The Flash | DC’s character so fast he’s catching up to the great IP cannibal feast
Lookout folks, the DC cinematic universe continues to expand at an alarming rate. Andrés Muschietti manages to land an ambitious narrative straight from Marvel’s playbook. Is this James Gunn’s new DC? It’s certainly better than what’s come before it! But does that make it good? [sort of spoilers ahead] They got one thing right by…
Review | The Black Phone — dial # for ghost kid hotline
[mild spoilers below] Scott Derrickson’s adaption of Joe Hill’s short story is very competently directed, though the growing pains from expanding the source material are evident. From the outset we’re delivered a less nostalgic portrait of the 70s, akin to media that follows historical crime cases from the 70s, like Mindhunter, but with more of…
Review | Crimes of the Future — can I try your candy bar?
Adding another film to his rich catalogue of body horror, David Cronenberg pokes, prods, and cuts in Crimes of the Future. Sure, those who fell in love with The Fly and The Brood may lament the absence of a body-horror monster, but Crimes is much more focused on scary ideas than scary creatures. Which, to…
Review | His House — beware the night witch
Fleeing violence in South Sudan, Rial (Wunmi Mosaku) and Bol (Sope Dirisu) find themselves in a foreign land, sent to a house that doesn’t seem to want them. Remi Weekes’s His House presents a scary house that has a lot more to offer than most haunted house tales. At the heart of His House is…
Review | Scare Me — white male fragility, boo!
Two writers stuck in a cabin without power. What better way to pass the time than tell each other scary stories? Scare Me is a fun ride that can’t quite get over the fact that no one wants to watch people tell scary stories; we want to watch scary stories. Most of the film feels…
Review | The Babysitter: Killer Queen — the true Faustian bargain is giving this movie your time
In McG’s sequel to The Babysitter (2017), Cole (Judah Lewis) tries to cope with the traumatic events from the last installment, which becomes really really hard when his demons literally come back to haunt him. To just come out and say it: this is a very bad movie, but it’s pretty funny and good to…
Review | Spiral – unfriendly neighborhood cultists
Malik can’t shake the feeling that there’s something fishy about the neighbors after moving to the suburbs with his husband and daughter. Spiral’s a little lumpy around the edges, but what it has to say is worthwhile. The go-to comparison for Spiral has overwhelmingly been Get Out (2017) “but gay,” which feels dismissive. Spiral stands…
Review | I’m Thinking of Ending Things — in a word: disorienting
Lucy takes a visit to meet her boyfriend’s parents, all the while thinking of ending things. Right? It’s a fever dream that’s a little frustrating, but ultimately very moving. For a while, I’m Thinking of Ending Things just feels like the most self-indulgent, morose, trip to nowhere. Nuanced performances and nice compositions help string things…
Review | Random Acts of Violence – All f***ing sugar all the time
A comic book writer unable to conclude his series begins having brushes with a killer who seems to be straight from his comic, blurring the lines between fact and fiction. It’s refreshing to see this kind of “meta” horror film; Jay Baruchel’s Random Acts of Violence explores a concept of horror instead of endlessly referencing…
Review | Host — A Ouija board, but it’s a Zoom call
When a group of friends meet up on Zoom for a seance, things go exactly as you’d expect. The new format brings strengths to horror even if the premise doesn’t go further than a digitized Ouija board. The Zoom format puts a lot of weight on the actors. They all play their parts casually, in…
Review | Crawl (2019) – Thank god gators aren’t real. Wait, what?
As a hurricane approaches Florida, swimmer Haley drives into the storm to check on her father. Alexandre Aja’s film, produced by Sam Raimi, is arguably the best creature feature since Jaws. The pacing of Crawl is excellent. “Pacing” is a bit of a buzzword, but Crawl is one of those films that spends a perfectly…
Review | The Vast of Night – It’ll make you look up
In a cozy New Mexico town, something mysterious has taken to the skies. The Vast of Night is a time capsule of intrigue. Few people would classify this film as “horror,” but it’s not too far from that realm. So here we are. The Vast of Night is set in the 50s, and tries as…
Review | The Beach House – could have been a great short
Emily and Randall take a beach vacation in what turns out to be an already occupied beach house. Like the characters, you’ll wish you’d stayed home (if we’re pretending theaters are open). To start, The Beach House should have been a short film. It has over an hour of footage that is wasted time and…
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Gimmick Horror Reviews 