News

Review: ‘Artik’ is a Gripping, Gritty, Gruesome Serial Killer

Published

5 years ago

September 4, 2019

For his feature film debut, Tom Botchii comes out swinging with Artik. The writer/director pulls no punches, delivering some heavy blows that reverberate through the screen.

The film follows the titular Artik (Jerry G. Angelo, Better Call Saul) — a serial killer with a passion for comic books — as he trains his son, Adam (Gavin White, 14 Cameras), to follow in his footsteps. Artik is obsessed with the idea of building a hero, torturing his victims mercilessly in the hopes that they will rise from the ashes of torment to take their rightful place as a worthy survivor. When his son Adam meets Holton (Chase Williamson, The Guest), a straight-edge welder who takes interest in the boy, it threatens to expose their horrifying family secret. Soon, Holton might fight to save not only the boy’s life, but also his own.

Angelo’s performance is nuanced, portraying Artik with a restrained nature that’s disquieting. In every scene he’s in, Artik buzzes with a predatory energy. He believes he’s on the cusp of finding someone who can rise to the challenge, documenting his work in the comics he draws. It’s an interesting take on the anti-hero archetype; he firmly believes he’s doing the right thing and takes great pride in his work, encouraging his son to take up the mantle. But there’s no doubt that Artik is a villain, and a highly effective one at that.

Artik’s partner, Flin (Lauren Ashley Carter, Darling), is just as unhinged, though she may be a tad more upfront about it. She maintains the sunflower farm run by the family, though realistically all the work is actually put in by a barn full of malnourished, overworked foster children. It’s a good way to paint her as an unlikable character while allowing her to have moments of sweet innocence. She seems wide-eyed and idealistic, but she’s got a vicious mean streak and zero empathy.

There’s something wonderfully gritty about the aesthetic of the film. Artik’s scenes are washed with tones of sepia and red, feeding us the texture of an old, faded comic book. Holton’s scenes are touched with deep blues and greys, like gears mottled with oil and dirt. It creates a very rich sense of tone.

The score by Corey Wallace goes hard, plucking and pulsating throughout. It creates a strong sense of unease and draws out feelings of dread. From start to finish, the music is perfect.

For those looking for some raw action, Artik is blessed with some really gnarly violence. Visceral sound effects are paired with a wise cinematic eye, framing each moment of carnage in just the right way so as to make it completely effective without being too over-the-top. Artik maintains a level of tense energy through these dark scenes.

While some of the pacing early on can feel a bit rushed, we don’t lose anything to the story. It’s economical and keeps the film constantly moving forward. There are no wasted moments here.

Artik

With Artik, Botchii has crafted a unique character that leaves you dying to know the origin story. Artik’s method is brutal, his mission is madness, and he’s a force to be reckoned with. Right from the beginning, you want to see more of his horrific handiwork.

The film looks at the toxic relationships between its characters, showing how strings are pulled to influence their actions and opinions, and how harmful that misplaced respect can be.

Flin and Artik feed on each other’s negative qualities, enabling their bad behavior; Artik’s relationship with his son is based around his encouragement of violence and feeding the dark energies bubbling inside him; and Flin believes she’s providing a good life for her small army of child laborers, trying to convince them to believe the same. These relationships develop and crash into one another, dragging victims down in their wake.

Artik is a pounding, thrilling horror film that grabs you by the throat. While the premise may be a touch familiar, writer/director Tom Botchii goes hard with the concept, building an entirely different — and terrifying — beast. It’s an impressive feature film debut from Botchii, and he’s certainly a name to watch out for moving forward. If Artik is any indication, he’s got a promising future ahead.

Artik had its premiere at the Popcorn Frights film festival on August 11th and will arrive on VOD and Blu-ray as of September 10th.

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News

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

Published

15 hours ago

April 19, 2024

Timothy Rawles

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

Published

17 hours ago

April 19, 2024

Timothy Rawles

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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Movies

Another Creepy Spider Movie Hits Shudder This Month

Published

2 days ago

April 18, 2024

Timothy Rawles

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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