When looking at the legendary career of director John Boorman, we have films such as Point Blank (1967), Deliverance (1972), and Excalibur (1981), amongst a plethora of other films. But we also have the unlikely sequel that he was offered,… Read More ›
film festival
Sci-fi satirical dark comedy “The Saviors” posits an inevitable destiny for all via humanity’s rush to cast heroes and villains. [SXSW]
Trigger Warning: The opening sequence features flashing lights and quick-cut imagery that may be triggering for photosensitive individuals. “DESTINY! DESTINY! NO ESCAPING THAT FOR ME!” – Dr. Frederick Frankenstein (Gene Wilder) in Young Frankenstein. In storytelling, there are two pretty… Read More ›
“Cramps! – A Period Piece” is the most fun you’ll have with endometriosis. [The Overlook Film Festival]
As a male, I’ve never had the misfortune of going through menstrual cramps, and for that I am incredibly grateful because it seems like absolute bloody (no pun intended) hell and I am going without experiencing that pain every month… Read More ›
“Drag” flips the home invasion horror genre on its back. [The Overlook Film Festival]
Horror movies are not meant to necessarily reflect our own fears and anxieties, but sometimes they do. I’m not entirely sure if first-time feature filmmakers Raviv Ullman and Greg Yagolnitzer, who both wrote and directed Drag, anticipated that someone would… Read More ›
Larry Fessenden’s “Habit” participates in a celebration of the director’s latest creature feature. [The Overlook Film Festival]
Writer/actor/director Larry Fessenden has been a steady presence in filmmaking for several decades now. Whether appearing in other people’s projects (Bringing Out the Dead; Good Boy), writing them (Until Dawn), or making them himself (Wendigo; The ABCs of Death 2),… Read More ›
Meet Me at the Movies: Time for a Samara Weaving Double Feature!
On a recent episode of Meet Me at the Movies, I joined Noel T. Manning to discuss a few of my favorite SXSW 2026 titles. Since you can only cover so many well in one episode, I returned to talk… Read More ›
“Affection” keeps audiences off kilter and guessing during its entire runtime in the best way. [The Overlook Film Festival]
No one knows the name BT Meza, but after his feature debut, which he wrote and directed, everyone is going to have some Affection for him. The film is an unsettling nightmare that no one ever wants to experience. Whenever… Read More ›
“Flush” is an entertaining comedy thriller for those who can stomach it. [The Overlook Film Festival]
There is something about potty humor and potty horror that, if done right, works, and if it misses it by the slightest of margins, it becomes something irredeemable. Somehow, director Grégory Morin (Ultimate Zombie Feast) and screenwriter David Neiss (Noir… Read More ›
Yûta Shimotsu’s sophomore film, cosmic horror “New Group,” challenges the meaning of “one of us.” [The Overlook Film Festival]
Muno (Yo, right), he’s tall and friendly Foofa (Oh, hehehehehe), she’s pink and happy Brobee (Woah), the little green one Toodee (Yeah, woo), she likes to have fun Plex (Woah), a magic robot Let’s all come and play with DJ… Read More ›
Just a “Normal” nefariously good time. [The Overlook Film Festival]
“Yea, and if some god shall wreck me in the wine-dark deep, even so I will endure… For already have I suffered full much, and much have I toiled in perils of waves and war. Let this be added to… Read More ›
Hot Contents: dark-tinged crime comedy “Chili Finger” may scald parents young and old. [The Overlook Film Festival]
There are many weird things regarding the rules of storytelling and one of them is tied to the concept of reality. Unless one is dealing with space wizards and laser swords, orcs and elves, a certain adherence to what is… Read More ›
Meet Me at the Movies: SXSW 2026 Breakouts & Hidden Gems
SXSW 2026 ran from March 12th – 18th, 2026 and I had the pleasure of covering the festival once more. Accompanied by EoM Contributors Justin Waldman and AJ Friar, we screened 24 films and provided reviews for each. Out of… Read More ›
Taratoa Stappard’s Māori gothic horror “Mārama” offers retribution and reclamation without making space for false righteousness. [The Overlook Film Festival]
“Kia whakatōmuri te haere whakamua (I walk backwards into the future with my eyes fixed on the past).” – A Māori proverb. There’s this strange belief coursing through some in the United States that European culture is being threatened by… Read More ›
“Seekers of Infinite Love” provides little payoff for enduring a road trip with an estranged family of adults. [SXSW]
What were to happen if someone took the concept of losing a loved one, made it a road trip family drama comedy about deprogramming them, and applied it to a suicide cult? Well, for starters, it would be a cringe-inducing… Read More ›
“The Man with the Big Hat” mirrors the style of its focal point, Steven Fromholz. [SXSW]
Documentarian Austin Sayre’s The Man with the Big Hat reintroduces audiences to the independent legend of country music, Steven Fromholz, name that, for many, has lived just outside the mainstream despite a songwriting legacy that quietly shaped the genre. Having… Read More ›
Caleb Phillips’s sci-fi thriller “Imposters” demonstrates the cost of living an inauthentic life. [SXSW]
“Victims; aren’t we all?” – Eric Draven (Brandon Lee) in The Crow (1990) The beauty and horror of life is that there’re many different ways to look at a situation. Because of this, whether it’s a massive life event or… Read More ›
The blood will flow in New Orleans! 22 Overlook Film Festival 2026 films to add to your fest schedule.
For the fourth year in a row, Elements of Madness will officially be covering The Overlook Film Festival and, this year, am joined by EoM Contributor Justin Waldman. This year’s slate of titles includes several we’ve seen, so our recommendation… Read More ›
High school drama “Dead Deer High” misplaces its focus in examining the wake of school violence. [SXSW]
Trigger Warning: The subject matter within Dead Deer High centers on the aftermath of a school shooting. While a great deal of care is given to ensuring little feels melodramatic, the material may still be difficult for sensitive viewers. As… Read More ›
“Pizza Movie” satisfies as the next generational stoner comedy. [SXSW]
Every generation needs a stoner comedy that is so outlandishly insane and dumb yet brilliant that it stands the test of time by being ridiculous and entertaining. The early 2000s had both Dude, Where’s My Car? (2000) and Harold and… Read More ›
“Mallory’s Ghost” fails to take full form past the trope of a haunting past. [SXSW]
There’re plenty of ideas and concepts that are intriguing and thought provoking in Mallory’s Ghost, having its world premiere in the Competition section of SXSW Film & TV Festival 2026, but not all of them land. Nick Canellakis (Talent Has… Read More ›