Film Review: I Saw the TV Glow (2024)

As someone born in the 1980s, I too, just like I Saw the TV Glow, can attest to the power of great television. In my case, the shows of choice during my childhood include a narrow band of science fiction, mainly seen in The X-Files, Star Trek: Deep Space 9, and Star Trek: Voyager. In these shows, as a kid, I found almost total immersion, where I truly got lost in each episode into a very believable world that is so much unlike my own reality.

I Saw the TV Glow focuses on that mental and emotional space for its two main characters, Owen and Maddy. Both of them are growing up in the US suburbs and finding life incredibly challenging as teens in 1996. However, what also binds them together is The Pink Opaque, a fictional TV show that features two characters with a psychic connection who are fighting an ever-present, but subtle evil force seen in the form of Mr. Melancholy.

The film was written and directed by Jane Schoenbrun, who clearly also understands the power and horror of finding escape from both the real world and the physical bodies that inhabit it. The experience of watching I Saw the TV Glow is thus very odd, as it mixes tones of teen bonding and finding solace in each other's company, with a sharp sense of dread and despair, even utter horror. The latter come from the lifestyles that are to a point forced on the main characters, as well as their controlled and asserted perceptions of themselves.

Here, in this space filled with so many feelings, the fantastic musical soundtrack only enhances this unique experience of belonging and very much sticking out. Both main characters, played by Justice Smith and Brigette Lundy-Paine, do a great job in trying to communicate this sense of split self to each other and the audience, which is so hard to explain with words. That is why both of them, just like the film in its entirety, succeeds brilliantly in showing just a glimpse - but still a powerful one - of lives where people never belong, yet yearn so much to do nothing more than fit in somewhere.

Film Review: Immaculate (2024 film)

The traditional Roman Catholic iconography easily offers itself up to a range of horror genres and Immaculate is another fine example of that dark merger. In this case, the focus is on an approach that is best described as body horror, even though the film blends several other atypical elements into the mix, including faint echoes of Giallo filmmaking.

The plot of the film follows Sister Mary, a US nun who arrives in a remote Italian Catholic convent. At first, Mary, who is played by Sydney Sweeney, is greeted by a community of different characters, where her future fitting in could be a long and arduous process. However, soon after it is discovered that Mary is with child, even though her chastity remains intact.

Directed by Michael Mohan, Immaculate focuses on the idea of being entrapped by one's surroundings, by one's body, and by one's deepest faith. Here, Sweeney's interpretation of Mary is very striking, as she provides a very downtrodden and humble character, who still harbors a strong will to fight and overcome horrible situations. As the film progresses, these situations only grow in scale and frequency.

Ritualistic and visceral, Immaculate is a strong body horror that touches upon some very real issues of female reproductive rights and the ideation that this carries with it among the faithful. Unlike other horrors rooted in rituals, like Midsommar, the film does not get entangled in its religious source material but remains focused on its crucial entity - the character of Mary and her terrible experiences.

Film Review: Trapped Inn (2024)

From its intro sequence and the first minutes, Trapped Inn shows that it's a different kind of movie. Starring the multitalented Matt Rife, it immediately sets the stage for its main characters - a US cycling team training in Europe. After a grueling session, the team goes back to their lodging inn, an isolated place where things look better than they should, but also come with an underlying sense of menace.

The great thing about the setup of Trapped Inn is that it uses the entire cycling team as its main character, quickly establishing different personalities, relationships, and rivalries. All of that feels very familiar, but it has rarely been presented in films, especially ones like this. The director of the film, Leah Sturgis, uses the setup in a refined manner, being that the risk there would have been for the movie to slide into a regular sports drama early on. However, Trapped Inn builds up its mystery and a sense of growing unease and danger just as effectively.   

Besides Rife and his main team rival Greg, played by Robert Palmer Watkins, Brian Gross as the team's coach manages to perform really well in this kind of odd setup of things not being what they seem. Along with them, the entire team does a great job in molding realistic characters who find themselves in an unexpected, emerging hellscape. As the disappearances and the bodies begin to pile up, the film kicks into a whole new gear with the threat of a mysterious infection and death.

Trapped Inn is shot and edited perfectly, using the best out of natural light and gorgeous locations, both indoors and outdoor. All of the subtle special effects manage to blend into that almost seamlessly. This also offers a great counterpoint to the plot once the danger becomes very immediate and real. That further enhances the tension that the character begins to experience as survival becomes a desperate plight with no good outcomes.

From beginning to end, Trapped Inn is a masterful combo of genres and setups. I'm sure that the presence of big acting names will attract the viewers and the fact that the entire cast performed great, but the actual appeal of the film lies in its ability to blend and sustain its unique approach to its storyline. As the world implodes inside of the characters and outside of them, Trapped Inn offers the audience a world-ending ride that they will never forget.

Learn more about Trapped Inn on its official website and see where you can watch it right now!

Film Review: 'Salem's Lot (2024)

Last year was brimming with fantastic new horror films. Movies like Oddity and Longlegs are just some of the titles that managed to impress and terrify both critics and the audiences. However, 'Salem's Lot, which has the most impressive pedigree of the bunch, was not able to do the same. For me, however, the film more than does justice both to its original source material and the modern horror genre.

Created by Gary Dauberman, a modern horror-making veteran, the film is based on  the 1975 novel by Stephen King. In it, a writer comes home to a small town of Jerusalem's Lot looking for inspiration, but ultimately finds only terror and danger as an ancient vampire is slowly taking over the town. He and a small band of locals try to put a stop to it, or at least survive.

While the latest adaptation is not a masterpiece, Dauberman and a really solid movie cast still managed to turn it into a very entertaining horror. The use of light, especially in the form of glowing crosses, is exceedingly impressive from a visual side, while the photography overall manages to paint a bleak and scary picture of a small-tow-US slowly becoming a graveyard of both the dead and the undead. Yes, there is scant character development and some moments are abruptly ended by the director and the script, but I found that refreshing.

Instead of blindly trying to make a film copy of the book - necessarily in a limited TV series from - the director wanted to make a semi-original iteration of this famous tale, which is in itself basically a modern retelling of a generic folk story. Throughout this, 'Salem's Lot keeps a grip on the audience akin to the best horrors of the 1980s and early 1900s. While it might not be very innovative, it is still appealing from start to finish. Horror movies should not be judged too harshly if they end up in a position like that.

Film Review: Archive (2020)

 

If you start watching Archive and get that weird sense that the film reminds you of something, but you’re not quite sure what, don’t be confused. Its strongest suit definitely lies in its most peripheral elements, where the first-time director, Gavin Rothery, has loads of experience. Here, that sense of familiarity really lies. As a film set creator and graphic designer, Rothery worked on titles like Moon from 2009, and this rich experience shines through.

The main topics of Archive are eerily similar to those ideas as well, being that they talk of identity, grief, and the ability of machines and other artificial elements to integrate themselves into the most personal parts of our lives. Here, the main character is George, played well by Theo James, who is a robotics engineer and scientist, building a new humanoid model in a semi-deserter research station. As the plot is set in the near future, George is also keeping his deceased wife on the premises, here in the form of Archive, a mainframe-like device that stores the deceased person's consciousness for an additional 200 hours.

Soon, those final hours start to run out and so does the time that George has for his pretty obvious secret plan. But, movies like this rarely try to fully surprise their viewers and Archive is no different. Aside from the very familiar-looking script and the main twist that comes with no big surprise, the film also somewhat fumbles with its prolonged, drawn-out pacing and several dead ends. That places the film in the realm with titles like Ex Machina, but which simply do everything slightly better than Archive.

It all makes the movie ultimately feel forced and unnecessarily long, while it shines the best in montages of robotic visuals and mechanical sound that show an alien technological landscape. That space lies in the heart of the story but does not manage to compensate for its lacking elements. Thanks to that, Archive would have worked much better as a short film or even some kind of techno music video that leans into the strong sides of Rothery and avoids problems that the feature-length film ended up having.

Joy of Horses - Touching Tale of Growing Up and Overcoming Grief

Growing up is never easy, no matter where that process takes place or who it involves. But, sometimes, the life of a soon-to-be adult can become even more challenging, especially when that includes the loss of a loved one. Joy of Horses is a coming-of-age drama that deals with a story just like that and does it in a beautiful, emotional manner that will resonate with many. Here is how the film describes itself:

    After losing someone close, Joy's life is turned upside down. She seeks a fresh start and moves to a new state to live with her grandfather. In this unfamiliar place, she is forced to encounter new people and experiences, which is initially overwhelming. As she navigates her new life, Joy discovers a deep love and connection to horses, which brings her peace and joy. However, her journey takes a turn when she unexpectedly reunites with someone from her past. This reunion leads to a new challenge: finding herself in a complicated love triangle, again testing her resilience.

 

The connection that human beings and horses can establish has often been portrayed in art, but this film takes that approach and sets it in a very contemporary tale of a young person suddenly finding herself outside of her environment. But here, Joy is able to understand her life in a new perspective, but also, just as importantly, try to find a way to heal and overcome her terrible loss.

The film is perfectly shot, using most of the pastoral landscapes and the grace and beauty that horses bring. Through these, the shots in the film seem to radiate with light and unspoken hope. This fits ideally with the story and its main characters, showing, in a way, how all of them change and mature into adults, but also find meaningful connections through that process.

The film Joy of Horses is a must-watch for not only young people who might be struggling to find their bearing in life, but anyone ready for an honest and emotional tale of stepping into adulthood. If you'd like to watch the film, it is avalable on a range of online spots. That is why you can find and watch it right now on Roku, Tubi, Plex, Prime video, Amazon DVD, Fandango, Hoopla, and YouTube.