EvilPhoEniX

If you are in the mood for something nasty on the theme of exorcism you will not be disappointed. I'll mention up front that this film is cheap and underground, so it's only for a fringe audience. It has a simple story about a woman possessed by the devil and the Catholic Church is sending one priest after another to get the devil out of her, and most of them don't make it out of the room alive. So most of the film takes place in one room, and at times you have to suffer through the stilted religious dialogue, just looking forward to the next perversion the director will come up with. I would have gladly cut half an hour to pick up the pace and not bore the viewer, but thankfully the gore is good. The scene where the possessed starts puking all her guts out and then immediately starts sucking them back in lasts about five minutes, and it's definitely the best scene in the entire film. The sex with the priest and the subsequent birth are also good, but unfortunately this doesn't come until the finale. The first hour unfortunately doesn't offer that much of interest. 6/10.

Excellent Conjuring-like scares from Norway! 14 minutes of proper terror with great atmosphere, amazing cinematography, great craftsmanship and solid sound design. It's got everything a proper horror film should have and everything that today's horror films lack. Fans will not be disappointed. 8/10.

This French parody of everything 1980s and 90s is also fairly decent as a homage. It's admittedly very cheap and poorly acted, but it's more about the references, and they are good. There's the occasional over the top gore scene and the fact that it's only sixty minutes long, but I was hoping for more humour (the best scenes are in the trailer). 6/10

A twisted Santa Claus wraps presents in a slightly unconventional way. A fine two-minute short with an unpleasant and twisted setting. I'd love a feature film, it has that sleazy dirty feel to it. 7/10.

I had a go at a relatively unknown horror film with ravens, which is surprisingly raven-free! According to the poster, I was vainly hoping that the main character sporting a motorbike, an axe, and machine gun would kill ravens like Ash in Evil Dead. But instead of a massacre with crows that attack people, gouging out their eyes, ripping their jaws in mass coordinated attacks, we get a war veteran fighting his personal demons. That's more interesting, isn't it? It's very cheap, the main character is unlikeable and doesn't say much. Even with a short running time of 80 minutes the film drags outrageously in places and nothing interesting really happens until the last 20 minutes (without any ravens). And that bit of Gore in a one-second flashback that you don't even catch – so unsatisfying in every way. The music was alright, but otherwise I don't see any reason to watch something like this. Nice clickbait! 4/10.

After The Innocent, Mario Casas stars in another Spanish film, I feel like this guy is acting everywhere and is perhaps a bigger star than Luis Tosar at the moment. Cross the Line is a bit more intimate and smaller affair with few characters, with Mario playing more of a nerd than a cool guy here, which didn't really work for me, but the film is colourful and decently suspenseful in the final half hour. The main character faces a deadly confrontation where he kills someone in self-defense and spends the whole movie trying to cover up the case. It's a good watch, there are a few suspenseful moments and as a one-off the film is alright. But I am used to more intense stuff from the Spaniards. There is little twist at the end here as well, but I don't feel like rating it higher this time. 6.5/10.

An intimate Spanish drama-thriller set in a prison. I really like prison movies, but this time the Spaniards chose don’t quite deliver. It's mediocrely shot, the characters are not very engaging, I didn't find the plot very interesting either. The classic tale of corruption and violence is raw in places, but not explicit enough for me to cheer. It's quite surprising that even though the film is only eighty minutes long, it drags in places and you feel like you are watching a two-hour movie. There is a rape scene, which is probably the most intense of the film, otherwise quite weak. 4/10.

Cruella is a Disney villain origin film that is surprisingly stylish. Genre-wise, it's completely different than what I normally watch and seek out, but it has to be said that considering it’s 140 minutes long and has no action or violence, I had an above-average time. Cruella has her own flair, a nice London setting, an impressive Emma Stone, who steals the whole show for herself, her entrances to the stage are always both epic and engaging, and the cool retro music playing all the time is a delight. Emma Thompson is also brilliant, playing the Baroness to a great standard, she commands respect and plays the bitch decently. The clashes between the two main characters are the strongest of the whole film. I also liked the dogs, the occasional humorous interludes. There are fine twists (though some are predictable), and it works as a heist genre film with a revenge theme all in one. The fashion element is also a big plus, with some of the dresses taking your breath away. Fashion oriented women will probably marvel here. A nice nice and entertaining film. 7.5/10.

An interesting short about a skeleton that can no longer get a job as a prop in a movie because of better CGI effects. I agree with the idea, it was quite interestingly shot, but I missed a stronger twist for a higher rating. 6/10.

Denis Villeneuve delivers a pretty solid original short that is slightly reminiscent of the Spanish film The Platform. I didn't find it very funny, but it was original and interesting. 7/10.