The Devil’s Staircase – Helen Fitzgerald

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This book does so well reading as though it’s a movie. I loved how easy it was to read with all the twists and turns and surprises that you didn’t see coming, while never leaving you behind.

It’s about a girl called Bronny who hops on a plane from Australia to London without a second thought. No bag or preparation whatsoever. This is what captured my interest, because isn’t this what we all dream of doing sometimes? Just getting away spontaneously?

Upon arriving in the UK, she quickly makes friends at a backpackers where she stays before they all become squatters together in an abandoned townhouse.

But this story quickly becomes a cautionary tale for any young, solo traveller… Continue reading →

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Bird Box

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Firstly, if you’ve seen A Quiet Place, then you’ve seen Bird Box. It’s quite comical how similar they both are.

Nevertheless, that is not an excuse not to watch Bird Box – especially if you enjoy an apocalyptic film.

It’s about a mysterious force that if seen, will cause people to kill themselves or harm others. This results in mass suicides, turning the world into a survival of the fittest. No one can go outside without being blindfolded for fear of seeing the nearly invisible killer… Continue reading →

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War of the Worlds

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It is a sci-fi horror about Ray (Tom Cruise) and his two children Rachel (Dakota Fanning) and Robbie (Justin Chatwin) trying to escape the alien invasion. The aliens are relentless and terrifying as they displace millions.

There’s no where to run, there’s no where to hide and there’s no way to kill the aliens and their machines.

Horrifying!… Continue reading →

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Cloverfield

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Cloverfield is basically The Blair Witch Project but set during an apocalypse in a city, rather than a witch hunt in the woods. I thought it would be an easy watch, and perhaps even a good film as I’ve always heard it being referenced to.

(Not to be confused with 10 Cloverfield Lane, which is the second instalment.)… Continue reading →

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The Sixth Sense

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The Sixth Sense is another Shyamalan creation that everyone must see. It’s about a psychiatrist called Malcolm (Bruce Willis) who tries to help a traumatised and anxious child named Cole (Haley Joel Osment).

Cole reminds Malcolm of a patient he failed to save back in the day, the patient killed himself and Malcolm became adamant that he will never fail another patient again. Therefore, he persists in helping Cole despite his reluctance, and eventually Cole confides in him: “I see dead people.”… Continue reading →

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A Quiet Place

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I was expecting a lot from this movie because I had heard and read incredible reviews.

Without reading up about what the film was about – as I correctly thought this may giveaway too much about this thriller – I went in with optimism and excitement. I was about to be thrilled by my favourite actress, Emily Blunt.

It’s about a family who is living in the year 2020 among blind alien beings who hunt using only sound. Therefore, everyone must be silent if they are to survive. This dystopian future was brilliantly thought-out as the way of life changes significantly, from not eating with noisy knives and forks, to walking barefooted on sand rather than stones… Continue reading →

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Sharp Objects – Gillian Flynn

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Gillian Flynn’s first novel, Sharp Objects, is a medley of haunting and distressing themes, which frequently give-way to Flynn’s budding talent for telling crime stories.

Not going to lie, for the most part, Sharp Objects is sadistically dark for no good reason. It’s more of a scary horror story about mentally-ill characters rather than a cleverly-told mystery… Continue reading →

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The Dressmaker

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What I thought was going to be a quirky, enchanting, and uplifting story, turned out to be a dark and twisted tale.

Despite Kate Winslet’s beauty and surprisingly accurate Australian accent, this story was far from a sweet and innocent drama. The Dressmaker is about a woman returning home from Europe to the rural Australian village she grew up in. She endeavors to discover the secrets of her childhood… Continue reading →

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Rebirth (web series)

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Director: Kristopher Stoltz Writer: Kristopher Stoltz Production company: Non-Human Films — Rebirth is a horror web series that follows a group of survivors who are being hunted by a faceless enemy. The editing is snappy and the lighting is well done in … Continue reading →

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Gone Girl

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I was so shocked by Rosamund Pike’s performance – she was fantastic of course – but I wasn’t prepared for her to pick this role.

Let’s be clear, this isn’t the mystery/detective/Midsomer Murders deal I was expecting. This is a story of a manic, psychopathic panther disguised as a house cat.

Pike’s character, Amy, is the wife to Nick (Ben Affleck), when she goes missing. They were a seemingly perfect couple who live in the suburbs, but how happy were they really before this tragedy happened?… Continue reading →

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Sunshine (short film)

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This is an independent short film by Scottish filmmaker Michael Tracy, who also wrote and produced it.

It’s a horror-drama, which, based on the trailer looks like it could certainly be a thrilling watch.
It is a struggle to make a film independently, so there are a lot of things you can forgive. However, it’s a…
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Deliver Us from Evil

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Was this supposed to be a black comedy?

I had been told Deliver Us from Evil was on par with The Conjuring. But I honestly can’t say this was the case. It was a suspenseful, supernatural thriller, but not something that would keep you up at night.

Apparently based on ‘true events’ of a New York cop Ralph Sarchie (Eric Bana) who encounters demonic forces, the mysterious cases quickly become bizarre and laughable… Continue reading →

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The Conjuring

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That was the coolest horror movie I have experienced in a long while.

It was top of its game in the horror genre! It had all the things you love about horrors in one movie.
Creepy ‘chuckie’ dolls
Freaky children
Supernatural hauntings
Demonic exorcism
Based on true events

It’s got the lot! If you like sudden jumps, suspense AND interesting story lines, then you will love The Conjuring.

The story is surprising to say the least! The trailer makes it out to be a good old fashioned house haunting. In fact, the film is much more complex with various characters being directly linked to the hauntings. The hauntings are not necessarily by ghosts, but by demonic forces.

I read about the back story… Continue reading →

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World War Z

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I love zombie films! They are probably my favourite kind of horror.

World War Z was an awesome, classic zombie film with big frights. It was not nearly as gruesome or cringe-worthy as many other zombie films like Dawn of the Dead or its sequel, which I think, although mildly disappointing, was an interesting change for the genre.

I won’t give away the unique trait of these zombies, but it is certainly a cool adjustment to the classic zombies you’ve seen in other films.

I can assure you, you will be intrigued with the altered storyline in this film. It’s not quite a cookie cutter zombie movie.

There was no mucking around at the beginning! There was like a five minute intro, then BANG! You’re in a world-wide zombie apocalypse.

There were heaps of moments where… Continue reading →

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The Butterfly Effect

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Soooo creepy! But in an awesome way. I have never seen anything like this film before.

Of course I was weary about Ashton Kutcher being in a serious thriller, but he was fantastic! Like, seriously convincing.

The Butterfly Effect is where a seemingly innocuous act can have a domino effect and create chaos.

It has been said that something as small as the flutter of a butterfly’s wing can ultimately cause a typhoon halfway around the world.

This film plays on this theory where Ashton’s character, Evan, has the ability or curse to travel back to predetermined points in his life. But every time he tries to make it better, something else goes terribly wrong… Continue reading →

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The Blair Witch Project

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I literally did not sleep last night.

I remember seeing snippets of this film when I was about 11, but I had not remembered how effective the horror aspect of it was! It is the best horror/psychological thriller I have seen in a very long time.

Three film makers go missing in the woods while covering the legend of the Blair Witch that supposedly haunted the area. The film makers were never found again, but their footage was, which makes up this film.

Pretty simple plot line with amateur filming which is very convincing! The idea of this horror is that the less you see the more your imagination runs a riot. You never actually see any witch or any sort of witch craft or… Continue reading →

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Super

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Wow. Okay. Where do I start? I stumbled across this film when I was searching for all the movies that Ellen Page has starred in (she’s one of my favourites actresses). Loving superhero movies anyway I thought that this was going to be a genius concoction of fantastic actors and an epic storyline…

I can’t, unfortunately, say that this was the case. The trailer is a bit misleading, portraying it solely as a comedy. However, the genre of this film is most certainly a BLACK comedy. Very sadistic, violent and rather gruesome. It would be a superhero version of the black comedy A Film With Me In It (featuring Dylan Moran) which I found equally disturbing.

It’s not that I don’t enjoy sadistic and gruesomely bloody movies. I love Quentin Tarentino’s Inglorious Basterds and horrors such as Scream and The House of Wax… Continue reading →

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Misery

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It has been a long time since I felt uneasy going to bed after watching a horror film.

Actually, this psychological thriller isn’t that horrific (for the most part..), it’s just when it finishes that you realise how disturbed you feel…

I haven’t read the book, but it’s pretty common knowledge that Stephen King’s work translates to film very successfully (The Shining, The Green Mile, Secret Window…) so I knew that I was in for a spectacular treat.

In a remote town, the popular author Paul Sheldon (James Caan) checks out of the hotel where he stays every time he writes a novel… Continue reading →

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