REVIEW: Sing Sing

We open onstage, blue light and garlands.

We are in the presence of Divine G (Colman Domingo), wreathed and quietly commanding. One line he utters, essaying the role of Lysander in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, could serve as a statement on the whole film that is to follow: “And ere a man hath power to say ‘Behold!’”…

REVIEW: Beetlejuice Beetlejuice

He’s back, baby.

Before Michael Keaton was Batman, he was Beetlejuice.

In Tim Burton’s 1988 film of the same name, Keaton portrayed the titular ghoul; a lecherous, foul-mouthed “bio-exorcist” hired by the recently deceased Maitlands (played by Alec Baldwin and Geena Davis) to scare away the new occupants of their home.…

REVIEW: The Crow (2024)

Finally released from development hell, Rupert Sanders’ The Crow feels tailor-made for Netflix.

Its gritty, “realistic” visuals and its try-hard Hot Topic aesthetic have all the genuine edge of a safety razor. Gone is the brooding Gothic camp of the original, replaced with… very little.…

REVIEW: Alien: Romulus

Alien: Romulus, Fede Álvarez’s addition to the iconic franchise, starts as lean, atmospheric thriller, but, like a face-hugger proboscis down the oesophagus, is forcibly impregnated with clumsy fan service.

Rain (Cailee Spaeny, effective but largely wasted in a straightforward heroine role), our new Ripley, is desperate to escape from the grimy, tenebrous mining colony of Jackson’s Star.…

REVIEW: You Can’t Run Forever

You Can’t Run Forever is a thriller with strong cinematic roots, but it’s one that doesn’t quite bear dramatic fruit.

When traumatised teen Miranda (Isabelle Anaya) gets in the car with her well-meaning stepdad, Eddie (Allen Leech), for a day trip, they can’t know what’s waiting for them out on the highway – an amiably murderous sociopath, Wade (J.…

REVIEW: Late Night with the Devil

A year on from its debut at the South by Southwest Film Festival, with accolades including a rapturous review from horror maestro Stephen King, Late Night with the Devil finally arrives on the public stage.

A found-footage-style horror film with a twist, Late Night with the Devil presents itself as a recently rediscovered episode of a fictional second-tier talk show from the 1970s.…

REVIEW: Doctor Jekyll (2024)

Some stories don’t grow old.

Whether its The Great Gatsby, 1984, or Frankenstein (to name but a very few), they stand the test of time because they each get a profound truth at the heart of society and the human condition, and are retold with endless new iterations and variations.…

REVIEW: There’s Something in the Barn

Tradition dictates that Christmas is a time of peace and goodwill for all men. European folklore would tend to disagree, usually violently.

There’s Something in the Barn is a festive horror-comedy that follows in the bloodied, snowy footprints of Krampus, in which an oblivious American family fall prey to a very different sort of Christmas spirit.…

REVIEW: Dream Scenario, Butcher’s Crossing, and The Retirement Plan [Nicolas Cage Triple Bill]

Dream Scenario

Butcher’s Crossing

The Retirement Plan

Only three of the six Nicolas Cage films released this year, not counting his cameo in The Flash, Dream Scenario, Butcher’s Crossing, and The Retirement Plan showcase the variety and inconsistency of his output.…