I’ll keep it short for a change. 2020’s Kindred is a British thriller that is largely a variation on the setup of Rosemary’s Baby. That’s not to say this film is derivative—more like it will appeal to those who like that type of movie. Tamara Lawrence is a pregnant woman imprisoned in the house of […]

I remember commercials for Brainstorm when I was a kid and wanting to see it.  I’m not sure why I wasn’t able to drag my parents to take me to a screening, nor why I never bothered to look for it in the intervening decades. But now I have seen it, and I’m glad I […]

The Outwaters is, as of this writing, the latest found footage sensation.  It was written by, directed by and starring Robbie Banfitch, with his brother Scott co-starring.  Here is how I imagine the conversation went between them as they decided to make this film… Robbie: “Waaaasuuuuup!” Scott: “ Waaaaasuuuuuuup!” “Dude, I have this bitchin’ idea!” […]

I love Futurama, and one of my most favorite scenes in the series involves a character asking a giant, diabolical, floating brain questions only an eternal being can answer.  One question is “what really killed the dinosaurs?”, in reply to which the brain bellows “MEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!”.  Cut to giant floating brains zapping dinosaurs with lightning bolts. […]

As a middle-aged, suburban, CIS man, I’m probably not going to be the best judge of a highly-experimental, post-apocalyptic, super lo-fi, lesbian film.  Lest you think my description of 1992’s Flaming Ears is less than objective, this is the description of the movie from the site of its US distributor: “Super-8 DIY filmmaking at its […]

I often stumble upon movies through a bizarre series of circumstances.  Often, I find my process is like a river, with one movie leading to another through circuitous routes. So I ended up seeing 2021’s She Will because I recently saw Alice Krige in 1980’s Ghost Story and realized I haven’t seen her in anything […]

Some of the most obscure titles in cinematic history have been released on disc, so it makes it even more frustrating when there’s one that hasn’t been given the dvd or blu-ray treatment yet.  I’m hoping what I am about to write will no longer be true at some point in the near future: the […]

Two years after Hammer Studios made the feature film of The Quatermass Xperiment, they made this sequel.  Wisely opting to not take any chances, the sequel has nearly the same people behind the camera, and at least one very important cast member reappearing in front of it. Brian Donlevy again portrays the titular professor.  In […]

There’s a large sign on a building that could either be in the process of being remodeled or prepared for demolition.  Given what we have seen so far of Atlantic City in 1980, good money would be on the latter.  The sign reads “Atlantic City you’re back on the map.  Again”.  First, there’s the wording, […]

The marketing for Stanley Kubrick’s 1962 Lolita used the tagline “How did they ever make a movie of Lolita?”.  Even better question: how does somebody in the 1960’s make a biopic of the Marquis de Sade?  Among the most likely answers include “you don’t”, and another is “not like this movie”. Keir Dullea was excellent […]

I have seen movies where I can say, “Well, I liked all of it except for the ending” and still come away with an overall favorable impression.  Then there are some movies where the ending was so bad, it ruins the entire viewing experience for me. Such is the case with 2020’s Come True. Which […]

Despite being a self-professed anglophile, it has taken me an unusually long time to become acquainted with the Carry On series of films.  This British comedy institution appears to be simultaneously widely loved and derided, with each entry parodying a different subject. My introduction to the series is 1966’s Carry On Screaming, a horror parody […]

I hate the term “children’s entertainment”.  It takes something that could potentially be enjoyed by all ages and puts it in that ghetto of things only to be enjoyed by pre-teens and endured by their parents.  Unfortunately, some of that marginalization is for good reason.  There has been far too much cheap garbage dumped on […]