The discovery of a skull mask by Nazis leads to a blood-drenched attempt to revive the Old Gods in Sao Paolo in this action-packed thoroughly entertaining movie from directors Armando Fonseca and Kapel Furman. There's a 1970s feel and enough wit, creativity and ambition on display here (the depiction of the evil god sitting on his throne in the depths of the void of space is a delicious example of low budget cosmic horror) that this feels like a Brazilian Larry Cohen film, and that's praise indeed. Definitely two directors to look out for - their next movie could be even better than this.
Hail to the Deadites
A feature-length documentary on the remarkable number of fans who are mad on Sam Raimi's EVIL DEAD trilogy and Bruce Campbell's character of Ash. Even people who aren't a fan of these particular films should be able to relate to the sheer joy everyone here has for the thing they love, and how important a role it plays in their lives. Interviewees include the cast of both EVIL DEAD & EVIL DEAD II (and at least one surprise from ARMY OF DARKNESS) with most of the talking left, quite rightly and appropriately, to Bruce Campbell himself.
Two Heads Creek
A charming horror comedy with a strong League of Gentlemen vibe as a Polish brother and sister discover their birth mother is actually Australian. They leave the hideous English estate where they live and set off for the tiny town of Two Heads Creek ("You'll never want to leave") where they discover the town is part of a government-funded cannibalism programme to help deal with the immigrant population. TWO HEADS CREEK is crammed with plenty of funny gags about the intolerance of certain groups of both English and Australians to foreigners, plus some nice cultural references (there's a 'Neighbours' board game amongst the squalor, the locals drink a wine that's actually called 'A Nice Chianti'). Imagine if an early Peter Jackson (and yes I know he's from New Zealand) had directed Xavier Gens' FRONTIER(S) and you'll be on the right track.
TWO HEADS CREEK is getting a digital HD release on Signature's Frightfest Presents label on Monday 7th September 2020
From the department of short film ideas steam-rollered out to feature length comes 75 minutes of people crawling down a corridor when they're not talking to each other very slowly indeed in hotel rooms. Of course 75 minutes isn't really long enough for a feature so hang around after the credits for what to do (or rather, not) if you've been told to make your film longer & decided to do so by tacking on a talking head that dispels what little tension you may have managed to achieve in what has gone before. Slow, dull and with little to commend it. [REC] played at 10% the speed.
Aquaslash
Oh Reynaud Gautier what have you done? Failed to live up to the promise of DISCOPATH, that's what. The technique is a little more polished but the occasional glimpses of wit and style from that one are sadly lacking in AQUASLASH, a film that tried hard to compete with PIRANHA 3DD in the truly awful aquatic-based horrors department. It fails, thankfully. A maniac fits blades to a water slide and the film is one long build to the (poorly CGI-enhanced) carnage that ensues. Attempts at a giallo-style backstory and a very silly killer reveal indeed all help to harm this one. If you liked DISCOPATH or PIRANHA 3DD (did anyone like that one?) you might like this. Or not.
A Ghost Waits
But let's not leave Day 4 on such a bum note. Also showing in a new version today was A GHOST WAITS, which first premiered at Glasgow Frightfest where it deservedly went down a storm. Here's what I had to say about that screening: Quite likely the funniest, most romantic, touching supernatural horror we'll see this year. A man has to renovate a house where a female ghost has been driving away the occupants and gradually they fall in love. A GHOST WAITS is superb, evoking the best of writers like R Chetwynd-Hayes while never losing its profound emotional core. Really, truly, madly, deeply wonderful. Loved it.
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