| The well 2024 The twilight settings and the acting performances even of the minor roles are very appreciable, some scenes in the finale give a touch perhaps unintentionally funny that I personally appreciate a lot in horror films. A simple but well-crafted story, with realistic dialogues, the long gore scenes in the film could disturb those like me who do not appreciate them but prefer dark atmospheres and mystery, which are not lacking anyway. A low-budget production that does not disappoint but rather transports us to the past of an Italian genre cinema that is now almost defunct. |
| Gretel & Hansel 2020 Anyone familiar with the original versions of classic fairy tales like “Hansel and Gretel” already knows that they have lots of horror movie potential. As a rule though, most attempts to capture these tales on film tend to miss the mark. It’s clear from the conspicuous reversal of the titular names that Gretel & Hansel hopes to distinguish itself from the rest of the pack right from the get-go, but does it actually do the job, or are you better off spending 90 minutes of your time on some other film?
Gretel & Hansel is the brainchild of writer/director Oz Perkins (The Blackcoat’s Daughter, I Am the Pretty Thing That... Read More |
| Dead Awake 2016 Whether you’ve personally experienced it or simply heard your share of other people’s horror stories over the years, it doesn’t get much scarier than sleep paralysis. Director Phillip Guzman (Sleep No More) makes this all too relatable real life phenomenon the center of his 2016 indie horror film Dead Awake. The film stars indie horror favorite Jocelin Donahue (House of the Devil, All the Creatures Were Stirring) in the lead, as well as Jesse Bradford (Cherry Falls), Brea Grant (Dead Night), Lori Petty (Bates Motel), and others in supporting roles.
The plotline is textbook enough, following the adventures of social... Read More |
| The Noonday Witch 2016 When you think of the most chilling horror tales of all time, there are a lot of staples that come immediately to mind when it comes to possible settings – like dank asylums, haunted houses, isolated forests, or just about anywhere that feels a little creepier and more sinister under cover of darkness. You don’t probably think of sun-drenched corn fields or bright summer days in the countryside, but The Noonday Witch may just change your mind about that.
The Noonday Witch is a 2016 Czech language film brought to the screen by promising Czech director, Jiri Sadek. (In fact, Sadek is discussed in many genre circles these days as a... Read More |
| Kairo (Pulse) 2001 It’s safe to say that we’ve created our share of iconic horror characters here in America. Horror icons like Freddy Krueger (A Nightmare on Elm Street), Michael Myers (Halloween), or Jason Vorhees (Friday the 13th) are so highly recognizable, that they’re pretty much synonymous with the mere concept of a horror movie. Even so, no country handles horror quite like Japan does.
Japanese horror films have a much-deserved reputation for being exceptionally horrifying and thought-provoking at the same time. You won’t find as many homicidal maniacs gracing genre screens in Japan (although you’ll definitely meet plenty of vengeful... Read More |
| The Black Room 2016 When it comes to classic horror tropes – like haunted houses and the dark secrets they hide – there’s definitely more than one way to approach material that is very familiar to the average genre fan by now. More and more modern filmmakers are adopting a cerebral approach and turning their haunted house movies into social commentaries with something larger to say. Others are focused on simply telling a good scary story with plenty of jump scares and special effects. Still more go for an exploitive approach that is almost intentionally trashy. The Black Room could probably best be described as the third type.
The Black Room was... Read More |