The Horror Chamber's Top 10 Films of 2016 #1- #5

Welcome to part two of the horror chamber's Best of 2016. To view #6-#10, you can click here. Without further ado, the top 5 films of 2016.

1. The Witch

This was a great year for horror films but “The Witch” was the horror film of year which something for a film that was released back in March and doesn’t feature much action. What made this film great was its creepy tone and the performances. Whether it was Robert Eggar’s direction or the great performances from Anna Taylor-Joy and Ralph Innes, everything had a very dark and gloomy tone that made this film great. It’s the best acted and directed horror film that I’ve seen this year.

2. Don’t Breathe

Fede Alvarez continues to be one of horror’s fastest rising directors, as his latest film “Don’t Breathe” was great from start to finish. One of the things that he does very well is the way he brings a level of intensity to the action scenes. Whether it’s his direction or the screenplay that he co-wrote with Rodo Sayagues, everything had an intense feel to it which kept me on the edge of my seat. This film also has great performances from Jane Levy and Stephen Lang which added to the intensity this film had. With the lead acting and direction, it helped made it “Don’t Breathe” the most suspenseful film of the year.

3. Synchronicity

This year, the horror chamber expanded it coverage to include sci-fi and exploitation films. “Synchronicity” was one of those sci-fi films that manage to grab me by the horns from start to finish. The film has very good visuals for its low budget along with a screenplay that manages to keep it interesting as everything from the time travel aspects to the love story is done in a way that it brings an interesting take on the time travel genre. It’s one of those thinking man kind of sci-fi films that is different from the standard mainstream sci-fi fare.

4. The Neon Demon

I might get some heat for this but I enjoyed “The Neon Demon” enough to consider it one of the year’s best. Yes, this film has a screenplay that goes in many directions but this was a return to form from “Drive” director Nicolas Winding Refn after his last film “Only God Forgive” was atrocious which led me to shut it off a third of the way in. His direction for “The Neon Demon” was great as the film was the most stylish film to be released in 2016. It also had the feel of an Dario Argento/Jess Franco/ David Lynch vibe to it. It also helped that it had great cinematography and great performances from Elle Fanning, Jean Malone and Belle Heathcote.

5. The Love Witch

“The Love Witch” was one a film that I reviewed as part of Film-Arcade.net’s coverage of the 2016 Fantasia International Film Festival. This film was so hypnotizing from start to finish. From the look of the film to the direction from Anna Biller, everything had a Jess Franco/Jean Rollin retro vibe which give the film its uniqueness. The film also has a great performance from Samantha Robinson as the title character. She really makes that character very good from her performance as it made me interested in the character. Check this out when it hits Blu-Ray or DVD this coming year.

Film Review: "The Love Witch"

Repost from my review of "The Love Witch" from 7/17 which first appeared on Film-Arcade.net as part of the site's Fantasia coverage. The film is now playing in theaters in limited release and VOD.

Lately, yours truly has been watching a lot 60’s and 70’s horror films that have had a European feel to them. When I first heard of “The Love Witch”, my first thoughts was it must be European horror film as the stills and the trailer had the look of it. But no, this was made here in America and it’s a new film that is being released here later this year. Still, the look and the trailer of the film is what drew me to “The Love Witch”.

The film is about a beautiful woman (Samantha Robinson) who moves to a new town looking for the man of her dreams. In her spare time, she lives in a gothic looking apartment and she picks up men to seduce. Soon, her love portions leave a string of dead men. When she finally meets the man of her dreams, her desperation takes a dark turn as it leads her to insanity and murder.

When the film ended, I was surprised that I enjoyed this one considering its running time and had a weird obscure vibe to it. Sometimes it can be tough to watch. Then again, I’ve been watching euro-horror films lately and this had that vibe that made me enjoy this film a lot. “The Love Witch” is film that captures the Jesus Franco/Jean Rollin vibe with the look of the film and its approach.

Most of that had to do with the directing and writing of Anna Biller. One of the things that Biller does right was to make the look of the film stand out. The look of the film had the feel of an early 60’s European horror film feel to it. Biller and her cinematographer does a great job making sure it has its unique look as it adds to the film and makes the supernatural elements work. The other thing that Biller does very well is to make sure the acting fits the film’s surreal tone. She makes sure the cast does a very good job making their characters are entertaining and interesting. The performances helped keep my interest with what was going on in the story.

Speaking about the performances, I thought Samantha Robinson’s was the best thing about this film. I liked how she makes her character so hypnotizing and charismatic as she makes the film’s main character Elaine stand out from all the other characters. It grabs your attention every time she’s on screen. It’s something that’s needed for a main character to grab your attention.

The screenplay also written by Billing was very good. I liked how she goes for originality with the way that she approaches the story. Whether it’s the way she came up with the ideas to focusing on the dark witch elements, everything had a bizarre feel of a late 60’s/early 70’s European occult film. It makes it feel original because the euro-horror approach is rarely done in U.S. horror films. The other thing that I liked was the fact that it does a great job focusing on its main character. Whether it’s the way the main character approaches her soon to be lovers to her backstory, Biller does a very good job making sure it keeps you interested in the character and the story.

I had a very good time with “The Love Witch” as it has the feel of a Jess Franco or Jean Rollin film. With its stunning cinematography and great performance from Samantha Robinson, you will fall under the spell of “The Love Witch” as it will leave you hypnotized.

“The Love Witch” will be hitting theaters in limited release in the U.S. in October.

Review Rating: Five Stars

Fantasia 2016: Official Stills and Trailer for the Horror/Comedy "The Love Witch"

Oscilloscope Laboratories recently released stills for their upcoming release "The Love Witch". The film stars Samantha Robinson, Elle Evans, Lily Holleman.

"The Love Witch" will be making its Canadian premiere at Fantasia on July 16th at 5:15PM at the J.A. De Seve Theatre in Montreal QC.

Plot Synopsis:

Elaine (Samantha Robinson), a powerful, love-starved witch, comes to town and rents a room in a beautiful Victorian gothic apartment. Stopping at nothing to have men love her, she concocts many spells, but they all seem to have disastrous effects! Is she a bad witch, or are the men in her life simply rotten to the core? Spiralling into self-doubt only strengthens her resolve, and as Elaine keeps searching for the man of her dreams, bodies start piling up! But who could blame her? She simply loves men to death!