarely do we see the true cost of characters' decisions and actions on screen, be it the decision to save, to steal or to survive, or not to.

The cast handle this burden admirably. Siobhan Finneran is honestly a national treasure and shines in her role as cook and housekeeper Helga. Odessa Young steals the spotlight in a standout performance among an impressive cast featuring some of the finest British acting talent. She is spectacular and you absolutely believe Eva's mounting bewilderment and discomfort as the story progresses.

The Damned is a beautiful film featuring wintery scenes of the fishing village, the mountains and the unforgiving sea. Daytime scenes, some with blinding midwinter sun, are juxtaposed with the creeping and relentless darkness of the long winter nights.

I love that this is a dark film set in dark times and yet every scene is so well lit. Cinematographer Eli Arenson expertly uses light and shadow to highlight the bleakness of Icelandic midwinter, all while maintaining exceptional detail and clarity in every scene.

Director Thordur Palsson is masterful in his delivery of this film, skillfully keeping the true nature of the threat facing the fishermen just out of view. Never have I felt such a strong desire to shake a creature by its shoulders and demand that it show its face.

Perhaps I was looking in the wrong place.

"The only thing I know is that the living are always more dangerous than the dead" - Daniel (Joe Cole).

Drawing deeply on Icelandic folklore, The Damned is haunting and disturbing, right up to it's shocking and unpredictable end. I sat with my mouth open in disbelief for far longer than I anticipated, wondering how I'd been so deceived.

For achieving the perfect horror scorecard on plot, scares, atmosphere, acting and cinematography, I give The Damned a superb five out of five stars. I recommend to all fans of folk-horror and will absolutely be keeping an eye on director Thordur Palsson in future.
★★★★★

The Damned will be available in UK and Irish cinemas from 10th January 2025

Trailer: The Damned, Dir. Thordur Palsson

Horror Film Review: Nosferatu (2024) ★★★☆☆

2025-01-08T20:18:00.003+00:00

Brace yourselves. There is nothing worse than a horror fan scorned and I'm afraid Nosferatu didn't quite live up to my very lofty expectations. When I sat down alone in a theatre at 10am on the 1st of January, I honestly thought I was going to hand it an enthusiastic five out of five stars. There is so much about this film that is good but I can't shake the impression that it is overall a middling experience.

The Exceptional

Harking back to the 1922 silent film (itself an unauthorised adaptation of Bram Stoker's Dracula), Nosferatu is a gothic tale of obsession and possession as a terrifying vampire Count Orlok (played by an unrecognisable Bill Skarsgård) pursues a young woman, causing loss and devastation in his wake.

Robert Eggers has delivered a visually beautiful period film with outstanding cinematography and excellent detail in costumes and sets. The film begins with the journey of young Thomas Hutter (Nicholas Hoult) from what is now Germany to Transylvania, providing the viewer with an authentic insight into local folklore about vampires and the ways in which communities protected themselves against them.

Eggers makes great use of music, silhouettes, shadows and lighting to create a love letter to the 1922 silent film. One particular scene stands out, where Thomas arrives at Orlok's castle and is filmed walking through dimly lit passages, which thus appear to be monotone. As he approaches the Count, the reflection from the fires glows orange on the walls, creating a colour-splash effect and reminding us that this is not a silent film in black and white.

The effect is a visually spectacular film that is both chilling and unsettling, but horror fans cannot subsist on eye candy and a sense of foreboding alone.

The Okay

The problem is that the plot of Nosferatu is one of the most well-known stories of all time and nothing is going to surprise viewers familiar with Bram Stoker's Dracula, the 1922 film, Francis Ford Coppola's Dracula or, indeed, a host of other adaptations and remakes. What was perhaps surprising was how formulaic the storytelling felt, as if it were merely going through the motions of the source material without adding anything fresh or engaging. Given that this is a direct yet inoffensive adaptation, it would be unfair to mark it down on this count, but that still doesn't mean we needed this remake.

The Horrible

I absolutely love that Count Orlok was so horribly disgusting, with bits of skin hanging off his body and chunks of hair missing. He is grotesque, decaying and there is no trace of Skarsgård in his facade.

If you can feel a 'but' coming, it's this. What Nosferatu does so well is also its downfall and I'm fairly certain they are going to need to implement a Worst Sex Scene award at the Razzies because this film could secure two distinct nominations.

And this was the ultimate issue. Despite being technically brilliant with excellent cinematography, good actors and superb costumes, pedestrian storytelling (and to a much-lesser extent, bad sex) lets this film down. Considering how much I wanted to love this, I feel more than a little disappointed.

I give Nosferatu an okay three out of five stars. It's not that it was bad, it just wasn't great. It's honestly time for the current obsession with remakes to end, especially in the horror genre, and a director like Robert Eggers has already shown he's capable of original storytelling with The Lighthouse. More of that kind of stuff, please!
★★★☆☆

Horror Film Review: Starve Acre (2023) ★★★★★

2024-09-03T12:23:00.002+01:00

Rural Yorkshire, 1970s. Starve Acre was meant to deliver an idyllic, countryside life for Richard Willoughby (Matt Smith, House of the Dragon), his wife Juliette (Morfydd Clark, Saint Maud) and their young son Owen. Inherited from Richard's father and situated on the edge of the Moors, the rural homestead held the promise of an unburdened life, despite Richard's unhappy childhood memories there.

All of that is thrown into disarray when Owen's temperament slowly changes, robbing him of his sweet nature and delivering a cruel and changeable boy. That is just the beginning of the family's trauma. Based on the award-winning 2019 novel by Andrew Michael Hurley and written and directed by BAFTA nominee Daniel Kokotajlo (Apostasy), Starve Acre is an atmospheric British folk horror that reaches into the depths of grief and the lengths people will go to in order to find peace again.

Starve Acre is delightfully creepy and very unsettling. It is subtle and slow-burning, with the central conceit dawning far too late on the audience for them to escape its horror. There are scenes that I fear I'll never be able to scrub from my mind, specifically those involving a miniature pony and a terrifying hare. It is years since I have recoiled in horror during a film.

Curiously, the homestead Starve Acre is itself a character in the film. Looming and foreboding, it is not so much a haunted house as a seething, malevolent entity. It seems unusual that Richard would return there, given his intensely unhappy (and frankly, unsafe) childhood but the way the land calls to Richard, Juliette's visions and Owen's cruelty foreshadow the tragedy that will beset the family.

Starve Acre is a beautiful film, assuming you find stark vistas of the barren Yorkshire Moors to be aesthetically pleasing. The original score and music by Matthew Herbert (The Wonder) is a moving accompaniment, especially the arrangement of “It Hails, It Rains” in the closing credits.

There is no shame in admitting that I watched the film for Doctor Who alum Matt Smith but the whole cast including Erin Richards (Gotham) deliver fine performances and look fantastic in their folksy 70s wardrobe.

I give Starve Acre an excellent five out of five stars. Drawing on the remote and foreboding setting of the Moors, this is the best on offer in the British folk horror genre. Director Daniel Kokotajlo has delivered a stylish and atmospheric film that fans of Midsommar and folk horror will love.
★★★★★

Starve Acre will be released in UK and Irish cinemas on 6 September 2024 followed by a release on BFI Player, BFI Blu-ray and digital release on 21 October 2024.

Trailer: Starve Acre (2023), dir. Daniel Kokotajlo

Horror Film Review: The Exorcism (2024) ★★★☆☆

2024-07-06T18:23:00.000+01:00

The 1973 film The Exorcist is the quintessential demonic possession film, so entrenched in horror culture that it renders all other films on the subject redundant. Who better than to explore this concept than Joshua John Miller, whose father played Father Damien Karras in The Exorcist? Miller confronts the legend in his directorial debut The Exorcism, a film about an ill-fated remake, a traumatised actor, and the wrecking ball effect on families of alcoholics.

Anthony Miller (Russell Crowe) is attempting to put the pieces of his life back together. A survivor of childhood abuse at the hands of the Catholic Church, he descended into alcoholism and philandering during his wife's illness and subsequent death. His daughter Lee (Ryan Simpkins, Fear Street) has just been sent home from school. When Anthony gets a role as a priest on a remake of The Exorcist, he employs Lee as his PA and the two head off to set together.

Tensions are high from the outset, with the film's director Peter (Adam Goldberg) determined to tap into Anthony's guilt and trauma. Child abuse is a life sentence and now Anthony is forced to step into the shoes of his perpetrators, becoming one with those that brutalised him and others when they were children.

Adding to his woes is the presence on set of consultant priest Father Conor (David Hyde Pierce), his very collar triggering Anthony and dredging up memories of his past.

With all that is going on in his life, and with his reputation preceding him, the cast, crew and those closest to Anthony are blinded to the dark undercurrent of evil that is permeating the film set.

Is this just another ride on the rollercoaster that is life with an alcoholic or is something else at play here?

It's a bit of both really.

The Exorcism is a very ambitious film, filled with some big name actors, including cameos from Sam Worthington and Adrian Pasdar. Indeed, there was some inspired casting in the film, notably David Hyde Pierce who needs to be in more horror films.

Throughout the film, we get a fascinating insight into life on a film set, how it looks and how the stages fit together, but this ultimately detracts from the rest of the film. Perhaps the issue with this film-about-a-film is that the viewer can't help but be aware that they are viewing the film through the literal and figurative lens of a film camera.

I genuinely wish I could have rated this film higher but somehow the pieces of The Exorcism don't quite fit together to make a harmonious whole. I can see what the director was trying to do, that the film was intended to be an allegory for the trauma of childhood abuse and the journey into alcoholism, but ultimately it required too much work for the viewer to put together the pieces.

I give The Exorcism a good three out of five stars. This film was a bit hit and miss but I'll be interested to see what director Joshua John Miller does in future and whether he can achieve that heady mix of horror and drama that he seemed to be aiming for here.
★★★☆☆

The Exorcism is currently in cinemas.

Trailer: The Exorcism (2024)

Horror Film Review: The Moor (2023) ★★★★☆ (Independent Film)

2024-06-16T11:47:00.004+01:00

The greatest horror on-screen is often not in the vengeful spirits or undead corpses, but in the terror of everyday events. When somebody you love is missing, it sucks the air right out of your lungs and you can’t shift your thoughts away from them for one moment. The not-knowing makes your mind circle in an endless loop, one that is never quite completed. For some of us, that moment passes and our loved one is found; for others, 25 years go by without a shadow of resolution. Chris Cronin’s feature length debut The Moor delves into the mind of a grieving father, 25 years after his son disappeared without a trace.

25 years ago, 5 children disappeared without a trace
Now the darkness that took them has returned

The Moor opens with a single-take scene in the mid-90s. A young girl Claire encourages her best friend Danny to go into a shop to disturb the shopkeeper while she steals sweets. In the blink of an eye, a man enters the store, takes Danny and disappears with him. As the excellent opening credits roll with archive footage and VHS glitching, we learn that it is the “Summer of Fear”. Five children will disappear before the perpetrator is caught and put away for 25 years.

Set in Yorkshire, England, The Moor is beautifully atmospheric with sweeping shots of the barren moors and postcard views of the local town. Snippets of a documentary are featured throughout the film, giving the impression that this is a town defined by the Summer of Fear, one where young people left in droves following the terrible events of their childhoods.

Returning to her hometown for the first time in years, Claire (Sophia La Porta) meets up with Danny’s father Bill (David Edward-Robertson). Using increasingly esoteric techniques, and with the help of local psychic Eleanor (Elizabeth Dormer-Phillips) and guide Liz (Vicki Hackett), Bill shares that he is continuing the search for Danny on the moors where he is believes his son was buried.

Despite her visceral fear and deep-seated reservations, Claire agrees to join Bill. It soon becomes clear that they are dealing with a greater evil than they could ever have anticipated. They have already lost so much, what more does the moor want to take from them?

The Moor is frankly terrifying in parts, with the scenes in the séance and later on the moor forever embedded on my memory. Toeing the line between true crime and the supernatural, Chris Cronin delivers a nail-biting ride.

The Moor benefits from superb acting from the entire cast, be it interviewees in the documentary or the children in the opening scene. La Porta and Edward-Robertson shine as Claire and Bill, both in the carrying of their trauma and in the tentative, gentle way they treat one another.

The effect is addictive. I couldn’t draw my eyes away for screen for one moment, desperate to learn more about the forces at play in the moor, the nature of the great evil and the whereabouts of the children.

“There’s a time to accept that some things will always be senseless” – Claire

The thing about missing people is that you don’t always get a resolution. Children disappear and their parents can go to their graves without ever knowing what happened. Throughout the film, the audience is constantly haunted by the ghost of Keith Bennett, the Moors Murders victim whose remains were never found. Ultimately, The Moor buckles under the weight of that horrific burden, unable to resist the urge to close the circle. The final scene of the film, filmed used the found-footage conceit, provides an unnecessary and deeply unsatisfying ending to an otherwise excellent film.

In the end, I had to accept that no matter how conflicted I felt about that ending, how little it made sense, it achieved two outcomes: I couldn’t stop thinking about the film, for days after watching it, but I was also reminded that resolutions are seldom satisfying in legacy missing persons cases.

Despite my ambivalence, I give The Moor an excellent four out of five stars. I imagine I won't be the only viewer conflicted by the ending but on the whole, The Moor delivered on scares, atmosphere and performances. This was an impressive feature debut from director Chris Cronin and a welcome addition to the British folk-horror genre.
★★★★☆

The Moor will be in UK Cinemas from 14th June and Digital Download from 1st July

The Moor (2023) Trailer. Directed by Chris Cronin

Horror Film Review: Late Night with the Devil (2023) ★★★★★ – A Shudder Exclusive

2024-04-13T15:10:00.001+01:00

Welcome back to October 31, 1977. Night Owls with Jack Delroy (a show desperate to poach Johnny Carson's viewers) is floundering. After the loss of his wife, Jack Delroy (David Dastmalchian, Oppenheimer) returns with a Halloween show that will become the most notorious night in television history. Written and directed by the Cairnes brothers, Late Night With the Devil starts as a mockumentary before screening the full episode plus behind-the-scenes footage of that fateful night.

We’re transported back to 1970s late night television in all its beige, brown and maroon glory

The show starts off normally enough. We meet probable-charlatan-mystic Christou (Fayssal Bazzi) and magician-turned-skeptic Carmichael Haig (Ian Bliss). The two lock horns immediately but something is not quite right and it’s about to be broadcast into every living room in the nation.

Dr June Ross-Mitchell (Laura Gordon, Reckoning) and the very peculiar Lilly (Ingrid Torelli) are up next. Apart from an alleged demonic possession, Lilly is just a normal teenager, speaking in weird, veiled threats and occasionally using deeper voices.

What could possibly go wrong?

For a short while, the viewer will be forgiven for thinking that the most scary thing about Late Night with the Devil is the crimplene, corduroy and thick white tights.

Hold on to your seats, it’s about to get much more terrifying

Late Night with the Devil is about as perfect as a horror film can get. It is scary, with a great plot, and is wildly original. It’s also a lot of fun.

The set design, clothing, hair and makeup all perfectly encapsulate the dark era of late 70s fashion, when common sense flew out the window and the rainbow in orange and brown took its place. (Yes, I have trauma relating to the matching brown, crimplene pantsuits my mother made for me and my ragdoll in 1976, what of it?).

The cast are brilliant - awkward, cringey and overly posturing – for just a moment, it feels like you really have been transported back to 1977. Special mention has to go to Ingrid Torelli in her chilling performance as Lilly; I feel like I want to see a lot more of her in future.

I give Late Night With the Devil an excellent five out of five stars. Highly recommended if you teeter on the edge of true belief and are a fan of the late night horror genre. I think this film will especially appeal to fans of the cult classic Phantom of the Paradise. Most importantly, it's 93 minutes of fun and I'm intrigued enough to keep an eye on directors Cameron Cairnes and Colin Cairnes in future.
★★★★★

A Shudder Exclusive, Late Night With the Devil premieres Friday 19 April 2024.

Late Night With the Devil (2023), dir. Cameron Cairnes and Colin Cairnes

Horror Film Review: You'll Never Find Me (2023) ★★★★☆ - A Shudder Original

2024-03-21T17:58:00.005+00:00

On a dark, stormy night, loner Patrick sits at the table in his trailer, contemplating the end. The rain is beating on his trailer’s rickety roof and windows when there is an insistent banging at his door. Against his better judgement, he lets the visitor in and deeply uncomfortable viewing ensues. The visitor finds it increasingly difficult to leave and for his part, Patrick finds it increasingly difficult to tell fiction from reality.

He is not the only one

In their feature-length directorial debut, Australian filmmakers Josiah Allen and Indianna Bell deliver a tense, claustrophobic horror that will keep the audience guessing to the very end. You'll Never Find Me dives deep into gender dynamics and the quagmire of unchartered territory between the generations. Is Patrick as lonely, paranoid and cynical as he seems, or is the visitor the strange one?

Personally, it left me feeling a bit dull as I battled to work out who exactly the antagonist was in that trailer on that very strange, stormy night. Lost for words as the credits rolled, I’d very helpfully scribbled down, ‘I’m left with the distinct impression that I no longer have a grasp of what is real and what is not’. It was only in the quiet hours that followed that I was able to unpick and piece back together the clues and circular timeline, to arrive at some level of enlightenment.

You'll Never Find Me is a very clever film

Brendan Rock (Carnifex) is excellent as the deeply troubled Patrick. The victim of self-imposed exile in a trailer park in a very remote location, Patrick is paying the price for the mistake that lost him his job. The only problem is that he quite liked making that mistake.

Jordan Cowan (Krystal Klairvoyant) shines as the young visitor. Perfectly embodying the deep distrust anyone under 25 has for those born in the last century, she sails her way through the night with the carefully curated blank facial expressions that are the hallmark of her generation. She is giving away nothing, least of all clues as to what she might be up to.

The rain itself is a character in You'll Never Find Me. Brief flashbacks of a girl knocking on a car window provide a welcome chance for the viewer to catch their breath before being plunged back into the stagnant air of the trailer once again. It is a different thing altogether inside that trailer, where the rain becomes primary prisoner and tormentor, sentencing Patrick and the visitor to a very awkward and confusing situation.

For so much of You'll Never Find Me, I thought this was going to be a film of more suffocation and discomfort than scares but wait, the horror does come. In those final moments where the plot unpacks itself, you realise that the worst nightmare imaginable is playing out, one that repeatedly wakes me up at night. This film is not going to help that. At all.

I give You'll Never Find Me an excellent four out of five stars. Recommended for fans of claustrophobic horror and Australian frankness. I'll be interested to see what Josiah Allen and Indianna Bell deliver next because this did not feel like a debut feature.
★★★★☆

A Shudder Original, You'll Never Find Me premieres on Friday 22 March 2024.

You'll Never Find Me (2023) Trailer. Directed by Josiah Allen and Indianna Bell

Horror Film Review: Doctor Jekyll (2023) ★★★☆☆ (Hammer Films)

2024-03-02T11:00:00.000+00:00

Oh, let our dark hearts rejoice! Hammer Films has risen from the dead, resurrected in an acquisition by British theatre producer John Gore. The first film on the revived Hammer slab is Joe Stephenson’s Doctor Jekyll, starring Eddie Izzard, Scott Chambers and Lindsay Duncan. A creepy mansion, an unpredictable scientist; will this modern retelling of Robert Louis Stevenson's 1886 novella The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde deliver?

Rob (Scott Chambers, Malevolent) is fresh out of prison. Downtrodden and defeated, he needs to get a job before he can visit his sick daughter in hospital. In a suspicious stroke of luck, he secures an interview for a carer position for the reclusive Doctor Nina Jekyll (Eddie Izzard). Incredibly, he gets the position but seems immediately to be on a collision course with Jekyll’s assistant, Sandra (Lindsay Duncan). It doesn’t take long for Rob to work out that something sinister lurks in the shadowed halls of Jekyll’s mansion but he might be looking in the wrong places for the source of the danger.

From the opening credits, Doctor Jekyll harks back to the glory days of Hammer Films. A sense of unease permeates every scene, heightened by Rob’s naivety and inexperience. While scary in parts, Doctor Jekyll is not about jump scares so much as that Kafkaesque feeling of doom. What would you do if your own morals got in the way of your success?

Always stay two steps ahead

Cinematographer Birgit Dierken makes excellent use of light and shadows, bright colours and silhouettes in the film. Much of the film takes place in Jekyll’s mansion with its Escher artworks and locked doors. One scene that stood out for me was right at the beginning when Rob walks through the gates of the mansion. He is captured from above with the long shadows of the iron gates trailing him. It is deeply foreshadowing; which will catch Rob first, his past or what lies beyond those gates?

Scott Chambers gives an excellent performance as Rob (full name Robert Louis Stevenson, of course). He is believable as a young man who finds himself adrift and quite lost, trying to become a different person to the one that landed him in prison. Eddie Izzard gives a likewise excellent performance as Nina Jekyll, with a compelling and powerful presence onscreen.

I was thoroughly enjoying Doctor Jekyll right up until the final act. I can think of far more satisfying endings or reveals for a film that proved itself willing to change the source material. Nevertheless, it’s down to personal taste and I can imagine will leave audiences divided.

I give Doctor Jekyll a good three out of five stars. Director Justin Kurzel has delivered a creepy film, deserving of the Hammer Horror banner, but the plot somehow prevents this film from being elevated to four stars. I didn’t love the ending but I liked it enough to seek out further works from Scott Chambers and Joe Stephenson.
★★★☆☆

Doctor Jekyll will be available on Digital Download from 11th March

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Trailer: Doctor Jekyll (2023), dir: Joe Stephenson

Horror Film Review: Silence of the Prey (2024) ★★★☆☆ (Golden State Film Festival 2024)

2024-02-24T05:30:00.005+00:00

Folk horror Silence of the Prey opens the 8th edition of the Golden State Film Festival at the TCL Chinese Theater in Hollywood tonight. Karyna Kudzina stars and makes her directorial debut, alongside Michael Vaynberg, in a film highlighting the plight of undocumented migrants who, lacking the protections of everyday people, often fall through the net.

Nina (Karyna Kudzina) has escaped her native Belarus and arrived, undocumented, in the United States. Desperate to provide a stable environment for her daughter Isabella, Nina accepts a position as a live-in caretaker for a man on an isolated rural homestead. She is warned that he is eccentric but nothing quite prepares her for Luther (Chris LaPanta) or his community who forego modern conveniences and hunt their own food.

When Colombian national Andres (Monte Bezell) arrives at the homestead after his car breaks down, Nina finds a kindred spirit, one to share the horrors of the locals’ geographical and political ignorance and their increasingly intrusive questions.

“If I have to choose between being homeless on the street with a four-year-old and eventually being deported, or staying with a strange old man, I will choose the last. Unless you have any other suggestions”

As Nina begins to experience disturbing visions and hallucinations, she realises that all is not as it seems with Luther and his community. What is the terrifying secret that Luther is hiding and what lies beyond his friends’ ignorance and prejudice?

Silence of the Prey highlights the exploitation and vulnerability of those who do not have a voice, the people who arrive silently in other countries and lack the protections of documented arrivals. Anything can happen and as Nina observes, nobody even knows she is there.

Like many folk horror films, Silence of the Prey is a slowburner with little action taking place in the first hour. The isolation of Luther’s homestead and antiquated views of the community provide ample foreshadowing of what is to come.

Silence of the Prey is a family affair. Karyna Kudzina is married to Monte Bezell and their daughter Isabella stars as Isabella in the film. It is no surprise then that there is chemistry and a sense of cohesion between the characters that is obvious on screen. Chris LaPanta shines as the maddening and abstruse Luther, who seems to be on Nina’s side in one moment and not in the next.

My only complaint about Silence of the Prey would be that the storytelling is a bit linear and somewhat lacking in nuance. In their effort to highlight the plight of the undocumented, writers Kudzina and Saro Varjabedian have fallen into the trap of telling rather than showing and the key conflict is delivered with little subtlety.

Despite that, I give Silence of the Prey a good three out of four stars and recommend to fans of independent film and folk horror. I'm interested to see what Karyna Kudzina does next and hope that it includes more collaborations with Monte Bezell.
★★★☆☆

Trailer:Silence of the Prey (2024). Directed by Michael Vaynberg and Karyna Kudzina

Now in its 8th year, the Golden State Film Festival is an opportunity for emerging independent filmmakers to showcase their talents, gain exposure to a wider audience, and compete for prizes. Filmmakers from across the United States and around the world are eligible to participate, and short-form as well as feature-length works are considered for entry.

Horror Film Review: The Seeding (2023) ★★★★☆ (Independent Film)

2024-02-16T13:41:00.020+00:00

Do you ever get the feeling you’re going to like a film, right from the first minute? In the opening scene of Barnaby Clay’s The Seeding, a long-haired toddler walks onto screen, gnawing what turns out to be a dismembered man’s finger. Settle down, get comfortable, because The Seeding is a wild yet deeply uncomfortable ride.

Amateur photographer Wyndham Stone (Scott Haze, Venom) is on location in the desert to capture a solar eclipse. As the day winds down, he knows he needs to leave the desert and get back to civilisation. Fate intervenes when a boy appears, claiming to have lost his family. Against his better judgement, Wyndham follows and then loses the boy.

As night falls, he spies a woman walking into a cabin at the bottom of a canyon. He climbs down into the canyon to speak to the woman, who convinces him to share a meal and rest for the night. His nightmare begins the next morning when he realises he has no way of leaving the canyon.

There is a significant amount of misdirection in The Seeding and it’s likely that everything the viewer believes will turn out to be a lie. Is Wyndham a typical bro who deserves everything that’s coming to him? Is the woman, Alina (Kate Lyn Sheil, V/H/S) a victim who needs saving? Can Wyndham fix the manic gang of sadistic boys that watch their every move? What is actually happening here?

What do they want?

The effect is claustrophobic and quite agonising as the viewer cringes for Wyndham’s every experience. The Seeding is not scary as such, but embodies every person’s definition of horror and powerlessness.

Shot on location in Kanab, Utah, The Seeding features some stunning cinematography. The viewer is treated to starry vistas at night, the silhouette of the photographer as he captures the eclipse, and unsettling views of the arid desert.

Down in the canyon, the curtain of rock surrounding the tiny cabin is omnipresent and unsettling. Meanwhile, seen through Wyndham’s photographic eye, the cabin and canyon are full of trinkets and broken paraphernalia, artefacts of past lives and broken dreams.

The cast of The Seeding is tiny. Scott Haze and Kate Lyn Sheil give excellent performances as Wyndham and Alina and special mention must go to the cast of feral boys. Like Wyndham, the viewer never really gets to see them directly yet their menace is abundantly clear.

I give The Seeding an excellent four out of five stars and recommend to fans of independent, claustrophobic and folk horror. Director Barnaby Clay joins the rank of great horror directors such as Ryan Kruger who have made the move from directing music videos to delivering atmospheric, visually appealing horror.
★★★★☆

The Seeding is available to own or rent in the UK & Ireland from 12th February via Amazon, AppleTV, Google, Sky Store and Virgin Media Store.

The Seeding (2023) Trailer. Directed by Barnaby Clay

Horror Film Review: The Inhabitant (2022) ★★★★★

2023-08-04T08:48:00.000+01:00

On August 4th, 1892, Andrew and Abby Borden were found dead in their home, brutally slaughtered with an axe. The main suspect was Lizzie Borden, Andrew's own daughter. One hundred and thirty one years later, I decided to watch The Inhabitant on exactly the same day.

They say that violence runs through the Borden family bloodline and that descendants of the Borden family continue to live in Fall River, Massachusetts, unaware of their dark lineage. Tara (Odessa A'zion, Hellraiser) is one such descendant. The teen field hockey player begins to experience disturbing nightmares and visions, convincing her that she is going to kill her family.

When people start disappearing in Fall River, including both Tara's main field hockey rival and a woman Tara babysits for, local police begin to zone in on one suspect.

Can Tara escape the Borden family curse?

With themes of mental illness, family legacy, and inescapable fate, The Inhabitant is the story of Tara's journey to the edge of darkness.

Directed by Jerren Lauder (Stay Out of the F**king Attic and written by Kevin Bacher (Jaws: The Inside Story), The Inhabitant is an unexpected teen scream triumph.

Odessa A'zion is mesmerising in her role as Tara. She commands her every scene and I liked that the viewer only gets to know as much as Tara knows. Dermot Mulroney and Leslie Bibb star as Tara's parents Ben and Emily and Lizze Broadway is Tara's best friend Suzy. Together they lead us down the garden path, deceiving the viewer as each in turn gaslights, manipulates and lies to the others.

It's not often that a horror film manages to mislead me to such an extent but The Inhabitant absolutely did and I was thrilled to get to the end and realise I'd been completely and effectively conned.

The Inhabitant is visually lush with great production design by Meg Cabell, cinematography by Brian Sowell and custome design by Summer Moore. There is a great use of light and shadow, giving the impression that scenes occur both in 1892 and present day simultaneously.

There is no time, only darkness, evil and mental decline

There is a feeling of disquiet as the film progresses and the viewer struggles to pinpoint what type of horror this is. Supernatural, psychological, slasher? This serves to make the film genuinely scary as you're never sure what to expect.

I give The Inhabitant an excellent five out of five stars. Highly recommended if you like unpredictable, and misleading independent horror. I enjoyed Jerren Lauder's direction / misdirection and very much enjoyed the ending.
★★★★★

The Inhabitant is coming to digital download from 14th August and can be pre-ordered on Apple Store here.

The Inhabitant (2022), dir. Jerren Lauder

Horror Film Review: Quicksand (2023) ★★☆☆☆–A Shudder Original

2023-07-13T09:24:00.002+01:00

After 125 years of horror films, you'd think people would know the basics: never, ever ignore local knowledge of dangerous places and never follow someone else into certain death, no matter how much you love them. Andres Beltran's Quicksand had me shaking my head from the very beginning, first because of the arrogance of our unlikeable protagonists and then because it defied logic.

Sofia (Carolina Gaitán, Encanto) and Josh (Allan Hawco, The Breach) travel to Colombia to attend a conference. They are in the throes of a divorce yet decide to take a hike together to find the La Chorrera waterfall. When a storm moves in and they try to return to their car, they have a violent encounter with an armed man. On the run and desperate, they escape into Las Arenas, the very part of the forest that locals are too afraid to go into.

They might have escaped their pursuer but the couple land up in quicksand and need to use every survival skill they have to save themselves.

Fear will drag you deeper

I'm always conscious that there are human beings behind every project and horror, especially, needs our indulgence and willing suspension of disbelief, but Quicksand was not my cup of tea. I’m also conscious that there is a subset of horror fans who watch films because they get bad reviews and also horror fans who read reviews because they want to vent about a film.With that said..

Spoiler alert: I need to talk about this film and I'm going to dive straight into some key plot points and outcomes below. Turn away now if you haven't watched Quicksand.

If you've ever sat at a table while a couple bickered and aired their dirty laundry in public, then you'll be familiar with the primary dynamic of Quicksand. Sofia and Josh argue in every scene but the audience is never given insight into who they are as people or what caused the breakdown of their relationship. I enjoyed Allan Hawco in The Breach but neither Hawco nor Gaitán had much to work with here.

This was partly due to the bare bones of a plot. In short: married couple are getting a divorce, they inexplicably go for a hike in the woods. They encounter a violent attacker, escape into the one place they've been warned against, and the wife lands in quicksand. The husband decides to jump in after her and then they are both doomed. They very conveniently find a dead man in the hole and are able to raid his entire MacGyver kit. Pity he didn't think of that.

They are initially unable to move their arms above the very heavy mud but luckily, Josh is able to reach into his pants and retrieve a bottle of vodka when Sofia gets attacked by fire ants.

She is likewise very fortunate to be able to conduct neck surgery on Josh to remove a blood clot after he is bitten by a snake. Thank goodness for that MacGyver knife.

In a feat of astonishing agility against the very heavy mud, Sofia is then able to use her upper body strength to lob a lasso (made of a 15kg dead boa constrictor and other bits and pieces) over a rock and pull herself out of the pit. For some reason, none of the very heavy mud is actually on her and she just looks wet.

Miraculously, Josh also survives because he had 6 hours to live after the snake bite and he only had to wait 5 hours and 59 minutes for the antidote.

I wish that I could say more about the cinematography and camera work, but I found it to be quite dull and uninspired despite the forest setting. A lot of the angles and shots were weird and disorienting too, although I could see what they were trying to achieve.

Overall, I'd recommend Andres Beltran's Quicksand be viewed on a night in when you're looking for a good drinking game. Have a shot every time something improbable or impossible happens on screen. It says a lot for a horror fan to choose to believe the paranormal and supernatural over a simple forest survival plot but there you have it. I give it a disappointing two out of five stars; as stupid as they were, the parts where Sofia fell in the quicksand and Josh went jumping in after her were actually quite thrilling. .
★★☆☆☆

A Shudder Original, Quicksand premieres on Friday 14 July 2023. Streaming Exclusively on Shudder and AMC+

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Horror Film Review: Silence of the Prey (2024) ★★★☆☆ (Golden State Film Festival 2024)

Trailer:Silence of the Prey (2024). Directed by Michael Vaynberg and Karyna Kudzina

Horror Film Review: The Seeding (2023) ★★★★☆ (Independent Film)

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Horror Film Review: The Inhabitant (2022) ★★★★★

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Horror Film Review: Quicksand (2023) ★★☆☆☆–A Shudder Original

Quicksand (2022) Trailer. Directed by Andres Beltran