By the time 1994 came around, Hong Kong cinema had mastered the art of Wire Fu. Ching Siu Tung changed how this genre of wuxia had been portrayed on film with the classic A Chinese Ghost Story (ably assisted by producer Tsui Hark), Jet Li with his stints as both […]
Reviews
Little Bone Lodge (2023) When Little, this Lodge offers plenty to Chill the Bones (Review)
The home invasion sub-genre is characterised by claustrophobia, intensity and genuine scares. Unsurprisingly, it often works as a chamber piece, with a small cast, limited locations and threatening mise-en-scene. One of the key themes is the tension between inner and outer, a theme made all the more apparent in Little […]
Influencer (2023) The bones of a taut and conceptual thriller, just one missing some meat (Review)
Jumping on the recent social media influencer horror train, Influencer is a thriller that centers itself on the phenomena of the celebrity of influencers, and the manner in which followers consume their unique brand of media. When Instagram influencer Madison is abandoned last minute by her boyfriend and is left […]
Repulsion (1965) Jeanne Dielman for the beat ‘60s with a supremely knotty director in tow (Review)
Before we begin, I feel as though my review must be prefaced with a trigger warning; Repulsion is not exactly light viewing. As you may know, Repulsion was directed by the Academy Award-winning filmmaker Roman Polanski, a man whose directorial back-catalogue contains some of the most celebrated examples of the […]
Hopping Mad: The Mr Vampire Sequels (1986-1989) (Blu-Ray review)
Anyone with eyes to see, ears to hear or fangs to bite knows that Ricky Lau’s 1985 film Mr. Vampire is one of the most joyous comedies in cinema history, a perfect mix of spooky hijinks, balletic martial arts action and broad, goofy slapstick. It was inevitable that sequels would […]
She Dies Tomorrow (2020) An Exciting, Existential Premise That Ultimately Fails To Deliver (Review)
Not every film’s priority is to entertain its audience. In some cases, filmmakers strive for something entirely different. Perhaps they want to terrify their audience, move them emotionally, or in some cases, try something slightly more unique. Rather than strive for a certain emotion they want to elicit or tell […]
Yakuza Graveyard (1976) A Chaotically Rewarding Yakuza Classic That Demands All of Your Attention (Review)
Toei had already garnered a reputation for being the studio that made Yakuza movies. Between their ninkyo-eiga (“chivalry”) pictures of the 1960s to the harder-hitting jitsuroku-eiga (“actual record films”) popularised by the likes of Director Kinji Fukasaku and writer Kazuo Kasahara, Toei Company had a winning formula that brought in […]
The Bride Wore Black (1968) – An elegantly constructed tale of vengeance (Review)
Based on the novel by Cornell Woolrich (who published it under the pseudonym William Irish), François Truffaut’s sixth feature as a solo director, The Bride Wore Black, was a dark and influential tale of vengeance. An intriguing opening sees Julie Kohler (Jeanne Moreau) prevented from committing suicide by her mother. […]
Huesera: The Bone Woman (2022) One of the best representations of motherhood committed to film (Review)
In Huesera (2022) we meet Valeria, a woman who has always wanted to be a mother. But when she finally falls pregnant, rather than feeling happy, she feels that something is off. As she progresses through her pregnancy, these feelings intensify and she is haunted by sinister visions and threatened […]
Slasher: Ripper (Complete: Season 5)(Review)
This fifth instalment of (now) AMC/Shudder’s horror anthology, Slasher, comes to a close, and with all the lavish splendour that this season has presented, can it maintain it’s early promise and deliver a conclusion that will set it as the best entry in the franchise to date? More on that […]