Re-released by Indicator, 1968’s Corruption asks a bold question, unheard of during that era of British horror… “What if Peter Cushing did horrible murders in a 60’s style suit rather than a Victorian-era suit?” The plot of this Robert Hartford-Davis directed slasher is the kind of nonsense that you’d expect […]
Movies & Documentaries
Walk on the Wild Side (1962) More Like Walk on the Mild Side (Review)
Released to Blu-ray by Arrow Video on the 6th of this month, Walk on the Wild Side is certainly a film with a good pedigree. Based on a novel by Nelson Algren published six years earlier, it is directed by Edward Dmytryk, the Canadian-born American filmmaker who had a very […]
Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me (1992) Reassessment of Lynch’s ‘pathologically unpleasant’ film is complete (Review)
There was a time when people would have been surprised to see Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me on Criterion, you know. Janet Maslin’s infamous New York Times pan (“brain-dead grotesquerie… pathologically unpleasant”) set the tone for the initial Cannes reception, and things did not get any better once it […]
…And the Fifth Horseman is Fear (1964) A brutal portrait of fear under an occupying regime (Review)
Fear pries at the beautifully illustrated characters within this Zbyněk Brynych feature. …And the Fifth Horseman is Fear contemplates the agony and unilateral terror present in Nazi-occupied Czechoslovakia. There is no respite for the glum halls, the dark and brooding cinematography makes sure of that. This 1960s Brynych piece contemplates the impact […]
The Bingo Long Traveling All-Stars & Motor Kings (1976) Playing Ball With Motown Productions (Review)
When we think of Motown, we inevitably think of that glorious back catalogue of music – the mainstay of many a party or get together. What we don’t think of, is cinema. Nevertheless, Motown supremo Berry Gordy Jr launched Motown Productions in 1968, hopeful that he could corner the market […]
Cat O Nine Tails (1971) Dario Argento’s Grizzly Americanised Giallo (Review)
In 1970, Dario Argento came flying out of the gates with one of the best genre debuts you’re likely to see. Bird with the Crystal Plumage not only made a lot of money on the international box-office, it also made Argento a name on the international scene. He followed that […]
PTU (2003) The work of a heroic bloodshed artist (Review)
Hong Kong Action, when you hear that term, a few things come to mind – first will be one of the biggest movie stars of the past 40 years, Jackie Chan. Second is balletic shootouts, thanks to John Woo, Tsui Hark and Ringo Lam and their stunningly choreographed movies that […]
All About Eve (1950) fasten your seatbelts, it’s a double-disc Criterion (Review)
Every era has one or two filmmakers who are so fashionable and so beloved that they introduce a whole generation to classic cinema just through name-dropping films in interviews. For my generation, it was the Coen brothers (and Quentin Tarantino, but since we’re not reviewing a 1970s rape-revenge film we’ll […]
Jagged Edge (1985) The’80s Neo-Noir that Pre-empts Basic Instinct (Review)
The 1980s saw the return of noir in Hollywood. Heralded as the neo-noir, these films revelled in their adult thriller status, creating sub-genres such as the yuppie in peril movie and the erotic thriller. It was arguably Lawrence Kasdan’s 1981 movie Body Heat that kickstarted the whole revival, making stars […]
Blow Out (1981) Travolta & De Palma’s Masterpiece (Review)
Getting right to it, the 1981 movie, Blow Out, is Brian De Palma’s masterpiece – with Carrie a close second. The Philadelphia shot movie is based on Antonioni’s 1966 classic, Blow-Up, albeit with all the danger and purpose of the New Hollywood era and a focus on the craft of […]