REGRESSION (2015) recommended!
Dir: Alejandro Amenábar (THE OTHERS)
Ethan Hawke dazzles in this paranoia story about a grumy detective trying to solve a case that may involve a Satanic cult. Emma Watson is very convincing as a young abuse victim with a lot to hide. Terrific moody atmosphere and visual design. Once again another fantastic score by Roque Baños.
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ELSE (2024) recommended!
Dir: Thibault Emin
Body horror from France. Surreal and dreamlike, Lynch meets Cronenberg. Terrific visionary odyssey.
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SINNERS (2025)
Dir: Ryan Coogler (BLACK PANTHER, CREED)
Quirky cross-genre piece that plays with all the feel of a grand epic. Starting as a Southern period piece about Delta Blues in the post Jim Crow South; the film eventually ramps up into a full on supernatural horror feature. SINNERS is equal parts GONE WITH THE WIND(1939) sweeping epic from an Afro-American point-of-view; that is also a musical(!) that becomes a vampire drive-in slasher, ending as a revenge flick!
I stayed in the pocket with the narrative until just before the third act, when I noticed my mind beginning to wander. Coogler directs with an articulate, matured visionary hand. Clearly a love-letter to the filmmakers favorite genre pics and with an eye on the current trend of cross-genre Oscar picks. The performances, particularly by Michael B. Jordan (in a dual role playing twins) and Delroy Lindo are hypnotic. Unfortunately, the dramatic gravity starts to weigh the piece down before the twists kick in. The vampire slasher fest played a bit stale for me, although the film managed to champion its concepts more than its action- which was entirely refreshing and testament to the vision of the filmmakers. The living and the evil dead celebrate their commonalities, in spite of their adversarial nature. The music was fantastic and the choreographed musical elements were reminiscent of LA LA LAND's (2016) grand sequences.
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AND SOON THE DARKNESS (2010)
Dir: Marcos Efron (LAST NIGHT ON EARTH)
Amber Heard (JOHN CARPENTER'S THE WARD) and Odette Yustman (THE UNBORN, CLOVERFIELD) star in this tense thriller about human trafficking.
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LOOKOUT (2025)
Dir: Stefan Colson (GHOSTS OF RED RIDGE)
Interesting premise that fizzles in the final act.
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