Sabrina: Move Over Annabelle

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

An Indonesian demon doll film.

I enjoyed the originality of the scares on display in this film, and that despite being a doll film which in and off itself is a very played out genre there is some originality here. Moreover, I also will commend this film for the lengths it goes to in terms of its physical effects, though at times you can tell it is very low budget when the demon woman, played by Asri Handayani, is featured you can tell the film is pulling out the stops. The look of the demon woman is constantly on point and well maintained.

However, where this film falls apart for me is that its tone is all over the place, sometimes it is scary and seems like a genuine horror film whereas other times it feels closer to a horror comedy as the campy elements start to play up. Furthermore, the film has awful pacing issues and has no business being on for almost two hours, what makes this especially bad is the fact that the film has several long drawn out flashback scenes that drag on and on.

Overall, though I appreciate the originality, the tone and the pacing issues really stop this film from being in any way above average.

Pros.

The originality

The make-up effects

The scares

Cons.

The pacing

The tone

The performances

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Umma: Mummy Issues

2/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

A mother, played by Sandra Oh, and her daughter, played by Fivel Stewart, must contend with past ghosts that arrive after a death in the family.

So I will give this film props for originality, the Korean flavour to it helped to set it apart from a lot of other mother-daughter horror films out there, moreover, the mythology of the film feels likewise fresh and novel.

However, that is where the praise ends, as though there was some novelty to the film for the most part it was incredibly cliched and predictable. I don’t know if it is just because I watch a lot of films, but I could accurately work out from the opening five minutes where this film was going and how it was going to end and it did just that, not a surprise in store.

Moreover, the mother-daughter relationship between Oh and Stewarts’ characters felt like re-treading well worn ground, the relationship added little new to either the genre as a whole or to mother-daughter relationships in general, much like the wider conflict of the film we have seen it before.

Overall, though certain parts of the horror feel fresh it can’t mask the wider feeling of over familiarity and blandness on display here.

Pros.

The Korean inspiration to the horror

It is watchable

Cons.

The mother-daughter relationship

It is generic

It has been done better before

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Interview With Writer/Director/ Editor Hunter ‘Bueller’ Farris: Found Footage Dracula.

Written by Luke Barnes

I recently had the chance to interview writer/director Hunter ‘Buller’ Farris, about his new film Found Footage Dracula which serves as a reimagining of the classic tale of Dracula. In this interview we discuss Bram Stoker, The League Of Extradentary Gentlemen and the benefits to shooting films in the found footage style. I hope you enjoy.

Q: What made you want to make this film?

HF: Bram Stoker’s novel was written in a series of letters, journal entries, newspaper clippings, scientific writings, and half-a-dozen other formats, so I felt like found footage was the only way to capture the experience of what it feels like to read the original novel.

Q: What was the message you wanted to get across?

HF: I wanted to help audiences understand what it feels like to be an audience member in 1897, so this film could be an empathy machine and so this film could help us understand that our modern perspective is not the only perspective.

Q: What is your favourite vampire film?

HF: I’m going to be honest, I love the aesthetic of League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (2003). The whole film is this wonderfully rule-of-cool dieselpunk dream.

Q: Why re-do Dracula?

HF: A lot of versions I’ve seen of Dracula take out some of my favourite parts of the novel, like Jonathan being manipulated by Castle Dracula, the voyage of the Demeter, and the character of Quincey P. Morris. So I wanted to put those parts back in. Also, no one has ever done Found Footage Dracula, and I feel like it’s the best way to capture the experience of what it’s like to read the original novel.

Q: What benefits do you find to shooting in the found footage style?

HF: Found footage is incredibly cheap, so we could pay all the cast and crew fairly for less than $2000 because you only need 1 or 2 people on set at a time. When your set doesn’t need fancy lighting, or a separate sound source, or PAs, or grips, or a DIT, you can film from anywhere in the world. So I was able to work with people I would never get to work with.

Q: What do you think your film contributes to the wider found footage genre?

HF: Most epistolary novels are exclusively letters. Bram Stoker’s novel expands that format to everything from invoices to journal entries, to a suicide note! To capture that feeling, I wanted to expand past the traditional form of found footage and use a dozen different sources of videos, like TikTok, Snapchat, podcasts, and even a doorcam!

Q: Any funny on set stories?

HF: Honestly, I can’t think of much that was funny. Weird? Yes. Comfortable? Yes. But not much funny.

Q: Future plans?

HF: We’re expanding to a cinematic universe, including Jekyll & Hyde as a social media screen movie, Dorian Grey as a juxtaposition of social media and private video, and The Phantom of the Opera as a fictional Making-Of documentary. And eventually, all of those will crossover, inspired by The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.

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Found Footage Dracula

4/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

Dracula finally goes found footage.

I have been excited to see this film for a while now, and now that I have I can say it lived up to my expectations. It was both what you would imagine it to be, a found footage film about Dracula but also so much more, I liked that this film was not afraid to do something different with the classic tale and mix things up, I thought the originality was both novel and refreshing.

I thought this film did a lot with its premise and filming methods and managed to be both entertaining and tense throughout. Just when I think the found footage sub-genre has started to dry up for good, something like this comes along and renews my faith in it.

My one critique of the film would be that it felt quite rushed. By that I mean the film could have been strengthened by adding ten or twenty minutes to the runtime as it would have allowed the film to come into its own just that bit more.

Overall, a very novel film that brings you a fresh take on a well-worn story.

Pros.

The originality

Making the most of the format

The performances

Entertaining and tense throughout

Cons.

The pacing had some issues, it could have done with being a bit longer

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1408: Did Someone Call The Hotel Inspector?

4/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

A haunted house investigator, played by John Cusack, finally meets his match.

I have been a fan of Stephen King for many years and watched many of the adaptions of his work, however, this one has always slipped through my grasp, for reasons unknown. Upon watching it now I wish I had watched it sooner.

For the most part this is a good haunted house film, the story is suitably scary and the threat feels very real, Samuel L. Jackson does a lot with a very limited roll, and the dated early 2000s CGI effects bring an element of fond nostalgia with them. I would say the film crosses the line into unintentionally funny a few times, but for the most part this isn’t the case.

I saw the director’s cut ending and enjoyed it immensely I thought it managed to nail the tone perfectly between bleak and intriguing, I am aware there are several different endings out there and tried to watch as many of them as I could after watching this film to see which worked the best- I found the director’s cut ending was the best.

My one complaint of this film would be John Cusack. Now, this is only a light criticism but it must be said, Cusack is playing himself here as he often does, if you don’t like Cusack’s shtick then you will find his character irritating and annoying so that may hamper your enjoyment of this film.

Overall, a fun charming horror film.

Pros.

Jackson

The director’s cut ending

The dated CGI

The scares

Cons.

Cusack is not even trying to act here

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The Cursed: A New Breed Of Werewolf

3/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

A British hamlet falls prey to a Romani curse and becomes the hunting ground for a werewolf.

This was by no means a perfect film, however, as far as the werewolf sub-genre goes it was fairly competent.

I enjoyed the visuals and the fact that this film held nothing back in the gore department, I also appreciated the originality of the premise and how the werewolf came to be; though I will be remiss if I don’t mention the fact it furthers negative concepts about the Roma community.

Moreover, I thought Boyd Holbrook was surprisingly good here, not only was he a welcome on-screen presence but he was also trying to act, and though his accent was inconsistent he did give a good performance for the most part and sunk into the character.

My main criticism of the film would be that it has quite bad pacing issues and feels far longer than it actually is. I would not say the film becomes boring, but I would say it comes dangerously close to it several times.

Overall, a fairly decent werewolf film though nothing to write home about.

Pros.

Holbrook

The originality

The visuals

Cons.

Furthering negative stereotypes about the Romany people

The pacing

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Studio 666: Sadly This Isn’t A Breakout But Is More Of A Horror Pretender

2.5/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

The Foo Fighters, playing themselves, begin recording an album in a haunted studio, hijinks ensue.

Now I will preface this coming review by saying I am a big Foo Fighters fan and have been for many years, but even coming from that sort of place this film didn’t do much for me.

My main issue with this film was that it just didn’t work, it had no real reason to exist and didn’t bring either scares or laughs to the table. In the latter regard, the film was both trying too hard to be edgy whilst at the same time also being incredibly tame. It approaches self-parody at times, I will give them the benefit of the doubt and say that this was deliberate, but even then it didn’t go far enough to sell it.

In terms of the scares this film was nothing new some gross out stuff and a gradual growing possession arc, mixed with a few jump scares. Not only was I not scared I was often quite close to approaching boredom whilst watching this film.

Finally, the Foos themselves just aren’t good actors, and though Grohl has been in other films before he never rises above average. It is painfully clear throughout the film that they are all trying to act but failing to do so.

Overall, this film really could have been something but as it stands it isn’t much of anything.

Pros.

It is watchable

There is some charm here

If you are a big fan of the band there are some neat references and nods to enjoy

Cons.

The comedy doesn’t land

Neither do the scares

The acting is poor

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Gwen: The Horrors Of Rural Wales

2/5

Reviewed by Luke Barnes

Summary

A family in period Wales must try and keep it together in the face of hostile forces, both from within and outside

In many ways, this film wants to be the vvitch, which is evidenced by a lot of thematic borrowing, but it can’t even come close.

This film’s big problem is that you are never quite sure whether it is a horror film or a drama, that shouldn’t be a question that I am still asking even after watching. The horrors of this film come from its incredibly slow pace, which is almost torturous at times, rather than anything else.

That is not to say there aren’t any good scares here, there are one or two interesting scenes that mesh old and new folk horror elements together to create something that feels refreshing, however, the issue with this is that though those scenes are good they are far too few and far between.

Moreover, the ending doesn’t make any sense at all and leaves you going ‘wait what’ which is always a red flag.

Overall, an incredibly slow film that has a few brief moments of promise.

Pros.

A few good scares

Cox

Cons.

The pace

The ending

Is it a horror or a drama

Bride Of Chucky: Chucky Settles Down

4/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

Chucky, played by Brad Dourif, rekindles a romance with his ex-Tiffany, played by Jennifer Tilly.

This and Seed are some what love them or hate them, you either appreciate them for the darkly camp masterpieces they are, or you think they are too silly and lose the plot. I fall into the former and think that Bride Of Chucky may be one of the best comedy horror films of all time and is easily the best of the franchise.

I think a big part of the reason for this is that the domestic comedy pairs so well with the over the top kills and violence of the franchise in a surprising way. Chucky and Tiffany make for an instantly iconic on-screen couple.

Jennifer Tilly is easily a scene stealer here and makes this film entirely her own giving Dourif a fight for the limelight. Tiffany is a welcome addition to the franchise and could easily headline a film of her own without Chucky, I’d watch it.

Overall, a strong horror comedy that brings the laughs as well as everything you would want from the franchise.

Pros.

Tilly

Tiffany as a character and her chemistry with Chucky

The jokes

The kills and gore

Cons.

It could have done with more set up in the first act

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Fresh: There Is Something Worse Than Finding Out Your Partner Is Already Married

4/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

A young woman, played by Daisy Edgar Jones, finally thinks she has met a nice normal guy, played by Sebastian Stan, who she can fall in love with, this all changes when he starts selling her meat to cannibals online.

This film is both unsettling and wonderfully twisted in equal measure. There are scenes that make your skin crawl and that make you feel physically sick, and then there are scene so far out there, like Stan’s character dancing around his kitchen chopping up parts of people to send out, that they become darkly comedic. You might think these two aspects would clash with one another but they actually work really well together.

Stan really revels in the gory spectacle here and plays manic very well, he is both charming and menacing at the same time. Jones is likewise as good and becomes a strong character that you can’t help but root for, I was getting some scream queen/ final girl vibes from her and I think this could be the start of something special if Jones returns to the horror genre again.

The commentary on relationships, dating and what life is like for young women seem to be accurate, I can only speak to parts of that obviously, but as I was watching the film my girlfriend voiced her agreement with a number of the points raised so I am going to assume the commentary is fairly spot on.

The only thing that for me stopped this film from getting higher marks was that some of the elements felt repetitive, which lessened my interest in those sections.

Overall, a fun and well done horror film.

Pros.

Jones

Stan

The commentary

The originality

Cons.

A bit repetitive in places.

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