Film adaptations of videogames always seem to endure a rough ride to the screen, whether Super Mario Bros, World of Warcraft, Street Fighter, Prince of Persia, or Mortal Kombat. It seems there are plenty of producers and directors who recognise the potential in drawing … Continue reading REVIEW: Resident Evil (2002)
Anyone who thinks the auteur theory is a myth likely have not reckoned with films like Come True, for which Anthony Scott Burns works as director, screenwriter, composer, cinematographer, and editor. It is a tremendous and singular effort in filmmaking, with … Continue reading REVIEW: Come True (2020)
Produced by 20th Century Fox, then bought out by Disney and lost in the COVID-19 pandemic is The Empty Man, a visually striking blend of missing-person thriller and folk horror. At one point this film was set for an Australian theatrical … Continue reading REVIEW: The Empty Man (2020)
The short version: Benson and Moorhead’s Spring (2014) is an excellent independent film, and absolutely worth watching if you are either a fan of their other works (The Endless and Synchronic are their two most recent films) or a fan of independent genre … Continue reading REVIEW: Spring (2014)
On the run from an abusive boyfriend, American Greta Evans (Lauren Cohan) takes up a job as a nanny in a remote English manor. Upon arrival she discovers her charge is not a child but a porcelain doll named Brahms. … Continue reading REVIEW: The Boy (2015)
Beauty, as they say, is in the eye of the beholder. So, I argue, is the value that one ascribes to extreme cinema. Whether filled with frank or graphic sexual imagery, or packed with gory violence and bloodshed, or even … Continue reading REVIEW: Bliss (2019)
Blumhouse Productions continues to have a remarkable effect on American screen horror, making an ongoing array of well-produced features ranging from the rock-solid to the exceptional. While obviously some films have been better than others, the general quality has been … Continue reading REVIEW: Sweetheart (2019)
The late Wes Craven looms large as one of Hollywood’s most influential horror filmmakers, largely due to the one-two punch of A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) and Scream (1996). During the period between his two most famous film, he also directed The People Under … Continue reading REVIEW: The People Under the Stairs (1991)
Leigh Whannell’s ever-expanding contribution to horror cinema reaches a particular highlight with The Invisible Man, which shows that with good actors and a great screenplay you can successfully update a Universal Pictures horror franchise without Tom Cruise, Russell Crowe, and a … Continue reading REVIEW: The Invisible Man (2020)
Gretel & Hansel is a weirdly mispromoted film. It was released in American theatres at the beginning of 2020 before finally making its way to global audiences – including Australia – in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic. It seems such … Continue reading REVIEW: Gretel & Hansel (2020)
