Horror
Wherever this resurgence of interest in the Bigfoot legend spawned from, it seems to be working in favor of found-footage horror films. Last year, it was Bobcat Goldthwait’s “Willow Creek”, a suspenseful, surprisingly charming slow-burn that followed a young couple into the titular Pacific Northwest wilderness in hopes of capturing the beast on video. While of the same […]
Read More
Much like the Saw franchise before its demise, it seems we can’t go a year without seeing a new Paranormal Activity movie. Shot on the cheap with not much in the way of special effects and sound design, the four previous movies in this series have been Paramount Pictures’ annual reason to go to the […]
Read More
“Big Bad Wolves” is terrifying, funny, uncompromising, beautiful, ugly and altogether disturbing. While this dark, atmospheric gem borders on masterful at times, surprising in ways that I haven’t seen in years and craftily evoking a mix of contradictory emotions, I found myself initially a bit resentful of the filmmakers for luring us in with their […]
Read More
Of all the atrocities committed in “Hidden in the Woods”, the butchering that apparently took place in the editing room is the only thing that really resonates. With no moral compass and no discernible point, other than to foist upon us a tragic story (purported to be based on true events) about two young girls […]
Read More
Having only seen Insidious days ago, the memory of it is fresh in my mind as I write this review of its sequel, Insidious: Chapter 2. The things I liked about Insidious were its constant tension, the scares, and the first two-thirds of the movie, where things happen logically and organically, giving the movie a […]
Read More
“Hatchet III” might be hard for you to appreciate unless (A)you’re playing the over/under on the body count for monetary gain, (B)you’re a film student who wants a crash course on practical movie FX, or (C)you somehow didn’t get enough carnage in the first two films to satisfy your inner gorehound.
Read More
Last year, I reviewed V/H/S, a found-footage anthology horror film with six entries directed by a group of ten different directors. While I appreciated the film, upon later viewings, I found the original movie to be full of meandering stories where bad things happened to bad people. It was more a comeuppance movie than a […]
Read More
(This review was originally published on November 16, 2012 at Reel Film News) A note to new parents: “Citadel” is a frightening film, particularly for our kind (yes, even for horror buffs like me). If you don’t curb your neuroses, you’re likely to have a tough time making it through the first half hour. Ciarán […]
Read More
(This review was originally published on November 14, 2012 at Reel Film News) If my friend became obsessed with a mysterious DVD that showed up in his mailbox, a potentially authentic depiction of a woman being eviscerated, I might be inclined to part ways with him, at the very least. I’m just saying.
Read More
Spooky Movie Festival 2014: “V/H/S: Viral” reviewed
At this rate, the next installment of this popular horror anthology series will need to be called “V/H/S: WTF?”. Adding a third film to the grisly catalog, “V/H/S: Viral” breaks from the rules of the found-footage genre in hopes of giving ardent fanatics something new, and succeeds roughly half the time, the other half perhaps being […]
Read More