Torture Porn was a ridiculous title to saddle upon horror and thriller movies that focus on people being held captive and subjected to grotesque violence. Yet somehow, once upon a time, they were a hot commodity. In 2022, they have become something of a curate’s egg – an occasional piece […]
Reviews
Stalker (2022) Chamber Piece with Engaging commentary on gender power dynamics (Review)
Stalker made its UK debut at this August’s Frightfest. As actress Rose Hepburn (Sophie Skelton) returns to her rundown hotel after a day of filming her latest horror film, she begrudgingly uses the freight lift. As the lift breaks down mid-floor, Rose finds herself claustrophobically trapped with a strange man. […]
The Twin (2022) Ambitious Horror if full of contradictions (Blu-Ray Review)
The Twin is a film that offers many horror devices and tropes. Some of which are unsettling and startling, others are likely to leave the viewer asking what was the point of that? Taneli Mustonen’s blend of Midsommar and Rosemary’s Baby is reminiscent of various more accomplished horror films, and […]
Two Witches (2021) Gory Witch Horror that dips it toe into the fears of impending parenthood (VOD Review)
Directed by Pierre Tsigaridis, Two Witches is an ode to the darkly camp occult movies of the 1960s and 1970s. Split into three chapters, the film depicts black magic, the fear of the feminine and ancient occult customs through a matriarchal lineage. The first segment deals with a pregnant Sarah […]
Angela Mao: Hapkido and Lady Whirlwind (1972) – a must for any connoisseur of the Kung Fu genre (Blu-Ray Review)
There is a long tradition of on-screen female action stars in Chinese cinema history. Sometimes referred to as 打女/Du Na (see THIS excellent video by Accented Cinema for a deeper dive into this tradition) and starting back when Shanghai was the centre of the Chinese film-making world in the 1930s […]
The Scary of Sixty-First (2021) Horror Intention Vs Horror Execution (Blu-Ray Review)
Directed by Dasha Nekrasova, The Scary of Sixty-First is a film that depicts what happens when two women move into an apartment rumoured to have been used by Jeffree Epstein and his sex trafficking ring. After brushing off a dodgy and suspicious realty agent, Noelle and Addie move into their […]
Smile (2022) Hyped Horror is yet another to overuse Easy Jump Scares (Cinema Review)
Years after a family tragedy, Dr Rose Cotter (Sosie Bacon) witnesses the gruesome death of a patient with a sinister smile. Plagued by terrifying visions, she turns to her ex and police officer Joel (Kyle Gallner) for help, hoping to change her fate before it is too late. After the […]
They Live in the Grey (2022) The Desperately Sad, Haunting Horror of Grief (DVD Review)
Horror cinema, like science fiction, is often reminiscent of other entries in the genre. See one horror film and it will likely remind you of others. Such is the case with They Live In The Grey, the third feature from writer-director duo Abel and Burlee Vang. While it is somewhat […]
Police Story 3: Supercop (1992) It’s the Michelle Yeoh Show (Blu-Ray Review)
The original police story is one of the essential movies in Jackie Chan’s career, helping cement his international career, and an action masterpiece. Beyond that, the series gets wildly inconsistent. In its initial 6-movie run and questionable in its two-movie run after being revived in 2003 under the moniker New […]
When The Screaming Starts (2021): A Mockumentary on a Killer Subject (VOD Review)
Premiering at Frightfest last year as part of their First Blood strand, Conor Boru’s When the Screaming Starts is finally released on digital platforms through Signature Entertainment. Boru co-wrote the script with Ed Hartland, who also stars as Aidan, an aspiring serial killer who becomes the subject of a documentary […]