Author Archives: Ross Birks

Romero clearly loves King’s sensibility as this goes a long way to retain the spirit of the source novel, despite being a totally batty idea to visualise on-screen. Timothy Hutton makes a meal our of the dual roles with Romero … Continue reading →

This is one of those crackerjack thrillers that really sneaks up on you. Just when you’re comfortably nestled into The Clovehitch Killer and think you know how it’s going to play out, the film will switch gears and take you somewhere you … Continue reading →

I really liked this film’s approach to the horror anthology format. The simple conceit of the haunted book ties the stories together efficiently and the way it’s structured as an ever escalating series of spooky episodes happening to the same … Continue reading →

I always get this mixed up with Slumber Party Massacre, a film I’ve seen, so I thought I’d confuse myself further by finally watching this one too. Turns out a massacre of the Sorority House kind is a little less interesting than the Slumber … Continue reading →

I always find myself tuning out of this one, despite all the impressive practical mayhem on show. It’s astounding to think that there are actual human beings involved in some of those stunts. Unfortunately everything is beefed up, oiled down … Continue reading →

Yep, just as wacky and brain-numbingly bad as you’ve heard and yep, it’s also riotously entertaining. Part Herschell Gordon Lewis offspring, part WTF concoction of unquantifiable proportions. The characterisation and (attempts) at tone shift so suddenly that it’s liable to … Continue reading →

There’s an entire lineage of neglected female-minded American indie movies running parallel to the those solidly established in the canon. So alongside Jim Jarmusch, Spike Lee, Steven Soderbergh, Hal Hartley, or Kevin Smith’s movies you have films like Susan Siedelman’s Smithereens, … Continue reading →

As far as fantasy horror goes, Troll is a quirky, quaint affair. What begins with a little girl visiting oddballs in her apartment building eventually gives way to the twisted troll narrative the title promises. While certainly dark and strange, the film … Continue reading →

Very much a continuation of Breaking Bad‘s autumnal, desaturated last few episodes rather than the scorching sand and blue skies drug western that concluded in the seminal “Ozymandias”. This isn’t an essential coda by any stretch of the imagination, and basically … Continue reading →