NEGATIVE SPACE

"Laid-back attitude toward nudity and some over-the-top comic relief (mostly involving Petr, a cross between Sean Connery's monk in 'The Name of the Rose' and James Bond's Q) are both typically Central Euro. Add in some campy dialogue ('I can't seem to capture the curves of your body,' purrs Caravaggio to the countess) and a mixed bag of accents, and pic becomes more of a cinematic curiosity than true blockbuster material, despite its scale." (Boyd van Hoeij, Variety)

"Colorful, bloodthirsty and absurdly comic, the film had its world premiere at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival and could reap substantial international boxoffice rewards from indulgent audiences with a taste for that kind of thing." (Ray Bennett, THR)

"Visually, it is everything you might expect from a Jakubisko film, with enough sex and gore, perversion and madness, slaughtered virgins and bloody battles to justify its $13.5m budget. Intrigues abound and the general villainy of human nature is highlighted in every detail, but any attempt to learn something about the real Erszbet Bathory (as played by Anna Friel, a last-minute replacement for Famke Janssen) is sabotaged by Jakubisko's impressionistic approach." (Dan Fainaru, SD)

"Stirring in every memory of homicidal tykes, from Village of the Damned to Barbarella,'but remaining utterly its own in flavor, Brit chiller The Children has cult attraction written all over it. Impressive sophomore outing by writer-director Tom Shankland, following his stygian crimer WAZ, is a low-budget horrorfest elevated by clever, claustrophobic direction and a nicely lean storyline by Paul Andrew Williams that slowly grips like a vise." (Derek Elley, Variety)

"Borrowing liberally from classic evil-children horrors, the gruesome deaths are inventive, but this is more about killer set-pieces than a satisfying story. A respectable genre outing." (Anna Smith, Empire)

"Sorely lacking in suspense or dread but scoring high on silliness and gore - including some gleeful send-offs of Chucky-like children - this is prime remake material for terror-loving territories such as Spanish-language markets, Southeast Asia and perhaps even North America. Who knows' A little extra cash in the remake pot may even make better sense of the plot." (Fionnuala Halligan, SD)

"Solet, having mastered the art of intense silence and tight close-ups, knows how to be subtle when subtlety is called for. He also knows how (and when) to let the blood flow -- and my heavens, does the blood ever flow in Grace. People bleed from terrible places, and for terrible reasons, and Solet does not shy away from it. The childbirth scene alone is horrific, the unnerving music and editing adding to the ghastliness of what's on the screen. I would be suspicious of any person who watches the entire film without cringing." (Eric D. Snider, Cinematical)

"a satirical creepfest that mines modern motherhood for all its latent terrors: Breastfeeding. Baby monitors. Mothers-in-law. Splatter freaks will suckle on "Grace's" high corpuscle count and others will laugh at the sendup of post-natal obsessiveness. But progressive parents beware: When the movie's besieged mom fixes her problem child a bottle filled with meat juice squeezed from plastic-wrapped beef roasts, you may just lose your mind." (John Anderson, Variety)

"Der französische Regisseur Bertrand Tavernier wirft in seinem ersten englischsprachigen Film so ziemlich alles in einen Topf, was gerade zur Hand war und fabriziert die verwirrendste Story seit “Chinatown” mit unnötigen Subplots so weit das Auge reicht - nur um dann die Auflösung der Mordgeschichte derart Deus Ex Machina gleich zu präsentieren, dass man die Leinwand aus Frust zerschneiden möchte. Warum werden wir Zuschauer eigentlich immer für kreuzblöde gehalten?" (Christina Ihle, taz)

"Leider bleibt der Film selbst trotz all dieser gelungen Ingredienzien ein wenig hinter seinen Möglichkeiten zurück und entpuppt sich schnell als konventioneller Thriller, der in erster Linie eine – freilich gelungene – Verbeugung vor der Gegend rund um New Iberia ist. Als Thriller hingegen bleibt In the Eletric Mist nur Durchschnittsware – da helfen auch die Geister längst verschiedener Südstaaten-Soldaten nicht weiter, die für Dave Robicheaux so manchen guten Ratschlag bereithalten." (Joachim Kurz, Kino-Zeit)

"Like a bullet deflected, Bertrand Tavernier's In the Electric Mist lands close to target, but is ultimately repelled." (Daniel Kasman, The Auteurs)

"Superhero shenanigans are dished up with style in the rollicking adventure yarn "K-20: Legend of the Mask," based on longtime Japanese literary favorites reinvented for a popular '80s manga. Seasoned thesps go along for the ride in the lightweight but absorbing tale, helped by outstanding special effects and a bountiful budget." (Russell Edwards, Variety)

"Basically this is Japan's answer to America's summer blockbusters, a thrilling, big budget film that doesn't have a lot behind it, but absolutely guarantees you a good time." (Alex Riviello,CHUD.com)

"If you’re expecting the new Shaun Of The Dead, you’re going to be disappointed. On the other hand, if you’ve ever tapped ‘55378008’ into a calculator, turned it upside down and giggled for hours, this is your new favourite film." (Richard Moore, Total Film)

"The majority of the female characters merely function as sex objects, kitted out in tight shorts or diaphanous gowns as the camera endlessly lingers on heaving bosoms and pert buttocks. It's almost as if Benny Hill had returned from beyond the grave." (Allan Hunter, SD)

"It was hard to tell how Lesbian Vampire Killers was going to play, given the splendidly tacky title. A snarky horror parody? Kitschy B movie? As it turns out, it’s not even smart enough for that. If Nuts magazine made a horror movie, this, for better or worse, is what it would look like." (Simon Crook, Empire)

"A gory crossbreed of 28 Days Later, Dawn of the Dead and several other zombie reprises, Mutants is far from groundbreaking but a worthy enough addition to the recent trend of screamers from Gaul." (Jordan Mintzer, Variety)

"Handsome and genteel one minute, haunted and gloomy the next, Edinburgh is an ideal filming location, as much a movie set as a city. But writer/director Richard Jobson’s latest hometown love letter has no time for casual tourism." (Matt Glasby, Total Film)

"In fact, throughout New Town Killers, it’s the characters and their social milieu that fascinates as opposed to the chase itself, which feels too close to a video game to involve, and visually New Town Killers does not stand out. But every time the film moves back to Sam, Alice, or even the demonic Alastair, the viewer is hooked afresh." (Fionnuala Hannigan, SD)

"the movie is a clever and spooky variation on the well-worn characters-trapped-in-a-confined-space-by-the-undead scenario. Here, audience identification with the protagonists is intensified by the fact that we only find out as much about the increasingly dire situation as they do—there are no cuts outside to show the bigger picture—and there are a number of marvelously suggestive moments, particularly when it’s clear that outside reporter is getting too close to the story for his own good." (Michael Gingold, Fangoria)

"Pontypool barely develops a premise that has all kinds of implications about the mass media (talk radio in particular) and the degradation of language in a culture overrun with hyperbole, jargon, disinformation and contrived drama. But when one infected character is reduced to spouting gibberish as she suicidally hurls herself at the glass booth that has become a fortress against the zombie terror, the notion that we are all being driven mad by an incessant verbal deluge makes nasty comic sense." (Stephen Holden, NY Times)

"If too wobbly to scare, though, Pontypool at least manages to amuse (a spur-of-the-moment on-air obituary is priceless) as well as consistently intrigue, right up to a bizarro post-credits epilogue that seems beamed in from 'Sin City.'" (Nick Schager, Slant Magazine)

"Think Scream meets Legally Blonde — drew praise as a straight entertainment vehicle, carried by lede Macarena Gomez. The effervescent Andalusian actress delivers a swaggering perf as a fashionista fangirl-cum college campus psycho." (John Hopewell, Variety)

"Trick 'r Treat can best be described as the Love Actually of the horror set. While many people, the director included, choose to compare it to the likes of Creepshow or Tales from the Darkside, this film is a lot more than that. Sure, during the 80's we had a great string of genre anthologies including Nightmares, Twilight Zone: The Movie and Heavy Metal and this film plays into that group tonally. But Trick 'r Treat aspires to be more than just another series of horror stories. In fact it sets out to redefine Halloween as you know it." (Massawyrm, Aintitcool-News)

"A big part of the fun behind Trick ’R Treat, the directing debut of X2 and Superman Returns screenwriter Michael Dougherty, is that it’s a Halloween movie through and through; its chills are all specific to that night, and it depends on the holiday’s trappings for its look and feel from first frame to last." (Matthew Kiernan, Fangoria)

"Best Damn Horror Movie in Years!" (Alex Billington, FirstShowing.net)