The Ritual poster

The Ritual

Based on Adam Nevill’s novel, this low budget UK horror adaptation is executive produced by Andy Serkis and directed by David Bruckner (The Signal, Southbound). After the death of a close friend, a group of thirty-something university friends go on a hiking trip into the Swedish mountains in his memory, however on discovering a cabin in the woods their trip turns into a visceral nightmare. (more…)

Bella in the Wych Elm poster

Bella in the Wych Elm

In 1943 four young boys were out poaching illegally on the Hagley Hall estate in Worcestershire when they discovered a human skull hidden inside a wych elm tree trunk. Initially reluctant to tell anyone, one of the boys was too shocked by their discovery and confessed all to his parents. Upon police investigation, an almost complete human skeleton was found forced inside the trunk of the tree, with a hand discovered some distance away. (more…)

The Forest of the Lost Souls poster

The Forest of the Lost Souls

After quietly building up word of mouth online and at various European festivals in early 2017, the debut feature of Portuguese director, producer and writer Jose Pedro Lopes was given its UK premiere at the inaugural Triple Six Horror Festival. A monochrome nightmare about a Portuguese suicide forest and its depressed inhabitants, Lopes’ film walks a very thin line between immense despair and black comedy. It also manages to be one of the most interesting and challenging horror films since Ducournau’s Raw. (more…)

raw

RAW

A darling of the festival circuit throughout 2016, Julia Ducournau’s feature film debut has picked up critical acclaim and disgust in equal measure. Whilst the subject matter of burgeoning maturity, sexuality and cannibalism did not cause me to faint or vomit, it did leave a lasting impression and totally blindsided me with its black comedic undertones. (more…)

grimmfest-2016

Grimmfest 2016

So Grimmfest has finished for another year. It was a short but sweet experience for me and whilst some sadly disappointed (Let Me Make You A Martyr, The Unseen), I did finally get chance to see Broken and Train to Busan, both of which impressed for different reasons. Full reviews will be coming soon but for now you can check out videos about them beyond the break. (more…)