Shadowy deals, ancient horrors, and secret sacrifices — what do these films really say about us? Explore why we keep telling these stories and ask yourself: are the real monsters the ones under the city… or the ones controlling the shadows?
Image References: IMDb
An Irish shepherd’s rivalry with another family turns into tragedy.
Thrilling, suspenseful and devastating at the same time! Feature debut for co-writer/director Chris Andrews, who absolutely nails it! A simple, yet compelling story told from two vantage points instantly makes it a pounding, agonising, and at times, a heartbreaking thriller. Andrews and George Cragg’s editing leaves a lot to the imagination and structures the story in a gripping and engaging way.
Christopher Abbott (executive producer), Barry Keoghan (executive producer), Colm Meaney, Nora-Jane Noone, Paul Ready, and Aaron Hefferman put on a fantastic performance. Extra credits go to Abbott, who, while American, mastered the Irish accent and lines.
The third act feels somehow disconnected from the rest of the film. The way Michael (Abbott) reacts to Jack’s (Keoghan) action is baffling and makes one wonder in the end “why?” However, while the ending may not be what you expect, Bring Them Down is captivating and definitely worth your time.
There is a different reality away from the cities. Legality, morality, and business appear in various shapes and forms, and Andrews gives us a glimpse of that reality.
Please, don’t forget to share. If you enjoy my work and dedication to films, please feel free to support me on https://www.patreon.com/kaygazpro. Any contribution is much appreciated and valued.
Solidarity for all the innocent lives that suffer the atrocities of war!
Stay safe!
While Tim and Millie deal with numerous insecurities and issues, they decide to move to the countryside, where they are confronted with an unnatural force.
A provocative horror with deeper meanings. Feature debut for writer/director Michael Shanks, who gets the support of Dave Franco (Tim) and Alison Brie (Millie), who also wear the producers’ hats. Since we are at it, Franco and Brie have done a brilliant job behind and in front of the camera. They are a real-life married couple, and the problems they portray reflect the real-life issues faced by modern couples. The awkwardness they cause for most of the film builds the foundation for the horror that follows.
While Plato’s story has been taken out of context, its visualisation, paired with issues such as distance, intimacy, and codependency, offers incredible audiovisual value to the genre that is flourishing this year. Horror comes from life and, when done right, adds all the right ingredients to emphasise the message it wants to convey, either directly or allegorically. The brilliance of cinema is that you can take a theme like “one needs the other” and make a film such as Together or turn it into The Substance (2024): https://kaygazpro.com/the-substance-2024/.
There are many questions left unanswered. How was the cult formed? What god(s) did they believe in? How far back does it go? What was wrong with Tim’s mum? But… in the end, you may realise that you do not need these answers. You may not even need to know what the point of the (actual) funny lines was when horror was escalating. What you will realise, though, is that Shanks’ narrative works, and it aims to visually shock you and mentally challenge you.
When in a relationship, we act as one, but do we become one? I hope you enjoy it.
Please, don’t forget to share. If you enjoy my work and dedication to films, please feel free to support me on https://www.patreon.com/kaygazpro. Any contribution is much appreciated and valued.
Solidarity for all the innocent lives that suffer the atrocities of war!
Stay safe!
Why does horror so often punish women, while sci-fi imagines futures where they’re erased, replaced, or “upgraded”? This episode dives into the gender politics of genre, exploring how horror reflects anxieties around female power, sexuality, and agency through victimisation and violence, while sci-fi projects male-dominated visions of progress where women are sidelined or transformed. From Psycho (1960) to Blade Runner (1982) to Ex Machina (2014), this episode examines what these patterns reveal about cultural fears — and how modern films are starting to challenge them.
Image References: IMDb
“Whenever I’m not shooting, I’m in the editing room with my footage. While the crew is taking 15 minutes to an hour to set up the next shot, I’m behind the Avid, putting the flick together.”
From Barbarian (2022) to Weapons (2025), Zach Cregger is redefining modern horror. By blending genres, shifting tones, and exposing the ‘basements’ beneath our everyday lives, his films force us to confront the darkness hiding under the surface. In this episode, I break down his influences, innovations, and what makes his horror uniquely unsettling.
According to Christopher Nolan, the film focuses on “pain.” Batman Begins (2005) focused on “fear”, and The Dark Knight (2008) on “chaos.”
An LA school guard starts having horrifying visions after seeing a strange light in the sky and tries to keep it together as his wife’s due date approaches.
There is beauty in its simplicity! Right off the bat, there is something very natural in the pace and rhythm, the acting, the dialogue, and the subplot: A financially stable couple tries to stay afloat as the wife deals with her pregnancy and the husband struggles to get a better job – very relatable to most of us. And that’s what leads to the plot: The strange light in the sky and the visions that follow it.
What happens next, and till the very end, is a challenge for the viewer: Is it traumatic stress due to the wife’s heavy pregnancy? Is it uncertainty for the future? The horrific past? His career – or lack thereof? All of them piled up? Actual aliens? That is something that you need to establish for yourselves when the end credits start rolling. What I can tell you is this: You will want everything to return to normal, but you know it won’t, even though deep down, it’s so dark that you don’t want the normal. At some point, you will let writer/director Peter Cilella take you to wherever this mystic journey is taking you. That’s what I call cinematic beauty, even though I understand if it is not for everyone. In front of the camera, Ross Marquand and Sarah Bolger are brilliant.
While watching it, I couldn’t help but wonder that this kind of cinema reminds me of films like Spring (2012), The Endless (2017) and Synchronic (2019). What do you know… the phenomenal Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead, the guys behind those films, are behind this one too!
P.S. For those who don’t know what pre-eclampsia is, just know that it can ruin your life forever. I hope no one ever has to face it.
Please, don’t forget to share. If you enjoy my work and dedication to films, please feel free to support me on https://www.patreon.com/kaygazpro. Any contribution is much appreciated and valued.
Solidarity for all the innocent lives that suffer the atrocities of war!
Stay safe!
Charles Krantz… an ordinary man whose life is narrated and visualised through science, art and philosophy.
A profound audiovisual experience! The Life of Chuck is one of those films that you shoot chronologically and change everything in post-production. The beginning, the middle, and the end are necessary parts in every story, but they don’t have to be told (or shown) in that particular order. Based on Stephen King’s story, Mike Flanagan wrote and directed a masterpiece that will hold you till the very end, making you long for more. But there will be no more, as there is precisely what it needs to be. Three acts of visual poetry that will make you think of your life and all the could-haves, should-haves, and would-haves that come with it.
The third act will make you think: Is this how the end of the world will be? Is this how pending death is going to feel? And… will I be with the one that I am meant to be? The second act is full of life and joy; a life worth living despite the tribulations. A life full of fulfilment and the little accomplishments that make all the difference in the world. The first act is the foundation of it all: The mystery, the discovery, the learning! It is Stephen King at his best. What is behind that door, and why is it important? It doesn’t matter how it’s possible; what matters is whether you would open it if you knew.
In front of the camera, Tom Hiddleston, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Karen Gillan, Mia Sara, Jacob Tremblay, Carl Lumbly, Benjamin Pajak, Mark Hamill, David Dastmalchian, Matthew Lillard, Rahul Kohli, Annalise Basso, Samantha Sloyan, and Kate Siegel become part of that world and bring to life characters you would like to have in your life.
Another outstanding production by Neon that, unfortunately, was doomed to financial failure. It will be appreciated in the future, though. You’ll see… At least, Flanagan snapped out of the woke projects that did not favour him whatsoever. The Life of Chuck is a prime example of his talent.
The past, the present and the future happen, but they are in that order because that’s how we perceive them. Our future will be some people’s past, our past has been some people’s future, but the present is what we perceive it to be. It is the here and now… the first day of the rest of our beautiful, intricate, painful, and full of wonders life.
Please, don’t forget to share. If you enjoy my work and dedication to films, please feel free to support me on https://www.patreon.com/kaygazpro. Any contribution is much appreciated and valued.
Solidarity for all the innocent lives that suffer the atrocities of war!
Stay safe!
“It’s only the work that counts. Don’t read about yourself. Don’t have big discussions about your work. Just keep your nose to the grindstone. And don’t think about any of the perks. Don’t think about the money or laudatory things. The less you can think about yourself, the better.”
The feud between the sheriff and the mayor, the pandemic, and various political movements blow heated arguments out of proportion in Eddington, New Mexico.
Can you believe it’s been 5 years since the failed biopolitics we were all exposed to globally? Ari Aster and Eddington bring back the pandemic’s paranoia, adding further micro politics, societal pettiness recorded through phone cameras, conspiracy theories, and Black Lives Matter, represented by two astonishing actors, Joaquin Phoenix and Pedro Pascal. With them, Deirdre O’Connell, Emma Stone, Micheal Ward, Luke Grimes, Clifton Collins Jr., and Austin Butler light up the scene every time they appear.
Individual and collective (mis)understanding of political and societal issues, the media and social media, the role of identity and the sense of belonging all become a tragicomedy that builds up, builds up and builds up some more until it explodes. The uncalled violence by the government and citizens turns the situation into a chicken/egg mental burnout that will make the viewer wonder where on earth this is going. Do people know what they stand for? Do they represent what they actually stand for? Do they follow movements blindly? Does the government understand how much it is responsible for? Do government officials grasp the failed and corrupted system they and their predecessors have created? All these questions find no answer, and they were never meant to. But they pile up in people’s heads, and Eddington exaggerates the outcome of it.
After Beau is Afraid (2023) and his first collaboration with Phoenix, Aster seems to have changed his style. The raw projection of death is still present, but the horror has been replaced by mixed genres that do not necessarily appeal to mass audiences or his initial fan base. Why? Because while Eddington is exceptionally well-made, it can make one wonder why it was made. What was Aster trying to say by blending genres, politics, ideologies, and theories into one film? An attempt to follow in the Cohen Brothers’ footsteps?
There has been a tendency in the last few years to portray escalating personal and/or societal paranoia cinematically, in different forms. Suburbicon (2017): https://kaygazpro.com/suburbicon-2017-comedy-crime-drama/, The Monkey (2025): https://kaygazpro.com/the-monkey-2025/, It’s What’s Inside (2024): https://kaygazpro.com/its-whats-inside-2024/, Marshmallow (2025): https://kaygazpro.com/marshmallow-2025/, The Surfer (2025): https://kaygazpro.com/the-surfer-2025/, Weapons (2025): https://kaygazpro.com/weapons-2025/ are but a few examples.
Personally, I liked Eddington‘s mix. It is the essence of paranoia and madness that characterise the world we live in. Or it’s a mix that suggests your (people) actions don’t matter, just as ours (government) don’t. Something that begs the question, what does matter anymore, and why? When we discuss change, we often fail to understand the problems or the change we aim to bring about. And that’s why the side we oppose wins every time.
Please, don’t forget to share. If you enjoy my work and dedication to films, please feel free to support me on https://www.patreon.com/kaygazpro. Any contribution is much appreciated and valued.
Solidarity for all the innocent lives that suffer the atrocities of war!
Stay safe!
One night, all the kids from the same class disappear – except for one, the local community demands answers and does not hesitate to point the blame.
Thrilling, horrific, and… funny? A review will never be able to cut it, but here’s, in a nutshell, what to expect from one of the most hyped films of the year. Writer/director Zach Cregger, following up on his success from Barbarian (2022): https://kaygazpro.com/barbarian-2022-horror-thriller/, comes back with a thriller that escalates to horror and dark comedy. This escalation includes multiple vantage points, offering various angles on the same story. It always takes a step forward with one character and then half a step back with another to show you the same sequence of events experienced from different perspectives. As Cregger stated, Magnolia (1999) is a significant influence in his work and the way the narrative unfolds, but as you’ll see, The Shining (1980), Night of the Living Dead (1968), Twin Peaks (1990), Irreversible (2002), It (1990), and more have further influenced his film.
Despite the intricate and non-chronological narrative form, the characters are equally important and interesting. While none of them deserve their fate, Cregger has ensured that no one is innocent. Addiction, guilt, manipulation, bureaucracy, and the loss of childhood innocence are themes that he explores through these characters and the small society they live in. As for the personified evil they have to face (and its deliberate projection), that is something that you will have to see for yourselves and decide if, how, and why it works for you. Josh Brolin, Julia Garner, Alden Ehrenreich, Benedict Wong, Austin Abrams, and Amy Madigan are amazing in front of the camera, giving incredible justice to their characters.
This is a spoiler-free review, but I can tell you that Cregger brings his unique touch to the horror genre. In Barbarian, there were three films in one and here, as the story develops, he swaps three genres in three acts. Why? What does he achieve in this way? What is the influence on the audience? What is the aftertaste he wants you to have? It’s great to see that the horror genre will constantly be evolving and diverse. See the achievements of Danny and Michael Philippou in Australia.
Prepare to get shocked and prepare to awkwardly laugh about it.
Please, don’t forget to share. If you enjoy my work and dedication to films, please feel free to support me on https://www.patreon.com/kaygazpro. Any contribution is much appreciated and valued.
Solidarity for all the innocent lives that suffer the atrocities of war!
Stay safe!
In a post-apocalyptic war, a family of African Americans and Native Canadians defend their land against cannibals who want to siege it.
A confused film! Right… so… years ago, a plague hit, a civil war happened, people died and are still starving to death, and co-writer/director R.T. Thorne decides to open his film with a racial issue: Black and native people against rednecks. And as if that’s not enough, the kids should preferably kill with blades, so they do not waste bullets, but no one is allowed to swear in front of the kids who are allowed to kill with their bare hands. There is something wrong here…
Films shouldn’t be racially divisive unless the narrative demands it. When people are dying, killed and eaten, civilisations have been reduced to cannibal states, and the world is ending, is this what the film should focus on or racial issues? What do you think? Adults are asking kids to do their homework after all of them have killed a dozen people. I found the film’s moral compass significantly confused.
The right wing is on the rise globally, and two wrongs don’t make a right. The rest of us work with people from all over the world, battling against inequalities and poverty. Go for films with natural diversity (not woke) that know what their focus is, despite their theme or seriousness – see the Mortal Kombat franchise. Shame because Danielle Deadwyler is a brilliant actress, and the story is thrilling and terrifying.
Cinematically, Thorne has done a great job; it’s just that the in-your-face politics are too distracting. Again, shame.
Please, don’t forget to share. If you enjoy my work and dedication to films, please feel free to support me on https://www.patreon.com/kaygazpro. Any contribution is much appreciated and valued.
Solidarity for all the innocent lives that suffer the atrocities of war!
Stay safe!
An old woman with a violent past seeks revenge against the people responsible for her husband’s death.
Nice story, but it is Dale Dickey who rocks. I had to look up the laws surrounding the conservatorship and how it works. In a nutshell, yet another lucrative business for the American and Canadian governments and private companies. There is real-life abuse towards elderly people, and writer/director Karl R. Hearne somehow brings it to the surface. His focus, though, is divided between that and revenge, and the film seems a tad undecided. Overall, it leans towards the revenge, which is excellent because Dale Dickey is all about it. Like most of her films, she is ruthless, relentless, and decisive. Initially, The G is intriguing due to the conservatorship issue, which remains largely unknown to the public. Thugs, bullies, and criminals legally kidnap wealthy old people and exploit their money. That is a great film in and of itself. Dickey, though, turns it into a revenge thriller with a satisfactory outcome.
The problem is that its pace and rhythm are all over the place, as certain scenes should have been cut to make it more concise. For example, the sex scene was a tad uncalled for. So the first act gets you hooked, but it is Dickey who retains your attention. See for yourselves, as it’s definitely worth your time.
Please, don’t forget to share. If you enjoy my work and dedication to films, please feel free to support me on https://www.patreon.com/kaygazpro. Any contribution is much appreciated and valued.
Solidarity for all the innocent lives that suffer the atrocities of war!
Stay safe!
A young man contracts a virus from a mysterious, injured woman, and the events that follow make all hell break loose.
Insane!!! Going in cold, the first surprise is that the whole film is one protracted shot! The second surprise is the “old wine, new bottle” approach. If you know nothing about it, I’ll leave it there to avoid spoilers. Writer/Director David Moreau and Shudder break the rules by following three different protagonists throughout this journey of madness. Lucille Guillaume (Julia), Laurie Pavy (Anais), and Milton Riche (Romain) do an excellent job in front of the camera, and the third surprise is that they don’t even have photos next to their names on IMDb.
Given that IMDb doesn’t provide details on how certain scenes were shot (except that the 5th take was chosen), it would be interesting to find out what vehicles were used or how everything was coordinated, especially since everything you see is in real time. Also, Nathaniel Mechaly’s soundtrack is captivating.
It is something that you have seen before, just not that way. Enjoy, as it is one hell of a ride!
Please, don’t forget to share. If you enjoy my work and dedication to films, please feel free to support me on https://www.patreon.com/kaygazpro. Any contribution is much appreciated and valued.
Solidarity for all the innocent lives that suffer the atrocities of war!
Stay safe!
“During the shooting of a scene the director’s eye has to catch even the minutest detail. But this does not mean glaring concentratedly at the set. While the cameras are rolling, I rarely look directly at the actors, but focus my gaze somewhere else. By doing this I sense instantly when something isn’t right. Watching something does not mean fixing your gaze on it, but being aware of it in a natural way.”
Who really controls the future? Dive into the world of cyberpunk films and uncover how dystopias like Blade Runner, Minority Report, and Elysium reflect our fears of class division, corporate power, and technological control.
Actor Tasos Antonaridis got a scar on his back and a knee injury from a kick, as no stuntman was used due to budget constraints. So, when you see him limping… he’s not acting.
“Something filmmakers have to watch, all filmmakers, is that film basically works not like books: it’s very direct, it impacts you directly, it’s photorealistic images enlarged, and somehow it has to be realistic-looking, and somehow because the demand on attention is mandatory, it works on a emotional level, a philosophical, the ideas don’t translate in a movie.”
28 years after the virus hit the United Kingdom, a kid and his ill mother leave their community and cross the vast wilderness in search of a doctor.
Interesting creative choices on a script that will make you wonder why it was made the way it was. The opening sequence – the initial spread – was the most intriguing sequence and the only one that resembled the original film, 28 Days Later (2002). From then on, the mother’s illness, the son’s initiation and the introduction of the Alpha’s make it for a solid foundation. And then it switches to a different film…
Due to Danny Boyle’s certain aesthetic and narrative reasons, though, I was left indifferent to what was happening after that. The editing of specific sequences, as well as the soundtrack that accompanied them, threw me off, and I couldn’t engage with the content. Maybe because it was shot predominantly with an iPhone 15 Pro Max? Regardless, it feels like the majority of visual elements sounded or seemed better on Alex Garland’s (writer) paper and couldn’t translate properly cinematically.
Of course, someone could argue that the United Kingdom’s alienation could be a metaphor for Brexit and the way we separated ourselves from the rest of Europe – something that is not a bad shout, actually. Overall, every fan of the franchise should watch it and make up their minds afterwards, regardless of what I or everyone else is saying.
Lastly, regarding the last sequence and the mixed feelings it caused, I didn’t think it worked well at all, even though it’s there just because of the sequels that will follow. But again, you need to decide for yourselves and ask why it worked for you or didn’t.
Please, don’t forget to share. If you enjoy my work and dedication to films, please feel free to support me on https://www.patreon.com/kaygazpro. Any contribution is much appreciated and valued.
Solidarity for all the innocent lives that suffer the atrocities of war!
Stay safe!
Three underage girls go on holiday to have the time of their lives, only to get a glimpse of what life has in store for them.
Life and the introduction of consequences… Everything the British can be accused of while on holiday, in one film. Writer/director Molly Manning Walker brings to life a coming-of-age drama, introducing young men and women to the consequences of carelessness and the first steps in discovering identity. Replicating life, such cinematic experiences have shown time and time again that are not accompanied by comedy, and regardless of how many people we are surrounded with, the feeling of loneliness always takes over. The exception would be actual comedy, such as The Inbetweeners (2008), which offers a specific type of entertainment. Isn’t it “funny”? Comedy often hides the drama behind the harsh reality, which serves as its solid foundation.
Walker strikes an outstanding balance between the comedic elements and the hidden yet menacing insecurities that lurk behind all heroes’ utterances and actions. The pace and rhythm flow naturally, and the realism of broken families and selves surfaces in every sequence. Mia McKenna-Bruce is an excellent choice for Tara, who effectively conveys all the intended emotions, both verbally and through her bodily/facial expressions.
It would be wishful thinking for (especially) every Brit to watch How To Have Sex and the kind of “ritualistic” holidays it represents, as well as the respective consequences that are passed down from generation to generation. Unfortunately, though, history teaches us that we are not taught by history. It has to happen to us, and only then might we learn something. Or not…
Please, don’t forget to share. If you enjoy my work and dedication to films, please feel free to support me on https://www.patreon.com/kaygazpro. Any contribution is much appreciated and valued.
Solidarity for all the innocent lives that suffer the atrocities of war!
Stay safe!
A young man who buys stolen stuff and collects bugs brings a deadly spider to his apartment building, which multiplies rapidly.
The next best thing after Arachnophobia (1990). Right off the bat, you get to see who is who and the fragmented relationships with one another. White, black, and brown people are all connected by the one thing that unfortunately unites the vast majority of the population of this earth: poverty! The poor people of a titanic block from all over the world are the protagonists of this captivating, yet flawed horror created by writer/director Sébastien Vanicek.
From a cinematic point of view, all departments work like a Swiss watch. Well shot and edited, Infested offers thrilling entertainment for a couple of hours. Out of those couple of hours, approximately up to the second part of the second act, the script is solid and tight. Then, the spiders grow too big, the decisions made are beyond understanding, and the climax and resolution defy logic even more.
Vanicek initially named the film Vermines. It was his way of cinematically translating the way ethnic minorities are seen in France. Just like the bugs, black and Arab or Arab-looking people are treated like beings that need to be put down or alienated at best. His intentions are noble and understandable. My objection, though, is that his characters make some questionable choices that don’t do them any favours. Yet, the film is worth your time despite its flaws.
Please, don’t forget to share. If you enjoy my work and dedication to films, please feel free to support me on https://www.patreon.com/kaygazpro. Any contribution is much appreciated and valued.
Solidarity for all the innocent lives that suffer the atrocities of war!
Stay safe!
An abducted woman must find a way to escape a serial killer’s boat before he feeds her to the sharks.
IFC and Shudder have done it again! Independent films take liberties that studio films can’t. That’s why the element of surprise is more likely to be found there. What Tucker (Jai Courtney) can and will do to these people you find out only when he does it. He is relentless, and the way he acts towards his victims is gory and downright psychopathic. Hassie Harrison (Zephyr) and Ella Newton (Heather) play their part brilliantly and, for at least the first fifty minutes, everything goes. Writer Nick Lepard and director Sean Byrne’s narrative is unpredictable and will keep you on the edge of your seat.
The issue over the last thirty to forty minutes is that they slowly turn into a Hollywood film, and what you expect to happen, will happen. The indie element starts fading out, and the Hollywood one infiltrates the narrative remorselessly. The improbability levels increase exponentially, and you’ll be wondering “why.” And, actually, that was the film’s biggest surprise, unfortunately.
Overall, it’s definitely worth your time, as, for the most part, it’s brutal and Courtney goes above and beyond to make Tucker as hateable as possible.
Dangerous animals? Yes, we are.
P.S. Having a model-looking (main) cast is also a sign of turning indie films into a Hollywood spectacle, also known as the cinema of attractions.
Thanks for reading!
Please, don’t forget to share. If you enjoy my work and dedication to films, please feel free to support me on https://www.patreon.com/kaygazpro. Any contribution is much appreciated and valued.
Solidarity for all the innocent lives that suffer the atrocities of war!
Stay safe!
A widowed mother’s first date in years turns into a nightmare when a stranger keeps sending her threatening messages.
Highly implausible yet engaging. Actually, it’s a lot better (for the most part) than the trailer made it to be, which is rare. Very rare. Director Christopher Landon, the man behind several Paranormal Activity films, Happy Death Day (2017) and more, turns Jillian Jacobs and Chris Roach’s implausible script into a whodunit (or “whosdoingit”), stylised thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat, and Meghann Fahy (Violet) is the right person to convey the thrilling predicament.
Platinum Dunes (Michael Bay) and Blumhouse (Jason Blum) wear the producers’ hat on this one, taking no risks and offering a formulaic Hollywood spectacle that will keep you engaged for an hour and a half. What you know will happen, happens. It’s just a matter of how it’s going to get there. A good choice if you’re looking for something that will help you forget your problems for even a couple of hours.
Thanks for reading!
Please, don’t forget to share. If you enjoy my work and dedication to films, please feel free to support me on https://www.patreon.com/kaygazpro. Any contribution is much appreciated and valued.
Solidarity for all the innocent lives that suffer the atrocities of war!
Stay safe!
A man returns to the place he grew up to surf with his son, gets humiliated and slowly starts spiralling out of control.
Trippy, paranoid, and somehow poetic. The classic title font, the music that accompanies it and instructs you on how to feel, the abstract shots, the American accent contrasting with the Australian one, the zoom-ins and the close-ups… Well, mix all that with the repeated and exaggerated bravado and bullying against Nicolas Cage and the constant bad news he keeps receiving, and it’s a bomb waiting to go off. But does it?
The Surfer builds up hatred throughout! An hour and a half of real unnecessary harshness, hallucinations, and paranoia blend smoothly with trauma into an explosive cocktail that starts as one drink and becomes… something else. Wait and you’ll see.
All the audiovisual elements work like a Swiss watch. See the fountain covered in faeces, Cage’s reactions to it, the bird’s reactions to him, which seem to mock him too, like life itself, and the background music that accompanies the scene. There will be sequences where you, too, will want to laugh but will be ashamed to do so due to the tragicomedy of madness. What’s real, what isn’t, what happened and what didn’t, when the build-up turned into climax, when the initial dream started and when the hallucination and trauma kicked in… all in one trippy film called… The Surfer.
Congratulations to writer Thomas Martin and director Lorcan Finnegan for creating such a brilliant film. Congratulations also to Cage and the sorely missed and beautiful person, Julian McMahon. They went toe to toe, and their audience came out the winner…
RIP Julian McMahon. You rode amazing waves!
Thanks for reading!
Please, don’t forget to share. If you enjoy my work and dedication to films, please feel free to support me on https://www.patreon.com/kaygazpro. Any contribution is much appreciated and valued.
Solidarity for all the innocent lives that suffer the atrocities of war!
Stay safe!
The immortal warriors and Andromache reunite to face an enemy they never expected: the oldest immortal that ever existed.
Interesting parts, uninteresting sum… The film we’ve been waiting for for some time. Five years after the original, The Old Guard (2020): https://kaygazpro.com/the-old-guard-2020-action-fantasy/, director Victoria Mahoney takes over from Gina Prince-Bythewood, and the result… is not flattering, I’m afraid. This merely means, of course, that the problematic final cut is her fault. Netflix, Skydance, the writers and their borderline wokism are all part of it. First things first, though…
The story is great! The inciting incident, its direction, and the build-up look great on paper. The plot, dialogue, and character development (except for Booker’s), on the other hand, are spoon-fed and watered down to death. And I’ve said it more times than I can count: Undermine the audience’s intelligence and see what happens. For people who are thousands of years old, the things they say and do often fail to meet expectations. So, it’s a shame, really…
From a cinematic point of view, it’s the same. Short shots, multiangularity, multichopped editing… There is nothing original or impressive about a film that they had five years to prepare and deliver. Except for the emotional moment between Booker and Andy, it certainly lacked depth, which is ironic given Quyhn’s situation and the way filmmakers mishandled that.
However, let me conclude by saying that the cast is exceptional: Charlize Theron, KiKi Layne, Matthias Schoenaerts, Marwan Kenzari, Luca Marinelli, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Henry Golding, Veronica Ngo, and Uma Thurman all do a great job, despite their characters facing irreparable issues. Again, Theron vs Thurman should be the cinematic event of the year, but like everything else, the filmmakers didn’t know what to do with what they had.
Thanks for reading!
Please, don’t forget to share. If you enjoy my work and dedication to films, please feel free to support me on https://www.patreon.com/kaygazpro. Any contribution is much appreciated and valued.
Solidarity for all the innocent lives that suffer the atrocities of war!
Stay safe!
In France I’m an auteur, in England I’m a filmmaker, in Germany I make horror films, and in the United States I’m a bum.
A man with partial memory loss is sent to look after a girl with mental health issues, in a house no one should ever live.
Franz Kafka would be proud… Right off the bat, all three characters appear as people you wouldn’t want to associate with. The awkwardness and coldness they emit make them people you want to stay as far away from as humanly possible. Who on Earth would offer a job like this, who on Earth would accept it, and who on Earth would live in a house like that? Neither the people nor the place makes sense.
The darkness they both carry is Kafkaesque projections that Shudder and writer/director Damian Mc Carthy manage to bring to life. The characters and the film’s claustrophobic mise-en-scene “scream” Kafka’s name from the lighting to the walls to the utterances, actions, and reactions.
Caveat is a nano-budget, slow-burn psychological horror with a plot that defies reason or rational explanation. Well, trauma and guilt partially justify it, but the rest is up to the viewer to make up their own mind. Therefore, “enjoy” Ben Caplan (Moe), Johnny French (Isaac) and Leila Sykes (Olga) who embrace the abnormality, the paradox and the depravity of their characters and revive Kafka’s bleak, grotesque, alienated, existential (and more) vision of humanity.
P.S. Oh, and what about that freaking judgmental rabbit?!
P.P.S. Writer/director Matthew Holness evoked similar results with Possum (2018).
Thanks for reading!
Please, don’t forget to share. If you enjoy my work and dedication to films, please feel free to support me on https://www.patreon.com/kaygazpro. Any contribution is much appreciated and valued.
Solidarity for all the innocent lives that suffer the atrocities of war!
Stay safe!
Children’s games, killer instinct, and the system that raised us. Squid Game is a global mirror – reflecting debt, despair, and the illusion of choice. Why do people willingly return to a game they know might kill them? Because, for some, the outside world is worse. This episode explores what made Squid Game resonate worldwide, the real-world systems it critiques, and the cinematic legacy of human hunting. Who’s really watching? Who’s funding the spectacle? And what does it say about us that we can’t look away?
“Cinema is a social art form. You cannot make a piece of cinema by yourself. No matter what you do, no matter how controlling, no matter how crazy and Fitzcarraldo-bizarre or how crazy generally you try to be, yelling at people with your bullhorn, you can’t push a single pencil across the table without help. It’s just the way it is. The final product will always be a sum of all of the parts that are working on it. So if you want to understand cinema, you have to think about it as a social dynamic. And you have to investigate it and unpack it as a social project.”
Demons in horror films are more than just terrifying entities—they’re reflections of our deepest fears, shaped by culture, religion, and history. From The Exorcist to Hereditary, from The Vigil to Under the Shadow, different belief systems have given rise to unique interpretations of possession, evil, and the supernatural. But why do these stories resonate so deeply across cultures? And what do they reveal about the anxieties we carry in the real world?
“People ask you about your signature on the movie, or whatever. Nobody wanted to sign the damn movie. You know what I mean? We’re just trying to do justice to the story. We’re not trying to pee on it.”
A small Canadian fishing island cuts itself off from the rest of the world when a gifted baby is washed ashore, but the responsibility tears them apart.
Interesting premise that raises a lot of expectations. Does it deliver, though? Let’s see—a horrific and relatable drama followed by a mysterious and intriguing element. Director Christian Sparkes raises the question: How would the modern world deal with a modern-day Jesus? Especially when the society lives in the allegory of the cave. If it were in the big city, it would have been a whole different film. But this is a society where everyone knows everyone. Here’s the thing, though. When the extraordinary is presented, everyone shows a self that no one has seen before, which means that no one really knows anyone. What does that say about city people, right?
The gifted girl is the subplot; the actions and reactions around her and her gift are the film’s focus. How could anyone – literate, illiterate, rich, poor, or otherwise – take moral and selfless decisions around someone we could never understand? In the Bible, we exposed and failed Jesus. In fiction, we hid Clark Kent and deified Superman – and then there’s Brightburn (2019). History has shown that we can’t deal with ourselves, let alone a miracle.
To conclude, The King Tide is a beautiful, dark story, with certain production, pace and rhythm, and budget issues, but with great acting and an ending that pays off. Definitely worth your time.
Thanks for reading!
Please, don’t forget to share. If you enjoy my work and dedication to films, please feel free to support me on https://www.patreon.com/kaygazpro. Any contribution is much appreciated and valued.
Solidarity for all the innocent lives that suffer the atrocities of war!
Stay safe!
“A long-playing full shot is what always separates the men from the boys. Anybody can make movies with a pair of scissors and a two-inch lens.”
Official entry at the 52nd Academy Awards in 1980 in the Best Foreign Language Film category (Egypt).
The giant dust clouds were created on set using huge fans to blow synthetic cellulose-based dust into the air.
An undercover investigator risks everything by infiltrating an animal testing laboratory for over two years.
It will cut your breath short and urge you to act! Starting as conspiratorial, Undercover soon becomes a reality you wish it had never existed. But regardless of how much you wish or pray, that reality exists. Actually, this is the reality, and most people turn a blind eye to it because it is unbearable. It just adds to the endless list of the atrocities we have committed throughout our history. And, as usual, against living beings that can not defend themselves.
Writer/director Pablo de la Chica takes the docudrama path and builds it up for the first act. He introduces Carlota, explains the situation and deliberately holds most of the punches… until the glasses are on! And this is when you start realising what you have signed up for. Halfway there? You wish all staff would die the most horrible death.
There is no point in telling you how much you need to watch it or why. Cinematic techniques? Plenty! But there is no point in discussing them; the documentary is brilliant. What’s worth discussing is the heroine who risked everything and went in to expose them. What’s also worth discussing is the relatively short time it took for the incident to fade away and be forgotten, as well as the fact that nothing happened to the company, and the laws do not really protect animals. Animal suffering exists, and congratulations to everyone who risks and sacrifices everything to prevent that from happening, regardless of the outcome.
Following Food, Inc. (2008): https://kaygazpro.com/food-inc-2008/ and Earthlings (2005): https://kaygazpro.com/earthlings-2005/, this is the third one that moved me so much, and I decided to make a trilogy out of them. A video is coming where I will put them all together and analyse the effect of films like these on society. Stay tuned.
Thanks for reading!
Please, don’t forget to share. If you enjoy my work and dedication to films, please feel free to support me on https://www.patreon.com/kaygazpro. Any contribution is much appreciated and valued.
Solidarity for all the innocent lives that suffer the atrocities of war!
Stay safe!
An inside look at the unspeakable and horrifying ways humans and large corporations treat animals.
The most shocking, brutal, and soul-crashing horror you have ever witnessed. Earthlings has no match. It is not for the faint of heart and is one of the most challenging things to watch for the most hardcore audiences. Inarguably, it is one of the biggest challenges you will ever have to face on the screen. There are no words to describe this experience, and hats off to writer/director Shaun Monson for bringing it to life and Joaquin Phoenix for narrating it. It is unthinkable how Monson managed to do it. You will watch to avert or close your eyes while wishing for the atrocities to stop. But they will not stop. They will keep on pounding and pounding until your eyes dry up and until you are disgusted to be called “human.” You will find it unthinkable that these “people” and you are the same species, and you will reevaluate the term “animal” next time someone calls another person that.
It is by far the harshest thing I have ever watched. I tried watching it in 2005, but I couldn’t finish it. Finally, in 2013, I gained the strength to watch it and managed to quit meat. It is not pedantic, and it is not asking the audience to quit meat. It seeks to raise awareness and prompt you to consider what is sacrificed and how it is sacrificed and disgraced, before it reaches your table or is used for your everyday pleasures and luxuries.
As I pointed out, though, in Food, Inc. (2008): https://kaygazpro.com/food-inc-2008/, the change is not the desirable one. Although we are aware, we continue to turn a blind eye to a large extent. I have faith, though. Things are slowly changing, and one day, we’ll get to treat each other and animals as equals.
Thanks for reading!
Please, don’t forget to share. If you enjoy my work and dedication to films, please feel free to support me on https://www.patreon.com/kaygazpro. Any contribution is much appreciated and valued.
Solidarity for all the innocent lives that suffer the atrocities of war!
Stay safe!
The horrible backstage of the American food industry.
Eye-opening and heartbreaking! Writer/director Robert Kenner, in collaboration with Magnolia Pictures, works with author Michael Pollan to bring to life a documentary that offers a behind-the-scenes look at the American food industry. Needless to say, the image they paint is highly disturbing. What you know and what you think you knew collapse. What you care about and what you should be caring about while eating or feeding others will start raising doubts as you keep watching.
The way we treat animals, what we feed them, what we put on our table and how the industry works becomes a mind-bending reality within our reality and surfaces our ignorance and “The Matrix” we live in.
Kenner and his team infiltrate the food industry, using both poetic and harsh visuals, as well as interviews with politicians, industry executives, and victims of what is advertised as “healthy food,” to embarrass the world’s biggest food industry powers, hoping to bring about change for both animals and people alike. Did they, though?
Unfortunately, not the desired one. Obesity is at skyrocketing levels worldwide, and to this very day, fast food is constantly in demand. Oh, and it’s no longer even affordable. Why is this? The information is out there. Now we know more than ever. We know! Thugs and gangsters in suits, under the guise of lawmakers and law representatives, pull the ropes as behind-the-scenes puppeteers. We know! Why does it feel like we are doomed to repeat the same mistakes we already know we are making? It is heartbreaking for people and animals alike.
Thanks for reading!
Please, don’t forget to share. If you enjoy my work and dedication to films, please feel free to support me on https://www.patreon.com/kaygazpro. Any contribution is much appreciated and valued.
Solidarity for all the innocent lives that suffer the atrocities of war!
Stay safe!
The first action scene with Trinity, set in a 5×5 room, where she kicks @$$, required six months of training and four days to film.
From Independence Day (1996) to District 9 (2009), alien invasion films have always been about more than just extraterrestrials. They reflect our own history—our fears, our power struggles, and the way we justify conquest. But who are the real invaders in these stories? Are we projecting our own colonial past onto the aliens, turning them into a reflection of ourselves? What do these films really say about us, and why do we keep telling these stories?
“For the working director, there is no conscious form from film to film. We all know what our ambitions are, but in a very healthy way we are all unconscious of ‘signature’.”
Unfortunately, the film is lost. Its purpose was to present to the public, for the first time, the contestants of that year’s first Greek beauty pageant.
“Audiences are less intrigued, honestly, by battle. They’re more intrigued by human relations. If you’re making a film about the trappings of the period, and you’re forgetting that human relationships are the most engaging part of the storytelling process, then you’re in trouble.”
Memory shapes who we are, but how much of it can we really trust? Films like Memento, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, and Inception explore how memory is fragmented, distorted, and even rewritten. But cinema doesn’t just reflect our past—it can reshape it, creating false memories that feel just as real. Are our memories truly our own, or are they just stories we tell ourselves?
Image References
IMDb
After their father’s death, a brother and a sister have to go to a foster house only to be involved in a horrific ritual.
Disturbing, eerie, and shockingly unsettling! Danny and Michael Philippou surely know how to “open the curtains” – Talk to Me (2022) offered a different shock of the same level. The occult and the ostensibly inexplicable atrocities that come with it will make you wonder how they connect to the drama the two kids will have to face immediately after. Who’s Laura? What’s with her son, Oliver? What really happened to her daughter? What is this place? How does it connect to the occult? How are they gonna make it? Bring who back from where? All these questions and more arise throughout the first act. And if you think that’s disturbing, wait until the second one kicks in.
There isn’t much I can say without spoiling it for you, so let me tell you how it feels. OK, I’ll tell you this one thing. Upon building it up for some time, making you wonder what on earth is going on, “the knife” scene will make you react like very few times have in the cinema. Moving on, the psychological and the paranormal blend into a duplicitous horror with unforeseen intentions that raise doubts about something ominous being about to happen. Something that you will not like at all, but hopefully with a happy ending. Will you get it, though?
Billy Barratt, Sora Wong, Sally Hawkins, and Jonah Wren Phillips perform amazingly in front of the camera. A24 and the Philippou Brothers, after doing a brilliant job with Talk to Me, find more creative ways to shock your system! You will avert your eyes, you will clench your fists, you will groan, and you will grasp for breath. You are in for a huge surprise. Pleasant or unpleasant, surely it’ll be uncomfortable. See for yourselves…
Thanks for reading!
Please, don’t forget to share. If you enjoy my work and dedication to films, please feel free to support me on https://www.patreon.com/kaygazpro. Any contribution is much appreciated and valued.
Solidarity for all the innocent lives that suffer the atrocities of war!
Stay safe!
