Matt Donato

Clint Bentley’s 'Jockey' stars Clifton Collins Jr. as, you guessed it, a racetrack jockey contemplating the end of his career and one last championship.

Nicholas Ashe Bateman's "The Wanting Mare' is beyond accomplished as independent sci-fi that punches well above its budget, but gets lost in its own whimsy before letting viewers past its own locked gates.

In Violation, Dusty Mancinelli and Madeleine Sims-Fewer emphasize the latter stages of rape-revenge cinema; those dwelling spirals, the insecure sensations, and the aftermath.

Ben Hozie's 'PVT CHAT' is a romance for the OnlyFans era that speaks of sex positivity in a jumbled, inept way.

Emerald Fennell’s 'Promising Young Woman' is an appropriately furious response to decades of misogyny allowed to normalize things on-screen meant to make your blood pressure skyrocket.

I’d be here for seventeen years listing all the titles that could possibly influence 'Prisoners of the Ghostland.'

Neil Marshall's 'The Reckoning' is an unfortunate mix of ill-fitting erotic thrills and historical witchcraft panic that delivers the worst of both worlds.

Andy Collier and Toor Mian's 'Sacrifice' gets oh-so Lovecraftian when expecting parents are targeted by Norse townsfolk who don't want them to leave their newfound homeland.

Carlson Young’s 'The Blazing World' is defined by its lawless filmmaking approach that is a gorgeous display of pronounced and personal "Wonderland" filmmaking.

Sean Ellis' 'Eight For Silver' is an 1800s werewolf redressing that takes some ambitious swings but overstays its era-specific welcome.

Thrillers like Coming Home In The Dark bring a regional reminder. In New Zealand, in Australia, exploitative horror isn't afraid of the deepest, most wretched darkness.

Ben Wheatley's 'In the Earth' is a pandemic project that reaches its limitations, but gets eco-freaky with the best of 'em.

Mike P. Nelson’s 'Wrong Turn' trades deformed maniacs for The Foundation, ushering a redirection towards more cult-driven horror in the name of American greatness.

Steven Kostanski's 'Psycho Goreman' is as warm a hug you can get from something this murderous, mischievous, and sent from Hell with love.

Erik Bloomquist’s Ten Minutes To Midnight sees a radio DJ reconcile the past thirty years of her life on the eve of her final show (after being bitten by a vampire, presumably).

Jorge Olguín's 'La Casa' sends a camera into one of Chile's most haunted locations to tell a story of tragedy and terror that invades your personal space.

Cameron Van Hoy’s 'Flinch' injects romance into a complicated mob hit scenario where hitman and witness trade gaga eyes.

Simon West's 'Skyfire' shows you exactly what can, should, and will go wrong at a volcano theme park with the utmost B-grade appeal.

Vincent Paronnaud's 'Hunted' blends rape-revenge cinema with fabled storytelling, and yes, it'll be as divisive as that sounds.

Mehran C. Torgoley's 'Curse Of Aurore' is a fictional horror foray into an actual case of 1920s child abuse, neither of which benefits the other.

Gremlins, confidential packages, and bullet holes, oh my! The B-Movie appreciator within is amused and entertained by 'Shadow in the Cloud,' while the analytical critic is bewildered at best.

'Max Cloud' is a 16-bit side-scroller as imagined from inside the system, which challenges cinematographer Håvard Helle to replicate the experience using real-world dimensions.

Liam O'Donnell's "Skylines" is a second-sequel that continues to evolve an extraordinary story, but lacks the sci-fi invigoration of its previous entry.