If you look up Personal Shopper on Rotten Tomatoes, you’ll see some interest-piquing words thrown around. Words like, riveting, haunting, otherworldly, scary, terror, ghost story, transfixing, and on and on. It currently has a critics rating of 79% on the site. Which is “fresh” despite 79% being a less-than-impressive grade on a math test. It … More Personal Shopper (2017) – REVIEW
I caught Julia Ducournau’s Raw at the Chicago International Film Festival (I say “siff”, but apparently that’s not the preferred nomenclature) in October. I’d heard some great things about the film from reliable folks who saw previous (non-Chicago) festival screenings. The trailer was good too. So, I was pretty excited to see it. I know … More Raw (2016) – REVIEW
Every October, I try to watch at least 31 horror films (as we all should). This is not a tradition that I made up. (just in case you thought i was claiming so) Some people challenge themselves to watch a film a day. I just try to average one a day. Some people challenge themselves … More Possession (1981) – REVIEW
As you may recall, I wrote very positively about the two Mickey Keating films that I’ve seen to date – Pod and Ritual. The former was a tense exploration of psychosis, fear, and family bonds, and the latter showed Keating’s potential as a genre film heavy-hitter. His latest film, Darling, garnered a lot of positive … More Darling (2015) – REVIEW
Nicolas Winding Refn (NWR, as per his brand) is a bit of an enigma when it comes to creative output. His first feature, Pusher, is a fairly straight-forward – albeit very well made – crime drama. It was a commercial success in Denmark and spawned two sequels (the second of which stars Mads Mikkelsen). His … More REVIEW – The Neon Demon (2016)
They Look Like People showed here in Chicago as part of the 2015 CIFF programming. I entertained thoughts of catching it but it was showing far away at a theater situated in an area that has no reasonably priced parking (can I write that off on my taxes?) and I didn’t have anyone to go … More They Look Like People (2015) – REVIEW
Ben Wheatley has directed some solid films – Kill List, Sightseers, and the very weird A Field in England. (those are the ones i’ve seen in raddest to decentest order) So, when I heard that he had a new film called High-Rise coming out, I was excited to check it out. When the trailer came out, … More High-Rise (2016) – REVIEW
I am ALWAYS skeptical of Netflix’s estimates of how much I will like a film. There have been 2-star estimates that I’ve given 4 stars. There have been 4-star estimates that I’ve hated. But when they think I’ll like a title 5/5 stars (or at least over 4.5) it’s typically something that I will … More REVIEW – When Animals Dream (2014)
Today’s entry is the criminally underappreciated (hence, the category) Red White & Blue [sic]. This is another one that I found on a some list of little known genre films that deserve some attention. And another one that I would hesitate to call straight-up horror. (but who cares, right?) It’s certainly a bleak (SO BLEAK), … More UNDERAPPRECIATED – Red White & Blue (2010)
Sticking with a body horror theme for this week, I got to thinking about some of the great (read: most disturbing) body horror films that may have slipped under the average (American) horror fan’s radar. Possibly because they didn’t get a wide release, didn’t get much buzz, featured subtitles (i know, i know, reading is … More In My Skin (2002) – REVIEW
No Real Danger 