The Japanese short film Furube is a contemplative meditation on not forgetting old traditions and beliefs as modern “progress” marches on. It invokes different forms of the otherworldy: aliens from outer space and traditional gods of Japan who are believed to protect the Earth and humans. Shibata (Yujiro Taguchi) is spending a peaceful day in […]
The year 2019 continued this decade’s trend of providing top-notch fare for fear-fare and genre cinema fans. From supernatural shockers to arthouse horror to truly hilarious horror comedies and beyond, 2019 offered a wealth of riches, and narrowing my favorites down to 10 was no easy feat, but here we go! (10) Tie: The Lighthouse […]
Meet the Vaubarns, husband Peter (Max Cavenham) and expectant wife Louise (Emma Kelly), a British suburban couple at the center of the U.K. horror short Burn. They quibble over watching some gruesome news on the television and joke about washing the dishes. They seem to have a happy relationship and are thrilled at the prospect […]
Writer/director Heidi Lee Douglas blends virus horror with an ecological message in her latest Australian short film, Devil Woman. The result is an engaging effort that both educates and entertains. Eddy (Marigold Pazar) is a university science student helping fellow ecology researchers Possum (Leith Alexander) and Alice (Flame Kimball) find proof that endangered Tasmanian devils […]
One of the main draws about foreign horror films is that they often introduce viewers to new or unfamiliar mythologies, or unusual takes on familiar stories. This is certainly the case with the South African film 8, and viewers looking for something out of the ordinary in the supernatural vein should be quite pleased with […]
The first film from Newfoundland selected in the history of Canada’s Blood in the Snow Film Festival, New Woman is a remarkable gothic horror short. It is absolutely drenched in atmosphere. The gorgeous exterior shots and wonderfully detailed interior shots belie the film’s modest budget, and the horror is of the classic, slow-reveal kind. In […]
Caper movie meets horror story in the Canadian short film The Remnant when a group of con artists try to pull one over on an elderly lady. Director Navin Ramaswaran serves up a thrilling supernatural tale that is an absolute blast to watch unfold. Sheila Hargrave (Jill Frappier) lives alone in a large, well-appointed home. […]
Horror-on-Sea celebrates its eighth year in 2020 as it returns to Southend once again, with its biggest blood-soaked line up of independent films yet. One of the U.K.’s biggest independent film festivals, Horror-on-Sea was originally formed to promote independent horror films, giving an opportunity to fright-fare features and shorts that are not normally played on […]
Director Zoe Dobson’s U.K. horror short The Cunning Man is an eerie folk horror outing. Though animal cadavers are part of the story, which may potentially disturb some viewers, they are ultimaely used for a positive reason and toward charming effect. Afran Harries (Simon Armstrong) collects dead animals in the Welsh countryside. A knackerman (Ali […]
Right in time for Halloween, writer/director/editor Heidi Lee Douglas’ Australian gothic thriller short Little Lamb has just been launched via Omeleto, the home of award winning shorts. You can watch it here! I reviewed Little Lamb for Gruesome Magazine‘s Super Scary Shorts Saturday during the film’s festival run, giving it the highest possible rating of five […]
Blood in the Snow (BITS) film festival, the biggest celebration of Canadian horror, is back with a fresh slate of northern chills! BITS 2019 takes placefrom November 21 to 26 at the Royal Cinema in Toronto. With six nights of the best horror fare in the nation — including feature films, shorts, webseries, and the […]
Director Freddy Chávez Olmos’ new Canadian fear-fare short film Duérmete Niño makes its online debut this week, just in time for Halloween. I have had the pleasure to watch it in advance, and can recommend it as a bizarre, beautifully shot chiller with skin-crawling moments. Read more from the official press release following, watch the […]
If you subscribe to the notion that full moons can affect human behavior, just wait until you see what happens when the titular phenomenon occurs in eerie Canadian short film Red Moon (2019). The film, which won the Best Short award at this month’s H.P. Lovecraft Film Festival, stretches beyond what are usually considered common […]
The Mexican horror short 9:40 plays like a classic episode of The Twilight Zone with a climax on steroids. The story may feel a bit familiar, and many genre film fans might well guess where it is headed, but writer/director Jorge Morrell and his cast and crew make the ride an intriguing one, nevertheless. Kristyan […]
Writer/director Mia Kate Russell explores the potential terrors of inaction in her Australian short film Maggie May, which offers up some of the most disturbing horrific images in recent memory, both onscreen and offscreen. Something is dreadfully wrong with Maggie (Lulu McClatchy of the 2012 features Crawlspace and 6 Plots), and though her relatives and […]