FrightFest

Well directed, pretty good performances (Samara Weaving was terrific, I loved the line about her three favourite bands), lots of manic action, entertaining enough while it lasts... but I just didn't connect with it at all. The plot is so shallow, with the "virus" - so wildly inconsistent in its effe...

Ultimately, this event isnt a charity. There are overheads that have to be met and part of that comes from single tickets. You're right, it's not a charity. We're paying £195 for a weekend pass and I had a vague inkling it wasn't a donation. As for the sales of single tickets, judging by the number...

And PM sent in reply.

Well spotted, TheDukeAbides!

Well what a shower of fucking shit that was. After 75 minutes of clicking on ever-shifting orange dots and being greeted with "you need to select a ticket", "some of the seats you've selected are not available", "that seat has been reserved by someone else" or "an error has occurred, please try agai...

Not so smooth for me, I clicked on the link the second it appeared but somehow almost the whole of the centre block had already disappeared. How does that happen? Ended up way out in one of the side blocks. Oh well. I'll just have to hope all the good stuff happens on the left hand side of the scree...

In the Arrow screen we had a few "frequent walkers" in the first 5-6 rows. People who I discovered were walking in and out in every single movie. I was sitting in that part of the Arrow screen and you're right, there were a few people who frequently turned up halfway through a film, decided it was ...

Meanwhile, back at the Main screens, large numbers of seats at many of the films were empty because people were more interested in seeing (better?) alternatives in the Discovery screens. That guaranteed seat for the weekend becomes something of an irrelevance . Not if you're in a group. I like the ...

I've just been discussing the Main vs Discovery screens situation again with my brother and I'm really starting to wonder if it's time for something to change. Booking for FrightFest is essentially the same as it's always been - we pay for a guaranteed seat in a Main screen, for the whole weekend. B...

The gold standard should be 2008 which included Eden Lake , Time Crimes , Mum & Dad , The Chaser , Let the Right One In and Martyrs . Gosh yes, that was a good year! Although I'm sure there was some dross as well if I could be bothered to look it up.... what year was Bubba's Chili Parlor ?

I wonder if we'll eventually gravitate towards a system more like the London Film Festival, with no "Main" or "Discovery" screens but with a number of films showing simultaneously, and you'd just pick (in advance?) what you wanted to see. Regardless of if it changes, I'll be doing a lot more resear...

The thing is, what the men in suits who decide to make these offers don't realise, is that the prestige attached to Main Screen isn't what it once was because the Discovery Screen offerings get stronger every year. But horror festival/West End(usually)/premiere/Main Screen obviously still curries s...

This has always been a bit of an issue (except for those who can live on beer and hot dogs for five days). I can remember some years where there was barely an adequate food gap all weekend, but last year it seemed to be sorted out and (as I recall) there was at least one decent 75 to 90 minute gap e...

For me, picking and choosing begins with sub-genre - I'll start with the Discovery Screens and easy ones were Giallo - Francesca, Pseudo & Real Documentaries - Hostage to the Devil, Population Zero, Fury of the Demon, & The Killing of America, UFO conspiracy - Man Underground, and Controversy - We ...

Top 5

1. Train to Busan
2. They Call Me Jeeg Robot
3. Beyond the Gates
4. The Windmill Massacre
5. Broken

Bottom 5

1. Blood Feast
2. Abattoir
3. From a House on Willow Street
4. Mercy
5. Red Christmas

As usual, I didn't see anything on the Discovery screens... probably a mistake this year.

To go off on a slight tangent, were there any SCARY films this year? I know what we find scary is a personal thing - for me it's the gradual building of tension, that haunted house sensation of knowing that something is going to happen but you don't know when. And absolutely nothing this year gave m...