Fear Itself (2015)
First published by TheHorrorShow It starts (and ends) with a window. We are inside, in shadow, looking out – at a low angle, as though in a bed or on … Continue reading
Elstree 1976 (2015)
Longer version of piece published by Sight & Sound as part of coverage of the Cult programme at the London Film Festival 2015 All cults need their icons (the kitschier the … Continue reading
Future Shock! The Story of 2000AD (2014)
First published by TwitchFilm In 1977, when the new millennium seemed an unimaginably long way into the future, the weekly SF magazine 2000AD was launched, with Pat Mills as its … Continue reading
Waltz With Bashir (2008)
Review first published by Film4 Synopsis: In Ari Folman’s feature-length animated documentary, the filmmaker and one-time soldier sets out to reconstruct his repressed memories of the First Lebanon War. Review: Documentaries are … Continue reading
Electric Boogaloo: The Wild, Untold Story Of Cannon Films (2014)
Review first published by Grolsch FilmWorks In 1984, independent production house Cannon Film Group released Breakin’ (1984), a ramshackle buddy comedy which identified and helped define the breakdancing movement just … Continue reading
On Tender Hooks (2013)
Review first published by Grolsch FilmWorks A memorable scene from Miike Takashi’s outrageous, ultraviolent Ichi the Killer (2001) shows a yakuza being hanged mid-air from hooks inserted into his back, as a … Continue reading
Doc of the Dead (2014)
Review first published by Grolsch FilmWorks With the zombies of cinema, it is a numbers game. Typically shuffling, putrescent and none too smart, zombies pose only a small threat as … Continue reading
Non Fiction Diary (2013)
Review first published by Grolsch FilmWorks “It was beyond terror. I’d seen countless crime scenes, but I’d never seen anything like it.” The speaker is Go Byung-chun, former chief detective … Continue reading
Leviathan (2013)
First published by Grolsch FilmWorks “He maketh the deep to boil like a pot: he maketh the sea like a pot of ointment. He maketh a path to shine after … Continue reading
