Film4 FrightFest 2014: Reviews, Wrap-up, and Image Gallery!
Steve Barton
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This year’s spectacular Film4 FrightFest has now sadly been and gone, but in the interest of keeping everything together, here’s a hub filled with the numerous reviews from the event, our picture gallery, and a few videos courtesy of the FrightFest boys!
Briefly commenting on the festival itself: Many will have made note of the movement of the fest from its previous position at the prestigious Empire cinema to the Vue just a few doors down.
This was a sad side effect of the Empire’s decision to split its absolutely massive main screen into two separate auditoriums, works which made it much too difficult to plan a further year at the site – especially given the burden of not exactly knowing when all would be completed. Thus, change was inevitable, and we really must say that despite wide trepidation regarding the festival’s performance at the Vue site, the gang behind FrightFest – Ian, Paul, Alan, and Greg – pulled it off in spectacular fashion (with no small amount of help from the friendly cinema staff!)
Multiple screens played the main roster of films on a staggered basis, and giving pass holders a dedicated seat within one of them for the weekend was a commendable move. Guests could visit each screen in turn to deliver introductions and Q&As without issue, and the problem of space outside of the screens and around the (much larger than the Empire) bar area for the massive crowds was rendered nonexistent. It was an appreciably well oiled machine throughout, and though the initial shock of change did appear to somewhat dull the spirits of the crowds inside the auditoriums in the early stages, the atmosphere certainly warmed as seats were settled into and the festival progressed. It bodes very well indeed for next year if the format is to be maintained.
Many thanks as usual to the FrightFest crew for having us along and for delivering yet another horror-laden weekend of fantastic entertainment. Now, on to the reviews (which do reflect just a number of the mammoth selection of films that play across all screens of the festival) – listed here for your easy perusal!
Also caught on the main screen this year were Lucky McKee’s All Cheerleaders Die, which Serena perfectly echoed my own thoughts about in her review right here, and Jennifer Kent’s excellent The Babadook. I’ll let Brad espouse the virtues of that one to you in his excellent review here – it’s a seriously creepy journey into the pits of grief, despair, and mental collapse (even if I do think it deserves a half-knife less for the acutely grating child at the centre of it… though one expects that’s much to the point of the film).
While you’re here, why not also take a gander at our own photo gallery from the festival, along with a few videos from each day courtesy of the hard-working crew behind FrightFest TV. Also be sure to check out the London FrightFest YouTube channel for many more interviews with the talent behind this year’s selection.
Check out the official Film4 FrightFest website for more!
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