Author Archives
UNC Charlotte '18 graduate | Film Intern at CLTure | North Carolina Film Critics Association member | Lover of bad teen horror movies and 90s pop music
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Director Natasha Kermani’s new film is both “Lucky” and good.
A lot of critics like to proclaim that women filmmakers are “on the rise” in Hollywood, but I find that wording to often feel degrading and lack accountability in the system. It’s not that women are suddenly deciding to become… Read More ›
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Eco-disaster “Greenland” is a thrilling, emotionally engaging film that puts character over spectacle.
Every so often, Hollywood attempts to recreate the 1970s by releasing another high-concept disaster movie that vies to emulate the silly, yet thrilling fun of films like The Poseidon Adventure, The Towering Inferno, and Earthquake, putting high-profile, ensemble casts in… Read More ›
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Saban Films’s “Wrong Turn” is a thrilling and absolutely gnarly horror film.
Believe it or not, not including this reboot, there are six entries in the Wrong Turn series of films. Predictably, aside from its initial 2003 original, every film in the series was a casualty of the late-2000s boom of direct-to-DVD… Read More ›
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If “‘Wolfenstein’ in the Pacific Theater” meets “Overlord” sounds enticing, check out director Roseanne Liang’s “Shadow in the Cloud.”
It’s a tough conversation, but one that needs to be addressed head-on before jumping into actually talking about the film itself. Shadow in the Cloud, despite its best efforts, is written by Max Landis. Landis, the son of veteran filmmaker… Read More ›
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Prepare yourself to explore “The Dark & The Wicked” on home video.
The Dark and the Wicked is one of those films that has stuck with me long since I saw it for the first time back in August. I liked it in my first viewing, but it didn’t take long after… Read More ›
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For a period romance, “Ammonite” is too cold to generate heat.
Queer period romance films have had a bit of a kick as of late, and I have been very grateful for them thus far. Colette, The Handmaiden, Carol, The Favourite and Portrait of a Lady on Fire, among others, have… Read More ›
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Don’t wait. “Run” toward Aneesh Chaganty’s latest psychological thriller.
You know when you have a friend who is smart, pretty, and generally good at everything, but has a significant other who constantly brings them down? And how you can’t imagine that someone with so much talent and potential could… Read More ›
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“Come Play” is a great starter for those looking to dip their toes in the horror genre, but not much else.
Think back in the recesses of your mind, what was your first horror film? Mine was Poltergeist, a film that I assumed was safe because it carried a PG rating but soon learned, with my sister and her friends, that… Read More ›
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“Spell” lacks that special something to conjure a proper incantation.
Horror films about religion and spirituality are not hard to find, with films like The Exorcist, Rosemary’s Baby, and The Omen being some of the highest-regarded horror films of all time. The issue with many of them is that they… Read More ›
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“The Craft: Legacy” breaches the generational divide with aplomb. Blessed be.
I’m not sure anyone has the patience to listen to my list of all the reasons that The Craft is one of the most iconic films of the 1990s, but if you know, you just know. Focusing more on the… Read More ›
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In the mood for something nasty? Discover an old-fashioned gore-fest in new home release “Haunt.”
I love horror movies. I love my subscription to Shudder. I love Halloween. However, in recent years, I can’t say that I haven’t been drawn to the realm of “elevated horror” more and more. The term “elevated horror” in and… Read More ›
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Joining the Paramount Presents collection is the peculiar, yet absolutely charming Jan de Bont film “The Haunting.”
I love me some Shirley Jackson, and, more specifically, I love her 1959 novel The Haunting of Hill House and have since I first started getting into horror early in my adolescence. Jackson’s novel was one of the first horror… Read More ›
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“Possessor” is a gruesome, ugly, and morally repugnant film and you’ll love every minute of it.
Hollywood nepotism can be frustrating at times. With so many burgeoning actors and filmmakers bursting onto the scene in their family member’s footsteps, it can sometimes feel unfair to the whole selective process that weeds so many quality filmmakers out… Read More ›
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Etheria Film Night comes back with a second season, streaming via Amazon.
Following the success of the first digital iterations of the Etheria Film Night, a genre festival focusing on horror, thriller, and sci-fi shorts directed by women, there has to be more sequels, right? Etheria Season II, a block of 10… Read More ›
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Pretty on the outside, ugly on the inside, there’s little to love in cruelly misguided Janelle Monáe horror vehicle “Antebellum.”
It’s no secret that I absolutely adore Janelle Monáe. I have since her first album, The Archandroid, all the way up the absolutely masterful Dirty Computer album of 2018. I genuinely believe that she is this generation’s Prince in her… Read More ›
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Expertly crafted in pieces, Korean mystery “Me and Me (사라진 시간)” does not combine to a satisfying whole. [Fantasia Film Festival]
When it comes to modern Korean horror (Parasite doesn’t count), there’s really a “before The Wailing” and “after The Wailing” period going on currently. Sure, there are still some fast-moving, breakneck horror being made in South Korea, but there has… Read More ›
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“Sanzaru” is an intriguing slow burn, yet crashes in the landing. [Fantasia Film Festival]
Sanzaru is a film that might look like a film along the lines of The Dark & The Wicked in its rural set-up for a horrific force haunting a house, but off the bat, there’s something much stranger at hand…. Read More ›
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French Western “Savage State (L’état Sauvage)” is a stark, quiet, introspective tale of survival. [Fantasia Film Festival]
Fantasia Festival has provided a bevy of opportunities to showcase some truly great genre films, primarily focusing into the sci-fi/horror route of things. The grisly, spooky, and downright weird have been on full display since the start of the festival,… Read More ›
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If you’re in the mood for something dark and gory, look no further than Bryan Bertino’s “The Dark & The Wicked.” [Fantasia Film Festival]
One of the first horror films I ever saw during its release time was Bryan Bertino’s 2008 home-invasion thriller, The Strangers. I will always have the distinct memory of watching it at my best friend’s house after a July 4th… Read More ›
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Despite an engaging aesthetic and good performances, “The Block Island Sound” doesn’t totally manifest. [Fantasia Film Festival]
Everyone has their favorite urban legends, mine typically revolve around abandoned places and towns that have no explanation in their abandonments. Others like bigfoot, the Loch Ness monster, or the Bermuda Triangle. It’s easy to see that the latter is… Read More ›