When the best word to describe a movie is nothingness there’s something wrong with said horror movie. The problem with 23:59 is that nothing of note happens during its runtime. The premise appears to be that of a person coming to grips with the power they have.
Yavarum Nalam (13B: Fear Has a New Address) Written by Vikram K. Kumar Directed by Vikram K. Kumar India, 2009 Even the slightest of Bollywood touches to a film out of India makes said film harder to swallow for most Western based cinephiles. Not in a negative way mind you, but it’s a safe bet …
Half-Caste Story by Sebastian Apodaca Directed by Sebastian Apodaca South Africa, 2004 Being a horror fan is like being in two worlds. One world is wonderful and takes the viewer on a euphoric journey. This is the world where horror movies serve a greater purpose, are thematically layered, and are perhaps the best example of …
Baby Shower Written by Pablo Illanes Directed by Pablo Illanes Chile, 2011 Religious fervor has been exploited by the horror genre for years. There’s not much that can be said in the religious subgenre of horror that hasn’t been said already. That doesn’t mean that the people making horror films should steer clear of that …
The remake debate rages on in the world of film to this very day. Although at this point it’s not much of a debate, the majority of film lovers have had enough of remakes. While that is a respectable position, it’s not an argument that holds up to any intense scrutiny. The landscape of film has always been built upon unoriginal projects.
When a film ends and the audience walks out the doors of a movie theater, shuts off their TVs, or switches the channel, there’s a certain reaction that is expected. That reaction can be excitement, anger, derision, joy, and so forth and so on. The gist is that a movie should engender some sort of reaction from the audience. Shadow is the type of film that fails to elicit any type of reaction from the audience. It’s so poorly made that being derisive towards the film serves no point.
Is it possible t become invested in a character that is so easy to loathe? That is the question put forth by Penumbra, and it is the question that will probably determine whether or not most viewers will enjoy the film. It’s not necessary to like the protagonist of a film, but to become invested in a horror heroine is almost a prerequisite of the genre. They scream, they run, they fear for their lives and the viewer cheers for them.
¡Vampiros en La Habana! Written by Ernesto & Juan Padrón Directed By Juan Padrón Cuba/Spain/West Germany, 1985 Comedy in horror is very hard to pull off. Many horror comedies are produced every year, and very few of them are worth the time spent to watch them. There are some horror comedy gems, but there are …
Porto dos Mortos (Beyond The Grave) Written by Davi de Oliveira Pinheiro Directed by Davi de Oliveira Pinheiro Brazil, 2010 There’s a fundamental problem with a film that eschews internal coherency for existential pondering. Such is the state of affairs with Porto dos Mortos, a 2010 Brazilian horror effort. The film starts off yearning to …
Motion is important in a horror movie. There doesn’t need to be action, or dramatic events, or even scares. But, there’s needs to be motion of some sort. That can mean anything from an encroaching atmosphere to a killer chasing down teens with a machete.
Kill List Written by Amy Jump & Ben Wheatley Directed by Ben Wheatley United Kingdom, 2011 Jay and Gal are not your typical protagonists. They are as offensive as they are loyal, and as boorish as they charming. It would seem to destine Kill List for failure when so much of the film is banked …
Requiem Written by Bernd Lange Directed by Hans-Christian Schmid Germany, 2006 Twisting, turning, and contorting are the stuff of a common exorcism film. Ever since the debut of The Exorcist the focus in just about every exorcism film to hit the market has been on the effects of the possession. Requiem is different in that …
Snowtown (The Snowtown Murders) Written by Shaun Grant Directed by Justin Kurzel Australia, 2011 When does using a trope devalue a film? That’s a question that far too often horror filmmakers aren’t willing to ask of themselves. Snowtown is yet another example of a film dragged down by its dogmatic adherence to a common horror …
The Human Centipede (First Sequence) Written by Tom Six Directed by Tom Six Netherlands, 2009 The Human Centipede (First Sequence) was sold to the public at large, and horror fans in particular, as a film guaranteed to shock even the heartiest of person. Unfortunately, Tom Six forgot that there’s more to shock than a stupid …
Ils (Them) Written by David Moreau & Xavier Palud Directed by David Moreau & Xavier Palud France/Romania, 2006 The unknown has been a common theme in horror since the very first horror movies. It used to be possibly the most common theme in the entire horror genre. Somewhere along the way the various studios, directors, …
Wai dor lei ah yut ho (Dream Home) Screenplay by Ho-Cheung Pang, Kwok Cheung Tsang, & Chi-Man Wan Directed by Ho-Cheung Pang Hong Kong, 2010 Wai dor lei ah yut ho comes out of the gates with its guns blazing. The film impressively sets up its premise and spends its first twenty minutes establishing how …
Pontypool Written by Tony Burgess Directed by Bruce McDonald Canada, 2008 Dissemination of information is something that society has come to take for granted. Media studies are common place down to the junior high school level in America, for instance. The commonly held belief in the day and age of the internet is that if …
Vargtimmen (Hour of the Wolf) Written by Ingmar Bergman Directed by Ingmar Bergman Sweden, 1968 Throughout his storied career, Ingmar Bergman displayed a keen interest in the psychological. However, he didn’t often broach the psychological from a horror perspective. Herr Bergman occasionally brought supernatural elements into his films, but he always stopped just short of …
Cinderella Written by Kwang-soo Son Directed by Man-dae Bong South Korea, 2006 There are certain threads within a horror film that can work against its ultimate aim, to be a horror film. Cinderella spins out tendrils of horror, but it repeatedly stops those threads before they can take on any visage of horrific completeness. Some …
Bug Written by Tracy Letts Directed by William Friedkin USA/Germany, 2006 Most people upon watching William Friedkin’s 2006 effort will undoubtedly want to talk about the insanity or claustrophobia of the film. Those are rabbit holes that are well worth chasing, but they are secondary to the greatest strength of the picture. Bug is a …
Kalevet (Rabies) Written by Aharon Keshales & Navot Papushado Directed by Aharon Keshales & Navot Papushado Israel, 2010 Horror is a genre that. perhaps more than any other, loves its tropes. Sure, one could levy the same barb against the romantic comedy genre or the action genre. But, the horror genre wears its tropes on …