Top films of 2025

Tough cookie, lost count of how many films I've seen. Less than probably any year. Over 200, less than 300 ? More ? I started to put them on Letterboxed starting late October but still didn't catch up with the rest.

***

Top of the series is here and films from 2024 are again a problem, The Brutalist and The Substance should've make the 2025 list, as there still are some of 2025 which I haven't seen yet (Hamnet,-saw it,. did not like at all- Resurrection, Sound of Falling ?). Marty Supreme would make Top 5 but I've seen it in Januaray 2026. 

Top Ten  soundtracks here. 

Just caught up with Park Chan-Wook's No Other Choice that makes the list. It's limited in Romanian Cinemas now, so try to see it on the big screen, it's worthy.

Kinda disappointed with Romanian Cinema this year too. I liked Kontinental '25 and that's it. Could 've been also Jude's Dracula but he made it such an intentional mess and duration wise a whole calvary...

But disappointments of the year: the new Running Man by Edgar Wright. And the last Mission: Impossible. Hopefully...Oy...

Top 5 -alphabetically:

all that's clickable as links are my "reviews"

Eddington -Ari Aster

O agente secreto-Kleber Mendonça Filho

One Battle After Another -Paul Thomas Anderson

Sinners -Ryan Cooglar

Sirat -Oliver Laxe

new entry on Jan. 2th 2026:   No Other Choice

Marty Supreme -also in Jan. 2026

Almost Famous ;) -also alphabetically:

Ballad of a Small Player -Edward Berger

Bugonia -Yorgos Lanthimos

Caught Stealing -Darren Aronofsky

Father Mother Sister Brother -Jim Jarmusch

Frankenstein -Guillermo del Toro

In the Hand of Dante -Julian Schnabel 

Nouvelle Vague -Richard Linklater

Nuremberg -James Vanderbilt

The Materialist -Kelly Reichardt

The Phoenician Scheme-Wes Anderson

Tornado - John McLean

Train Dreams- Clint Bentley

Warfare -Alex Garland & Ray Mendoza

Nicolas Cage Award of the Year:  The Surfer  (d. by Lorcan Finnegan) 2024 !

Horror:

28 years Later-Danny Boyle 

Together -Michael Shanks

Weapons -Zach Cregger

Good Boy- Ben Leonberg

The Monkey-Osgood Perkins

Dangerous Animals -Sean Byrne

The Gorge -Scott Derrickson

The Long Walk -Francis Lawrence

The Substance -2024, Coralie Fargeat

Keeper -Osgood Perkins

Comedy:

even weaker as it is, still good fun !!!

This is Spinal Tap 2:  The End Continues by the late Rob Reiner....

Bunny -Ben Jacobsen 

an indie, punkish NY film in the best way, kinetic, quirky, funny, dark comedy, punkimprovised, irreverent. Cool punk songs too.

Documentary:

Soundtrack for a coup d'etat -2024-Johan Grimonprez

the doors -When You're Strange- - Tom DiCillo, from 2009 but remastered in Cinema limited

pink floyd at pompei -1972. Adrian Mabel, remastered in Cinema limited

Devo -2024, Chris Smith   -netflix

Sly Lives! (aka the Burden of Black Genius) 2025/ Questlove   -netflix

Catch-Up -Four Aces:

Pale Flower- Masashiro Shinoda-1964 

La Traque -1975 Serge Leroy

The Childhood of a Leader -2015 Brady Corbet

Finalmente l'alba - Saverio Costanzo -2023, on which I wrote: 

Rome and Cinecitta 1953. More like a drreamlike story, a false thriller, homage to Fellini and La Dolce Vita, Notti di Cabiria, and linked to a real muder cold case known as the Italian Black Dahlia. Interesting slow film, in the Venice Competition in 2023. Modern beat score, strange and eerie. Song Last Nite by The Stokes (2011) on the end credits. 

3 1/2 out of 5

Top series 2025

Saw a horrible amonut of series/tv series, some new, some renewed, some cancelled, some I quit...

Mayor of Kingstown s04 -4 -toughest yet, Lennie James, Richard Brake, Eddie Falco, Laura Benanti.

The Iris Affair -miniseries- 8 eps  big fsss. Tom Hollander good. 

The Last Frontier -should've quit  

got back to Slow Horses s2 1/2 -5 -Gary Oldman getting more and more Legend !

Down Cemetery Gates -loses steam after ep. 4

The White Lotus s03 - -best yet-Walton Goggins, Scott Glenn, Parker Posey. 

It: Welcome to Derry -quit 

Task  sez. 1 not much

Duster 1 sez. cancelled , was kinda fun

Subteran 1 sez. oy vey

Landman s. 1 ep.7-10 / sez 2 ep. 1-5 (in Top Series 2024, contd. in 2026)

The Lowdown 8 eps - Tulsa noir on the songs of J.J.Cale, Ethan Hawke as jouranlist Lee Raybon gets beaten up all the time. Created by Sterlin Harjo (Reservation Dogs). 

Pluribus s01 -Vince Gilligan is moving way to slow...

Peacemaker s02 -even better than season One. 

The Studio  1 season-10 eps., Seth Rodgen's satire is hit and miss but the episodes are short and Bryan Carnston as Griffin Mill is a blast !

Dept. Q  sez 1, 9 eps. (renewed) -the Sweedish series of thriller books  by Jussi Adler-Olsen get new (Scott Frank for Netflix)  and way too slow treatment with Matthew Goode as Carl Morck.  

The Last of Us -season 3. All gets weak after Pedro Pascal is no more. 

Monster The Ed Gein Story (sez 3 -8 eps) -see below

Walking Dead-New York -quit 

Alien: Earth s 1  -they did some good, and then they did some real bad. Continuing to mix the Weyland Yutanis with the Blad Runners, Prometheus, Timothy Olyphant's android Kirsch is a hoot !

Paradise season 1 (renewed) -cool idea of post apocalyptic city under a dome. 

Dope Thief  sez. 1  -Ridley Scott produced and directed the first episode. Based on a true story. 

Black Rabbit -miniseries 8 eps.  See review here. 

Your friends and Neighbours sez. 1. Jon Hamm steals. 

oh, and Moldova's Gangster and fiend, Plaha, 10 episode political thriller with Iulian Postelnicu as Plaha, written and directed by Igor Cobilianski

*****************

Revelation of the Year:

Monster The Ed Gein Story (Netflix). Ian Brennan writer, Max Wrinler director. 8 eps. miniseries.

Movies mix with the legacy of serial killers -from Psycho to Texas Chainsaw Massacre to Silence of the Lambs. Clever post-modern choices. Plus Ilsa Koch and the Nazis ! But a truly great performance form Charlie Hunnam. And Tom Hollander is Alfred Hitchcock. Even Mindhunter returns in ep. 8. Too much grand guignol as always but way way upper than the other 2 seasons (the 2nd I quit watching...)

Why is though Ed Gein made so sympathetic and a victim, "mother's boy" ? 

Top 5

Peacemaker s.2 -hbo max

Mayor of Kingstown s.4 -skyshowtime/paramount +

The Studio  -apple+

White Lotus s.3 -hbo max 

The Lowdown -fx / hulu 

RIP Udo Kier

Udo Kier died on November 23d in Palm Springs. He was 83. One of the greatest actors. Ever. Only through his mad glaze, blue piercing eyes, he dominated every screen and stole every scene he was in.

Takes me some time and pain to write about him. I knew him, met in different occasions 4 times over the years. Interviewed him with Andrei on the set of One Point O in Bucharest in 2003. We spent hours in a derelict block of flats, now demolished, in a smoked flat, under the lights, into the night. Uberhot, hot early summer night in Bucharest (8th of may as the picture says). Udo came for a film and stayed for one more, got a part in Andy Garcia's Modigliani. His hair was dyed blonde for the part. We got Polaroids with him, each, this is Andrei's here. 

Then he was invited in Cluj at TIFF in 2006 and we hang out with him, even to a second hand shop where he bought a glorious long leather coat. This is another pic from Andrei, from one night to never forget, in the Diesel club, in the cellar VIP room (ha, another place that does not exist anymore...)

Then year passed, I had Udo's US address and mail, we sent him a script of a film still not done today. Didn't pass us to his agent or anything. I don't have the same mail address so that got lost.

In 2015 I was a guest of Grossmann film Festival, and spent more time with Udo, also there. We even went to see an art exhibition together. 

Found another pic from Grossmann 2015, with my buddies, director Kritstjan Milic (Zivi i mrtvi) and Kapelmeister of the fest, Marko Mehtsun. 

And last time I saw him in Cannes, on Rue des Antibes, in 2019, as he was there with the cast of  Kleber Mendonça Filho's Bacurau, great film. We met on the street and had a chat.  The last part of Udo is in Filho's new film, The Secret Agent.  A beautiful heartfelt goodbye...

On the screen I saw him last in Hunters, season two where he played obviously on of his recurring characters, Adolf Hitler. Update: I just saw My Neighbor Adolf and liked it, Udo is at his best. 

Goodbye Udo, it was a pleasure and an honor to meet you...

The Bride (2026)

Movie or at least Curio of next year ?

The Bride, Maggie Gyllenhaal's second film after The Lost Daughter (2021) is a revisonist retelling of Bride of Frankenstein (1935, James Whale), with Jessie Buckley (Fargo sez, IV) as The Bride, Christian Bale as Frankenstein's Monster, and Jake Gyllenhaal, Penelope Cruz, Peter Sarsgaard, Annette Bening.

The Bride is a mix of Poor Things and Joker (Folie a deux), with elements of Public Enemies (Bale again..), Bonnie and Clyde and other goodies of the 30's era. 

Just fyi, there was another The Bride, starring Sting, Clancy Brown as the Monster aka Viktor and Jennifer Beals as "Eve", directed by Franc Roddam, in 1985.

Together (2025)

New entry in the Body horror genre, after the recent The Substance, this is the debut feature of writer/director Michael Shanks. Liked it more than the overrated Bring Her Back. For me the other interesting horror fodder this year include 28 Years Later and Weapons. 

Together is an ambitious little horror flick, with themes of love and obsession, about a couple that moves in a little village house, far from town, and a mysterious pit in the woods.

Dave Franco and Alison Brie are married in real life so the intimate scenes have more power, intensity and authenticity than with other actors.

Supporting is Aussie Damon Herriman (The Nightingale, OUATIH, The  Bikeriders), and when he's on screen you know something ain't right ;)

Shot in Australia in only 21 days. Debut at Sundance Film Fest in Jan. 2025. Was presented even in  Locarno film fest !

Powerful score by Cornel Wilczek. End song, Another One by Golden Suits (2016). 

The effects are good for their budget, some morph coming from The Thing and more recently Color out of Space.

7 out 10 ! 3 1/2 out of 5 !

Weapons (2025)

2.17.

From Zach Cregger,  the author of Barbarian comes one of the most interesting horror films of the year. 

Magnolia  (as mentioned as an influence by the director- I'll go with Robert Altman ;) meets Suspiria meets Village/ Children of the Damned. Maybe also some Twin Peaks ;)

Weapons is a gimmicky horror black comedy told in 6 chapters.

It starts with a rendition of George Harrison's 1970 song Beware of Darkness. 

The keyword is WITCH. 

loved the lettering of the title in the night sky.

Amy Madigan is a standout but the pic is an acting ensemble gem. My faved tho is Austin Abrams as James, a wink to characters like Silent Bob.

Cregger also co-wrote the music, atmospheric and effective, together with Ryan and Hays Holladay (who did also songs for Barbarian).

3 1/2 out of 5, 7 out of 10*

*for me the seventh chapter (left out) would've been a plus, I guess...(the back story of the witch)

LE: check comment below ;)

Blüesferatü revine la Castelul Bran – 28 iunie 2025, ora 21:30

Cine-concertul live Blüesferatü revine la Castelul Bran – 28 iunie 2025, ora 21:30

 

Nosferatu – Eine Symphonie des Grauens (1922), capodopera regizorului expresionist F.W. Murnau, este considerat unul dintre cele mai importante filme mute din istoria cinematografiei. Muzica originală a filmului s-a pierdut, iar de-a lungul timpului s-au realizat numeroase partituri alternative, făcând din Nosferatu un favorit al cine-concertelor din întreaga lume.

 

Dar niciodată nu s-a cântat blues pe el. Până acum.

 

Blüesferatü – eine Symphonie des Blues aduce în România o versiune live în care imaginea iconică a lui Nosferatu este acompaniată de o coloană sonoră originală, compusă și interpretată live de șase muzicieni brașoveni, într-o cheie blues psihedelic, intensă și cinematică.

După premiera mondială din 2023 și reprezentațiile din 2024 în cadrul Transilvania Blues Festival Brașov, Buzău International Arts Festival și TIFF Timișoara, proiectul revine în 2025, pe 28 iunie 2025, ora 21:30, într-o nouă punere în scenă, în grădina Castelului Bran.

 

Muzica originală este compusă și interpretată live de muzicieni brașoveni: Ionuț Constantin „Yokko” – compozitor, dirijor; Robert Watzatka „Watzzy” – compozitor, chitară; Ilyes Botond „Boti” – chitară; Mihai Nedea – clape; Ciprian Pârvu – bas; Claudiu Rusu „Kani” – tobe. Muzicienii vor cânta live în fața ecranului pe toată durata filmului - 95 de minute!

 

Un eveniment rar, aflat la granița dintre muzică, film și performance, sub clar de lună, în inima Transilvaniei.

 

Un proiect produs de Alin Ludu Dumbravă și Vlad Popescu pentru Asociația Transilvania Arts & Events.

 

 Bilete: iabilet.ro

110 RON în presale | 130 RON la intrare

 Eveniment Facebook: Blüesferatü – Live at Bran Castle

 

Un proiect produs de Alin Ludu Dumbravă și Vlad Popescu pentru Asociația Transilvania Arts & Events finanțat de Consiliul Județean Brașov, cu sprijinul Castelului Bran, recomandat de Rock FM și Zile și Nopți.

Sponsori: BCR, Butan Gas

Parteneri culinari: Stoker Wines

Dead Letter (2024)

Dead Letter in ingles means a lost letter, without good address on it, etc, that gets returned to the sender or gets back to the post office (see here). 

Dead Letter is also a small, one-of-a-kind curio film, thriller and horror but also experimental, in story form and execution, but mostly on score and sound design. First act is the best, as you don't really understand what is happening. Then you're set back in act 2. Also it's presented in grainy resolution, as it's a documented thing. 

Distyributed by SHRUDDER, this indie gem opened at  South by Southwest Film Festival last March, toured all the genre festivals for the past year. Written and directed by Joe DeBoer & Kyle McConaghy (BAB), starring cult actor John Flack, Dead Mail is a story about a synthesizer sound, a keyboard maudit, a kidnapping gone wrong, all happening in the mid 80's small American town. 

The score uses synth sounds and recordings of famous classical pieces, Henry Purcell, JS Bach, with the sound of Moog, Isao Tomita, JMJ, Vangelis, Keith Emerson and other maitres emerits du clavier modern ;)

3 1/2 out of 5, 7 out of 10 !

Mimì - Il principe delle tenebre (2023)

Mimì - Il principe delle tenebre / Mimi-Prince of Darkness is the debut feature film of Brando De Sica (Italian film Royalty, son of Christian-De Sica and nephew of il grande Vittorio), which was shown in the competition of Dracula film Fest last October in Brasov, Romania. It also won in Sitges. The premiere was in the Locarno film fest in the summer of 2023. Other awards followed.

It's a very spcial film, in the vein of  George A. Romeo's Martin, Nick Cage's Vampire Kiss,  a bit of Les Morsures de l'aube, a bit of  Låt den rätte komma in, etc. The genre he proposes is self-titled Napoletano Gomhorror neomelodico. A very specific Napoletan (including lots of pizza) film, very stylish with nods to the vampire genre, Nosferatu F. W. Murnau film, Hammer pics, giallos.

It's a combo of comedy, drama, doomed teenage love story and  coming-of-age horror. The protagonist Mimi is a misfit with a  handicaped foot, a (Tim) Burtonesque character,  coming straight from Tod Browning's Freaks box (here a Pizza box ;) mixed with Italian realism and mostly surrealism. And pizza ;) 

Great sound design by the director himself. And score (by Pasquale Catalano) and soundtrack (songs from Fabrizio de Andre to Four Tops, Halloween House, etc) . Reminded me a bit of the feel of the new horror wave by Tilman Singer, Cuckoo, from last year fodder.

It streams now on MAX worldwide. Also in Romania. 

4 out of 5, 8 out of 10 !!!

The Monkey (2025)

I said/wrote before that Osgood Perkins' films are creepy, the atmosphere there is hard to breathe, tense, uncanny. There is something unpleasant about them. Longlegs tho was overrated, it came to me sold as the horror of the decade, century, millennium, etc. While it's not the case the film is ok, a superior thriller, veeery creepy and Nicolas Cage performance of the year 2024. Also being highly successful Perkins was asked to do The Monkey, a long belated project, adaptation of an old short story by  Stephen King, published in the anthology Skeleton Crew (1985) . The Monkey was first in print in the November 1980 issue of Gallery magazine. Then, revised and updated, in 1985's Skeleton Crew (story # 3). Inspired by the old classic The Moneky Paw by W. W. Jacobs., but with more twists and shouts.

King's original Monkey played the cymbals as the toy monkeys do. However due to Disney's copyright of the Monkey cymbal playing (from Toy Story 3), the Monkey plays now the drums !!! It's called the -Organ Grinder Monkey, "lifelike", there is no grinder and no organ, actually organs get grinded :)

King's original story was a simple one, and not a real funny one. Osgood (who also has a cameo in the film as Uncle Chip :), changed most of it, the scope, the deaths, the atmosphere, the characters and the vibe, giving it a most dark humor side, the forte of the film starring Theo James (The Gentlemen series) in a dual role, the twin brothers. The duration is pretty cool too (a tight 98 minutes), and so are the references, from King's novels (The Shining, Misery), to the Maine location (also Kings') and the Psycho (motel, stuffed birds, creepiness) and even Vertigo. The ending rises the value of the film at least a Notch. Osgood kinda exorcises himself on this one, big time ("and there was a pale horse whose named..."). Read his bio and see what I mean here. 

Results, a great little film that I hope will not be transformed into a lame franchise-James Wan produced the film through his Atomic Monster banner, surely there will be more drums to bang. 

7 out of 10 / 3 1/2 out of 5 !

The Gorge (2025)

Would've been nice to see The Gorge on the big screen, but it's streaming fodder (Apple+).

The leads are charismatic, Milles Teller (Whiplash) and Anya Taylor-Joy (Furiosa) and they have chemistry, which helps a lot. It's also a loves troy, between two isolated snipers, one burned-out American (Teller), one Lithuanian (Joy) on watch on towers on both sides of a mysterious isolated Gorge.

The story remined me of many films, The Mist, the combo of WW2 films of action and horror with experiments gone wrong (The Bunker, Outpost, Frankenstein's Army, Overlord, Biatlov Pass, etc).

Plus the riff on the corporate evil (Resident Evil;), Sigourney Weaver in an office with the Baku Flame Towers on her back ;) 

Scott Derrickson's (Sinister, Doctor Strange) direction here is good, but I guess it's the story and screenplay that rised the bar (written by Zach Dean). Location helps, gorgeous mountain scenery (in Norway, Wales and Durham County in UK).

Score by Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross, and good songs onto it. Rockin', grooves-The  Watchtower by Devlin & Ed Sheeran, Twisted Sister, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, The Ramones, The Dead Weather.

afterthoughts, "The Hollow men" and the other creatures in the gorge inspired by Polish surrealist painter Zdzislaw Beksinski. Which art is most fascinating and I suggest you dig further in.

The Substance (2024)

Coraline Fargeat's second feature The Substance (after her thriller Revenge in 2017), won best screenplay in last year's Cannes Film Festival. Should've won best actress for Demi Moore but they gave that for ensemble to Emilia Perez. No comments. But now Demi has won the Golden Globe, will be nominated for an Oscar and I hope she wins, she deserves that totally and More than that.

Note on Jan. 23d: Nominated for 5 Oscars, Coraline Fargeat for Directing and original screenplay, Demi Moore for best actress, make up and hair stilling and Best Picture ! My predictions,  Demi and maybe best screenplay !

Also Margaret Qualley is great in it (and stunning). You've seen her in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, Lanthimos' Poor Things, Kinds of Kindness and Drive-Away Dolls. Her future is Bright !

Dennis Quaid plays cartoonlike a caricature of a manager, Ray Liotta was supposed to play this part but he died before the film production. I think Quaid is better, 'cos he played a lot of straight characters, while Liotta was lampooning himself in a lot of his films.

Fargeat's film I found more digerable than Julia Ducournau's exploits, Grave /Raw and Titane, which are overdone and overbearing. Keep in mind, if a male director would've done this film in 2024, no festival would've touch it and he would've been "luggered" (or lapidated).  Anyway, I don't think a man could've done the same kind of approach and message, it's a woman's film about women's condition in the showbiz industry, and not only, about aging and about the compromises you make in order to be noticed. It's a very superficial world and it fades out quickly, but the subject is treated with acidity, irony and black humor. And great body horror gore practical effects. The whole thing could've been summarized in the opening and closing of the film, with the story star on the Hollywood Boulevard (a great short imo). 

The music is by British artist Raffertie (Benjamin but it's more like a sound design, pounding and very effective. Can't be listened separately tho. 

See it in a cinema, for the sound design,  set design, bright costumes (that yellow coat, that pink bodysuit), the cinematography (by Benjamin Kracun)  and the visceral effect. 

Also warning, not for the faint at/of heart, and sensible stomachs !!!

There are many posters for the film, all good, from the B&W to this kaleidoscope puzzle. 

References galore: from Lynch's LA (shot in Cannes and Antibes no less), to David Cronenberg (The Fly is quoted tooth and nail ;), Brian De Palma (Carrie's blood shower),  Kubrick's The Shining, The Elephant Man, Frankenheimer's Seconds, All about Eve, Sunset Blvd., even Zemeckis' Death Becomes Her. 

As Demi Moore described the film: " a blend of Oscar Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray, Death Becomes Her (1992), and a Jane Fonda workout video."

A great and extended making of from Mubi (the worldwide distributor of the film buying it Cannes cos the original backer, Working Title, a division of Universal backed away ):

Update-24 feb. Demi Moore wins SAG award, The "Actor", which is the best barometer for the acting Oscars !

Luz (2018)

Luz is teuton's Tilman Singer's debut, which I wanted to see after Cuckoo,  also on my Top (horror) films of 2024.

It is weird and uneven, and short (70 mins.)

But nevertheless fascinating.

with a score of Simon Wascow, reminiscent of the best early Tangerine Dream scores, a brilliant sound design and a dream logic of its own.

Lots of awards and festivals in the Fantastic arena.

Top films 2024

(wherever is a link I wrote about 'em), 

still have to see The Brutalist and some more to come. 

The top in Romanian about films in cinemas in 2024 here 

 the series of 2024 here. 

and my Top films of 2023 here. 

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# 1 across the aldmovieland: Furiosa (A Mad Max Saga)

then:

Anora- also the comedy of the year

From 2023 as seen in 2024: 

poor things
the zone of interest
bastarden
perfect days

io capitano 

The Master & Margarita

Vincent doit mourir !

Les Chambres Rouges

La Chimera

Only the River Flows

Die Theorie von Allem 

animation:
Flow

muzical:
joker folie a deux

moments of Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice

horror:
MadS
Cuckoo
Maxxine

Oddity

Sting

Never Let Go

& Late Night with the Devil (but from 2023) 

Thriller:

love lies bleeding
the order

Blink Twice 

American Star 

Strange Darling (production year 2023)

LaRoy, Texas (2023 also)

& more:

Civil War  

The Apprentice -best performance of 2024, Sebastian Stan (not the one from a Different Man, kind of Elephant man 2024)

The Bikeriders -flawed but still...

action but with a soul and a message (maybe too much even) but cool: Monkey Man (on that budget chapeau bas Dev Patel !!!)

Guilty pleasure film of the year: John Woo's own remake of THE KILLER

Nicolas Cage Award of the Year: Longlegs (not seen The Surfer yet)

Bonus: a grand barf for the grand guignol of The Substance (will see it again in theaters soon and conclude)-Later Edit, yep, much better, I swallowed the last 1/2 hr. ok)

Romanian film of the year:

Anul nou care nu a fost / The New Year that never Was

Documentary: 

Nasty

Mrs. Buica (from 2023, but saw in 2024)

Alice On & Off / Isabela Tent

Disappointment of the year: Megalopolis :(

Worst film of the year/cash-in: Gladiator II (again, Ridley Scott :( after Napoleon in 2023, and so on...)

 

Nosferatu (2024)

 No to the new  nosferatu

now, this comes to close to home as we had the Bluesferatu project already in the third year now !

so I was expecting more, not more length (an overlong bloated 2h12), the original Nosferatu is 95 min, out of which intertitles  and Eggers' is more Dracula than S-feratu. Says on the end credits, the film is based both on Henrik Galeen's 1922 script and on Bram Stoker's novel (1897). 

Note on Jan. 23d, Nosferatu is nominated for 4 Oscars, Costume design, make up and hair stilling, cinematography and production design. 

"years later" and generous budgets spent, here we go...Germany 1838. 

Lilly Rose Depp is nympho Ellen (a somnambul), Nicholas Hoult is the victimised Thomas Hutter, Bill Skarsgård (or should I say his shadow?) is Count Orlok, Willem Dafoe is the mad professor alchemist, Simon Mc Burney is Knock (this tale's Renfield), Ralph Iverson is the other doctor, Emma Corrin, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, are useless new characters, also from Stoker's Dracula and Coppola's film (plus two wasted girls that should've bite in the end).

All Romania settings , the gypsy's, the monastery, The Hundedoara Castle (looks like the one from Van Helsing, why shoot exteriors there?), the language, I couldn't care less. Shot in Czech Rep. , the interior castle is exactly the one from the original Nosferatu), on a lavish budget (50 mill. $) , with beautiful costumes, shadows, exquisite snow and desaturated colors.

The cinematography, by attired Eggers collaborator on all his films, Jarin Blaschke, is the major plus of the film. 

I didn't like the Nosferatu look at all, a Hungarian Husssar, a Moustache (yes, Vlad the Impaler had it..), the whole decrepit, pandemic look, reminded me of Pampon  (Victor Rebengiuc) in the Caragiale adpatation, De ce trag clopotele, Mitica?/Carnival scenes (1981).  And the whole schock extreme close-ups, cuts, sound effects, double tracks, way overdone. And let's not even start arguing about that prosthetic penis, It got me in a real whirlwind argument about if vampires can have sex the regular way...imo NO !

Eggers says he's inspired by Zualwski's Devil, Bergman's Cries and Whispers, Paradjanov and other rusky obsurish cults, but I see more a rehash of Herzog's Nosferatu and Coppola's Dracula. And Rose a far cry from her imatotaion of Adjani in Posession. 

Also, I did not like the music (by Robin Carolan, his second film for Eggers after The Northman), reminiscent of Wojchiek Kilar's Dracula, but without that panache. 

XXX

and an interview on videoclub konbini with Roger Eggers here, about his influences and favorite films. 

you can see & read the Nosferatu script here.

No

a

and 

MadS (2024)

MadS is the horror genre surprise of the year and might as well be the horror film of the year !

There is a bit of Gaspar Noe's Climax in David Moreau's one-take, shot in real time (by Philip Lozano, a veteran cameraman and cinematographer of velocity as in The transporter, Banlieu 13, check here his nnarative of MadS) crazy (Mad!) feature, that had a very tiny time also on Romanian screens (under the title Noapte de cosmar). 

David Moreau shot his 1st film, ILS /Them (2006), in Romania, a gimmicky  thriller, then did a remake of Korean The Eye, an apocalypse thriller (Seuls) and a film about a lion cub (King). This is a zombie apocalypse drugged techno fueled Trip that doesn't stop for 1hr28. Kind of a very bad bad trip....The actress that plays Anais (Laurie Pavy) is really overdoing it, living the scenes like raving insane, well, MadS. Great sound and pulsating score. Shudder is streaming it.

An interview with Moreau about how they shot it. "Victoria with zombies". Someone wrote,"Romero's Run Lola Run"./ And some More ;)

Nominated for best film in Sitges 2024.

**** out of 5, 8 out of 10 !!!

Rip Tony Todd

The original "Candyman", Tony Todd was 69. He died on November 6th 2024. I thought he was younger... Although he was in hundreds of films Tony Todd will remain forever The Candyman (Clive Barker's iconic horror character directed by Bernard Rose in 1992), that spawned two sequels and a remake in 2011. Last time I saw him this year when I re-saw Dennis Hopper's Color, wher he had a bit part as a Vietnam Vet (1988). He played militaries also in Platoon and The Rock.

Never Let Go (2024)

Never Let Go (2024):  I'm quite puzzled by the ratings, they're like for a mediocre film/ or were people's expectations too high ? It seems that is a "way too much thinking and speculation" film, that's why it flopped.

Halle Berry was before in horror in Gothika (a bad thriller, d. by Mathieu Kassovitz, 2003), this is the second time she works with a French director.

Alexandre Aja is a very stylish horrormeister, he shot two films in Romania, Haute Tension and Mirrors, then he made it to the big league in the US with creepy remke to The Hills Have Eyes, the fun fun Piranha 3D remake, the crocodile fare Crawl, the weird one Horns, He is the son of director Alexandre Arcady. His last film before NLG, Oxygene, shot during the pandemic, went on to stream on Netflix.

NLG is also a gimmicky film, sure you got that, and I'm not gonna spoil anything here but the gimmick it's in the style of mr. Twist and Shout M. Night Shayamalan, (The Village, Knock on Cabin), just that the drama and it's subtler and darker.  The writers, Ryan Grassby and KC Coughlin wrote  The King's Tide, which is still on my "to see" list. The film was then titled "Mother Land". Woud've loved that title much more.

A big plus of NLG is the superb acting of Halle Berry (again taking on a risquee part, it's her film after all, she produced it too) and the two kids, Samuel (Anthony B. Jenkins) and Nolan (Percy Daggs IV). There is a twist on the Abel and Cain story here too. And on Hansel & Gretel, for all that matters. References to Grimm and Anderson's dark fairy tales are on the screen for you to see. And judge. 

Opening credits roll a la The Shining, the music score by ROB is dense and thrilling (his third score for Aja after Horns and Oxygene) and you'll never hear "The Big Rock Candy Mountain" (the 1928 bluesy song by Harry McClintock, that was also in O Brother Where Art Tho ?), again the same way. 

Aja's old collaborators are there, Maxime Alexandre as DOP  (in widescreen 2.11.1 by Alexa digital), and Gregory Levasseur (his buddy screenwriter), now as the director of the Second Unit. NLG was shot in British Columbia, in the wilderness of the woods.

And the dog, Koda (Brass), is worth a Palme Dog ;)

To be seen in a theater (the soundscape is fantastic and the photography it's just beautiful).

7 out of 10 / 3 1/2 out of 5 

Vincent doit mourir (2023)

 Try to catch Vincent doit mourir / Vincent must Die/ Sa moara Vincent ! (2023) in Romanian theaters. It runs now a very limited release.

It's a one-of-a-kind film you have not seen before.

Stephan Kastang's feature film debut, from Cannes in la Semaine de la Critique, to the genre fests, with awards in Sitges, Fantasia and Neucahtel.

It's funny 'til it hurts and the main character is so hurt literally, you feel hurt too. It's also crazy, absurd (it starts like a Kafka story  / surrealism fable/ Boris Vian novel)  and somehow in all this fantastic, it's getting real. It can happen, too....

Cuckoo (2024)

Cuckoo is really Cuckoo

an UFO of a movie

psychotronic

psychedelic

weird horror thriller coming-of-age in the vein of Argento's Phenomena IMO, also because of the scenic Alps location and the ornithologic element (there it was bees). Also because it's Shot on film, 35 mm and in Anamorphic 2.35.1.

also Deutsch.

great soundtrack, ecclectic, by Simon Wascow (can be heard here).

forget Longlegs, this is different but Better, on top of the Horror films this year, along with MadS, Maxxine, Oddity & Late Night with the Devil (which is 2023 actually but I saw it this spring). Soft spot for Sting. 

It's Tilman Singer's second feature after LUZ (2018), which I plan to see now NA-saw and wrote about it on Jan.14 2025). 

At the beginning the cast of Cuckoo was different. Comes from Neon in US. Premiered at the Berlinale 2024. It won Silver Raven in BIFFF. Toured all the genre festivals.

definitly has a Cult-ish flavour. Also the plot is, did I say, cuckoo? ;)