Treading the line between gruesome home invasion and dark comedy, Jenn Wexler’s second feature, The Sacrifice Game, is a welcome addition to the Yuletide horror subgenre. Set during Christmas 1971 at the ominously named Blackvale Catholic girls’ boarding school, The Sacrifice Game follows Samantha (Madison Baines), and school outcast Clara […]
Movies & Documentaries
The Last Picture Show (1971) – A saddening portrait of lonely people lacking direction [Review]
![The Last Picture Show (1971) – A saddening portrait of lonely people lacking direction [Review]](https://i0.wp.com/thegeekshow.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/fhzwleXGmiqBuQdWxmEwpkydhm4.jpg?fit=640%2C360&ssl=1)
After making his directorial debut with 1968’s Targets, the late Peter Bogdanovich followed it up with The Last Picture Show – his breakthrough work that would receive eight Academy Award nominations. His 1971 feature opens on a sight that will break every cinephile’s heart – a cinema on its last […]
The Fall of Ako Castle (1978) Fukusaku gives Historical Epic the Yakuza Papers treatment (Review)
On January 31st 1703, 47 Ronin committed seppuku (ritualistic suicide) having enacted revenge for the death of their master. Their feats of bravery, honour, loyalty and resolve have become the stuff of legend. It is woven into the very fabric of Japanese society and is heralded as the ultimate display […]
Casino Raiders (1989) Hong Kong hustlers Lau and Tam in underseen brotherhood drama (Review)
One of cinema’s greatest challenges is making gambling exciting to watch. It’s somewhat easier to throw the viewer into the mind of a gambler, and in fact the risky, irrational thinking of someone addicted to the high of the bet is narrative rocket fuel for many movies. Uncut Gems couldn’t care […]
It’s A Wonderful Knife (2023) Christmas Gateway Horror, More Christmas than Horror (Review)
Directed by Tyler MacIntyre and written by Michael Kennedy, It’s A Wonderful Knife is a slasher spin on the much beloved Christmas classic It’s A Wonderful Life from 1946. Featuring a strong supporting cast of Justin Long, Joel McHale, Katharine Isabelle and Cassandra Naud, It’s A Wonderful Knife centers on […]
Carlito’s Way (1993) Deserves a Spot in the Pantheon of Crime Classics (Review)
“The street is watching” is a weighty and ominous line that conveys paranoia and trepidation, as well as knowledge of one’s surroundings, and it’s a line that echoes throughout Carlito’s Way, a fine example of one of the oldest and most American of film genres – the crime movie. When […]
Gang War in Milan (1973): Violence, Misogyny and Political Commentary (Review)
If you’re looking for a film about a gang war, one that just so happens to take place in Milan, then Radiance Films (through partner label Raro Video UK), has got you covered with their latest release – Umberto Lenzi’s 1973 debut into Italy’s contemporary urban crime genre (or ‘Eurocrime’ […]
Chopper (2000) A Darkly Comic True Crime Story (Review)
Out now with a glorious Second Sight blu-ray is Chopper, which tells the story of Mark “Chopper” Read – a modern day Robin Hood (in Read’s version), a career criminal according to his criminal record. Written and directed by Andrew Dominik, the film takes its liberties from Read’s own autobiographical […]
The Retirement Plan (2023) Nic Cage kicks back in unfunny geriaction comedy (Review)
What will Nicolas Cage’s retirement plan be? There is perhaps no actor who loves his work more than the adventurous nouveau shaman, who will pump out film after film with barely any time to breathe. Clearing a staggering seven films released widely in 2023 (if one is to include the […]
Onyx the Fortuitious and the Talisman of Souls (Soho Horror Fest 2023)(Review)
5 fans are invited to the ritual to end all rituals. So starts the hilarious intro to a rollercoaster ride that has all the wit, nostalgia and laughs of Tenacious D and Clerks 2. It reaches into how we all felt as teenagers. Surfing the internet, finding the things you […]