FrightFest 2021: In review
Updated: Sep 15, 2021
FrightFest was the first back in real cinema seats since 2019 with 2020's event being moved to digital due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Luckily, not only did the event come back, but it came back bigger and better than ever. Fortunately, for those not able to attend, a selection of the festivals films were viewable online over the following weekend.
Here's a running list of reviews for the films we manage to capture of the weekend of which, dare I say it, has been the strongest yet.
BAD CANDY: 4/5
BLOODTHIRSTY: 4/5
BRING OUT THE FEAR: 4/5
CENSOR: 5/5
CRABS!: 2/5
DAWN BREAKS BETWEEN THE EYES: 5/5
DEMONIC: 2/5
GAIA: 4/5
LAGUNA AVE: 3/5
MOTHERLY: 4/5
THE SHOW: 3/5
SOUND OF VIOLENCE: 4/5
There's been a mix of everything from Kaiju Crabs to musical werewolf movies and nothing out of place in a festival that showcases the best of horror, not just across the UK but around the world. While this years biggest dud may have been it's most enticing (Neill Blomkamp's DEMONIC really didn't hit the notes it should have) it's certainly been a welcome endorsement for FrightFest's own New Blood scheme and both SIGNAL INTRUSION BROADCAST and BRING OUT THE FEAR wowed audiences alike. LAGUNA AVE gave us some unintended laughs but knew what it wanted to be and BAD CANDY is destined to be a future Halloween classic.
This years best film has to be DAWN BREAKS BETWEEN THE EYES, Kevin Kopacka's love letter to European horror that stands on it's own merits. So until next year, there's plenty more to catch up on as we await the release of the other films in due course.
Once again, thank you to FrightFest organisers Ian Rattray, Alan Jones, Greg Day and Paul McEvoy for rounding out another successful batch of films and we certainly can't say there has been a dull moment.