A big part of what makes “Ring: Kanzenban” oddly transfixing is how its VHS veneer gives a great throwback vibe for a 21st-century viewing.

Does “Drifter” take place in a post-apocalyptic near future or did the brothers take the wrong freeway exit to a trailer park outside of Victorville?

We are on approach to the third decade of the 21st-century and astonishingly, ‘women in horror’ is still regarded as novelty instead of norm.

“Shut In” is so paint-by-numbers and bland, even a Thomas Kinkade gallery would be embarrassed to display it.

“Capture Kill Release” doesn’t so much profile a descent into madness as it does the fracturing of a flawed marriage that happens to be framed around murder.

“Voodoo” is so wildly misconceived from idea to execution that it almost, almost, has ironic value as a batty curiosity of bizarreness.

“Meatball Machine” is a furious frenzy of “Turbo Kid” meets Troma mixing the maniac musicians of GWAR with the tiny terrors of Full Moon’s “Puppet Master” in full-size form.

It isn’t enough for an appreciative audience to fall in step with the film’s part Full Moon, part Troma, and part USA Up All Night style.

What starts as arm’s length intimacy gradually warms into an intriguing fireside chat about craftsmanship in the context of a specific career.

I find myself sounding like Krusty the Clown endorsing his eponymous burgers with the noncommittal comment, “I don’t mind the taste!"

“Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon” remains relevant, sharp, and the smartest satire of slasher films we’ll ever see.

I want to characterize “Dearest Sister” as a twisted take on a classic fable with an Asian frame, multicultural melodrama, and slightly supernatural twist culminating in a bloody climax.

Typical trappings of serial killer thriller meets haunted house chiller fight their way to the film’s frontlines more than anything meaningful does.

“Arbor Demon” is simply too sparse in both setup and staging to make a mark in the memory as a thriller whose teeth have bite.

I nearly overlooked “Eloise” because the title sounds like a screwball comedy with Melissa McCarthy in old age makeup playing a goofy granny.

Los Angeles can’t keep it together when the Lakers win a championship. As if the city could be this calm when facing impending Armageddon.

A predominantly two-person exorcism/haunting story done on a dime doesn’t stand much chance of being a barnburner to begin with.

Many will find “iBoy” content with convention when it could unleash the kraken of its crazy concept if only it had flair or ferocity.

Even with some dull stretches and dodgy dot-connecting, there remains a witchiness in its air that keeps “Don’t Knock Twice” creepily compelling.

Creative energy puts fun into the frights, capturing the kind of ‘anything goes’ enthusiasm that makes us want to see two franchises fused in the first place.