ocosis Reviews

Trailer Town (2003)

Amazing beyond belief!

[10/10 · 22 July 2023]

Trailer trash waxing poetically in a way that Omar Sharif could only have ever dreamed of. The film is a deep sexual study and filled to the brim with some of the most beautiful emerging new American talent I've seen. I was so impressed with this film that I applied to be an astronaut. Other than that there's not much else to say. I'm now on my 13th beer and proud of it. I will say that it's films like this that make you feel like you're a a better person. I'm surprised this isn't a multi million dollar franchise. Forget Star Wars. Forget Rambo. Forget everything. Until you've seen Trailer Town you've never seen anything. And the dancing in the movie is fantastic.

Limbo (2021)

Grim crime noir.

[8/10 · 2 May 2023]

Finally got to watch this. Relentlessly grim and violent Hong Kong crime noir, shot in black and white, as 2 cops track down an insane serial killer. I watched it in Chinese, which I don't speak, and enjoyed it totally. The film and cinematography look great, and the main actress does an amazing job of putting herself through Hell, as do the three male leads. The fight scenes are brutal and intense. And grimy. It get's as close to a horror film as a crime noir can get. And the constant barrage of bad weather and polluted back streets of the city create an almost dystopian Hell, especially in the final act.

Recommended.

The Beasts (2022)

As Bestas.

[8/10 · 24 February 2023]

As Bestas is a realistic feeling and intense rural drama set in the northwest of Spain. It is very well handled and subtle, even though the atmosphere throughout is quite grim and dark. It is also quite believable. Two Spanish locals do not take Kindly to a new French couple in the area, and their constant baiting soon turns dangerous for the French farmer, as confrontations soon spiral out of control.

The settings are beautiful. But the film's harrowing aspect, especially because of the realism, makes for an uncomfortable watch. Great acting all round and As Bestas never falls into any obvious tropes.

Very effective and intelligent story telling.

Infinity Pool (2023)

'J'aaaaaaaaaaaaames'

[4/10 · 22 February 2023]

Mostly style over substance and not a shade on Cronenberg Jr's Possessor. The characters are all unbelievable and annoying. And the story is also far fetched and kind of ridiculous. It is nightmarish, I'll give it that. It's has echos of Wake In Freight and also Eyes Wide Shut. But as a story, it's not well enough executed and tends to rely on visual (over) effects and Brandon Cronenberg's trade mark ultraviolence. And Mia Goth's character just sounded like a spoilt brat half the time, that bordered on comedic. A lot of the script just didn't make sense.

But it's still worth checking out as it is a Cronenberg.

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975)

'Ahhh, Juicy Fruit.'

[9/10 · 15 February 2023]

Jack Nicholson when he was on his game, was amazing to watch. Such a charismatic and unique individual, with a sharp sense of humour and sarcasm. Can you imagine anyone else as Jack Torrance (The Shining) One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest was another example of Nicholson on peak form. And Randle McMurphy is a character that I'm sure many of us can relate to. I know I do.

Excellent dark humoured psychological drama, which is both funny and tragic. Great script and cast, direction, soundtrack, the lot. I've watched this movie numerous times, and it hasn't lost any of it's magic.

Classic Nicholson. And a classic film.

Venus (I) (2022)

Love it.

[8/10 · 14 February 2023]

Whoa! A LOT of blood, violence, gangsters, drugs, twisted witches and enough WTF moments. And lead Ester Expósito is gorgeous.

Also inspired by H. P. Lovecraft. This was a BLAST. Well directed and shot. Well acted and an interesting watch throughout. I watched it in Spanish and my Spanish is far from good. But Venus was easy enough to follow and has shades of Rosemary's Baby, Hellraiser, and even for some reason reminded me of Troma's Rabid Grannies, even though it is nothing like that. Venus is a solid film and I was glued. This was fun.

Highly recommended Spanish horror. From the director of REC.

Skinamarink (2022)

House Of Leaves.

[6/10 · 9 February 2023]

I just watched it, and I dug it. In many respects it reminded of the book House Of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski. A book that has a similar theme of a house that has rooms that constantly change, people disappear etc. And as someone that has grown up watching experimental films, as well as listening to and making experimental music, I thought the pace of the film was just right.

The power of suggestion is always a good thing, and the fact that there was little footage of actual people present here works well. It added to the sense of isolation in the house. The whispering too was a nice touch. The children sensed there was something there.

I also found the atmosphere throughout kind of relaxing. Maybe I'm just used now, to dark things.

Mad Dog Morgan (1976)

Mess of a film.

[5/10 · 1 February 2023]

With easily some of the worst editing I have seen in a movie, Mad Dog Morgan is a disjointed mess that is, more often than not, quite senseless. Chuck in a stoned Dennis Hopper, spouting a ridiculous Irish accent, while wearing an obviously fake beard, and we have ourselves a winner. And all of these above reasons are why I keep going back to this movie. It's so ridiculous. The script seems to have been blown away or was lost. Or whole chunks of the movie were scrapped, they went over budget or something. The direction is bad. But I'm eternally thankful this was the result.

Classic Australian gold.

All My Friends Hate Me (2021)

Funny and awkward.

[6/10 · 18 August 2022]

Either the main character here doesn't know himself, or his friends don't know him. All My Fiends Hate me is black comedy done well enough to make the viewer feel as if nothing here is making much sense. I just thought it was funny as hell.

Frank and Penelope (2022)

Not crazy enough.

[3/10 · 18 August 2022]

A road / desert movie that feels half baked at best. For real kooky characters in a similar vein, see David Lynch's Wild At Heart, or Tony Scott's True Romance, as these movies do this type of story line much, much better. I tried to like this movie. But it just felt bland.

The pee at the end was a nice touch.

Dashcam (I) (2021)

Inventive and chaotic.

[8/10 · 6 June 2022]

Dashcam is a totally nuts and frenetic ride. Violent, insane, gory and even funny and the main actress spews phrases like s**t on my dick constantly as her and a few others are pursued by demonic zombies. Crazy, high octane madness.

Crimes of the Future (2022)

Sex is surgery.

[7/10 · 3 June 2022]

In the future our bodies are mutating. And the suppression/manipulation of this has become high art. Even seen as highly erotic. Crimes Of The Future is a welcome return to David Cronenberg's universe of physical and dystopian horror.

Nightmarish and perfect Cronenberg.

Descent Into Darkness (2013)

Twisted.

[7/10 · 28 May 2022]

As movies about losing your mind goes, this felt very realistic. The main actor was nothing short of amazing. And as someone that has had his time with drinking and drugs and bad luck, this depiction of a fall into insanity seemed all too real.

The editing/direction here was some of the most sure-fire I've seen. There's no fat in this movie. And much is left to the imagination.

I'd been waiting some time to see this and WAS NOT disappointed.

Terrifier (2016)

Art The Clown having fun.

[6/10 · 24 May 2022]

Art The Clown shines in what is basically a low budget slasher with a slight Troma Films feel. It's trash and gore amped up, and Art is kind of freaky but inventive in his kills. So it's a fun watch.

Will be checking out the upcoming sequel for sure.

Go Art ( .'

The Nightmare (2015)

I love this.

[8/10 · 16 April 2022]

Just found a new favourite. The Nightmare. Kind of like a mix of E. T., Climax, and Basket Case. And for a film about a young woman losing her mind, it's a well handled and nice movie. It actually had me cheering towards the end. It's not for everybody. But I 💜 it.

Jackass Forever (2022)

Fake@$$.

[2/10 · 13 April 2022]

I think I laughed once. Everything felt forced. Knoxville especially. Compared to the low budget original MTV series, which like a lot of people that grew up with it I loved, this just isn't Jackass. And all the newbies here are just try hards.

R. I. P Jackass. I'll always love you for The Vomelet.

The Tribe (2014)

Cold.

[6/10 · 4 March 2022]

Cold hearted film centred around a Ukrainian school/community for the deaf, where prostitution and violence are the norm. It's a slow burn and takes some patience as all the communication is in sign language. Similar in tone to Thomas Clay's The Great Ecstasy of Robert Carmichael and Bartosz M. Kowalski's harrowing Playground. One to check out if you like grim and bleak cinema.

Last Radio Call (2022)

Hopefully.

[2/10 · 17 January 2022]

This was hyped up on social media, but I still jumped in pretty blind as to what it was about. Was surprised to see Sarah Froelich, from noise band Consumer Electronics, as the lead here. A band that I enjoy. Last Radio Call started out promising, but soon started showing the usual found footage horror clichés of jump scares (that didn't work), as well as good but over the top sound design, and the usual shaky cam with static and glitches. 20 minutes in and a ghost girl looks up and screams at the camera. That was enough for me.

Ray Donovan: The Movie (2022 TV Movie)

See ya later Ray Ray.

[8/10 · 14 January 2022]

A suitably dark closure to a series that brought a lot to me. I especially enjoyed Bill Heck's young Mickey Donovan. No spoilers here, but the finale was dark, but also optimistic.

You can take a break now Ray.

Shopping Tour (2012)

The stuff you learn.

[3/10 · 9 January 2022]

Apparently Russians are cannibalised by the Finnish one day a year, as part of their country's rituals.

I guess this Russian tour coach company forgot to put that in their tour brochure. Would've been good to know.

Victim of Love (2019)

Victim of Nothing.

[4/10 · 30 December 2021]

This was a big hot nothing. A guy is searching for his missing girlfriend, centred around Denmark's red light district. Or is he? Because the movie really goes nowhere, slowly. The main character just drinks and takes drugs and wallows around in a drugged paranoia. A woman he meets in a bar (Siff Andersson) befriends him and adds some light. But the conclusion, like the film, is just kind of nothing. A nice looking, often violent and stylised nothing.

Cruiser (2016)

Do you believe in God?

[8/10 · 28 December 2021]

Wow. This was pretty messed up. A possessed, or murderous psychopath kills a police officer, and then steals his uniform and car. Then proceeds to kill everyone he comes in contact with. A women is detained by him and taken on a night of Hell. Cruiser is effectively nightmarish with just the right hint of supernatural undertone.

Plan sexenal (2014)

Nightmare.

[6/10 · 16 December 2021]

A dark, atmospheric fugue-like thriller, where nothing is quite what it seems.

A stranger appears at a couple's home in Mexico, and once confronted, their night takes a sinister turn.

Plan Sexenal has a nightmarish tone that I really enjoyed. Nicely disturbing.

Survive the Hollow Shoals (2018)

'Dude...go home' is right.

[14 December 2021]

A man goes solo camping in the deep woods, and hears human and demonic screaming every night. Wakes up to forage for food. Then to repeat that process for over 16 days or so.

Moronic.

And the sound work/soundtrack is ridiculous.

Capture Kill Release (2016)

Psychotic fun.

[6/10 · 13 December 2021]

A cute woman and her estranged boyfriend decide to kill people, because...why not? Things get messy and out of hand though. Capture Kill Release has one of the most realistic dismemberment scenes that I've seen. Great FX work. Jennifer Fraser, as the psychotic lead, was a fun performance. Above notch found footage film.