River Queen (2005)

River Queen (2005)
Rating: ★★
Feb 25, 2006Maori Wars Historical Epic/Precognitive Dream
Vincent Ward must count as one of the directors who should be granted more opportunities to make films. This is probably his least satisfying work, a troubled behind-the-scenes epic set during New Zealand's Maori Wars that comes with some Magical Realist touches

28 Weeks Later (2007)

28 Weeks Later (2007)
Rating: ★★★½
May 27, 2007Post-Holocaust/Zombie Outbreak
I was cautious about hailing 28 Days Later as a modern classic; this sequel is in fact a much better film. Newcomer director Juan Carlos Fresnadillo draws it out into a series of superbly sustained suspense sequences

The Woman in the Fifth (2011)

The Woman in the Fifth (2011)
Rating: ★★
Jul 12, 2012Mysterious Femme Fatale
European arthouse film that feels like it should have been a horror film. This starts well but when it veers into genre territory, its big twist has been done by too many genre films of recent and holds nothing interesting in its treatment

Attack the Block (2011)

Attack the Block (2011)
Rating: ★★★½
Sep 9, 2011Alien Invasion on a British Housing Estate
A refreshingly original film that transplants an alien invasion story to a modern British housing estate where a group of young hoodlums become the first line of defence against the invaders

Under the Skin (2013)

Under the Skin (2013)
Rating: ★★★
May 10, 2014Mysterious Alien Visitor
Fascinating film with Scarlett Johansson as an alien visitor luring male hitchhikers. The film is beautifully made but frustratingly opaque in terms of explanations for what is happening. indeed, feels like a science-fiction film that has been stripped of any easy science-fiction handholds