POMO

A well-directed socio-thriller about a tragic clash of social classes that occurs in rural Brazil, where local workers from a plantation rise up against its owners, a married couple from the city. The police and the law cannot be counted on; they have only blind faith that they will be saved from being lynched by the “savages”. Well-portrayed mob psychology of individuals with limited thinking and no knowledge of the reality of a world with legal underpinnings. This is easily applicable to possible situations even in countries more advanced than Brazil, including some in Europe. Chilling! [Sitges Film Festival]

This is how the Pakistanis see the horror genre? Quietly let the grieving characters talk about their feelings and occasionally have one of them hint at something spiritual, which doesn’t tell anyone anything and isn’t scary in any way? Tediously boring, In Flames is the worst possible choice for a mid-morning festival film, unless you go to the cinema to take a nap. [Sitges Film Festival]

A Chilean island, indigenous people with witchcraft at their command and an arrogant German colonizer... Sorcery has atmosphere, high-quality actors and a setting in an attractive historical period with impressive production design, but the screenplay fails to offer anything more interesting. The most powerful scene gets the story going at the beginning, but it’s followed by waiting for a catharsis that is never fully brought to fruition. Nevertheless, the subject matter invited many interesting solutions to the situation as longed for by the viewers. [Sitges Film Festival]

An insanely simple idea from which the filmmakers extract an incredible psychological study of a man in an absurd situation that transitions into a social satire of post-apocalyptic proportions. Without fantasy elements and grand scenes, even though the film plays out predominantly in exterior settings. Some people simply just attack Vincent for no reason. And they do so very aggressively. Escalating danger of incomprehensible origin and reason, rising paranoia, inescapable isolation. Vincent Must Die is a lot of movie made for not a lot of money. [Sitges FF]

A feature debut shot in just 21 days, Jackdaw is a spectacular low-budget flick with a simple plot that offers up an intense, dynamic soundtrack and attractive visuals of a dark, futuristic nature, the American archetype of an action hero on a motorcycle and a noirish atmosphere. “Jericho” by The Prodigy reminded me that I need to revisit the band’s classic 1992 album Experience. 

A metaphorical bit of indie bizarreness with the parameters of an amateur film, with retro stylization, musical interludes, flashbacks from the Second World War, poetry about the devil and killings with high-quality masks. You have been warned. [Sitges Film Festival]

For a directorial debut, Last Straw is an entertaining thriller with the mediocre yet pretty blonde Jessica Belkin in the lead role. Some viewers will find her nervous character irritating and will thus all the more enjoy her suffering at the hands of masked adolescents. The film is capable of being surprising and horror fans will enjoy the blood and the generally simple, satisfying premise. But the beginner’s mistakes, especially in the editing, are all too obvious.

A family Christmas comedy with elements of horror. You know how it is – ominous music plays to give us a sense that shit’s about to get real, but the scene is laced with jokes and it’s clear that nothing is going to happen to anyone. And the humor is more along the lines of a pissed-off Chris Columbus than Tommy Wirkola, who could have made a proper dark comedy out of this. Magnus Martens merely deals in familiar clichés for mainstream viewers, who will most likely be satisfied – the film is flawlessly crafted, the plot moves along at a brisk pace and there’s plenty of action. And what even I found pleasing were the apt jokes about the difference between American (shooting) and Norwegian (drinking) culture.

Late Night with the Devil is a fine treat with an original concept – the film is like a recording of an episode of a 1970s talk show in which paranormal things start to happen. And it gets serious. The excellent David Dastmalchian plays the talk-show host and the supporting characters are also well cast. The film has a feeling of authenticity and nice visible effects. Though we have to wait quite a while for them, the moments of horror are impressive. Viewers who actually believe in the paranormal, i.e. those for whom this isn’t merely an attractive film motif, will be satisfied with them. However, I think it’s a shame that the screenplay didn’t further develop the motifs of the deceased wife and the forest with tall trees, which could have enriched the film. [Sitges Film Festival]

The Childe doesn’t offer the best fight scenes like we’re accustomed to from Asian filmmakers or the best car chases. What it does offer, however, is a more surprising and funnier plot that is more and more entertaining from one scene to the next. Until the middle of the film, we don't know why the protagonist is traveling to Korea or what role all of the supporting characters equipped with guns and fast cars will play in his journey. Not to mention that one of them eventually becomes more important to the story than the protagonist, surpassing him in terms of acting, charisma and humor. A pleasant, darkly funny diversion. [Sitges Film Festival]