Southbound

It’s a shame that the individual stories are not meaningfully interconnected (at least a bit!). Southbound would have worked fine as a sophisticated jigsaw puzzle. As it stands, the film comes across like a mish-mash of several unrelated shorts by filmmaker friends who – each according to their own taste – made “a scary story somewhere in the western American outback”. Southbound is consistently entertaining, but ultimately unsatisfying. (13.11.2021)

An anthology of short stories that is not an anthology of short stories. Rather, it’s a frantic ride through a western small town and its surroundings where strange things happen. This eliminates the problem of the short story anthology films, where mostly the “to each their own” rule applies. Southbound, in contrast, gives a rather holistic impression, with an atmosphere that stays within marked boundaries. And there’s always something happening. It’s a very gratifying film that doesn’t keep you waiting, and the authors try to please the viewer with a substantial number of horror properties and you almost don’t have time to catch your breath. I was reminded of In the Mouth of Madness, the atmosphere of that hellish small town is very similar. Even the main score is a bit “Carpenterish”. 8/10 (11.02.2016)

This Highway! This City! Those People! This Anthology!!! Is Fucked up!! A film that exceeded already high expectations must be rewarded accordingly. This is a fantastic ride through hell, with not a single weak element standing out. The first story is beyond average, boasting original portrayals of demons and one very decent gore scene, 3*+. The second short story features solid psychological terror with a clear “something is wrong here” mind-fuck atmosphere, 4*. The third story is the highlight of the anthology. It starts with the best car-human collision I've ever seen and ends with a nerve-wracking operation that had me screaming, sweating and curled up in bed like I haven't in a long time (at times I thought I couldn't take it) Excellent gore, 5*. The fourth story also features solid gore and idea but comes across as a slightly bland, 3*+. The final story climaxes with an intense home invasion that tells to other home invasion movies that if you want to, you still can. Excellent bad guy, intense suspense, psychological terror, decent climax and a nice twist 4*+. Amazingly shot, with convincing performances and clever writing, old-school atmosphere, perfect gore, amazing sound (every movement is authentic to the point of being palpable) and most importantly the film manages to perfectly sway the viewer's mind. Two reasons to see the film: the best and most stylish soundtrack in horror in the last decade and the best anthology in the last decade. A future classic that I will keep coming back to. 85%. (10.02.2016)

Southbound is quite an enjoyable short story film that is distinguished by being very well made in all respects. It has very good special effects, the picture quality is great, and the acting isn't bad either. It's enjoyable to watch, but none of the stories stood out enough for me to remember them more vividly. On the other hand, the floating monster is great and memorable. (08.07.2016)