Warning - disturbing/mature content and images  Z (Dir. Brandon Christensen) TORONTO PREMIERE (83 mins) A family find themselves terrorized by their eight-year-old son's imaginary friend. MY TAKE: The director mentioned during Q&A that budget constraints dictated the look of the terrifying imaginary friend at the centre of this picture, Z, but I must say, they dealt with it in a way that made Z seem like an expensive and sophisticated CGI creation. Only quick "full reveals" to see, otherwise we're mostly seeing Z through his actions and the behaviour of other characters (not to mention a glimpse out of the corner of the eye here and there). Another strong ensemble cast fleshes out the characters (whether they annoy you at times or not, it's all a part of who they are and a larger back story). I really enjoyed the twists and turns of plot, including the lead's final solution to the problem...though I very much doubt there's any way to completely get rid of this insidious "friend." And wait for what Kirk Haviland of Blood in the Snow referred to as a truly jaw-dropping moment about midway through the film - it's really something!  THE REMNANT (Dir. Navin Ramaswaran) (16:45 mins) A team of con artists posing as paranormal investigators steal from the home of an affluent elderly woman, only to find themselves unleashing a dormant malevolent spirit. MY TAKE: Creepy cool meets the art world, once again! There's a larger story here, and I hope someday the filmmakers see fit to expand this story line.
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Warning - disturbing/mature content and images  MYSTERY TRACKERS (Dir. Robin Hunter) (4:40 mins) concept pilot An animated web series poking fun at the numerous shows exploring the paranormal. Rex Daniels, the conceited, non-believing host of the show puts up a good front and plays along with the victims of the paranormal. Soon he finds himself terrified in very real situations. MY TAKE: A fun animated series! TO NO MAN'S LAND (Dir. Khizer Khani) (12:00 mins) concept pilot When a catastrophic attack puts a peaceful galactic nation on the brink of war, a lowly Scout is sent to an isolated planet to obtain the whereabouts of the one man who may know who committed the attack. But he quickly finds out that there are other players in the game, trying to incite a war between the peaceful factions in the universe. MY TAKE: This would definitely make a fun series - looking forward to seeing more from these filmmakers. Check out my interview with the makers of To No Man's Land below... RESOLVE (Dir. Marta Borowski) (12:30 mins) RESOLVE explores the ways we hurt one another and the nature of forgiveness in a world connected by social media. MY TAKE: I think our world probably needs this app. Very neat, ad style short. DARK BEFORE DAWN: CARAVAN (Dirs. Brodie Spaull & Paul Krysinski) (9:58 mins)
After catastrophic social collapse, the survivors struggle to find their way in the harsh wilds. "Season 1" follows two such survivors, whose path becomes divided. Reconnecting in the future, they are both changed men. On the trail of his missing son, a man and his long-time friend are led to a decrepit caravan, where a nefarious merchant resides. MY TAKE: Cool concept...I'm liking the two main characters.  Honourable Mention in the Humour Category!
ORDER YOUR COPY HERE! (Please note that I am restocking this book, so your order may take a little longer than usual if you order from me directly) Warning - disturbing/mature content and images  ROMI (Dir. Robert Cuffley) (10:00 mins) A woman is terrorized by her virtual assistant after it dredges up an ugly event from her past. MY TAKE: Creepy and clever...totally tweaked my distrust of Alexa-type devices!  THE THOUGHT OF YOU (Dir. Elvis Deane) (8:34 mins) A woman tries to move on from the events of a violent night, but finds that it's not only trauma that comes clawing back. MY TAKE: This film oughta resonate with any victim of violence...  ABHORRENT (Dir. David Scott) (15:00 mins) A woman learns the sinister secret her husband has been hiding in the basement and must take violent action or risk losing her son to her spouse's evil influence. MY TAKE: Not absolutely sure of everything that happened in this film, but it was very cool to watch. POLAR TOUR (Dir. Dustin McGladrey) (4:30 mins) Three university friends embark on an adventure they hope never to forget. They choose an exotic location in the Arctic to go polar bear seeing for their Spring Break. In the middle of their first tour, the engine of the rover breaks down. Now isolated and freezing in the dark, they wait for rescue. With their morale at a real low, their isolation ends with a chilling spring polar bear experience they did not plan for. MY TAKE: Some visceral terror from the cast - good stuff!  Episode 3 of a 13 episode web series called "A Man of Great Importance Explores the Scary Changes, and Social Decline, and Secret Horrors of Our World, and He Doesn’t Like it One Bit". Based on characters from the feature film "Space Zombies: 13 Months of Brain-Spinning Mayhem!", including A Man of Great Importance, the movie's narrator. This episode stars Jason Reilly as A Man of Great Importance. Written by Jason Reilly. Directed and edited by Regan Macaulay. Lights and camera work by Kevin Risk. Produced by Maureen Bell, Regan Macaulay and Kevin Risk. And don't forget to check out the inspiration for this series, my own B-movie, Space Zombies: 13 Months of Brain-Spinning Mayhem!
Warning - disturbing/mature content and images  SPECTRE (Dirs. Gabriela Diacon & Mariana Diacon) (4:08 mins) Things turn sinister at midnight when Anna realizes a presence in her house. MY TAKE: A creepy traditional haunted house tale! SOLITUDE (Dir. Andrew Fleming) (5.24 mins) In this short thriller a man disconnects from his city life for tranquility while solo camping and canoeing through Ontario backcountry. MY TAKE: A short, sweet and simple tale with one actor (and a very small crew) is exquisitely effective with it's late in the game twist! THE ACRYLIC (Dir. Daniel Pike) (12:23 mins) On the hunt for some new art for her apartment walls, Rosie acquires a bizarre painting from an equally bizarre art collector. MY TAKE: A perfectly creepy tale about possessed artwork! SNACK TIME! (Dirs. Kaw Tay Whee School students) (4:20 mins)
The "Frostbite" kids are back! in Kindergarten, EVERYONE can hear you scream. MY TAKE: I love these kids...I love their puppets - it's all awesome-sauce! Especially that one kid that will remind you a little of a certain Home Alone moment... Warning - disturbing/mature content and images  Dead Dicks (Dir. Chris Bavota, Lee Paula Springer) TORONTO PREMIERE (83 mins) After Becca receives a distressing call from her suicidal brother Richie, she rushes over to his apartment and finds him alive and well - surrounded by copies of his own dead body. MY TAKE: This is not the movie you expect it will be going in, even though there are Dicks, literal and as classy metaphoric descriptions. It's about the cycle of death and rebirth. It's about mental health and the traps it lays for those who suffer from it, as well as their loved ones who suffer along with them on their journey. But it also knows when to add a touch of levity. The characters are strong and real and connected. I wouldn't say it's a full on horror comedy, but it's close enough for me. It's no wonder this is one of the movies nominated for BITS "Bloodies"...gotta love a fun film with a unique concept that also gives you some twisted speculative fiction, a dash of gratuity (in the form of nudity and gore) that's grounded with a message...maybe not so much a message as a bit of a study. This was a low budget production shot in 10 days plus, making it all the more amazing. Watch my interview with Lee and Chris, co-writers and co-directors.  Sky So Blue (Dir. Tyler Williams) (15:12 mins) After being attacked and imprisoned in his own home, a man stands accused of creating a strange piece of music that may or may not have the power to kill anyone who hears it. MY TAKE: This is very much in the tradition of a Twilight Zone, Night Gallery, Outer Limits or Black Mirror episode - a super cool concept. Warning - disturbing/mature content and images  THE VIDEO STORE COMMERCIAL (Dirs. Cody Kennedy and Tim Rutherford) (4.10 mins) A desperate video store owner hires a crew to shoot a commercial in his shop. But when they accidentally destroy a cursed VHS, suddenly, all their lives are in danger.- and worse yet, the commercial may never get finished. MY TAKE: A fun throwback to the 80s with a wickedly awesome supernatural creature! NOW IS THE PRINTER OF OUR DISCONTENT (Dir. Michael Peeling) (10:25 mins) After experiencing a series of unsettling events, a couple begins to fear that an evil printer may be at the centre of their paranoia. MY TAKE: Ha...a printer as stalker monster! Love it! VIDEO VENGENCE (Dir. Nada Cosovic) (5:57 mins) Two "cool girl" video rental shop employees make the best of the graveyard shift when an obnoxious customer shows face. MY TAKE: A totally fun 80s vibe here, shot at the great Eyesore Cinema! A strong entry from students at Humber College... Wanna check out my video with the owner and proprietor of Eyesore Cinema (many time location choice for independent filmmakers in TO) - click HERE. Warning - disturbing/mature content and language in photos, clips and trailers HAPPY FACE (Dir. Alexandre Franchi) TORONTO PREMIERE (97 mins) Desperate to become less shallow, Stan, a handsome 19-year-old, deforms his face with bandages and attends a support group for people with facial differences after he learns his cancer-ridden mother will undergo invasive facial surgery. But when he’s exposed as an impostor, Stan strikes a deal with Vanessa, the obese, domineering workshop leader to let him stay and build up his immunity to ugliness, and in exchange he’ll train her disfigured patients on how to use their facial differences as a weapon against our beauty-obsessed culture. MY TAKE: An emotional roller-coaster that is, in fact, not a horror or even a genre film, but fits in so well at genre festivals because of how it's subject matter - differently faced people - might compare to the tales of Mary Shelley, for example. A study of how what we perceive and fear as something ugly affects not only those we look upon and judge, but ourselves (more profoundly than we may expect). Having real, differently faced people playing the roles makes the characters authentic, as well as forcing the audience to see them as they are. They may make you cringe at first, but you see the people they are within soon enough. This makes the film, in my opinion.  LIAISON (Dir. Lyndon Horsfall) (12:30 mins)
"Liaison" is a short dramatic film about a woman who feels helpless in the circumstances of her life, so she embarks on a journey to make things right with the man who is troubling her. MY TAKE: Intense Mama Bear stuff! Warning - disturbing/mature content, images, and language  PUPPET KILLER (Dir. Lisa Ovies) TORONTO PREMIERE (83 mins) While celebrating Christmas at a cabin in the woods, a group of high school students are stalked by a psychotic killer obsessed with horror movie icons. MY TAKE: I love it when a horror-comedy is more than just a parody, but rather an homage. Lisa Ovies says her film Puppet Killer is a love letter to all her favourite slasher and horror movies of the 80s. Tons of little Easter eggs for fans of movies such as Halloween, Friday the 13th, A Nightmare on Elm Street and the like. Simon the titular puppet is a demented, murderous Elmo and just as adorable (more so, if you ask me). A strong ensemble cast including Aleks Paunovic (Van Helsing, War for the Planet of the Apes), Lisa Durupt (Heartland), Lee Majdoub (The 100, Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency), Gigi Saul Guerrero (Super Monsters), Richard Harmon (Van Helsing, The 100), Kyle Cassie (Dead Pool), Geoff Gustafson (Hot Tub Time Machine), and Beverley Eliot (Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, Once Upon a Time). Ms. Ovies took a risk—she cast all the teenagers with actors WELL over the age of 30—a trait of many of the slasher films (Jamie Lee Curtis was definitely NOT a teenager when she got her big break in Halloween), but Lisa and Writer decided to push the envelope further — Aleks Paunovic, who plays the lead, Jamie, is 50! She mentioned at the Q&A that a lot of people fought her on that choice, but she stuck with it, and frankly, I’d say it paid off. Watching this cast of grown-ass adults talk like horror movies think teenagers talk doesn’t stop being funny for a minute. I gotta say, though some may find Simon to be an ugly puppet, I find him cute and endearing. What does that say about me? We’ll save that analysis for another day (tell me that you don’t get a little sad during a scene late in the film where Jamie must make a hard decision about his childhood friend). |
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