Film Festivals Articles

Spoiler-Free Film Review: “The Complex Forms” (Slamdance Film Festival)

It is January 22, 2024 as I write this review, and I have my first strong candidate for my list of best films of 2024: writer/director Fabio D’Orta’s genre-blending Italian chiller The Complex Forms. With his film, which he himself lensed in...

Spoiler-Free Short-Film Reviews: “The Looming” and “Dream Creep” (Sundance Film Festival)

THE LOOMING  So often in horror films the elderly are portrayed as scary or creepy subjects, something to fear, run from, or even kill. Occasionally, they are treated with more reverence and respect than usual in fright-fare cinema, such as in...

Spoiler-Free Short-Film Reviews: “Legend of El Cucuy,” “PU EKAW TNOD,” “Blockbuster,” and “Welcome to the Enclave” (Slamdance Film Festival)

Legend of El Cucuy  Folklore horror meets problems of modern parenting in writer/director Cynthia Garcia Williams’ short film Legend of El Cucuy. Laura (Diana Sanchez) and Carlos (Effie Cacarnakis) are attempting to raise their young daughter...

Presence: A Film So Unnerving Viewers Walked Out at Sundance

After premiering at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival, one movie, Steven Soderbergh's film Presence, left viewers shook. The psychological horror thriller that stars Lucy Liu, Julia Fox, and Chris Sullivan was so intense that some audience members...