Bree, a dishonest 9-year-old receives a terrifying visitor after a parenting lesson goes horribly wrong.
Kookie is a fun little horror short about a bratty and dishonest little girl. She keeps taking more cookies from the jar than she’s allowed to, until her mother puts the cookies in a terrifying clown jar in hopes of scaring her greedy hands away from it. Of course, the girl can’t resist the temptation, no matter how creepy she thinks the clown jar looks…
Director: Justin Harding Country & year: Canada, 2016 Actors: Ava Jamieson, Alana Elmer, Jarrett Siddall, Jessie Garon IMDb:www.imdb.com/title/tt5594566/
Here we have the film that was heavily promoted as “Norway’s first splatter film ever”, which is not really true. But I can at least agree that this is the first Norwegian splatter film that got a wide DVD distribution, which was quite a unique thing in a small, tiny country like Norway. This is almost twenty years ago. Time flies.
The film starts with Mother Earth having sex, and a young man in his twenties (Martin Loke) then pops out from a vagina located at the earth’s grassy surface, while the sun shines on a hot, ordinary summer day. A monk-like creature comes along and cuts the umbilical cord as the new-born screams like a schizophrenic mental patient. He then suddenly wears a suit, and has a suitcase handcuffed to his arm as he gets thrown into the society. He follows a pathway and meets a random guy. While they have a beer, he tells our new-born a life lesson-story about how evil society is if you don’t kneel to the authority, and conform to the social norm in a perfect sheep mentality. All forms of outcasts and those who dear to think freely are seen as serious threat to the society, and they get hunted down and killed by the military under orders of The King himself. As the story goes on with a tirade of amateurish, messy, incoherent scenes, including a scene with a guy getting a bottle stuffed in his butthole, you start to wonder what the hell you’re really watching.
The acting is unbelievably, ridiculously, bafflingly bad, and is the funniest thing about the movie. And the dialogue was sloppily dubbed in post-production, which doesn’t synchronize at all. It’s reeks of amateur-hour all the way, and the “humour” is on the cringiest middle school level. Director and screenwriter Martin Loke is a huge fan of Peter Jackson’s Bad Taste which reflects in the effects and some of the camera work. But when Bad Taste had its own style and energy to it, this comes across as the drunken poor man’s version. With a budget of 600,000 Norwegian kroner (approx. $ 68,3348), the film should at least look better. I suspect that most of the budget went to municipal goods like military stuff and access to certain restricted locations. And almost like there wasn’t any budget for a half-decent soundtrack, the score is primarily filled with classical music from Beethoven, which just feels completely out of place and makes the movie even weirder. The “Actors” are mainly friends and family of Martin Loke, who mostly give the impression of standing in front of the camera as a big favor they would never do again. The political and social statements Martin Loke is trying to make us reflect on is for sure more relevant today than it was twenty years ago. But aside from that, this is nothing but a demented, bizarre and messy oddball of a movie which will guarantee some great laughs for sure. Some of them unintentionally, of course.
The most impressive thing about Bread and Circus is that Martin Loke showed it at the Cannes Film Festival of all places, and sold it to seven countries. How he actually managed to do that with a film like this, God knows. But, okay, I give him my respect for that. The film was later given a 10-year anniversary edition from the Nordic Another World Entertainment with some extras. A U.S. release is also available at Amazon.com.
Director: Martin Loke Original title: Brød & Sirkus Country & year: Norway, 2003 Actors: Oliver Boullet, Miriam Johansson, Martin Loke, Magne Jahrestein, Silje Andresen, Benjamin Rørstad, Lars Torp, Lars Erik Ringstad Nordrum, Lise Løke, Hilde Løke, Fredrik Løke, Frank Løke, Eivind Pedersen, Andre Iversen, Vegar Bakke IMDb: www.imdb.com/title/tt0377543/
A father helps a young boy get over his fear of Monsters, at a terrible price.
The Monster is a nice little horror short about a classic theme: a kid that’s afraid of monsters, and his father trying to help him get over his fear. This boy’s father is not like most fathers, though…
Director: Neil Stevens Country & year: USA, 2019 Actors: Aaron Bradshaw, Brian Ramian, Erika Stasiuleviciute IMDb:www.imdb.com/title/tt8510332/
A little girl thinks Christmas in New Zealand sucks. It’s too hot, there are mosquitoes everywhere, and not a snowflake in sight. But when Lisa wishes for a White Christmas one year, she gets a lot more than she bargained for…
A somewhat cute horror short about a girl who wants to experience a White Christmas, but gets it in a way she’ll soon regret…
Director: Peter Haynes, Nick Burridge Country & year: Australia, 2016 Actors: Keira Christina, Hweiling Ow
Nina is a Russian woman, who lives together with her young daughter Sasha. She has left her abusive and alcoholic husband, but he still causes trouble for her by coming to her home drunk and demanding to come inside and see his daughter. All Nina wants is a new and better life for herself and Sasha, and after joining a typical “Russian brides” website (dating website for people looking for a Russian woman) she gets in contact with a reclusive billionaire from USA. After traveling abroad to meet her new man, she marries him very soon thereafter. However, she soon finds out that the seemingly nice man has other motives…and Nina eventually realizes that she’s put both herself and her daughter in a dangerous position.
Those typical “Russian Brides” dating websites is nothing new, and have existed for quite a while. No matter how you may want to label the women using such websites – “gold diggers” or simply someone wanting a better life for themselves – this movie portrays a woman belonging to the latter category. We understand Nina’s desperate need to move away from her stalking and abusive ex, and a rich and gentle elderly man from another country seems like her perfect escape. What could possibly go wrong, right? Well…
The story builds up rather nicely, and you see early on that Nina’s new husband has ulterior motives. Since his spacious mansion is also located in a very isolated area, you can feel the overwhelming amount of helplessness that she’s going through, in an other country and no means of escape. Nina and her daughter Sasha are surrounded by snow and nothingness, and solely dependent on her new husband that shows more and more signs of not necessarily having their well-being in his best interest.
The suspense in The Russian Bride builds towards what we surely expect to be a great reveal and a bloody climax (at least, based on the DVD cover which isn’t exactly toning down on its promise of a certain amount of blood ‘n gore). And we get both, although I would have to admit I think they could’ve stretched it even a bit further as blood ‘n gore goes. There’s room for a lot more than what was given us, but still makes it earn its “Gore” badge.
The Russian Bride is an okay horror thriller, although it may be worth noting that despite the bloody cover, this kind of stuff is held back for the climax and is not meant to be part of the main focus of the film (so gorehounds may want to sniff around elsewhere). Now, the film does come off as a bit predictable (we know the guy is up to something, we just don’t know what), and it also feels a bit inconsistent with a few things, like a certain paranormal entity that doesn’t really provide much to the film except sugarcoating the end a bit and functioning as a deus ex machina. However, it’s entertaining enough and well worth a watch, despite some flaws.
Director: Michael S. Ojeda Country & year: USA, 2019 Actors: Corbin Bernsen, Oksana Orlan, Oksana Orlan, Lisa Goodman, Michael Robert Brandon, Alison Korman, Yefim Somin, Gregory O’Gallagher, Keenan Johnston, John Paul Brandt, Clement Valentine, Kenneth G. Beaudin, Maryanne Nagel, Blake Brown, Guido Den Broeder IMDb: www.imdb.com/title/tt6214468/
Mary takes over her friends babysitting job on Christmas Eve, but something more than yuletide spirit is loose in the house.
Here’s another Christmas horror short for you to enjoy! A cheesy yet fun short about a babysitter who will stay at a home where the owners are really into the holidays and have put up decorations all over the place. There’s one of the “decorations” that seems out of place, though…
Director: Henrique Couto Country & year: USA, 2015 Actors: Julia Gomez, Alia Gabrielle Eckhardt, Erin R. Ryan, Adam Clevenger, Bradley Diehl
When her neighbor refuses to get into the Christmas spirit, a jolly citizen takes matters into her own hands.
We all know at least one “Grinch”, or a person filled with “humbug” when the holidays are kicking in. This weird and cheesy horror short takes the “humbug” to a different level, though, turning it into something that can be “exorcised” from your body in order to make you fully enjoy the Christmas holidays!
Director: Justin Lee, Matt Thiesen Country & year: USA, 2016 Actors: Jessee Foudray, Milly Sanders IMDb:www.imdb.com/title/tt6391866/
A grieving young boy who loves to draw and build ferris wheels encounters strange creatures that turn his life upside down.
La Noria is a CG animated horror short by seasoned animator Carlos Baena (Pixar). This horror/fantasy short is in many ways more sad and emotional than scary, but does manage to build a certain creepy atmosphere with the monsters chasing the boy and the gloomy house he’s living in.
Director: Carlos Baena Country & year: Spain, 2018 Voice Actors: Blanca Casellas, Jaume Ibars, Daniela Lucas IMDb:www.imdb.com/title/tt8804104/
Life is hard for Emma without the love of her life John. But after installing a new antique door and not being able to open it she starts hearing knocks coming from the other side of the door. Can this be the spirits of Emma’s love.
There Comes a Knocking is described as a proof of concept for a feature film by the same name. The short has good atmosphere and cinematography (and the Horror Ghouls love big, old creaky houses!). It is thus unfortunate that the ending is a bit lackluster, but since the creators are aiming for a full feature film and this is described as a “proof of concept”, it will be interesting to see how the full movie will eventually turn out! The creator’s YouTube channel also has a “Making of” video, in addition to lots of other videos regarding their filmmaking.
Director: Ryan Connolly Country & year: USA, 2019 Actors: Stefanie Butler, Brett Davidson, Justin Robinson IMDb:www.imdb.com/title/tt10922922/
Alice Palmer is a sixteen year old girl, that drowns while swimming in the local dam. Her body is eventually recovered, and her grieving family then starts experiencing strange events. Thinking it’s got something to do with their recently deceased daughter, they seek the help of a psychic who starts digging into Alice’s past. He reveals that Alice used to have secrets, and that she was living a double life that her family wasn’t aware of. The family then tries to figure out a connection between her death and the experiences they’re going through.
While most horror movies featuring a ghost depicts them as either vengeful or harmful, Lake Mungo takes quite a different approach. Written and directed by Joel Anderson, this film is made in a faux documentary style (“mockumentary”). It shows how a grieving family tries to figure out if they are haunted by their deceased daughter/sister. Is her appearance on her brother’s photos a call from beyond the grave? Are the things they’re experiencing caused by Alice’s ghost, or is everything just a manifestation of their grief?
The documentary-style fits the movie rather well, giving it a much more realistic and eerie tone. There’s a few twists and turns throughout the story, making it a mystery filled with secrets, surprises and even lies, all eventually leading the family to a place called Lake Mungo (which is an actual dry lake in Australia) where Alice apparently was camping before she died. The pacing is a bit slow while it’s building towards more and more reveals, and there are some twists and turns that might seem unnecessary and even totally irrelevant to Alice’s demise. The slow pacing of the movie is likely to be perceived as tedious by some, but this is a film that does not rely on the effectiveness of only certain parts, but rather as a whole-package thing.
Lake Mungo is not a movie whose main goal is to make you jump in your seat, but instead wants to crawl under your skin. There are a few scenes here that actually got to me (and that’s something that happens very rarely!), and for me it was the whole idea of loss and grief mixed with the supernatural goings-on that got to me. It was for the most part a very melancholic and sad movie (if Mr. Ghööl had a “Sad” badge, it would fit well here). It isn’t a movie with huge scares and shocking moments, but it’s unsettling and different. Lake Mungo is an exploration into grief and loss and the thought of maybe being haunted by a loved one, and your ability to connect with such experiences will probably have a lot to say on how you perceive this film.
Director: Joel Anderson Country & year: Australia, 2008 Actors: Rosie Traynor, David Pledger, Martin Sharpe, Talia Zucker, Tania Lentini, Cameron Strachan, Judith Roberts, Robin Cuming, Marcus Costello, Chloe Armstrong, Carole Patullo, John Dunn, Laurie Dunn, Kirsty McDonald, James Lawson IMDb: www.imdb.com/title/tt0816556/