Tiff ’22: The Banshees of Inisherin

A canticle of attrition laced with verses of humour and pathos, The Banshees of Inisherin from writer-director Martin McDonagh is a perfect composition. Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson star as Padraic and Colm. They’ve been drinking mates for years until in April of 1923, Colm decides he doesn’t want to be friends with Padraic anymore….

Hush (2016) – Mike Flanagan

Home invasion stories are not my jam. I’ve never cared for it, and I’ve yet to be entertained by one. But going through Mike Flanagan’s filmography, his third film plants itself firmly into a territory that usually doesn’t do much for me. Co-witten with his partner, Kate Siegel, who also stars, the film follows Maddie…

Absentia (2011) – Mike Flanagan

So digging into Mike Flanagan’s work, I found his first horror feature film, which you can source on YouTube. Sure, it’s shot on a digital camera, and looks a little less sleek than some of his later works, but damn if a lot of recognizable elements aren’t there from the off; the use of family…

Fringe (2009) – The No-Brainer, and The Transformation

No-Brainer, written by David H. Goodman and Brad Kane first aired on 27 January, 2009. Olvia (Anna Torv), Peter (Joshua Jackson), and Walter (John Bishop) get called into a strange case that involves the death of two people whose brains seem to have liquified. The only connection between the two is a strange computer file…

Fringe (2008/2009) – Safe, and Bound

Things are quickly coming to a boil for Olivia (Anna Torv), Walter (John Noble), Peter (Joshua Jackson), and Astrid (Jasika Nicole) as Safe gives us a story that begins to tie some threads together while delivering our first real cliffhanger ending. Written by David H. Goodman and Jason Cahill, this episode first debuted on 2…

The Last House on Needless Street (2021) – Catriona Ward

Catriona Ward delivers a fantastic, engaging tale that is horrific, heartbreaking, and revelatory. I discovered this title when I went searching for something scary to read, something to freak me out, and mess with my brain a bit. The Last House on Needless Street does exactly that. The book is broken up into three narratives,…

The Medium (2021) – Banjong Pisanthanakun

Thailand delivers a moody, atmospheric character piece, shot in documentary fashion that explores spirituality, faith, belief, family and vengeance. Initially, the ‘documentary’ is supposed to be about shamnisim and focuses on Nim (Sawanee Utoomma), and how she serves as a vessel for a goddess that has selected females of her family for generations. Through Nim,…

Jeepers Creepers (2001) – Victor Salva

Back in 2001, I was still working in a video store, and I would take home all the new releases before they came out so I could watch them, and, according to the business model of the store, make recommendations. I enjoy my horror movies, and was intrigued by the idea of this one when…

Apostle (2018) – Gareth Evans

There’s a lot to unpack in Gareth Evans’ film, Apostle, there are concepts of religious tenets, blood, sacrifice, family, worship, deification, and faith, all of it wrapped up in a character driven tale starring Dan Stevens and Michael Sheen. If you try to take it as the straightforward tale that the film’s plotline offers, you’re…

The X-Files (2000) – Closure, and X-Cops

This episode tells us, in its opening credits to “believe to understand” instead of the usual “the truth is out there” as we dive into the conclusion of a two-parter which finally gives some resolution to Mulder (David Duchovny) in regards to his sister’s abduction. Written by series creator Chris Carter and Frank Spotnitz, this…