By 1995, Abel Ferrara was on a run of high quality work that rivals any of his New York contemporaries’ best. Starting with King of New York in 1990, Ferrara had built up a body of work that plunged into the very depths of city life, disappearing down the dark […]
Joe McKeown
Ever since his earliest memories - watching his dad's VHS double-bills of Jaws & Jurassic Park, Independence Day & Armageddon, The Terminator & T2: Judgment Day - Joe has always been mesmerised by the magic of cinema. That fascination never waned over the years, and eventually morphed into his passion for writing about film.
Born and raised in a galaxy far, far away from Tinseltown - Wolverhampton, England.
At Close Range (1986) – One of the most menacing dramas of the 1980s
“Ever been out west, Tommy? Ever heard a coyote? They make this sound like ‘woo, woo, woo!’ Coyote bitch gets in heat. First thing she does, she take care of the males. Then she heads toward town. All the neighborhood dogs, they smell her. They go crazy. They follow her. […]
Gummo (1997) – Still Korine’s most indelibe work
After making quite the independent splash as screenwriter on Larry Clark’s notorious Kids in 1995, there was a small-but-devoted following keen to see what young, fresh-faced and whip-smart Harmony Korine would get up to next, but nobody could have predicted Gummo. Having left Nashville, Tennessee for the Big Apple (where […]
Dark Match (Fantasia 2024) – A Wrestling Picture for the Old-School Fans (Review)
The inherent contradiction of the most successful movies about wrestling (The Iron Claw and The Wrestler to name just two examples), is that they tend to be high-level productions that set their sights on major awards contention, which puts them somewhat at odds with the real-life sports entertainment industry they […]
Adrianne and the Castle (Fantasia 2024): Clinging onto a Lifetime of Fantasy When Reality Takes Over (Review)
Adrianne and The Castle is a fascinating oddity of a documentary from filmmaker Shannon Welsh, a fantastical love story told from the perspective of a fairytale that is sadly over. It follows Alan St-George, an artist and entrepreneur of a world famous mascot company, responsible for numerous iconic cuddly heroes […]
In a Violent Nature (2024): A New Breed of Post-Slasher Horror (Review)
One of the year’s most extraordinary filmgoing experiences must surely go to Chris Nash’s In a Violent Nature. Taking the basic premise of “Friday the 13th seen from Jason’s perspective”, this unique slasher turns the entire genre on its head, and has more to say between the long stalking shots […]
Sorcery (2023): A Patient, Ethereal Addition to the Post-2010s Folk Horror Revival
There’s been quite a boom in the folk horror scene over the past decade and a half as filmmakers like Ben Wheatley, Robert Eggers, Ari Aster, Oz Perkins and Goran Stolevski have each crafted singular works within the genre. Sorcery – the latest effort from Chilean director Christopher Murray – […]
Malum (2023): A Rather (Un)pleasant Surprise
The latest effort from horror filmmaker Anthony DiBlasi, Malum is in effect a reworking of his very own Last Shift from 2014, but “why the remake?” you may ask. Well, first and foremost, it offers the opportunity to up the ante in every department. The story is about the fallout […]
Invaders from Proxima B (2024): Low Budget Schlock with Humour and Heart (Review)
With a name like Invaders from Proxima B, you’d be forgiven for presuming this low-budget effort from writer, director and star Ward Roberts would be chock full of men in green rubber suits, tacky flying saucers and dodgy laser effects. Well, there are certainly variations on those, but the last […]
Hunt Her Kill Her (2022) – A Predictable Slasher Comfort-Blanket for Horror Enthusiasts
No genre rests on its laurels quite like horror, and there’s a simple reason for that. Take a basic premise, litter it with predictable, generic tropes, plus the odd, timely wink to your audience, and chances are, there will always be a faithful following, big or small, primed and ready […]