Shudder Review: Depraved (2019)

Writer/director Larry Fessenden gives the classic tale of Frankenstein a modern spin as he places the story in Brooklyn, where a disillusioned field surgeon suffering from PTSD creates a living man from body parts in his Brooklyn loft. From the loft itself to just every set, the film looks great. Fessenden’s style lends itself to the film well, too, with some aesthetic showing up occasionally like when Adam (Alex Breaux), the “monster,” is first getting adjusted to the world and it sounds like he’s hearing gibberish instead of real language when he’s first learning about everything. This is mostly through visuals like light patterns on the screen, or when you have a squiggly in your line of sight and can’t shake it… Constant thunder in the style also help set the mood in this film, as well.

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Fantasia 2020 – The Columnist (2019)

Directed by: Ivo van Aart. Starring: Katja Herbers, Bram van der Kelen, Claire Porro. Runtime: 1h 26 min. Released: December 20, 2019 (Netherlands). This film had its International Premiere as part of Fantasia Film Festival. Femke Boot (Katja Herbers) is a columnist for a local newspaper. She keeps receiving hate mail, death threats and nasty … Continue reading Fantasia 2020 – The Columnist (2019)

Fantasia 2020 – Detention (2019)

Directed by: John Hsu. Starring: Gingle Wang, Meng Po-Fu, Jing Hua-Tseng. Runtime: 1h 42 min. Released: August 24, 2020 (in Canada, at Fantasia Film Festival); September 20, 2019 in Taiwan. Detention is set during the White Terror in Taiwan in 1962 during a time of martial law where freedom was not known and free thoughts … Continue reading Fantasia 2020 – Detention (2019)

Quanta (2019)

Directed by: Nathan Dalton. Starring: Mark Redpath, Antony Talia, Philip Hayden. Runtime: 1h 23 min. Released: July 16, 2019. (In case you missed it, my review with the Nathan Dalton, the director of this film, can be found here.) Though made on a small budget, the science fiction film Quanta always looks polished with its cinematography … Continue reading Quanta (2019)

Filmcraziest Interviews – Nathan Dalton for his film Quanta (2019)

Here's another episode of Filmcraziest Interviews where I interview filmmakers, and today I was joined by Australian filmmaker Nathan Dalton for his science fiction drama, Quanta, about a pair of scientists pursuing a scientific breakthrough when their personalities clash. We discuss the science of the film and the inspiration behind the film, as well as legacy … Continue reading Filmcraziest Interviews – Nathan Dalton for his film Quanta (2019)

Dark Light (2019)

Directed by: Padraig Reynolds. Starring: Jessica Madsen, Opal Littleton, Ed Brody. Released: December 6, 2019. Runtime: 1h 30 min. This review contains mild spoilers. In Dark Light, Annie Knox (Jessica Madsen) and her daughter Emily (Opal Littleton) move into Annie’s childhood home and learn that it’s inhabited by monsters. The interesting thing about Padraig Reynolds’ … Continue reading Dark Light (2019)

Can You Keep a Secret? (2019)

Directed by: Elise Duran. Starring: Alexandra Daddario, Tyler Hoechlin, Kimiko Glenn. Runtime: 1h 34 min. Released: September 13, 2019. This will be a spoiler review so I talk about many plot points. I don’t think it’s worth watching anyway, but consider yourselves warned. Apparently someone had been keeping Can You Keep a Secret? a secret … Continue reading Can You Keep a Secret? (2019)

Burn (2019)

I really enjoy hostage situation movies but Burn is truly one of the strangest ones that I’ve seen. When a desperate man, Billy (Josh Hutcherson), in need of cash holds a gas station at gun point, a lonely and unstable gas station attendant, Melinda (Tilda Cobham-Hervey), tired of being overshadowed by her prettier co-worker Sheila (Suki Waterhouse)…

Jay and Silent Bob Reboot (2019)

Directed by: Kevin Smith. Starring: Kevin Smith, Jason Mewes, Ben Affleck. Runtime: 1h 45 min. Released: October 15, 2019. Kevin Smith’s latest film, Jay and Silent Bob Reboot, is my most disappointing film of 2019. Packaged as a commentary on Hollywood and how they’re out of ideas because it’s all reboots, this is an essentially … Continue reading Jay and Silent Bob Reboot (2019)

A Dog’s Journey (2019)

Directed by: Gail Mancuso. Starring: Josh Gad, Dennis Quaid, Kathryn Prescott. Runtime: 1h, 49 min. Released: May 17, 2019. Of the dog films adapted from novels by W. Bruce Cameron, and with screenplay credits for him on each of the films, A Dog’s Journey is easily the strongest. 2019’s February release, A Dog’s Way Home, … Continue reading A Dog’s Journey (2019)