I don’t know exactly what I believe about the Devil. Fallen angel? Malicious overlord? Bullshit myth? All are highly possible. However, I know I have felt darkness and evil. I know that I have felt a heaviness that can only be described as demonic. I know that I believe in spiritual warfare… that much I’m…
Review
A Tale of Two Disneys… BEAUTY AND THE BEAST vs. BAMBI
I recently received review copies of both the new live action Beauty and the Beast and the Signature Collection Anniversary Edition of Bambi. Receiving Disney releases for review is always exciting, especially with two children in the house. And, while both of my children are superhero loving young boys and these aren’t exactly big action…
PRISONER X: Hard and Smart Sci-Fi with Small Budget and Big Ideas
With a limited budget and talented – but unknown – cast, this film creates tension and genuine intrigue through a complex narrative with hard sci-fi concepts. Prisoner X is deeply contemplative, unique, and well made. Perhaps, it can feel a bit slow at times, but it ultimately achieves in being exactly the film it sets…
Forget about Schumacher’s Batman Films, Adam West is the only true BATMAN FOREVER
Growing up on Adam West’s Batman, Christopher Reeves’ Superman, and the Saturday morning cartoons of the 1970s, I prefer that the difference between the good guys and the bad guys be pretty cut and dry. While I liked the Tim Burton Batman movies, and even Joel Schumacher’s Batman Forever (don’t hate!), I’m burned out on…
Over at FGBFF, We’re DYING OF LAUGHTER: A Short Film Block Highlight Reel
A Tricky Treat (USA/Canada, 2015) Dir. Patricia Chica I first saw Patricia Chica’s delightfully macabre short A Tricky Treat back in 2015, when it was going by the title Ripe N’ Bloody in a slightly truncated version for the 2015 Women In Horror Blood Drive PSA. I say slightly truncated, because even in its full…
IN THE DEAD OF NIGHT is a Horror Themed Garage Rock Masterpiece
These are Sweden’s The Dahmers, a garage rock/punk rock outfit from Kristianstad, who focuses their tunes on horror themes and ideas. As a horror nerd and aging punk rocker, not much tickles my fancy as much as a good horror punk album. This, my loyal Farsighted readers, is just that… GOOD FUCKING HORROR PUNK! A…
Quirky Canadian LOST IN PARIS Reminds Us That Rom-Coms Can Actually Be Funny… and Can Actually Be Romantic
For 25 years, Fiona Gordon and Dominique Abel have been collaborating in some way, whether it be theatre or the silver screen. When it comes to film and directing, there has always been another person to complete a trifecta. Lost in Paris marks the first time Gordon and Abel have branched out to become a…
Opening Next Week: Award Winning FROM HOLLYWOOD TO ROSE is Candy Land, But on a Bus to LA
I’ve been to California twice. Once to be on a film program with The American Pavilion, and the second time was to visit some of my best friends. Both of my visits were to Los Angeles where I got a decent grasp of the city, its people, and the way some things work. I personally…
Blax Like Me: Ron Van Clief Kicks Major Ass in THE BLACK DRAGON’S REVENGE
As this is the first post in a new series, let me begin with a brief introduction. You see, I’m a suburban white ass honkey. I grew up in a quiet and safe suburban town that I eventually realized in my teenage years was rife with racial profiling. It was an honest to God Mafia…
The Friday Fighters Take a Bloody and Animated Trip to the SEOUL STATION
Confession Time: I haven’t seen Train to Busan yet (I know, I know). [Editor’s Note: When I read this, I can’t help but hear Luke reading this confession as if John Cusack’s below question in High Fidelity] I’m probably going about this backwards, watching the prequel first, but considering the quality of Seoul Station, I’ll…
THE DISMEMBERED: Garagehouse Kills It with Unearthed Horror Comedy
When a film begins with this disclaimer, it can’t be horrible. This is quite possibly the single greatest opening disclaimer ever put to film. Not only is it clever and tone setting; but for 1962, it’s incredibly original. Moreover, the film is a horror comedy with an emphasis on the comedy… and we know this…
MISERY OBSCURA is Required Reading for Punks Old and New
I loved this book and then decided I had to pass it on to the next generation of music fans. Our (second) youngest writer was the logical choice to share my love for horror punk with – well, notably the Misfits, Danzig’s post-Misfits work does nothing for me. But I digress… Even if Samhain and…
TILTing in the Wrong Direction at Tribeca 2017
Kasra Farahani’s Tilt recently played at the Tribeca Film Festival. It’s a tale about an aspiring filmmaker’s slow descent into madness after his wife has become pregnant with his child. And the key word here is slow. As in so slow that the film moves in slow-motion while being trapped in quicksand. This was a…
ALIEN: COVENANT is Better than the Internet Haters are Telling You!
I have a tendency to avoid trailers and hype around big releases, especially when it is something that I am excited for. Alien: Covenant IS one of those titles and I had to try hard as fuck not to read reviews, hype and hate on the internet. I wanted the purest viewing experience and made…
Arrow Gets Blaine High with their Release of BRAIN DAMAGE
Frank Henenlotter has been having a major resurgence over the past few years. Films like Basket Case and Frankenhooker are undeniable pieces of trash-cinema gold but For one reason or another there has never been a great release of one of his finest films to date, Brain Damage. Leave it to the wonderful weirdos at…
THE UNTOLD, IN-DEPTH, OUTRAGEOUSLY TRUE STORY ABOUT SHAPIRO GLICKENHAUS ENTERTAINMENT… Wow, That’s a Mouthful
The Untold, In-Depth, Outrageously True Story of Shapiro Glickenhaus is the first book from Marco Siedelmann to cover this awesome world of working class films that has been pushed out of the current model. His new book, Stories from the Trenches, is all about the life and films of great B-movie director from this era…
Move Over Squatch, We’re in CHUPACABRA TERRITORY
In the grand tradition of Sasquatch hunting, Chupacabra Territory (aka Lair of the Beast) riffs on such packs of adventurers questing to track a mythical creature. In the case of this film, Harry Henderson isn’t their target, but instead it’s the Chupacabra – literally translated, “the goat sucker”. It is said to have been spotted…
SWMFIFF 2017 Short Film Roundup
Unfortunately, none of our staff live outside of North America, with most of us residing of what Borat would call the “U-S-and-A”. This means that we weren’t able to get our asses down under to Tasmania’s premier film festival, the amazing Briony Kidd’s Stranger With My Face International Film Fest. Yet, we were lucky enough…
CFF 2017 Presented DAVID LYNCH: THE ART LIFE
[Editor’s Note: This film was presented as part of Chattanooga Film Fest last month. It’s currently making rounds all over. We apologize for the delay in covering it, but with Lynch helming the grand return of Twin Peaks later this month, we didn’t want to miss getting some coverage on this great film about an…
Sunday Showdown: The Friday Fighters Go Toe to Toe on SILENCE OF THE LAMBS in Honor of the Great Jonathan Demme
Silence of the Lambs is one of those films I knew all about before I first saw it given how it penetrated the cultural landscape. I mean I think even Tiny Toons referenced it constantly. So when I first saw the whole film, there were no surprises. I mean it was so impactful it means…
Tarts and Crafts is a Damn Good Beer, THE CONTROL GROUP is a Fun Movie, But Fuck GREASY STRANGLER So Hard
Sour beers and fruity pale ales… that’s how my night began. This impromptu “Thirsty Thursday” was because I had to run out for an errands and the mix 6 packs at Weiss were calling. I realized a couple of beers in that I had some films to finish writing up, so welcome to our next…
This Movie Gave Cash GOOSEBUMPS
[Editor’s Note: I’m so proud of my son, who has gotten motivated to write a ton lately. He’s reviewed a few albums on his own, with nothing more than a little bit of editing help (everyone needs an editor), and helped me with a few movies, one of which is The Gate (our latest co-review).…
Thank You Vestron: Sharing THE GATE with a New Generation
The Gate is a film that I think I saw as a kid, in fact I’m pretty sure I have, but I don’t really remember when. It had been so long that this rewatch felt like watching something new and watching it with my kids was a fantastic experience (my youngest, Weston, only made it…
Mike Cramer’s TEENAGE GHOST PUNK: A Good Movie with a Great Script
That was pretty good. This is an actual quote from Mike Cramer’s Teenage Ghost Punk and it sums up my thoughts on the film. I thought it was a pretty good movie. I enjoyed it. I was caught up in the story and the characters and even though I had some issues with the movie?…
THE SHADOW EFFECT is Held Back by Tonal Issues and an Awkward Twist, But is Ultimately a Pretty Good Time
Assassinations, explosions, gene rejuvenation. These are just a few things you’re going to see in The Shadow Effect. These components are very exciting to think about in a movie, however; ultimately a neutral feeling was felt during the roll of the end credits. Gabriel (Cam Gigandet) is having vivid dreams triggered from a song that…
THE VAMPIRE BAT: Father and Son Exploring Pre-Code Horror, Part I
My burgeoning horrorhound son, Cash, and I spent some time diving into Pre-Code horror films of the 1930s this weekend. We first dove head first into 1935 Peter Lorre vehicle Mad Love, in which he portrays a man driven crazy by his own emotions. Both Cash and I found the film slow and Cash didn’t…
Scandal Always Followed LULU BELLE
Lulu Belle is a quintessential 1940s era film. Dorothy Lamour shines as the titular nightclub singer who gets swept off her feet by a young attorney (George Montgomery). The attorney, George, throws away everything for Lulu, but Lulu’s actions drive him to do the unthinkable, and he lands himself in prison as a result. Dorothy…