Blood Star film review by UK film critic Chris Buick. Starring Britni Camacho, John Schwab, Sydney Brumfield, Travis Lincoln Cox directed by Lawrence Jacomelli. HOME | FILMS | REVIEWS Blood Star Film Review average rating is 3 out of 5 Critic: Chris Buick | Posted on: Mar 11, 2025 Directed by: Lawrence Jacomelli Written by: Hayden Bownds, Lawrence Jacomelli, George Kelly Starring: Britni Camacho, John Schwab, Sydney Brumfield, Travis Lincoln Cox In British filmmaker Lawrence Jacomelli’s debut Blood Star , after a strong cold open to set us up nicely, we meet Bobbi (Camacho), currently putting mile after mile behind her cruising along the New Mexico black-top, driving her way back home to her abusive boyfriend, despite her sister’s desperate pleas over the phone to see sense. But Bobbi is undeterred and carries on, stopping briefly only to fill up the car where she encounters, for the first but certainly not the last time, Sherriff Bilstein (Schwab). And that first gas station encounter is when Jacomelli begins to tighten the vice on his audience, as slowly but surely Bobbi’s initial run in with the law escalates into a full-on fight for survival as the sheriff proceeds to relentlessly pursue and terrorize poor Bobbi across the state. In its first hour, Blood Star is this incredibly tense, dramatic, engaging and damn entertaining cat-and-mouse thriller that hardly puts a foot wrong. Exploring a number of themes such as violent misogyny and abuse of authoritative power, Blood Star blends a lot of good ideas with interesting characters and great visuals. Special kudos to cinematographer Pascal Combes-Knoke, the desert setting vistas in particular utilized to the fullest in capturing Bobbi’s complete isolation and helplessness as Bilstein’s maniacal and sadistic power trip refuses to let up. Strong leads are key here as well, and while Bobbi isn’t exactly the most likeable protagonist, not having your typical clean-cut victim in the driver’s seat as it were, adds a different layer to the film that gives Bobbi more authenticity, and Camacho does a stellar job in showing great depth not just in Bobbi’s moments of vulnerability but also of defiant strength and resilience. A hard-to-like heroine may be a bone of contention for some, but because Schwab’s terrifying Sheriff Bilstein is almost always the epitome of an unsettling calm, control and cold, calculated psychopath, Bobbi can afford to be imperfect and still has us very much rooting for her against Schwab’s perfectly measured and highly unsettling villain with a badge and a gun. However, where the film loses its way is right around that hour mark, where certain creative choices on how far to push the violence and gore undercut a lot of what the film is trying to talk about and the great, hard work that makes the previous sixty minutes so enjoyable. Sheriff Bilstein’s motivations and reasonings lack originality and the subsequent gruesome and uncomfortable scenes that follow take the film to a place it didn’t need to go and struggles to come back from, which is a real shame because the first hour shows that the film can be and is so much smarter than that. Blood Star is a very smart, very well put together film that due to certain choices starts to trip over itself up towards the end. Despite that, it still manages to make it home and provide quite the entertaining thrill ride along the way. Now watch Chris's Video Film Review on our YouTube Channel. Watch Blood Star Review Buy UKFR Banner Space About the Film Critic Chris Buick Indie Feature Film, Digital / DVD Release, Amazon Prime < All Reviews Next Film Review >

Escape from Reality film review by UK film critic Alasdair MacRae. Starring Giles Allan directed by George Michael Liviakis . HOME | FILMS | REVIEWS Escape from Reality Film Review average rating is 2 out of 5 Critic: Alasdair MacRae | Posted on: Jun 1, 2022 Directed by: George Michael Liviakis Written by: Brian Keith Crites Starring: Giles Allan The given synopsis for Escape from Reality tells of a rather straightforward narrative: a mother and her son are vacationing in the Alaskan wilderness where they encounter a far-right survivalist. This can somehow be simultaneously categorised as a simplification and obfuscation of the film. Whilst these may be events that appear to happen it would be a falsehood to relate the experience in this way, or even to it as having a plot. Escape from Reality is less of a structured narrative feature and more an experimental art piece. The substance of the film lurks beneath a veneer consisting of film grain, digital distortion, and lo-fi VFX snow. The prologue offers a premonition of the core images, woodlands, fire, and encircling wolves. Then we are briefly thrown into the trappings of modern city life: a concrete world, a Trumpian MAGA dystopia constructed of smoking towers and prison bars. And then we retreat back into the woodlands again. Repetition is to be expected throughout, particularly of animal based imagery. Bears, wolves, and swooping bald eagles feature heavily in the hypnotic collage. So too do a primal collective of caves, waterfalls, fire, and smoke. Director George Michael Liviakis compiles these to reflect a violent and chaotic world, one of regression and base instincts. But these images do not offer up much food for thought, they do not linger in the mind, and they certainly do not seem to amalgamate into any clear or interesting boundary pushing idea. It isn’t just the visuals that are noisy. The audio design is dominated by crackling white noise, waterfalls and wind. The dialogue is considered secondary to the abrasive soundscape. It is often hard to discern quite what is being said, with just the outline of syllables flowing through the undercurrent of the audio track. This approach may encourage feelings of displacement, but it does not do enough to heighten the impact of the visual language of the piece. Escape from Reality is clearly an ambitious project but ultimately it is doesn’t provoke much of a reaction. Regretfully, it must be said that it is more trying than testing. Buy UKFR Banner Space About the Film Critic Alasdair MacRae Indie Feature Film < All Reviews Next Film Review >

Penny Lane Is Dead film review by UK film critic Hope Madden. Starring Sophia Wright-Mendelsohn, Tahlee Fereday, Ben O'Toole directed by Mia Kate Russell. HOME | FILMS | REVIEWS Penny Lane Is Dead Film Review average rating is 3 out of 5 Critic: Hope Madden | Posted on: Aug 27, 2026 Directed by: Mia Kate Russell Written by: Mia Kate Russell Starring: Sophia Wright-Mendelsohn, Tahlee Fereday, Ben O'Toole It’s 1986 in Australia. Three brand new high school graduates plan to spend the night at Penny Lane’s (Bailey Spalding) grandparents’ empty lake house. Their moms drop them off, and the girls sneak a cigarette and pop down to the liquor store. Those crazies! But Penny’s disturbed cousin Kat (Sophia Wright-Mendelsohn) arrives uninvited with cupcakes so loaded with drugs that Penny passes out. So, Penny’s besties Toni (Tahlee Fereday) and Amy (Alexandra Jensen) throw Kat out. This seems a fine plan until Kat calls her 40-year-old ex-con boyfriend to pick her up and he shows up with two other felonious pals, all of them with bad intentions. Writer/director Mia Kate Russell’s feature debut is a weird mix of gritty Ozploitation horror and 80s comedy. The film is at its best when she exhibits her keen instincts for practical gore. Those feet! But long before things get bloody, the anxiety Russell and her ensemble generate inside the humble little beach house is impressive. Home invasion horror often delivers a particularly uncomfortable tension, and Russell comes close to Last House on the Left vibes. Ben O’Toole is particularly effective as Angus, a vainglorious low-rent thug delighted to partake in bloody debauchery. And Penny Lane Is Dead definitely gets bloody. But the violence is of a type that doesn’t fit well with the film’s more broadly brushed humor. The tonal issues are anchored in Wright-Mendelsohn’s character. The performance itself is very impressive, almost Fairuza Balk a la The Craft at times. Kat, in horror movies actualy made in the 80s, would have been the tragic but cool outsider—Angela from Night of the Demons , Trash from Return of the Living Dead. Sure, she’s chaos walking and her poor decisions bring destruction, but you don’t hate her. Russell sidesteps that cliché in favor of the unspeakable: the popular girl who looks like a Barbie really is the hero and the messed-up Goth chick really is evil. And for a time, Wright-Mendelsohn (Ben’s daughter) carves out a madness that is deeply unsettling and very impressive. But Act 3 becomes “pile on the mean girl” and Kat becomes a near-supernatural villain when, honestly, it’s the three men who deserved this level of comeuppance. The vitriol seems misdirected, and paired with a poorly handled sexual assault storyline, Penny Lane Is Dead can’t get out of its own way. It’s too bad, because there was something here, something unnerving and unwholesome. Buy UKFR Banner Space About the Film Critic Hope Madden Digital / DVD Release, Indie Feature Film, World Cinema < All Reviews Next Film Review >

Flying Monkey film review by UK film critic Patrick Foley. Starring Andrew Cockcroft-Charles, Saffron Dey, Sheraz Yousaf directed by Sam Lawrence. HOME | FILMS | REVIEWS Flying Monkey Film Review average rating is 2 out of 5 Critic: Patrick Foley | Posted on: Apr 29, 2025 Directed by: Sam Lawrence Written by: Sam Lawrence Starring: Andrew Cockcroft-Charles, Saffron Dey, Sheraz Yousaf Sam Lawrence’s short drama Flying Monkey focuses on a troubling and toxic relationship between a man and woman – with an uncertain twist raising intriguing questions whilst the police close in. On a video call with a detective (Sheraz Yousef), Connor (Andrew Cockcroft-Charles) finds himself on the end of questions about his missing girlfriend Alice (Saffron Dey). Alice has a troubled past and there are a lot of lines of enquiry, but Connor has a secret: He knows exactly where she is. Though as his partner hides out at his place, he begins to realise that his own understanding might not be all it seems as well. A ‘Flying Monkey’, as the film explains, is ‘an unwitting enabler of a highly narcissistic person’. This film’s strength is that it leaves open the question of who exactly the flying monkey and who the wicked witch really is. The strange, unnerving unreality of the film adds intrigue to its short plot, though its lack of clarity harms any greater points it tries to make about manipulation or domestic abuse. Lawrence’s writing enjoys this dynamic, but the film does not necessarily benefit from it as a story. The opening half of the film is told largely through video calls – an echo of the covid era of indie filmmaking. Andrew Cockcroft-Charles and Sheraz Yousef do their best in these sequences, but there is an inherent awkwardness that comes about from the actors not being in the same room and able to play off each other. Yousef’s Detective John Collet’s questioning feels overreaching and forced, and the flow of the conversation that leads to Connor’s breakdown lacks authenticity and never feels natural. It also feels unlikely that such a conversation would be conducted over video call – which raises the question of why this scene was shot and structured in such a way. It may have been through necessity, or it may have been to stage the twist reveal of Alice, but it doesn’t really serve the story’s best interests. The ’flying monkey’ of the film is left open to interpretation. It is clear that Connor is something of a narcissist, but the double nature of his relationship with Alice – in both past and present – holds greater intrigue. This twist of the narrative is the film’s strongest point, and viewers will be engaged with the lucid area the story occupies. However, the briefness of the story works against it when trying to ponder more what the twist really means. The film feels like a snapshot of a full story, only there is currently no more story to tell. Flying Monkey wades into some interesting areas and kindles some interesting questions, but never really delivers on them. When coupled with an awkward framing of the first half which is conducted on video call, it leaves the film feeling largely underwhelming. The cast show potential, and Sam Lawrence’s ability to frame the twist helps salvage things, but this monkey never truly gets off the ground. Buy UKFR Banner Space About the Film Critic Patrick Foley Digital / DVD Release, Short Film < All Reviews Next Film Review >

Home Education film review by UK film critic William Hemingway. Starring Julia Ormond, Lydia Page, Rocco Fasano directed by Andrea Niada. HOME | FILMS | REVIEWS Home Education Film Review average rating is 3 out of 5 Critic: William Hemingway | Posted on: Jun 11, 2025 Directed by: Andrea Niada Written by: Andrea Niada Starring: Julia Ormond, Lydia Page, Rocco Fasano A teenage girl’s belief in being able to bring her father back from the dead is fostered by her mother’s teachings and a strange, macabre ritual which she performs in the depths of the forest. Rachel’s (Page) upbringing has been a little different from the normal, to say the least. Moved out to a smallholding in the rural Calabrian countryside, where her father has followed his career as a butcher, she is home-schooled by her mother (Ormond) in some pretty iffy biology basics, as well as a few other things. Rachel has also been taught, by her father mostly, that she is special in a very certain way. With practice, Rachel has learned to call into the other place – ‘There’ – and can see into the extra plane where the dead things are. Now that her father has joined that other place, her special talent is needed more than ever, to call him back to the living and go on pretending like nothing ever happened. So, once lessons are over, Rachel pops off into the woods with her big overcoat, satchel and bone death whistle, which she calls a horn. Blowing the horn around the forest calls out to the dead things, and Rachel reaches into the void to hear their cries, trying most of all to hear her father. When local vampire-goth heart-throb, Daniele (Fasano) starts poking around in the forest, too, a conflict of interest, or a glimmer of doubt, begins to become a real threat to the concentrated thought Rachel needs to complete the ritual. The Home Education we are being offered by writer and director, Andrea Niada includes some blind repetition, some ritualistic chanting, and a whole load of psychological horror, with a splash of teen angst thrown in for good measure. We are invited to learn alongside Rachel, with Julia Ormond looming large as our Mother Superior and teacher, as we try to reach through the blackness to pull someone we love to safety. Ormond fills the screen with her presence and plays a strong matriarchal role perfectly, while Lydia Page is just as strong as a doe-eyed Rachel, evolving along with her character as she realises her own knowledge and power. There’s a lot in Home Education that comes from the stock school of low-budget horror films. From the lead in we’ve got an isolated homestead out in the back of beyond; there’s the overhead drone shots of the lonely road through the trees; and more overhead shots just of the trees themselves; then there’s some creepy, low tones alongside minimal dialogue; and finally the inevitable incursion of an astral plane into this one. But once the set-up is done, Home Education takes a leaf out of its own book and creates a distinct and original world to inhabit with its cosmic horror. Rachel’s situation feels akin to Misery (1990), or to little Danny in The Shining (1980), with Niada managing to avoid direct comparisons due to some truly original storytelling, whilst also managing to avoid direct Twilight (2008) comparisons in the same way. There’s strong production value all throughout Home Education , with filming and production taking place in Italy, where it went on to become the biggest grossing home-grown horror debut, ever. Niada is very well supported by a talented crew who help set the scene and paint the picture along with her, creating two opposing but equally believable worlds which cross-over in front of our very eyes. There’s some striking imagery in Home Education , along with some deep-seated themes which could provoke a lot of discussion long after the film is over. What it needs now, is a distributor for the UK and hopefully the rest of Europe, so that it has a chance at being seen, and people can gain the opportunity to have these discussions for themselves. Buy UKFR Banner Space About the Film Critic William Hemingway Indie Feature Film, World Cinema < All Reviews Next Film Review >

What I Think Of You film review by UK film critic William Hemingway. Starring Jack Watson, James Cumming directed by Max Hanover. HOME | FILMS | REVIEWS What I Think Of You Film Review average rating is 3 out of 5 Critic: William Hemingway | Posted on: Dec 15, 2024 Directed by: Max Hanover Written by: James Cumming Starring: Jack Watson, James Cumming Two old friends meet up again to go for a wee walk in the woods, but a lot of retrodden ground needs to be covered when one of them can’t move on from the past. Steven (Watson) and Nick (Cumming) haven’t seen each other for a while. They used to hang out together but they don’t anymore and Nick has recently been in touch to see if he can remedy the situation. The two old pals have decided to go for a wee hike in the woods and hills around the city, with the green trees, rolling fields and tumbling water providing the perfect backdrop for a little reminiscing. The best buds are happily enjoying each other’s company, finding out about each other’s lives again, but as soon as the subject of current relationships is brought up the air turns a little funny and Nick finds himself not able to say very much. It seems that there is a bigger past at play which may not have run its course and this walk in the woods may just be a pretence for an unfinished conversation which needs to be had. Directed very ably by Max Hanover, What I Think Of You is really the baby of producer, writer and star, James Cumming. Taking on the role of Nick, Cumming bravely plays the more unsympathetic character of the piece, showing that he is more concerned about getting things right for his film than he is about looking good on camera. His script is relatable and genuine, with the two main characters feeling very ‘normal’ in their everyday language and issues. Both Jack Watson as Steven and James Cumming as Nick keep the feeling of the conversation very natural with their portrayal of the troubled friends, and the straightforward way the narrative plays out is helped by their believable everyday delivery. Cumming is also helped out in all corners by some crisp, luxuriant cinematography from Alex Roberts, a gentle, enigmatic score from Lizzie Mikietyn, and some great quality audio recorded by Paul Travers. All of these elements are very well handled and add immeasurably to the audience’s enjoyment of the film, allowing Cumming to air his themes through the dialogue as he touches on some pretty deep-seated issues. What I Think Of You seems very personal to James Cumming. He completely understands the themes he is trying to portray and writes his characters as though he knows them intimately. This all helps to keep the story and scenario of the film believable and relatable. What I Think Of You is, however, restricted by its focus and its narrative, with nothing more dramatic than a heated conversation happening during its entirety. There is plenty to like in the fifteen-minute runtime of What I Think Of You and what was expressed here, by cast and crew, is hopefully just a taster of what’s to come further down the line. Buy UKFR Banner Space About the Film Critic William Hemingway Digital / DVD Release, Short Film < All Reviews Next Film Review >

The Mummy film review by UK film critic Jason Knight. Starring Jon Jacobs, Lisa Zane, Apoorva Mitra, Siena Goines, Sheba Jade directed by Maurice Chauvet. HOME | FILMS | REVIEWS The Mummy Film Review average rating is 3 out of 5 Critic: Jason Knight | Posted on: May 13, 2026 Directed by: Maurice Chauvet Written by: Maurice Chauvet Starring: Jon Jacobs, Lisa Zane, Apoorva Mitra, Siena Goines, Sheba Jade Another feature titled The Mummy . Filmed over the course of three years, this is one is a supernatural horror film and it is the directorial debut from writer and director Maurice Chauvet and it stars Jon Jacobs, Lisa Zane, Siena Goines, Apoorva Mittra and Sheba Jade, the last two having their screen debut. So what is the plot? Robert (Jon), a famous and controversial British Egyptologist, currently resides in New Mexico with his wife, Beth (Goines) and his teenaged daughter, Isobel (Jade). Things have not been too good lately, as Isobel (who spends the entirety of the film dressed in her school uniform) has been having long-term occasions of sleepwalking. On top of this, Charlotte (Zane), a wealthy tech entrepreneur, visits Robert at his large house, demanding that he gives her a small artifact shaped like a woman that supposedly possessess magical powers. Without intending spoilers, the title is a bit misleading. Yes, the story involves Ancient Egypt (which is seen briefly) and there are ancient artifacts to be seen. However, unlike pretty much all previous films with the word 'Mummy' in their title, this one does not have a throusand-year-old corpse rising from the dead and Ancient Egypt is only present in brief flashbacks. So what happens then that justifies the title? Well, almost the entire narrative takes place inside Robert's home, with him and Isobel being plagued by visions of a Ara (Mittra), a young woman who was sacrificed in Ancient Egypt and has now found a way to enter the current world, via the artifact mentioned above. This artifact is one of many that were placed inside the sarcophagus of a Pharaoh, with intentions related to the afterlife. When Ara enters the world of the living, she does so by taking control of people's bodies (when she does so, she is shown wearing the clothes of the person she is controlling) and her intention is to find a way to end her suffering. There are many visions and flashbacks throughout of either Robert being in a darkened place or Ara in Ancient Egypt. Perhaps all this is not enough to justify the title. This feature is primarily a psychological horror story, a thriller and a family drama. Not a film about an ancient corpse. At the end of the day, a film should not be judged by its title and there are positive aspects in this one. Sean Musaeus makes a great contribution with the atmospheric music that enhances the feelings of dread and suspense and costume designer Alyssa Katz deserves commendations for the Egyptian clothing. As the main character, Robert is an expert in Egyptology but who is also dealing with mental health issues, a condition that seems to have troubled his past relatives, due to the unwise actions of his great-grandfather. He is a well-meaning man who is concerned about people's well-being but has an unstable relationship with his daughter. Arguably, Mittra is the one who steals the show and that is not just because her character is supernatural (a spirit apparently) but due to her energetic performance. It is when she enters the picture that things get more tense. Although initially she appears sinister, she eventually comes across as a victim of terrible suffering. As for Charlotte, a calculative woman, her role appears to be that of the antagonist. From the perspective regarding horror, this story is about preventing something bad from happening, enchanted objects, desperation, danger and redemption. If one looks at things from a point of view that involves Robert and his family, it concerns family values and reconciliation. It would probably be fair to state that this film is not what the title suggests it is about. Not a story about a mummy spreading chaos in Egypt, but more of a haunted house concept and body possession. This feature seeks to have an impact via character exploration and atmosphere, not action. Buy UKFR Banner Space About the Film Critic Jason Knight Indie Feature Film < All Reviews Next Film Review >

The Last Torment film review by UK film critic Jason Knight. Starring Christopher Scanlan, Niamh Houston directed by Gareth Repton. HOME | FILMS | REVIEWS The Last Torment Film Review average rating is 4 out of 5 Critic: Jason Knight | Posted on: Apr 2, 2022 Directed by: Gareth Repton Written by: Steven Deighan, Gareth Repton, Christopher Scanlan Starring: Christopher Scanlan, Niamh Houston A tormented boxer battles his inner demons while training in a gym. A man (Scanlan) enters an empty boxing gym. He is all alone. While working on a punchbag, a sinister male voice speaks to him. The voice is coming from inside his head and it tells him that there is no hope for him. The man angrily defies that statement. He is torn apart by the death of his daughter, for which he is responsible as she died in a car crash that happened because he was driving while drunk. It becomes apparent that he did not go to the gym to train, but to face his personal torment once and for all. This short dark psychological horror film is approximately five and a half minutes long and yet it packs quite a punch. The audience enters the mind of a man whose life is in shambles due to the loss of his child and for which he knows that he is to blame. In a way, he has come to the gym to fight, however his opponent is himself. He argues with the sinister voice before climbing into the ring and proceeds to get repeatedly struck by an invisible entity. The mood is rather bleak and distressing throughout, as the story paints a picture of the hell he is now living in as a result of his loss. As he is alone inside the gym, there is a feeling of isolation, that he has cut himself off from the rest of the world and is now living in his own hopeless place. Scanlan's dynamic acting makes this viewing quite a roller-coaster ride. His performance is vital for the film to have a significant effect and he pulls that of perfectly. He is very convincing as an individual who is filled with self-hatred, anger, misery and guilt and one wonders whether there is salvation for him. There are many brief falshbacks that provide clues regarding what led to the protagonist's current mental state. Flashbacks show him driving his car with his daughter in the passenger's seat on that fateful day and him in his home, with empty bottles on the floor and tablets in his hand. The addition of the flashbacks help reveal that he is a broken man. Andrew Jay provides terrific cinematography that creates a dark and hopeless atmosphere and the creative lighting effects highlight the man's descent into despair. The music by Subin Karkani is dramatic and sinister and develops feelings of sadness and dread. Repton also worked on the editing and does a great job, with well executed match cuts. This is a brutal and distressing story about grief, mental health, substance addiction and self-loathing. It paints the picture of a man who has fallen into an abyss. It is not a pleasant viewing, however it is powerful and memorable. Buy UKFR Banner Space About the Film Critic Jason Knight Short Film < All Reviews Next Film Review >

Girl You Know It's True film review by UK film critic Rachel Willis. Starring Tijan Njie, Elan Ben Ali, Matthias Schweighöfer directed by Simon Verhoeven. HOME | FILMS | REVIEWS Girl You Know It's True Film Review average rating is 3 out of 5 Critic: Rachel Willis | Posted on: Aug 7, 2024 Directed by: Simon Verhoeven Written by: Simon Verhoeven Starring: Tijan Njie, Elan Ben Ali, Matthias Schweighöfer Simon Verhoeven’s biopic on Milli Vanilli’s meteoric rise and devastating fall is the subject of his latest film, Girl You Know It’s True . The film opens by stating that this is not only based on a true story but on several true stories. As much as we want our truth to be objective, we’re reminded that the retelling of events is often based on memory—a faulty, frequently contradictory, wholly subjective experience. Of course, certain parts of the story are not in dispute. The duo that put the face to the group were Rob Pilatus (Tijan Njie) and Fab Morvan (Elan Ben Ali). Both were recruited by producer Frank Farian (Matthias Schweighöfer) after they were seen dancing by his live-in business partner, Milli (Bella Dayne). After the initial agreement to work together, this is where the story gets interesting. Even those who know the tale will be drawn into the elaborate ruse Farian puts together – fusing vocals and performers, stealing songs from other artists to use as singles for his newest “project.” While Farian’s role in Milli Vanilli’s story is critical, it’s Ali and Njie who tie it all together. Both embody the characters they play with naivety and enthusiasm – often in equal measure. Their deal with the devil is understandable. And anyone paying attention to music at the time is aware that while this arrangement may have been the most egregious in terms of deception, there were plenty of shady deals going around in record studios. And while there’s no sympathy for Frank Farian, Schweighöfer does manage to imbue him with some compassion. Instead of coming across as a one-note villain, there’s a bit of humanity to the character. The film excels at blending humor and tragedy into Rob and Fab’s story. That news reports would interrupt coverage of the United States’s war in Iraq to cover the “lip-syncing scandal” is the height of cultural absurdity. The tragedy comes in the fact that while this was a team effort, just as Rob and Fab were the faces of the group, so they were the scapegoats of its demise. No one disputes that Rob and Fabrice were complicit in the deceit, but the price they paid seems too heavy compared to the producers, managers, and studio execs who claimed they were just as shocked by the news as everyone else. Their pockets were lined with the dollars of those fans who felt betrayed. It’s an intriguing story that is as fascinating now as it was then. Buy UKFR Banner Space About the Film Critic Rachel Willis Theatrical Release < All Reviews Next Film Review >

Relative Control film review by UK film critic Rachel Willis. Starring Teri Polo, Patrick McDade directed by DafnaYachin. HOME | FILMS | REVIEWS Relative Control Film Review average rating is 3 out of 5 Critic: Rachel Willis | Posted on: Apr 10, 2025 Directed by: DafnaYachin Written by: Charlene Davis Starring: Teri Polo, Patrick McDade Sara (Teri Polo) has her hands full. Her adult son is living on the other side of the country and is still dependent on her. Her aging parents are beginning to show signs of mental and physical decline. And she was just hired to handle the biggest case of her career as a corporate attorney. How can one woman balance all of this? This is the focus of director Dafna Yachin’s film, Relative Control . Working from a script by Charlene Davis, Yachin understands how much of a family’s responsibilities fall to women, even when they have lives of their own to consider. More and more, this scenario has become the reality for middle-aged Americans. Sara, a single woman with no partner to rely on for financial or emotional support, is lucky enough to have a high-powered job that allows her son to live off – rather than with – her as she juggles work and familial obligations. There’s an exasperated humor that lies at the heart of the movie. As Sara interacts with her stubborn parents, her father especially, you can’t help but chuckle at the situation. It’s very relatable. Sara’s age is a significant factor. For those with careers, this tends to be the time in life when the demands of work rise as one climbs the corporate ladder. As the sole child responsible for her parents, Sara’s worlds start to collide with more and more frequency. There are a lot of things an audience can relate to as we watch Sara struggle to maintain balance. But not everything in Sara’s life is so easy to identify with. Most working adults don’t have the kind of career that affords a son to fly home from the other side of the country at seemingly every crisis. The characters do help to keep the story familiar. They likely resemble members of your own family, and as we watch the family interact, it’s not hard to care about them. Relative Control is not a perfect representation of the “sandwich generation”—the one still supporting adult children when the need to support their own parents comes around—but it resonates nonetheless. Buy UKFR Banner Space About the Film Critic Rachel Willis Digital / DVD Release, Indie Feature Film < All Reviews Next Film Review >

Changing Tides film review by UK film critic Patrick Foley. Starring Rowe David McClelland, Natasha Cottriall, Marion Campbell-Rogers directed by Kathryn Georghiou. HOME | FILMS | REVIEWS Changing Tides Film Review average rating is 3 out of 5 Critic: Patrick Foley | Posted on: Apr 30, 2024 Directed by: Kathryn Georghiou Written by: Kathryn Georghiou Starring: Rowe David McClelland, Natasha Cottriall, Marion Campbell-Rogers Kathryn Georghiou’s Changing Tides is a Loach-ian short drama which tackles the challenging and emotional realities of alcoholism and isolation. Inspired by events in the director’s life, it is a moving film, if a little aimless and lacking in commentary in lieu of sentiment. Bea (Natasha Cottriall) is a struggling social worker who gets a new assignment in the centre of Blackpool. She is to provide care for Aiden (Rowe David McClelland), an older man who is ungrateful for her presence in his small and run-down home. As she perseveres in her work, Aiden’s coldness towards her begins to abate, and the pair develop a bond as they take a journey around the town. But later meetings reveal a tragic past and intolerable demon that hangs over Aiden, leaving Bea to search for the real person underneath. At the tragic heart of Changing Tides is the genuine experience of the director with a family-member’s alcoholism, and it stands as a fascinating examination of the everyday realities, and longer-term consequences of the disease. Aiden’s attitude towards Bea ricochets throughout the film from suspicion, anger, kindness, consideration and calmness. His actions are intentionally inconsistent, lucid to confused and back again, to demonstrate that factors beyond his own control are influencing and overpowering his behaviour. It is a manifestation of the rollercoaster that Georghiou speaks of when living with an alcoholic, where promises can be made and broken, and kindness can break through obscuring difficulty. On the personal level it succeeds. Aiden and Bea feel like solar opposites and Aiden’s cruelty towards her in the early stages of the film establishes the reasons for his loneliness. But the slow build as they grow closer means that their eventual friendship is convincing, in no small part due to the resilience that is sprinkled throughout Natasha Cottriall’s performance. Yet there is a lack of wider political commentary throughout the film, an omission that feels glaring given the cost-of-living crisis crippling the country, and creating untold numbers of Aidens and Beas every day. Beyond allusions to Bea’s workload and financial situation, the film largely eschews addressing this – and given the sad state that Aiden lives in, it feels like there is untouched potential that would add to the film’s power and purpose. Whilst the relationship between Aiden and Bea is the heart, there is still space for the head. The aforementioned performance by Natasha Cottriall is a real strength of the film, bringing out Bea’s patience and determination to make the most of her situation. Rowe David McClelland gives a heartbreaking turn as Aiden. Slobbish and unkempt, the old man is a sad sight – and acts up to it for much of the film too. His aggressiveness and unpleasant attitude towards Bea (and seemingly most people) is crucial in explaining how he came to be abandoned at his darkest hour. His building trust and redemption is earned thanks to the layered performance that demonstrates a humour from early on, that Bea eventually clings on to in order to win his trust. Yet the imperfect behaviour of the alcoholic means his attitude change is not linear, and hammers home the tragedy of the disease. Changing Tides is therefore a worthy and touching film that only falls down for what else it could have been more than what it results as. As the story of two very different people navigating one’s illness, it is moving and personable. It does negate sufficient analysis of societal and political factors that feel relevant and necessary and suffers for this, but not enough to devalue its worth as a drama. Buy UKFR Banner Space About the Film Critic Patrick Foley Digital / DVD Release, Short Film < All Reviews Next Film Review >

When Evil Lurks film review by UK film critic Hope Madden. Starring Ezequiel Rodriguez, Demián Salomón directed by Demián Rugna. HOME | FILMS | REVIEWS When Evil Lurks Film Review average rating is 4 out of 5 Critic: Hope Madden | Posted on: Oct 5, 2023 Directed by: Demián Rugna Written by: Demián Rugna Starring: Ezequiel Rodriguez, Demián Salomón Just when you thought no one could do anything fresh with a possession movie, Terrified filmmaker Demián Rugna surprises you. Well, fresh may not be the word. Indeed, you can almost smell this putrid tale. I mean that in the best way. Pedro (Ezequiel Rodriguez) and his brother Jimmy (Demián Salomón) hear shots. It’s late, and the sound is far – somewhere between their land and their neighbor Ruiz’s (Luis Ziembrowski) farm. The way Rugna reveals what the brothers find, where it leads them and what it unleashes is a tale so masterfully told you almost miss the underlying character study and the blistering performance that brings it to life. When Evil Lurks does sometimes feel familiar, its road trip to hell detouring through The Crazies , among others. But Rugna’s take on all the familiar elements feels new, in that you cannot and would not want to predict where he’s headed. As choices are made and usually regretted, Rugna propels his heroes onward, each step, each choice, each misstep adding pressure and confusion, unveiling the character beneath even as bits of the brothers’ history organically comes to light. This is a magnificently written piece of horror, and Rugna’s expansive direction gives it an otherworldly yet dirty, earthy presence. The entire cast is wonderful, each one cracked and poisoned just a bit. But Rodriguez sears through the celluloid with a performance so raw, frustrating and full of rage it makes you uncomfortable. His counterpoint, Salomón’s younger, gentler brother Jimmy, infects the film with enough tenderness to make the wounds hurt. And in creating injury, Rugna is fearless. No one is safe, not even the audience. The inexplicable ugliness – this particularly foul presence of evil – is handled with enough distance, enough elegance to make the film almost beautiful, regardless of the truly awful nature of the footage. And Rugna never lets up. Each passing minute is more difficult than the last, to the very last, which is an absolute knife to the heart. In case Rugna’s 2017 treasure Terrified didn’t solidify his place among the greats working in the genre today, When Evil Lurks demands that recognition. Buy UKFR Banner Space About the Film Critic Hope Madden Theatrical Release, World Cinema < All Reviews Next Film Review >