Ever since the first genre films established rules, filmmakers have used them as a safety net. For better or worse, this ensured audience familiarity, while also simplifying the production process. Of the genres, horror films are probably the most reliant on these standardized tropes (1996’s “Scream” lampoons this), so much so that there is stagnation…
Directors Shari Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini return with Things Heard & Seen, a film with so many things going on, you can’t classify it as belonging to one particular genre/subgenre. It’s a psychological horror film, a ghost story, a couple drama, and a spirit flick that becomes imbued with religious imagery. If anything, you…
A single environment further enclosed by the forces of winter has proved a suspenseful setting for many a film. From “The Shining” to “The Thing” to “The Hateful Eight,” filmmakers have taken advantage of isolation and inhospitable conditions to create scenarios that breed mistrust, paranoia and outright aggression. Some incorporate a wider expanse into their…
In 1845, a crowd gathers in a field as a young girl is hooded and hoisted into the air by a rope tied to an old oak tree. The men surrounding the base of the tree light a fire, and a priest prays aloud, holding a doll in his hands. The crowd does nothing to…
Conceptual films are always a welcome change from the norm. It takes vision and courage to put together a complex film of this nature and form a whole world without necessarily having to explain it all. Phobias, although an anthology, falls in this category. It has a backdrop that serves as a through subplot that…
A swift cold caress. A metallic blade skims your scalp. The tender handling of hair. The disadvantage of sitting with your back to someone with a lethal tool. You’re at the mercy of a wild array of possibilities that go from the helpful to the obscure. The introduction to The Stylist is a beautiful presentation…
2003’s “Wrong Turn” spawned a surprising franchise. Five sequels and this 2021 reboot demonstrate that screenwriter Alan B. McElroy’s premise has (deformed) legs that have continued to provide bloody scares for audiences. After six films in the original continuity, a reboot seems timely and could continue to capitalize on the potential of city people encountering…
