Black Death (2011)

According to Wikipedia, the Black Death was one of the most devastating pandemics in human history and is estimated to have killed 30% – 60% of Europe’s population, reducing the world’s population from an estimated 450 million to between 350 and 375 million in 1400. This has been seen as having created a series of religious, social and economic upheavals which had profound effects on the course of European history. It took 150 years for Europe’s population to recover.

The death and pestilence spread by this deadly plague was of Biblical proportions, and it seems that the dark mark it left upon history would be the perfect material for a horror film. Lucky for us, Magnolia Pictures’ Black Death has risen to the occasion.

The year is 1348. Europe has fallen under the shadow of the Black Death. As the plague decimates all in its path, fear and superstition are rife. In this apocalyptic environment, the church is losing its grip on the people. There are rumors of a village, hidden in marshland that the plague cannot reach. There is even talk of a necromancer who leads the village and is able to bring the dead back to life.

Ulric (Sean Bean), a fearsome knight, is charged by the church to investigate these rumors. He enlists the guidance of a novice monk, Osmund  (Eddie Redmayne) to lead him and his band of mercenary soldiers to the marshland, but Osmund has other motives for leaving his monastery. Their journey to the village and events that unfold take them into the heart of darkness and to horrors that will put Osmund’s faith in himself and his love for God to the ultimate test.

Black Death is a gripping film dealing with issues of faith, temptation, redemption, salvation…all huge issues back in the Dark Ages and still relevant today. It has a bit of Wicker Man-feel, only because of the dark secret the blissful and untouched village hides. It also has a much more somber feel and isn’t a film to take lightly. I liked how the film subverted the usual Christian vs. Pagan dynamic and made the pagans vicious instead of their usual hippie-dippy selves.

Speaking of viciousness, the film also boasts some wicked medieval battle scenes, complete with swords, maces, axes and even an iron maiden, among other torture devices. Despite the bloodshed being far and in-between, I was surprised how bloody the film actually was, especially in contrast to the subdued tone of the film and stark beauty of the cinematography.

The film looks stunning, from the cobblestoned streets of medieval Europe to the dark woods the characters travel through to the sun-dabbled village they finally arrive at. The mostly cold and bleak visuals echo the overall ominous atmosphere of the film. The grand scope of the cinematography makes me wish I had seen Black Death in a theater, but even on the smaller screen its grandiose scope wasn’t lost.

I liked the storyline because it had an epic feel and because of the themes it explored. As mentioned previously, I liked how the Christian vs. Pagan dynamic was flipped, with the pagans persecuting the Christians instead of the other way around. I also liked how the film showed unwavering faith in the characters as they were faced with temptations and challenges. The film ends on a brutal, downbeat note that was definitely disturbing and shows how evil can corrupt even the most faithful.

The actors gave performances equally intense to the storyline and visuals. Sean Bean is especially good as the God-fearing Ulric, but I also liked Eddie Redmayne’s performance as the conflicted Osmund. In my opinion, though, Carice van Houten stole the show as the village’s necromancer Langiva.

Director Christopher Smith has crafted another unique film with Black Death and is definitively one of the most versatile directors of the horror genre. He gave us the spooky Creep, the darkly humorous Severance, the intense Triangle and now the bleak Black Death. His films are always engaging, entertaining and original, and Black Death is no exception.

Buy it on Amazon!

And Soon the Darkness (2010)

Two American girls are on a bicycle tour through remote Argentina, but decide to set out on their own for the last few days of their vacation. Stephanie (Amber Heard) is trying to get over a recent break-up while Ellie (Odette Yustman) is the more free-spirited, wild one. After the two have an argument, Stephanie leaves Ellie sunbathing alone by an isolated river. When Stephanie returns to reconcile with her friend, she finds Ellie missing. While searching for her friend and getting no help from the local police, Stephanie turns to a fellow American named Michael (Karl Urban) for help. However, it seems that even Michael has his own secrets that make Stephanie distrust him. With no one to trust, will Stephanie be able to find Ellie before this movie turns into another Turistas or Hostel? Hmmmm…I’m betting not…

I was ready and willing to give And Soon the Darkness a chance…I figured it might do something new and put a twist on the whole tourists-in-peril sub-genre. I was even willing to put up with the poor man’s versions of Megan Fox (Yustman) and Scarlett Johansson (Heard). The film started off okay…especially since it was actually filmed in Argentina and the vistas were pretty spectacular. However, the film didn’t offer anything unique in regards to its storyline, which really is a pity considering the beautiful location they had to work with. Instead it limps along the well-tread “torture porn” road with a bit of black market sex slavery thrown in for good measure. If I had wanted to see that I would have just re-watched the excellent Shuttle (watch it NOW if you haven’t seen it yet) instead of sitting through this bland “horror” film.

In fact “bland” is an apt word to describe And Soon the Darkness, as it applies to nearly everything in the film. Bland acting, bland writing, a bland storyline, bland torture…The only thing that wasn’t bland was the direction by Marcos Efron and the cinematography by Gabriel Beristain. Of course, the natural beauty of Argentina may have made capturing its loveliness easy! I would even go so far as to say that if the film was re-cut it could be used as a way to promote tourism for the country (providing they cut out all the kidnapping, unfriendly locals, crooked police and torture…which should be easy since the film doesn’t really boast many of these scenes).

If you’re looking for horror, though, you’ll be sadly disappointed with And Soon the Darkness. While it has some great touristy shots that look like they belong in National Geographic, the film’s storyline fails to evoke any real scares since its premise is something we’ve all seen before (and in better films). It tries for a slow burn but falters in that it never actually goes anywhere. By the time Stephanie figured out what was going on I was beyond caring anyway and I just had to throw my hands up in the air when the story went the clichéd way of so many other films. I was at the very least hoping for a bit of a twist at the end that would differentiate this film from its ilk, but no such luck.

What I do find interesting is that this film is actually a remake of a 1970’s film of the same name, something I did not find out until after viewing the 2010 version. Despite the remake’s failure, I’m just a little bit curious as to how the original compares and may seek it out. If it turns out to be a fantastic film, I may have to actually thank And Soon the Darkness for actually doing something for me besides showing me pretty pictures of Argentina. For now though, the only thing that And Soon the Darkness did was bore me to death…and make me want to visit rural Argentina, even though the film should have had the opposite effect in both instances.

Available on Amazon!

The Bunny Game (2010)

The terror you witness on-screen of The Bunny Game is real. Let me clarify…it’s not just realistic…it actually happened. It’s like watching a snuff film, only no one really died during filming (as far as we know). The actors weren’t merely acting, but they were subjected to most everything you see on film. Ballsy actress Rodleen Getsic gives a graphic blowjob, pees in public, is shaved bald and is actually branded in the film, not to mention the preparation that went into her role as an emaciated, drug-addled prostitute. Getsic fasted for over a month to prepare for her role! As you probably have guessed by now, The Bunny Game isn’t your ordinary horror movie. In fact, it feels more like a brutal snuff film coupled with avant-garde performance art.

The film is about a hard-knock prostitute named Bunny (Getsic) who trolls the streets of LA turning tricks and snorting coke whenever she gets the chance. This prostitute certainly doesn’t have a heart of gold, but nonetheless you feel pretty bad for her as you watch her engage in graphic sexual acts, get high, get raped and get robbed. Things go from bad to worse when she is picked up by a trucker (Jeff F. Renfro) who takes her out to the desert and brutalizes her for days on end.

While the plot might make it seem like just another torture flick, let me assure you that The Bunny Game is anything but. Is there torture? Well, yes, but it’s more the nasty psychological kind that sticks with you for days, rather than straight-up blood and guts. And the intense psychological wringer that the film puts both the victim (Getsic) and viewer through makes the film seem that much more realistic, which, believe me, will further raise the audience’s anxiety! And after all the things the cast (namely Getsic) went through, it is no wonder the film feels so authentic!

Director Adam Rehmeier, who co-wrote the film with actress Getsic, says the film wasn’t written with a strict script (there is very little dialogue) and most of the performances came organically from the actors. They were just sorta let loose on one another and given license to go as dark as they could…and, boy, did they ever go dark! Not only were the performances spontaneous, but so was the camerawork. Most scenes were filmed in only one take (usually unheard of in a film), which only adds to the immediacy and realism of the film.

The film also has a very voyeuristic feel, which adds to the snuff-like, performance art quality of it. The shaky camera angles, the constant zooming in and out and so on really make you feel like you are right there with the characters. And no matter how hard you try and get away (or look away), you just can’t.

Despite its shocking brutality, there isn’t that much blood and gore, if that’s what you’re hoping for. Most of its terror comes from psychological torture. Bunny is just as mentally broken down by the trucker as she is physically abused. He locks her up for days and submits her to all kinds of torment – stripping her down, humiliating her body, flashing a spotlight in her eyes, chaining her up, taking her for walks on a leash, shaving her head, etc. And that doesn’t even begin to detail the physical and sexual abuse he perpetuates against her. It is this kind of damaging psychological horror that is most effective, at least in my opinion. Anyone can do gross-out blood and guts, but it takes real talent to get into the audience’s brains and truly disturb them.

Congratulations are in order for director/co-writer Rehmeier and co-writer Getsic, because they have crafted a hauntingly unsettling film! It may be intensely difficult to sit through, but at least it looks stunning and isn’t just a point-and-shoot affair. There are even some beautifully dynamic shots in the film that momentarily relieve you of the brutality on-screen. It is filmed completely in black and white, which gives it a monochromatic and artistic look.

However, even the way the film is shot echoes the manic madness of the film, for juxtaposed against the gorgeously framed shots are choppy, disorienting edits, frantic shaky cam shots, voyeuristic zooms and more to make the viewer experience even further discomfort. Even the music, which features chaotic metal in the first few scenes but devolves into a creepy score as the film progresses, adds heightened emotion to scenes that are already difficult to watch…And just when you think you can’t possibly take anymore the next scene comes up to further test your limits.

I can only use “disturbing”, “unsettling” and their derivatives so much to describe The Bunny Game, but hopefully by now you get the point. This film definitely isn’t for most people, but if you like challenging films that push limits, you should give The Bunny Game a view. It’s probably the closest you’ll ever get to a snuff film!

The Bunny Game on Facebook!

Eyes Beyond (2010)

Two brothers share the same house. One day they invite their next door neighbors over for a house warming dinner. What the neighbors don’t realize is that everything is not as it seems with the brothers and they soon find themselves in a game of ultimate humiliation and degradation. They’re at the mercy of their captors and the only thing that can release them from the nightmare is death – or is it?

When I first started watching this short 26-minute film, I figured it would be another boring torture flick. The two brothers do some pretty nasty things to their guests, but no matter how shocking the torture was, I just couldn’t seem to get into the film. Luckily, things get interesting pretty quick and any assumptions I had about the plot got turned topsy-turvy.

The film is best seen going in blind and I don’t want to give too much away, but I must mention that the filmmakers aim in making the film was to bring awareness to mental illness. In fact, the film is very personal to writer/director/producer/actor Daniel Reininghaus, as he himself deals with bi-polar disorder. He wanted to create this film to not only bring awareness to mental illness, but to also reach out to others with mental illness that could relate with the character(s).

Speaking of the characters, all of the actors did a superb job portraying them. Daniel Reininghaus was especially brilliant as Gabrielle, one of the two brothers who tortures the neighbors. I loved his character arch and the many surprises that are unveiled. All of the other actors did a fantastic job as well, not an easy thing to boast in an independent film, especially considering each character’s multi-faceted development.

As I mentioned before, there is a fair amount of gruesome torture at the beginning of the film. Ears and fingers are cut off, people are beaten and raped and other violence is meted out to the unfortunate neighbors. For a low-budget picture, the quality was impressive! Even for a seasoned horror fan like me there were instances where I was cringing.

Also impressive for an independent short was the overall high quality of the picture. The film looked professional without looking too slick. I also appreciated that there was an important message embedded in the film and that it aspired to do more than to just show bloody torture. Writer/director/producer Daniel Reininghaus and his cast and crew should be commended for tackling such a personal project and succeeding brilliantly.

Eyes Beyond is a very dark psychological film that is as disturbing as it is enlightening. Not only will horror fans be pleased by this hallucinogenic journey, but those that suffer mental illness will also appreciate its message of awareness. From the harrowing performances to the gruesome torture to the surprising twists and overall message, Eyes Beyond is a short film that shouldn’t be missed.

Visit the Official Site!

M (2010)

M is a low-budget indie movie from Derek Cole and Shane Cole and Masked Films. I didn’t know much about the film before watching it as there wasn’t that much online info on it. However, going into a film blind sometimes works out for the best and actually adds to the enjoyment of the film. Without knowing much I couldn’t really have any expectations of the film and so I went into M as a pretty blank canvas.

The first scene involving torture didn’t really interest me, but as soon as it moved away from that and introduced the other two characters I started to get intrigued. Roy (Stephen Twardokus) is taking time off work to celebrate his and his wife Jessica’s (Sabrina Carmichael) anniversary. However, their romantic celebration is interrupted by a masked man who invades their home, ties them up and slowly tortures them over the next couple excruciating hours and into days.

Meanwhile, the police are trying to track down a killer who has left several victims in his wake while trying to piece together why he has chosen particular victims. As Roy and Jessica’s torment continues, the police get closer and closer to discovering the link between victims…but will they solve the case fast enough to find the couple alive?

M is a very solid indie feature. The first thing that grabbed me was the competently done camera work. The filmmakers use interesting angles and different techniques to keep the viewer engaged in the story. The movie also looked very professional for an indie production. The lighting, direction and cinematography were all very well-done and made me want to keep watching.

For a film that mostly takes place in the small room where the victims were held, M does a fine job at building tension. Sure, there were a few instances where the pace dragged (the beginning got off to a rocky start and a dream sequence seemed out of place), but for the most part it was suspenseful. I also liked the overarching mystery of what linked all the victims together. The explanation why the masked killer was torturing and murdering people was pretty satisfying as well.

Speaking of the killer, I loved the design of his mask! It also helped that he was stoic and never talked. He reminded me of a mix of Jason from Friday the 13^th and Michael from Halloween…which isn’t necessarily a bad thing but I think more could have been done to make him stand out besides his face mask.
The killer did dole out some pretty cringe-worthy torture, though! For a low-budget film I thought the effects were really well-done! Now, there was nothing too complicated here, mostly just lots of blood and a few body parts, but it definitely looked realistic. Various gory scenes included: a man getting a screw drilled through his leg, a woman’s leg getting chopped with a machete with some chunky gore being pulled out of the wound, someone got a spike through a thigh, and so on.

M certainly isn’t a terribly original film, but it is entertaining and does make a nice calling card for the Cole brothers and Masked Films. And it definitely makes me interested to see what they do next!

Visit Masked Films’ Official Site!

Berdella (2009)

This low-budget film is based on the relatively unknown 1980’s Kansas City serial killer Bob Berdella who raped, tortured and killed at least six men before he was apprehended. Not much attention has been given to Berdella, perhaps because he looks like David Cross playing Tobias Funke in Arrested Development (just LOOK at that mustache in the poster!) or maybe homosexual killers from the ‘80s just aren’t in style anymore. Whatever the case, I wish filmmakers Bill Taft and Paul South had left Bob Berdella in the closet, because their film on him is one big bore.

The film follows the odd Berdella, who acts more of like a socially maladjusted Dungeons and Dragons geek rather than a serial killer. We see him hocking his wares at his flea market stall “Bob’s Bazaar Bizarre”, hanging out in gay clubs, scoring drugs for the local junkies, stringing up victims in his basement, beating them and then beating off, extolling the virtues of sandwiches and on and on…

Yup, this film drags on and on, showing more of Berdella’s “normal life” rather than showing his disturbing perversions of raping and killing. In fact, most of the torture and death occurs off-screen and on the whole the film isn’t all that gory. Where gore is shown (we see the aftermath of a dude’s eyes that have been gouged out) it is so amateur that it doesn’t have a strong effect on the viewer. The film’s promise of “shocking and bizarre” certainly doesn’t apply to the actual film.

And then there’s the acting…goodness, how the actors are either over-the-top ridiculous or otherwise stiffer than a board! Perhaps it’s the stupid dialogue they are forced to speak or just their delivery of it, but the acting here, while certainly not the worst, is still pretty bad.

With so many other better serial killer movies out there, I find it hard to recommend anything about Berdella. The only neat-o thing they have going for them is some cool looking promo materials (stickers that read “Bobey,” a parody of the “Obey” street art campaign), but the actual film is a big, boring let-down. I thought that at least it would be a good examination of the psychology of a gay serial killer, but they didn’t really delve all that much into the psychology of Berdella, instead giving us a rather static view of his everyday life. Zzzzzzzzz…

Sorry kids, but this serial killer is a real snooze.

Available from Amazon!

Babysitter Wanted (2008)

I’ve been waiting (and waiting) to check out Babysitter Wanted for quite some time. Its official release happened in 2008, but it hadn’t hit DVD until this past July. By that point this flick had kinda fallen off my radar and it wasn’t until a friend asked what I thought of it that I remembered this film and eagerly checked it out.

From the cover art you’d assume this is a typical slasher, but remember what your mom told you about judging a book from its cover? I made the same mistake, but was pleasantly surprised by the turn of events in Babysitter Wanted.

Starting off much like the awesome House of the Devil (review), Babysitter Wanted finds the sweet Angie (Sarah Thompson) arriving to her new community college campus to study art history. Her brand new roomie doesn’t have a bed for her, so our dear Angie is in need of some cash…and fast. While poking around the sparse campus, Angie befriends a cute boy, notices some “missing person” posters, and appears to find the perfect babysitting gig. That Friday night she sets out for the isolated farm of the Stanton’s (Bruce Thomas and Kristen Dalton), where she’ll be babysitting their young son Sam (Kai Caster). All seems well until Sam wakes up and eats some unusual food for a little kid…and then the weird phone calls commence and strange noises outside convince Angie that someone is trying to get in. Police Chief Dinneli (Bill Moseley) isn’t much help, but promises to come around to check on Angie. Meanwhile, Angie discovers something unsettling about Sam, the intruder outside and the Stanton’s…will she survive the night?

Ok, I will try not to give anything away in this review because this film is best seen cold, without knowing much about it. I believe the surprise factor of its twists and turns really heightened my enjoyment of it! Be warned, though, spoilers may be present, so proceed with caution!

The film may start off like a slasher, complete with Angie feeling like someone is stalking her. Then when she is babysitting the weird phone calls start…heavy breathing on the other end, but no speaking. Of course, I thought the film was heading into familiar territory, especially when someone started rattling the door and eventually forced themselves into the house and Angie was forced to hide. However, it then took a completely sinister turn that really knocked me off my rocker! The rest of the film was peppered with the occult, torture and black humor. And I don’t wanna say any more because it would give too much away…

For an independent film, Babysitter Wanted looks great…it’s spookily lit, competently shot and features great direction from co-directors Jonas Barnes (who also wrote the film) and Michael Manasseri.

Also excellent is the acting. Sarah Thompson really shines as the innocent Angie who later gets tough as she battles the bad guy(s). Despite her “pure” nature, she’s not annoying and you come to care for her through her sweet and vulnerable nature. As things progress, she forces herself to toughen up and her transformation from innocent to kick-ass comes naturally! I also enjoyed Kai Caster’s performance as the creepy Sam, as well as Kristen Dalton and Bruce Thomas as the parents. Even genre-fave Bill Moseley turned out a good performance, this time as a good guy!

My complaints with the film are few, but I felt the pacing towards the beginning was a bit slow. Also several plot holes bothered me…the roommate angle was dropped pretty quick, so why show it at all? It’s like she was just used for convenience in explaining the disappearances around campus and disappeared herself after that. Also, what ever happened to Angie’s boy toy? He pretty much disappeared until the end and it was never really explained why (unless I missed something?).

Despite these annoyances, I thoroughly enjoyed Babysitter Wanted. It certainly threw me for a loop and uses many different tropes from the horror genre to create surprise and suspense. Despite the many different aspects it uses, it still manages to remain grounded and is a hell of an entertaining good time!

Available on Amazon!

Meadowoods (2010)

You all know that faux documentaries are nothing new in the horror genre. “Found footage” flicks have been popular from Cannibal Holocaust to Paranormal Activity and are now more common than ever thanks to the heightened scare factor, immediacy and realism of faux docs. Plus, they can be relatively cheap to make for filmmakers on a budget! However, they are so “dime-a-dozen” nowadays that sometimes they are more a chore to sit through than a pleasure.

So, I didn’t really have high hopes for Meadowoods, where three college students decide to film themselves planning and executing a murder.

The three disenfranchised college kids are Stephanie (Michelle Roe), a bitter young woman who has lost all faith in humanity, Travis (Connor Thorp), the seemingly happy-go-lucky leader of the group but who hides a sinister, sociopathic nature and the brooding cameraman Ryan (Michael Downey). The three are fed up with being neglected by their parents and living in a small podunk town, so to go down in history they decide to kidnap and kill a random person, filming everything. However, once their plan starts to become a reality, Ryan starts having second thoughts, especially after he gets close to their intended victim.

I wasn’t expecting too much out of Meadowoods and figured it would just be another throw-away serial killer flick with lots of violence and brutality. Lucky me, I actually got a rather chilling story about the ambivalence and indifference of seemingly ordinary people. The scare factor in Meadowlands isn’t in the final scenes where the kids’ quarry is trapped and tortured, but rather in the scenes where each of the kids are interviewed, stating their reasons for wanting to kill someone, their views on death and the afterlife and so on. Their coldness and flippancy towards killing another is absolutely chilling and portraying this is where this film succeeds!

Of course, none of this would have worked without competent and convincing actors and surprisingly for an indie film the acting here is top-notch across the board. Connor Thorp, Michelle Roe and Michael Downey all do a stunning job playing the trio of friends. They were all entirely convincing as bored college kids looking for a sick thrill. Very spooky performances! And Ila Schactler gave another believable performance as their intended victim. She was likable and perfect as the girl next door!

I also want to give kudos to writers Stuart Ball, Scott Phillips (who also directed) and Anna Siri for creating such realistic characters and such a chilling story. I appreciated that the characters weren’t your stereotypical stupid teens and that the script offered more than just violence.

My only problem with Meadowlands was the ending, which dragged a bit too much in my opinion. It was almost like they used most of it as padding since it got so repetitive. The taunting and torturing of the victim was fine, but did we really need to see her sit there and scream for what seemed like 20 minutes straight? I think the ending killed the unsettling feel of the rest of the film, which is unfortunate since I enjoyed the first part of the film so much.

However, I would still recommend you check out Meadowlands. It isn’t your typical “found footage” horror film and really takes the time to frighten us psychologically through its portrait of today’s bored youth.

Available from Amazon!

The Virgin of Nuremberg (1963)

The Virgin of Nuremberg was a medieval torture device that most of us know as the Iron Maiden. It was an upright sarcophagus with metal spikes on the inside. The victim was tied inside and when the doors were shut their body would be penetrating with the strategically placed spikes. These spikes were designed to not penetrate any vital organs, therefore extending the agony of the victim and ensuring they died a slow death.

In The Virgin of Nuremberg (aka Horror Castle), a 1963 film directed by Antonio Margheriti, this torture device plays an integral part of the plot. Max (Georges Rivière) and Mary (Rosanna Podesta) Hunter are staying at a castle in Germany Max has inherited. One night, Mary is awoken with screams…and sees a mysterious figure in a red cloak kill a maid. It seems that the original owner of the castle has returned…and is back killing innocent victims with the castle’s old torture instruments! Who is this madman, what are his ties to the Hunters and how can he be stopped?

The Virgin of Nuremberg is a decent gothic horror tale. While not as good at Margheriti’s later effort Castle of Blood, it is still an elegant and atmospheric film. Plus, Christopher Lee stars in a small role as the castle’s disfigured man-servant!

The story of the castle’s owner and his sordid history were interesting. You were never quite sure whether he was back from the dead or if it was just someone posing as him, which kept me in suspense until the final “unveiling” of the killer (whew, and what an unveiling it is!). The castle’s inhabitants and servants also did a nice job of creating enough red herrings to keep me guessing. The character of Rosanna wasn’t that developed, but Podesta did a good job of playing the stereotypical “damsel in distress” in her white flowy nightgowns that faints away at any sign of trouble.

The setting of the big, dark castle was appropriately creepy and I especially liked the shadowy torture room filled with steel cages, surgical implements and various torture devices. The eye-popping color red is used throughout the film (as accent colors in rooms as well as the killer’s red robe and, of course, the blood!) and really pops against the rest of the dark castle. The gothic visuals really add to the film’s ambiance and made me enjoy it even more.

Quite a bit of blood is spilled in the film, surprising for its time. It is certainly not a gorefest, but there are some nice deaths throughout the film. Memorable scenes include a woman with her eyes gouged out impaled within the ubiquitous iron maiden, a cage with a hungry rat inside place over a living woman’s head and, as previously mentioned, the unveiling of the killer.

The Virgin of Nuremberg is a stunning Italian gothic horror film and while it isn’t appreciated as much as other films in the genre, I believe it definitely deserves a look!

Available from Amazon!

7 Days (2010)

7 Days (aka Les 7 Jours du talion) just had its world premiere at 2010’s Sundance Festival and this torture thriller opened to a lot of buzz. I wasn’t expecting much with this film, perhaps just a more artsy version of Saw, but 7 Days explores much more emotional depths with its gritty and melancholy look at vengeance.

Surgeon Bruno Hamel (Claude Legault) and wife Sylvie (Fanny Mallette) have a strong, loving relationship and a cute young daughter named Jasmine (Rose-Marie Coallier). One afternoon, Jasmine goes out to distribute invitations to her upcoming birthday party but never returns home. The frantic parents and police search the nearby neighborhood and soon find the brutalized body of Jasmine, who has been raped and killed. The police soon track down the alleged rapist and killer, Anthony Lemaire (Martin Dubreuil), who has a long rap sheet of sexual offences. Bruno is not satisfied with what the police have in store for Lemaire and after a carefully orchestrated plan kidnaps Lemaire as he is transported by police and takes him to a remote cabin. Bruno tortures Lemaire for the seven days that lead up to the date that would have been his daughter’s ninth birthday. As he slowly wrenches the life out of Lemaire, the police, led by Detective Hervé Mercure (Rémy Girard) who has experienced his own family tragedy, try to stop Bruno from becoming the monster he is trying to kill.

7 Days is certainly an affecting piece of cinema, one that will certainly leave viewers stunned and shaken up. It is not, as I first assumed, Saw for the art crowd. First off, it has a stark and cold gray color palette that sets the somber and grim mood of the film and makes it heartbreakingly beautiful. The direction by Daniel Grou is unsettling and unwavering in its look. For example, there is a truly disturbing shot of the lifeless Jasmine that lingers over every spot of blood and every speck of dirt on her brutalized and broken body. It is one of the most horrifying images of a murdered child I’ve ever seen in a film and it makes the viewer terribly angry and hopelessly sad all at once. Grou also lets the camera linger on the tortured body of Lemaire as well as a dead carcass of a deer, and while some shots are drawn out too long (and frustratingly indulgent), for the most part the demented direction of Grou fits the melancholy mood of the story perfectly.

The story, adapted for the screen by Patrick Senécal and based on his book, is certainly nothing new (a parent who will sacrifice everything to see that the murderer and/or rapist of their family member is appropriately punished), but it is the emotional turmoil of the story that kept me watching. The more and more Bruno tortures Lemaire the more and more he himself is turning into the monster he is so desperately trying to punish. Some of the torture is so harsh (sledgehammer to the knee, whipped with chains, a surgery where Lemaire can feel it all even though he is paralyzed, etc.) that I sometimes found myself starting to sympathize with Lemaire, even though he was a pedophile, rapist and murderer. This conflict is also echoed in Bruno, who begins to struggle with the idea of killing Lemaire. Writer Senécal really makes us think about what is right and what is wrong or if there is just gray area that is better left to one’s own interpretation. And, gosh darn it, I like a film that challenges me to think!

The actor who plays Bruno, Claude Legault, does an awe-inspiring job of portraying the conflict mentioned above. The inner turmoil he faces is brought to light by Legault’s subtle but strong performance. I must also commend Fanny Mallette for playing the heartbroken mother, Sylvie. She did a wonderful job of playing the mourning parent who was still strong when her husband abducted the killer and she had to face the police by herself.

As for the film being billed a “torture thriller”, don’t confuse that with the term I so loathe, “torture porn”. 7 Days is not about being exploitative at all, but rather examining the complex emotions and actions of a victim-turned-potential-killer. It is heavy on the emotional drama, which definitely won’t please some horror fans. As mentioned before, gorehounds looking for a cheap thrill will probably be disappointed. 7 Days aims much higher than your standard exploitative horror film and while I like a challenging horror film, some people simply don’t and will be put off by the film’s art house themes. However, if you are looking for a thought-provoking and cringe-inducing film 7 Days may be right up your alley!

And guess what? You can catch 7 Days on video-on-demand as part of the Sundance Selects VOD rollout! Check your local cable provider for availability.

Flicker (2009)

“When all hope is lost, there’s always a flicker.”

This is the basic premise behind the independent horror film, Flicker, for when there is the tiniest bit of hope there is a possibility of a way out from any horrific ordeal.

Of course, the film’s other tagline is “Keep your friends close and your enemy’s shovel”, which shows some of the dark humor that is injected into an otherwise depraved and hallucinagenic journey of survival against the odds.

Flicker is about a weekend camping trip to a small mountain town that goes horribly awry. Pretty (Katy Houska) and her boyfriend Jack (Babak Tafti) wake up in the middle of the night to discover that their friends are missing and have only left behind a bloodied tent. Their horrific journey leads them to discover maniacal cops, homicidal locals and an unforgiving landscape – all which stack the odds against their survival. Somehow, though, Pretty must find a way to cope with the terrifying elements surrounding her and figure out a way to escape the twisted situation.

Flicker is an extremely interesting indie film that stands apart from typical “survival horror” films because of several artistic and creative aspects its story is infused with. First off is the Grand Guignol way the film and Pretty’s mind are introduced. The opening scene features a demon-like announcer, called Pixie (played magnificently by Courtney Bell) on a stage. Her malevolent presence seems to inhabit Pretty’s mind and dreams and her exaggerated painted mouth, makeup and movements make her appear very threatening. Later in the film, Pretty dreams that Pixie is cutting her in half with a massive whirling saw on stage. These scenes give the film a much more whimsical, yet no less menacing, feel. These Lynchian touches really make Flicker stand head and shoulders above most indie horror flicks.

Also on the positive side are all the amazing performances given in Flicker. Kudos to director and writer Aaron Hendren for getting the actors to give it their all! Katy Houska is perfect as Pretty, who starts off as a normal girl but after her harrowing ordeal starts to fray at the edges until she triumphantly is reborn as an ass-kicking machine (and kudos for the actress for shaving her head for part of the role!)! Houska gives a very strong, commanding performance. As mentioned above, I adored Courtney Bell’s performance as the malicious Pixie. Also on the villain side, Kevin R. Elder gave a very eerie performance as the sadistic and sociopathic cop Buck. All of the members of the weirdo family that kidnapped and tortured people by putting them in an itty bitty wood box were phenomenal as well! In fact, there wasn’t one bad performance in the entire film, something a low budget film should be commended on! Plus, you can tell that the cast involved had a lot of fun making the film. There is an adorable lip synch reel that runs through the end credits with most of the cast bloodied up and singing along to the closing song – it’s hilarious and just makes you love the film even more!

For a low-budget film, Flicker looks pretty damn great. Hendren has a great directorial style that really pulls you into the story and his writing makes you care about the characters. The overall look of the film is very crisp, clean and professional and looks close to theatrical quality. There are some truly gorgeous shots of the forest, lake and surrounding countryside. I also loved the grain and color used and even the special FX look realistic and seamless.

My only complaint with the film is that it had a few pacing problems. I think it needed more padding and more going on in the middle, because things got repetitive with watching Pretty stumble through the woods. I also thought that the Pixie character should have been utilized a bit more towards the middle and end, because her character kind of just drops away with no explanation. I also thought the inclusion of another victim, Misty, was unnecessary and most of the action should have focused on Pretty, her boyfriend and their two friends instead of introducing other victims.

However, besides these few flaws I wholeheartedly enjoyed Flicker and loved its odd, hallucinogenic feel. I especially appreciated that filmmaker Aaron Hendren did something different with the whole “survival horror” subgenre and didn’t give us just another Texas Chainsaw Massacre retread. Flicker comes highly recommended!

For more info on Flicker, visit Egg Murders Productions Official Site!

Basement Jack (2009)

Last year we reviewed Evilution, the first film in a planned trilogy from writer Brian Patrick O’Toole. The three films are set to revolve around the strange Manager (played by Nathan Bexton) of a creepy apartment complex called the Necropolitan. Basement Jack only has a few nods towards Evilution (it featured the same apartment complex and sinister Manager) and it is a very different film from Evilution. Instead of zombies, we get a seriously bad ass slasher movie.

Eleven years ago, Karen Cook (Michelle Morrow) survived a massacre perpetrated by then seventeen-year-old Jack Riley (Eric Peter-Kaiser), nicknamed by the media “Basement Jack” for his penchant to hide in family’s basements before slaughtering them. The killing spree began when Jack killed his domineering, insane suburban mother (Lynn Lowry) after she tortured him one too many times with electrical shocks and then he moved on to killing whole families headed by blonde matriarchs that were mommy look-alikes.

Yes, boy definitely has mommy issues.

After Karen stopped him, Jack was tried for his crimes, but his lawyers got him off on temporary insanity. A year ago he was released and has started killing again, though no one seems to realize it except for Karen. Karen tracks Basement Jack to the small town of Downer’s Grove, where she hooks up with bumbling rookie Chris Watts (Sam Skoryna) to try and stop the vicious killer.

Basement Jack is a fun throwback to ‘80s slashers but is unique enough to stand on its own. It didn’t need to fall back on familiar and stereotypical slasher tropes (well, except for a few – the killer always comes back to life!) and was unique enough to keep my attention throughout its entire running time.

First off, the film looks great! It was easy to forget I was watching an indie film because it certainly doesn’t look low budget! Everything looked professional, from the lighting to the direction (by Michael Shelton) to the cinematography (by Mathew Rudenberg). Even the score (by Alan Howarth) was excellent and accompanied the action perfectly.

Secondly, Basement Jack has a great story, written by Brian Patrick O’Toole. Some people might complain that too much time was spent focusing on Jack’s childhood and back story, but I thoroughly enjoyed being exposed to his horrifying upbringing. The character of his mother is definitely one for the horror history books! The story also kept things interesting with the inclusion of the cops’ perspective (among them was Tiffany Shepis in fine form!). I will say that things became a bit repetitive with Karen going to the cops, them not believing her and thinking of her as a suspect for the murders – over and over again. Other than that, though, I enjoyed the story and the characters very much.

Plus, with a few exceptions, the acting was pretty solid. There were a few stiff performances here and there, but all the main characters did an amazing job. My favorite performance was from Lynn Lowry who played Jack’s electrifying mother. “Momma loves you with a cuddle and a kiss!” has never sounded so…wrong and disturbing. Eric Peter-Kaiser played a very menacing killer, though he likes to twirl his machete a bit too much and is dressed like a Ramones reject. Regardless of those facts, I found his portrayal of Basement Jack utterly convincing and intimidating. Also, Michelle Morrow put in a lot of talent and energy into the character of Karen and made her very relatable to the audience. And Tiffany Shepis puts on a good show (and keeps her clothes on) in a small role as a cocky cop. It’s always a pleasure to see Shepis, who always brings a certain spark to her roles!

The film boasts some pretty respectable gore effects, too, though a few are on the distractible CGI side. However, Basement Jack slices and dices his way through many a victim, and most of the time it’s gory goodness. And not only does he just make mincemeat of people, he also arranges them in grisly tableaus satirizing the perfect, all-American family that he wishes he had had growing up. This vicious visions are the most disturbing next to Jack’s flashbacks of his cuckoo-for-cocoa-puffs mother, that is!

Overall, I found Basement Jack to be a highly entertaining throwback to the ‘80s slashers we all hold dear. It has a few flaws here and there, but nothing to really dampen my enjoyment of it. Basement Jack is one of the better modern indie slashers I’ve seen and it’s nice to know that the familiar slasher formula can be updated and tweaking in such a way where it can still be enjoyable.

Order it on Amazon!

Sick Girl (2009)

Sick Girl is an independent production that I eagerly looked forward to seeing. I mean, how can you go wrong with a twisted and disturbing story who’s synopsis describes the crazy lead character as someone who “wants to f**k her older brother, protect her younger brother and torture everyone else out in her barn”?!

I was looking forward to a brutal characterization of a take-no-prisoners female character, but when I finally got around to seeing this flick I was pretty let down. It features plenty of disturbing and shocking imagery, but that’s pretty much all the film offered and therefore was devoid of any depth or real reason for even being made.

In Sick Girl, Izzy (Leslie Andrews) is left to care for her little brother Kevin (Charlie Trepany) after her older brother leaves to fight in the war overseas. Their parents passed away many years prior and the only adult in Izzy and Kevin’s life is big biker Barney (John McGarr), who looks after Kevin while Izzy is off terrorizing people. And terrorize she does – she blows away a random bunch of Catholic schoolgirls on a bus, teaches her brother’s bullies a lesson and even castrates a random dude. She’s got her own little torture barn out behind her house, where she brings victims she wants to get a little more intimate with. Yup, Izzy is a sadistic killer, but neither Kevin nor Barney has any idea about her crazy, murderous streak.

The film felt like it was made solely for shock’s worth, but hardcore horror fans won’t really be fazed by most of the violence in Sick Girl and more mainstream audiences won’t pick it up in the first place. It just feels like an unbalanced, pointless exercise in “shock cinema” that ultimately fails in the end.

The acting ranged from mediocre to pretty competent. I thought Charlie Trepany (as little brother Kevin) and John McGarr (as gentle giant Barney) did a consistently good job with their characters, but I can’t decide if I liked or loathed Leslie Andrews’ acting as Izzy. At times it felt like she was more wooden than an actor in a school play, but other times her far-away stare and sudden violence felt very real. Or was it the character that was really that disjointed? Either way, I am torn on Andrews’ performance.

I will say that I enjoyed the gritty, natural look of the film. The rural atmosphere, with its rolling fields and red barns, was a nice break from the urban atmosphere of most “disturbed killer” movies. The stark, empty setting complemented the emptiness and loneliness of Izzy’s character. Director Eben McGarr (who also wrote the film) perfectly captured the washed-out, naturally lit look of ‘70s exploitation flicks.

So, the film looks pretty, but what is it trying to say? That life’s not fair? That some of us just can’t handle the stresses of life and snap? The message definitely isn’t clear, and in fact the lead character of Izzy isn’t even sympathetic. Izzy is so f’ed up that you don’t feel sorry for her, and in fact, begin feeling sorry for her intended victims, even though they themselves are far from innocent. In fact, in her barn Izzy has tied up a horny teen, a bitchy schoolgirl and a sadistic bully. Her punishments for these predators turned prey include castration, rape with a handmade strap-on and allowing a starved rat to eat someone’s face off (while they are still alive). You end up feeling sorrier for these victims than for Izzy. And is she just trying to protect her family or does her violence extend to anyone and everyone? These guidelines are never really set up, so by the time the disturbing conclusion rolls around, you really don’t feel anything at all. There is no emotional impact, and I for one was glad the movie was finally over and that I never had to watch it again.

I love a good, shocking movie, especially when so many play it safe. What makes shocking cinema so good, though, are the underlying themes and ideas that really make you think long after you’ve seen the films and been bombarded with their disturbing imagery. Unfortunately, Sick Girl fails to accomplish this and just shows disturbing imagery for the shock value and nothing more. Which, to me, made it a displeasure to watch and very forgettable upon its conclusion. Sorry, Sick Girl, but I just wish someone had put you out of your misery before I watched you.

Order it on Amazon!

The Last House on the Left (2009)

Another week, another horror movie remake. This time around, it’s Wes Craven’s cringe-worthy classic, The Last House on the Left (which is loosely based on Ingmar Bergman’s The Virgin Spring), being remade by director Dennis Iliadis and written by Adam Alleca and Carl Ellsworth. Wes Craven’s original is a gritty and shocking film whose disturbing subject matter should at least be experienced once (that’s as much as I could handle). The remake, while competently made, lacks the down-and-dirty look and intense feel of the original. It is among one of the better reboots out there, but if you look at recent remade films out there like Friday the 13^th, it’s not saying much.

Following the story of the original pretty closely, the remake tells the story of upper class family the Collingwood’s – doctor daddy John (Tony Goldwyn), overprotective mother Emma (Monica Potter) and 17-year-old Mari (Sara Paxton) – who are heading to their isolated summer house for a relaxing vacation. The first day there, Mari begs mom and dad to take the car into town to visit her friend Paige (Martha MacIsaac). They acquiesce, and Mari roars into town, looking to have some fun with Paige.

They meet twitchy Justin (Spencer Treat Clark), who invites them back to his motel room to get high. Once there, the impromptu party is interrupted by Justin’s dad and recently escaped convict, Krug (Garret Dillahunt), Uncle Francis (Aaron Paul) and Sadie (Riki Lindhome). Turns out they are all on the run after killing some cops and don’t want to leave the girls behind as witnesses. They drag Mari and Paige out to the woods, torture them, rape one of them, and leave them both for dead.

The quartet of killers seeks respite from a harsh storm in the nearby house of the Collingwood’s, not realizing that they are the parents of Mari. When the parents realize what they have done to their daughter, they seek swift revenge on the murderers.

This is a pretty cut and dry remake with just a few changes made to the script (well, and one big and glaringly evident change that you can see in the trailer). Nothing is really done to make it its own film or to make it a better film, period. I will credit the writers with not dumbing down most of the film (well, except for the dialogue) like other remakes, but they really should have risked a bit more with the script and written something different to make this remake stand out. Unfortunately, while it’s a well-made and watchable film, it is easily forgotten whereas the original will be seared in my mind forever.

As for the brutal rape scene, yes, it is graphic and seems to go on forever, but the rest of the girls’ tortures seemed easy and breezy in comparison. Where in the original film their entire ordeal was horrific and humiliating, in the remake it is the rape scene that is the most brutal. Why is this a problem? Well, with the rape scene being the most disturbing, all of the other scenes that are supposed to be filled with tension pale in comparison. The rest of the film is just easy to sit through, which made it rather dull. Even the blood-splattered revenge sequence, while ultimately satisfying (except for the SILLIEST use of a microwave this side of Microwave Massacre!), felt like it lacked viciousness.

Also lacking viciousness was the acting from Garret Dillahunt, who played Krug. He was about as scary as a box of kittens and didn’t have a glimmer of intimidation in his glare. As the leader, he was supposed to be the most frightening of the killers, but I was no way threatened by him and felt he did a poor job portraying a sadistic psychopath, especially when compared with David Hess’ unnerving original performance. Aaron Paul and Riki Lindhome did a much better job playing Krug’s thugs, Francis and Sadie, both giving creepy and menacing performances. I also thought Sara Paxton did a fantastic job playing Mari, with fantastic performances also coming from Monica Potter and Tony Goldwyn as her parents.

The original The Last House on the Left was a fantastic social commentary on the paranoia of the changing times (Craven was inspired to write the film in response to the atrocities going on during the Vietnam War), loss of innocence, not trusting strangers, and a “what if” scenario to see what people would do when pushed to their physical, emotional and psychological limits. The remake sticks to these original concepts, but doesn’t realize that times have changed and these themes have been done to death and that perhaps new, more current ones should be explored. Therefore, it brings nothing new to the table and is ultimately a forgettable movie. However, I will say that it is much better than the teeny-bopper, bubblegum horror remakes like Friday the 13^th, Prom Night, etc. that the studios insist on putting out. If you have your mind set on seeing a remake, I would tepidly recommend this House…but not without reservations.

Order it on Amazon!

Book Review: Hellbound Hearts edited by Paul Kane and Marie O'Regan

Hellbound Hearts, edited by Paul Kane and Marie O’Regan, is an eerie anthology based on the Hellraiser films and the original novella The Hellbound Heart by Clive Barker. Inside the pages of Hellbound Hearts you’ll find short stories from such famous names as Neil Gaiman, Steve Niles, Sarah Langan, Mick Garris, Kelly Armstrong, Christopher Golden and many, many more.

The book begins with an introduction from the man himself, Clive Barker, who without none of this would be possible. He goes on to speak of the legacy his novella and ensuing Hellraiser films have left in their wake, but is wary to take credit for creating a “mythos”. And yet, here we are, with countless well-known writers eager to feed from this mythos and produce their own tales of pain and pleasure. As Pinhead might say, the Hellraiser mythos will be legendary, even in HELL (where it’s probably already quite popular!)!

All of the short stories contained within the anthology are truly splattacular, but I do have a few favorites that stuck out as noticeably as Pinhead’s nails sticking out of his cranium. My absolute favorite of the bunch was Sister Cilice by Barbie Wilde. Wilde is best known for her portrayal of the female Cenobite in Hellbound: Hellraiser II, but she is also an accomplished dancer, performer and writer. Her short story absolutely stunned me with its simplicity yet complex character. It tells of Sister Nikoletta, who though appears devout, has violent sexual fantasies and is slipping further and further away from the faith. She one day discovers an old tome called the Grimorium Enochia that tells how to call the Cenobites and enter their world of exquisite pain. The story sounds simple enough, but the character of Sister Nikoletta is so conflicted and perverse that I was just drawn into the story and it stuck with me long after I had finished the anthology.

Another of my favorites was Only the Blind Survive by Yvonne Navarro. This tale really stuck out because it is steeped in Native American lore. It tells of a Native American warrior that stumbles across an odd sand painting in the desert and runs back to his village to tell the elders as it is one of the signs that a gate to evil will soon be opened. Spirit warriors must face off against the evil that slithers from the gate, and the tribe’s people can only be saved if they cannot see the creature, which is known to feed on fear after someone sees it. This take on the demonic was probably the most unique of all the stories considering its far removed setting and Native American setting.

I also wholeheartedly enjoyed Kelly Armstrong’s The Collector, about a puzzle solver who gets herself involved with an online puzzle contest whose final test is solving a very peculiar puzzle box. The delicious twist at the end definitely made this one of my favorites! Other standouts included The Confessor’s Tale by Sarah Pinborough, Every Wrong Turn by Tim Lebbon, A Little Piece of Hell by Steve Niles and The Dark Materials Project by Sarah Langan.

It is truly amazing how Clive Barker’s work could go on to inspire so many different terrifying tales. Each and every one is worth reading and it was painful to try and pick out just a few to talk about when all of the stories are so stellar. Each of the authors captures the aesthetic and themes of the Hellraiser mythos, all the while tweaking it just enough to make it their own. What truly makes this anthology so exciting is how many different directions authors can go with Barker’s legacy. From Native American lore to the future of science behind “Shadow DNA”, there is really no limit to how writers can reinterpret and retell the Hellraiser mythos. And, yes, I disagree with Mr. Barker because he truly HAS created a mythos with distinct stories, rules and characters that are instantly recognizable and that I think will stand the test of time.

Horror fans that relish shocking literature as well as Cliver Barker and Hellraiser fans are sure to enjoy Hellbound Hearts. Don’t torture yourself, get your copy today!

Buy it on Amazon!

Book of Blood (2009)

You’ve either read Clive Barker’s collection of short stories Book of Blood or you haven’t. The film Clive Barker’s Book of Blood, written and directed by John Harrison, is faithfully based on two of Barker’s tales from the book, Book of Blood and On Jerusalem Street, the wrap-around stories of the collection. The good news is that you don’t have necessarily have read the stories to enjoy the grim and ultimately grisly atmosphere of Book of Blood…but you may need some patience to watch the slowly unfolding, yet unique, film. That patience will definitely pay off in the end, though.

The film opens with a bang as a girl is gruesomely murdered by unseen spirits in a large, forebodingly dark house. We then meet paranormal expert Mary Florescu (Sophie Ward) as she is teaching a class on the paranormal, where she meets college student and medium Simon McNeal (Jonas Armstrong). Mary is investigating the very house where the girl was brutally murdered and, since she feels a special connection to her student, invites Simon to assist her.

Mary and her assistant, Reg (Paul Blair), set up cameras and other equipment to record any strange occurrences in the house, and sure enough Simon begins to have violent contact with the spirits. As the sexual tension between Mary and Simon grows and as Simon experiences more and more paranormal activity, they discover that the house is a crossroads for the dead and that the dead want their stories told…

Book of Blood was a tense, enjoyable story, but one that may require some patience to watch. The pacing is pretty slow and scenes can feel repetitive at times. The pacing didn’t bother me too much, because I was too caught up in its unique story and dark atmosphere. I liked that Book of Blood isn’t your typical horror film and tries something different. It’s not every day that the spirits carve their stories into the flesh of a human!

Being a Clive Barker adaptation, I was surprised that this film doesn’t have much gore but plays more like a haunted house/ghost movie. The introduction scene is sufficiently shocking (a very surprising and gruesome “face peel”) and the subsequent scenes featuring spirits writing on their living “Book of Blood” were squirm-inducing. Yet the meat of the film doesn’t offer much blood-letting, instead choosing to focus on the characters and their actions.

I’m not complaining here, though, and really enjoyed seeing the characters develop and reveal their hidden natures. Mary’s obsession with Simon definitely feels a bit taboo in the Electra/Oedipus sense, and there are plenty of steamy sex scenes that titillate and torment both characters and audience. I also liked the unexpected surprises in some of the characters…not is all what it seems!

The movie is ominously wrapped in dark shadows. From the menacing house they are investigating, filled with dark corners, to the gray, overcast skies shown the few instances where the characters are outside, the film’s bleak palette visually conveys its spooky subject matter. The black shadows made me uneasy and really made me wonder about what was lurking within them.

The film’s visual highlight comes toward the end when the veils between our world and the dead’s world are lifted and what we’ve expected to see emerge from the shadows finally come forth. We see the wispy ghosts, eyes as black as the darkest pits in Hell, trudging up from their grim Purgatory to scrawl their stories in blood on Simon. The spirits’ design is both beautiful and frightening, so many props to the film’s visual effects department! I really loved the look of both the ghosts and of their hellish home.

Book of Blood is a highly enjoyable Clive Barker adaptation, but for some horror fans its proceedings might be a bit slow. Nonetheless, if you enjoy a chilling, slow-building ghost story, Book of Blood may be just for you. It doesn’t compromise its values to become a PG-13 horror flick filled with screaming teeny-bopper actors, but sticks to Clive Barker’s original story and high standards to deliver a unique vision of pain. For that alone it definitely deserves the attention of serious horror fans.

Order it on Amazon!

Mum and Dad (2009)

Family can be a touchy subject for some people. While some people absolutely adore their family and wouldn’t trade it for the world, others are embarrassed or had such an unpleasant upbringing that they want nothing to do with their relations. Regardless of whether you love or loathe your family, chances are that there are usually more than a few skeletons hidden in the family closet.

In the British film Mum and Dad, the family has its own share of skeletons (and corpses and body parts) in their home. You see, Mum (Dido Miles) and Dad (Perry Benson) are two deranged psychopaths that like to kidnap young adults from the nearby airport and torture them. Polish immigrant Lena (Olga Fedori) escaped her oppressive family and has fled to England to start a new life for herself. She works as a janitor at the airport, where she meets Birdy (Ainsley Howard), a chatty girl who invites her out with her introverted brother, Elbie (Toby Alexander), for drinks after their shift. Lena declines, but when she misses her bus she is forced to follow Birdy and Elbie to their home. Yet Lena has no idea of the horrors that await her at the hands of her new Mum and Dad…

Mum and Dad is an extremely disturbing and engaging horror film! It is probably one of the better recent horror flicks to come out of England and it just had me gaping at the screen in shock for its entire running time! The film is supposedly loosely based on the real-life horror story of serial murderers Fred and Rose West, who raped, tortured and murdered their victims, including their own children. While the atrocious crimes committed by the West’s are appalling and no film could ever truly show the horror experienced by their victims, Mum and Dad does a very good job of creating an unpleasant atmosphere and showing us how depraved the two killers are.

Mum and Dad certainly captures the perversion and savagery of the two title characters. One of the early scenes shows “Dad” pleasuring himself with a bloody body part while another shows the family gathered for a normal-looking breakfast while a hardcore adult film plays in the background. It also doesn’t shy away from showing the two killers’ sexual perversions as well. The level of depravity isn’t there just for exploitation, but to show just how completely psychopathic and dysfunctional the family is. The film by no means cheapens the experience by solely focusing on the gore (which there isn’t a lot of, though it has its fair share of torture), instead it is more of an intense psychological study of a seriously fucked up family who exist far beyond any normal moral standards.

I really enjoyed how writer/director Steven Sheil made the characters of Mum and Dad try to have a “normal” façade – especially in one of the first scenes after Lena’s abduction where the family as a whole is introduced. While the family acted like monsters the night before, at breakfast everyone is amiable and acts like a normal, happy family. Mum cooks up breakfast, Dad reads his morning paper, Birdy chit-chats and Elbie cleans up bloody body parts. Meanwhile, Lena sits very confused as a porno plays on the kitchen television. You definitely don’t see such unsettling scenes like this in your average horror movie! Also, the fact that Dad worked a normal job and had friends really upped the creep factor in the film. I mean, this family of psychos could be your next door neighbors and you wouldn’t know it! Besides Mum and Dad, the characters of mean-spirited Birdy and remorseful Elbie are equally effective. While the tortures that Mum and Dad inflict on Lena would be enough, the manipulative nature of Birdy and the forlorn attitude of Elbie contribute to her suffering. Even though Birdy and Elbie went through the same ordeal as Lena, they offer her no help and no support.

While the characters were very well-developed by Sheil, the wrong actors could have spoiled the careful tension between everyone. Luckily, Sheil cast a dynamic cast to make sure the characters were played to their full potential. First off, Olga Fedori was fantastic as Lena! She really makes you sympathize with her character and gives a very strong performance. I also liked that her character tried to outsmart her captors and waited to see when she had an opportunity to escape. Next we have Ainsley Howard as Birdy. She made her character extremely likable in the first few scenes, but when we find out who she really is and how mean-spirited she can be our opinions are soon changed! Howard handles this switch extremely well and makes it believable to boot! Toby Alexander doesn’t speak any lines in the film, but his tortured puppy-dog eyes speak volumes as to what he is going through. Finally, we have Dido Miles as Mum and Perry Benson as Dad. These two play their characters so well that even though they were committing heinous acts I couldn’t wait to see them back on screen. Benson brings a repulsive quality to his blue-collar dad and nearly oozes with unpleasantness. Miles is both doting and dangerous as Mum, who “plays” with her “children” by cutting deep gashes all over their bodies.

As for the direction by Sheil, I couldn’t have asked for better. The house where the horrors take place is equal parts dingy (in the torture rooms and where Lena sleeps) and cozy (in the kitchen and living room areas, which look normal). I also liked how the focus wasn’t on the torture and the gore, but went deeper and really showed the twisted relationships between the members of the family. The film was shot in just 17 days, but nothing feels rushed or out of place. The deliberate pacing works perfectly and there is a palatable tension throughout the entire film. The film is set right next to an airport, lending even more credence to the fact that the family had an endless supply of transients (and their luggage) to pick from.

It seems that the issues of the perverted family and/or killer kids has been a staple for horror films for years (The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, Frightmare, Children of the Corn the more recent Eden Lake), but Mum and Dad really hits a raw nerve with its grim tone and its “real” aspect. This is one film that will surely leave you feeling disturbed and a little dirty after watching it! It is certainly one of the best British horror films I’ve seen and will definitely make you appreciate your own family more!

Available from Amazon!

Book Review: Worst Nightmares by Shane Briant

What is your deepest, darkest fear? Your worst nightmare that wakes you with your own screaming in the middle of the pitch black night? How far would you go to expunge this fear? Would you visit a website and talk to a person calling themselves the Dream Healer about your worst fears if they promised to help you get rid of that fear? Well, you may want to be careful who you tell your secret nightmares to, because you just may end up like the victim’s in Shane Briant’s stunning debut novel, Worst Nightmares!

In the book a serial killer known only as the Dream Healer stalks his victims from his website, worstnightmares.net. People come to the site to talk to him about their deep-set fears in hope that he can help them, but after their fears are revealed the Dream Healer brings them to agonizing life as he kills each victim according to their own worst nightmare.

Meanwhile, award-winning author Dermot Nolan has hit a rut. Though he seemingly has it all – beautiful, loving wife, critical acclaim, fame and fortune – he has been suffering writer’s block. With his publishers breathing down his neck for his next big novel, Nolan quickly spirals into depression and desperation. So when he finds a crudely scrawled diary about the exploits of a serial killer named the Dream Healer in his mailbox, he considers publishing it under his own name. As he conducts some research into the locations of the murders in the book, it becomes apparent that the events detailed in the diary actually took place!

Still, Nolan is driven to desperation and decides to publish the diary…as a fictional piece under his own name. Someone else knows the intimate details of the diary, though, and soon Nolan is engaged in a dangerous cat and mouse game with the Dream Healer, who is very, very interested in making Nolan’s own worst nightmare come true.

Worst Nightmares is so horrifyingly engaging that it reads like a dream you can’t wake up from! From the first few sentences you get so caught up in the world of the Dream Healer and Nolan that you won’t want to put it down. Page after page it consistently delivers thrills, chills and tension – just when you think you’ve figured things out, author Shane Briant throws a surprising twist into the proceedings that makes you reevaluate all your previous assumptions!

I also enjoyed the ingenious ideas of killing people based on their deepest fears and how the impersonal internet was used by the faceless killer to find victims. It really gives you pause to question the great number of personal facts we tell complete strangers on the internet. Also, the death scenes are pretty shocking, especially when Nolan revisits the sites and finds evidence to support they actually happened. A girl gets her teeth viciously yanked out without any anesthesia, an agoraphobic (someone afraid of wide open spaces) is left in the vast expanse of the desert to die, someone is attacked by snakes, another by creepy crawlies like spiders and scorpions, a man’s wife is killed in front of him before he himself is butchered…the list goes on and on and each of the murders are pretty chilling, especially considering the detached, emotionless voice the killer uses when he talks about them.

Along with the shocking murders, author Briant creates a great amount of tension between the characters of the Dream Healer and Nolan. Theirs is an intriguing and surprising cat-and-mouse game and you’re never really sure where its heading. The novel has plenty of twists and turns, and as you get deeper in a clearer picture emerges of the intentions of the Dream Healer. The build-up leads to a nail-biting conclusion and a cliff-hanger ending that will have you pleading for more! The last 50 pages or so were ecstatic agony as I rushed to find out what would happen to all the characters! And when I reached the last sentence, I was convinced that a sequel must be written to satisfy my curiosity! Luckily, Mr. Briant is hard at work on the sequel and I know I cannot wait to read it.

Worst Nightmares is a roller-coaster ride that you’ll be bragging about surviving if you dare pick up a copy. Care to share your worst fear now?

Available from Amazon!

Martyrs (2008)

If you’re a horror fan, you’ve no doubt heard the buzz behind Martyrs, a French film from writer/director Pascal Laugier. Though you may have heard plenty about it, no manner of preparation could ready you for the raw, unpleasant ferocity of this film! If you are looking for a fun horror flick, Martyrs definitely isn’t it. It is a grim, relentlessly violent film that will have you flinching at your own shadow by the time it is through with you.

The film opens with young Lucie, battered, bruised and bloody, escaping her tormentors in a warehouse-type building. She is placed by authorities in a church-run foster home where she meets Anna. The two quickly become inseparable and Lucie confides to Anna that something is still afflicting her.

Fifteen years later, Lucie thinks she’s tracked down her tormentors, a seemingly loving husband and wife who have kids Lucie’s own age. Lucie brutally kills them all, but just can’t seem to appease a disfigured creature that continues to attack and physically harm her. Anna comes to Lucie’s rescue, not sure if Lucie is hallucinating or if what she says is true. But Anna is about to find out the excruciating pain that Lucie went through at the hands of her tormentors and the limits of torture that a body and mind can handle…and the reasons behind it all.

Martyrs is one of those films whose opening scenes will make you feel like you’ve been hit over the head with a baseball bat…and repeatedly pummeled with a sledge hammer. Its brutality is just relentless, and once you think that it can’t get any worse…it shocks you with the next scene. There are countless scenes of violence in Martyrs, most of them cringe-inducing, but the most effective scenes are when Lucie is attacked by the disfigured creature. The first few times we see nothing but shadows and quick movements, but each following scene involving the creature shows a little more and a little more…until we see it in its frightening entirety.

The disturbing images don’t stop at the creature, though (who is really only in the first half of the film). People get blown away by guns, stabbed, scratched, punched, beaten, a throat is slit, wrists are slit, people’s heads are bashed open, thick staples are removed from someone’s head to get rid of a metal blindfold, a person is flayed alive…I could keep going, but you get the idea; Martyrs features some extreme gore!

What I like about the film is that it offers a compelling storyline along with many visceral moments. The intriguing storyline just pulls you in and you want to find out why Lucie was tortured and just why a seemingly normal family would have a secret basement and just who is behind it all and why. It’s not just another exploitative film bombarding us with gore for no reason except to titillate; Martyrs has a very powerful ending that will actually make you think!

I really don’t want to say too much, because Martyrs is a film best experienced by going into it knowing as little as possible. It is a challenging film, both in regards to the violence as well as its message, but overall it is very rewarding to watch. I will say that I did have a problem with how the storyline flips from Lucie’s perspective to Anna’s perspective in the middle. It kind of makes it feel like two separate movies and the switch is a little bit jarring, especially considering that the second half is so much slower and methodical than the first. I even found myself a bit bored, but the beginning and ending of the film more than make up for the lull (you could even call it a chance to catch your breath) in the middle.

Martyrs is a grim, nihilistic film that is a witness to the many great horror films currently coming out of France (though it can’t really be compared to any of them). This is not a fun film and won’t be for everyone, but if you enjoy dark, traumatizing horror stories Martyrs will be right up your alley.

Available from Amazon!

Skeleton Crew (2009)

At first glance the Finnish horror film Skeleton Crew, being released through Lightening Media in July 2009, looks to be like just another “torture porn” flick. Upon watching it, though, you might be pleasantly surprised to discover that it has an entertaining story and some campy wit to elevate it above the typical brainless hack-and-slash films.

In the 1970′s in a backwoods mental institution, a doctor began filming himself and his staff torturing patients. They lit them on fire, cut off appendages, stabbed them, hit them with mallets, sawed them…pretty much anything you can think of. The doctor really got into making his snuff films and even started going by the name of “The Auteur”. He was eventually captured by the police, but to this day his complete collection of snuff films was never found.

Now, a film crew has returned to the same mental institution to shoot a horror film about the doctor’s exploits. One day, they discover The Auteur’s macabre screening room and his complete films. The director of the film becomes obsessed with The Auteur’s films and demands more and more realism from his actors. When they don’t give him the realism he wants, he decides that the only way to make a good film is to incite REAL reactions from his cast and crew…by torturing and killing them on-screen!

This really was a surprising film! It had me engaged from the opening scenes, which were actually a film-within-a-film, through to the campy but no less brutal “director’s cut” of the film! There are so many funny, witty lines (“I hate overacting”) that I was wholly entertained throughout the entire film. The characters were also well-developed and anyone who has had any experience in film can relate to the bitching and moaning the cast and crew do behind the scenes! There’s the stereotypical “experienced” actor who insists on giving an over-the-top performance despite the director’s insistence to tone it down, the actress who sleeps with the director for a shot at a bigger role, the constant battle between the boom operator and the lighting guy, etc. This film is just right on and funny about so many situations that occur when filming a movie!

The story was written by Tero Molin (who also co-directed) and Teemu Molin and not only do they deliver a witty, self-aware script, but they also manage to keep the pace moving swiftly along. There were no lulls or boring bits in the film, which is really a credit to the writers. Both the dialogue and the action kept the film going at a steady speed. They also had some pretty inventive ways to dispatch the victims, so kudos to them for making the death scenes feel inventive and fresh!

The film is low-budget, but the direction by Tommi Lepola and Tero Molin is fantastic and you soon forget you are watching an indie film. They used the dank, dark mental institution to their every advantage and created a very foreboding, labyrinth-like setting. The dark, crumbling walls are menacing from the first scene and the fortress-like building is imposing. They made the mental institution a character itself!

The actors, for the most part, do a wonderful job. I really loved how most of them played their “actors” in the film they were shooting and how differently they acted when they were out of character. I really thought David Yoken was fantastic as Bruce, the “experienced” actor of the group who still insisted on giving an over-the-top, Vincent Price-style performance! Steve Porter was also wonderful as the director. When he turned into The Auteur he delivered some great lines that, had it not been for his stellar performance, could have been overly corny. His deliver ensured they were just campy enough to wink at the audience!

As for the gore, well, the film definitely delivers. There are some definitely shocking moments in the film and some great death scenes. My personal favorite involved hot stage/film lights being used to burn someone to death! There were many other excellent death scenes that won’t soon be forgotten, like amputation, death-by-drill, bludgeoning with a baseball bat studded with nails, and on and on!

Skeleton Crew is a fun, entertaining and gory film that definitely caught me by surprise! This Finnish film is definitely worth a look when it is released in July!

Available from Amazon!