Set the intention to watch more films this year. Here’s how it’s going so far…

So Vam – 2021
Cheap but charming, flawed but ambitious and endearingly sincere, this debut feature from teen trans film-maker Alice Maio Mackay tells the story of teen outcast Kurt as he becomes part of a gang of queer vampire rebels who feed on homophobes, bigots and abusers. Painfully under-funded and it shows, but it’s a clear labour of love from the entire cast and crew.

Influencer – 2022
Slick, tense thriller set across a series of gobsmackingly gorgeous locations that bely the deception, menace and violence underneath. Took some unexpected twists and turns that mean we only get a superficial understanding of any of the characters, but that comes across as intentional; a comment on the artificiality of social media and the danger of taking those around us at face value.

Sissy – 2022
Fun, imaginative Australian indie-horror that follows mental health influencer Sissy as she bumps into her childhood best friend Emma and gets invited on her hen weekend. Surrounded by Emma’s new friends, feeling uncertain and self-conscious, Sissy only learns on the journey there that her former bully Alex is hosting the celebration. Cue a chaotic, pitch-perfect descent into gruesome violence of the accidental and pre-meditated varieties along with some poignant commentary on how precarious and precious someone’s online reputation can be, the legacies of childhood trauma, exclusion and bullying.

Kiki’s Delivery Service – 1989
Comfortingly sugary early Studio Ghibli release featuring a young witch and her sassy talking black cat embarking on a rite of passage; relocating from their home village to spend a year in a far-away city and building her understanding of all that this entails (connection to community, entrepreneurial imagination, determination, creativity, self-reliance and defiance).

Bodies Bodies Bodies – 2022
Queer, smart, daft and dark, this slasher takes a classic horror trope — a group of friends trapped in a remote mansion during a storm, a gone-wrong party game resulting in a dead body, not knowing if barricading the doors or windows means you’re locking the killer in or out — and brings it into our contemporary world of social media superficiality and self-curation, fake friendships, bitterness and betrayal. Funny, bloody and fantastically entertaining.

All of Us Strangers – 2023
Over-hyped but still a beautiful, quietly heart-breaking portrayal of queer grief, loss, loneliness, and what it is to be haunted. Paul Mescal was a highlight as Harry.

Wild – 2014
I’ve read the book of Cheryl Strayed’s journey along the Pacific Coast Trail numerous times, but somehow hadn’t seen the adaptation until now. Nothing can match the raw guts, grief and beauty of Strayed’s writing, but this was a solid, heartfelt attempt that I’m glad I finally got round to.

American Fiction – 2023
Someone erroneously told me this was a true story and I totally believed it. Follows the experiences of author Monk who, frustrated with finding his classics novels filed under African-American fiction, uses a pen name for a furious piss-take novel of the most ludicrous and offensive Black stereotypes… and then has the publishing industry go absolutely bonkers for it. Perfectly captures the hypocrisy of the industry and tells a nuanced story of family, loss and connection at the same time. Funny, poignant, brilliant. Jeffrey Wright is a treasure from start to finish.

Near Dark – 1987
Hadn’t even heard of this one until a client recommended it, then discovered it came out the same week as Lost Boys and was essentially dead on arrival, but appropriately enough has since had another life claiming cult classic status amongst its fans. In a backwoods Texan town, a farmhand gets bitten by beautiful drifter, and from there shit hits the fan in this dark genre mash-up of horror, western and road trip tropes, which has some incredibly committed performances by a stellar cast, some great visuals, a violent bar-room showdown to rival From Dusk ‘Til Dawn and some strangely sweet found family moments.

Iris – 2014
A reverential (veering into myopic) study of the 93-year-old ‘geriatric starlet’, following her as she sorts through clothes, accessories, artwork and other belongings collected during her global travels, does interviews and events and shares her reflections on her life, career, marriage and inimitable style. No real depth or meaningful scrutiny, but for anyone into fashion there’s probably enough visual stimuli to forgive its lack of substance.

Sirens – 2022
Screened at Mosh Film Festival, this documentary follows the journey of Slave to Sirens, an all-female thrash metal band based in Beirut. Taking place against a backdrop of Lebanese conflict and revolution, the film focuses on the tempestuous relationship between the band’s guitarists and co-founders, Lilas and Sherry, charting their rage, grief and frustration they experience with their environment, familial and cultural conditioning, the music industry, and each other. Although I’d have loved more of a holistic dive into the band’s story, development and evolution, Lilas and Sherry’s fearlessness, tenacity and defiance is a fortifying and ultimately hopeful experience.

Heavy Metal – 1981
Another one watched at Mosh: animated acid-trip anthology of sci-fi and fantasy stories linked through their connection to a sinister force-of-evil orb. Just as batshit as it sounds, totally of its era and easy to understand how its hallucinatory visuals and banging classic-rock soundtrack contributed to its cult following.

The Crow – 1994
30th anniversary screening. I hadn’t seen it since sometime in the 90s, and at the time I loved its darkness, fever-dream effects and grungy aesthetic (later realising it was based on a comic book made a lot of sense). Sadly didn’t hold up on rewatch; long, slow and dated, but I’d forgotten Laurence Mason was in it, and being reminded of his role as joyfully psychotic knife-wielding Tin-Tin was a highlight.

Problemista – 2023
Julio Torres only crossed my radar earlier this year with his deliciously strange TV series Fantasamas, but going back to Torres’ directorial feature debut Problemista was also a treat, featuring Torres as a broke would-be toy designer in NYC who — on losing his job caring for a cryogenically frozen artist and facing deportation if he can’t cover his ludicrous visa fees or find another employer to finance them — becomes a freelance assistant for the artist’s demanding and erratic wife, a character played with predictably unhinged commitment and aplomb by Tilda Swinton. It’s weird, sad, surreal and brilliantly unique.

Love Lies Bleeding – 2024
Sexy, gory, atmospheric and tense, Kristen Stewart remains incredible in this tale of bodybuilding, violence, obsession and queer co-dependence. Visually gorgeous and a killer soundtrack too.

I Saw the TV Glow – 2024
Slowly and quietly horrifying, and ultimately deeply upsetting. But I was into the dreamy visuals, the intense soundtrack and all the Buffy references.

S/he is Still Her/e – 2024
Totally hypnotic, innovative and immersive documentary exploring the radical, complicated life, work and legacy of Genesis P-Orridge, following their journey through the worlds of art, music, performance and the occult, including intimate interviews with Genesis, family, friends and former collaborators alongside a dazzling array of archive footage of public appearances and performances and material from behind the scenes. Put together with clear care, vision and imagination, it’s a loving tribute to a provocative, fearless figure facing their own epic history and mortality.

Bottoms – 2023
Saw it in the cinema last year, loved it then and even more on rewatch. Two queer teen best friends start a fight club to try and shag cheerleaders. Totally unhinged in the best possible way.

All About My Mother – 1999
This beautifully-done Almodóvar classic is one I’ve been intending to get round to since its initial release, and — 25 years later (it’s a bad habit of mine to miss things at the time they come out then continue missing out for decades more) — I’m glad I finally did. A funny, moving and heartfelt tribute to motherhood and womanhood in all its forms.

Late Night with the Devil – 2024
Found-footage horror based on the supposed master tapes and behind-the-scenes footage of a late-night seventies talk show, Night Owls. Facing falling ratings and possible cancellation, Night Owls host Jack Delroy — played to perfection by David Dastmalchian — is pulling out all the stops for a special Halloween episode, including attempting a demon summoning live on air. I loved the concept, format and aesthetic of this — real-time and found-footage films are deffo my jams — and although I can see why the ending had polarised reviews, overall the unsettling atmosphere and building dread had me hooked.

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice – 2024
A comfortingly nostalgic and fun return to the universe of the 1988 cult original, there were a lot of missed opportunities and questionable plot choices in this (I wanted far more of Lydia Deetz’s Ghost House and those frenzied chase scenes through the underworld), but it was still enjoyable to revisit some beloved characters and classic Tim Burton iconography.

Spree – 2020
Chaotic but chillingly believable found-footage horror about a sociopathic streamer desperate to go viral who realises a murderous rampage is one way to get the attention and notoriety he longs for. Told almost entirely through social media streams, it’s a joy to see Joe Keery (aka Steve Harrington from Stranger Things) in the lead role as rideshare driver and wannabe influencer Kurt, balancing the character’s violence, awkwardness and vulnerability in a way that gives the entire film far more charm and nuance than it would’ve had otherwise.

Shiva Baby – 2020
Enjoying Bottoms so much made me want to go back and check out Emma Seligman’s feature directorial debut, a darkly funny but claustrophobic film about a bisexual Jewish woman attending a shiva with her parents and unexpectedly encountering her sugar daddy, his wife and their screaming baby, along with assorted family members and her ex-girlfriend. Played to messy perfection by Rachel Sennott in the lead role of Danielle, it’s a stressful but smart watch that captures in real time how impossible certain environments can be when we have elements of ourselves we’re keeping hidden.

Buffy – 1992
I’d never seen the original film that preceded the TV series, but some obsessive friends recently insisted I rectify this oversight. Unashamedly ridiculous, with cute early performances from some recognisable faces, and a hilariously show-stealing turn from Paul Reubens as vampire king henchman Amilyn.

Urban Legend – 1998
Loved this campy slasher in my younger years, and a recent rewatch confirmed it mostly stands the test of time. A blatant but effective attempt to capitalise on the commercial success of Scream, it features students on a New England college campus being terrorised by a serial killer whose murders are inspired by urban legends. Totally responsible for my teen crushes on Joshua Jackson and Tara Reid and the rewatch reawakened both. Related: this essay about how urban legends and lore about local spooky shit illuminate our universal vulnerabilities and humanity.

The Outrun – 2024
Brilliant. Innovative. Brutal. Beautiful. Based on Amy Liptrot’s memoir of the same name, it tells the story of Rona, a young woman just out of rehab and scrambling to keep her tenuous grip on her health and sanity while navigating a return to her native Orkney Islands after a decade away. An lovingly unflinching and imaginative exploration of addiction and recovery that uses wild landscapes and immersive soundscapes in totally spellbinding ways.

Haunt Season – 2024
Endearingly earnest indie horror set in the Halloween haunt attraction of suburban theme park, where the lines between staged horrors and real terror get blurred when a masked killer starts murdering the haunt’s actors. Solid concept and setting, with some tense chase scenes and gruesome kills, but this review got it right when it recognised Haunt Season seems unsure if it’s a slasher or something else.

In the Loop – 2009
Black comedy spin-off of Armando Ianucci’s The Thick Of It, satirising British-American politics. Fast, fun and clever, it’s always a joy to see Peter Capaldi’s portrayal of Malcolm Tucker, and I can totally see how this film was the bridge between The Thick Of It and one of my all-time favourite series, Veep, with the same brilliant writing, setting and even a few familiar faces among the cast.

Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale – 2010
On Christmas Eve in Finland, a mysterious archaeological dig in the icy mountains excavates something sinister: the frozen form of Santa Claus. A mate described this action comedy horror to me as “Home Alone meets Die Hard with evil Santa set in Lapland” which pretty much sums it up. Weird, fun, features some amazing snowy landscapes and the kid actor who plays lead character Pietari is a treasure.

I’ll be continuing to update this page as 2024 continues. Got a film you reckon I’d love? Get in touch and tell me about it.