I am one of the folks that loved McG’s 2018 horror comedy “The Babysitter.” It was a weird, gory, and funny horror comedy with an excellent cast, including Samara Weaving, who could take any role and turn it in to gold. When I heard of the sequel coming up shortly after, I was skeptical, if only because there didn’t seem to be anywhere else to go. Oddly enough the writers go in a completely new direction and for the most part it’s a raucous and fun follow up.
Tag Archives: Mystery
The Curse of Audrey Earnshaw (2020) [Fantasia Fest 2020]
In small, rural village where nothing is growing and people are dying, a woman has her crops thriving and seems to be doing great, so her village’s population deems her to be a witch. While she is hiding an important secret, it may not be what the villagers are expecting.
Detention (2019) [Fantasia Fest 2020]
Set in Taiwan in 1962, a period known as the White Terror, Detention takes place in and around a school and its among its student and staff as they are encouraged to turn anyone who may be against the current power in. A group of students and young teachers meets up to discuss banned books and other materials. As they try to stay hidden and survive, something not quite usual starts happening.
A Witness Out of the Blue (2019) [Fantasia Fest 2020]
The official definition for this film is “[a] Hong Kong crime thriller about a detective and a parrot” and it honestly nails the film. It’s what it’s about with of course other factors involved like a criminal, some corruption, and a little bit of love possibly.
Lucky (2020) [Fantasia Fest 2020]
A woman finds herself the target of an intruder/stalker and when no one will believe her about the gravity of the situation, she is forced to figure a way out for herself.
Cool Summer (2020)
It’s not often I get an independent animated film for the blog and that’s probably for a good reason. Animation is long, and demanding, even if it’s essentially cheaper as a filmmaking medium. “Cool Summer” has its heart in the right place, and also has a good idea in its corner, it just needs so much work to be done from top to bottom, and much of the pitfalls narratively and production wise keep it from being great.
Alone (2020) [Fantasia Fest 2020]
John Hyams’ “Alone” begins kind of sketchy. In fact I spent the first fifteen minutes not quite sure where the screenplay was going, if anywhere. But sticking with it, I’m glad to discover that “Alone” is one of the best and most exciting thrillers of the year. While it does get off to kind of a sputter, it transforms in to a journey of self discovery and evolution for a woman who is shambles when we first meet her. By the end, she has to figure out if she can keep charging head first in to the world, or if she wants to recede back in to the night.