Black blocks, heaven and hell and world's first channel-surfing horror film. Day 3 of FrightFest (Main Screen)

Picks of what to catch today

James Whittington
August 26, 2023

Saturday is usually the busiest day of FrightFest as the event is in full motion and every is used to their seating in the cinema screens. Today has the usual eclectic choice of movies to enjoy but here’s our top 3 to look out for.

First up it’s the surreal and unsettling movie Monolith. A disgraced journalist (Lily Sullivan) attempts to salvage her career with the 'Beyond Believable' podcast geared to solve mysteries and uncover hidden truths. She hits on a story about a strange object suddenly ruining people's lives and the more she deep-dives into the origins of the black brick artifact she becomes convinced it's evidence of an alien conspiracy and government cover-up. Then a package arrives on her remote doorstep and her research becomes terrifyingly personal.

Things get even more weird in Pandemonium from director Quarxx. Nathan and Daniel wake at the scene of a car crash, confused and seemingly unscathed. The two men begin to understand that they did not make it after all. They are dead. Nathan's previous acts will now determine his fate, however reprehensible they might have been. He will have to leave this earthly world and enter the depths of Hell that await him for all eternity and be confronted with other tormented souls whose pain he will be forced to experience by the demon Norgül. Emotional, funny and filled with stunning visuals this one is our top 5 of the whole festival.

Last movie of the day come from Michael J Hurst, the director of House of the Dead 2. In Transmission we watch seemingly random TV stations being changed at various points of each piece. But as the movie’s story unfolds on a lonely television set we slowly realize that each of these channels is actually telling different aspects of the same horrific narrative. This is a smart piece with “cult” written right across it. Again, this is another of our faves from the fest.