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Movie Reviews: “The Changed” and “Alone with You” (Screamfest)

Movie Reviews: “The Changed” and “Alone with You” (Screamfest)

The Changed Director Michael Mongillo takes the basic premises of such classic paranoia-driven horror and science fiction fare as Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956) and The Monsters are Due on Maple Street (1960) from the original The Twilight Zone series, and gives them a fresh, current spin with his feature The Changed (2021). The result is a finely acted, taut chiller that puts today’s social climates under a gripping cinematic microscope. Mac (Jason Alan Smith) has anger issues that he is trying to work on, but that won’t be easy as he notices that his neighbors and others with whom he comes into contact are acting differently, in a way that he can’t quite figure out. His neighbor Bill (Tony Todd) tries to offer him some subtle reassurance over a morning cup of coffee, but as the day progresses, things get increasingly stranger — and more dangerous. When fellow neighbor and high school student Kim (Clare Foley) comes to

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Joseph Perry
Jan 21, 2022
Movie Reviews: “What Josiah Saw” and “Let the Wrong One In” (Screamfest)

Movie Reviews: “What Josiah Saw” and “Let the Wrong One In” (Screamfest)

What Josiah Saw One of the darkest gothic horror tales in recent memory is director Vincent Grashaw’s What Josiah Saw. Rich in ghosts, curses, premonitions, and other supernatural elements, the story is also grounded in the real-world horrors of abuse, suicide, and the lingering effects of these and other trauma-inducing incidents. Robert Patrick stars as Josiah Graham, alcoholic, abusive patriarch of a family made up of three adult children, two of whom want nothing to do with visiting the family property where they grew up — though, naturally for this plot, they eventually must. Tom (Scott Haze), the youngest of the siblings, lives at the home, still suffering abuse and wild flights of fancy from his father. Eli (Nick Stahl), the eldest, is an alcoholic loser in debt with criminals so badly that he must go on a robbery job immediately or be shot on the spot by the local crime boss. Mary (Kelli Garner), the middle child, suffers psychological

Continue reading →
Joseph Perry
Nov 22, 2021
Movie Reviews: “The Changed” and “Alone with You” (Screamfest)

Movie Reviews: “The Changed” and “Alone with You” (Screamfest)

The Changed Director Michael Mongillo takes the basic premises of such classic paranoia-driven horror and science fiction fare as Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956) and The Monsters are Due on Maple Street (1960) from the original The Twilight Zone series, and gives them a fresh, current spin with his feature The Changed (2021). The result is a finely acted, taut chiller that puts today’s social climates under a gripping cinematic microscope. Mac (Jason Alan Smith) has anger issues that he is trying to work on, but that won’t be easy as he notices that his neighbors and others with whom he comes into contact are acting differently, in a way that he can’t quite figure out. His neighbor Bill (Tony Todd) tries to offer him some subtle reassurance over a morning cup of coffee, but as the day progresses, things get increasingly stranger — and more dangerous. When fellow neighbor and high school student Kim (Clare Foley) comes to

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Nov 22, 2021
Movie Reviews: “Father of Flies” and “The Exorcism of God” (Screamfest)

Movie Reviews: “Father of Flies” and “The Exorcism of God” (Screamfest)

Father of Flies Director Ben Charles Edwards delivers gripping horror inspired by his childhood with U.S./U.K. coproduction Father of Flies (2021). This one is all about tension, unease, and an increasingly eerie atmosphere, all of which Edwards, who cowrote the screenplay with Nadia Doherty, delivers in spades. Richard (the late Nicholas Tucci in a stirring performance) — father to young, hearing-impaired son Michael (Keaton Tetlow) and rebellious teenage daughter Donna (Page Ruth) — has separated from the children’s mother Linda (Sandra Andreis) and forbidden her from coming to the house to see the children. Not only that, he has had his new girlfriend Coral (Camilla Rutherford) move in, much to the chagrin of the children — and something evil seems to have moved in with her. Neighbor Mrs. Start (Colleen Heidemann), who has some unusual mannerisms and interests, seems to be aware of this last point. The family’s rural home is as haunted by the problems and actions of all

Continue reading →
Joseph Perry
Nov 22, 2021
Horror Fuel

Screamfest Horror Film Festival Celebrates Its 20th Edition at the Drive-In

Screamfest Horror Film Festival celebrates its 20th edition this year under the stars for a 10-night showcase of chilling new features and shorts. From supernatural to psychological horrors, the festival’s 2020 drive-in edition offers must-see fright fare. Following is the festival’s official press release. The 20th annual Screamfest Horror Film Festival today announced their lineup of features and shorts, kicking off with a drive-in screening of Hulu’s Books of Blood. The festival, which will run from October 6-15, 2020, is the largest and longest running horror film festival in the United States. This year the festival will move entirely to drive-in screenings with a lineup of ten back-to-back nights of fright, each showcasing a feature film paired with a number of shorts. Tickets can be purchased here: https://screamfestla.com/ Screamfest LA will kick off on October 6 with the Opening Night screening of Books of Blood, based on Clive Barker’s acclaimed and influential horror anthology BOOKS OF BLOOD. The feature from

Continue reading →
Joseph Perry
Sep 25, 2020

More from Screamfest

Movie Reviews: “The Changed” and “Alone with You” (Screamfest)

Movie Reviews: “The Changed” and “Alone with You” (Screamfest)

The Changed Director Michael Mongillo takes the basic premises of such classic paranoia-driven horror and science fiction fare as Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956) and The Monsters are Due on Maple Street (1960) from the original The Twilight Zone series, and gives them a fresh, current spin with his feature The Changed (2021). The result is a finely acted, taut chiller that puts today’s social climates under a gripping cinematic microscope. Mac (Jason Alan Smith) has anger issues that he is trying to work on, but that won’t be easy as he notices that his neighbors and others with whom he comes into contact are acting differently, in a way that he can’t quite figure out. His neighbor Bill (Tony Todd) tries to offer him some subtle reassurance over a morning cup of coffee, but as the day progresses, things get increasingly stranger — and more dangerous. When fellow neighbor and high school student Kim (Clare Foley) comes to

Continue reading →
Joseph Perry
Jan 21, 2022
Movie Reviews: “What Josiah Saw” and “Let the Wrong One In” (Screamfest)

Movie Reviews: “What Josiah Saw” and “Let the Wrong One In” (Screamfest)

What Josiah Saw One of the darkest gothic horror tales in recent memory is director Vincent Grashaw’s What Josiah Saw. Rich in ghosts, curses, premonitions, and other supernatural elements, the story is also grounded in the real-world horrors of abuse, suicide, and the lingering effects of these and other trauma-inducing incidents. Robert Patrick stars as Josiah Graham, alcoholic, abusive patriarch of a family made up of three adult children, two of whom want nothing to do with visiting the family property where they grew up — though, naturally for this plot, they eventually must. Tom (Scott Haze), the youngest of the siblings, lives at the home, still suffering abuse and wild flights of fancy from his father. Eli (Nick Stahl), the eldest, is an alcoholic loser in debt with criminals so badly that he must go on a robbery job immediately or be shot on the spot by the local crime boss. Mary (Kelli Garner), the middle child, suffers psychological

Continue reading →
Joseph Perry
Nov 22, 2021
Movie Reviews: “The Changed” and “Alone with You” (Screamfest)

Movie Reviews: “The Changed” and “Alone with You” (Screamfest)

The Changed Director Michael Mongillo takes the basic premises of such classic paranoia-driven horror and science fiction fare as Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956) and The Monsters are Due on Maple Street (1960) from the original The Twilight Zone series, and gives them a fresh, current spin with his feature The Changed (2021). The result is a finely acted, taut chiller that puts today’s social climates under a gripping cinematic microscope. Mac (Jason Alan Smith) has anger issues that he is trying to work on, but that won’t be easy as he notices that his neighbors and others with whom he comes into contact are acting differently, in a way that he can’t quite figure out. His neighbor Bill (Tony Todd) tries to offer him some subtle reassurance over a morning cup of coffee, but as the day progresses, things get increasingly stranger — and more dangerous. When fellow neighbor and high school student Kim (Clare Foley) comes to

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Nov 22, 2021
Movie Reviews: “Father of Flies” and “The Exorcism of God” (Screamfest)

Movie Reviews: “Father of Flies” and “The Exorcism of God” (Screamfest)

Father of Flies Director Ben Charles Edwards delivers gripping horror inspired by his childhood with U.S./U.K. coproduction Father of Flies (2021). This one is all about tension, unease, and an increasingly eerie atmosphere, all of which Edwards, who cowrote the screenplay with Nadia Doherty, delivers in spades. Richard (the late Nicholas Tucci in a stirring performance) — father to young, hearing-impaired son Michael (Keaton Tetlow) and rebellious teenage daughter Donna (Page Ruth) — has separated from the children’s mother Linda (Sandra Andreis) and forbidden her from coming to the house to see the children. Not only that, he has had his new girlfriend Coral (Camilla Rutherford) move in, much to the chagrin of the children — and something evil seems to have moved in with her. Neighbor Mrs. Start (Colleen Heidemann), who has some unusual mannerisms and interests, seems to be aware of this last point. The family’s rural home is as haunted by the problems and actions of all

Continue reading →
Joseph Perry
Nov 22, 2021
Horror Fuel

Screamfest Horror Film Festival Celebrates Its 20th Edition at the Drive-In

Screamfest Horror Film Festival celebrates its 20th edition this year under the stars for a 10-night showcase of chilling new features and shorts. From supernatural to psychological horrors, the festival’s 2020 drive-in edition offers must-see fright fare. Following is the festival’s official press release. The 20th annual Screamfest Horror Film Festival today announced their lineup of features and shorts, kicking off with a drive-in screening of Hulu’s Books of Blood. The festival, which will run from October 6-15, 2020, is the largest and longest running horror film festival in the United States. This year the festival will move entirely to drive-in screenings with a lineup of ten back-to-back nights of fright, each showcasing a feature film paired with a number of shorts. Tickets can be purchased here: https://screamfestla.com/ Screamfest LA will kick off on October 6 with the Opening Night screening of Books of Blood, based on Clive Barker’s acclaimed and influential horror anthology BOOKS OF BLOOD. The feature from

Continue reading →
Joseph Perry
Sep 25, 2020