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SATAN’S BLADE (1984)
Satan’s Blade is indicative of the archetypal quality and budgets of 1980s ‘video nasties’. It’s an inexpensive slasher film mimicking the tried and tested equation that blood, horror, and naked flesh equals profit. It serves more as a warning that when cheap horror flooded the home video market, the results varied wildly. For every quality…
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MAGGIE’S PLAN (2015)
It’s been more than a decade since Rebecca Miller’s harrowing directorial debut, Angela (2015), and although her subsequent films (Personal Velocity, The Ballad of Jack and Rose, The Private Lives of Pippa Lee) have more or less remained in the realm of somber drama, Maggie’s Plan explores lighter territory. Without meaning to attach a negative…
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PREACHER, 1.6 – ‘Sundowner’
I was glad this episode gave us a taste of the spirit and twisted humour of the comic books, even though it was still dialled down. The opening sequence was a much-needed jolt to the system, of a show that’s wisely trying to flesh out these characters and universe, but simultaneously losing a lot of…
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THE ONES BELOW (2015)
To say The Ones Below is inspired by the films of Roman Polanski would be a gross understatement. Motherhood-inflected horror, the conflict between pairs of parents, and the strangeness of city-living (where one home’s stacked on top of another), all feature here. From Rosemary’s Baby (1968) to Carnage (2011), there’s barely a scene in which Polanski’s…
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PENNY DREADFUL – Season Three
At the end of season 2, we left the world of Penny Dreadful in flux. The relationships established between its major characters were dissolved. In the finale, “And They Were Enemies”, Vanessa Ives (Eva Green) was left to deal with the consequences of her loss of faith, as each of her protectors left her behind…
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QUEEN OF EARTH (2015)
Continuing on a path started during filming breaks on TV’s Mad Men, Elisabeth Moss is building an impressive resume of roles in US indies like On the Road (2012), The One I Love (2014), and Alex Ross Perry’s previous offering Listen Up Phillip (2014). Queen of Earth reunites her with Perry, taking centre stage as…
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30 Years On: BIG TROUBLE IN LITTLE CHINA
John Carpenter’s BIG TROUBLE IN LITTLE CHINA was released across the US on this day, 30 years ago. To celebrate, we’ve investigated the origins of this flop summer movie from 1987 that became a cult favourite…
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PREACHER, 1.5 – ‘South Will Rise Again’
Incredibly, we’re now halfway through this inaugural season of AMC’s Preacher and I’m in danger of sounding like a stuck record. This isn’t a bad show, but I think there’s a reason so few people are talking about it: it’s not offering a great deal we haven’t seen done better, elsewhere. The tragedy is that…
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GAME OF THRONES, 6.10 – ‘The Winds of Winter’
In the thrilling finale of Game of Thrones’ sixth season, three key players strengthen their power bases, Jon’s lineage is confirmed, Winter finally arrives, and the future of Westeros looks set to be decided… In King’s Landing It was the day of Cersei Lannister’s (Lena Headey) trial at the Great Sept of Baelor, and “The…
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OUTLANDER, 2.12 – ‘The Hail Mary’
As expected “The Hail Mary”, by its very title, returns us to the undetermined fate of Mary Hawkins (Rosie Day). Last seen being used as a pawn in the Duke of Sandringham’s machinations, it’s young Mary’s marriage to ‘Black Jack’ Randall that offers one fait accompli amongst many in this episode. There are other clan-related…
