Despite what the title suggests, Missing Child Videotape isn’t a found footage movie. Instead, director Kondo Ryota’s feature length debut is crafted around its titular subject, which arrives at the home of Keita Kodoma (Rairu Sugita). Unlike Ring, where the videotape has mysterious origins, Keita used it as a child […]
Mike Leitch
I'm an autistic guy living in Cardiff, searching for any excuse to write and make the most out of what he got from his English Literature MA. Main interests are horror, in pretty much any medium, theatre and literature.
Charisma (1999) / Cloud (2024): A Showcase for One of the Greatest Living Filmmakers
A new physical release of a Kiyoshi Kurosawa film is always something to celebrate, however what is notable about Eureka’s choices for the latest release in their Masters of Cinema series is that they highlight Kurosawa’s skills outside the horror genre. With films like Cure and Pulse arguably being his […]
Kinki (Imagine Festival 2025) Koji Shiraishi’s Unnerving Scavenger Hunt
Koji Shiraishi may be best recognised in the West for his contributions to the found footage genre with films like Noroi and the Senritsu Kaiki File series, but a closer look at his filmography shows a reluctance to be pigeonholed. The general unavailability of his work outside of Japan makes […]
Bulk (Imagine Festival 2025) Ben Wheatley At His Most Wildly Experimental
After garnering acclaim for his early folk horrors, Ben Wheatley has struggled to reach those heights again. One possible explanation is the input of Amy Jump as co-writer and editor of all his films until Free Fire. Since then, Wheatley’s solo work has felt much looser, whether it is the […]
Retreat: All Deaf Cast Shine in Intelligent Slow-Burn Thriller (Imagine Festival 2025)
In many ways, Retreat has been a long time coming, with reports of it being shot back in 2020. Its origins go back further with writer and director Ted Evans’ short film of the same name in 2013, though only the setting is retained (an isolated community focused on supporting […]
New Group: Offbeat Horror on the Fear of Conformity (Imagine Festival 2025)
Yuta Shimotsu has become the latest breakout writer/director of Japanese horror after the arrival of his debut, Best Wishes For All dropped on Shudder this year. It’s awkward and strange tone immediately stands out in its uniquely unnerving way and it’s a style Shimotsu continues with his follow-up New Group. […]
Incomplete Chairs (Grimmfest 2025): The Serial Killer / Furniture Builder Film We Never Knew We Needed
Ken’ichi Ugana returns to Grimmfest, after the showing of Love Will Tear Us Apart in 2023, with Incomplete Chairs further showcasing his imaginative storytelling. His latest is more akin to another of his films currently playing festivals this year, The Curse, in leaning more into outright horror than comedy. Incomplete Chairs opens with Shinsuke Kujo (Ryu Ichinose) […]
She Loved Blossoms More (2024): Headsplittingly Surreal Sci-Fi Family Drama
After making the festival circuit last year, the second feature film from Yannis Veslemes, She Loved Blossoms More, arrives over five years since he contributed to the anthology The Field Guide to Evil. This film shares some of the sensibilities with one of his fellow contributors to that anthology, Peter […]
Above the Knee (Frightfest 2025): Bone Crackingly Intense Psychological Horror
After his previous film, Good Boy, got such a great reception at Frightfest in 2023, Viljar Bøe returns with his latest film – a story that once again explores the dark psychological depths that the human mind can fall into. Amir (played by Freddy Singh, who also worked on the […]
Buffet Infinity (Fantasia 2025): Innovative and Hilarious Genre-Shifting Filmmaking
If you’ve seen classic Adult Swim videos like Too Many Cooks or Unedited Footage of a Bear and wondered what they’d be like as a feature film, then look no further than Buffet Infinity, which I can only describe as Adult Swim meets Welcome to Nightvale. If you’re familiar with […]