FrightFest 2024

Frightfest 2024, day 1 mini-review

It’s that special time of year again, when I skulk away into darkness for four-and-a-half days and watch a whole bunch of horror movies back-to-back. This year’s actually the 25th anniversary of Frightfest, and it’s being hosted at the Odeon Leicester Square. It’s a lovely venue, though I do miss the massive IMAX Screen from The Empire, last year.

Anyway, the first night kicked off with three decent-to-excellent movies. Here’s my hot takes on them (No spoilers!)

BROKEN BIRD (dir. Joanne Mitchell)

A morbidly funny mystery thriller, that feels like a dark inverted version of Amelie, by way of The League of Gentlemen. It’s anchored by an outstanding (and unnerving) performance by Rebecca Calder. Beautifully made with stunning cinematography. A great film to kick things off with. 8/10

TEST SCREENING (dir. Clive Baker)

Videodrome meets Stranger Things in this 1982-set tale about sinister mind-and-body-warping experiments. It nails the aesthetic of the period pretty well and there’s some decent performances in there. The pacing is a bit up and down in places, but I quite liked this one. It also had some very decent gruesome body horror makeup effects that reminded me of Screaming Mad George’s work on SOCIETY. Good soundtrack by Austin Wintory too. 6/10

THE INVISIBLE RAPTOR (Dir. Mike Hermosa)

A perfect film to end the evening with. This was shown at the Glasgow Frightfest earlier this year and it’s a very fun horror comedy (emphasis on comedy!) A great silly sense of humour and some loving homages to the cinema of Steven Spielberg too. We had a blast with this one, though at nearly 2 hours long it did slightly start to drag at the end. But still, a lot of fun 7/10

Now I’m going to crash in bed and try and hopefully make it in to the first film tomorrow – which is apparently the world’s first gaelic-language horror film. I’ll keep posting these write-ups as I go.

Frightfest 2024, day 2 mini-review (Friday)

I got five films in today, so here’s my thoughts.

AN TAIBHSE (THE GHOST) dir. John Farrelly

I managed to get up early enough to make it in for the first movie of the day. This movie had some good credentials and also the unusual distinction of being the first Irish-language horror movie. I’m a sucker for creepy period ghost stories, but sadly this one ultimately fell flat for me. The sound design was relentlessly overbearing – there were almost no quiet moments – it was constant BHWAAAAMMMMMMMHHHHH!! The performances were decent enough as far as I could tell. But the story felt a bit threadbare and the final denouement felt messy and papered over with some insanely strobe-y editing. Also a small period detail niggle – I’m sure I saw a plastic handle on the girls bucket and I’m fairly sure those weren’t around in the late 19th Century. At least the cinematography was beautiful. 5/10

BOOKWORM (dir. Ant Timpson)

Absolutely loved this daft and heartfelt kiwi comedy-drama-adventure. Utterly charming script that felt like a slightly better version of Taika Waititi. And a lovely pair of leads in precociously talented Nell Fisher, playing off against Elijah Wood (who I think is just getting better with age!) The whole audience seemed to be having a ball with this one. Heartedly recommended, though to be clear – it’s not a horror film in any sense, apart from some mild peril! 8/10

GHOST GAME (dir. Jill Gervargizian)

A decent enough horror-thriller, with elements of MY LITTLE EYE or a non-comedic version of DEADSTREAM. Though it looked… well… a bit unfinished. The colours and contrast of the picture were all over the shop like it hadn’t been colour graded yet – half the shots looked like they were raw Log footage. Luckily the sound design was decent, which helped it over the line. But they really need to get a good colorist to work over this one. It’s not a bad film, but right now it shouldn’t be released in its current state til they fix the technical issues. 6/10

SHELBY OAKS (dir. Chris Stuckmann)

I’d heard good things about this one, and it is indeed rather good. Starts off like a pure found-footage documentary (a bit like LAKE MUNGO) but then swiftly switches to a more conventional horror movie, in terms of form. Which was a slight disappointment in some ways, since it all ended up feeling a bit more conventional as a result. Anyway, it’s still very well crafted and the core cast are decent, especially Camille Sullivan. The plot didn’t really offer the level of fresh invention that we saw in movies like BARBARIAN, but yeah still a fun one. 7/10

THE HITCHER (dir. Robert Harmon)

This was the new 4K restoration of the classic 80s road-movie horror. I don’t really need to write much about it, other than it’s still one of the very best horror movies of the 80s and it was fantastic to see it play on the big screen.

So, a fun first full day. I was sadly way too knackered to face the final late night one – HAUNTOLOGY. But tomorrow I plan to see EVERY FILM in the main screen. If the mind/flesh isn’t too weak!!

Frightfest 2024 – Saturday (Day 3)

A day of great films (and one shockingly bad one). Managed to do all 6 films in the main screen today. So writing this spoiler-free mini-review in a slightly delirious state 🙂

SURVIVE (dir. Frederic Jardin)

This movie was not so much high-concept as “completely bonkers” concept. A family get stranded at the bottom of the ocean’s floor after a bizarre natural event drains the seven seas, unleashing abyssal horrors. It’s an audaciously ridiculous idea and to the filmmaker’s credit, it’s crafted well enough that I mostly bought in to it. I almost hope that this gets a US remake with a big budget as it could look amazing visually if the seabed was created digitally (or with more expansive set dressing) instead of just… well.. Morocco with some small additions 🙂 But as I said, it’s a well made film with some very decent CG creature work too. I had a lot of fun with it and it was the perfect film to kick off Saturday morning. 7/10

THE LAST VOYAGE OF THE DEMETER (dir. André Øvredal)

Although this film was released in the US last year, it never received an official UK cinema release until now. And that’s a pity as it’s a thoroughly respectable adaptation of (part of) Dracula. Extremely high production values and a great cast. It deserved to be seen on the big screen (and i’m sure it wasn’t cheap to make either!) 7/10

DEAD MAIL (dir. Joe DeBoer and Kyle McConaghy)

By some measure, the most unusual and original film I’ve seen at the festival so far. It’s almost Coen-brothers-esque in its quirky plotting (in a FARGO or BURN AFTER READING like way). The period detail is unbelievably well done and it feels so completely of a time in the late 70s/early 80s. Fantastic performances and with a plot that you just can’t work out which way it’s going to go. Well, not exactly anyway. Weird, disturbing but also really quite funny in places too. 8/10

TRAUMATIKA (dir. Pierre Tsigaridis)

Oh god. Where to start with this one? This movie was tonally all over the place. It was cack-handedly bad, but so much so it almost started to transcend to THE ROOM levels of unintentional comedy. Some of the acting and directing choices had the audience crying with laughter in areas I’m pretty sure were meant to be dead serious. A baffling mess, though one that may actually achieve cult status for all the wrong reasons. 3/10 (and most of those points are for technical reasons – the cinematography, sound and music was all decent enough – way better than it deserved)

STRANGE DARLING (dir. JT Mollner)

After that last stinker, I was happy to discover that the next movie was possibly the best film I’ve seen at the Festival so far. This twisty non-linear serial killer drama-thriller is almost impossible to describe without giving away its many secrets. It’s brilliantly written and ridiculously stylish. The cinematography by Giovanni Ribisi (yes, that Giovanni Ribisi) is staggeringly artful and vibrant. And it’s dark, twisted and surprisingly funny. Superb. 9/10

MEMBERS CLUB (dir. Marc Coleman)

Final film of the evening was a fun little slice of silly brit comedy. Think THE FULL MONTY meets SATANIC PANIC as a bunch of over-the-hill, hapless male strippers end up in the crosshairs of a plot by a coven of witches to raise the dead. A witty and suitably silly script with plenty of broad but very relatable humour and some great larger-than-life characters. I laughed a lot in this. A really fun late night film. The budget was clearly low, but it shows how a good script with the right cast can make a slice of fried (comedy) gold. 7/10

I suspect I’m gonna miss the first film tomorrow morning as I am now completely zonked. But can’t wait to get my teeth back in to the rest of them. Many more good movies to come I hope!

Frightfest 2024 – Sunday (Day 4)

As predicted, I was pretty wiped out this morning after my epic movie marathon the day before. So sadly I missed THE LAST ASHES, which according to the people sitting next to me was quite decent. But I did make it in for the rest of them, and it was a fun day, with not a single bad movie amongst the lineup. Here’s my thoughts:

THE LIFE AND DEATHS OF CHRISTOPHER LEE (dir. Jon Spira)

I’m glad I didn’t let my previous day’s knackered-ness stop me from seeing this one, as it turned out to be a wonderful documentary, made with real care and attention and a wry sense of humour. Having it presented by a puppet of the man himself, voiced perfectly by the incomparable Peter Serafinowitz was a genius move. And there was lovely use of animation, including a particularly artful and beautiful sequence by Dave McKeen. 7/10

AZRAEL: ANGEL OF DEATH (dir. E.L. Katz)

I love, LOVE movies that use visual narration. It’s almost the purest form of storytelling.. Set some time in the aftermath of The Rapture, the remnants of humanity eke out their existence in primitive conditions. Speech is forbidden, lest it bring forth devils. Against this background, a gruelling survival and revenge tale unfolds as one woman fights against her oppressors. Vibing a bit like a religious-themed version of THE LAST OF US by way of THE VILLAGE, this was a real thrill ride. Great direction by the guy who did CHEAP THRILLS (a big Frightfest hit many years ago) and written by the guy who did YOU’RE NEXT (another awesome Frightfest experience) it’s no surprise that this turned out great. The lack of dialog means that some might find this a bit ambiguous, but for me it was part of the charm – and helped me feel utterly immersed in this unsettling world. 8/10

SAINT CLARE (dir. Mitzi Peirone)

After the grim intensity of the previous film, it was nice to have some laughs with the screams on the next one. SAINT CLARE was a whole bag of fun, with elements of ODD THOMAS and SCREAM in a kooky fun HEATHER-esque package. It deftly slipped from horror to laughs and back again. Lots of fun, with a likeable lead and great supporting cast. 8/10

INVADER (dir. Mickey Keating)

A grimy urban nightmare that is definitely not ever going to be endorsed by the Chicago tourism board 🙂 It has an intense gritty realness, a bit like the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre. And at a lean 76 minute running time, it doesn’t ever feel like it slows down. It’s unrelenting and builds up to an intense finale. Very good. 7/10

Final day tomorrow. It’s been a great festival this year, and hopefully there’s some more bangers to come yet!

Frightfest 2024 – Monday (Day 5)

The last day! I’m sad to see it draw to a close, but nothing lasts forever 🙂

THE DEAD THING (dir. Elric Kane)

This first one ended being a bit frustrating. I loved the atmosphere and moody style of it, capturing the lonely beauty of LA at night. It’s also richly sensual and genuinely hot in the intimate scenes. Then halfway through, it seems to shift gears and what was previously an intriguingly ambiguous take on the deathly nature of online hookup culture took a turn into a slightly ridiculous, more traditional horror movie territory. It was maddening as for the first 45ish minutes I thought this movie was going to be a solid 8/10 for me, but by the end it was more like 4/10. The second half developments just didn’t work for me. It’s shame as I really liked elements of it. Final score – 5/10

A DESERT (dir. Joshua Erkman)

I liked this a lot. It brought back memories of desert fever-dream road movies like THE HITCHER and KALIFORNIA, though it’s structurally a lot closer to something like PSYCHO. Beautifully shot – which was appropriate given that much of the subject matter of the film is about people capturing images. Great performances and artfully directed. Maybe a bit slow for some, but I dug the unfolding gradual reveal of the story. 7/10

I skipped the next film – LADYBUG – as it didn’t look great, so instead I got some amazing lunch at Speedboat Bar on Rupert Street (the Prawn Ceviche there is one of the tastiest, spiciest things I’ve eaten!) Feeling refreshed and revived, I carried on to…

COLD WALLET (dir. Cutter Hodierne)

A really decent crime thriller with overtones of A SIMPLE PLAN, but given some interesting flavour and modern relevance with its subject matter of Crypto scams. Steven Soderburg was named as an exec producer, and it had elements of his style to it. Minimal and realistic, but gets a bit more outlandish towards the end (in a good way). A tightly plotted tale that certainly kept my attention throughout. 7/10

THE SUBSTANCE (dir. Coralie Fargeat)

Finally we got to the closing film of the festival. And holy cow – what a film to end it on!!! This movie was absolutely crazy. A real wild ride that went so much further and harder than I thought it ever could. It’s like David Lynch, David Cronenberg and Ken Russell somehow fused a piece of bloody art together and this was the result. A dayglo nightmare that’s both hilarious and horrifying in equal measures. It may not be particularly subtle – but that hardly matters when you’re having this much fun! My jaw was on the floor, especially towards the end. Just when you think “it must end now – surely it can’t top this” IT DOES!!!

Huge respect to Demi Moore for taking on this role. What a ride. I won’t be getting this out of my head for a long time!! 9/10

And that’s it! Overall, a fantastic festival this year. Some great movies and surprisingly few mediocre ones (even the less-good ones were interesting!) As I keep telling people – I may not take many holidays (being self-employed) – but Frightfest is one holiday I do every year, and it’s a hell of a trip. I have so much appreciation for Alan, Paul, Ian, Greg and all the people involved organising it. It truly is a very special place and time. There’s nothing else quite like it. And it’s kind of crazy to think it’s now 25 years old, yet still feels so fresh and vibrant. Long may it last!