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Reviews & Commentary by Adam Groves
DROWNING BY NUMBERS
Three women, all named Cissy, drown their husbands in one of the most inscrutable (and bizarrely entertaining) films made by the UK’s Peter Greenaway
THE HITCHER (1986)
A true slasher classic from the eighties
JOHNNY MNEMONIC
A film that was forecast to be a revolutionary melding of cyberpunk and mainstream sensibilities, but is best viewed nowadays as a dry run for THE MATRIX
A KARATE CHRISTMAS MIRACLE
A film whose “qualities” are summed up by its title
A VERY NUTTY CHRISTMAS
One of the weirder Lifetime movies I’ve seen, offering a cockeyed inversion of THE NUTCRACKER and a message that fully lives up to the “nutty” designation: that true holiday cheer is possible only through the intercession of a doll in human form
THE NIHILESTHETE
An altogether unique novel that fascinates and annoys in equal measure
BETWEEN NINE AND NINE
Austria’s late, great Leo Perutz demonstrated incalculable range in BETWEEN NINE AND NINE, his comedic and fantastic second novel
THE CASE OF THE TWO STRANGE LADIES
A full blast of dementia from Harry Stephen Keeler involving a shocking double murder, multi-racial family ties and transposed heads
GENTLEMAN JUNKIE AND OTHER TALES OF THE HUNG-UP GENERATION
A 1961 Harlan Ellison short story collection that was, Ellison claimed, the book of his he loved the most
MANEATER
An example of the type of sci fi-tinged literary erotica that was pioneered by the late Essex House
GILLIAMESQUE
A “Pre-Posthumous Memoir” by the outspoken London-based cartoonist-turned-director Terry Gilliam, and everything you’d expect
NEUE SLOWENISCHE KUNST
From the underground publishing outfit Amok Books, a sumptuously designed art book about a most unique European art collective
THE EXOTIC ONES: THAT FABULOUS FILMMAKING FAMILY FROM MUSIC CITY, USA–THE ORMONDS
It’s hard to believe this large format hardcover is the first book devoted to the Ormonds, but I’m glad it’s finally here, and that it delivers on its promise
AESTHETIC DEVIATIONS: A CRITICAL VIEW OF AMERICAN SHOT-ON-VIDEO HORROR, 1984-1994
The first in-depth critical study of SOV horror, written by an author who really appreciates this stuff
THE EXORCIST LEGACY: 50 YEARS OF FEAR
A 50 year overview of an enduring classic, written by an author who was ideally suited for the job
Robert Towne: 1934-2024
Another important showbiz death? I’m afraid so…
Donald Sutherland: 1935-2024
In the category of underappreciated actors, the recently deceased Donald Sutherland looms rather hugely
On A FELADAT and BLINDPASSASJER
It’s a fact that much of the world’s most vital televised science fiction emerges from outside the US, and here are two examples
Roger Corman: 1926-2024
R.I.P.
JE T’AIME JE T’AIME vs. ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND
Was ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND (2004) directly inspired by JE T’AIME JE T’AIME (1968)? Most likely.