Talk To Me

Horror

Available on VOD: 16 november 2023

Director: Danny Philippou, Michael Philippou

Cast: Sophie Wilde, Joe Bird, Alexandra Jensen, Miranda Otto (Lord of the Rings, War of the Worlds)

When a group of friends discover how to conjure spirits using an embalmed hand, they become hooked on the new thrill, until one of them goes too far and opens the door to the spirit world forcing them to choose who to trust: the dead or the living.

• 95% FRESH op Rotten Tomatoes!
• RTL Boulevard / Tim Oliehoek: Beste horrorfilm van 2023. Bekijk het item hier.
• Telegraaf.nl: Talk to Me is een film die de luide buzz, die begon op het Festival van Sundance, weet waar te maken. Een beklemmende, effectieve en onvergelijkbare aanwinst in een genre dat de afgelopen jaren te weinig nieuwe impulsen kende. Lees de hele review en een interview met de regisseurs hier.
• AD.nl: Wurgende horrorhit Talk to me is de Evil dead voor de TikTok-generatie (****). Lees de hele review hier.
• Volkskrant.nl: Een zowel beklemmende als gruwelijke horrorfilm over de wurggreep van rouw. De hellevaart van regisseurs Danny en Michael Philippou kent geen enkel taboe of creatieve rem (****). Lees de hele review hier.
• NPO3.nl: Wanneer je over een nieuwe horrorfilm hoort dat hij de engste of beste van het jaar is, denk je inmiddels: yeah right, zal wel. Maar het debuut Talk to Me van de Australische YouTubers Danny en Michael Philippou is écht heel tof en écht creepy. Lees de hele review hier.
• DeCorrespondent.nl: Talk to Me kan zo in het lijstje van horrorfilms die het genre de afgelopen jaren nieuw leven hebben ingeblazen, samen met andere aanraders Nope, Smile en Pearl. Lees de hele review hier.
• Filmkrant: Een uiterst efficiënte schrikmachine, die een slimme moderne twist geeft aan het aloude genre van possession-horror en waar de lol van het maken aan alle kanten vanaf spat. Lees de hele review hier.
• VPROGids.nl: Australische horrorhit Talk to Me grijpt je bij de keel (****). Lees de hele review hier.
• Gids.tv: Talk to Me heeft naargeestige humor met zeer gruwelijke (schrik)momenten en een ijzersterke twist die vrijwel nog nooit vertoond is. Kortom: we kunnen wel stellen dat deze productie nu al dé moderne horrorklassieker van onze tijd is. Vier en halve ster. Lees de hele review hier.
• PU.nl: Horrorfanaat Rogina durft echter nu al met zekerheid te zeggen dat Talk To Me de beste horrorfilm van dit jaar is. Lees de hele review hier.
• SchokkendNieuws.nl: De Philippou’s halen de hele cinematische trukendoos leeg om de spanning aan te houden. Dus roep wat vrienden bij elkaar en ga naar de bios, Lees de hele review hier.

No Way Up

Thriller

Available on VOD: 12 augustus 2024

Director: Claudio Fäh

Cast: Sophie McIntosh, Will Attenborough (Dunkirk), Colm Meaney (Law Abiding Citizen, Seberg), Phyllis Logan (Downton Abbey)

Ava is hoping for a peaceful getaway with friends in the resort town of Cabo, Mexico. But when the plane crashes in the Pacific Ocean and comes to rest on the edge of an underwater ravine, Ava and a handful of survivors are trapped in the airlocked cabin. Against the odds, Ava must fend for herself, contend with bloodthirsty sharks, and find the courage to step up and lead the crash survivors to safety.

• Filmschoolrejects.com: You’re likely to be pleasantly surprised by its personality, thrills, and resourcefulness.
• Fangirlish.com: This is peak cinema that didn’t take itself too seriously and opened the doorway for sequels.
• Culturess.com: What appealed to me in the movie was the strong dynamic between three compelling female characters. Another highlight is the plane accident itself.
• Aisleseat.com: You’ll be entertained by all the unapologetic mayhem in No Way Up. It is what it is – a cheerfully implausible thrill ride.
• Times-herald.com: A silly night out at the movies, it will be unnerving and even frightening in places.
• Blu-ray.com: Capable of raising hell, especially in such a claustrophobic setting.

Sunray: Fallen Soldier

Action

Available on VOD: 25 november 2024

Director: James Clarke, Daniel Shepherd

Cast: Tip Cullen, Tom Leigh, Luke Solomon, Steven Blades (One More Shot)

After dedicating his entire life to service in the armed forces Andy now struggles to slot back into a world he no longer recognises. Now forced to confront the death of his daughter following a fatal encounter with drugs he becomes hell-bent on finding those responsible. With nothing to lose, a violent criminal underworld unravels in his wake. Set against a backdrop of realistic, fast-paced action, guided by high-quality military drills; and created by UK Armed Forces veterans. Sunray challenges the perceptions of mental health and the struggles that soldiers face when re-integrating back into civilian life.

Dominique

Action

Available on VOD: 5 december 2024

Director: Michael S. Ojeda

Cast: Oksana Orlan (The Russian Bride), Maurice Compte (Narcos), Ski Carr (Debt Collectors), Chase Coleman

Dominique, a well-trained assassin, flees from her troubled past in an attempt to begin a new life in South America. However, she soon finds herself in a town plagued with violence and corruption. Facing brutal attacks from the police and mafia, Dominique must decide whether to protect herself or an innocent family that has taken her in.

The Demon Disorder

Horror

Available on VOD: 12 december 2024

Director: Steven Boyle

Cast: Charles Cottier (Home and Away), Dirk Hunter, John Noble (Conjuring 3, Devil Made Me Do It), Amy Ingram

Graham lives alone in his garage workshop and hides from the world. It has been this way since the death of his father and the estrangement from his two brothers. Then one day, his brother calls, he believes that their younger brother is possessed by their deceased father. How do you defeat a  presence that wants revenge on the sons that murdered him?

• Maddwolf.com: he chemistry among the brothers feels strained but authentic, and their performances go a long way toward elevating the story. Impressive practical effects.
• Screenzealots.com: Excellent performances, strong production values, and an evocative sense of place.
• Morbidlybeautiful.com: A visceral ride that serves up a grotesque feast of jaw-dropping practical effects and emotional depth.
• Fictionmachine.com: Vivid and bloody physical effects in the mode of early Cronenberg and Raimi. A rock-solid, hugely entertaining genre piece.
• Assignmentx.com: It mixes Cronenbergian levels of body horror with family drama that has elements of both tragedy and dark humor.
• Caseymoviemania.com: Boyle manages to sustain some claustrophobic tension and a sense of menacing, yet visceral dread with the help of Terry King’s atmospheric cinematography and Peter Spierig’s ominous score.
• Dreadcentral.com: Steven Boyle’s directorial debut features masterfully grotesque effects and a strong emotional core.
• Voicesfromthebalcony.com: A grotesque mix of the demonic and body horror straight out of one of David Cronenberg’s early films. 

Armor

Action

Available on VOD: 9 januari 2025

Director: Justin Routt

Cast: Sylvester Stallone (Expendables, Rambo, Creed), Josh Wiggins (Greyhound), Jason Patric (In the Valley of Elah, Narc, The Prince), Dash Mihok (Silver Linings Playbook, Ray Donovan)

Armored truck security guard James Brody is working with his son Casey transporting millions of dollars between banks when a team of thieves led by Rook orchestrate a takeover of their truck to seize the riches. Following a violent car chase, Rook soon has the armored truck surrounded and James and Casey find themselves cornered onto a decrepit bridge. As the truck dangles off the bridge, at risk of plunging into the water below, James and the fate of the stolen fortune  hang in the balance. With limited time before Rook and the assailants break in, James will push his skills to the ultimate limit to protect his son’s life above his own.

LaRoy, Texas

Comedy, Thriller

Available on VOD: 16 januari 2025

Director: Shane Atkinson

Cast: Steve Zahn (War for the Planet of the Apes), Dylan Baker (Hunters, Trick 'r Treat), John Magaro (The Big Short, Past Lives)

When Ray discovers his wife is cheating on him, he decides to kill himself. He buys a gun, drives to a seedy motel, and is about to do the deed—but before he can pull the trigger, he gets mistaken for a low-rent hired killer. Desperate for a little respect, and with nothing else to live for, Ray decides to take the job and soon wishes he had just killed himself.

100% Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes, read the 43 (!) reviews here.

Terrifier 3

Horror

Available on VOD: 23 januari 2025

Director: Damien Leone

Cast: David Howard Thornton, Lauren LaVera (Iron Fist, Terrifier 2), Daniel Roebuck (Getting Grace, The Fugitive)

Soon in cinemas. Art the Clown is set to unleash chaos on the unsuspecting residents of Miles County as they peacefully drift off to sleep on Christmas Eve.

• VPRO Gids:  Knap gemaakte ‘ouderwetse’ exploitatie-splatter in een fris jasje (****). Lees het hele artikel hier.
• Nytimes.com: Nobody is pushing horror boundaries quite like the writer-director Damien Leone.
• Thewrap.com: Improves on previous entries while spurting out the blood and guts in increasingly elaborate fashions that will have Art lovers laughing and screaming.
• TheGuardian.com: The number of horror films that promise to sicken your soul and shrivel your stomach is enormous, but the proportion that actually do so, particularly for veteran horror-watchers, is small. I’m pleased to report that Terrifier 3 is genuinely gruesome.
• MovieFreak.com: I feel pummeled to the point I can barely breathe, and my entire body has an icky sensation of being covered in such overwhelming filth I wonder if I’ll be able to clean the muck off of me.
• Indiewire.com: Terrifier 3 is decking the halls with a triumphant celebration that’s horrifying for all the right reasons and snaps into focus what it is that Leone does singularly well.
• Slantmagazine.com:Mini-masterpieces of cinematic ultraviolence.
• TheNerdShepherd.com: Een waar walhalla van blood, guts and gore! Lees de recensie hier.