This year’s SXSW is just about wrapped up and with that the full list of award winners has been announced. Trey Edward Shults‘ Krisha won the Grand Jury Award for Narrative Feature, and Scott Christopherson and Brad Barber‘s Peace Officer won the
6.5
God Bless the Child, or “Babysitting Simulator 2015” as I like to call it, is a minimalistic, home-movie-style film that – while featuring a thread-bare plot – packs a surprisingly strong emotional punch within its final five minutes. Similar to Alexandre Rockwell’s recent Little Feet, the film acts as a candid exploration of youth, starring five real-life siblings left to their own devices.
5
he emphasis in the title for A Space Program should be placed on the indefinite article. Despite the omnipresence of NASA branded materials, the outfit depicted in the film is definitely not “the” space program. It’s a fabricated collective staging a handmade journey to Mars. The environs of this space program are quite literally fabricated, built out of plywood, construction paper, and other materials. While the ambition and execution with the building and staging of the mission are immensely impressive, the movie that celebrates it doesn’t approach the same type of lo-fi grandeur.
The first teaser trailer for Benjamin Dickinson‘s upcoming futuristic comedy Creative Control has been released ahead of its premiere at this year’s SXSW Festival. The film stars Dickinson as an advertising executive tasked with marketing Augmenta, a new type of augmented reality
7.5
For some reason, I have always had an affinity with films revolving around cults. The psychology behind someone who can be brainwashed into following some self-appointed leader is a fascinating subject to explore. When you throw comedy into the mix it’s even better and such is the case with Riley Stearns’ Faults. With a breakout performance of Leland Orser, this small, dialogue driven dark comedy provides insight into the manipulation of a cult, while providing some hilarious bits of humor.
Here’s the trailer for the upcoming documentary Made in Japan, which will be making its premiere at this year’s SXSW Festival in Austin. The film, directed by Josh Bishop and narrated by Elijah Wood, chronicles the life of Tomi Fujiyama, the first female
Dark Sky Films has released a new trailer for the upcoming horror movie We Are Still Here, which is set to have its world premiere at this year’s SXSW in Austin next month. The film is written and directed by Ted Geoghegan, and
One of the crazier looking films to screen during the midnighters programming at this year’s SXSW is Jason Lei Howden‘s Deathgasm, which looks to contain just the right amount of comedy and over the top gore. The film revolves around two friends who
One of my favorite programs of SXSW has always been the midnighters lineup, and this year’s batch of genre flicks looks great as always, with highlights including Rodney Ascher‘s (Room 237) latest, The Nightmare, as well as Turbo Kid from the RKSS Collective.
6.5
Predestination is the latest adaptation from famed science fiction author Robert Heinlein who penned such classics as Starship Troopers and The Puppet Masters. Directed by Michael and Peter Spierig, this mind bending time travel film features some very unique concepts, however many of the twists are too easily predicted despite some genuinely crazy things taking place. That being said, this does provide a very fresh spin on the quickly becoming overplayed time travel movie.
8
In theory, a story about a man who is trying not to poop for a week doesn’t sound like enough material for a feature length film. Fortunately, Angus Sampson’s The Mule proves that theory wrong by presenting a funny and incredibly gripping crime story. Sampson and co-writer Leigh Whannell (who also star in this film), have been firmly planted within the horror genre, however this release proves they can easily transition to any other type of film with ease.
7.5
Some people are willing to do anything for fame. Sleep with a producer, humiliate themselves on a reality show, or even sell their body to a creepy satan cult. In directors Kevin Kolsch and Dennis Widmyer’s Starry Eyes, they explore that last one in great detail. This is slow burn horror at it’s best- slowly revealing itself to the audience before exploding into a torrent of carnage and mayhem. Featuring scenes of excessive creepiness and sparse bits of extreme violence, this is the perfect example of how horror movies used to be.
5.5
If one thing can be said about director Nacho Vigalondo, it’s that he’s always coming up with new and creative ways to tell stories. Timecrimes was one of the best time travel movies I’ve ever seen and might be one of my favorite thrillers of all time. Extraterrestrial brought a different take on the alien invasion movie, and now Open Windows, his first English-language film, takes a harsh look at technology and obsession. The film is told entirely through a computer screen, which doesn’t seem like something that could hold one’s attention for an hour and a half, but somehow Vigalondo throws in enough suspense and twists to keep everyone glued to the screen.
7.5
Jack Plotnick’s Space Station 76 is a science fiction comedy that takes place in the future as it was imagined back in the ‘70s. This goofy idea lends itself to a bevy of funny gags that poke fun at the time period and how the future was represented. While it mostly acts as a straight comedy, there is a serious undercurrent flowing beneath the mustaches and feathered hairdos. This slightly dark edge makes the film much more rewarding than a straight-up spoof. Basically, Space Station 76 is like the ‘70s sci-fi version of Wet Hot American Summer, which means it’s hilarious, smart and super fun.
6.5
Leigh Jankiak’s directorial debut, Honeymoon, is an interesting blend of psychological and supernatural horror that provides both intrigue and some incredibly disturbing imagery. As the film moves on, I found myself completely enthralled in what was happening to the main characters, and was continuously guessing what weird horror was about to spring next.
4.5
Director Nicholas McCarthy exploded onto the scene back in 2012 with his festival hit The Pact, which was a fantastically creepy little horror flick. Now, his next movie, At The Devil's Door, is set come out, but it unfortunately doesn’t achieve the same level of originality or suspense as his previous film. It’s a humdrum supernatural thriller that favors jump scares over any real tension and while it starts off intriguing, it quickly devolves into a mostly boring series of horror clichés.
