Bria Lou Reviews

  Pinocchio, a wooden doll, will do whatever it takes to become a real boy. Even if his actions have deadly consequences. The newest instalment of the Twisted Childhood Universe (TCU)! I get so excited each time a new film in the franchise gets released, and they're getting progressively better, which is a major plus! I liked this film for what it was - and every single person involved in making it knows exactly what it is, which is great! The design of Pinocchio is really interesting, particularly the progression of this, the way he changes as he experiences different things and how he becomes a horror figure. The story, as I'd probably say for all TCU movies, is really original and creative. Even the ones that weren't good had a starting point of taking these classic childhood stories and adding original horror twists to them. This one spent time developing and allowing the audience to get to know the characters, which is something that was missing from some of the previo...

I'd never heard of this film, and the premise didn't give too much away, but knowing the director and main actor, and reading about the controversies when it was initially released, I knew it would probably be a weird one.  I didn't love this one.  From the very first scene it's definitely shocking in a variety of ways, from the way it's filmed, to what actually happens. It's really interesting to think about how often grief is used as the main theme for a horror movie. It evokes such complex, varied emotions, which can make it the perfect backdrop to pair with horror - it's a form of horror in itself. The actors have great chemistry and play a believable couple. It's not the easiest film to get into or connect with. We're kept at a distance from the characters because of the closeness of their relationship, and so much of what happens feels unreal to the point that it's hard to connect to. There's a lot of fantastical, surreal imagery, which...

I'd probably heard of this film before, but I had no idea it was based on 'The Haunting of Hill House' novel, so that was intriguing. I didn't love the Netflix adaptation but that didn't make me feel apprehensive about this one. I liked this film a lot.  The opening is great. It does a good job of showing the house's history in a way that's interesting and compelling to watch. It's nice that we get to spend a bit of time with the characters before we get into the main plot. Speaking of the characters, they're well written and fun to follow. Eleanor in particular is fascinating and gives 'Janet Leigh in Psycho' vibes.  The way the characters interact is really fun to watch. Their personalities are so distinct and interesting that at times you forget you're watching a horror movie. The characters are at least as interesting as the story, if not more so.  The film does a great job of creating the horrors. We're in the same position as th...

  A piano tuner's (Leo Woodall) life is turned upside down when he discovers a talent for cracking safes. I hadn't heard much about this film when it first came out, and I couldn't work out what the film was actually about from the premise, so it wasn't one that I was particularly excited about. So I was surprised that I ended up really liking the movie! You're invested from the very start. You get to know the characters quickly, you care about them almost right away, and you feel a connection with them that makes it easy to follow their journeys. I loved the relationship between the characters played by Woodall and Dustin Hoffman. It's a unique friendship that really grounds the movie. But all of the characters have great relationships and it's really lovely to see them develop as the story continues. It's really engaging, and also a lot sweeter than I expected. But it's also really entertaining. There are some deeper ideas and sadder scenes here, b...

  It was announced a few months ago that this film will be getting a remake, so even though I didn't know much about it, the announcement suddenly made me really interested in seeing it. Plus, with the recent news about Sam Neill (I'm writing this, and watching this, less than a week after his death) it seemed like the best time to finally give this one a go. I don't know if I can really say that I 'liked' or 'enjoyed' this movie, but I'm definitely glad I've seen it. It starts from a really odd place compared to your typical horror movie - it definitely feels like a drama at first. We're dropped into the middle of an impending divorce with no idea who anyone is or whose side to be on, if anyone. It forces the viewer to let their guard down and actually get into the story, rather than thinking about where the plot will go. The actors are so fantastic. Sam Neill and Isabelle Adjani go toe-to-toe amazingly well in some of the early scenes, it's...

  This is the oldest movie on the bucket list, and the only silent film, so I was really looking forward to seeing it - I'd never seen a silent horror film before and had no idea how it would work or if the horror would come through. The first version of the film that I found on Amazon Prime had a voice over, which felt really jarring, not least because the movie is billed as a silent film.  When I switched over to the proper silent version, it really made it clear why the film is told in this medium. There's something really powerful about only hearing the score. It changes the atmosphere of the film and gives it the undertones of horror that make it work well.  One of the most important things about the film is the visuals. The filming style is really unique and adds to the tone the story creates.  And then there's the story itself, which is great, particularly once you've seen the end. The way everything comes together is so much fun and the story is told really w...