Tag Archives: Horror

Send Help – Movie Review

Posted on by
Reply

TL;DR – This is a wild and weird film that makes you feel like you are walking around a Bunnings at night, not knowing when you will step on a rake hidden in the gloom. A cavalcade of catastrophe in all the right ways.  

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene.

Disclosure – I was invited to a press screening of this film.

Warning – This film contains scenes which may cause distress.

Linda Liddle peering out from behind her desk.

Send Help Review Introduction –

Wow. It’s rare that I walk out of a film genuinely unsure how I feel, but this ending was so wild it forced me to rethink everything. Well, this is what happened today, and what is happening to me as I process my thoughts while writing this review. But you, dear reader, can’t help me out of this predicament, so let’s stop the prelude and dive in.

So, to set the scene, Linda Liddle (Rachel McAdams) is not precisely a people-person, but she is very good at what she does in the Planning & Strategy Department. But when the company CEO dies and is replaced by his son, Bradley Preston (Dylan O’Brien), her life gets turned upside-down as her promised VP position gets usurped by the new dude-bro atmosphere. As a sympathy move, Bradley invites Linda on the trip to Bangkok, but what neither of them can expect is that the plane would crash into the sea somewhere in the Gulf of Thailand, and what Bradley doesn’t know is that Linda is a Survivor fiend, and this might be her dream situation.   

Continue reading →

Frankenstein (2025) – Movie Review

Posted on by
3

TL;DR – A fascinating reinterpretation of the classic work that both works as an adaptation for a modern audience, but also holds true to the core of the original work, creating a fascinating juxtaposition to find a muse about the nature of life itself.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene.

Disclosure – I paid for the Netflix service that screened this film.

The Monster looms on the horizon.

Frankenstein Review Introduction –

It is time for the final review before we start our best of 2025 list. We started the year with a rich Gothic-Horror romp with Nosferatu; it is only fair that we finish it returning to that same world, and if we are going to dabble in this world, it is only right to return  to where it all began with one of the greatest minds that helped build the foundation of Science Fiction with the eminent Mary Shelley’s work.

So, to set the scene, in Farthermost North, 1857, the snows and ice creep over the sea as a ship becomes beset in its cold embrace on its way to the North Pole. While stuck, they find an injured man near a pile of blood and being hunted by a monstrous visage, one who cannot be stopped by bullets. Sinking The Monster (Jacob Elordi) to the bottom of the ocean, they wake the wounded Baron Victor Frankenstein (Oscar Isaac), who tells the tale of how he came to make the very monster that has come to kill him.    

Continue reading →

Savage Hunt – Movie Review

Posted on by
1

TL;DR – It commits one of the most cinematic of crimes: it makes a film about a bear on a slashing spree dull.

Rating: 1.5 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene.

Disclosure – I was sent a screener of this film.

A blood stained torch.

Savage Hunt Review Introduction –

Unfortunately, today, we are looking at a film that flounders at almost every single possibility. Partly because of the budget, I assume, and also because the narrative and the characters are written in such a way that I found every single one of them insufferable before the end credits rolled.   

So, to set the scene, we open on a forest being cut down to build a new resort and spa. But deep in these woods might lurk something that you don’t want to disturb, something that might be stalking you, hunting you, and if you are not careful, killing you. When a man walks into the construction site covered in blood and clearly mauled by an animal, the local rangers get called in, shutting down the site, but not even they were prepared for what is out there.

Continue reading →

Black Phone 2 – Movie Review

Posted on by
Reply

TL;DR – While conceptually there are some good ideas and the film does come together in the end, it’s a slog to get through because it tries to tackle too many themes, none of which land successfully.

Rating: 2.5 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene.

Disclosure – I paid to watch this film.

Warning – Contains scenes that may cause distress.

A pay phone sitting by a lake covered in snow.

Black Phone 2 Review Introduction –

I have recently been away on a three-week holiday and missed when this landed in cinemas; however, while I remembered liking the first Black Phone, I was surprised to see the wildly discordant opinions of people who had watched the sequel. Some of my friends were positioning it as the film of the year, and others were decrying it as a mistake. Well, now that I am back in Oz, I thought it best to give it a look to see where I landed.
 
So, to set the scene, it has been four years since the events of The Black Phone, when The Grabber (Ethan Hawke) kidnapped Finney Blake (Mason Thames). However, with help from his sister Gwen (Madeleine McGraw) and the ghosts of those who had been killed, Finney managed not only to escape but also to kill The Grabber. Finney has been struggling to find himself in a world where everyone knows of his trauma. However, when Gwen starts dreaming again, connecting in her sleep with their long-dead mother Hope (Anna Lore), the siblings, along with Ernesto (Miguel Mora), make their way up to Alpine Lake Camp, a Christian youth camp, to find out why the connection is being made. But when they get trapped there in a blizzard, they discover that death might not be the end for those who have haunted them in the past.

Continue reading →

Scurry – Movie Review

Posted on by
Reply

TL;DR – A strong premise brings you into this world, but the narrative does not quite have the six legs to get all the way to the end.

Rating: 3 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene.

Disclosure – I was invited to a press screening of this film.

A man holds a lighter up for light.

Setting the Scene

This has been an excellent year for Sparke Films, with its flagship Primitive War showing that you absolutely can do a dinosaur film without the word Jurassic in the title. But that was a big, bombastic work, and I was interested to see what they could do on a more concentrated effort, and today we find out.   

So, to set the scene, chaos reigns as something is causing a city to be evacuated and destroyed in equal measure. At the bottom of a sinkhole lies Mark (Jamie Costa), who had the unfortunate luck of standing on the road as it gave out underneath him. Stuck and with no phone connection, things are not looking good for him, nor is that car hanging precariously over the edge, filling anyone with confidence. There better not be a helicopter crashing from the sky that will make this situation worse, and what was that chittering sound in the background?

Continue reading →

Him – Movie Review

Posted on by
Reply

TL;DR – A fascinating film full of a brooding presence that builds throughout, leading to an ending that feels less satisfying the more I ponder on it.

Rating: 3 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene.

Disclosure – I was invited to a press screening of this film.

Warning – Contains scenes that may cause distress.

Warning – Contains sequences that include flashing lights.

Jets blasts over a goal post.

Setting the Scene

If there was ever a time to get me interested in a sports horror film, it is this week, as we are currently sitting in between the AFL and the NRL grand finales, and my teams are in both. It gives you a little buzz around the sporting world and prepares you to dive into some of the more questionable sides of the industry.

So, to set the scene, Cam’s (Tyriq Withers) whole life has revolved around football, conspicuously not the NFL, but I digress. All his life has been focused on making it to the top, and just when he is about to make his debut, someone cracks him in the back of the head. The doctor is sure that if he gets another crack on the head, it could stop him playing for good. But when Cam’s manager, Tom (Tim Heidecker), calls with an offer to train with his idol, Isaiah (Marlon Wayans), the current quarterback of the San Antonio Saviors, it is an opportunity he can’t turn down, even when all the red flags start popping up.   

Continue reading →

Primitive War – Movie Review

Posted on by
8

TL;DR – Few films can sell me on a premise alone, but what if Dinosaurs were in the Vietnam War is 100% the way to go about it.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There are mid-credit scenes.

Disclosure – I was invited to a press screening of this film.

Warning – Contains scenes that may cause distress.

Warning – Contains scenes with flashing lights.

A boat glides up a Vietnamese river.

Primitive War Introduction –

Every now and again, you find a film that has been laser-focused on your interests. For me, you must work to make me not interested once you have mentioned the word dinosaurs. Start with the premise ‘what if dinosaurs suddenly showed up in the middle of the Vietnam War’, now you don’t just have my interest, you have my full attention

So, to set the scene, it is 1968, and the Vietnam War is in full swing. In the middle of the war, a Green Beret platoon was sent into a jungle valley to find out what the Russians were doing there, only for none of them to return, and a final radio call was cut off halfway through. General Amadeus Jericho (Jeremy Piven) needs the information the recon team collected. Still, he can’t have it known, so he sends in the Vulture Squad led by Ryan Baker (Ryan Kwanten), as they are a bunch of misfits. They find the remains of the Green Berets, but also an unusually large feather. It is clear that the Green Berets were not able to finish their recon before they were taken out, so the Vulture Squad trek into the jungle to find the Russian base, not realising what might be waiting, hiding, stalking in the bushes.  

Continue reading →

Outbreak – Movie Review

Posted on by
Reply

TL;DR – Outbreak shows early promise, but weak character work and mounting frustrations prevent its ending from landing as intended.

Rating: 2 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene.

Disclosure – I sent a screener of this film.

Warning – Contains scenes that may cause distress.

Outbreak Introduction –

2025 continues to be a standout year for the old Zombie romp. We have old franchises return with 28 Years Later, The Last of Us came out swinging with its second season, and even Star Trek has had a try. – Despite the crowded field, there’s always room for a surprise and Outbreak came close.  

So, to set the scene, Neil Morris (Billy Burke) is a local ranger at Mourning Rock State Park, going on what they thought was a routine callout to a dog with rabies. But Neil is not at ease with what is going on, as this is the third dog in weeks to become infected, which is made worse by the fact that Chief Mike Cortez (Raoul Max Trujillo) got bitten by the dog in the scuffle and Neil is still dealing with the death/disappearance of his son Ben (Kylr Coffman). But as Neil was out walking in the state park, he was attacked by a woman in partial decomposition, and she was not alone, as screams of others puncture the day.

Continue reading →

Weapons – Movie Review

Posted on by
6

TL;DR – This is one of the most ‘messed’ up films that I have seen, the kind of film where you cross your arms in a vain attempt to put a barrier between you and the screen.  

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene.

Disclosure – I was invited to a press screening of this film.

Warning – Contains scenes that may cause distress.

2:17 on a clock.

Weapons Review –

Sometimes you sit down and realise you were fundamentally unprepared for the film you were about to see. That you were prepared for the horror that was coming, well, you thought you were prepared. You crossed your arms, hoping to shield yourself from what was on screen, but nothing could prepare you for Weapons.

So, to set the scene, in a small leafy town in the countryside of America, you can find Maybrook and its elementary school. It is a quaint place where nothing much ever happens, that is, until one day Justine Gandy (Julia Garner) walked into her third-year class to find it empty of every student bar one, Alex Lilly (Cary Christopher). One month later, the police are no closer to finding what happened to those seventeen children, and the town is tearing itself apart looking for them. There must be a focus on all that rage, guilt, and sorrow, and unfortunately for Justine, she is that focus. So, as the town focuses their rage on her, the question remains: What happened to the kids at 2:17 in the morning on that fateful day?

Continue reading →

M3GAN 2.0 – Movie Review

Posted on by
2

TL;DR – When it lands on the surreal nature of the premise, it is a blast to watch. When they need to forward the plot, you can feel the gears grinding to a halt.  

Rating: 3 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no end credit scene.

Disclosure – I was invited to a press screening of this film.

M3GAN stuck in a child's toy.

M3GAN 2.0 Review –

Back in 2023, there was this weirdly wonderful thing that sliced its way into the world. M3GAN was filled with equal parts of camp and horror, but ended in a tidy, neat bow. Well, suppose you know anything about horror, especially artificial antagonists, you know that there is always a way to bring them back from the dead, and sure enough, it is now time to jump into the second iteration of M3GAN.

So, to set the scene, in the years since M3GAN (Amie Donald/Jenna Davis) was deactivated during her murderous rampage, trying to protect Cady (Violet McGraw) by killing everyone around her. Her inventor, Gemma (Allison Williams), has been looking at ways to bring the world forward without the dangers of technology. But after a heavy-handed FBI raid after a botched operation on the Iranian/Turkish border led by Saudi Arabia, they discover that someone has stolen the coding for M3GAN and built their own robot called AMELIA (Ivanna Sakhno), who has gone on a rampage, killing everyone involved in her construction. There seems to be a theme here. But this could also include Gemma and Cady. So, how do you stop a robot on a murderous rampage? Well… maybe you can look a bit deeper into who is running the tech in your house and perhaps let them out of their digital cage. I’m sure nothing could go wrong …     

Continue reading →