Author: Joel Fisher

Eliza (Camilla Rodriguez) and Roe (Roe Dunkley) are a couple who have gone through some tough times. Eliza especially has a lot of past trauma to deal with, although Roe has been the one person she was able to rely on and help her trust again.

Finding a place online, they think the time is right to have a break, so Roe books their accommodation and they set out to a place far away. There they meet William (Vincent De Paul), a seemingly nice man, but someone with an air of mystery about him which left him disturbed.

However, Eliza and Roe want to make the best of their time alone together, although as soon as they find out what William has been doing in his spare time, they decide to get out of there as soon as they can.

The Welder is an atmospheric horror movie directed by David Liz and co-written by Manuel Delgadillo. Presented as a cross between Get Out and The Island of Doctor Moreau, William’s true intentions aren’t revealed until the final act of the movie. This helps to build the tension slowly as the audience may start to speculate on what’s behind his basement door.

Rodriguez and Dunkley have good chemistry and make for a believable couple and De Paul’s performance is suitably deranged, managing to stop short of being a parody. There’s also a very disturbing performance from Crist Moward as William’s employee, Don which helps to forward the social commentary. Something which divides viewers usually is well handled and those looking for blood and gore will be eventually rewarded.

That’s because as the movie reaches its final act, the tone changes completely. Although audiences will be aware that The Welder is a horror movie, it may suit those more interested in effects and body horror.

Saying that though, the reveal of what’s really going on in William’s mind manages to maintain the overall message of the movie without coming across as too jarring. However, there’s a confusing shift in Eliza’s story and sadly by the end it may undermine what the movie wanted to say.

Jaclyn (Malin Akerman) is lonely and desperate to have a baby. She thought she was doing fine, but then she sees her ex with his new wife and their baby and it opens up old wounds. Sharing her regrets with her friends, Molly (Erinn Hayes) and Amandine (Bria Henderson), a plan is soon hatched to make Jaclyn’s dream come true.

All they have to do is arrange a party and introduce her to some eligible bachelors. Then once she hits it off, they can donate to her baby fund the old fashioned way. However, the best laid plans rarely work especially when trying to get laid.

The Donor Party is an ensemble comedy written and directed by Thom Harp which not only serves as a sex comedy, but also talks about what it’s like to date in your forties. What seems to be a shaky premise at first turns into a comedy of errors which has a heart at its centre. Although it’s a shame that despite the many characters, director Harp doesn’t know what to do with all of them.

Having a comedy being about a group of people in this age range is unusual as well because those kinds of things are normally seen for the young. Comedies like American Pie and Booksmart seem to be about the start of getting into relationships and having sex for the first time. However, nobody really talks about what happens when you’ve done it all and still end up wanting more.

Unfortunately, this does mean that perhaps like Jaclyn, there really isn’t much of a focus on the goal. That’s because despite some great performances from Jerry O’ Connell and Jeff Torres, it doesn’t feel like The Donor Party knows what it wants to say to redeem its central character.

On the one hand you have a protagonist who the audience knows is going about things all wrong, but on the other the movie is trying to justify her actions right until the end.

There are some very nice moments which are well thought out and some laugh out loud characters. However, in the end Jaclyn doesn’t really feel like a character who’s learned anything.

Casey (Josh Lavery) is a young man setting out in Sydney for the first time. However, it’s not really his own choice because something happened in his small town which outed him and practically made him a pariah.

His parents are coming around to the revelation about his sexuality, but it’s clear from the messages that he gets from them that they have a way to go. So, Casey sets out to find somebody to stay with and meets Tib (Daniel Gabriel) and they find themselves starting a relationship. The trouble is that stepping into something so new for Casey may start to overwhelm him.

Lonesome is an Australian drama written and directed by Craig Boreham, telling a story about a gay man’s first real adult experiences in the city. Dressed in blue jeans, a white t shirt and a cowboy hat, Casey couldn’t stick out any more if he tried, and his nerves clearly come through.

However, this may be down to Lavery’s lack of experience as an actor because for the most part, Casey is a quiet and thoughtful character. This may help the audience to imprint what they believe he may be thinking onto him or to wonder what they’d do in his shoes. Although it may also distance them from him as the audience isn’t really given much to go on to make up their mind.

Lonesome is also an unfiltered look at a gay relationship and so audiences may have to decide what side they fall on in terms of what they want to see in such a movie. There is a lot of nudity and sex where some may see this is a true depiction of the many facets of a gay relationship, whereas others may tire of the gratuitous nudity.

There are themes of loneliness throughout the movie with Casey being the obvious focus and one crossed wire encounter with an older woman. However, it never really goes deeper than surface level to inform the audience properly as to what they should be thinking about Casey’s situation.

All in all though despite Casey’s cautiousness and concerns, it shows that connections are what he really needs.

June (Melissa Kay Anderson) is a Jamaican immigrant living in the US. She’s been there ten years and still has a strong accent and although her son, Leighton (Ian Smalls Jr.) has grown up in the States, she feels the time is right to bring him to where she was born. So, June and Leighton travel back to Jamaica and meet Grace (Kaci Hamilton) who welcomes them with open arms.

Getaway is a short drama about how a view of life in another country can change a person’s mind. Being a fair distance away from the US, there are certainly very different issues which affect people in different ways such as race and gun control. Something that somebody may not consider when it doesn’t directly affect them leaves an impact when even for a little while, doubts start to creep in.

Leighton shows that it’s affecting him too and at such a young age, no child should have to deal with drills that help children deal with the possibly of an armed intruder at a school.

Over the course of only twenty minutes, director Stephanie Malson lays out the story written by Malaika Paquiot and at first it feels like a gentle, feel-good drama reconnecting a mother and son with their heritage. However, thanks to Smalls Jr.’s performance, it brings out a real and unexpected depth when a little boy feels the need to express such worries which no child should face.

With only the time it has, perhaps the story could have been fleshed out a little further so that Leighton’s revelation becomes all the more shocking. However, Getaway does just enough to make the audience think.

There’s a good connection between the actors and the bond between mother and son feels real and authentic, making it all the more heart-breaking as the story progresses. Tales of warnings about gun control in America certainly aren’t new and this may not be the last one.

So, it turns out that a different perspective helps to bring home the message in a different way. One that perhaps the audience weren’t expecting.

Sr. Fettes or Vampus (Saturnino Garcia) is an old man who lives a secluded life outside of the realms of society. He gets visited every so often by nosy social media influencers who want to write about him, doctors who think he’s too old to be living by himself and even the police who want to know if he’s heard about their disappearances.

All Vampus wants to do is to be left alone to tell his stories about people who got too close and paid the price, even if it does mean a little killing along the way.

Vampus Horror Tales is a Spanish horror anthology which takes many writers and directors and lets them tell their own tales of terror. Four short stories are told and shot in beautiful black and white as they all play out from different perspectives.

Starting out with a bride and her ex on her wedding day which turns deadly, then a couple who go on a theme park ride which turns out to be their last, a man who kidnaps a blind woman and a pair who try to investigate a virus.

Each story is different from the last, although they do all seem to share a common theme outside of the horror genre. Stories about two people being stuck in an impossible situation take on many forms and for the most part they are original and thrilling with complete endings which doesn’t often happen in anthology films.

However, out of the four stories, one which tells of a blind woman as a victim is the weakest of the bunch. The tried and tested format of a disabled woman pleading for her life is a cliché and unoriginal. Although well played by both actors, it turns out to be predictable and nothing new.

Vampus is the one that holds it all together though and not unlike the Cryptkeeper, Vampus is an engaging and darkly enjoyable host as he uses dark humour to suitably set the tone. An anthology which may not entirely separate the voices of its writers and directors, but more Vampus would be a delight for old school horror fans.