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FrightFest · 2022

FrightFest 2022

August

All the features showing in August, at the main event on the Frightfest calendar.

Programme

74 films · 47 reviews

Jump to a film

Barbarian

In town for a job interview, a young woman arrives at her Airbnb late at night only to find that her rental has been mistakenly double-booked and a strange man is already staying there. Against her better judgement, she decides to stay the night anyway.

(Country: US; Year: 2022; Director: Zach Cregger; Writer: Zach Cregger; Stars: Georgina Campbell, Bill Skarsgård, Justin Long, Kurt Braunohler, Devina Vassileva)

Bitch Ass

On a gang initiation night, a group of kids enter a house where a kid left for death after his own initiation, many years earlier, is waiting for them with his own set of deadly games to be played.

(Country: US; Year: 2021; Director: Bill Posley,; Writer: Bill Posley, Jonathan Colomb; Stars: Sheaun McKinney, Tunde Laleye, Me'Lisa Sellers, Teon Kelly, Tony Todd)

Bite

Review preview for Bite

Denovan is a capable lead but it’s Nsue who really stands out and, despite having less screen time overall, gets the most interesting character moments.

Jennie Kermode · 3 out of 5
A pair of thieves get more than they bargained for when they target Beryl, a seemingly innocent elderly widow.

(Country: UK; Year: 2022; Director: James Owen; Writer: Tom Critch, James Owen; Stars: Shian Denovan, Nansi Nsue, Annabelle Lanyon, Anthony Ilott)

Full review

The Breach

Review preview for The Breach

What really holds it all together is Hawco’s down to earth performance as a detective striving to retain his focus on the practical side of the job.

Jennie Kermode · 3.5 out of 5
John Hawkins, who is set to retire as police chief is tucked away in deep wood. Following the discovery of a gruesome body with uncanny injuries, he's pulled into an investigation to solve the horrifying mystery, which evades explanation.

(Country: Canada; Year: 2022; Director: Rodrigo Gudiño; Writer: Ian Weir, based on the book by Nick Cutter; Stars: Natalie Brown, Allan Hawco, Emily Alatalo, Eva Weiss, Wesley French)

Full review See: Interview with Rodrigo Gudiño about The Breach

Burial

Review preview for Burial

The depth of character in the film lends it gravity.

Jennie Kermode · 3.5 out of 5
A small group of Russian soldiers have the task of taking Hitler's discovered remains back to Stalin in Moscow.

(Country: UK; Year: 2022; Director: Ben Parker; Writer: Ben Parker; Stars: Tom Felton, Harriet Walter, Charlotte Vega, Barry Ward, Bill Miller, Dan Renton Skinner)

Full review See: Interview with Ben Parker and Charlotte Vega about Burial

Candy Land

Review preview for Candy Land

The characters are wonderfully drawn, each with their own complexities which go beyond their reasons for doing this job, and the acting is strong all round.

Jennie Kermode · 4 out of 5
A seemingly naïve and devout young woman finds her way in the underground world of truck stop sex workers a.k.a. 'lot lizards'.

(Country: US; Year: 2022; Director: John Swab; Writer: John Swab; Stars: Eden Brolin, William Baldwin, Owen Campbell, Olivia Luccardi, Brad Carter, Guinevere Turner)

Full review See: Interview with John Swab and Sam Quartin about Candy Land

Cerebrum

Review preview for Cerebrum

Though it shifts its focus into something much darker towards the end, the meat of it is in the father-son relationship, in their interactions and the ways that they observe each other.

Jennie Kermode · 4 out of 5
After waking up from a year-long coma, an insecure young man must fight his controlling father in order to discover what really happened to his seemingly absent mother, as the true consequences of his past actions unravel before him.

(Country: UK; Year: 2022; Director: Sébastien Blanc; Writer: Francesco Cinquemani, Loris Curci, Andy Edwards, Barry Keating, Mark Thompson-Ashworth; Stars: Tobi King Bakare, Ramona Von Pusch, Steve Oram, Davide Marangoni)

Full review See: Interview with Steve Oram about Cerebrum

Control

Review preview for Control

There are some smart ideas here which help to keep the film interesting even if they never quite achieve their potential.

Jennie Kermode · 3 out of 5
Locked in a mysterious room and commanded by an unknown voice, Eileen must complete several tasks in order to save her daughter’s life. As the tests and the stakes intensify to the point where succeeding seems well nigh impossible, Eileen is forced to discover she has some unexpected skills and kinetic powers.

(Country: Canada; Year: 2022; Director: James Mark; Stars: Sara Mitch, George Tchortov, Evie Loiselle)

Full review

The Creeping

A concerned young woman moves home to look after her ailing grandmother and soon finds herself fighting a malevolent presence with a dark secret.

(Country: UK; Year: 2022; Director: Jamie Hooper; Writer: Jamie Hooper, Helen Miles; Stars: Sophie Thompson, Leon Ancliffe, Taliyah Blair, Pauline Hooper, Phillipa Peak)

Croc! (Crocodile Vengeance)

Review preview for Croc!

Everybody is glamorously dressed and there’s a lot of screaming and running about.

Jennie Kermode · 2 out of 5
Deep in the English countryside, Lisa and George prepare for their wedding at a Tudor mansion. But an angry crocodile lies in wait, determined to ruin their big day.

(Year: 2022; Director: Paul W Franklin; Writer: Paul W Franklin; Stars: Sian Altman, Mark Haldor, George Nettleton, Antonia Whillans, Chrissie Wunna, Stephen Staley)

Full review

Cult Of VHS

Review preview for Cult Of VHS

Rob Preciado’s film is beautifully crafted, a real labour of love.

Jennie Kermode · 4 out of 5
A feature length documentary featuring interviews with collectors, film directors and VHS enthusiasts as they take a trip down memory lane and take us through their first experiences with the medium and what it meant to them

(Country: US; Year: 2022; Director: Rob Preciado; Stars: Jordi Camacho, Benjamin Combes, Ricardo Farias, Michael Keene)

Full review

Dark Glasses (Black Glasses, Occhiali Neri)

Review preview for Dark Glasses

The colour saturation in these images is simply delicious. Gorgeous costume work by Guido Bongiorno makes the most of it, and Rome itself seems to have set out to please.

Jennie Kermode · 4 out of 5
A woman who has lost her sight in her car crash and is guided by a young Chinese orphan tries to escape the serial killer who is stalking the streets of Rome armed with deadly cello strings.

(Country: Italy, France; Year: 2022; Director: Dario Argento; Writer: Dario Argento, Franco Ferrini; Stars: Ilenia Pastorelli, Asia Argento, Andrea Gherpelli, Mario Pirrello, Maria Rosaria Russo, Gennaro Iaccarino, Andrea Zhang)

Full review

Daughter

Review preview for Daughter

Cleverly shot throughout in a style which contributes to the claustrophobia of the family’s environment and speaks to where power is positioned.

Jennie Kermode · 4 out of 5
A young woman is inducted into a bizarre family as its new surrogate daughter.

(Year: 2022; Director: Corey Deshon; Writer: Corey Deshon; Stars: Casper Van Dien, Elyse Dinh, Vivien Ngô, Ian Alexander)

Full review See: Interview with Corey Deshon about Daughter

Deadstream

Review preview for Deadstream

Comedy and horror are well balanced in a film which demonstrates a sharp understanding of social media but is also ready to deliver on the more explicitly gruesome side of the bargain

Jennie Kermode · 3.5 out of 5
A washed up internet personality tries to win back his followers by livestreaming himself spending one night alone in an abandoned haunted house.

(Country: US; Year: 2022; Director: Vanessa Winter, Joseph Winter; Writer: Vanessa Winter, Joseph Winter; Stars: Joseph Winter, Melanie Stone)

Full review

Deep Fear

Paris: The 1980s. Three students decide to celebrate their graduation with a visit to the local catacombs deep in the heart of the French capital. There they discover a bunker bearing the number 717. Little do they know about the legend attached to it.

(Country: Belgium, France; Year: 2022; Director: Grégory Beghin; Stars: Victor Meutelet, Sofia Lesaffre, Joseph Olivennes, Kassim Meesters)

Do Not Disturb

hloe and Jack travel to Miami for their honeymoon. Amidst the flashy neon and sunny beaches, they decide a peyote experience will strengthen their marriage. Unbeknownst to them, they've been given a rare and powerful strand of the drug that awakens a desire to eat human flesh.

(Country: US; Year: 2022; Director: John Ainslie; Stars: Kimberley Laferriere, Rogan Christopher, Janet Porter, Christian McKenna)

Eating Miss Campbell

Review preview for Eating Miss Campbell

Sadly a misfire from the Troma canon.

Jennie Kermode · 1.5 out of 5
A vegan-goth high school student falls in love with her new English teacher and develops a problematic taste for human flesh.

(Country: UK; Year: 2022; Director: Liam Regan; Writer: Liam Regan; Stars: Lyndsey Craine, Lala Barlow, Vito Trigo, James Hamer-Morton, Charlie Bond, Emily Haigh)

Full review

Everybody Dies By The End

A documentary crew follows cult classic horror director, Alfred Costella, as he makes his final film - an all practical masterpiece...with a dark twist.

(Country: US; Year: 2022; Director: Ian Tripp, Ryan Schafer; Writer: Ian Tripp; Stars: Bill Oberst Jr, Vinny Curran, Ian Tripp, Caroline Amiguet)

Everyone Will Burn

Review preview for Everyone Will Burn

A treat for the eyes, if not the ears.

Jennie Kermode · 3.5 out of 5
In a small village in Leon, Spain, María José prepares to end her life after failing to get over the suicide of her bullied son years before. Everything changes when she receives a visit from Lucía, a strange little girl who could be connected to a local legend about stopping an impending apocalypse.

(Country: Spain; Year: 2012; Director: David Hebrero; Writer: David Hebrero, Javier Kiran; Stars: Macarena Gomez, Rodolfo Sancho, Sofia Garcia, Ruben Ochandiano)

Full review

The Eyes Below

Review preview for The Eyes Below

The dreamlike narrative gives Bruchon free rein to experiment with the constituent parts of the room, not just moving his camera around but creating a corridor from sheets and entangling his actors within them.

Jennie Kermode · 3.5 out of 5
Eugene's home is quiet and peaceful as he goes to sleep, but when he feels something travelling up his body, he realises that it's not going to stay that way.

(Country: France; Year: 2022; Director: Alexis Bruchon; Writer: Alexis Bruchon; Stars: Vinicius Coelho)

Full review See: Interview with Alexis Bruchon about The Eyes Below

Fall

Review preview for Fall

This kind of scenario is a treat for a good writer and death for a bad one. Jonathan Frank, working together with Mann, has done a decent job, and the actors have sufficient skill to make it work.

Jennie Kermode · 3.5 out of 5
Best friends Becky and Hunter find themselves at the top of a 2,000-foot radio tower - with no safe way down.

(Country: UK, US; Year: 2022; Director: Scott Mann; Writer: Jonathan Frank, Scott Mann; Stars: Grace Caroline Currey, Virginia Gardner, Jeffrey Dean Morgan)

Full review

Family Dinner

Overweight and insecure, Simi spends Easter weekend with her famous nutritionist aunt. The hope is that it’ll help her get on a healthier track, but as the aunt’s family’s icy dynamics and an increasingly malevolent atmosphere leave Simi feeling uneasy, weight isn’t the only thing she’s about to lose.

(Country: Austria; Year: 2022; Director: Peter Hengl; Writer: Peter Hengl; Stars: Pia Hierzegger, Michael Pink, Nina Katlein, Alexander Sladek)

See: Peter Hengl in conversation on Family Dinner, Hansel and Gretel, and the need to control

Final Cut (Coupez!)

Review preview for Final Cut

An homage to truly bad film-making - but it sails perilously close to self-parody

Richard Mowe · 2 out of 5
Things go badly for a small film crew shooting a low-budget zombie movie when they are attacked by real zombies.

(Year: 2022; Director: Michel Hazanavicius; Writer: Michel Hazanavicius; Stars: Bérénice Bejo, Grégory Gadebois, Finnegan Oldfield, Matilda Lutz, Raphaël Quenard)

Full review See: Cannes Final Cut press conference with Bérénice Bejo, Michel Hazanavicius, Roman Duris

Follow Her

Review preview for Follow Her

Made on a very small budget but getting away with it remarkably well, the film succeeds in challenging some popular assumptions about women who seek to become internet celebrities.

Jennie Kermode · 2.5 out of 5
An aspiring actress responds to a mysterious classified ad and finds herself trapped in her new boss's twisted revenge fantasy.

(Country: US; Year: 2022; Director: Sylvia Caminer; Writer: Dani Barker; Stars: Eliana Jones, Mark Moses, Luke Cook, Lorraine Farris, Bettina Bilger)

Full review

The Ghosts Of Monday

Review preview for The Ghosts Of Monday

The film is pulled in multiple directions at once, and pulled apart.

Jennie Kermode · 2.5 out of 5
The host of a recently cancelled TV series is invited to Cyprus to make a pilot about the tragically famous Hotel Gula where more than a hundred people died in mysterious circumstances 25 years ago.

(Country: Cyprus; Year: 2022; Director: Francesco Cinquemani)

Full review See: Interview with Andy Edwards about Midnight Peepshow, The Ghosts Of Monday and Punch

The Ghost Writer

A struggling author decides to plagiarise his deceased father's undiscovered novel, unleashing the demons of his father's past, which he most overcome or face being haunted for the rest of his life.

(Country: UK; Year: 2022; Director: Paul Wilkins; Writer: Guy Fee, Paul Wilkins; Stars: Luke Mably, Andrea Deck, Brendan Patricks, Robert Portal, Matthew Jure, Emma James)

The Group

A stranger pulls a gun on the members of an addiction support group to force them into making confessions.

(Country: UK; Year: 2022; Director: Will Higo; Stars: Evangelina Burton, Dylan Baldwin, Luke Dayhill, Jennifer Aries)

H4z4rd (Hazard)

A man who who really loves his girlfriend, his daughter, and his car, accepts a driving job and gets into a race which will result in either losing his life, his family or his beloved car.

(Country: Belgium; Year: 2022; Director: Jonas Govaerts; Writer: Trent Haaga; Stars: Tom Vermeir, Frank Lammers, Jennifer Heylen, Monic Hendrickx)

The Harbinger

Review preview for The Harbinger

Skilfully crafted, The Harbinger is a rightly distressing, melancholy take on the events of the recent past and the troubles we still live with today.

Jennie Kermode · 4.5 out of 5
A woman leaves her family quarantine to help a friend who's suffering from terrible nightmares - but she learns too late that the bad dreams are contagious, along with the demon behind them.

(Country: US; Year: 2022; Director: Andy Mitton; Writer: Andy Mitton; Stars: Raymond Anthony Thomas, Gabby Beans, Stephanie Roth Haberle, Emily Davis, Laura Heisler, Cody Braverman)

Full review See: Interview with Andy Mitton about The Harbinger

Holy Shit! (Ach Du Scheisse!)

A man wakes up from a drunken stupor to find himself trapped in a portaloo, and realises that if he can't escape within an hour, it will explode.

(Country: Germany; Year: 2022; Director: Lukas Rinker; Writer: Lukas Rinker; Stars: Gedeon Burkhard, Friederike Kempter, Micaela Schäfer, Uke Bosse, Rodney Charles)

Hounded

Review preview for Hounded

Whilst Hounded doesn’t have a great deal to add to the premise, it does have well-drawn characters and a capable young cast who are well worth watching.

Jennie Kermode · 3.5 out of 5
A stately home robbery takes an evil turn one night when a gang of young thieves are caught by the owners of the house and then hunted across the estate for the proprietor's entertainment.

(Country: UK; Year: 2022; Director: Tommy Boulding; Writer: Ray Bogdanovich, Dean Lines; Stars: Samantha Bond, Malachi Pullar-Latchman, James Lance, Hannah Traylen, Nick Moran)

Full review See: Interview with Tommy Boulding about Hounded

Huesera (Huesera: The Bone Woman)

Review preview for Huesera

Wonderfully uncomfortable.

Jennie Kermode · 3.5 out of 5
Valeria has long dreamed about becoming a mother. After learning that she’s pregnant, she expects to feel happy, yet something’s off. Nightmarish visions and an unshakeable paranoia have her questioning what she wants, and an ancient evil spirit may be the cause.

(Country: Peru, Mexico; Year: 2022; Director: Michelle Garza Cervera; Writer: Michelle Garza Cervera, Abia Castillo; Stars: Alfonso Dosal, Samantha Castillo, Martha Claudia Moreno, Mayra Batalla, Sonia Couoh, Aida López, Pablo Guisa Koestinger, Mercedes Hernández, Enoc Leaño, Anahí Allué, Natalia Solián, Gabriela Velarde)

Full review

Hypochondriac

Review preview for Hypochondriac

The struggle which follows is, in places, difficult to watch, especially for viewers who have been affected by such issues in their own lives, so Heimann sensibly leavens it with humour.

Jennie Kermode · 4 out of 5
When his bipolar mother walks back into his life, a young gay man is forced to contend with his family history of mental illness.

(Country: US; Year: 2022; Director: Addison Heimann; Writer: Addison Heimann; Stars: Zach Villa, Devon Graye, Madeline Zima, Yumarie Morales, Marlene Forte, Chris Doubek, Paget Brewster, Adam Busch, Michael Cassidy, Peter Mensah, Debra Wilson)

Full review See: Interview with Addison Heimann about Hypochondriac

Incredible But True (Incroyable Mais Vrai)

Review preview for Incredible But True

What makes all this work is the very straightforward and matter-of-fact way in which Dupieux approaches the story.

Jennie Kermode · 3.5 out of 5
A mysterious tunnel in the cellar of a new home turns lives upside down.

(Year: 2022; Director: Quentin Dupieux; Stars: Alain Chabat, Léa Drucker, Benoît Magimel, Anaïs Demoustier)

Full review

The Lair

Review preview for The Lair

Much more fun than, by any reasonable standard, it ought to be.

Jennie Kermode · 3.5 out of 5
When Royal Air Force pilot Lt. Kate Sinclair is shot down over Afghanistan, she finds refuge in an abandoned underground bunker where deadly man-made biological weapons - half human, half alien - are awakened.

(Country: UK; Year: 2022; Director: Neil Marshall; Writer: Neil Marshall; Stars: Jonathan Howard, Charlotte Kirk, Jamie Bamber, Tanji Kibong)

Full review

The Last Client

After a psychologist is told by police a quote from her diary has been found at a murder scene, she realises too late that one of her clients is a serial killer.

(Country: Denmark; Year: 2022; Director: Anders Rønnow Klarlund; Stars: Signe Egholm Olsen, Anton Hjejle, Dan Zahle, Sara Fanta Traore)

The Leech

Review preview for The Leech

Pennycoff works hard to keep audience sympathies shifting.

Jennie Kermode · 2 out of 5
A devout priest welcomes a struggling homeless couple into his house during the season of goodwill. But what begins as a simple act of kindness and Christmas charity quickly becomes the ultimate test of faith once the sanctity of his home is jeopardised.

(Country: US; Year: 2022; Director: Eric Pennycoff; Writer: Eric Pennycoff; Stars: Jeremy Gardner, Graham Skipper, Rigo Garay, Taylor Zaudtke)

Full review

Living With Chucky

Review preview for Living With Chucky

A film full of great stories and packed with details which will fascinate fans.

Jennie Kermode · 3.5 out of 5
A filmmaker who grew up alongside Chucky the killer doll seeks out the other families surrounding the Child's Play films as they recount their experiences working on the ongoing franchise and what it means to be a part of the Chucky family.

(Country: US; Year: 2021; Director: Kyra Elise Gardner; Writer: Kyra Elise Gardner, Jason Strickland; Stars: Abigail Breslin, Brad Dourif, Lin Shaye, John Waters, Kyra Elise Gardner)

Full review See: Interview with Kyra Elise Gardner about Living With Chucky

LOLA

Review preview for LOLA

By turns enchanting and heartbreaking, it speaks to the troubled history of the 20th Century yet feels bang up to date.

Jennie Kermode · 4.5 out of 5
Two sisters build a machine called LOLA which can intercept radio and TV broadcasts from the future, and realise it could help fight the Nazis.

(Country: UK; Year: 2022; Director: Andrew Legge; Writer: Andrew Legge, Angeli Macfarlane; Stars: Stefanie Martini, Emma Appleton, Rory Fleck Byrne, Hugh O'Conor, Ayvianna Snow, Aaron Monaghan, Shaun Boylan, Philip Condron)

Full review

Mastemah

A young psychiatrist starts analysing a dark and mysterious man, and then people around her start to die.

(Country: France, Belgium; Year: 2022; Director: Didier D Daarwin; Writer: Thierry Aflalou, Didier D Daarwin, Johanne Rigoulot; Stars: Camille Razat, Olivier Barthélémy, Tibo Vandenborre, Féodor Atkine, Anaël Snoek, Bruno Debrandt, Roberto Calvet)

Mean Spirited

After receiving an invitation to his estranged friend's mountain cottage, a wannabe vlogger aims to bury the hatchet with their now-celebrity friend who isn't quite himself anymore.

(Country: US; Year: 2022; Director: Jeff Ryan; Writer: Joe Adams, Jeff Ryan; Stars: Michelle Veintimilla, Neville Archambault, Will Madden, Jeff Ryan, Charlie Pollock, Daniel Rashid)

Midnight Peepshow

Review preview for Midnight Peepshow

There’s not a great deal of depth to the adjacent narrative, but the film holds together pretty well, the pacing is good, and Cotton keeps us caring.

Jennie Kermode · 3 out of 5
An anthology horror film set in a haunted peepshow booth.

(Country: UK; Year: 2022; Director: Andy Edwards, Airell Anthony Hayles; Writer: Andy Edwards, Airell Anthony Hayles; Stars: Derek Nelson, Chiara D'Anna, Bethan Walker, Jamie Bacon, Richard Cotton, Dylan Baldwin, Mark Hampton, Ocean M Hsrris)

Full review See: Interview with Andy Edwards about Midnight Peepshow, The Ghosts Of Monday and Punch

New Religion

Review preview for New Religion

What begins as a collection of seemingly disconnected events gradually coheres with something of the chilling quality of an early Kiyoshi Kurosawa film.

Jennie Kermode · 4.5 out of 5
Miyabi lost her only daughter in an accident. After her daughter's death, she got a divorce. She now works as a call girl and is living with her new boyfriend. One day, she meets a weird customer who asks her to let him take a picture of her spine.

(Country: Japan; Year: 2022; Director: Keishi Kondo; Writer: Keishi Kondo; Stars: Daiki Nunami, Satoshi Oka, Saionji Ryuseigun, Kaho Seto)

Full review See: Interview with Keishi Kondo about New Religion

Next Exit

Review preview for Next Exit

Next Exit shines because of its finely crafted script and the performances of its two leads, who work wonderfully together.

Jennie Kermode · 4 out of 5
In a world where ghosts are real and front-page news, a controversial new medical procedure allows people to peacefully kill themselves. In the midst of this breakthrough, two strangers travel cross country together to end their lives, only to unexpectedly find what they’ve been missing along the way.

(Country: US; Year: 2022; Director: Mali Elfman; Writer: Mali Elfman; Stars: Gavin Powers, Joe Powers, Katie Parker, Karen Gillan, Ty Molbak, Michael May, Rahul Kohli, Tessa Hersh, Jim Ortlieb, Angel Murphy, Eric Hoff, Nerea Duhart, Sally Levi, Drew Brandon Jones, Tongayi Chirisa)

Full review See: Interview with Rahul Kohli about Next Exit

Night Of The Bastard

After an injured young woman takes refuge in his secluded home, a gruff recluse must fight off a bloodthirsty cult and an insatiable sorceress to save both of their lives. A battle to survive becomes a gripping race against the clock to escape a perverse ritual of blood and flesh.

(Country: US; Year: 2022; Director: Eric Boccio; Stars: London May, Mya Hudson, Hannah Pierce, Henry Mortensen)

Night Sky

A trek across the American southwest with a ne'er do well petty thief trying to escape his mysterious past, a celestial vagabond trying to rediscover hers, and the ruthless killer who is following them.

(Country: US; Year: 2022; Director: Jacob Gentry; Writer: AJ Bowen, Jacob Gentry; Stars: Brea Grant, AJ Bowen, Scott Poythress, Sandra Benton, Adam Voss)

The Once And Future Smash/End Zone 2

Review preview for The Once And Future Smash/End Zone 2

Gets some of its pastiche spot on, but runs short of ideas well before the end.

Jennie Kermode · 2 out of 5
A mockumentary about a fictional Seventies slasher film, accompanied by the fake film itself.

(Country: US; Year: 2022; Director: Sophia Cacciola, Michael J Epstein; Writer: Sophia Cacciola, Michael J Epstein, Brian W Smith; Stars: Mark Patton, Lloyd Kaufman, Laurene Landon)

Full review

The Ones You Didn't Burn

Review preview for The Ones You Didn't Burn

With a huge, raggedy string score by Daniel Reguera, the film is big on atmosphere and never gives one the sense that its protagonists wield much control over their destinies.

Jennie Kermode · 3.5 out of 5
Nathan and Mirra are in no way close siblings, but their father’s passing means they must return to their old family farm to sell off the land. There, Nathan starts having vivid nightmares of a woman rising from the sea, feeling the same dread his father felt before his death.

(Country: US; Year: 2022; Director: Elise Finnerty; Writer: Elise Finnerty; Stars: Elise Finnerty, Samuel Dunning, Estelle Girard Parks, Jenna Rose Sander)

Full review See: Interview with Elise Finnerty about The Ones You Didn’t Burn

Orchestrator Of Storms (Orchestrator of Storms: The Fantastique World of Jean Rollin)

Review preview for Orchestrator Of Storms

Though there is a melancholy aspect to it, Orchestrator Of Storms explores who Rollin was as a person with warmth and wit, and shares his enthusiasm for, as it is phrased here, ‘beauty in the grotesque and the morose and the opulent.’

Jennie Kermode · 4 out of 5
A documentary portrait of filmmaker Jean Rollin.

(Year: 2022; Director: Dima Ballin, Kat Ellinger; Stars: Jean Rollin)

Full review

Piggy (Cerdita)

Review preview for Piggy

Galán is extraordinary as the traumatised girl in a performance which requires a considerable amount of courage.

Jennie Kermode · 4.5 out of 5
Sara deals with constant teasing from girls in her small town. But it comes to an end when a stranger kidnaps her tormentors. Sara knows more than she's saying and must decide between speaking up and saving the girls or saying nothing to protect the strange man who spared her.

(Country: Spain; Year: 2022; Director: Carlota Pereda; Writer: Carlota Pereda; Stars: Pilar Castro, Claudia Salas, Camille Aguilar, Carmen Machi, Julián Valcárcel, Mabel del Pozo, Chema del Barco, Stéphanie Magnin Vella, Irene Ferreiro, Laura Galán, Fred Tatien, José Pastor, Richard Holmes, Fernando Delgado-Hierro, Amets Otxoa)

Full review See: Interview with Carlota Pereda about Piggy

Powertool Cheerleaders Vs The Boyband Of The Screeching Dead

When a cursed amulet turns their rival boy band act into a screeching gang of zombies, a group of cheerleaders must learn to use their wits, friendship and assorted power tools before a TV talent show takes a turn for the apocalyptic.

(Country: UK; Year: 2022; Director: Pat Higgins; Writer: Pat Higgins; Stars: Charlie Bond, James Hamer-Morton, Justin Chinyere, Faith Elizabeth, Megan Rose Buxton)

The Price We Pay

After a pawn shop robbery goes awry, two criminals take refuge at a remote farmhouse to try to let the heat die down, but find something much more menacing.

(Country: US; Year: 2022; Director: Ryûhei Kitamura; Writer: Christopher Jolley; Stars: Tyler Sanders, Emile Hirsch, Stephen Dorff, Vernon Wells, Erika Ervin)

PussyCake

An all-female rock band schedules a new gig. When they arrive at the place, the city looks like a desert. There are only horrors that appear to be from another dimension.

(Country: Argentina; Year: 2021; Director: Pablo Parés; Stars: Macarena Suárez Dagliano, Aldana Ruberto, Anahí Politi, Florencia Moreno, Sofia Rossi)

Raven's Hollow

Review preview for Raven's Hollow

It’s hard to imagine that [Poe] would have been anything other that appalled by this shoddy exercise in pilfering the most superficial aspects of his work.

Jennie Kermode · 1.5 out of 5
West Point cadet Edgar Allan Poe and four other cadets on a training exercise in upstate New York are drawn by a gruesome discovery into a forgotten community.

(Country: UK; Year: 2022; Director: Christopher Hatton; Writer: Christopher Hatton, Chuck Reeves; Stars: Melanie Zanetti, William Moseley, Kate Dickie, David Hayman, Callum Woodhouse, Callum McGowan)

Full review

Scare Package II: Rad Chad's Revenge

When horror guru Rad Chad Buckley's funeral turns into an elaborate series of hilarious death traps, the guests must band together and use the rules of horror to survive the bloody game.

(Country: US; Year: 2022; Director: Aaron B Koontz, Alexandra Barreto, Anthony Cousins; Writer: Aaron B Koontz, Cameron Burns, Alexandra Barreto; Stars: Jeremy King, Zoe Graham, Rich Sommer, Kelli Maroney, Shakira Ja'nai Paye, Graham Skipper, Maria Olsen, Byron Brown)

She Came From The Woods

Review preview for She Came From The Woods

The killings are varied and suitably unpleasant, albeit not quite as unpleasant as some of the characters, who, of course, receive their due.

Jennie Kermode · 2.5 out of 5
In 1987, a group of counsellors accidentally unleash a decades' old evil on the last night of summer camp.

(Country: US; Year: 2022; Director: Erik Bloomquist; Writer: Erik Bloomquist, Carson Bloomquist; Stars: Cara Buono, Clare Foley, Spencer List, William Sadler, Michael Park, Tyler Elliot Burke)

Full review

Sissy

Review preview for Sissy

Barlow and Senes let the situation simmer, with plenty going on to keep viewers entertained.

Jennie Kermode · 4.5 out of 5
Travelling to a remote location to celebrate the hen night of her childhood best friend, a woman re-encounters her childhood bully, who is once again determined to make her suffer.

(Country: Australia; Year: 2022; Director: Hannah Barlow, Kane Senes; Writer: Hannah Barlow, Kane Senes; Stars: Aisha Dee, Hannah Barlow, Emily De Margheriti, Daniel Monks, Yerin Ha, Lucy Barrett, Shaun Martindale, Amelia Lule, April Blasdall, Camille Cumpston)

Full review See: Interview with Hannah Barlow and Kane Senes about Sissy

Something In The Dirt

Review preview for Something In The Dirt

What matters here is not so much the phenomenon itself, but the way that the characters become obsessed with it.

Jennie Kermode · 4.5 out of 5
When neighbours John and Levi witness supernatural events in their Los Angeles apartment building, they realise documenting the paranormal could inject some fame and fortune into their wasted lives. An ever-deeper, darker rabbit hole, their friendship frays as they uncover the dangers of the phenomena, the city, and each other.

(Country: US; Year: 2022; Director: Justin Benson, Aaron Moorhead; Stars: Aaron Moorhead, Justin Benson)

Full review See: Interview with Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead about Something In The Dirt

Sorry About The Demon

After being dumped by his girlfriend Amy, broken hearted Will is offered a massive house at a very low rent. What’s the catch? The restless spirit haunting the place needs a human sacrifice and the prior owners must find one or else their young daughter is toast.

(Country: US; Year: 2022; Director: Emily Hagins; Stars: Jon Michael Simpson, Paige Evans, Jeff McQuitty, Sarah Cleveland)

Splinter

Review preview for Splinter

This may not be a highly polished film but it has a natural exuberance which is both entertaining and endearing.

Jennie Kermode · 2 out of 5
While renovating his childhood home, Scott gets a small splinter in his foot, triggering a chain of events and fever dreams, leading him to uncover dark secrets about his hometown, why he was abandoned by his parents, and the terrible legacy that is now his birthright.

(Country: US; Year: 2022; Director: Tom Ryan; Stars: Jim Thalman, Kristin Muri, Quincy Saadeh, Tom Martin)

Full review

Stalker

A young actress finds herself trapped in a hotel lift at night with a crew member who is obsessed with her.

(Country: UK; Year: 2022; Director: Steve Johnson; Stars: Sophie Skelton, Stuart Brennan, Bret Hart)

The Summoned

Review preview for The Summoned

The subtext here is much darker than the story itself.

Jennie Kermode · 3 out of 5
A young man visits a remote house with his girlfriend to receive creative therapy, but gets more than he bargained for.

(Country: US; Year: 2022; Director: Mark Meir; Writer: Yuri Baranovsky; Stars: J Quinton Johnson, Emma Fitzpatrick, Angela Gulner, Salvador Chacon, Frederick Stuart, Mark Meir)

Full review

Super Z

An unknown corporation is turning humans into zombies. To their complete astonishment, their experiments give birth to zombies that can think, talk, reason and form a family unit. But the genetically modified five escape and are pursued by mercenaries as they struggle with new family dynamics, chaos and carnage.

(Country: France; Year: 2022; Director: Julien De Volte, Arnaud Tabarly; Stars: Julien Courbey, Johan Libereau, Fabien Ara, Marion Mezadorian)

Terrifier 2

After being resurrected by a sinister entity, Art the Clown returns to the timid town of Miles County where he targets a teenage girl and her younger brother on Halloween night.

(Country: US; Year: 2022; Director: Damien Leone; Writer: Damien Leone; Stars: Felissa Rose, Lauren LaVera, David Howard Thornton, Griffin Satopietro, Samantha Scaffidi)

They Wait In The Dark

Review preview for They Wait In The Dark

This kind of quality is incredibly difficult to achieve with such limited resources.

Jennie Kermode · 3.5 out of 5
Amy and her adopted son Adrian are on the run from her abusive ex-girlfriend, Judith, and take refuge in her family's abandoned farmhouse. Soon, a supernatural force from Amy's dark past rises up and begins haunting Adrian.

(Country: US; Year: 2022; Director: Patrick Rea; Writer: Patrick Rea; Stars: Sarah McGuire, Laurie Catherine Winkel, Meagan Flynn, Patrick McGee)

Full review See: Interview with Patrick Rea about They Wait In The Dark

Tiny Cinema

An anthology of six short films depicting ideas taken to extremes.

(Country: US; Year: 2022; Director: Tyler Cornack; Stars: Austin Lewis, Shelby Dash, Tyler Cornack, Tyler Rice)

Torn Hearts

Review preview for Torn Hearts

Sagal throws herself into the role with such force that’s a wonder the screen doesn’t break.

Jennie Kermode · 4.5 out of 5
The story of a country music duo who seek out the private mansion of their idol and end up in a twisted series of horrors which forces them to confront the limits they'd go to for their dreams.

(Country: US; Year: 2022; Director: Brea Grant; Writer: Rachel Koller Croft; Stars: Katey Sagal, Abby Quinn, Alexxis Lemire, Joshua Leonard, Shiloh Fernandez)

Full review

Walking Against The Rain

Two strangers try to navigate across a barren landscape in a desperate attempt to find each other. With their only form of communication being two soon-to-die battery operated radio mics, and with something terrifying trying to track them down, they must learn to confront loss and rediscover a trust in humanity.

(Country: UK; Year: 2022; Director: Scott Lyus; Writer: Scott Lyus; Stars: Sophia Eleni, Reece Douglas, James Swanton, Johnny Vivash)

Who Invited Them

Review preview for Who Invited Them

A solid little thriller.

Jennie Kermode · 3 out of 5
Adam and Margo's housewarming party is a success. One couple, who claim to be wealthy neighbours, linger afterwards. As one nightcap leads to another, Adam and Margo suspect their new friends are duplicitous strangers.

(Country: US; Year: 2022; Director: Duncan Birmingham; Writer: Duncan Birmingham; Stars: Melissa Tang, Perry Mattfeld, Ryan Hansen, Timothy Granaderos)

Full review

Wolfkin

Single mother Elaine is raising her son, Martin, who starts showing strange and uncontrollable behaviour. When the boy aggressively bites one of his classmates, Elaine, desperate for answers, takes him to see his late father’s estranged family in their Luxembourg mansion estate. There she discovers what his birthmark really means.

(Country: Luxembourg; Year: 2022; Director: Jacques Molitor; Stars: Louise Manteau, Victor Dieu, Marja-Leena Juncker, Jules Werner)

Wolf Manor (Scream Of The Wolf)

Review preview for Wolf Manor

The wolf cam POV shots are a charming if somewhat over-familiar device, accompanied by growling, and this helps to alleviate what is always the biggest difficulty for werewolf films: showing too much of the monster.

Jennie Kermode · 2 out of 5
Shooting a vampire movie in an old abandoned house should have worked like a dream. However, with the full moon, the nightmare begins. The body count rises as the cast and crew encounter the mansion's resident werewolf.

(Country: UK; Year: 2022; Director: Dominic Brunt; Writer: Joel Ferrari, Pete Wild; Stars: James Fleet, John Henshaw, Nicky Evans, Jay Taylor, Sade Malone, Shaune Harrison)

Full review

A Wounded Fawn

Review preview for A Wounded Fawn

Unashamedly arty yet still packs an emotional punch.

Jennie Kermode · 3 out of 5
It’s the perfect plan: A serial killer brings an unsuspecting new victim on a weekend getaway to add another body to his ever-growing count. She’s buying into his faux charms, and he’s eagerly lusting for blood. What could possibly go wrong?

(Country: US; Year: 2022; Director: Travis Stevens; Writer: Nathan Faudree, Travis Stevens; Stars: Sarah Lind, Josh Ruben, Malin Barr, Katie Kuang, Laksmi Priyah Hedemark, Tanya Everett, Marshall Taylor Thurman, Neal Mayer, Nikki James, Leandro Taub)

Full review See: Interview with Travis Stevens about A Wounded Fawn