The Pope’s Exorcist is the kind of movie that feels like it was greenlit after someone said, “What if Russell Crowe did The Exorcist, but, like, fun?” and then nobody in the room had the courage to say no. Based (very loosely) on the writings of Father Gabriele Amorth, it takes a fascinating real person … Read More “Holy Ghost, What Is This?” »
Perpetrator is what happens when a teen coming-of-age movie, a feminist horror-noir, and a midnight film with a twisted sense of humor all get tossed into the same witch’s cauldron and boiled on high. Written and directed by Jennifer Reeder, the 2023 Shudder original follows Jonquil “Jonny” Baptiste, a reckless teen who turns 18, gets … Read More “A Coming-of-Rage Story with Teeth” »
Organ Trail is the rare modern horror Western that remembers two crucial truths: the frontier was hell, and people are idiots. Set in 1870s Montana, the film treats the Oregon Trail era less like a sepia-toned history lesson and more like a long, brutal error message from God. And yet, beneath the frostbite, bullet wounds, … Read More “Blood on the Snow, Heart on Its Sleeve” »
A Sequel That Actually Needed to Exist Some horror sequels feel like contractual obligations with a fog machine. The Nun II is not one of them. Set in 1956, a few years after the original film, this follow-up actually expands the mythology instead of just rearranging crucifixes and jump scares. Director Michael Chaves takes the … Read More “The Nun II: Valak’s European Vacation (Now with Extra Goat)” »
If you’ve ever wished The Silence of the Lambs had more cursed dolls, occult geometry, and Nicolas Cage looking like a demon drag mime who hasn’t slept since 1963, Longlegs is the movie your therapist warned you about. Osgood Perkins takes the bare bones of an FBI vs. serial killer story and dresses it in … Read More “Longlegs (2024) – Satanic Serial Killers, Mommy Issues, and the Worst Birthday Ever” »
Every once in a while, a film’s title perfectly sums up the viewing experience. Ick is one of those rare cases. It’s supposed to be a slick, cheeky sci-fi horror comedy about an alien plant parasite and a washed-up ex–high school star getting a second shot at heroism. Instead, it’s a 93-minute reminder that tone … Read More “Ick – When the Title Accidentally Reviews the Movie for You” »
If you’ve ever wondered what would happen if a ghost story, a spoof, a revenge saga, a film industry satire, and a family drama all collided in a narrow Ooty ghat road, Geethanjali Malli Vachindi is your answer. It’s loud, it’s busy, it’s overstuffed, and yet somehow still manages to feel weirdly empty—like a thali … Read More “Geethanjali Malli Vachindi – When the Ghost Should’ve Stayed Home” »
There are legacy sequels that honor the original, reimagine its themes, and carve out their own identity. Festival of the Living Dead is not one of those. This is the cinematic equivalent of microwaving George A. Romero’s Night of the Living Dead at 3 a.m., dropping it on the floor, and eating it anyway because … Read More “Festival of the Living Dead – Night of the Reheated, Overcooked, and Underdone” »
There’s bleak, there’s “European art-horror bleak,” and then there’s The Devil’s Bath, which looks at both and says, “Hold my severed finger.” Veronika Franz and Severin Fiala have made a historical horror drama so committed to suffering that by the end you’re not sure if you’ve watched a movie or been sentenced to a carefully … Read More “The Devil’s Bath – Prestige Misery for People Who Hate Feeling Things Subtly” »
The Deliverance is the kind of movie that makes you appreciate mediocre horror, because suddenly “just fine” looks like a masterpiece. It’s inspired by the Ammons haunting case, which is wild, messy, and unnerving in all the right ways. This film, on the other hand, takes that raw, chaotic material and processes it into something … Read More “The Deliverance – Netflix and Holy Chill” »