In an effort to inject a more informal and personal style of writing back into the blog I'm beginning a Film Diary series, covering films I've watched within the span of a week accompanied with a short review and rating. These however, won't appear under the index of reviews as I prefer to keep that reserved for the more lengthier entries. I will try keep up with this as frequently as I can.

Films watched between Monday 03/10/2022 and Sunday 09/10/2022.

Monday 03/10/2022
Fear Street: 1994 (2021)

Director: Leigh Janiak

Cashing in on the recent spate of retro stylised slashers, often drenched in gaudy neon, that have been sweeping the horror genre; better examples being Summer of 84 (2018), The Last Matinee / Al morir la matinée (2020), and X (2022), the first instalment into the R.L. Stine adaptation mixes beloved slasher tropes, ultraviolence and supernatural horror to an almost offensive level of mediocrity. The only real takeaway from this, for me, was how alike the killers mask is to that of The Crimson Ghost (1946), and a few inventive and unexpected kills. It's so average I may neglect watching parts two and three of the trilogy.



Thursday 06/10/2022
Ticks (1993)

Director: Tony Randel

Revisited this with my girlfriend; it being a first time watch for her. Mixing nature gone awry with eco and body-horror, Ticks is a blast with memorable performances from Seth Green, Alfonso Ribeiro, and Clint "I'm infested!" Howard. Would suit a creepy-crawly double feature with The Nest (1988) as there are similarities between the two; both include a scene during the last act of a giant, man-sized "bug" (I can feel every entomologist cringing at my simplification) hatching from the body of some unfortunate sod. The scene in the veterinary surgery is akin to a Monty Python sketch; hilarious. If you've been putting it off, wait no longer and check it out. A great little film with neat effects. Emily and I have begun to mimic the movement of the tick puppets with our hands.



Friday 07/10/2022
Macumba Sexual (1983)

Director: Jesús Franco

"Is this another sex film?" I was asked. "Not exactly" I replied. Menacingly erotic dreams and bizarre voodoo rites are at the forefront Macumba Sexual, a delirious sexual nightmare from the seemingly endless oeuvre of Jesús Franco. At long last, I got around to checking out Franco's trippy sexual nightmare, as I write this I realise I could be describing a number of films from his oeuvre... Starring the enigmatic Ajita Wilson and Franco muse Lina Romay. Really enjoyed this one; the shots of Princess Obongo (Wilson) walking along with her her two slaves on leashes crawling on their hands and feet is iconic. I'm steadily immersing myself into the dreamy world of Jesús, patiently making my way through whatever works I can get my hands on.



Friday 07/10/2022
The Ring (2002)

Director: Gore Verbinski

A long time since I had revisited this and another film from this week that I sat down to watch with Emily. We reminisced about watching this through much younger eyes. I can distinctly remember renting this and getting friends round to watch it and watch them freak-out. It's a fairly good Anglicised version of a groundbreaking Japanese film and the first of two films on this list to star Brian Cox. The cursed tape is chock-full of surreal imagery that would bemuse Buñuel. The film has a similar aesthetic to Fincher's Se7en (1995); always seems to be raining and there's a sickly green tinge to everything. Moody and oppressive, it still holds up.



Saturday 08/10/2022
Separation (2021)

Director: William Brent Bell

Garbage; not even in the redeemably "trashy" way, just garbage. There's so many things I wish to express about the ineptitude of Separation, but it's as if my mind can't handle the sheer volume of errors and instead, it locks-up every time I attempt to write it down. But, if you chucked every horror cliché into a standard melodrama, randomly shot scenes with a harsh red filter, and had characters that operate only in extremes you'd be almost half way to describing this mess. Throughout, Emily and I would turn to each other and ask "What's happening now?", "What the does that even mean??" and "WHY???"; and not because the film is too abstract, or "Lynchian", but because it borders on incoherent nonsense. The mind boggles as to what Brian Cox was doing in this. Avoid it, you can enrich your life by watch paint drying or grass growing instead.



Sunday 09/10/2022
The Female Executioner / L'Executrice (1986)

Director: Michel Caputo

Low-budget actioner from the land of escargot, starring 42nd Street Cinema fave Brigitte Lahaie. First time checking this out; I'd previously read about it and after seeing many mixed views I wasn't quite sure what I was getting myself into. Consequently, I went into this with relatively low expectations and came out having a really good time; though it's a tad cynical (aren't most action films), the pace and the energy of the cast covers-up the lack of competence, and a moment during the last act totally won me over. Très bien!



Sunday 09/10/2022
Deadstream (2022)

Director: Joseph Winter, Vanessa Winter

The most fun I've had with a new movie released on a streaming service in a while. Deadstream delivers a humorous commentary on the microcosm of so-called celebrity YouTubers and Streamers. Equally strong on humour and scares, imagine Sam Raimi's Evil Dead 2 (1987) shot with several GoPros and hosted by a grating YouTube star. One of the better recent offerings from Shudder, check this out you won't be disappointed.