The Scream franchise is not one that wants to be taken seriously as a straight horror film. From the first iconoclastic installment so many years ago, its aim, it’s very raison d’être, was to call out the conventions of slasher films and then serve up a gory slashfest to an audience primed to laugh at… Read More »
SCREAM
In a film that is dedicated to self-reference and meta self-awareness, my favorite snippet of SCREAM is a throwaway reference to “that guy who directed KNIVES OUT”. That, of course, is Rian Johnson, who had previously worked on THE LAST JEDI, thereby drawing the wrath of a section of Star Wars fans of all persuasions,… Read More »
READY OR NOT
READY OR NOT has one of the great cinematic punchlines. It’s much better in context, so I won’t give it away, but suffice to say that it’s not only pithy, it’s also all too relatable. So is the film itself, in a deliciously twisted way. This very black comedy plays on the fine line between… Read More »
DEVIL’S DUE
DEVILS DUE is a perfectly competent horror flick with a few nice twists scattered among its otherwise unremarkable storyline. The standard plot in not helped by the films indulgence in the latest horror-flick fad, pretending that the film has been cobbled together from bits and pieces of found footage. The films that started it all,… Read More »