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‘Midsommar’ is Entirely Transportive, Trippy Dread

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MidSommar

Once again, director Ari Aster takes us with him to very personal arenas of dread with Midsommar. With almost a completely different flavor, Hereditary follow up, Midsommar manages to surprise, darkly charm and have another long lasting effect that proves Aster is a singular voice currently in the genre.

I was a bloke who skipped every trailer, first impression and publicity still that I could in anticipation of this one. I was able to experience it going in entirely cold and for those like myself, I’ll spare you any spoilers during this review.

In broad strokes this is about a young group of friends that heads to Sweden in order to take part of a mid-summer fest. As the fest progresses through its varying phases each day, the young group of Americans find themselves far from home, high and in the midst of strange and horrific pagan activities.

The formula is akin to a common slasher at its ground floor, complete with all the fixins of a group of young folks heading out into the unknown for some fun. Aster then stirs in a complex blend with bits of Robin Hardy’s The Wicker Man and elements of Herschell Gordon Lewis’s Two Thousand Maniacs.

Added to that formula is Aster’s overtly personal approach to his writing, which includes twinges of grief with what is (now) widely known to be a film that is about the inner workings of a breakup. The interesting thing here is that Aster doesn’t strictly make one individual or group the “bad guy,” instead he spreads the very human elements of being a jerk or being out right malicious to almost all the characters in the film.

“Aster’s voice is hypnotic

and completely vicious.”

On a small scale Aster also compares everyday American sensibilities and places against a backdrop of a pagan cult and does a nice deconstruction by way of juxtaposition. The end result being that the strange and violent ways of maintaining faith and order sometimes look better than ideological, self-centered opportunism. Order by big acts as opposed to chaos, self worth and the passive aggressive.

MidSommar

The true horror of the film comes at you through brightly lit pastel framework where the sun doesn’t set, and where the subtext of the first act sets up a tightly fastened snare of dread. Most impressively, Midsommar manages to do all that before the first bit of blood is spilled.

There is a special kind of accelerant behind the misery that makes this film’s run-time fly that is heavily reliant on its stellar cast and their chemistry. Leads Florence Pugh and Jack Reynor particularly compel with a subdued desperation and play nicely with the ideas of the more toxic sides of relationships that have run their course. In the third act of the film Pugh reaches a propulsive level of character work that makes it almost difficult to find your breath.

There are some gnarly sights and kills flowing throughout this one that manage to burn themselves deep into your subconscious. Shock inducing gore set pieces that at times reaches impressive levels of works of high art.

Strangely, the film is peppered with a really great sense of humor about itself. The horror elements don’t takeaway from the feeling of a real group of young folks. In its early moments there is a stoner comedy at work just under the low tide of the bizarre horror in wait. It’s an extraordinary approach given the subject matter and a vibe that I’m certain changes from audience to audience.

Midsommar is transportive, trippy dread that is depraved and darkly sensual. Aster’s voice is hypnotic as ever and completely vicious. Not taking anything away from the masterful, Hereditary, but Midsommar transcends and gives way to something that is as brilliant as it is unnerving.

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Brad Dourif Says He’s Retiring Except For One Important Role

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Brad Dourif has been doing movies for nearly 50 years. Now it seems he is walking away from the industry at 74 to enjoy his golden years. Except, there is a caveat.

Recently, digital entertainment publication JoBlo’s Tyler Nichols talked to some of the Chucky television series cast members. During the interview, Dourif made an announcement.

“Dourif said that he’s retired from acting,” says Nichols. “The only reason he came back for the show was because of his daughter Fiona and he considers Chucky creator Don Mancini to be family. But for non-Chucky stuff, he considers himself retired.”

Dourif has voiced the possessed doll since 1988 (minus the 2019 reboot). The original movie “Child’s Play” has become such a cult classic it’s at the top of some people’s best chillers of all time. Chucky himself is ingrained in pop culture history much like Frankenstein or Jason Voorhees.

While Dourif may be known for his famous voiceover, he is also an Oscar-nominated actor for his part in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. Another famous horror role is The Gemini Killer in William Peter Blatty’s Exorcist III. And who can forget Betazoid Lon Suder in Star Trek: Voyager?

The good news is that Don Mancini is already pitching a concept for season four of Chucky which might also include a feature-length movie with a series tie-in. So, Although Dourif says he is retiring from the industry, ironically he is Chucky’s friend till the end.

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Editorial

7 Great ‘Scream’ Fan Films & Shorts Worth a Watch

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The Scream franchise is such an iconic series, that many budding filmmakers take inspiration from it and make their own sequels or, at least, build upon the original universe created by screenwriter Kevin Williamson. YouTube is the perfect medium to showcase these talents (and budgets) with fan-made homages with their own personal twists.

The great thing about Ghostface is that he can appear anywhere, in any town, he just needs the signature mask, knife, and unhinged motive. Thanks to Fair Use laws it’s possible to expand upon Wes Craven’s creation by simply getting a group of young adults together and killing them off one by one. Oh, and don’t forget the twist. You’ll notice that Roger Jackson’s famous Ghostface voice is uncanny valley, but you get the gist.

We have gathered five fan films/shorts related to Scream that we thought were pretty good. Although they can’t possibly match the beats of a $33 million blockbuster, they get by on what they have. But who needs money? If you’re talented and motivated anything is possible as proven by these filmmakers who are well on their way to the big leagues.

Take a look at the below films and let us know what you think. And while you’re at it, leave these young filmmakers a thumbs up, or leave them a comment to encourage them to create more films. Besides, where else are you going to see Ghostface vs. a Katana all set to a hip-hop soundtrack?

Scream Live (2023)

Scream Live

Ghostface (2021)

Ghostface

Ghost Face (2023)

Ghost Face

Don’t Scream (2022)

Don’t Scream

Scream: A Fan Film (2023)

Scream: A Fan Film

The Scream (2023)

The Scream

A Scream Fan Film (2023)

A Scream Fan Film
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Another Creepy Spider Movie Hits Shudder This Month

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Good spider films are a theme this year. First, we had Sting and then there was Infested. The former is still in theaters and the latter is coming to Shudder starting April 26.

Infested has been getting some good reviews. People are saying that it’s not only a great creature feature but also a social commentary on racism in France.

According to IMDb: Writer/director Sébastien Vanicek was looking for ideas around the discrimination faced by black and Arab-looking people in France, and that led him to spiders, which are rarely welcome in homes; whenever they’re spotted, they’re swatted. As everyone in the story (people and spiders) is treated like vermin by society, the title came to him naturally.

Shudder has become the gold standard for streaming horror content. Since 2016, the service has been offering fans an expansive library of genre movies. in 2017, they began to stream exclusive content.

Since then Shudder has become a powerhouse in the film festival circuit, buying distribution rights to movies, or just producing some of their own. Just like Netflix, they give a film a short theatrical run before adding it to their library exclusively for subscribers.

Late Night With the Devil is a great example. It was released theatrically on March 22 and will begin streaming on the platform starting April 19.

While not getting the same buzz as Late Night, Infested is a festival favorite and many have said if you suffer from arachnophobia, you might want to take heed before watching it.

Infested

According to the synopsis, our main character, Kalib is turning 30 and dealing with some family issues. “He’s fighting with his sister over an inheritance and has cut ties with his best friend. Fascinated by exotic animals, he finds a venomous spider in a shop and brings it back to his apartment. It only takes a moment for the spider to escape and reproduce, turning the whole building into a dreadful web trap. The only option for Kaleb and his friends is to find a way out and survive.”

The film will be available to watch on Shudder starting April 26.

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