In the realm of Veroka, an elite group of global monster hunters is summoned by King Samuel to vanquish the ancient Bone Devil, whose reign of terror threatens the Kingdom of Remény.
For more information, check out the Devil's Knight IMDb page!
Watching movies and writing about them.
Nollywood, as the Nigerian film industry is today known, is continuing to make waves on a global scale and not just at the level of African cinema. Regionally, it has been a staple of production and quality for years, but now, films including Sambala: The Cost of Freedom are moving it even further. This process is propelled by filmmakers like Nigerian-American Kole Akintujoye, a veteran of the film business. His latest production, Sambala: The Cost of Freedom, created under GUODB Cinematics, shows just how quickly is Nollywood evolving from local but authentic storytelling to a place where it resonates with audiences worldwide. Here’s the plot of the film:
In a remote African village, a young girl is forced into a life of oppression when her parents arrange her marriage to a powerful tyrant. Defying tradition and risking everything, she leads a desperate fight for freedom, uncovering dark secrets and paying a heartbreaking price in her quest to break the chains of tyranny.
The power of Oddity as a very fresh and atypical horror is seen literally in the first five minutes of the film. That is the moment in the film when a brilliant and chilling conversation takes place between a woman, locked in an old Irish mansion, and a stranger on the other side of the door. In that short but impactful vignette, the film and its director Damian Mc Carthy showcase just how well they manage tension, expectation, and the bleak visual environment where both take place. In that space, we as a viewer cannot help but look for danger and threats in every dark doorway or dimly lit corner.
The same skill set propels Oddity to the very top of modern horror, especially when keeping in mind that it is coming from a European indie production. But, through the smart use of simple props and excellent storytelling, Oddity compensates for any lack of production values. Instead, it proves a deeply disturbing tale that is still very plausible and ultimately a very down-to-earth matter. Similarly to Late Night with the Devil, the film’s premise begins in an outlandish manner but becomes more and more personal and thus possible as time goes by.
With that strong and grounded setup, the tale of a blind woman and a medium, going on the quest to find out who really murdered her twin sister becomes something extraordinary. The acting cast understood that as well, which is why Carolyn Bracken and Caroline Menton do a great job, followed closely by Tadhg Murphy, Steve Wall, and Gwilym Lee. All of them attain amazing results without any apparent extraordinary effort. In a similar way, Oddity effortlessly shows that horror films are at the cutting edge of the present independent film industry.
It's always fantastic to see innovative art that blends a range of influences. VasDahiv Uncharted is an episodic YouTube animated series that was made in the same manner, with origins that are both diverse and global. That covers the subject matter of the series, but also how its team approached its storytelling. Here's how the series describes itself:
The first issue of VasDahiv: Uncharted introduces Vandad, a young adventurer, and his companions as they explore the mystical desert landscape of VasDahiv. While on a quest to solve an ancient mystery involving a strange box and a broken seal left by Vandad’s father, they encounter strange characters, including a mysterious old man who may not be what he seems. With elements of supernatural danger, tension, and Persian mythology, the series blends adventure, horror, and suspense as Vandad and his friends face unforeseen challenges that test their resolve and uncover secrets that have remained hidden for centuries.
In the first episode, the skill of the team behind VasDahiv Uncharted is immediately clear. The style of the animation is a great blend of cartoon, cell shading, and realistic approaches. From the perspective of the narrative, characters, and the entire storyline, the episode quickly sets up its premise and the central mystery, all the while using familiar elements like a road trip, (seemingly) random encounters, and abandoned, spooky gas stations. All of these immediately catch the attention of the viewer and draw them into the emerging story of VasDahiv.
On the production side, the series is really well-made, featuring great voiceover acting and soundtrack. Also, the level of polish that the animation comes with, especially that of the characters’ faces and facial expressions, is impressive, showing that the team painstakingly made sure everything looks, sounds, and feels excellent. All of this shows that the director Younes Hommasi and the team around him know what they're doing not just now, but for future episodes as well.
If you're into animated series and ancient mysteries that combine numerous elements, check out the official website of VasDahiv Uncharted. But first, watch the entire first episode of the series right here, and be sure to subscribe to its official YouTube channel for future episodes!
Several factors related to Longlegs and the way Osgood Perkins directed the film are simply fantastic. These include photography and frame composition, but also the glorious fact that this work again forced (or enticed) Nicholas Cage to show the world his true talent. Unlike a range of B-class films he made in recent years, Longlegs is a true work of art. Maika Monroe, as the lead character of the confused but driven FBI agent Lee Harker also provides a very impressionable psychological study.
Finally, the initial atmosphere and narrative mood hint at the film being inside of the New Weird genre, here Harker gets a hypnotic FBI test that determines whether or not she might be a psychic. All of these fit perfectly into a generic story of a series of horrific crimes where a mysterious being, known only as Longlegs, somehow forces families to murder each other. Here, the plot is reminiscent of things like the Southern Reach trilogy from the writer Jeff VanderMeer or video games like Control. In the first half of the film, Perkins wants to tell the audience that horrible things can and will happen, while forces committing these, just as the forces opposing those, might be unknowable to us.
But, as the film breaks into the second half, all of that synergy is somehow lost. The mystery shifts into occult and satanism but does so in a bland, stuttering manner. The focus of the characters is lost as seemingly all of them suddenly fall into some kind of unclear family drama buried deep in their past. Even Cage appears to be questioning his approach to the role of an intensely deranged person, finally reverting to bizarre impressionism that is again, kind of silly. As the end and the culmination draws near, the events get bloodier, but everything gets unintentionally funnier as well.
The finale itself is more akin to the forest critters from South Park who engage in blood orgies and exclaim “Hail Satan” than a thought-through New Weird horror story. The film does tie all of its loose ends and provides closure to the mystery, but that closure ends up more comical than scary. With that, Perkins managed to make a work of art that feels more similar to a Tales from the Crypt episode than one of the most cerebral horror films of 2024, which Longlegs so very much could have been.
The concept of the Japanese Geisha has long fascinated the world of cinema. For decades, these enigmatic but alluring figures have been a prominent element of the endless appeal of the Far East. From their distinctive look and unique personal presentation, all the way to the complex psychological portraits behind the makeup and clothes, these ancient performing artists and entertainers never fail to capture our imagination. However, the latest film with the Geisha subjects manages to immerse the audience even deeper in the same cultural phenomenon. That film is Dark Feathers: Dance of the Geisha, and here is how it describes itself:
Geisha ladies of Japanese culture have long been revered for their beauty and entertaining skills of singing, dancing, and conversation. Some are known to possess special abilities that can drive men crazy. Kate (Crystal J. Huang) leads a mysterious life in San Francisco as a photographer and ballroom dancer. But when all her dance partners turn up dead, detective Remy (Gilles Marini) begins to investigate. As he gets closer to the truth, he too succumbs to passion for Kate, which strains his marriage with Amelia (Karina Smirnoff) and leads to his own death. With the body count growing, police pressure to catch Kate builds, revealing her participation in a secret underworld of honor and culture.
Crystal J. Huang, the producer and director of the film, clearly found inspiration in a range of subject matter associated with the phenomenon of the geisha. That is why the film offers a strong sense of atmosphere, combining the elegant and the deadly. In equal measure, the scenes of action and violence complement those of dancing and vice versa. In both cases, the exchange between the forces of life and the forces of death continues unabated. Here, the presence of the veteran actor, Michael Madsen, further enforces the sense of mystery and life-and-death choices.