The way we’ve watched horror films has changed dramatically over the years. Here James C. Taylor charts the evolution of how fright flicks have been consumed, from rental stores to DVDs, streaming platforms and beyond… I became fascinated with horror films before I’d even watched one. As a child, when my parents took me toContinue reading “ANALYSIS: Horror at Home – video rentals, paratexts and how we watch now”
Tag Archives: Shudder
REVIEW: Offseason (2021)
dir. Mickey Keating During the 2010s Mickey Keating marked himself out as a remarkable indie horror voice with the likes of Darling, Carnage Park and Psychopaths. And now, after a four-year absence, he has returned with the truly haunting Offseason, a genre delight with an ensemble familiar to many a horror fan. Keating’s latest –Continue reading “REVIEW: Offseason (2021)”
REVIEW: Son (2021)
dir. Ivan Kavanagh. Laura (Andi Matichak) drives through the sleeting rain, the religious zeal of radio preachers merging with the cacophonous storm outside. Seeking shelter at a diner she clutches her pregnant belly, wearing only a dirtied night dress, her bare feet filthy. Unseen, two men dressed in black enter, see her, and slip wordlesslyContinue reading “REVIEW: Son (2021)”
REVIEW: An Unquiet Grave (2020)
dir. Terence Krey. Bereaved husband Jamie (Jacob A. Ware) loiters, depressed and unshaven, by the the snow-capped grave of his deceased wife Julia. Soon he’s joined by her twin-sister Ava (Christine Nyland): the loss has been hard on them both, but as they speak it’s clear there’s something more – an unnamed undertaking they sharedContinue reading “REVIEW: An Unquiet Grave (2020)”
REVIEW: Superdeep (2020)
dir. Arseny Syuhin. At more than 7 miles below the surface of the earth, the Kola borehole was – in 1984 – the deepest man-made chasm on earth. It’s also – according to this new Soviet-era chiller – home to a secret Cold War lab: so when an unspecified disaster shuts the site down itContinue reading “REVIEW: Superdeep (2020)”
REVIEW: Caveat (2020)
dir. Damian Mc Carthy. In a dank and rotting room Olga (Leila Sykes) steps cautiously into the light, blood trickling from her nose. In one outstretched hand she grasps a child’s toy – a drumming rabbit with upturned eyes – which she points ahead like a flashlight, as if it might illuminate something before her.Continue reading “REVIEW: Caveat (2020)”
REVIEW: Psycho Goreman (2020)
dir. Steven Kostanski. As the opening text crawl explains – complete with ominous voiceover – an ancient evil was defeated long ago and entombed in a subterranean chamber beneath the surface of the Earth. This destroyer of worlds, if unleashed, would threaten to raze entire galaxies under his corrupt reign. So when two kids digContinue reading “REVIEW: Psycho Goreman (2020)”
REVIEW: The Reckoning (2020)
dir. Neil Marshall. It’s 1665: the Year of the Great Plague. After losing her husband to the pestilence single-mother Grace (Charlotte Kirk) rebuffs the lecherous advances of her landlord, finding herself accused of the dark arts and falling into the hands of Sean Pertwee’s sadistic witchfinder – a man who also burnt her mother atContinue reading “REVIEW: The Reckoning (2020)”
REVIEW: Fried Barry (2020)
dir. Ryan Kruger. Following yet another bender, heroin addict Barry (Gary Green) stumbles home to his wife and son only to fight, storm out, and ricochet onto his next hit. But somewhere between shooting up and coming down he is – or appears to be – abducted by aliens, an extra-terrestrial consciousness now piloting hisContinue reading “REVIEW: Fried Barry (2020)”
REVIEW: Vicious Fun (2020)
dir. Cody Calahan. Things are not going well for Joel (Evan Marsh): as a horror mag writer who’s tired of the same old tropes, an early scene sees him berating a hack producer for slow moving killers and jump-scares that diffuse suspense. Things aren’t much better at home, where he pines over his glamourous housemateContinue reading “REVIEW: Vicious Fun (2020)”
