31 Days Of Horror: Day 26 ‘The Suckling aka Sewage Baby’ (1990)
Written and Directed by: Francis Teri

By
Ronny Sharpes
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Heads up, trigger warning. This film deals with the touchy subject of back alley abortion albeit in an extremely tongue-in-cheek manner. I do not advocate for or against in any way.

With that being said, you’ve been warned.

Synopsis: A pregnant woman reluctantly goes to an illegal abortion clinic, which coincidentally doubles as a brothel, only to have her aborted mutated fetus attack everyone at the clinic.

There really isn’t much more to the story other than that brief synopsis. A young man and a recently pregnant girl head to the seediest of neighborhoods for a back alley abortion. After being directed to the back of the house to wait for their turn with Big Mama herself, they realize this place is a little more of a “full service” establishment. The girl becomes hesitant but at the urging of her boyfriend heads into the back room to talk with Big Mama. Words are exchanged and a sketchy drink is drunk. Next thing you know, a woman named Bertha is flushing a fetus down a toilet. Said fetus lands in an area of the sewer where some toxic waste is conveniently seeping, gradually transforming it into a monster who encases the house in some kind of organic bubble trapping everyone inside. Chaos ensues and people are dispatched in creatively insane ways.

This flick is Francis Teri’s one and only venture into writing and directing but they have dabbled in a little producing beyond this. This movie has Troma influence all over it but I was unable to find any connection to Kaufman (then again, I didn’t really dig all that deep). The acting was amateurish and the practical effects were very much in the style of Toxic Avenger but that doesn’t mean I didn’t enjoy it to a degree. The creature’s final form is actually kind of impressive. The premise is insane and the entire thing doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. Not to mention the fact that it deals with material that is extremely divisive in this day and age. Movies like this are a time capsule that need to be viewed in a manner that doesn’t take them seriously. Now with that out of the way, it was a horror movie with a campy comedic undertone. It’s good in a kind of terrible way. I didn’t love it but I also didn’t hate it.

If you’re a fan of Troma-type fare like me, then this would be right up your alley. As of this writing, The Suckling is streaming on Tubi.

Join me again tomorrow and we’ll continue this strange little journey down the horror rabbit hole.

Review: ‘Suitable Flesh’
Joe Lynch Brings Eroticism And Campiness To Lovecraftian Horror

By
Ronny Sharpes
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H.P. Lovecraft’s writing has been adapted by many throughout the years but the one that stands out is Stuart Gordon. With films like From Beyond and Re-Animator he was able to take the hellish landscapes of Lovecraftian lore and give them a playful edge, opening it up to a wider audience. Director Joe Lynch (Mayhem) looks to continue with that spirit taking his adaptation of the H.P. Lovecraft 1933 short story The Thing on the Doorstep and giving it a touch of eroticism and camp.

Suitable Flesh tells the story of psychiatrist Dr. Elizabeth Derby (Heather Graham) as she encounters an attractive and mysterious new patient played by Judah Lewis (The Babysitter), claiming that someone is attempting to steal his body. Initially chalking it up to multiple personality disorder she becomes obsessed with the young man. After making a string of bad decisions that threaten to end her marriage, she ends up entangled in a battle with a body-snatching entity hellbent on taking her over too.

Heather Graham, Barbara Crampton and Bruce Davison all delivered exceptional performances but the surprise for me was Judah Lewis. Still a relative newcomer in the genre, this was a big change from the roles he had in Summer of ‘84 and The Babysitter series of films. I was actually pretty impressed with his ability to shapeshift with ease, embodying the essence of multiple characters as well as multiple genders without relying on the stereotypical cliches you often see.

Suitable Flesh is one of those films that’s not going to be everyone’s cup of tea but it will have its audience. Fans of Stuart Gordon will appreciate Joe Lynch’s nostalgic approach to Lovecraft, injecting a little absurdity and sex appeal into the ancient cosmic horrors. This film felt like Lynch’s homage to Stuart Gordon in a way. Taking a somewhat monotonous science fiction story and breathing some life into it. This retelling had the campiness of a Creepshow episode mixed with the sexiness of Cinemax After Dark. It’s a combination most won’t fully understand but at its heart, this was ultimately a horror film that genre fans will enjoy. It’s a throwback type of film with practical effects, a handful of gore, and unique camera angles/transitions that just ooze sexiness. It’s an adaptation made with love that harkens back to the trashy horror of the 80’s and I loved every minute of it!

Suitable Flesh is available now in theaters and VOD.

Middleburg Review: ‘May December’
Julianne Moore And Natalie Portman Square Off In This Uncomfortable Psychological Drama

By
Cortland Jacoby
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In legendary director Todd Haynes May December, Julianne Moore and Charles Melton are very much in love. Or at least that’s what they want the outside world to think. When we first meet their characters, they are preparing for a barbecue. Moore’s Gracie is lamenting about the possibility of running out of hot dogs even though Joe has bought more than enough.

Gracie’s anxiety stems from the arrival of Elizabeth Berry, a famous actress who is stuck on a broadcast procedural. She thinks her first big serious project could be the film adaptation of Gracie and Joe’s story. Over twenty years before the couple was involved in a tabloid scandal after the two entered an inappropriate relationship the summer before Joe’s eighth-grade year.

Elizabeth is there to observe the couple and their family, their youngest, a set of twins, about to graduate. It becomes clear very early on that Elizabeth is just as twisted and manipulative as Gracie. She flirts with the male students in one of the twin’s drama classes. She makes passes at Joe. It’s apparent that their story is just a rung on her career ladder and it makes you root for this relationship that you know you shouldn’t.

This contradiction is at the heart of Samy Burch’s script. She peppers in realistic dialogue that when delivered with precision by Portman and Moore feels creepily realistic. Some viewers will find similarities between Gracie and Joe’s story with Mary Kay Letourneau scandal that dominated the late ‘90s tabloids. Burch doesn’t borrow directly, instead finding subtle and horrifying ways to create her own messed-up version.

There are no flashbacks in May December but it’s how people recall the past that is disturbing. At one point Gracie reiterates to Elizabeth that Joe seduced her, that he wanted her initially not the other way around. In another scene, she remarks that her husband has been in more relationships than she has been in, overlooking that two kids dating is very different than two adults. Joe talks passively about how his parents didn’t do much after the scandal, allowing their relationship to continue. Burch drops these tiny bombs that blow up later with shocking results.

Moore plays the aging mother with a streak of naivete and narcissism, flipping between the two at the drop of a hat. You don’t know if her character is really that immature and ignorant or if she is a mastermind. This is Moore’s fifth collaboration with director Todd Haynes and they don’t miss a step here.

It’s not easy to stand out among powerhouses like Moore and Portman, but Melton nearly steals the whole film. He gives Joe a childlike quietness that feels heartbreakingly real. Now finally the age Gracie was when the relationship started, you can see his own doubts about his past and future seep in on his face with each conversation he has. You will be yelling at him to leave one minute and wanting to hug him the next.

Haynes’ ability to pull these three performances of his leading actors along with the sinister parts of Burch’s script and then also find these comedic beats is astounding. He and composer Marcelo Zarvos infuse the soundtrack with a reorchestration of Michel Legrand’s music in 1971’s The Go-Between. It gives off soap opera vibes in the most effective way possible.

Overall, Haynes’ direction will have you questioning your own morals and loyalties by the time the final credits roll. May December is a film that doesn’t easily leave you and one that will surely be an Oscar contender come March.

May December comes to theaters on November 17th and Netflix on December 1. Watch the trailer below.

Disney Pulls Controversial ‘Magazine Dreams’ With Jonathan Majors From Schedule, ‘Snow White’ Moves To 2025

By

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October 27, 2023

One of the most acclaimed and controversial movies of the year, Magazine Dreams, has been pulled from the schedule by Disney and Searchlight Pictures. The Jonathan Majors-led project had its premiere at Sundance earlier this year and was set to open in theaters on December 8th to begin an awards-qualifying run, but Majors’ legal woes have thrown a wrench into that plan.

This was meant to be the “year of Jonathan Majors”, and who could dispute that? Magazine Dreams was to be the prestige indie to go along with Majors’ high-profile work on Marvel’s Loki season two, Ant-Man & the Wasp: Quantumania, and Creed III. However, domestic violence charges in March involving his ex-girlfriend put a damper on Majors’ shining moment.

With Majors’ trial date set for November 29th, a decision had to be made on how to proceed. A release in 2024 is likely, and given the problems caused by the SAG-AFTRA strike, there are plenty of dates open in the New Year.

Speaking of which, Disney/Pixar has also moved Elio, Pete Docter’s animated film about a boy who becomes the planet’s intergalactic ambassador, from March 1st 2024 all the way to June 13th 2025. The voice cast includes America Ferrera, Jameela Jamil, and Brad Garrett.

Meanwhile, another major move finds the live-action Snow White, starring Rachel Zegler and directed by Marc Webb, a full year from March 22nd 2024 to March 21st 2025.

Disney wants as much star power as possible to promote these titles, and who knows? Maybe if things go well for Majors he’ll be on the promotional circuit, too? He has been absent from the press tours this year, and kept largely hidden in many promo materials.

‘The Killer’ Trailer: Michael Fassbender Has A Score To Settle In David Fincher’s Hitman Thriller

By

Travis Hopson

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October 27, 2023

Any time David Fincher drops a new movie, it’s an event. And lately, those events are happening with Netflix. Following Fincher’s historical biopic Mank, he returns to familiar territory with Killer, a hitman thriller that’s actually in select theaters as of today.

Michael Fassbender stars in the adaptation of Alexis Nolent‘s graphic novel about an elite assassin on the path of vengeance against his employers after a botched job. Fincher reunites with Se7en writer Andrew Kevin Walker, as well as cinematographer Erik Meeserschmidt.

Also in the cast are Tilda Swinton, Charles Parnell, Arliss Howard, Jack Kesy, and Sophie Charlotte.

You can check out my early review here. Fincher brings a lot of high expectations, and this is a plot that’s right in my wheelhouse.

The Killer is in select theaters now, and hits Netflix on November 10th.

‘Conception’: Keira Knightley Reunites With ‘Silent Night’ Director For Sci-Fi Set In Authoritarian Future

By

Travis Hopson

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October 27, 2023

Keira Knightley has been making some interesting choices lately, and seems to have a new niche away from the mainstream. After 2021’s Christmas apocalyptic thriller Silent Night, Knightley reunites with that film’s writer/director Camille Griffin for Conception, a sci-fi film set in a future where the government has taken total control over parenting.

Here’s the synopsis: Conception is a sci-fi thriller set in the not-too-distant future of Britain, where the government has taken authoritarian rule over parenting. The film follows Rita (Knightley), a loyal civil servant and believer in the unforgiving system she upholds, until unexpected events endanger her own parental status, rendering her victim to the same laws she so readily inflicted on others.

No other details in terms of casting, but Knightley is a damn good start. Filming should begin soon, and Griffin is looking forward to being able to work with Knightley once more, saying in a statement…

“I’m lucky to have found in Keira, a better (certainly more attractive) version of myself to project my creativity onto,” said the director. “Keira is as great an ally as she is a talent. I plan to make a unique and exciting film together.” [Deadline]

Review: ‘When Evil Lurks’
Director Demián Rugna‘s Demonic Possession Film Provides Plenty of Unsettling Scares

By
Khalil Johnson
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“God is dead, and the times of churches ended quickly.”

If that doesn’t set the tone for director Demián Rugna’s latest movie When Evil Lurks, I don’t know what else can! The Argentinian horror film surrounding demonic possession pretty much grabs you by the throat from the opening scene and doesn’t let you go for its entire 139-minute runtime, and it just gets creepier and creepier every moment!

Living in the countryside (to escape the craziness of the city), brothers Pedro (Ezequiel Rodriguez) and Jimi (Demián Salomon) are disturbed one night by the sound of gunfire outside of their local farm area. Right off the bat in When Evil Lurks, the film understands horror tropes. Instead of rushing out to the sound of gunfire in the middle of the night, the brothers use common sense and delay their investigation until the next morning when they can have some daylight to aid them. When they have some sunlight (and some guns) to help them the next morning, they find something spine-chilling and disturbing. And remember, we’re not even 5 minutes into When Evil Lurks.

They come across the dismembered body that they assume is the result of some poor guy/gal facing off against a puma, only to find out that it’s much, much worse. Some rather obscure equipment and writings are found near the poor person’s body that leads the brothers to one of their nearby neighbors who reveal that the dead person was there to help them with their possessed family member. Yep, this is a movie about grotesque demonic possession, as we get to see the possessed person soon enough. Describing the possessed person as a “Rotten,” we quickly learn When Evil Lurks’ rules about possession. First off, you can not kill the person possessed as the demon will quickly just jump to a new body. The brothers work with another local farmer and decide to move the possessed person’s body out of town or else the whole town will become infected.

Not wanting to take any chances, Pedro wants to get his family out of town safely. When he goes to see his ex-wife, she’s not too receptive of him trying to take their kids out of town, especially when she has a restraining order against him. Little do they know, this demonic infection can quickly spread, even if you have a Rotten’s pus on your clothes. Slowly but surely, all hell starts to break loose and it’s a race against the clock Pedro, Jimmy, and their families try and escape the mayhem that ensues from the people who quickly become possessed.

At first in When Evil Lurks, the audience is unsure as to what the hell is going on. Luckily for us, we get treated to about 2 minutes of exposition as to why everything is happening the way it is. Also lucky for us, we get to learn the rules when Pedro and Jimmy’s mother are explaining to her grandson the rules, which allows the film to make a great deal more sense. Once we understand the same rules that our characters know, it racks up the tension as we see people break the rules and know exactly what’s gonna happen next.

Speaking of tension, one great thing about When Evil Lurks is that no one is safe in this film. Writer/Director Demián Rugna breaks the two rules that most movies abide by: you can’t kill kids, and you can’t kill dogs. Rugna says, “The hell with that” in very brutal and shocking moments, and I am all in favor of that! While When Evil Lurks has its fair share of gore (the boated, puss-filled Rotten’s body is not easy on the eyes, nor are axes or hammers to the face), the film is effectively scarier when it just alludes to the carnage that may or may not happen in the dark corners just out of sight. As the rules get fleshed out and we learn what the endgame of the film is, it heightens the creepy factor to the max! When Evil Lurks also effectively works because its ending is not your traditional horror movie ending. Don’t expect everything to work out how you would like it to as sometimes the world is not full of rainbows and happy endings, after all, there is no God in this movie.

With this being spooky season, watching When Evil Lurks is almost a must-watch. Those who hate subtitles, just grit your teeth and power through as you will enjoy a fun, tense, gory horror throwback that won’t have you peeking through your eyes, but you will want to sleep with the lights on and be wary of any unknown noises from the next room.

When Evil Lurks is currently available on Shudder.

When Evil Lurks

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Review: ‘Five Nights At Freddy’s’
One Night Is Too Many For This Dull, Scare-Free Adaptation Of The Hit Video Game Franchise

By
Travis Hopson
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The Five Nights at Freddy’s franchise is a media sensation, with video games, books, and more to support its millions of fans. And those fans have been eager to see their favorite animatronic puppets slash up the big screen for nearly a decade, with names such as Chris Columbus, Seth Grahame-Smith, and Gil Kenan involved at various stages. But the film finally arrives The Wind filmmaker Emma Tammi at the helm, and at a time when video game adaptations are in something of a golden stretch. How could this one not join the club?

Well, it doesn’t. In rather spectacular fashion, the cheese has slid off the pizza of Five Nights at Freddy’s, a plodding, morose bore that misses what people love about the games. Here’s a hint: It’s not watching a dull, mopey Josh Hutcherson as night security guard and all-around screwup Mike Schmidt. A classic “his own worst enemy” kind of guy, Mike is trying to turn his life around so as not to lose custody of his little sister, Abby (Piper Rubio), a creative but lonely kid who loves to draw and chats with imaginary friends. See, Mike has a tragic backstory involving the disappearance of his younger brother Garrett (Lucas Grant), who he was in charge of looking after. Garrett was never seen again, and Mike can’t stop dreaming about that day. He uses sleep medication to heighten those dreams in hopes of finding clues to the kidnapper’s whereabouts.

Unfortunatly, the movie spens the bulk of its time wading through this dark mystery. And by wading, I mean paddiling through thick mud, because that’s what it feels like everytime we’re in another of Mike’s flashbacks. When do the puppets start killing folks? Well, it actually happens pretty early; not long after Mike takes a desperation gig as night security at Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza, a rundown, abandoned family fun center ala Chuck E. Cheese and Showbiz Pizza. But after those initial, gore-free murders by Freddy, Bonnie, Chica, and Foxy, there is absolutely no violence in this movie to speak of. I can see why at the screening I attended, parents had zero qualms bringing their kids to the movie because there were plenty of them.

This doesn’t at all feel like a Blumhouse production. Blumhouse usually has their finger on the pulse of what horror fans want, and surely they didn’t think they wanted this all-ages, family-friendly Five Nights at Freddy’s? A large portion of the film finds Mike and Abby hanging out with the animatronics, singing songs and building a literal fort to hang out in. It’s all kinda bizarre, but not scary or even creepy. Then there’s the sudden arrival of Vanessa (Elizabeth Lail), a police officer with a connection to Freddy’s and a strange interest in Mike. Not that the bloody arm he has when she first meets him “interests” her as a cop or anything. Nah, she looks past that. Nor when she finds out he was sleeping on the job, shortly before Freddy’s is broken into, does she do what any other cop would do and arrest this dumbass.

Mike is woefully uninteresting, and Hutcherson isn’t charismatic enough to make us forget it. If he cracks a smile in this movie it must’ve been when my face was buried in popcorn, or when I was struggling to stay awake, because this is a terribly glum performance. What happened to the actor that everyone used to swoon after in The Hunger Games? Hutcherson still looks half his age, but playing an adult has been a rough transition.

Five Nights at Freddy’s has been in the works for so long, it was actually beat out by a better film with the same plot. In 2021, Nicolas Cage starred in Willy’s Wonderland, in which he plays a mysterious drifter working overnight at the titular pizza joint where the animatronic animals spring to life and start murdering fools. It’s not great by any means, but Cage is having a blast and the filmmakers, who admited drawing inspiration from Five Nights at Freddy’s, at least knew that a premise this silly should be treated as such.

Obviously, I’m urging you to steer clear of Five Nights at Freddy’s, but at least you won’t have to pay for it if you’re a Peacock subscriber. The film is available now on that streaming service as well as in theaters.

Nicolas Cage Calls ‘Dream Scenario’ A Masterpiece In New Promo

By

Travis Hopson

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October 26, 2023

Having just enjoyed Kristoffer Borgli’s Dream Scenario while attending Middleburg, I can personally say that it’s one of those movies that was made only for Nicolas Cage. It simply wouldn’t have the same impact with a different actor. In it, he plays an ordinary, sorta boring professor who becomes an instant celebrity when he starts appearing in other people’s dreams.

And now you can watch Cage, in his oversized jean jacket, call the film a “masterpiece” in this new promo released by A24. They might have a hit on their hands. And frankly, I predict it’ll be better received than The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent which also took advantage of Cage’s public persona.

Here’s the synopsis: Hapless family man Paul Matthews (Nicolas Cage) finds his life turned upside down when millions of strangers suddenly start seeing him in their dreams. But when his nighttime appearances take a nightmarish turn, Paul is forced to navigate his newfound stardom, in this wickedly entertaining comedy from writer-director Kristoffer Borgli (Sick of Myself) and producer Ari Aster.

Dream Scenario opens in theaters on November 10th.

Middleburg Review: ‘The Taste Of Things’
Benoît Magimel Cooks For Juliette Binoche In This Decadent French Romance

By
Cortland Jacoby
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In Anh Hung Tran’s decadent and indulgent The Taste of Things, Benoît Magimel plays a chateau owner who is heavily involved in the life and work of his cook played by Juliette Binoche. In the opening sequence, which lasts a good twenty minutes, the two work with a fellow houseworker to prepare a lavish meal for Dodin’s (Magimel) dinner guests.

Taking place in 1885 France, the two have worked together for close to thirty years and though they have an established relationship, they never married. Between long and deliciously shot cooking sequences, Dodin discusses his desire to marry Eugénie while she talks about her longing for freedom. It’s after Dodin cooks a multicourse French feast for her, that she starts to reconsider her feelings towards matrimony.

Magimel and Binoche’s chemistry is palpable. Whether it’s longing glances over a boiling pot or just how the two discuss food, you can feel the romantic tension wafting off the screen. Binoche’s Eugénie is more reserved with her words but gives the film its grounding anchor. Magimel is much more dominant, taking up dialogue and camera time but provides a frantic sense of urgency that the narrative needs.

The Taste of Things may have some of the best food porn cinema has ever seen. Cooking sequences last for at least five minutes with minimum dialogue. Hung gives each shot a yellowish-bright warmth that only seems to enhance the food onscreen. By the time Dodin is done making pot-au-feu, you will not only know what it is but how to make it. While these cooking sequences are mesmerizing, the narrative pacing is slow, at times painfully so. There’s an unneeded subplot concerning Napoleon that just diverts the story altogether. Really any throughline that doesn’t have to do with Dodin or Eugénie feels superfluous. At 134 minutes, this makes the runtime feel longer by almost an hour.

France has selected The Taste of Things as its submission for the Best International Feature category at the 96th Oscars. While I personally believe Anatomy of a Fall is a much more groundbreaking movie, there’s a reason Tran Anh Hung won Best Director at this year’s Cannes. It is a visually beautiful movie with an intriguing story that slightly gets away from itself.

The Taste of Things opens in select theaters February 9th 2024, with an expansion on February 14th.