In 2016, Eureka re-issued their wonderful collection of Buster Keaton shorts and in that not only can you find the genesis of big-screen comedy, you can also find the work of a man experimenting with effects and stunt work decades ahead of its time. Two shorts, in particular, Haunted House […]
Reviews
Sherlock Jr (1924) A silent comedy far ahead of its time (Review)
The shortest of Buster Keaton’s features, the 45-minute Sherlock Jr. is only five minutes longer than the Oscars’ stated limit for short films (not that they existed back then). It had been conceived and shot as a six-reel feature, but Keaton deleted two of those when the film tested poorly. […]
Witchhammer (1969) The Best Witch Trials movie ever made (Review)
Reality is something to be surpassed in horror. The promotional line of being based on a ‘true story’ is something which is used as a basic inspiration point as illustrated by the original Amityville and Conjuring movies or the countless identikit exorcism films using this in their marketing spiel. Witch […]
Manina, the Lighthouse-Keeper’s Daughter (1949) Host to the Best Extra Feature of 2017? (Review)
Let’s get the big issue out of the way first: Eureka’s new Blu-ray release of Manina, the Lighthouse-Keeper’s Daughter by Willy Rozier boasts the most unexpected and delightful extra feature of the year. It actually pertains not to the title feature, but to another Rozier film included as a bonus, […]
Body Heat (1981) Double Indemnity Reinvisioned as a Sexy 80s Neo-Noir (Review)
Body Heat opens on the scene of a distant burning restaurant as a witness, Ned Racine (William Hurt), watches from a bedroom window. As a kid, his family were regular diners there. Now, he sardonically speculates that the arsonist is one of his corrupt clients. Behind him, a lover berates […]
A Clockwork Orange (1971) One of the 1970s most controversial masterpieces (Review)
I guess A Clockwork Orange is something akin to a movie buff’s ‘Where were you when Kennedy was shot?’ moment. Every self-respecting film devotee from the UK is likely to recall the first time they watched Stanley Kubrick’s controversial masterpiece and, if you’re of a certain age, chances are you […]
The Wall (2017) a War movie with an element of Carpenteresque B movie about it (Review)
Thankfully not a film about Trump’s intentions regarding the US/Mexico border, The Wall is, in fact, a tense, psychological war movie from director Doug Liman. The Wall is essentially a three-hander (though in truth the vast chunk of its running time sees it operate more or less as a two-hander) […]
Voice of the Moon (1990) The Master, Federico Fellini’s Final Film (Review)
By an odd coincidence, 1990 saw the release of two films called Voice of the Moon, one of which saw the beginning of a directorial career, the other saw the end of it. The first was a short documentary by Richard Stanley about his travels in Soviet-occupied Afghanistan, the second […]
House of Wax (1953) An early Vincent Price classic that paved the way for many years to come (Review)
James Cameron has a lot to answer for, off the back of Avatar’s success film fans have been subjected to a decade of shoehorned 3D features. Luckily the trend has subsided outside of a biggest of superhero mega-blockbusters, otherwise, 3D has left the building. This decade wasn’t the first cycle, […]
The Crazies (1973) Romero obliterates small-town America in harsh anti-military satire (Review)
As with any Romero film, The Crazies is a politically charged satire that uses the language of the genre to take stock of what is happening in the world – with war and science fiction the tools adopted. Unlike other war films, Romero tracks both sides in Evans City, Pennsylvania. […]