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Grimmfest · 2014

Grimmfest 2014

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Programme

12 films · 9 reviews

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The Canal

Film archivist David and his wife are perfectly happy—or so he believes. When a looming secret shatters their marriage at the same time as a turn-of-the-century film reel he is studying reveals their house to be the site of a 1902 multiple-murder, David begins to unravel, and the house’s eerie history threatens to repeat itself.

(Country: Ireland; Year: 2014; Director: Ivan Kavanagh; Writer: Ivan Kavanagh; Stars: Antonia Campbell-Hughes, Rupert Evans, Steve Oram, Hannah Hoekstra, Calum Heath, Anneke Blok, Serena Brabazon, Maura Foley, Anthony Murphy, Kelly Byrne, Sinead Watters, Carl Shaaban, Alicja Ayres)

Coherence

Review preview for Coherence

A clever, minimal bit of film-making.

Andrew Robertson · 4 out of 5
A group of old friends gather for dinner... gather for dinner... gather for dinner...

(Country: US; Year: 2013; Director: James Ward Byrkit; Writer: James Ward Byrkit, James Ward Byrkit, Alex Manugian; Stars: Emily Baldoni, Maury Sterling, Nicholas Brendon, Elizabeth Gracen, Alex Manugian, Lauren Maher, Hugo Armstrong, Lorene Scafaria)

Full review

Dawn Of The Dead

Review preview for Dawn Of The Dead

Dawn Of The Dead is an astounding work that holds up to this day.

David Graham · 5 out of 5
During a zombie apocalypse, a small group of survivors seeks refuge in an abandoned shopping mall.

(Country: Italy, US; Year: 1978; Director: George A Romero; Writer: George A Romero; Stars: David Emge, Ken Foree, Gaylen Ross, Scott H. Reiniger, Daniel Dietrich, James A Baffico)

Full review See: George A Romero talks zombies, religion and genocide in Karlovy Vary

The Forgotten

A teenager living in a council flat after his parents' break-up comes to suspect that he has a supernatural neighbour.

(Country: UK; Year: 2014; Director: Oliver Frampton; Stars: Shaun Dingwall, Clem Tibber, Elarica Gallacher, Lyndsey Marshal, James Doherty)

Housebound

Review preview for Housebound

It will revolt some viewers, who won't see what's funny about it at all, but others will love it.

Jennie Kermode · 3.5 out of 5
A failed criminal is placed under house arrest with her overbearing mother - and the house may be haunted.

(Country: New Zealand; Year: 2014; Director: Gerard Johnstone; Writer: Gerard Johnstone; Stars: Morgana O'Reilly, Rima Te Wiata, Glen-Paul Waru, Cameron Rhodes, Millen Baird)

Full review

Let Us Prey

Review preview for Let Us Prey

Credit must go to cinematographer Piers McGrail whose sumptuous visuals add to the tension and creeping sense of dread.

Robert Munro · 4 out of 5
Held in a remote police station, a mysterious stranger takes over the minds and souls of everyone inside.

(Country: UK, Ireland; Year: 2014; Director: Brian O'Malley; Writer: David Cairns, Fiona Watson; Stars: Liam Cunningham, Sophie Stephanie Farmer, Niall Greig Fulton, Bryan Larkin, James McCreadie, Pollyanna McIntosh, Douglas Russell, Hanna Stanbridge, Brian Vernel, Jonathan Watson)

Full review

Life After Beth

Review preview for Life After Beth

Feels less experimental and alternative than, well, the zombie genre demands.

Andrew Robertson · 3 out of 5
Beth dying makes life hard. Beth coming back makes it harder.

(Country: US; Year: 2014; Director: Jeff Baena; Writer: Jeff Baena; Stars: Anna Kendrick, Aubrey Plaza, Alia Shawkat, Matthew Gray Gubler, Dane DeHaan, John C Reilly, Cheryl Hines, Molly Shannon, Thomas McDonell, Paul Reiser, Paul Weitz, Eva La Dare, Zoë Worth, Jenna Nye, Bechir Sylvain)

Full review

The Samurai

Review preview for The Samurai

Considerably more enjoyable than it ought to be.

Jennie Kermode · 3.5 out of 5
A young police officer is drawn into a mysterious maniac's murderous plans.

(Country: Germany; Year: 2014; Director: Till Kleinert; Writer: Till Kleinert; Stars: Michel Diercks, Pit Bukowski)

Full review See: Interview with Till Kleinert about The Samurai

Starry Eyes

A waitress desperate to become an actress is willing to do anything to land her dream role.

(Country: US; Year: 2014; Director: Kevin Kolsch, Dennis Widmyer; Stars: Alex Essoe, Noah Segan, Pat Healy, Amanda Fuller, Shane Coffey)

What We Do In The Shadows

Review preview for What We Do In The Shadows

In this fish-out-of-water comedy, mundanity is key.

Anton Bitel · 4 out of 5
Vampire mockumentary.

(Year: 2014; Director: New Zealand, US; Writer: Taika Waititi, Jemaine Clement; Stars: Taika Waititi, Jemaine Clement, Jonathan Brugh, Cori Gonzalez-Macuer, Stu Rutherford, Jackie van Beek, Ben Fransham, Elena Stejko, Jason Hoyte)

Full review

WolfCop

Review preview for WolfCop

It takes real skill to make a film this stupid this effectively.

Jennie Kermode · 4 out of 5
A lazy small town policeman becomes a lycanthropic crime fighting hero when the moon is full.

(Country: Canada; Year: 2014; Director: Lowell Dean; Writer: Bannister Bergen, Lowell Dean; Stars: Leo Fafard, Amy Matysio, Jonathan Cherry, Sarah Lind, Aidan Devine, Jesse Moss, Corinne Conley, James Whittingham, Ryland Alexander, Laura Abramsen, Graham Bell, Victor Lam, Glenn LaPointe, Cheryl Mazil, Rob Hoskins)

Full review

Zombeavers

Review preview for Zombeavers

Simply aping horror films of yesteryear, layering on the piles of intestines, and putting self-aware performances on screen, isn’t enough on its own in today’s crowded field of horror parodies.

Owen Van Spall · 3 out of 5
You know the story: sexy teens head to a secluded lakeside cabin for a weekend of debauched fun, only to be menaced by a mysterious force picking them off one by one. But here, the culprit proves to be a horde of rabid zombie beavers.

(Country: US; Year: 2014; Director: Jordan Rubin; Writer: Al Kaplan, Jon Kaplan, Jordan Rubin; Stars: Bill Burr, Cortney Palm, Rachel Melvin, Hutch Dano, Rex Linn, Jake Weary, Lexi Atkins, Brent Briscoe, Robert R. Shafer, Peter Gilroy, Chad Anderson, Phyllis Katz)

Full review