Hooptober
Frenzy
Frenzy, the penultimate film from Alfred Hitchcock, is a far cry from the director’s classics. Hitch had, after all, held a strangle hold on Hollywood for most of the 60’s. He defined cinematic espionage, the psychological thriller, even helped legitimize and popularize the horror film. But Frenzy offers a different kind of Hitchcock. It feels […]
Sick
It’s kind of mad that a new film written by Scream scribe and co-creator Kevin Williamson slipped out into the world unannounced this year. Sick, directed by John Hyams (director of the much loved, sadly overlooked Universal Soldier: Day of Reckoning), is a pandemic horror, something we’ll probably see a lot more of over the […]
Altered States
Though written by three-time academy award winning writer Paddy Chayefsky (adapting his own novel), Altered States had a surprisingly tough trip to the big screen. Pawned off by production companies, plagued by budgetary issues, and shunned by a litany of directors, the film eventually found salvation in Ken Russel. Altered States’ heady, sometimes silly, mix […]
The Last Voyage of the Demeter
In the context of fatigued properties, André Øvredal’s The Last Voyage of the Demeter, adapted from just one short chapter in Bram Stoker’s Dracula, is a refreshing concept. It’s a big budget Gothic sea-fairing horror, a cinematic curiosity somewhere between Hammer Horror and The Pirates of the Carribean. When it was announced that the man who […]
Hatchet for the Honeymoon
Mario Bava, best known for his Giallo-instigating film Blood and Black Lace, is perhaps one of the most influential, original directors of the 20th century. The horror genre is still working with, and trying to deviate from, a blueprint he crafted half a Century ago. Whilst Hatchet for the Honeymoon is by no means Bava’s finest […]
Knife + Heart
With queer retro slasher Knife + Heart, Yann Gonzalez takes us on an evocative, dangerous, journey through the sensual underbelly of Paris’s sex industry, circa 1979. It’s a world of underground nightclubs, porn theatres, cruising areas, baroque porn sets, and rain-spattered sidewalks, all populated with gorgeous queers and drenched in lurid primary colours. The attention […]
Madhouse (1974)
Though perhaps not as technically or visually impressive as their Hammer counterparts, Amicus Productions’ slew of late-60s/early 70s horror output is often savvier and timelier. Aside from their superb anthology films, nothing in the Amicus catalogue proves this more than Jim Clark’s 1974 film Madhouse. Paul Toombs is a horror icon who has made […]
Saw X – Reboot or Game Over?
After months of anticipation and one of the most aggressive hype campaigns of the franchise, Saw X is finally here, but is it any good? Written by Josh Stolberg and Pete Goldfinger, and directed by long running franchise editor Kevin Greutert, the latest entry is an incredible treat for fans and one of the finest […]
The Tunnel
When we discuss the lesser known found footage horror hits of the 2000’s, we talk about Lake Mungo, Noroi, and The Poughkeepsie Tapes. But Australian crowd-backed venture The Tunnel is still criminally underrated and not often mentioned alongside those unsung contemporary classics. The mockumentary film from Carlo Ledesma is a stunning example of found footage […]
Antrum: The Deadliest Film Ever Made
In the long list of postmodern horror films Antrum: The Deadliest Film Ever Made, directed by David Amito and Michael Laicini, has a special place. Few movies have the audacity to play up their own potential as intriguingly and brazenly. It’s a potential pitfall since the louder a film blusters about its own power, the […]
