★★★★★ Boy Kills World depicts a candy-colored ultraviolent post-apocalyptic vision of the future on steroids, complete with gory mayhem, note-perfect characterizations, and hilariously off-beat humor. It also happens to be one of the best movies at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival. In-demand actor Bill Skarsgård (Stephen King’s It, Barbarian) plays deaf-mute lead Boy with … Continue reading TIFF 2023: Boy Kills World
Interview: Boy Kills World Director Moritz Mohr
Ahead of 2023’s exciting iteration of the Toronto International Film Festival, Allison and I interviewed director Moritz Mohr about his outrageous, balls-to-the-wall action thriller, Boy Kills World. In-demand actor Bill Skarsgård (Stephen King’s It, Barbarian) plays deaf-mute lead Boy with a ferocious and vengeful energy. Brought in at a young age by a mysterious shaman credited as … Continue reading Interview: Boy Kills World Director Moritz Mohr
FrightFest 2023: Good Boy
★★★★ At first glance, one would probably think a movie featuring a rich twink living with a man dressed up as his “pet dog” would not be an obvious selection for a horror movie festival. Norwegian import Good Boy, formerly titled Meg, deg & Frank, has far more going on internally than expected. Written and … Continue reading FrightFest 2023: Good Boy
FrightFest 2023: What You Wish For
★★★★★ Horror-tinged thriller movies with potent social commentary have become all the rage in the past year, thanks in large part to two masterpieces, The Menu and Triangle of Sadness, that exemplify their greatest qualities. Written and directed by Nicholas Tomnay, What You Wish For is the newest to point a finger back at the … Continue reading FrightFest 2023: What You Wish For
Film Review: Retribution
★★★★ Another day, another Liam Neeson actioner racing to cinemas. In the wake of Taken’s outrageous success way back in 2008, Neeson appeared to be stuck doing carbon-copy rehashes of that same formula for quite some time. With Retribution, directed by genre vet Nimród Antal (2010’s Predators, Vacancy), I was afraid Neeson would again be … Continue reading Film Review: Retribution
Popcorn Frights 2023: That’s a Wrap
★★★★ In the style of the classic cheesy slashers of yesteryear, Marcel Walz’s instantly iconic That’s A Wrap brings gory mayhem and campy fun to a film wrap party environ. Old school horror aesthetic, propulsive synthy soundtrack, intimidating, androgynous masked killer donned in a flowy blonde wig, a chopping block of various character archetypes, and … Continue reading Popcorn Frights 2023: That’s a Wrap
Fantasia 2023: It Lives Inside
★★ Every year, dozens of new horror hopefuls flood the market hoping to hook the next genre classic. It Lives Inside, the debut feature from director/co-writer Bishal Dutta, aims to put a new spin on religion-based terror by honing in on Hindi mythology in a major way. Unfortunately, absolutely nothing here can distinguish the film … Continue reading Fantasia 2023: It Lives Inside
Fantasia 2023: Killing Romance
★★★★ What do you get when you take the quirkiness of Wes Anderson and blend it with Korean slapstick humor and a dash of love triangle? The answer comes courtesy of director Lee Won-suk and writer Park Jeong-ye collaboration, Killing Romance! Bursting with originality and fart jokes, this unconventional comedy lets loose a chaotic ostrich … Continue reading Fantasia 2023: Killing Romance
Fantasia 2023: #Manhole
★★★★ Pulling off a movie set almost entirely in one location with the majority of scenes focusing on a single character is no easy feat. Japanese import #Manhole somehow accomplishes the impossible, trapping its lead character at the bottom of a sleazy tunnel teeming with dead animal foam, icky cobwebs, and a decaying ladder. Director … Continue reading Fantasia 2023: #Manhole
Film Review: The Passenger
★★★★ Queer director Carter Smith’s latest, The Passenger, is a colorful, gorgeously-filmed horror/thriller that also happens to be an intimate character study. Scream kings Kyle Gallner (2022’s Scream, Smile) and Johnny Berchtold (Snow Falls, A Hard Problem) headline this disturbing story depicting an intense rampage across a dying small town. Lou scribe Jack Stanley layers … Continue reading Film Review: The Passenger