This year we saw film worker Q&As and introductions, and stalls from Arrow Video, Last Shirt on the Left, HotFoodSheffield, and more. Surprisingly we also got to enjoy an event menu in the Showroom Cafe Bar, as well as a Celluloid Screams branded beer, Jim’ll Paint It’s excellent artwork was displayed throughout the cinema and the festival even hosted a live event experience. Giving this year’s festival some nice variety.

But now it’s time to review and rank every movie I saw at Celluloid Screams 2022, from worst to best in 25 words or less. Additionally, like last year, I will give you some short film recommendations at the end.

Reviews

Wolf Manor: Some minor laughs from ridiculing on-set power dynamics don’t prevent the bland performances and poor staging from tearing this werewolf movie apart. (2 / 5)

Matriarchy: This year’s audience award winner is destined to become a so-bad-it’s-good classic. With its hammy acting, gloriously ridiculous writing, and surprisingly great effects. (2 / 5)

Megalomaniac: Realistic handling of abusive power dynamics and Eline Schumacher’s resonant performance, unfortunately, give way to something more conventional that provides little beyond shock value.  (2.5 / 5)

Evil Eye: Ofelia Medina is the reason to see this movie. Her passion and energy are amazing. Shamefully nothing else in the movie matches her.  (2.5 / 5)

The Elderly: Zorion Eguileor and Paula Gallego’s performances, the suspense, and high-scale finale are laudable. Unfortunately, that goodwill fades thanks to baffling decisions making many characters unlikeable. (2.5 / 5)

V/H/S/99: Parts of this movie are boring, leery, and poorly structured. But three-fifths is inventive, ambitious, and well-done storytelling. Just skip stories 1 and 4. (3 / 5)

The Leech: Sometimes The Leech cheaply paints homeless characters as “parasitic”. Overall though it’s a great satire of how destructive extremist Christian views are. Perfect Christmas viewing. (3 / 5)

The Passenger: Paula Gallego’s second great performance this year. Definitely a future star. Despite an unlikable lead and overly familiar setup, it’s a fun b-movie throwback. (3 / 5)

Barbarian: Constantly shifting focus and stakes make Barbarian an exciting ride. Even if by the end it feels rather lacking in impact. (3 / 5)

Holy Sh*t: This portaloo thriller initially feels stagey and narratively frustrating. But an over-the-top second half and Gedeon Burkhard’s deliciously evil performance help salvage it. (3 / 5)

Something in the Dirt: Although Benson and Moorhead’s films (Synchronic aside) never fully satisfy me, it’s good seeing filmmakers exploring complex ideas and creating rich characters over spectacle. (3 / 5)

Bubba Ho-Tep: Some of Bubba Ho-Tep’s writing and editing are juvenile 2000s relics. Conversely, Ossie Davis’ charm and Bruce Campbell’s comedic timing carry it over those hurdles. (3 / 5)

Ghostwatch (Live Experience): It’ll never recapture its broadcast’s shock factor. That said the live experience added lots of atmosphere and Ghostwatch remains a well-photographed, piece of TV history. (3 / 5)

Watcher: Maika Monroe can do no wrong. The forced final coda and the movie’s slow pace don’t keep it from being an effective gaslighting thriller. (3.5 / 5)

The Harbinger: A dark lament for those we lost (and now seemingly have forgotten) during the Pandemic. With one of the year’s most frightening villains. (3.5 / 5)

Huesera: The excellent cast and effective direction anchor this creepy story about societal expectations’ impact on motherhood. My favourite new release from the festival. (3.5 / 5)

Evil Dead 2: 35 years later almost nothing tops Evil Dead 2’s sheer energy, enthusiasm, and imagination.  (4.5 / 5)

Shorts

And what were Celluloid Scream’s short highlights?

Comedy: The pooch slasher Good Boy, werewolf howler The Wilds and the sweet personal favourite Unicorn all provided some much-needed laughs.

Drama: The bitterly depressing Everybody Goes to the Hospital and the gothic Memento Mori animation effectively made us empathise with our fellow human beings.

Historical: Facies (El Semblante) was a horrific look at the torture inflicted during witch trials.

Conclusion

2022 was another great year for Sheffield’s perennial horror festival. Even if the features didn’t hit the highs of last year the new experiences, great shorts, atmosphere and standout moments left me hungry for more. 2023 can’t come soon enough.

Also Read: Screaming Again: Celluloid Screams 2021

Your contribution to Big Picture Film Club will allow us to continue to produce content. No matter the amount your contributions are greatly appreciated.

The post Celluloid Screams 2022: Screaming For More appeared first on Big Picture Film Club.

In a dilapidated nursing home, we find an elderly Elvis Presley – poor, unhappy and very, very bitter. Understandably when meeting Elvis people tend to say that Elvis is dead – at which point Elvis will explain he switched places with the best Elvis impersonator in the business. It was the impersonator who died in 1977 leaving the real Elvis in the role of Sebastian Haff, the impersonator. Already an interesting premise but then things are taken up a notch – it turns out an ancient Egyptian mummy is killing the residents of the nursing home by eating their souls, meaning that the victims will not go to the afterlife. Elvis teams up with another resident, Jack, who incidentally believes themselves to be President John F Kennedy, to fight the mummy before their souls are destroyed.

In Front Of the Camera

Cult legend Bruce Campbell stars as Elvis Presley and Sebastian Haff. Campbell is probably best known for playing Ash in the Evil Dead films and has appeared in everything from the X-Files, Fargo, and Xena: Warrior Princess. Jack is played by Ossie Davis – probably best known for playing Da Mayor in Do The Right Thing – who while very good this is entirely Campbell’s film. It’s worth pointing out that Jack is black and that JFK was white and this is addressed in the film.

The Title

Bubba Ho-Tep is an unusual title and the opening shot of the film is a definition of both the words Bubba and Ho-Tep. “Bubba” being someone from the south of America, a good ole boy and Ho-Tep being the name of a particular Egyptian dynasty, he is called Bubba because the mummy wears cowboy boots and a silly hat.

Behind The Scenes

The film is directed by Don Coscarelli who aside from this film is best known for directing Phantasm, and its many sequels, The Beastmaster and most recently John Dies At The End. The film is based on a novella by Joe R Lansdale, a writer known for works with odd premises – such as Elvis fighting a mummy.

Does It Work?

Bubba Ho-Tep is a brilliant film. There is no irony in this judgement, it’s not “so bad it’s good”, don’t just think because of its unusual premise it is anything other than a truly outstanding film. As a bizarre cult horror-comedy, it is very good but it goes far beyond that. As well as being about Elvis fighting a mummy it is about ageing, leading a good life, the perils of fame, lost love, fighting for life, being yourself. The best scene in the film and one of my favourite all-time scenes is the flashback scene where Elvis switches places with Sebastian Haff. What Elvis had, and what he gives up, is the dream of millions. He is rich, famous and successful beyond any comprehension of someone deciding to be a musician. One of the few people who can be identified, without any confusion, by their first name, a person who could legitimately be the most famous of the 20th Century. And he gives it up to play in small venues as an Elvis impersonator.

Bruce Campbell gives the performance of his career. An actor who has had a distinctly unusual career he rarely gets the opportunity to shine like this. The emotional journey of Elvis, and the audience, is something quite moving. He starts bitter, resentful of what he lost, what he could have had and over the course of the handful of days in which the film is set becomes a better person.

The film is somewhat absurd, purposefully so, and there is much said about whether Elvis and Jack are the people they think they are. As Elvis is the narrator we assume he is indeed Elvis. Jack’s story that instead of being assassinated he was switched out, a part of his brain removed and made to look to be a different race is bizarre so the audience, and Elvis, are skeptical. But, of course, Elvis’ story is equally ridiculous. Ultimately whoever these people “really” are is secondary to that they really believe and act in that way.

A lot of the film is concerned with ageing and being old. Elvis and Jack are far past their prime, Elvis using a zimmer frame and Jack sometimes a wheelchair, they are tired and sleepy, a lot of their strength gone. As we have Elvis’ inner monologue we learn that he has essentially decided he is in an irreversible state of decline, unable to do many everyday tasks without help. Their opinions are dismissed, they are talked down to, and no one believes them (admittedly it’s hard to believe a person who tells you they’re Elvis). Elvis is also full of regret, feeling he squandered his great talent and did not focus on the important things. In a sense, the mummy revitalises Elvis, his confidence and positivity return, and instead of seeing himself as frail and helpless takes action. When they learn about the mummy both Jack and Elvis decide the only thing they can do is to move to a different nursing home and therefore leaving the mummy to continue preying on the residents. After some introspection, Elvis comes to the conclusion that it is up to him and Jack to deal with this and his friend agrees. Perhaps it’s because they see themselves as these extraordinary figures from history that gives them the courage to fight but I’d say that whoever they really are, whatever their past really is, their extraordinariness lies in confronting this evil when they could easily run away.

Rating: (5 / 5)

Bubba Ho-Tep is a masterpiece, the most precious of the undiscovered gems of cinema.

Also Read: Rotten Tomatoes: Citizen Kane & Paddington 2 Fight For The Top Spot

Your contribution to Big Picture Film Club will allow us to continue to produce content. No matter the amount your contributions are greatly appreciated.

The post Retro Review: Bubba Ho-Tep appeared first on Big Picture Film Club.

Martin Scorsese / Leonardo DiCaprio

This duo first appeared in 2002 with “Gangs of New York” and have produced four feature films together since, with two more in development as well as a promotional short. While this partnership has not produced as many films as Scorsese’s other famous partnership with Robert DeNiro, it is arguably more varied, with their collaborations including genres like crime, comedy (“The Wolf of Wall Street”)and biopic (“The Aviator”), with Leo helping the director win his first Oscar with his role in “The Departed”

Interestingly it was actually DeNiro who introduced the pair, after having worked with DiCaprio previously, DeNiro sang the young actors praises and that Scorsese needed to work with him, with the director referred to as “extraordinary fortune” and that they wanted to make movies the same way

Christopher Nolan / Michael Caine

When Christopher Nolan turned up at Micheal Caine’s house, he was initially going to turn down the part of Alfred, Batman’s loyal butler, as serving dinner and coffee didn’t really appeal to the veteran actor. Then he read the script and quickly changed his mind, noting that he had “written great parts for real actors“.

Michael Caine is a prolific actor who has been in the business for over sixty years, so it’s fair to say he recognises talent when he sees it, and that’s exactly why he keeps partnering up with Nolan. Since “Batman Begins” in 2005, Nolan has included him in every one of his films, with a small voice cameo in “Dunkirk” being the only time he hasn’t appeared in person.

Sam Raimi / Bruce Campbell

Raimi and Campbell have been friends since high school, making short films in their spare time. They eventually convinced some dentists to invest in their first feature “Evil Dead” and both of them became cult horror icons.

Bruce Campbell has gone on to have roles in various fan favourite projects, but aside from his role as Ash Williams, he is also known for his memorable cameos in various Raimi movies, especially his Spider-Man trilogy, appearing in various roles through the series. If Spider-Man 4 had ever gone into production, Campbell would once again appear, this time as the villain Mysterio.

Guillermo Del Toro / Doug Jones

Possibly the least recognisable duo on this list, not due to the body of work, but because Doug Jones’ face is often hidden behind hours worth of prosthetics, with his first big break actually being a McDonald’s ad. He first met Del Toro on the director’s English language debut “Mimic“. Despite the films’ troubled production, the two became friends, bonding over their love of monsters and movies.

Jones has appeared in all of Del Toro’s films since the original “Hellboy”, except for “Pacific Rim”, with his biggest arguably being the creature in Del Toro’s “Shape of Water” which won an Oscar for Best Picture.

Matthew Vaughn / Mark Strong

Some partnerships happen because of a pre-existing friendship or a recommendation. Some just happen because the pair find each other easy to work with, as is the case with Director Matthew Vaughn and actor Mark Strong.

The pair have worked together four times since their first collaboration in 2007’s “Stardust” with Strong only being absent for X-Men First Class. Having previously played villainous characters in “Stardust” and “Kick-Ass” he plays Merlin in the “Kingsman” films, in which he is a member of the super-secret spy organisation.

Wes Anderson / Bill Murray

Murray has worked with Anderson since his second feature “Rushmore”. Anderson sent him the script with no expectations, then had an executive leave their own office while Murray talked to him about the role. His role in “The Royal Tenenbaums” happened simply because Murray lived close to the shoot, the two talked about “The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou”.

Murray and Anderson have such a good rapport, that he instantly says yes when the director calls, no matter the project. He must get the call a lot as Murray has appeared in all of Anderson’s film since, totalling eight, with some being important parts, and others just wordless cameos.

Quentin Tarantino / Samuel L Jackson

Tarantino has several actors that he frequently collaborates with, which he refers to as his “Tarantino superstars“. However. he clearly has a favourite, Samuel L Jackson, whom he frequently writes roles in mind for. The admiration goes both ways, as Jackson cites some of his roles in Tarantino’s films as his favourites.

Jackson has appeared in 6 of Tarantino’s 9 films (Tarantino considers “Kill Bill” one film, and Jackson does not feature in “Once upon a time in Hollywood”). He actually auditioned for “Reservoir Dogs” but didn’t get the part, when he saw Tarantino again later at the premiere, the director told him he was writing something for him, which would turn out to be his Oscar-nominated role in “Pulp Fiction”.

Also Read: Video Nasties: The History of Censored Films in the UK

The post Dynamic Duos: Iconic Actor/ Director Match-Ups appeared first on Big Picture Film Club.