Category Archives: Nightmares Film Festival

Reviews of features playing Nightmares Film Festival 2023

Life Finds a Way

The Invisible Raptor

by Rachel Willis

Well, it’s safe to say director Mike Hermosa’s film The Invisible Raptor is, in fact, about an invisible velociraptor. It’s also laugh-out-loud funny, gory, and a bit of a love letter to Steven Spielberg.

Dr. Grant Walker (Mike Capes) is a washed-up paleontologist who works at the dinosaur theme park Dino World. His spiel for kids includes the uniqueness of raptor coprolite (fossilized poop) and an embarrassing and inappropriate dinosaur rap accompanied by a man in a T-rex costume.

Inhabiting the T-rex costume is Deniel “Denny” Denielson (David Shackelford), who pumps himself up in the bathroom mirror before donning the rex head.

Into this less-than-stellar existence for Dr. Grant walks the aforementioned invisible raptor.

The movie’s humor runs the gamut from subtle to so-dumb-you-can’t-help-but-laugh, offering a mix of styles sure to elicit a chuckle or two from just about anyone. The film’s strengths lie in its ability to make fun of itself while also having a good time with an invisible raptor. When your villain is invisible, your gore really shines— and splatters everyone in its vicinity.

As the film reaches its second act, the jokes are fewer and an attempt to add some seriousness doesn’t work as well.

However, Capes is all in for this wild ride, and he and Shackelford work well together as the mismatched duo of dino hunters. The supporting cast, particularly Richard Riehle as the county sheriff and Sandy Martin as a foul-mouthed local version of Col. Sanders, add to the comedy.

If you’re looking for something with the humor of Zombeavers and the whimsy of E.T., The Invisible Raptor is your movie.

Life in a Northern Town

The Soul Eater

by Hope Madden

There’s a handful of filmmakers who raise anticipation with each new film. For horror fans, Alexandre Bustillo and Julien Maury have perched gruesomely within that prized group since their 2007 feature debut, Inside.

2021’s Kandisha was another highlight in a slew of genre films, all boundary pushers, all gorgeously shot, all benefitting from flawed characters in the grimmest of circumstances making tough, often unusual decisions.

Like Elisabeth (Virginie Ledoyen) and Franck (Paul Hamy), both working the same case—unwillingly paired as it seems a murder/suicide connects two separate cases—in a remote mountain village in France.

A married couple potentially implicated in the disappearance of a dozen children has brutally killed each other, each cannibalizing the other and reaching sexual climax before finally expiring. It’s a weird case, grisly, and for each investigator it triggers a painful past.

What the filmmakers conjure—working from a script by first time screenwriters Annelyse Batrel, Ludovic Lefebvre and Alexis Laipsker—is a pervasive paranoia that allows superstitious nonsense to look like logic. It’s a bit of a magic trick, and they pull it off by developing a sense of place that never condescends but uses outsiders’ eyes to see the creepy that’s accepted as natural by locals.

This atmosphere feeds a childlike logic that colors the film, appropriate because so many of the primary characters are children. These bruised souls give the thriller a melancholy darkness that’s hard to shake.

And The Soul Eater is more twisty thriller than the outright horror of the pair’s previous films. Though there’s carnage, blood, and a dark and thrilling finale, the true horror of the story echoes around every sad face and suspicious glance. The imagery is haunting, allowing the film to transcend its police procedural structure to become something more mysterious and troubling.

Blame Canada

Hunting Matthew Nichols

by George Wolf

Is this a faux documentary? A true crime thriller? Found footage horror? It’s all of that, at least some of the time.

You know what, just don’t worry about it and enjoy the clever way Hunting Matthew Nichols tips its hat to a variety of genre influences.

Director and co-writer Markian Tarasiuk plays himself as a documentary filmmaker out to solve an over-two-decades-old missing persons case. Canadian teens Matthew and Jordan went missing on Halloween night of 2001, and now Matthew’s sister Tara (Tara Nichols) is teaming with Markian to get to the bottom of what really happened.

Early on, we come along on an engaging hunt for clues. A succession of solid supporting performances bring welcome authenticity to Tara’s fact-finding interviews, until a surprise discovery turns the film on its found footage ear.

The missing kids were big fans of the Blair Witch Project, and took a camcorder into Black Bear Forest to uncover the local legend of Roy McKenzie. This turns out to be a slyly organic way of acknowledging the big comparisons that will follow, and to setup the type of in-your-face finale that more than a few BWP naysayers may have preferred.

The ride is well-paced and impressively assembled, and the payoff is satisfying enough to make you forget about who’s manning the camera or why we’re watching reactions to a shocking videotape instead of the tape itself.

But this Hunt is a fun one, and it comes complete with a mid-credits stinger that flirts with the possibility of another chapter.

If so, count me in.

A Deal with the Devil

BA

by Adam Barney

I’m a sucker for Faustian bargain films, so I knew I was likely in the bag for writer/director Benjamin Wong’s debut feature film, BA. I wasn’t expecting a movie that would also be so touching and endearing.

What would you do to ensure a good life for your child? That is the question facing Daniel (Lawrence Kao, Walker: Independence), a single dad struggling to raise his daughter, Collette (Kai Cech). Daniel tries to hustle with side gigs and other menial jobs, but the pair faces eviction and family doesn’t seem willing to take them in. This is where the Faustian deal comes into play. Daniel finds a bag of money with a simple note – take the money and you will receive an eternal occupation.

That turns out to be a heavy price. Daniel is transformed into a reaper and must take souls for his end of the bargain. He was also unfortunately transformed, now burdened with a skull for a face and the power to kill anything and everything he touches. Collette doesn’t understand why her dad suddenly hides from her and keeps his distance. To make matters worse, social services are coming around to investigate. Money really doesn’t solve everything.

BA may not be an original tale. However, the film truly excels at delivering a heart-breaking and ultimately human story. Kao and Cech have excellent chemistry, which really drives us to root for them.

BA thoughtfully deals with the Asian American experience of existing on the fringe of society. As it opens, Daniel is one of many unseen workers taking unwanted night jobs and any other work that he can find. After his transformation, he must remain unseen so he can continue to provide for and protect Collette. In interviews, Wong has discussed wanting to blur reality and fantasy in his film but still deal with the real issues of single parenthood, social invisibility, and poverty.

BA also happens to look fantastic. The nightlife of Los Angeles pops, the dark alleys and basements are dreary, and the supernatural elements seamlessly fit right in. If you like a good devil’s tale, you will find a lot to love in BA.

Reality Bites

My Imaginary Life for Someone

by Adam Barney

I hope this isn’t viewed as a cop out, but it is hard to explain My Imaginary Life for Someone. It must be experienced. It’s a film that is clearly not for everyone. For those who can match its wavelength, they will find a lot to like. Everyone else will walk out and be perplexed by what they just witnessed. This is precisely the type of film that we are always searching for to showcase in our Midnight programming branch of Nightmares Film Festival.

My Imaginary Life for Someone takes aim at Real Housewives or any of the other similar reality shows and does its best to take down the whole genre and the people in front of the cameras. It’s clear that writers / directors Molly Wurwand and Ryan McGlade have a real disdain for reality television and if you are of the same mindset, you are going to enjoy this broadside assault.

Filmed in a mockumentary style, the film dumps you right into a “labyrinth” of Los Angeles McMansions where the denizens get stranger and stranger. The reality stars are living in excess but probably aren’t fully sure how they got to where they are in life. They have nothing to worry about financially, but they also aren’t sure what they should be doing with their lives, so they spend their time collecting Princess Diana memorabilia, getting extreme plastic surgery, or listening to their own voices on tape.

There’s a lot of dream-like logic at play as the various homeowners show you around, tell you odd stories, or otherwise fill the silence of the void by endlessly talking. If you have ever caught the late-night programming of Adult Swim on Cartoon Network, you will quickly adapt to the vibe. It feels like a dry mix of Christopher Guest (Best in Show) and Jim Hosking (The Greasy Strangler, although this film is not gross).

My Imaginary Life for Someone will make you cringe, hate the characters, and wish for it to be over. And that is the whole point. It wants to show you that reality television is vapid, vacuous, and ultimately pointless and it does so by holding up a mirror to the genre.

Club Creepy

Dooba Dooba

by Brooklyn Ewing

Dooba Dooba feels like something special — like a movie from the 70s or 80s that you borrowed on bootleg VHS from a new kid in your town. 

The movie opens as Amna (Amna Vegha) shows up for a night of babysitting and learns that her ward —a sheltered sixteen year old girl named Monroe (Betsy Sligh) — is being watched at all times by in-home security cameras.

Vegha makes it all work. She brings together the absurdity of Monroe’s parents with the reality of this cringy babysitting job.

There are only four characters in the film and each one makes me feel some type of way. The parents generate equal levels of unease, and their interactions with Amna make me want to run out of the room. Monroe is wildly odd, at one point critiquing Amna’s musical endeavors, making me want to climb out the window because I’m so embarrassed for her. 

Dooba Dooba’s vintage vibes make it deeply creepy. You feel like you’re watching something secretly, and you want to warn Amna that something doesn’t feel right. If you are a fan of The House of The Devil or The Loved Ones, this will pull you right in. I loved the creative cinematography.

Director Ehrland Hollingsworth is new to horror, but I think he has a new home in the horror community, and I cannot wait to see how audiences respond to this movie. I feel like part of a secret club after being able to see Dooba Dooba and I’m ready to talk about it with the world. 

Mommy Issues on Steroids

The Matriarch

by Brooklyn Ewing

Have you ever found yourself gripping the edge of your seat while watching a movie? Well, Jayden Creighton’s The Matriarch had me holding on for dear life. 

The film kicks off when 13 year old Missy Taylor, (Juliette Greenfield) kills her addict mother’s nasty boyfriend in self defense, and is subsequently terrorized by her very own mother all night long. This horror thriller offers up some incredible cat and mouse moments that had me yelling at the screen. 

Fans of The Evil Dead, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, and The Shining will love spotting Creighton’s horror homages. I found myself excitedly watching for more influences as the film progressed. If you love the tension in movies like Hush or Don’t Breathe, then you will absolutely fall in love with The Matriarch

Creighton created a mother we don’t want to love, and it was a blast rooting for Missy as she does everything in her power to survive the night. Newcomer Greenfield knocks it out of the park. Taking on such strong material and really going for it is hard for any actor, and she nailed it.

Kate Logan tackles her character Annette, the mother, like a monster. If you love the jacked-up delivery of Bruce Campbell and Jack Nicholson, then get ready to see Logan take it there. She’s a true talent who isn’t afraid to push this movie into the absurd and terrifying. It’s fun to watch her work. 

The Matriarch features a killer score that reminded me of classics like The Evil Dead, and a lot of 90s and early 2000s horror. It moves the already quick paced flick to full fledged heart attack mode. This would be a really fun movie to watch in the dark with a group of friends who scream during great jump scares. 

If you have Mommy issues, or just love a great game of hide and seek on the big screen, then The Matriarch is a do not miss. 

Spooky Fun for Halloween

Carved

by Brooklyn Ewing

Each Halloween season, horror fans go looking for new seasonal movies. This year, director Justin Harding (Making Monsters)brings his fun, spooky splatter-fest, Carved to Nightmares Film Festival and Hulu’s Huluween. 

A group of survivors — including comedy favorites DJ Qualls and Chris Elliott — find themselves trapped in a historical reenactment village on Halloween. There they must unite to battle an evil and vengeful pumpkin. 

This is not your typical killer food movie. Carved delivers inspired kills that almost made me root for the pumpkin. The special fx are a blast and the cinematography is gorgeous. They make this one a do not miss addition to your yearly 31 Day of Halloween watchlist. 

The standout in the cast is newcomer Peyton Elizabeth Lee. I loved the rocky relationship between Lee and Corey Fogelmanis. Lee brings the Halloween final girl baddie to the forefront again, and I couldn’t get enough of it. 

Some of my favorite scenes featured Stranger Things alum Matty Cardarople as a corn truck employee.  And Carved rounds out the fun ensemble with a comedy heavy hitter from the 2000s. DJ Qualls plays the perfect uptight jerk, and has some of the most memorable one liners. He brings the polish and snark to the screen and I couldn’t help but love his character.

If you love killer food movies, autumn ambiance, creative kills, and a delightfully talented cast, then add Carved to your Spooky Season watchlist.  

A Deal with the Digital Devil

Decibel

by Daniel Baldwin

At what point does an artist lose themselves in technology? Sure, tech is now an important part of art. It can help achieve quicker completion of a project. It can also add layers of depth and resonance to it that would not have been possible a decade earlier. But at what point can one’s art actually be undermined by technological advancements? It’s a conversation at the forefront of all forms of art these days, especially in the wake of A.I. It is also one of the questions that lie at the core of Decibel.

The film centers on a young, talented musician named Scout (Aleyse Shannon) who plies her trade in local bars. The crowds that she performs for might be small, but her musical freedom in those spaces is immense. There’s not much money to be had in small gigs, however, so she’s on the verge of becoming a starving artist. Perhaps even a homeless one too. Enter tech mogul turned music producer Donna (Stefanie Estes). A rising, powerful name in the industry, Donna offers Scout a chance to record her music at a state-of-the-art studio in the desert, away from all of the distractions of life.

Scout – apprehensive about losing some control over her art, but also needing some money and a big break – accepts the offer. After all, who can pass up such a chance of a lifetime? Being a thriller, you can see where this is going. And you would be correct. It’s a tale as old as time: if any offer sounds too good to be true, it usually is.

With his third feature, director Zac Locke ups the ante. From a technical perspective, this is his most accomplished work to date. From a narrative perspective, while he did not write this particular film, you can still see thematic continuations of his previous works.

Locke has managed to combine the notion of “fame comes with a cost” (#Float) and “don’t ignore your instincts when things feel wrong” (Santa Isn’t Real) into an intriguing cautionary tale on the dangers of allowing your art to be overtaken by others and weaponized against you. Add in two great lead performances and some striking visuals and you have what is his best film to date. Decibel is worth tuning into and Locke remains a filmmaker to keep an eye on.

Driven

Trunk

by George Wolf

You get the sense early on that the German thriller Trunk may have some pleasant surprises in store.

Malina (Sina Martens, terrific in a physically demanding role) wakes up to find herself badly injured and confined to the trunk of a car. The trunk is ajar, and before the driver returns to shut her inside, Malina is able to retrieve her cell phone.

And lemme guess, the phone’s almost dead, right?

FULL POWER.

Okay, then, here we go! Dialing a series of well-chosen contacts, Malina has to 1) stay alive, and 2) piece together what’s happening while she looks for an escape route.

Writer/director Marc Schießer proves a solid triple threat here, also handling the editing duties with a deft hand and solid instincts for pacing and tension.

The cinematography is on point, as well. And while this particular trunk seems unusually roomy, Scheiber consistently lands precisely the type of claustrophobic camera angles and POV shots that Liam Nesson’s recent car-centric thriller Retribution tried in vain to achieve.

You may end up sniffing out some the mystery at play, but even so, Schießer’s finale will be no less satisfying. Trunk is a tense, crowd-pleasing thriller, one that adds enough detours to a well-traveled road until it’s fun again.

So climb in, and enjoy the ride.