The Shape of Water (2017)

To say that this film arrives with a weight of expectation on its shoulders is putting it mildly. For starters, The Shape of Water is the latest film from Guillermo del Toro, widely regarded one of the greatest, most singular cinematic visionaries of our time, not to mention one of my own personal favourite filmmakers […]

Mary and the Witch’s Flower (2017)

A lot of brilliant animators and creators have emerged from the Studio Ghibli workshop, but very few have attempted to capture the magic of Ghibli or make it their own as much as producer Yoshiaki Nishimura. Founder of Studio Ponoc, a contemporary to Studio Ghibli, Nishimura took several members from the Ghibli arthouse and launched […]

The Curse of the Witch’s Doll (2017)

I try to make it a point never to openly roast films just for the fun of it; whatever I say about a project, I try to ask myself whether I’d be happy to say it in front of the filmmaker themselves, and I try really hard to remember that real people out there might […]

Inoperable (2017)

The last time I saw Danielle Harris run around a hospital looking anxious for 90-odd minutes, it was in 2014’s See No Evil 2, an utterly bland and formulaic slasher sequel. However, while new release Inoperable offers up the same leading lady and a similar hospital setting, story-wise it’s a somewhat different kettle of fish. […]

Strawberry Flavored Plastic (2018)

The ‘mockumentary’ format has been used to interesting effect over the years; note that I said ‘mockumentary’ rather than ‘found footage’, a sub-genre which usually conjures more questions than it can ever answer. There are some important distinctions between the two. Strawberry Flavored Plastic dodges the most typical question asked during found footage, which is […]

Tokyo Ghoul (2017)

Tokyo Ghoul is a film based on a very popular anime and manga, and though I have since started on the anime, when I saw the film I knew very little about the series other than the brief synopsis. Bear that in mind then, when I say I enjoyed the film a great deal – […]

Harold Buttleman: Daredevil Stuntman (2003)

John Hawkes is a pretty fascinating figure in film. For many years, he was most likely to be known for his brief appearance as the liquor store guy in the first scene of From Dusk Till Dawn; or, if you’re a real Robert Rodriguez completist, for his scene-stealing supporting turn in Roadracers. However, more recent […]

Radius (2017)

Going into a film with no foreknowledge beyond the fact that it’s from the producers of Turbo Kid, one might be forgiven for not expecting anything too serious-minded. However, this film is an altogether different breed of Canadian sci-fi horror. Written and directed by Caroline Labrèche and Steeve Léonard, Radius is a compelling and inventive […]

Defective (2017)

This must be a boom time for dystopian sci-fi and horror; I cannot imagine why. Over the past few months I’ve received either information about upcoming projects or screener links for a range of dystopian cinema, whether films about worlds poisoned by tech, gripped by environmental havoc, or somewhere between the two. God knows, I […]

Canaries (2017)

I have a confession to make. When I first heard about Canaries, from its UK premiere selection at London’s FrightFest, I was worried. Whenever a Welsh genre film comes along I always get a twinge of panic, of an intense desire for the film to be brilliant, good patriot that I am, and the unnerving […]