FrightFest 2026 - Day 2
Imposters
Caleb Phillips, 2026, USA
A slow burn keeps the mystery alive until the full nature of the film is revealed and it’s down the rabbit hole of relationships and self loathing we go. Excellently performed with a gripping script to match, to say a little about how we live and how we might not quite be privy to the extent of our own natures. A prime example of using genre tricks to expose the confusion and disappointment of the human condition; both nihilistic and sympathetic.
Frostbite
Lukas Rinker, 2026, Denmark-Germany
And it’s not long before you realise that you’re going to be stuck in a chamber piece with these truly annoying character tropes that you don’t care about. Best seen with an audience lapping up its unintentional humour.
Ponderosa
Rob Rice, 2026, USA
Beautifully filmed, deliberately and frustratingly opaque, reminiscent of the moods of ‘Static’ or ‘I Saw the TV Glow’: oddball small town America with nowhere to go. The old guard want to bequeath to the youth how-it’s-always-been or something, but only seem capable of Embarrassing Uncle energy. For this, Bill Camp is brilliantly uncomfortable and vulnerable. If you go with it, you’re probably thinking a second watch will solve things, and although I was open to its ‘A Dying Generation’ themes and almost Lynchian non sequiturs, I am not sure it will.
The Pitchfork Retreat
Gregory Van Voorhis, Nicole Van Voorhis, 2026, USA
Thoroughly old hat and predictable with not enough tongue in cheek to make it fun. I mean, the title all but gives it away, the premise means we get lots of feints, dream sequences and stories within stories which is quite tiresome when constant lathered on. And what is this? Purgatory especially for writers? Doesn't quite lean enough into its EC Comics cartoon vibe to be fun, although the horror community will forgive much with this being Tony Todd's last performance.
Drag
2026, USA
And here is the FrightFest horror slapstick crowdpleaser. One of those where it’s delightful to viscerally feel the audience’s empathy/cringe with every painful punchline. With a sharp, funny script that plays with the audience always thinking it is one step ahead, plus some real nastiness and punches not pulled right to the very end. The cast keeps the right side of zany and never loses its grip on setup and payoff to the end. The DeVito name will bring wider interest and it’s worth seeking out in a cinema for audience reaction. You’ll wince as much as laugh.
Hungry
2026, UK
Violent hippo in the Louisiana swampland? Solid enough with a better script than usual, but despite the title hinting at something more tongue in cheek, this is played straight. More silliness instead of meanness would have made this more memorable. An under-achieving monster movie, despite excellent effects.
1 comment:
Re "to expose the confusion and disappointment of the human condition"
The human condition has always been in plain sight for everyone and is no mystery. Therefore, it needs no exploring, no grappling, no observing, no analyzing, no studying it. But it needs genuine acknowledgment, and facing it. Only THEN is there a real chance of genuinely changing it for the better.
This endless "analyzing" and "exploring" and "observing" the human condition has been also done by 99% of all "alternative media" folks. Yet the criminal class of ruling psychopaths had long ago told us of this time wasting effort although they are all too happy for the masses to engage in.
The TRUE human condition, or world we live in, is the history of human madness mainly thanks to the 2 married pink elephants in the room and has never been on clearer display than with the deliberate global Covid Scam atrocity — see “The 2 Married Pink Elephants In The Historical Room –The Holocaustal Covid-19 Coronavirus Madness: A Sociological Perspective & Historical Assessment Of The Covid “Phenomenon”” ... https://www.rolf-hefti.com/covid-19-coronavirus.html
Yet...
"The masses have never thirsted after truth. They turn aside from evidence that is not to their taste, preferring to deify error, if error seduces them. Whoever can supply them with illusions is easily their master; whoever attempts to destroy their illusions is always their victim." --- Gustave Le Bon, in 1895
““We’re all in this together” is a tribal maxim. Even there, it’s a con, because the tribal leaders use it to enforce loyalty and submission. ... The unity of compliance.” --- Jon Rappoport, Investigative Journalist
"Ignorance is the root cause of all Evil. Since only Knowledge eradicates ignorance, it is our duty and moral obligation to educate ourselves, as well as the masses around us." --- Anonymous
Speaking of ignorance is evil, how can the masses get out of this whole mess (and create justice, freedom and peace for all)? First, EVERYONE needs to learn, and teach others, what TRUE morality is ---99% of people don't know what it is because (1) it's NOT taught in the official indoctrination system, better know as the "education system," and (2) it's NOT the same as religious morality: https://odysee.com/@woeih:e/Mark-Passio-Government-Is-Slavery:a
"The solution is NOT to create something new (eg, new systems of organization, new technologies, etc). The solution is to STOP being complicit with evil. To STOP doing things that are not moral for a reward. To STOP being complicit with anything the control system tells us we must do." --- Mark Passio, Spiritual Teacher, in 2023
"Every time people accept a new restriction —mask mandates, digital IDs, cashless payments— they reinforce the system and normalize control. Authorities rely on social pressure and fear of consequences to drive compliance. Most individuals don't want conflict, so they follow rules even when they disagree. THIS SILENT MAJORITY ENABLES A SMALL ELITE TO CONTROL BILLIONS. Without MASS OBEDIENCE, digital IDs ... and surveillance grids cannot be enforced at scale. The system thrives not just on active co-operation, but on PASSIVE ACCEPTANCE —shrugging off restrictions as inevitable or 'for the greater good'. NON-COMPLIANCE —whether through using cash, rejecting digital IDs, or resisting propaganda— denies elites THE PARTICIPATION THEY NEED to legitimize their agendas. Ultimately, compliance is the lifeblood of control; RESISTANCE, EVEN IN SMALL ACTS, IS THE ANTIDOTE." --- AI Chat bot in 2025 (https://archive.ph/Wdzsg)
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