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Grimmfest · 2021

Grimmfest 2021

Live features

Programme

33 films · 15 reviews

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Alone With You

A woman who is waiting for her girlfriend to return home for their anniversary discovers she’s trapped inside her apartment and begins a frantic fight for survival as nightmarish visions descend and a voice in the wall guides her towards a way out.

(Country: US; Year: 2021; Director: Emily Bennett, Justin Brooks; Writer: Emily Bennett, Justin Brooks; Stars: Emily Bennett, Barbara Crampton, Dora Madison, Emma Myles, Meghan Lane)

The Beta Test

Review preview for The Beta Test

Cummings and McCabe want to have it all - and go a fairly long way towards getting it.

Amber Wilkinson · 4 out of 5
A man's life starts to fracture after he receives an unusual invitation.

(Country: US, UK; Year: 2021; Director: Jim Cummings, PJ McCabe; Writer: Jim Cummings, PJ McCabe; Stars: Jim Cummings, Virginia Newcomb, PJ McCabe, Kevin Changaris, Olivia Grace Applegate, Jessie Barr, Christian Hillborg, Malin Barr, Jacqueline Doke, Wilky Lau, Grant Rosenmeyer, Keith Powell, Monroe Cline, Laura Coover, Boni Mata)

Full review

Critters

A group of small but vicious alien creatures called Crites escape from an alien prison transport vessel and land near a small farm town on earth, pursued by two shape-shifting bounty hunters.

(Country: US; Year: 1986; Director: Stephen Herek; Writer: Domonic Muir, Stephen Herek; Stars: Dee Wallace, M Emmet Walsh, Billy Green Bush, Billy Zane)

The Deep House

Tourists collecting material for social media enter a strange house located at the bottom of the sea, and their presence awakens a dark spirit.

(Country: France, Belgium; Year: 2021; Director: Alexandre Bustillo, Julien Maury; Writer: Alexandre Bustillo, Julien Maury, Julien David; Stars: Camille Rowe, James Jagger, Eric Savin, Carolina Massey)

E.T. - The Extra-Terrestrial

Review preview for E.T. - The Extra-Terrestrial

It showcases Spielberg's gifts for light comedy, spectacle, and fairy tale celuloid sorcery.

Scott Macdonald · 5 out of 5
Spielberg's beloved classic about a stranded and lonely alien.

(Country: US; Year: 1982; Director: Steven Spielberg; Writer: Melissa Mathison; Stars: Dee Wallace, Henry Thomas, Peter Coyote, Robert MacNaughton, Drew Barrymore, K. C. Martel, Sean Frye, Tom Howell, Erika Eleniak, David M. O'Dell, Richard Swingler, Frank Toth)

Full review

Faceless

After a gruesome attack, a man wakes up in hospital with total memory loss, the recipient of a full-face transplant. Plagued by flashbacks and uncertain what is real and what is imaginary, he struggles to recover his sense of self.

(Country: US; Year: 2021; Director: Marcel Sarmiento; Writer: Ed Dougherty, Marcel Sarmiento, Freddie Villacci; Stars: Alex Essoe, Brendan Sexton III, Terry Serpico, Cullen Moss)

Father Of Flies

Review preview for Father Of Flies

The confusion of incident and memory add to the sense of creepiness and disorientation which Tetlow’s performance and the heightened visual style create.

Jennie Kermode · 4 out of 5
A vulnerable young boy finds his mother pushed out of the family home by a strange new woman, and he must confront the terrifying supernatural forces that seem to move in with her.

(Country: UK; Year: 2021; Director: Ben Charles-Edwards; Writer: Ben Charles-Edwards, Nadia Doherty; Stars: Nicholas Tucci, Camilla Rutherford, Davi Santos)

Full review See: Interview with Ben Charles Edwards about Father Of Flies

Forgiveness

Three women mysteriously wake up in a hospital and discover that one of them is deaf, one is mute and the other one is blind; together they will have to figure out why they are there and how to get out.

(Country: Mexico, US; Year: 2021; Director: Alex Kahuam; Writer: Alex Kahuam; Stars: Alejandra Toussaint, Laura de Ita, Alejandra Zaid, Diana Quijano)

For Roger

After receiving word of his partner’s passing, Roger travels to the desolate family cabin where they would often vacation together. There he begins to realize that someone has been watching them from the woods for years.

(Country: US; Year: 2021; Director: Aaron Bartuska; Writer: Aaron Bartuska, Gwyn Cutler, Derek Pinchot; Stars: Michael Andrusiewicz, Jenna Gibilisco, Nicholas Paparo, Russell Ranere)

The Free Fall

Sara wakes from a coma to a life she doesn't remember; a fragile, slippery reality that spirals into a nightmare where nothing is as it seems.

(Country: US; Year: 2021; Director: Adam Stillwell; Writer: Kent Harper; Stars: Andrea Londom, Shawn Ashmore, Jane Badler, Elizabeth Cappuccino)

The Guest Room (La Stanza)

The morning Stella decides to take her own life, a stranger knocks at her door claiming he has booked the guest room for the night.

(Country: Italy; Year: 2021; Director: Stefano Lodovichi; Writer: Stefano Lodovichi, Francesco Agostini, Filippo Gili; Stars: Guido Caprino, Camilla Filippi, Edoardo Pesce)

Happy Times

Over the course of a Shabbat dinner at a fancy Hollywood Hills mansion, a toxic mix of alcohol, egos, cultural differences, lust and greed derails the evening rather quickly and things spin out of control.

(Country: US, Israel; Year: 2021; Director: Michael Mayer; Writer: Michael Mayer, Guy Ayal; Stars: Michael Aloni, Iris Bahr, Shani Atias, Liraz Chamami, Alon Pdut, Ido Mor, Mike Burstyn, Daniel Lavid)

Hotel Poseidon

The self-appointed manager of a decaying hotel watches as it is transformed into an existential purgatory.

(Country: Belgium; Year: 2021; Director: Stefan Lernous; Writer: Stefan Lernous; Stars: Tom Vermeir, Ruth Becquart, Anneke Sluiters, Tania Van Der Sanden, Dominique Van Malder)

The Howling

Review preview for The Howling

Essential viewing for anyone with a serious interest in the history of the genre.

Jennie Kermode · 2.5 out of 5
After a bizarre and near fatal encounter with a serial killer, a television newswoman is sent to a remote mountain resort whose residents may not be what they seem.

(Country: US; Year: 1981; Director: Joe Dante; Writer: John Sayles, based on the book by Gary Brandner; Stars: Dee Wallace, Patrick Macnee, Dennis Dugan, Dick Miller)

Full review

King Knight

Review preview for King Knight

If this hits the spot for you, you’ll probably be in stitches throughout, caught in a repetitive cycle of laughter – but if it doesn’t, you’ll be a bit lost.

Jennie Kermode · 2.5 out of 5
The high priest of a modern-day coven finds his life thrown into turmoil and ventures out on a journey of self-discovery.

(Country: US; Year: 2021; Director: Richard Bates Jr; Writer: Richard Bates Jr; Stars: Aubrey Plaza, Matthew Gray Gubler, Angela Sarafyan, AnnaLynne McCord)

Full review

Midnight

A wave of murders hits the city and, lurking in the shadows, a killer has just identified the deaf woman he plans to target next.

(Country: South Korea; Year: 2021; Director: Kwon Oh-seung)

Motherly

Review preview for Motherly

We spend a good deal of time getting to know them before the action starts, and these are the strongest scenes of the film.

Jennie Kermode · 2.5 out of 5
Kate and her daughter Beth live alone in an isolated farmhouse in the woods, but when Kate slowly begins to suspect that something sinister is happening, her motherly instincts are put to the test.

(Country: Canada; Year: 2020; Director: Craig David Thomas; Writer: Ian Malone, Craig David Wallace; Stars: Lora Burke, Tessa Kozma, Kristen MacCulloch, Nick Smyth, Colin Paradine)

Full review See: Interview with Craig David Wallace and Lora Burke about Motherly

Night At The Eagle Inn (Corten)

Review preview for Night At The Eagle Inn

The central story here isn’t new but this is one of the better cinematic takes on it.

Jennie Kermode · 3 out of 5
Fraternal twins spend a hellish night at the remote inn their father disappeared from the night they were born.

(Country: US; Year: 2021; Director: Erik Bloomquist; Writer: Erik Bloomquist, Carson Bloomquist; Stars: Amelia Dudley, Taylor Turner, Greg Schweers, Beau Minniear, Erik Bloomquist)

Full review

The Night Belongs To Monsters (Las Noches Son De Los Monstruos)

A teenager struggling to build a life in a new town is befriended by a mysterious white dog.

(Country: Argentina; Year: 2021; Director: Sebastian Perillo; Writer: Paula Marotta; Stars: Lu Grasso, Esteban Lamothe, Jazmín Stuart, Gustavo Garzón, Agustin Daulte, Macarena Suárez)

Night Drive

Review preview for Night Drive

At a breezy 80ish minutes it manages an ending that asks questions of us without indulging too much in the temptation to dig up answers.

Andrew Robertson · 4 out of 5
A ride share driver's life is turned upside down after an unexpected series of misfortunes.

(Country: US; Year: 2021; Director: Brad Baruh, Meghan Leon; Writer: Meghan Leon; Stars: AJ Bowen, Sophie Dalah, Lamar Bell, Reba Buhr)

Full review

On The 3rd Day (Al Tercer Día)

Review preview for On The 3rd Day

Weirdly, this spectacular mess of a film delivers, for those patient enough to get to them, a few moments of brilliance.

Jennie Kermode · 2 out of 5
After a car crash which damages her memory, a woman desperate to find her son goes looking for answers.

(Country: Argentina; Year: 2021; Director: Daniel de la Vega; Writer: Alberto Fasce, Gonzalo Ventura; Stars: Mariana Anghileri, Arturo Bonín, Diego Cremonesi, Lautaro Delgado, Mathias Domizi)

Full review

The Pizzagate Massacre

An ambitious amateur journalist and an unstable far-right militiaman team up to expose the ugly truth behind rumours involving sex cults, a pizza place and the lizard people...

(Country: US; Year: 2020; Director: John Valley; Writer: John Valley; Stars: Tinus Seaux, Alexandria Payne, Lee Eddy, Mike Dellens, John Valley)

The Righteous

Review preview for The Righteous

Scott McClellan’s gorgeous black and white photography picks out every detail of the actors’ faces yet masks them in shadow at crucial moments, allowing truths to emerge only slowly.

Jennie Kermode · 4.5 out of 5
A burdened man feels the wrath of a vengeful God after he and his wife are visited by a mysterious stranger.

(Country: Canada; Year: 2021; Director: Mark O'Brien; Writer: Mark O'Brien; Stars: Nigel Bennett, Mark O'Brien, Henry Czerny, Myko Nguyen, Kate Corbett, Mimi Kuzyk)

Full review

The Sadness

Review preview for The Sadness

The sheer quantity of imitable violence in the film is likely to frighten censors around the world.

Jennie Kermode · 3.5 out of 5
After a year of combating a pandemic with relatively benign symptoms, a frustrated nation finally lets its guard down. This is when the virus spontaneously mutates, giving rise to a mind-altering plague. The streets erupt into violence and depravity.

(Country: Taiwan; Year: 2021; Director: Rob Jabbaz; Writer: Rob Jabbaz; Stars: Regina, Tzu-Chiang Wang, Berant Zhu)

Full review

Seagull

After 8 years surviving on a beach, Rose returns to her home town to settle unfinished business.

(Country: UK; Year: 2019; Director: Peter Blach; Writer: James Abbott, Peter Blach; Stars: Gabrielle Sheppard, Adam Radcliffe, Jessica Hynes, Miranda Beinart-Smith, Rosie Steel, Paul Forman)

Shot In The Dark

Review preview for Shot In The Dark

Stunningly shot, with what is probably the most striking cinematography of the year.

Jennie Kermode · 4 out of 5
Two years ago, William Langston made a mistake that would affect the course of his life. Now, with a killer loose in his home town and his circle of friends falling away one at a time, William faces his greatest fears as well as his own mortality.

(Country: US; Year: 2021; Director: Keene McRae; Writer: Kristoffer McMillan, Keene McRae, Lane Thomas; Stars: Kristoffer McMillan, Lane Thomas, Keene McRae, Austin Hébert, Christine Donlon, Jacqueline Toboni, Brandon Sklenar, Kelley Mack)

Full review

Slapface

Review preview for Slapface

Both Maturo and Manning are superb in this film, and it’s the chemistry between them that really makes it.

Jennie Kermode · 5 out of 5
A boy deals with the loss of his mother by creating a dangerous relationship with a monster rumoured to live in the woods.

(Country: US; Year: 2021; Director: Jeremiah Kipp; Writer: Jeremiah Kipp; Stars: August Maturo, Mike Manning, Libe Barer, Mirabelle Lee, Bianca D'Ambrosio)

Full review See: Interview with Jeremiah Kipp about Slapface

The Spore

The lives of ten strangers intersect through a terrifying chain of events as a mutating fungus begins to spread through a small town wiping out everyone that comes into contact with it.

(Country: US; Year: 2021; Director: DM Cunningham; Writer: DM Cunningham; Stars: Haley Heslip, Peter Tell, Jackson Ezinga, Jeannie Jeffries)

Tarumama

Sara and Oscar hope to rebuild their relationship following the death of their new-born baby with a family trip to a remote cabin in the Colombian mountains. But their peace is disturbed by a mysterious woman who roams the woods at night, crying for her own lost baby.

(Country: Colombia; Year: 2021; Director: Andres Beltran; Writer: Andres Beltran, Anton Goenechea; Stars: Andres Londono, Paula Castaño Alanna de la Rossa, Carolina Ribón)

Two Witches

Review preview for Two Witches

The first half is familiar in its outlines, following an established pattern which, in its own way, reassures. The second is anarchic, meandering, suggesting the expression of a very different set of instincts.

Jennie Kermode · 3.5 out of 5
A matriarchal witch passes on her sinister inheritance to her grand-daughter, triggering horrific curses.

(Country: US; Year: 2021; Director: Pierre Tsigaridis; Writer: Kristina Klebe, Maxime Rancon, Pierre Tsigaridis; Stars: Rebekah Kennedy, Danielle Kennedy, Ian Michaels, Clint Hummel Dina Silva, Belle Adams)

Full review

Val

Fin is a criminal on the run, wanted for the murder of his boss and the accidental shooting of a police officer. He breaks into the home of a high-class escort, only to discover that she was expecting him all along.

(Country: US; Year: 2021; Director: Aaron Fradkin; Writer: Aaron Fradkin, Victoria Fratz; Stars: Misha Reeves, Zachary Mooren, Kyle Howard, John Kapelos, Sufe Bradshaw, Erik Griffin, Victoria Fratz)

When The Screaming Starts

When Norman Graysmith is invited into the home of an aspiring serial killer, Aidan Mendle, he believes he has the subject for the documentary that will make his career.

(Country: UK; Year: 2021; Director: Conor Boru; Writer: Conor Boru, Ed Hartland; Stars: Yasen Atour, Katharine Bennett-Fox, Lee Nicholas Harris, Ronja Haugholt, Siu-see Hung)