Category Archives: Reviews

Brazil (1985)

Posted on December 26, 2017 by Ross Birks

Legitimately one of the most comprehensively realised filmmaking visions ever committed to celluloid, Brazil is a movie stacked with aesthetic bric-a-brac and glued together by madcap paranoia. Surely Gilliam’s crowning achievement and the greatest display of his talents. Here he … Continue reading →

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To Die For (1995)

Posted on November 1, 2017 by Ross Birks

Gus Van Sant never really gets the credit he deserves as a stylist. As someone who got into his work primarily through his austere “Bela Tarr Period” I’m always struck by how formally inventive and playful a lot of his … Continue reading →

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Hellraiser: Hellworld (2005)

Posted on November 1, 2017 by Ross Birks

Reading the synopsis for Hellraiser: Hellworld I was excitedly hoping for the franchise’s own version of Tron. Sadly, Tron this is not. It’s not even Tron: Legacy. The videogame thing is merely a set-up to get a bunch of thankless … Continue reading →

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Halloween (1978)

Posted on October 31, 2017 by Ross Birks

I watch this every year without fail because it is One of The Greatest Movies Ever Made. I still manage to see new things in it. Carpenter’s economical style becomes more and more minimalist the more I see it, almost … Continue reading →

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The Lords of Salem (2012)

Posted on October 31, 2017 by Ross Birks

The Lords of Salem feels like Rob Zombie’s gift to his wife, Sheri-Moon. While she has appeared, gloriously, in all his movies, this is the first that is anchored on one of her performances. He also taps into a different … Continue reading →

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Hellraiser: Deader (2005)

Posted on October 31, 2017 by Ross Birks

Even the words “A Stan Winston Production” at the top of this movie didn’t do much to brighten my spirits as I waded into the seventh instalment of the Hellraiser franchise. Deader is the third consecutive entry that originated from … Continue reading →

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Exorcist II: The Heretic (1977)

Posted on October 31, 2017 by Ross Birks

A crackpot horror that only gets weirder the more you will it to normalise. Just think that this was probably considered one of Warner’s prestige pictures of 1977 and try not to go crosseyed. You can see the logic behind … Continue reading →

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Ben (1972)

Posted on October 31, 2017 by Ross Birks

That pesky rat Ben is back for another nibble! A pretty lackluster and needless Willard sequel that is worth the time if only for the bit where the lead kid sits at a piano and comes up with the title … Continue reading →

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Blood Simple (1984)

Posted on October 30, 2017 by Ross Birks

Blood Simple is the closest the Coens have ever come to making a straight-up horror flick, which is no doubt why I hold it in such high regard. The inventive gore is exceptional. So many wince-inducing moments. The Coens have … Continue reading →

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Orgy of the Dead (1965)

Posted on October 30, 2017 by Ross Birks

I came to the new Vinegar Syndrome blu-ray of Orgy of the Dead on the strength of a few things: that title, the fact Ed Wood wrote the screenplay and the promise that, no matter what, no movie called Orgy … Continue reading →

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