Reno
The In Kraut
In need of cinematic comfort food, I've mostly been watching new horror films. These three were the best of the bunch:
The Power British horror film, taking place at the East London Royal Infirmary in the early 70s during the power outages caused by the miners strikes. A young nurse in training doesn't just have to deal with nasty fellow workers but also a possible haunting. Very good even if it spells out its message a little too clearly by the end but a great debut for another female horror filmmaker all the same. This one completely flew under the radar but as British, female directed period-horror goes, I liked this better than Censor, which made a splash last year.
The Sadness is a Taiwanese horror film which goes all out to be as gory and offensive as possible and it thoroughly succeeds. It's part of the infected subgenre (The Crazies, 28 Days Later), a COVID-like Virus mutates to turn people into mega-violent, sex crazed maniacs. The plot is serviceable enough, a young couple try to find each other as the city descends into bloodthirsty chaos, but individual set pieces are well done. This is Peter Jackson Braindead/Dead Alive levels of gore but not played for laughs, so only hardcore horror fans need apply.
X, the new one by Ti West who is known for retro style horror films like House of the Devil and The Innkeepers but who disappeared for a few years. The pitch for this is Boogie Nights meets The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. It's about a small crew of filmmakers and performers at the end of the 70s who head to a Texas farm to shoot a porn film. This one is beautifully made, great camera work, sound design and acting and the film takes its time to get to know the characters. When the horror sequences come, they don't disappoint and the film is both unpredictable in who gets killed and who survives and the motive for the killings is unusual. I liked this one the best even if I have some issues with it. I didn't understand why Mia Goth played both the main victim and the aged killer and I'm never keen on old people being played by young actors in layers of make-up, though it could be seen as a nod to Texas Chainsaw's granddad I also thought it was weird that they were shooting a film on 16mm in less than ideal lighting conditions, without production lighting, but hey. Otherwise this is a very atmospheric, tense and fun. Apparently West shot a prequel back-to-back with this, called Pearl.
The Power British horror film, taking place at the East London Royal Infirmary in the early 70s during the power outages caused by the miners strikes. A young nurse in training doesn't just have to deal with nasty fellow workers but also a possible haunting. Very good even if it spells out its message a little too clearly by the end but a great debut for another female horror filmmaker all the same. This one completely flew under the radar but as British, female directed period-horror goes, I liked this better than Censor, which made a splash last year.
The Sadness is a Taiwanese horror film which goes all out to be as gory and offensive as possible and it thoroughly succeeds. It's part of the infected subgenre (The Crazies, 28 Days Later), a COVID-like Virus mutates to turn people into mega-violent, sex crazed maniacs. The plot is serviceable enough, a young couple try to find each other as the city descends into bloodthirsty chaos, but individual set pieces are well done. This is Peter Jackson Braindead/Dead Alive levels of gore but not played for laughs, so only hardcore horror fans need apply.
X, the new one by Ti West who is known for retro style horror films like House of the Devil and The Innkeepers but who disappeared for a few years. The pitch for this is Boogie Nights meets The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. It's about a small crew of filmmakers and performers at the end of the 70s who head to a Texas farm to shoot a porn film. This one is beautifully made, great camera work, sound design and acting and the film takes its time to get to know the characters. When the horror sequences come, they don't disappoint and the film is both unpredictable in who gets killed and who survives and the motive for the killings is unusual. I liked this one the best even if I have some issues with it. I didn't understand why Mia Goth played both the main victim and the aged killer and I'm never keen on old people being played by young actors in layers of make-up, though it could be seen as a nod to Texas Chainsaw's granddad I also thought it was weird that they were shooting a film on 16mm in less than ideal lighting conditions, without production lighting, but hey. Otherwise this is a very atmospheric, tense and fun. Apparently West shot a prequel back-to-back with this, called Pearl.
Last edited:
Truly, I am speechless.
