Foreign

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Movie Review: Who Killed Cock Robin (2017)

In a case of major karma, journalist Wang Yi-chi (Kaiser Chuang Kai-hsun) witnesses a hit and run and nearly a decade later comes to own the car involved in the crime. As anyone with no common sense and a death wish would do, he decides to solve the cold case on his own and dives head first into a world of sinister secrets with only his charm to get him through…he’s probably as good as dead… Coming from director Cheng Wei-Hao who previously brought us the ghost heavy supernatural shocker Tag-Along franchise, Who Killed cock robin gets a lot of mileage out of it’s gritty neo-noir tone and the considerable charisma of it’s star Kai-hsun. Speaking of which, the character of Wang Yi-chi is a master at convincing people to fork over their secrets based solely on his personality alone…it definitely works for the character, and makes him incredibly personable…but it also presents a bit of a hindrance to the

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DanXIII

Jan 26, 2019

ForeignIndieMoviesParanormalReviews

Movie Review: The Isle (2019)

Three dudes, one lifeboat…not as kinky as it sounds, as said dudes, Oliver (Alex Hassell), Cailean (Fisayo Akinade) and, Jimmy (Graham Butler) to be precise, are the survivors of a mysterious shipwreck that find themselves stranded on a fog enshrouded, ice cold, drab and dreary island in 1800’s era Scotland. They come to stay with Douglas Innis (Conleth Hill) and his daughter (Tori Butler-Hart), and soon learn that shipwrecks are a way of life around the island and have lead to the massive dip in the locales’ population. The trio soon find themselves balls deep in a supernatural tinged quandary as they learn just why the populace, such as it is, remains in such a haunted and doomed location. Directed and Co-Written by Matthew Butler-Hart (along with his wife Tori Butler-Hart whom, if you have a shred of retention, will remember is one of the film’s actors as well) The Isle is a miasma ensconced, deliberately paced, slow burn throwback

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DanXIII

Jan 26, 2019

ForeignMoviesReviewsTrue Crime

Blu-ray Review: The Fifth Cord (1971)

After a New Year’s Eve murder attempt goes tits-up, booze-soaked journalistic fuck-up par excellence Andrea Bild (Franco Nero) is called upon to report on the case. As fate, and the screenplay, would have it, the killer strikes again, this time sealing the deal. Before long the body count rises as does suspicion against our boy Andrea; which makes him rather keen on solving the case! Much closer to the giallo genre…in fact with it’s black gloved killer and jaw-dropping style it definitely is one, then the previous Luigi Bazzoni flick we examined in this creepy column (The Possessed for those keeping score at home…the review for which can be found right here!), The Fifth Cord is a pretty solid fright flick. Though filmed in color, the film’s limited palette offers the same chiaroscuro visuals that made the aforementioned The Possessed so gorgeous, and Nero turns in yet another world-weary and brilliant performance. Adding to the surreal aesthetics are a pre-occupation

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DanXIII

Jan 13, 2019

ForeignMoviesReviewsTrue CrimeTrue Story

Blu-ray Review: The Possessed (1965)

Bernard (Peter Baldwin), a sad sack novelist, decides to use that classic cure-all, namely horniness, and sets off to rekindle a relationship with his ex-lover Tilda (Virna Lisi); who works as a maid at a remote hotel located next to a lake. Everything seems hunky-goddammned-dory with the hotel’s owner, Enrico (Salvo Randone) and his daughter Irma (Valentina Cortese)…but it seems Tilda has pulled a David Copperfield and vanished. Having fuck-all to do, Bernard begins investigating the disappearance and ends up spiraling farther down a rabbit hole of perversion, insanity, and murder! The Possessed, comprised of it’s heavily art house influenced style and dark and deadly themes definitely stands as a strong and stylish fore-runner of the beloved murder heavy giallo genre. Directors Luigi Bazzoni, Franco Rossellini present the material with gobs of style and chiaroscuro visuals, but there are definitely moments where the concentration on aesthetics definitely hamper the clarity of the film’s storytelling (a problem also present in a

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DanXIII

Jan 13, 2019

ForeignMoviesReviewsThriller

Blu-ray Review: The Forbidden Photos of a Lady Above Suspicion (1970)

Lonely (and rich) housewife Minou (Dagmar Lassander) spends her time pining for the affection of her husband Peter (Pier Paolo Capponi) who is never around. While walking alone one night, Minou is accosted by a weirdo who tells her Peter is, in fact, a murderer. She pays this insanity no mind, but soon the evidence appears to back up the stranger’s claims, and Minou finds herself tumbling into an ever deeper abyss of blackmail at the hands of the devious (and horny) creeper. Will Minou be able to regain a semblance of a normal life and escape this ordeal with her sanity intact or will she be destroyed by the blackmailer’s game? The Forbidden Photos of a Lady Above Suspicion appears to be a giallo, but honestly it isn’t; no black gloved killer appears…hell, no murder appears in the film at all…but what the film is is a mystery with giallo window dressing. Director Luciano Ercoli has infused the piece

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DanXIII

Dec 30, 2018

ForeignMoviesNewsTrailers

Two Women Fight To Survive A Twisted Game In The ‘Finale’ Trailer

Fans of foreign horror films are in a for a real treat, the trailer is here for Søren Juul Peterson‘s Finale, the adaptation of the award winning-novel by Steen Langstrup. Starring Anne Bergfeld, Karin Michelsen, Damon Younger, Kristoffer Fabricius, Mads Koudal, Kim Sønderholm, and Gustav Scavenius, the film has already been released in Scandinavia exclusively by Blockbuster and will hit the rest of the world in 2019. In the film, the streets are empty. Everyone’s glued to their screens at home, watching the final game. In the outskirts of Denmark, close to the German border, a small gas station needs to be open for service, even on this special night. Two young women have the shift. Ambitious Agnes is in the back room putting finishing touches on her thesis, while free-spirited Belinda is on her phone, hoping to get the attention of her boyfriend. Unfortunately, the shift is not going to be as uneventful as they think, because no customers

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Kelli Marchman McNeely

Dec 27, 2018

ForeignIndieMoviesReviews

Movie Review: Snowflake (2017)

Gangsters Javid and Tan (Reza Brojerdi and Erkan Acar) are havin’ one fucky day. Seems our “heroes” have found the screenplay to their lives, and decide to seek out and heap abuse upon the documents author; a dentist named Arend (Alexander Schubert) all in the name of figuring out just what in the hell is going on…but he’s about as much use as a fishnet condom. The boys never let this deter their mission; namely finding the sumbitch what put the murder on their families…in a fucked up future version of Berlin populated by singing angels, murderous religious figures, and even more folks out for revenge; namely Eliana (Xenia Assenza) who teams up with a bodyguard with a past named Carson (David Masterson) to avenge the murder of her parents while dealing with cannibals and fucked up robots. As you can tell by that sinister synopsis up yonder; Snowflake is one hell of a bizarre motion picture! along with the

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DanXIII

Dec 13, 2018

ForeignMoviesReviews

Blu-ray Review: Brutal (2017)

Butch Bigwave stars as the appropriately named Man, one sick ticket of a dude whose hobbies include kidnapping women, tying them up in his apartment, making their bodies resemble hamburger, then carrying on conversations with their severed heads. Brutal indeed. Meanwhile, a woman only known as…well, Woman (Ayano Oami) carries on in much the same manner as Man, just with male victims ‘natch. As fate would have it, these two meet each other and a bizarre pseudo-romance begins that can only culminate in the ultimate display as violence as sex surrogate ever committed to film! Straight up; Brutal lives up to it’s name a thousand-fold. This flick features some of the most nauseating sequences of bloody gore I’ve seen in a damn sight, and they are presented with gritty realism and practical effects glory. Also, as you can surmise, the basic story itself is as off-kilter as you can get and features genital mutilation, gallons of blood, and a surprisingly

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DanXIII

Dec 11, 2018

ForeignMoviesNews

“Cosby” Actor Joins American Remake Of Hide And Seek

CJ Entertainment’s horror-thriller American remake Hide and Seek is currentily filming in New Your City. News has come that “Cosby Show” actor Geoffrey Owens has been added to the cast that already includes Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Jacinda Barrett (“Bloodline”), Joe Pantoliano (“The Sopranos”) and Mustafa Shakir (“Luke Cage”). Owens has been cast as the head of security at a housing development who is desperate to protect his family. Actor-director Joel David Moore (Hatchet) is directing the remake of Huh Jung‘s 2013 South Korean hit film (trailer below) about a man searching for his long-lost brother and stumbles across a secret world of squatters who are terrorizing unsuspecting tenants. Hide and Seek has strong social commentary about affordable housing and the gap between the rich and the poor.

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Kelli Marchman McNeely

Dec 9, 2018

ForeignIndieMoviesReviews

DVD Review: Heavy Trip (2018)

Before I jump into this here review for Heavy Trip, let me state that this is definitely NOT a horror film, rather it is a comedy about black metal, but since metal and horror intersect beautifully…and…and fuck it; I do whatever the shit I want… Turo (Johannes Holopainen), and his friends Pasi (Max Ovaska), Lotvonen (Samuli Jaskio), and Jynkyy (Antti Heikkinen) have been practicing their metal chops in a basement for the better part of 12 years, but Turo’s near paralyzing shyness have kept them from recording original material or performing even a single gig. considered a joke by damn near the entire town, our heroes soon get a chance to play a large metal festival in Norway, and the town begins to change their tune and worship the boys as local legends. Sounds great right? Well, while the promoter of said festival digs their sound (after hearing their demo post-reindeer blood shower…trust me, it makes sense when you see

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DanXIII

Dec 7, 2018

Foreign

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