THE MOTHER, THE MENACER, AND ME
Official synopsis
Hopelessly stuck in a dead-end job and forced to move in with his disapproving mother-in-law, Eddie Mathews sets out to make his Hollywood dream come true — urged on by his imaginary villainous companion, who wants to be brought to life.
Review
Sometimes you need a lighter feature amidst all the terror and tension, and Nightmares Film Festival chose an excellent offering that delivers just that in director Jon Salmon’s heartfelt comedy with horror themes The Mother, the Menacer, and Me. The film, cowritten by Chris Carvalho and Chris Plaushin, is a valentine to both the struggles of independent filmmaking and to following one’s dreams.
James Austin Kerr shines as Eddie Mathews, who has enough to deal with as a husband to supportive wife Anna (Christine Spang) and their young son Billy (Kellan Tetlow), with Anna’s mother Nancy (Lorraine Bracco) constantly reminding Eddie that his income is insufficient and that Anna should have married someone better off. His love of filmmaking with his lifelong friend Joe Adcock (Alfonso Caballero) has too strong a hold on him not to try to follow his Hollywood dreams, though, and Eddie’s villainous creation The Menacer (Jason Furlani) plans for him to see his goals through, as well. The cast is great throughout, including terrific supporting roles from Leah Remini as a full-of-herself film festival awards host and Brian Tichnell as Nancy’s hockey-obsessed son.
The Mother, the Menacer, and Me is loaded with charm and verve. It has an overall breezy feel and boasts solid direction and production values, and has important things to say about balancing dreams and “real life.” It’s a winning feel-good comedy with genre touches that deserves to find a wide audience on its current film festival run and beyond.
You can view the trailer here.
IF IT BLEEDS
Official synopsis
Follows the story of Diane Winters, a young and ambitious news reporter, and her skilled cameraman Simon, as they delve into a series of gruesome murders that unfold throughout a chaotic and violent day.
Review
With If It Bleeds, writer/director Matthew Hersh delivers a fright-fare anthology loaded with great-looking practical effects gore galore and fun performances from current and longtime horror film faces. Catherine Corcoran heads up the wraparound as a zealous news reporter looking to overtake the city’s top spot in that field. The trio of terror tales, with a screenplay by Samuel Gonzalez Jr. and Hersh, further proves that playing an occult themed game never ends well, follows a murderous TV character doll making a truly killer comeback, and shows what happens when an actress trying to catch a break reluctantly undergoes plastic surgery. When that surgeon is Doug Jones and the actress’s insistent manager is Dee Wallace, savvy shock cinema devotees know things aren’t going to turn out well.
If It Bleeds serves up a delightfully diabolical set of fear fare with plenty of grue and dark humor. Impressively helmed and performed, it’s a portmanteau that horror aficionados will want to put on their need-to-see lists.
The Mother, the Menacer, and Me and If It Bleeds screened as part of Nightmares Film Festival, which took place Oct. 16–19, 2025, at the Gateway Film Center in Columbus, Ohio. For more information, visit https://nightmaresfest.com/.
