Viewers will see the plot’s pieces sitting in plain sight in the form of Chekhov’s remote cabin, Chekhov’s electronic necklace, even Chekhov’s vacuum cleaner.

The straightforward path isn't as creatively intriguing as a road where an edgier alternative might have taken the movie.

"Renfield" handles chaotic fight scenes and domestic drama with much more panache than it handles the hammy humor and formulaic plot points.

All of the references to Mexican mythology or Spanish scares are organically incorporated and universally accessible to all audiences.

Fitting the textbook definition of an average thriller, “Passenger” seems like ordinary “quota” work to fill in a mandatory line on a corporate spreadsheet.

On top of outstanding acting and unnerving shocks, “Obsession” has attracted so much attention because of how universally resonant it can be.

Although it’s not the Hasbro horror movie some seem to think, “Hungry” gets in, gets out, and gets its job done.

“The Bride” is what an experimental film looks like when it’s crafted by longtime Hollywood professionals deciding to do something without a complete blueprint.

Emerging as average fodder for some streaming service’s black hole of common content, it’s generous to score “Deep Water” down the middle at 50/100.

An objective perspective not drunk on cult Kool-Aid will tell you it’s a tepid, two-hour trip into exhausting dreariness.

The good news for fans of 2021’s “Mortal Kombat” is the same as the bad news for anyone who didn’t care for that first film: “Mortal Kombat II” is more of the same.

Damian McCarthy’s third feature “Hokum” shows the filmmaker fine-tuning his personal formula for disturbing descents into darkness even further.

The experience feels a lot like flipping through late-night TV at a time when loud guys in cowboy hats and blinking 1-800 numbers dominated ad breaks.

As a mummy movie, “Lee Cronin’s The Mummy” is decidedly meh.  As a demonic possession movie, “Lee Cronin’s The Mummy” is still mostly mediocre.

Creepy streaks keep the film’s head above water as straightforward horror regardless if the underlying context is real or fake.

It could scratch a small itch for competent cult-related chills whose low stakes don’t demand a high investment of attention.

Between the interactive experience and the passive one, the most immersive, meaningful, and memorable of the two is the movie.

“They Will Kill You” plays less like a fully-fleshed feature and more like a demo reel for staging stunts and coming up with creative camera movements.

A group of cosplayers are summoned to a hillside in Calabasas, California, to see who is the most passable LARPer, each with weird wigs and Party City props.