Stunt casting has likely boosted Timothy Woodward Jr’s The Call to a profile beyond its own merits, but it remains a watchable and broadly enjoyable independent horror film. Measured expectations are a must. A group of friends have engaged in … Continue reading REVIEW: The Call (2020)
On a snowy forest road in Canada, Kharis (Sheena Kaine) – a young indigenous woman – is fatally struck down by a car. While her community mourns, a supernatural force appears to start killing off visitors and locals alike. Police … Continue reading FANTASIA REVIEW: Don’t Say Its Name (2021)
Note: this film is dominated by themes of self-harm and suicide. Put a handful of iconic scary movies into a blender and coat it with a healthy layer of Internet culture, and you get #BLUE_WHALE – one of the best 2021 … Continue reading FANTASIA REVIEW: #BLUE_WHALE (2021)
A fish lies dead, poking its empty face out of a brown, half-empty fish tank. Behind it, the walls are covered with layers of peeling wallpaper. Electrical cables are stuck up with packing tape. Fluorescent lights buzz and flickers. Everything … Continue reading FANTASIA REVIEW: Hotel Poseidon (2021)
I had to get around to The Devil Inside at some time. A low-budget found footage horror film, it was bankrolled by Paramount Pictures and supported with a wide release – so wide, in fact, that this US$1 million supernatural thriller grossed … Continue reading REVIEW: The Devil Inside (2012)
August sees the return of the Fantasia International Film Festival, arguably the world’s premier screening event for science fiction, fantasy, horror, and other unusual genre cinema. Celebrating its 25th anniversary, this year’s festival is offering its Canadian audiences unprecedented online … Continue reading Eight films to watch at Fantasia Film Festival 2021
While not a necessary element of horror cinema, social commentary is such a solid match for the genre that the better films usually find room for it somewhere. Ready or Not, a campy exercise in which a bride is hunted for … Continue reading REVIEW: Ready or Not (2019)
Once again, let us discuss ‘torture porn’. This is the car that I shall always be chasing. This is the hill upon which I have chosen to die. The term is, of course, an utter nonsense; referring to horror films … Continue reading REVIEW: The Farm (2018)
Two despondent siblings reunite under the shadow of supernatural goings-on in Bryan Bertino’s tremendously effective and atmospheric horror film The Dark and the Wicked. It is often difficult to find a point of difference that can enable this sort of demonic … Continue reading REVIEW: The Dark and the Wicked (2020)
They say imitation is the most sincere form of flattery, but it is also a handy method of testing cultural footprints. It has been five years since Netflix debuted its nostalgia supernatural series Stranger Things, and there is now a steady … Continue reading REVIEW: They Reach (2020)
FictionMachine 