4v291o

Dead people.

I fucking love Paul Giamatti. Probably one of the best acting jobs in any Black Mirror story, knew he’d deliver. I’m so heartbroken what the fuck am I supposed to do now?!

The last 20 minutes is great, just wish we had more time to explore the main concept as the rest fills the episode.

The ending had me almost sobbing, it was the right choice to have this as the opening to Season 7. I don’t cry often.

Enjoyed this, cool use of black and white :)

A working pile of dogshit.

2025 rerelease - never thought I’d actually get to see this film in the cinema, an absolutely class experience. Still a masterpiece that gives me chills during the final act.

Watched on Monday April 21, 2025.

Consuming three edibles made this absolute cinema.

Harrison Ford looking like a fent addict when he shrunk back down is amazing.

I no longer feel.

Best Boxing Day movie choice I’ve ever had. I was interested to see how good this looks now the 4K disc is released… it looks fucking great by the way.

“THAT’S NOT ALEC!”

Seeing Alfred cry always makes me cry.

Fucking masterpiece.

Nolan Trilogy Rewatch: Take a hit of the cart everytime ‘Batman’ is said by a character, you’ll have a great time.

Best church dance off I’ve ever seen.

Probs my favourite zombie film of all time.

Telling my kids this was The Lion King.

I’m baked but yeah that was dogshit.

New comfort movie unlocked. I mean talk about a stacked cast, this is crazy. Is that fucking Jimmy Fallon? There’s something about a coming of age movie and mixing it with the world of rock and roll that absolutely slaps. It doesn’t particularly go in a direction I’d anticipate, but by the end credits I couldn’t be more entertained.

Pretty peak filmmaking. This is perfectly executed to hit me where it hurts, and as a result the immersion is spectacular. The acting is good, the story is just a bit too overdone. A narrative about the power hungry, prejudice and motherhood, combined with chaos and beauty is great, but there’s definitely something small missing. It’s interesting as to why it was shot in 3:4 aspect ratio but it definitely accentuates the style of shot composition with the background setting. There’s always going to be films like this of a similar genre but this is definitely in the top section for me personally. The technical aspects alone shine through well and put this above other movies, and the feeling this gives me is all round pretty strong.

Instructions unclear: I did NOT get hard.

Some cool ideas in this short film that are clearly developed and mastered in The Substance.

Came here to see Ed Sheeran portray a crackhead…pretty much as expected. At least it was better than his appearance in Game of Thrones though.

Is that fucking Huell Babineaux?

Relatively painful experience.

I’ve lost all motor function rn,

I could never get bored of this style of gangster films, it’s just fucking badass filmmaking to be honest. I forgot to log this a couple years back, so it was time for a rewatch. Arguably Scorsese’s best, very rich in character and a crazy order of events in the narrative. I haven’t seen this since Ray Liotta’s ing, safe to say he will always live on a cinema legend.

Went into this blind with no idea it was a parody movie. It’s stupidly outrageous obviously, but can really be funny during certain sequences. There are so many throw away scenes with no consequences but I suppose that’s part of the parody movie magic…

Addictive chaos from legend Martin Scorsese. An absolute masterclass of a film from one of the best directors we’ll ever see. It’s embarrassing that I waited this long to properly sit down and watch Casino. This movie is great with a few beers. The narration benefits the narrative in a great way by keeping me glued to the screen the entire time. For a longer movie the pacing is brilliant, and the acting is obviously top class from the entire ensemble cast. The shot composition is great, soundtrack is great. Not much to complain about here.

HASTA LA VISTA BABY

Even for Scary Movie standards this is low.

The intro alone is hilarious.

Absurd… but hilarious.

Ridley Scott has always been a master at scale and immersion. But this, for me, was a pleasant surprise. Some would say Gladiator is his best piece (not me) and the legacy it left never needed the risk of being tarnished. However, this slapped. There will be no world where one can compare this to the first, but Mescal, Pascal, Washington and everyone delivers pretty damn well on performances. The soundtrack was also excellent considering it wasn’t Zimmer this time around. Obviously there’s some moments in this where I question the narrative and everyone feels like they’re having maybe too much fun. And I can see why a lot of people will be ‘meh’ on this. But overall this was going to exist anyway, so in my opinion we got the best version that it could have been. It inserts itself into the timeline with a nice homage to its predecessor without going too far or being too long… like the Napoleon directors cut.

Once in a while you find a film that’s so rich in character that it’s addicting to see it play out. That for me is Kneecap. So original and meaningful at its core but still maintains high energy paired with an amazing soundtrack. Definitely one of the best of the year.

On its surface it’s a vampire trance that focuses on memory and human relation, below the surface it’s... not a lot to be honest. Some great ideas and a good soundtrack but overall lacks interest and as a result can be slightly dull at times. If this took place in our modern world people would be QUEUEING to get bitten by those goddam vampires.

Was Santa’s sleigh rushing or dragging?

Ayo Sinbad’s kind of a pervert! I love this style of cartoon, I wish it was more present in modern times. Not to side track but the art style alone is one of the reasons Cuphead is one of my favourite games, they get it. Imagine seeing and hearing this on release? What a banger.

Stop motion and claymation still fucking rocks. When a film is both beautiful and tragic it means the team behind it ultimately did a lot of things right. It’s obvious that care went into this and it’s just fresh to see this style of film so recent. It’s the perfect amount of exploration into children’s innocence, their humour and how adult they can actually be. The soundtrack is also awesome. And they threw in a Wilhelm Scream! This film feels very topical with how cruel the modern world is. This film (for me) is a timeless conversation starter but also a showcase of how good we can be.

Very assuring to see that Priscilla was an exec on this. As far as biopics go I really enjoyed this, the execution of Elvis being integral but also not the main focus was done really well too. The makeup jobs in this film shine a lot more than others and Cailee Spaeny is amazing. The storytelling was good but I should definitely read the book before putting further thought into the narrative.

I love films that back up their narrative with strong world building instead of being a film that relies on it. That’s one of the reasons I adore this. The dialogue is perfectly subtle but maintains emotion. Another reason I love this is because of the feeling it gives me as a whole. Maybe I’ll come to understand why this connected to me as much as it did, but I absolutely fucking love it as a piece of film. I’d give so much just to make a film even remotely as good as this. The vibe of the story and the main character duo I really enjoy, a lot of character traits hit home (not the skin biting and human consumption though). This coming of age vampire tale is not only one of a kind, it’s backlit by a great original soundtrack. And it’s pretty short too, almost too strong to be as short as it is. This has amazing rewatch ability factor (and consolation if you’re me). I want to hire an interior designer to design me a warehouse unit that looks that fucking awesome.

Glad to see Rickety Cricket found a job at Papa Johns.

Puss In Boots vs Paddington (2024 colourised).

The real horror is how many fucking Voss bottles there are. This is a strong continuation to a great story. There’s some really great one shots in this and the gore is really stepped up. I’ve grown to appreciate the lore, especially if you watch both films in one sitting it’s great. The intro alone is absolutely crazy. Parker Finn has maintained a rawness to the filmmaking and the camerawork which results in an immersive experience. Also fuck needles… demons over needles anytime. The ending does make me question if this captures me the way the first film did. I understand the blur between reality and hallucination but I suppose I was hoping for a more exciting ending. The character development could have been better too, and for those reasons this is just shy of its predecessor.

As gruesome as ever. This film has the better story of the three in the series.. and definitely more gore, horrific charm and practical effects. I do think this has been overhyped but it’s not often you see successes as huge as these in such a niche genre. Because of the tone the creators set early on, this franchise can easily run for years and keep increasing creativity with an increasing fan base. I had a good time, the only scene I had to look away at was the shower scene… crazy.

Although this semi-subverted my expectations of a stereotypical revenge story, I didn’t particularly think it’s anything special. It’s good, I’m not sure how a person can function after losing that much blood, but it looked awesome.

YOU DONT EVEN KNOW MY REAL NAME IM THE FUCKING LIZARD KING. Cars are treated like hot wheels in this film, specifically ones you can have sex in with your friends! I need to cleanse myself after this viewing.

This film is a hilarious burst of chaos. Rachel Sennett is great. The structure of this is very satisfying since I love moment in time films all set in one day. The pacing begins slow but it really pays off during the spiral in the third act. A great comedy that had me stressed tf out.

Every movie that gets a wide/streaming service release in 2024 that I have seen - Ranked (Still adding to list)

1. Dune: Part Two

   This film is everything everybody wanted it to be and then some. The only other time I’ve felt this way about a movie was my first time watching Return of the King. This really is the epic to end all epics: truly capturing the best of modern cinema (with a cheaper budget than some films I won’t name). This is a visual spectacle with what might just be Hans Zimmer’s professional peak. It’s the best theatre experience I’ve ever had and maybe the best I will ever have. I truly believe this is one of the best films we will ever see in our lifetime, and I can’t believe I didn’t go on release day. All original and new cast perform on an incredible level, and both the emotional storytelling and the fight sequences are mastered in this compared to the first film. The first film was a soft cushion in preparation for this explosive masterpiece. It’s messed up my head because this will now have to indefinitely go into my top four list.

2. The Substance

   A cinematic trance of some of the most insane shit I’ve ever seen. Everything this film has to offer is original. The soundtrack, set design, camerawork and acting are all amazing and it carries an incredibly disgusting grip on the viewer. It sets a modern tone but involves methods and techniques used by some of my favourite classics. I’m watching this on Mubi but my god I bet this was interesting as a theatre watch in public. The narrative knows no boundaries, and watching the chaos unfold is addicting. One of the best and most creative films of 2024 for sure.

3. Alien: Romulus

   That was f*cking great. I watched this in 4DX and I feel like an Xenomorph crawled inside of my ass. I didn’t go into 2024 thinking we’d get a faithful yet modern Alien film, yet here we are. Andy was maybe the most interesting robot character I’ve seen in years. The practical effects and gore elements are more than impressive. Cinematography was great, I can’t wait to watch this at home on the Blu-Ray. They really nailed the futuristic look without overdoing it. The intensity, the score and the shot composition are all an artistic homage to the original (and brilliant) Alien. If you’re an alien fan, please go and watch this film.

4. Society of the Snow

   This had me flooded with tears. An incredibly directed story of survival. Exactly as visceral and bold as it needed to be. The acting was some of the best I think I’ve ever seen, and the soundtrack was amazing, especially during the more emotional and tenser scenes of the film. The writing was great, the cinematography was great. This was all round an amazing film that does sufficient justice to a historic true story.

5. Gladiator II

   Ridley Scott has always been a master at scale and immersion. But this, for me, was a pleasant surprise. Some would say Gladiator is his best piece (not me) and the legacy it left never needed the risk of being tarnished. However, this slapped. There will be no world where one can compare this to the first, but Mescal, Pascal, Washington and everyone delivers pretty damn well on performances. The soundtrack was also excellent considering it wasn’t Zimmer this time around. Obviously there’s some moments in this where I question the narrative and everyone feels like they’re having maybe too much fun. And I can see why a lot of people will be ‘meh’ on this. But overall this was going to exist anyway, so in my opinion we got the best version that it could have been. It inserts itself into the timeline with a nice homage to its predecessor without going too far or being too long… like the Napoleon directors cut.

6. Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga

   Another amazing 2024 film that includes sand. George Miller understands exactly what people want, and as a result of this we get a grand scale prequel with more destruction, intense action and great lore building. Anya Taylor Joy gives an incredible performance, as well as the child actor that portrays her in acts one and two. This second instalment has a lot better structure, with what I’d say is a better storyline. The time jumps work well, this felt more like an adventure which was great. This film should have been 20 - 30 minutes shorter in my option. I love long films but it just felt like it needed to be tighter packed to maintain the fast pace it sets itself at the beginning. Nevertheless I had a great time with this and loved it as much as the first. Not much can be improved for me to enjoy it any more: the camera work is amazing the CG is amazing and the overall world building on screen is unchallenged.

7. The Iron Claw

   Probably the best biopic drama I’ve ever seen.

8. Kneecap

   Once in a while you find a film that’s so rich in character that it’s addicting to see it play out. That for me is Kneecap. So original and meaningful at its core but still maintains high energy paired with an amazing soundtrack. Definitely one of the best of the year.

9. Civil War

   There’s a lot to say about this. Say what you want, I had a stressful but great time. Cinematically, amazing. Masterful camerawork and shot composure. A really brave film for modern age. A guaranteed hit for any director to use a ‘possible future’ scenario for cinema, especially that hits on war and politics. I appreciate the small story we follow, but it’s purposely made for us to see the bigger picture: and it’s not a nice one. It’s one that unfortunately will widely separate reviews on this. Modern films are always going to advance with how they present themes or messages through visceral imagery, but this is pretty brutal. This almost felt apocalyptic. I enjoy the moral journey (or moral battle) of journalists presented brilliantly through Jessie and her struggle. I think a thought provoking film is refreshing as the best films of 2024 have been much different. Not to say this won’t get debated on though, many people won’t want to watch this, but that’s the effect of the genre and the writing in this film. I love the rawness and unpredictability this had. The Jesse Plemons scene and the Whitehouse scene honestly blew me away. The aspect ratio greatly imitates the way we see media and I’m sure Garland did this purposely. It works great and it’ll look awesome on the blu-ray release.

10. Challengers

    Luca Guadagnino ‘serves’ us a stylish and energetic film that takes pride in fast editing and a bold soundtrack. The writing isn’t particularly amazing but this film makes its own chair to sit in. It’s widely different from the share of films we’ve seen so far this year which I find really refreshing. The acting is specifically a great part of this, Zendaya doesn’t always hit right with me. I might dislike her character in this but that just reflects how good of a performance she gives. I think the runtime is needed to build up the character progression but it sometimes leaves us with slight dullness between scenes. Having said that, I wasn’t bored by the dialogue, and the camerawork is so active that I’m constantly glued to the screen. Great use of a simple zoom shot. The comedic elements are great, but I wish there was more of it.

...plus 44 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

MUBI’s streaming platform has a lot to offer. I plan to work through their titles deciphering masterpiece from failure (in my own nerdy opinion of course).

1. Humanist Vampire Seeking Consenting Suicidal Person

   I love films that back up their narrative with strong world building instead of being a film that relies on it. That’s one of the reasons I adore this. The dialogue is perfectly subtle but maintains emotion. Another reason I love this is because of the feeling it gives me as a whole. Maybe I’ll come to understand why this connected to me as much as it did, but I absolutely fucking love it as a piece of film. I’d give so much just to make a film even remotely as good as this. The vibe of the story and the main character duo I really enjoy, a lot of character traits hit home (not the skin biting and human consumption though). This coming of age vampire tale is not only one of a kind, it’s backlit by a great original soundtrack. And it’s pretty short too, almost too strong to be as short as it is. This has amazing rewatch ability factor (and consolation if you’re me). I want to hire an interior designer to design me a warehouse unit that looks that fucking awesome.

2. Casino

   Addictive chaos from legend Martin Scorsese. An absolute masterclass of a film from one of the best directors we’ll ever see. It’s embarrassing that I waited this long to properly sit down and watch Casino. This movie is great with a few beers. The narration benefits the narrative in a great way by keeping me glued to the screen the entire time. For a longer movie the pacing is brilliant, and the acting is obviously top class from the entire ensemble cast. The shot composition is great, soundtrack is great. Not much to complain about here.

3. The Substance

   A cinematic trance of some of the most insane shit I’ve ever seen. Everything this film has to offer is original. The soundtrack, set design, camerawork and acting are all amazing and it carries an incredibly disgusting grip on the viewer. It sets a modern tone but involves methods and techniques used by some of my favourite classics. I’m watching this on Mubi but my god I bet this was interesting as a theatre watch in public. The narrative knows no boundaries, and watching the chaos unfold is addicting. One of the best and most creative films of 2024 for sure.

4. Shiva Baby

   This film is a hilarious burst of chaos. Rachel Sennett is great. The structure of this is very satisfying since I love moment in time films all set in one day. The pacing begins slow but it really pays off during the spiral in the third act. A great comedy that had me stressed tf out.

5. My Life as a Zucchini

   Stop motion and claymation still fucking rocks. When a film is both beautiful and tragic it means the team behind it ultimately did a lot of things right. It’s obvious that care went into this and it’s just fresh to see this style of film so recent. It’s the perfect amount of exploration into children’s innocence, their humour and how adult they can actually be. The soundtrack is also awesome. And they threw in a Wilhelm Scream! This film feels very topical with how cruel the modern world is. This film (for me) is a timeless conversation starter but also a showcase of how good we can be.

6. The Nightingale

   Pretty peak filmmaking. This is perfectly executed to hit me where it hurts, and as a result the immersion is spectacular. The acting is good, the story is just a bit too overdone. A narrative about the power hungry, prejudice and motherhood, combined with chaos and beauty is great, but there’s definitely something small missing. It’s interesting as to why it was shot in 3:4 aspect ratio but it definitely accentuates the style of shot composition with the background setting. There’s always going to be films like this of a similar genre but this is definitely in the top section for me personally. The technical aspects alone shine through well and put this above other movies, and the feeling this gives me is all round pretty strong.

7. Priscilla

   Very assuring to see that Priscilla was an exec on this. As far as biopics go I really enjoyed this, the execution of Elvis being integral but also not the main focus was done really well too. The makeup jobs in this film shine a lot more than others and Cailee Spaeny is amazing. The storytelling was good but I should definitely read the book before putting further thought into the narrative.

8. Popeye the Sailor Meets Sindbad the Sailor

   Ayo Sinbad’s kind of a pervert! I love this style of cartoon, I wish it was more present in modern times. Not to side track but the art style alone is one of the reasons Cuphead is one of my favourite games, they get it. Imagine seeing and hearing this on release? What a banger.

9. Revenge

   Although this semi-subverted my expectations of a stereotypical revenge story, I didn’t particularly think it’s anything special. It’s good, I’m not sure how a person can function after losing that much blood, but it looked awesome.

10. Crash

    YOU DONT EVEN KNOW MY REAL NAME IM THE FUCKING LIZARD KING. Cars are treated like hot wheels in this film, specifically ones you can have sex in with your friends! I need to cleanse myself after this viewing.

...plus 2 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

Gotta love Black Mirror.

1. Black Mirror: Beyond the Sea
2. Black Mirror: USS Callister
3. Black Mirror: Shut Up and Dance
4. Black Mirror: Hated in the Nation
5. Black Mirror: Fifteen Million Merits
6. Black Mirror: Metalhead
7. Black Mirror: Hang the DJ
8. Black Mirror: Bandersnatch
9. Black Mirror: Loch Henry
10. Black Mirror: The Entire History of You

...plus 18 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

All Christmas Movies seen during Festive Season. Watching new films but also including classics that I can’t help but rewatch every year.

1. Fred Claus

   My unpopular opinion: Fred Claus is one of the best Christmas films. I understand that Vince Vaughn is hit or miss, but he is given comedic justice in this movie. It’s hilarious, it’s creative and it holds a specific sentimental place in my heart. From a technical standpoint, this was great CG for 2007. From a story standpoint, here is a story that actually holds meaning. It’s a story about selfishness, but dives into themes of unhappiness, and that kids aren’t always ‘naughty’ but just need help getting back onto the right track. This film has structure, and the casting is pretty perfect. The soundtrack and the writing are incredibly underrated too. The pacing is brilliant in my opinion.

2. Miracle on 34th Street

   A strong depiction of commercialism and the misrepresentations of Christmas, along with agism and judgement. But what this film is really about is good-heartedness, innocence, and the importance christmas has for the kids. The scenes with Kris Kringle and the children are full of great writing, this is clearly a classic.

3. Die Hard

   A blood-spurting masterpiece with a great story, great effects and strong pacing. We’re over here thinking John is the main protagonist, but it’s clearly Officer Al. I knew this was going to be a classic, thank god I’ve finally crossed it off my (Christmas) list! This is also incredibly rewatch-able. Damn some of the set pieces were incredible. Maybe I shouldn’t have watched this so late at night, I’m amped up to all hell now.

4. Klaus

   A beautiful film that uses a combination of fresh material and a stylish animation style to give its viewers a great time. The cast is surprisingly stacked, and they did a great job with voice acting these characters. The writing was decent too. Comedy was great, soundtrack was great. There’s not much I can critique here, apart from maybe the pacing at times. But overall this was amazing, so good job to Netflix on this one.

5. Scrooged

   Bill Murray gets beaten up by ghosts, hates Chinese takeout and loses his hairline. I was surprised by how much I loved this. For an 80’s film it felt very late 90’s. His character is the most fun Scrooge has ever been, which is great considering I get bored of the standard Scrooge story. Enough was changed in our story and built upon that it was entertaining and fresh to see on screen. And the comedy was by far the best part of it all. His character is so villainous but goddam hilarious and I loved that. Some of the set pieces are also really impressive.

6. Violent Night

   A John Wick style festive film should have definitely been on my Christmas list. There’s something so amazing seeing David Harbour swing round a hammer decapitating people. This had great style, great gore and decent acting. I had a great time seeing this on the 4K disc… bright blood all over my screen in UHD.

7. Home Alone 2: Lost in New York

   Has anyone ever considered the home alone films to be Saw for children? Messed up guys..

8. Home Alone

   A classic. Home alone is great because it’s different from a lot of other Christmas films. There’s a great message about appreciating family, but it’s also just awesome to see burglars get physically abused by an eight year old.

9. The Nightmare Before Christmas

   This scared me as a kid… still very freaky. But in a great way. It’s nice to see a Christmas movie cut from a different cloth: a dark and messy musical tale capturing the discovery of festivity. And not to forget it’s amazing claymation work, and Danny Elfman showing off as a composer.

10. The Holiday

    This was great. A strong leading and ing cast, good comedy elements and a decent, not over the top, romantic film. My main critique would be the length, pacing was felt at times.

...plus 40 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

Every movie that gets a wide/streaming service release in 2022 that I have seen - Ranked (Still adding to list).

1. The Batman
2. Babylon
3. Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio
4. Avatar: The Way of Water
5. Top Gun: Maverick
6. Scream
7. The Northman
8. Barbarian
9. Talk to Me
10. Aftersun

...plus 43 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

Every movie that gets a wide/streaming service release in 2023 that I have seen - Ranked (Still adding to list).

1. Oppenheimer

   This film is an experience, that’s the best way I can explain. Just f*cking watch it now. I’ve never witnessed something so immersive and high scale. Oppenheimer is a detailed masterpiece, every single watch gives the viewer more that it makes it incredibly rewatchable. It feels like Nolan has been slowly increasing his mastery of cinema for over nearly two decades and has arrived at this big historical spectacle. It’s perfection because I can’t think of a single issue with this movie.

2. Past Lives

   The best directorial debut I’ve ever seen. This film gives what I can best describe as a light hearted emotional beating. I’m sat on my sofa lightly sobbing but it’s not all sadness. Aside from being another A24 banger, the artistic direction from Celine Song is incredible. To make something so beautiful as your first film should be viewed as more than ‘talent’. The cinematography, the palette but especially the casting choice is amazing. Some of the best for 2023.

3. Society of the Snow

   This had me flooded with tears. An incredibly directed story of survival. Exactly as visceral and bold as it needed to be. The acting was some of the best I think I’ve ever seen, and the soundtrack was amazing, especially during the more emotional and tenser scenes of the film. The writing was great, the cinematography was great. This was all round an amazing film that does sufficient justice to a historic true story.

4. The Holdovers

   I love everything about this film. The perfect framing and film grain to capture the time, the amazing acting from the entire cast and the story is fabulous. The vibe I get from this is so good that I will definitely be rewatching this.

5. Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse

   Similarly to the first instalment, Across the Spider-Verse is a visual spectacle. I’ve avoided spoilers so that I could experience this for the first time in Dolby Vision on the 4K Blu-Ray. The ending gave me chills, and I can’t wait for what’s to come next in this exceptional, unique story. The team clearly took everything everyone loved from Into the Spider-Verse and increased it to the max. Not only does this film make exceptional use of its runtime, it’s one of the best paced movies I’ve ever seen. This type of animation will never get old and the comic style story gives fan service we’ve never seen before.

6. Poor Things

   Yorgos gives us another fantastic visual spectacle. This time full of colour, imagination and excellent creative use of the camera. From the fish eye lense to the soundtrack, this film bursts with distinctive taste. I can’t wait to rewatch, all performances in this were incredible. I love the themes of science while also representing imagination and innocence. Great film.

7. The Zone of Interest

   Genocide is still prominent in Human Culture. This showcases not only a willingness to comply to evil but a reminder that this part of history remains shocking. There is a lot of great direction here: the choice to leave the viewer unsettled in noises of raw pain and suffering. There’s a great use of ‘showing not telling’ to let the viewer feel a part of this ‘zone of interest’. What I can’t stop thinking about is why this film was made today. There’s something in human behaviour in this film that is still very alive today. This was definitely spine chilling (especially the ending). How would someone even make a Swastika ice sculpture?

8. John Wick: Chapter 4

   SO MUCH DEATH I NEED MORE DEATH

9. The Creator

   The creator is a visual masterpiece. It’s by far my favourite release of the year, meaning I suppose I think it’s underrated. Hans Zimmer delivers perfection once again with an incredible OST and Chosen Soundtrack (Big Radiohead fan over here). John David Washington delivers and then some with his great performance. We’ve seen AI movies over and over, but Gareth Edwards takes everything great about these films and builds upon it. This film has the perfect measurement of emotive and thought provoking writing while still using visuals to tell a lot of its story. I was glad to see that the film isn’t directly about the war, but more about a story within the war against AI that helps to end it. There’s some interesting morals here I mean AI sacrificing themselves to save the life’s of human children? That’s some serious sh*t!

10. May December

    This is one of the best films of the year. The best films linger, they let you sit in the scene and process every detail in a quite real way. This film did that perfectly. It did a great job at keeping me unsettled, as if I was watching something far more visceral, which for me reflects the talent of the filmmakers and the actors. The soundtrack is bold and the dialogue is more cut throat as the story unfolds. It showcases a lot of childhood trauma, turning over rocks that lead to an almost dominoes effect of arising memories from the past. I also appreciated the use of film grain as it added to the set tone of the film. Had a great time with this one.

...plus 38 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

All unseen Spooky films watched during October (and early September) of 2024. This list includes Slashers, Horrors and Thrillers that I have not watched before.

1. Braindead

   Fucking brilliant. This film does every single thing I could have loved. A key center stone for comedy horror as a subgenre. Influenced by classics like Raimi’s Evil Dead trilogy, going on to influence other classics such as Edgar Wright’s Shaun of the Dead years later. 300 litres of blood for that final scene, what the fuck. The handheld camerawork is amazing and the jokes caught me off guard. Perfected comedy inserts, gruesome head removals, and stylish charm. Great blend of stop motion overlay too. Great fast pans and zooms, also fun as hell. Creatively strange but original. The final act is some of the craziest stuff I’ve ever seen. And they even included a boss fight, I’m sold.

2. The Silence of the Lambs

   A fitting way to end spooky season. There isn’t much else to say other than this is a timeless classic that’s great from start to finish. The immersion alone makes this so valuable and addictive. Do you think the FBI really have branded cakes though?

3. The Substance

   A cinematic trance of some of the most insane shit I’ve ever seen. Everything this film has to offer is original. The soundtrack, set design, camerawork and acting are all amazing and it carries an incredibly disgusting grip on the viewer. It sets a modern tone but involves methods and techniques used by some of my favourite classics. I’m watching this on Mubi but my god I bet this was interesting as a theatre watch in public. The narrative knows no boundaries, and watching the chaos unfold is addicting. One of the best and most creative films of 2024 for sure.

4. Beetlejuice

   The Burton style is so iconic. Firstly, what a fucking soundtrack from Elfman. One of those raunchy and chaotic scores that sticks with you, so cool. Winona Ryder in this movie is literally me. This is a classic for a reason: so much style, so much charm. Keaton is such a damn power house it’s brilliant. I love the makeup jobs in this, I’m feeling very halloweeny now and it’s still September. I watched this with three candles lit, and it’s so comfy and winter esque. I need to get this in 4K because the colour palette is amazing.

5. Evil Dead Rise

   “Dead by Dawn” she said the thing!! Yeah I absolutely fuck with this. They kept the scale small, lots of gore, creative camerawork. And it pays off because I loved it. It’s nowhere the greatness of Raimi, but it’s in a similar ball park. It’s great as a standalone but also great for the lore of the Book of Evil and its history. As a fan of the franchise this was great. Lee Cronin understood the assignment and you can see his love for the 80’s classics through his work. The doorbell pov is awesome. Nice homage to The Shining. However, Kassie is the most unrealistic child ever. The acting all round isn’t very good, but everything else is so I can forgive it.

6. Suspiria

   An excellent colour palette on this one. This film uses tension with soundtrack in a great and effective way. The soundtrack itself is awesome and unique. I loved the set location too. Attention to detail is very present in the camerawork and use of reflections and zooms. An instant classic for any horror fan, timeless in my opinion.

7. Sinister

   Loved this one. Never skip an Ethan Hawke film. Great story, good pacing and great editing. Written and acted well too. But this film is shot brilliantly. Great use of handheld, adds to the eeriness and builds realism perfectly. I love true crime so to base this on a true crime novelist is cool. The ending is a bit stereotypical but it still works really well for me. My only wish would be to have our characters engage more resistance within the story, maybe reaching a point where they can try and stop what comes before it does.

8. Killer Klowns from Outer Space

   A security guard gets cream pied (and not in a good way). I do not know why I loved this, but I fucking did. It’s just so weird in a great way. Evil balloon animals and cotton candy incubation! The set design is so sick, and the design of the Klowns themselves are scary asf. But I didn’t expect to have this much fun with the comedy inserts, some scenes were so stupid but so funny. It’s such an 80’s film but I think I just gave it a special place in my heart. The acting sucks but they fire a fucking popcorn gun at people… come on.

9. Child's Play

   Who the fuck puts that much sugar on cereal? “You stupid bitch! You filthy slut!” Lol. Jokes aside, yeah this is a classic for me. It’s criminal I hadn’t seen any of this franchise until now. I love the boldness of Chucky’s dialogue so much. The effects and camerawork is so great for the time too. Can someone please tell me if the sequels are worth watching or not?

10. House of 1000 Corpses

    Universal Studios Hollywood Backlot Chainsaw Massacre. This film is consistently at 300% energy throughout its bursts of classic horror references. Zombie takes everything that’s influenced him and combines it in an absolutely absurd style of visceral and comedic chaos. The camerawork and editing are reminiscent of my favourite horrors of the pre 2000’s and for me this was a horrific joyride… that’s the only way I try and capture how this feels. I can exactly see why this is stupid and on the whole it feels like a parody flick, but I think one of the reasons I enjoy this so much is because this is what I would try to achieve if I had the creative chance.

...plus 21 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

All unseen Spooky films watched during October (and early November) of 2023. This list includes Slashers, Horrors and Thrillers that I have not watched before.

1. Scream

   Arguably Wes Craven’s most stylish piece. A classic horror flick that understands the genre and the fun that can be had for the viewer. I’m putting this down as my first watch as I’ve never seen this all the way through until now. Perfect for October and an awesome cast.

2. The Thing

   Finishing off my halloween with a banger. Been meaning to watch this for a long time, but very glad I picked up the 4K disc yesterday. The lighting was amazing, story amazing, acting amazing and cinematography amazing. But what really makes this movie fantastic is the use of practical affects that still hold up to this day. I swear I’m straight but Kurt Russell is as sexy as it gets in this movie being trapped in the cold.

3. Scream

   100% the best sequel in the franchise in my opinion. More meta commentary, more blood and even more insane character deaths. But more importantly, Scream V is a faithful adaptation to Wes Craven’s masterpiece (which for 2022 is hard to come by). Firstly: HOW DARE YOU KILL OFF MY DEWEY MOTHERF*CKERS?? Secondly, hell yeah for convincing the OG Cast to return, clearly shows the directors were careful with their art and knew what to do. Thirdly: a great film that leaves a great legacy for Wes Craven after his ing. A great set of new cast too, loving the appearance of my boy Hughie!

4. Cloverfield

   In just under 90 minutes this movie declares itself a titan of the found footage genre. Thrilling from start to finish with excellent camerawork, set design and lighting. I think the story and acting could be improved, but a great watch for spooky season and a grounded, fresher take on the ‘disaster’ formula we’ve seen a thousand times. I have no idea how they filmed certain parts but I really enjoy the craft presented. Hud is so annoying but I’ve decided he is my spirit animal. 

5. The Lighthouse

   Twisted, visceral and nail-biting is exactly what a thriller should be. Eggers shows here that he is master of mixing thriller with physical horror while perfecting representation of 1800’s England. Outstanding cast, with exceptional camerawork and use of the 4:3 aspect ratio. A gritty soundtrack, and poetic play-style writing.


6. Saw

   The shear quality of the story and camerawork in this film really surprised me. I know it’s cliche, but I was on the edge of my seat the whole time. It wonderfully works horror elements into a thriller piece, and helps us reimagine our perception of the stereotypical ‘killer’ in a film.

7. Scream 4

   Scream 4 not only revives the franchise, it brings back the fun of the slasher genre without any forced elements. It’s exactly what scream was meant to be: Gory deaths, great scares and extremely self aware of the space it lies in. I do think the acting from Emma Roberts lets this down slightly, which is a shame because I’m quite fond of her. But other than that, I really had a great time watching this.

8. Scream 2

   May be an unpopular take, but I found that Scream 2 arguably has more taste and better character development than the first instalment. It also improves on breaking the fourth wall, better use of soundtrack and overall better pacing for a slasher film. Great watch.

9. Battle Royale

   As far as government controlled teenage survival game movies go, Battle Royale is at the top for me. This exceeded my expectations as a high octane thriller and never did I have any trouble with pacing. This is incredibly re-watchable and the characters are well written. The poison lighthouse scene was my favourite, gave me Reservior Dogs vibes. The blood and the action is great, looking forward to seeing what the second movie has to offer.

10. Barbarian

    For a modern horror, this went so much further than anticipated. Excellent camerawork and framing, a great cast and exceptional use of suspense. Easily rewatchable, awesome soundtrack. There really isn’t much I can critique about this movie, I loved it.

...plus 21 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

All of my owned 4K Blu-Ray films in my collection. Played on my Dolby Atmos Sound System.

• The Dark Knight
• The Dark Knight Rises
• Dune: Part Two
• Evil Dead II
• Interstellar
• Step Brothers
• The Texas Chain Saw Massacre
• Whiplash
• Spider-Man 2
• 12 Angry Men

...plus 196 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

Films by Louis Theroux on my watchlist.

• Louis Theroux: Shooting Joe Exotic
• Louis Theroux: Life on the Edge
• Louis Theroux: Selling Sex
• Louis Theroux: Surviving America’s Most Hated Family
• Louis Theroux: Mothers on the Edge
• Louis Theroux: The Night in Question
• Louis Theroux: Altered States
• Louis Theroux: Talking to Anorexia
• Louis Theroux: Dark States
• Louis Theroux: Savile

...plus 28 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

Films by David Attenborough on my watchlist.

• Planet Earth
• Planet Earth II
• The Blue Planet
• Blue Planet II
• Attenborough's Life in Colour
• The Hunt
• Wild Isles
• Frozen Planet
• Frozen Planet II
• The Life of Mammals

...plus 52 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

Raw defining titles that “sit” with you. They often wear you down to your core and may ruin you.

• Come and See
• The Hunt
• La Haine
• Another Round
• Hachi: A Dog's Tale
• Aftersun
• Prisoners
• The Pursuit of Happyness
• Manchester by the Sea
• Beautiful Boy

...plus 4 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

My collection of Criterion Physical Media 4K Blu-Rays. The Criterion Collection focuses on restoring classic and contemporary films from around the world.

• 12 Angry Men
• A Hard Day's Night
• Bottle Rocket
• Come and See
• Dazed and Confused
• Fantastic Mr. Fox
• In Cold Blood
• Lost Highway
• Marriage Story
• Okja

...plus 16 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

Watching and ranking all movies from the Friday the 13th film franchise 1980s - 2000s. Range of different directors and storylines.

1. Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives

   This is one of the best intros to a movie I’ve ever seen. Not only do we get huge levels of bad-assery, Tommy’s character was just as revived as Jason’s corpse. Absolute W for the franchise. The music was fantastic compared to its predecessor, and my prayers were answered. Writing was better, acting was better, CG was better, killing was better. Huge huge winner for classic horror, and has taken the number one spot on my Friday The 13th ranked list. Woohoo!

2. Friday the 13th Part 2

   Steve Miner took all the great elements of the first movie and dialled them up to ten. This film was awesome. We finally get to see Jason properly, and he looks great. I know that often the ‘survivors’ made really stupid decisions, but Miner attempted to move away from these horror tropes with the character of Ginny. A really good horror flick with great pacing and again a superior soundtrack.

3. Friday the 13th

   I forgot how good the gore is in the first movie. I love how this film uses the killer POV in an interesting way and how Jason’s mother remains hidden throughout the first half. Soundtrack is just nostalgic and amazing.

4. Friday the 13th Part III

   As a fan of the game, I have been waiting for the infamous ‘Higgins Haven’ part of the story. We see again the same formula, with a crazy old man having warned the teens of imminent danger. However the survivors are beginning to get smarter, and we’re seeing a lot more of the big guy. Interested to see where his story goes.

5. Friday the 13th

   It seems fitting that I would finish all 11 Friday the 13th movies on the very day it all began. Having watched the whole franchise, it’s incredibly interesting to see how each director changes, builds on, forgets and ruins the story of Jason Vorhees. But now that it’s all done and dusted, the quality of the 2009 reboot did surprise me. Jason can run now.. cool! This wasn’t anything crazy, but definitely decent. After watching Jason go into space, thankfully I get to end my journey with something more grounded than Jason X.

6. Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter

   Interesting introduction to Tommy Jarvis. Not the way I thought things would pan out, but great nonetheless. Jason’s face reveal in this was awesome. As for the franchise, I’ve still got many more films to go so I am interested to see how directors can keep this fresh but not stray away from the source material. The kills are a great as always, but I’m looking for possibly some more interesting death scenes. I promise I’m not sadistic

7. Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan

   Not as bad as I thought, but definitely a funny bad sort of flick. First half of the movie is lifeless and boring, but once Jason hits land in New York it becomes a completely different movie. I’m not exactly sure why everyone was chill with him being around in society, and why he wasn’t killing anyone else but hey ho. The story and pacing were poor, but I’ve seen worse in the franchise.

8. Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood

   Jason Vs telekinesis? Hm. Might be the goofiest one yet. This had some good moments, and Jason looks gruesome as ever. But overall was a relatively boring addition to the franchise. I’m very interested to see Jason Take Manhattan, but I’m thinking that these movies are only going to get worse and that we’ve already seen the best of Friday the 13th with part VI and part II.

9. Friday the 13th: A New Beginning

   Yeah… not great. Especially considering characters aren’t who we really think they are. This had so much potential, but the constant  plot twists towards the end ruin what could have been a continuous fun time in the franchise in my opinion. Hoping that the fun picks up again in the next film, unfortunate to see Tommy Jarvis’ character go this way.

10. Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday

    This just made no sense. They’re strayed so far from anything worth watching it’s crazy. Wasn’t even fun bad.

...plus 2 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.