The Front Room
While a filmmaker who commits to their premise is usually worth commending, The Front Room repels the viewer towards condemning it.
Horror
Oddity
Oddity is a decent horror endeavour where the scares are more memorable than the film itself. This ghost story, about a clairvoyant’s mission to find out the truth behind the death of her sister, is a haunting slow burn that loves to steep itself in atmospheric chills. But also, the production can’t help itself when given the opportunity for shriek-worthy jump scares. Writer/director Damian McCarthy (Caveat) shows plenty of skillful competence for building tension. Even…
The Coffee Table
Named as one of Variety’s top horror movies of the year so far and hailed by shock comic Anthony Jeselnik, Spanish import The Coffee Table is one hell of an unforgettable and disturbing experience.
The Exorcism
The Exorcism is a reminder that filmmakers have a “shot clock” when trying to map out their movies.
Handling the Undead
The iconic “crossing the streams” scenario, originally pitched by Ghostbusters, has served to be an effective comparison when describing debacles. Such is the case for another supernatural film, Handling the Undead. Norwegian filmmaker Thea Hvistendahl essentially”crosses the streams” by running a metaphorical subtext with more literal examples. Hvistendahl aims for nuance, but misses and creates heavy-handed deliveries and drawn out results.
The King Tide
Newfoundlander director Christian Sparkes (Hammer) seems as though he dipped into A24’s back catalogue to draw inspiration for his effective east coast chiller The King Tide. While there may be stylistic similarities to David Eggers’ work (The Witch, The Lighthouse) and Ari Aster’s movies (Hereditary, Midsommar), Sparkes’ ominous dramatic thriller doesn’t necessarily resemble Canada’s usual output. At least, not since Denis Côté’s Ghost Town Anthology.
The Black Mass
By: Trevor Chartrand Readers, please note – if you’re not familiar with the serial killer Ted Bundy, The Black Mass will likely leave you feeling confused and alienated. Then again, if you are familiar with Bundy and his capture, you’ll also feel just as confused and alienated…but probably disgusted as well. By making this film, director Devanny Pinn has wasted the time of her crew, her cast, and anyone unfortunate enough to make the mistake…
Immaculate
By: Jolie Featherstone [CW: Violent punishment, religious trauma, forced birth, miscarriage, newborn murder] IT girl Sydney Sweeney (Anyone But You, Madame Web) puts herself in motion to be the next Scream Queen in the blood-soaked, religious horror film Immaculate.