Review: Mary Dauterman’s ‘Booger’
“‘Booger’ is a surprisingly poignant and sensitive meditation on grief that utilizes a truly wild metaphor.”
Review: Zach Clark’s ‘The Becomers’
“With ‘The Becomers,’ Clark frequently barrels all the way to the edge of the line but rarely puts anything more than a toe across it.”
Review: Steven Kostanski’s ‘Frankie Freako’
“‘Frankie Freako’ is deliriously silly and wholesomely entertaining, and so genuine in its profound lack of depth or meaning — it’s a refreshing antidote to all the dreaded “elevated horror” offerings.”
Review: Damian Mc Carthy’s ‘Oddity’
“‘Oddity’ is the scariest movie of the year.”
Review: Pascal Plante’s ‘Red Rooms’
“Perhaps Plante wasn’t sure how to end ‘Red Rooms’ without veering into sensationalism, which is commendable, but it doesn’t solve the problem of crafting an intriguing reason for why Kelly-Anne is so driven.”
Review: Severin Fiala and Veronika Franz’s ‘The Devil’s Bath’
“Fiala and Franz, who also co-wrote ‘The Devil’s Bath,’ aren’t interested in making viewers feel comfortable. What they’ve crafted, even more so than their breakout hit, is a tough, distressing watch by design.”
Review: Chris Nash’s ‘In a Violent Nature’
“The package may be pretty, but there’s nothing of note inside, and what is there has been done better elsewhere.”
Review: Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett’s ‘Abigail’
“There’s more to love than hate in ‘Abigail’ — from the insanely over-the-top violence to the fresh take on vampire mythology — and most of the dangling threads pay off in a pacy, satisfying manner.”
An Interview with ‘Pratfall’ Actor Joshua Burge
‘Pratfall’ Interview: Joey Keogh discusses the 2023 movie with actor Joshua Burge.
Review: Sam H. Freeman and Ng Choon Ping’s ‘Femme’
“‘Femme’ is lean, mean, nasty, challenging, knotty, uncomfortable and disorientating — often all at once.”
Review: Bertrand Mandico’s ‘She Is Conann’
“The main issue with a film as defiantly arthouse as ‘She Is Conann’ is that if the story isn’t engaging in its own right, everything else that’s wrong becomes increasingly more obvious.”
Review: Tyler MacIntyre’s ‘It’s a Wonderful Knife’
“‘It’s a Wonderful Knife’ is watchable but slight. And considering how popular Hallmark Christmas movies continue to be, maybe that’s all horror fans will really expect.”
Review: Alex Kahuam’s ‘Failure!’
“‘Failure!’ is a failed experiment that grates more than it excites.”
Review: David Depesseville’s ‘Astrakan’
“‘Astrakan’ is most intriguing when not trying to explain everything away.”
Review: Thomas Hardiman’s ‘Medusa Deluxe’
“The fun of ‘Medusa Deluxe’ is less about figuring out who the murderer is and more to do with watching everybody lose their minds over their little bubble being penetrated by an outside influence they can’t control.”
Review: Luke McManus’ ‘North Circular’
“‘North Circular’ feels slightly unfocused at times, but this is likely intentional given how tough it is to nail down one definitive take on what it means to be from this area.”
Review: Charlotte Le Bon’s ‘Falcon Lake’
“Falcon Lake’s funereal tone may be a bit too emo for some, but for those willing to get swept up in its dark splendor, Le Bon’s film is a remarkably shrewd debut.”
Review: Joe Lo Truglio’s ‘Outpost’
“‘Outpost’ is an auspicious introduction to Lo Truglio the filmmaker and suggests great things are to come for him. Based on this evidence alone, his leading lady should also have plenty more opportunities to lead a charge in the future.”
Review: Lee Cronin’s ‘Evil Dead Rise’
“‘Evil Dead Rise’ quickly devolves into a mean-spirited slog of self-consciously gruesome attempts at shocking an audience that will only be fooled if they’ve never seen another horror movie before.”
Review: Kyra Elise Gardner’s ‘Living with Chucky’
“‘Living with Chucky’ isn’t exactly life-changing, but it’s enormously life-affirming, particularly for diehard horror fans.”