Cold Storage (2026)

Director Jonny Campbell has done a lot of great TV work throughout his career. He doesn't have as much success when it comes to feature films though, with his only previous theatrical release being the strangely mishandled Alien Autopsy, a film that tried (and failed) to capitalise on the popularity of the two leads. Cold Storage has more than just one or two gimmicks to help it along, and it's helped by a screenplay from David Koepp. It still manages to show that Campbell may be best suited to TV work though.

Joe Keery and Georgina Campbell play Teacake and Naomi, two employees looking after a self-storage facility. They don't know that the building also houses a secret lab area. Nor do they know that there's a dangerous and infectious fungus stored there. It's parasitic, it's very quick at spreading itself around, and it's just broken out of the sealed containers that held it for decades. Teacake and Naomi will face threats from a number of visitors, but if they can hold on long enough then they might get some major help from a grizzled miltary veteran (Liam Neeson) who has seen how dangerous the fungus can be first-hand.

This might be a fungus, it might try to keep a lighter tone throughout, and there are one or two quirks added to the lead characters, but it's otherwise business as usual. It's a zombie film, and it's not an especially good zombie film. It's certainly not terrible, thanks to some diverting sequences and a few good special effects scattered throughout, but it's not very good. Maybe I'm projecting, but Koepp's screenplay feels as if he thinks he's too good for a sub-genre that he can't quite get a handle on.

Keery and Campbell ARE good, and they deserve a better film that would make better use of their talent. Both are appealing leads on their own, but it's a big boost for the film that they have great chemistry together when sharing the screen. Neeson coasts along in his role, but it's nice to see him in something that isn't beating the dead horse that is his Taken persona (even if he retains a better skillset than most of us), and it's good to have a couple of fun supporting roles for Lesley Manville and Vanessa Redgrave. Ellora Torchia works well as someone who provides remote support for Neeson's character, Aaron Heffernan is a problematic ex, and there's even more varied characters in the shape of Gavin Spokes (a bad boss), Richard Brake (a bad military type), and a few random critters that help to spread the fungus.

All this needed was a bit of tightening up (the runtime may only be 99 minutes, but even that feels just a bit too long), a bit more creativity in the set-pieces, and some more characters to help boost any potential bodycount. That would have been enough to make this an easy one to recommend. As it stands, it's fine. Those after something easy to watch, and something that plays within the horror genre without being too intense or scary for adult viewers, should enjoy themselves. It's the cinematic equivalent of a fast food meal. But those wanting a tasty steak dinner should look elsewhere. 

6/10

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Sisu: Road To Revenge (2025)

Not only was Sisu a great film, it was a great film that revolved around the idea of someone hurting and killing large numbers of Nazis. It felt so much more satisfying in light of recent events, and I was happy when they announced a sequel. Sisu: Road To Revenge is, frankly, ridiculous. It's even more ridiculous than the first film. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but it does stop it from being as good as the previous Sisu adventure.

Jorma Tommila returns in the main role, Aatami Horpi, and this time he is determined to dismantle the home where his family was murdered, hoping to rebuild it elsewhere. Other people don't want that to happen. Aatami is an embarrassment to them, a real stain on their fake big book of achievements. And that's why Yeagor Dragunov (Stephen Lang) is tasked with stopping our hero, by any means necessary.

With Jalmari Helander back on writing and directiung duties, and his leading man as comfortable and capable as ever with whatever he's asked to do onscreen, Sisu: Road To Revenge is, in some ways, everything you could want from a sequel. It gets moving that bit quicker, it escalates the situation sooner, and it builds and builds to a finale that is entertainingly bonkers. As a character, Aatami is almost equal parts Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote, but without the consistent failures of the latter. He's quick, ingenious, and happy to strap himself to a rocket if it means it will give him an upper hand.

If you liked the first movie then you're going to have a lot of fun with this one. It has a few moments that are glorious in their gleeful violence, one involving planes and one involving a train carriage full of bad guys, but it doesn't quite work as well. Maybe that's due to the new villains (it's a load of Russians this time, portrayed as evil and lacking any conscience, but still not as satisfying to watch be maimed as Nazis), or maybe it's just harder to keep thinking up set-pieces that will top the ones we've already seen.

Tommila is fantastic, and Lang is an excellent personification of the army that is out to kill our hero, but there aren't enough other characters to help keep viewers engaged in between the kills. Richard Brake appears onscreen just long enough for people to figure out that it's actually him, and there's a lovely dog portraying a very good boy, but that's about it. Maybe next time, and I do hope there will be a next time, give us someone else for Aatami to protect, because we know that the film isn't going to end prematurely with his death. IF the unkillable one is killed, it's going to be somewhere close to the end credits.

An easy one to recommend, but I know that I'll end up revisiting the first film many times before I choose to revisit this one. Mind you, the two together make for a hell of an entertaining evening, which is maybe the best way to experience the full journey of this unstoppable and determined whirlwind of vengeful violence. 

7/10

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Noirvember: The Last Stop In Yuma County (2024)

A man walking into a diner has been the starting point for many a thriller/neo-noir, and that's pretty much the case here. Viewers should recognise Jim Cummings as the main character, a knife salesman, and they should be ready to see how the plot revolves around him when pieces start falling into place. That's if he survives beyond the opening scenes, of course. Bad things happen to good people in the world of noir, and good people aren't always as good as they seem.

Cummings plays one part here, but there are many other characters onscreen alongside him. Charlotte (Jocelin Donahue) works in the diner. Vernon (Faizon Love) works at the nearby gas station and motel, but he cannot refuel any vehicles until the delivery arrives to replenish the empty pumps. Travis (Nicholas Logan) and Beau (Richard Brake) are a couple of patrons who seem like wrong 'uns, and not just because one of them is played by Brake. They've robbed a bank, which makes it very unlucky for everyone else that they cannot just get their car tank filled up enough to make a getaway.

This is the feature debut from writer-director Francis Galluppi, who has been honing his craft in a number of shorts and music videos helmed over the past seven years (including two early works that, from the plot summaries I read, seem to contain kernels of ideas more fully developed here). Whether it comes to fruition or not, Galluppi is currently tapped to direct one of the upcoming Evil Dead projects, which perhaps gives you an idea of the skillset he displays.

Galluppi puts everything together well, but his biggest strength is arguably self-control that stops him from having to fill every space. The 90-minute runtime is perfect for the fairly tight scenario we see playing out. Dialogue is sharp and loaded with pertinent information, but there are also moments of quiet tension that say just as much via the visuals.

It also helps that the cast are uniformly fantastic. Cummings is a great choice for his role, bringing the slight nerviness that he has done so well in a number of previous movies (including his own directorial outings), and Donahue is someone you hope to see beat the odds when it comes to surviving a snowballing situation like this one. Logan and Brake are believable, the latter particularly so (it's his gift), and Love excels in his small supporting role, as do Gene Jones, Ryan Masson, Sierra McCormick, Jon Proudstar, Michael Abbott Jr. (as the local Sheriff), and Connor Paolo (a deputy). Horror genre fans will also appreciate cameos from Barbara Crampton and Alex Essoe.

There are a couple of well-chosen songs on the soundtrack to complement what I am going to loosely refer to as set-pieces, things weave left and right on the way to a final act that eventually becomes as apparently inevitable as it is satisfying, and the whole thing is so well-constructed and entertaining that it marks Galluppi out as a hell of a talent to keep an eye on.

8/10

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Barbarian (2022)

Written and directed by Zach Cregger, Barbarian is an excellent horror film that may put off many viewers with a structure that almost places it in the category of anthology movie. Jumping between various points in time, and various main characters, the first viewing may leave you feeling a bit bewildered until everything starts to knit together, but stick with it and you will be rewarded with a very dark and twisted piece of work.

Things start with Tess (Georgina Campbell) turning up to stay at a house she has rented, only to find that the property has also been rented to someone else by mistake. That person is Keith (Bill Skarsgård). He seems lovely and considerate, but he also brings the baggage of being Bill Skarsgård, and this whole section has Cregger using lighting and camera angles to keep viewers as wary as Tess. Once this episode plays out, we then join AJ (Justin Long), a cocky actor who finds out that his career is about to suffer from an accusation of rape. Desperately pooling his money and resources for the legal battles ahead, AJ travels to a property that he has had an agency renting out on his behalf. Yep, it’s the house that Tess and Keith stayed in. The neighbourhood seems to have gone to pot, but AJ’s house could still have some value. One more jump back in time shows us a previous resident of the house (played by Richard Brake) and then it is time to connect everything together for an intense and entertaining final act.

Mixing a number of familiar horror movie standards into something that feels new and bang up to date, Cregger proves himself a smart and confident helmsman with Barbarian. You get tension, scares, and some great gore moments, but you also get thought-provoking commentary on gentrification, class division, abuse, and the danger in the world around us that just keeps encroaching on any lone female. None of this stuff brings the film to a halt, and the fact that it’s all woven so well through the script is testament to Cregger’s talent, although his cast also help with pitch-perfect performances.

Campbell is a very likable lead, and viewers are on her side as soon as things start to feel tense (which happens within the first few minutes). Skarsgård is also very likable here, his manner and thoughtfulness at odds with the threat we perceive in him, which is how Tess perceives him. Then you have Long, delivering a brash and unpleasant turn that has you rooting for his character to meet a sticky end. Although he isn’t a good person, he is there to provide a very interesting juxtaposition and comparison point with someone even worse (Brake, doing well with his short amount of screentime).

It’s hard to write about this while preserving the element of surprise. Those who have already seen the film will know the elephant in the room that I haven’t tried to describe. Those yet to see the film may not be convinced by my selective summary, but I hope you give it a go and enjoy a surprise or two. There are a couple of moments here that sit quite high on any list of great moments from horror movies released within the last few years, and Cregger paces everything perfectly as viewers are moved between gruelling moments of unpleasantness and more entertaining bits of horror movie “fun”. Absolutely brilliant stuff.

8/10

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The Munsters (2022)

Yes, the trailer for The Munsters was terrible. Yes, having Rob Zombie at the helm meant that many people were wary of the project. Yes, I knew I would have to watch it one day anyway. That day was today (theoretically . . . reviews are sometimes scheduled a long time after particular viewings). While I would never class this as a new favourite, and while I wouldn't put it at the top of any ranked list of Rob Zombie movies, I had much more fun with The Munsters than expected. Love or hate it, Zombie has delivered something more in line with the spirit and tone of the TV show than any other attempts to reboot or revamp it over the years. 

The film is split into roughly three sections. First of all, Lily (Sheri Moon Zombie) seems unable to find someone decent to fall in love with, despite the advice of her father, The Count (Daniel Roebuck). Meanwhile, Dr. Henry Augustus Wolfgang (Richard Brake) and his assistant, Floop (Jorge Garcia), are busy working on what the doctor hopes will be an astonishing creation. That creation turns out to be Herman Munster (Jeff Daniel Phillips), a bit less astonishing than hoped, due to the fact that his piecemeal body has been reanimated with a less-than-stellar brain implanted in his skull. The second section has Lily and Herman falling in love, all thanks to Herman charming her with his mix of rockstar attitude and entertainingly lame "dad jokes". Third, it's time for The Munsters to find a new home, and fans may already know the address they will end up making their own.

This isn't necessarily going to win over people who dislike the films of Rob Zombie, and it's not guaranteed to change your mind if you decided to give it a chance after hating the awful trailer, but I'll take a chance on saying that fans of The Munsters may be pleasantly surprised by how much this gets right. The cast, with one notable exception, feels pretty perfect, helped by superb make-up on everyone, and the script is unashamedly cheesy and creaky in a way that emulates the TV show without being slavishly obsessive about trying to deliver a carbon copy.

There's plenty of people ready to criticise Sheri Moon Zombie, a woman who has her husband to thank for the great majority of her acting career, but she's not actually a bad fit for the role of Lily. She makes some strong choices in her performance, a lot of hand movement being the most obvious, and she's the weakest of the leads, but she works quite well. I also enjoyed her small secondary role, as I enjoyed the secondary roles for Phillips (who actually plays three characters here), Roebuck, and Brake. Moving from the weakest to the strongest, Roebuck is so good as The Count that you can imagine Al Lewis giving his blessing to the performance. Phillips arguably has the toughest task, nobody can ever truly replace the beloved Fred Gwynne, but his version of Herman Munster is an enjoyable mix of the familiar - his childishness and sense of humour - and the ever-so-slightly new - the performer - that still embodies the spirit of Herman. Brake has a lot of fun (particularly as Count Orlock, in some scenes throughout the first act that are some of the funniest moments in the film), Jorge Garcia and Sylvester McCoy are the kind of assistants/employees you expect to be alongside these characters, and there are some enjoyable cameos from Catherine Schell, Cassandra Peterson, and a few others you really have to keep your eyes, and/or ears, open for.

Feeling more like a TV movie than a, well, non-TV movie, The Munsters cannot ever make you forget that you're watching something quite cheap. That's fine though. Adapting the show into a film doesn't mean throwing money at it. Zombie and co. make use of well-dressed stages, plenty of accessories you would find in any Spirit Halloween store, and a nice selection of brightly-coloured lights, including some fun neon signage (and I'm referring to Count Orlock again). Everyone involved knows that they're not trying to make a classic slice of cinema. They're trying to make a Munsters movie. While not getting every single decision right, they largely succeed.

Would I watch this over the original TV show? No. Would I rush to rewatch this? Also no. I would rewatch it though, and I suspect I will enjoy it a bit more during a repeat viewing, especially knowing that I don't have to worry about anything being as bad as that trailer implied.

6/10

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Shudder Saturday: Offseason (2021)

Writer-director Mickey Keating has been delivering interesting horror fare to viewers for just over a decade now. The fact that I have only seen one of his other films so far (the enjoyable Pod) is a reflection of my own tardiness, and not any kind of verdict on Keating's work. And having enjoyed Offseason even more than Pod, I really need to get through more of his filmography.

What you have here is the tale of someone tying up some affairs after the death of their mother. Marie (Jocelin Donahue) and her partner, George (Joe Swanberg), have to travel to a small island town, fulfilling some last wishes that make no sense to Marie. Her mother, Ava (Melora Walters), had often spoken of the place in a way that made clear she never wanted to go back there, and Marie soon starts to see her point of view, with the town being a strange and cold place. Is it her state of mind, or is there something wrong with the place?

This is, in a lot of ways, what you expect it to be. It's a low-budget horror movie that prioritises the cast and quieter interactions ahead of any big scares. Keating does himself a big favour with his casting, but he also paces things nicely, building atmosphere and a sense of dread in between moments that deliver some enjoyably unexpected scares (or spooky strangeness). Although he obviously doesn't have the resources that other film-makers might have available to them, Keating does his best to ensure that everything looks and sounds as it should. The visual style may be a bit flat, but that is easy to forgive when you realise that Keating has held back in a way that allows some third act moments to make a much stronger impact.

Donahue is an excellent lead, someone that viewers can easily stay alongside and root for, and Swanberg gives another good performance in the kind of supporting role he seems to be so good with. Walters has to be a bit more on edge and strained than most of the other people onscreen, but she plays her part well. There are also a number of great little turns from some familiar, and some not so familiar, faces, with Jeremy Gardner being a slight scene-stealer yet again and Richard Brake bringing his inimitable air of quiet menace to the table.

If you're after something that's not tied to some big names, in terms of the property or the way it is marketed, then I highly recommend checking this out. The imperfection of it just adds to the charm, and major bonus points to Keating for also delivering an ending that feels like a proper ending (something that used to be lacking from every indie horror movie I watched for a few years). It's not entirely original, it's not all wrapped up in a neat bow, but it does enough to stand out from the crowd, with cast and crew all doing their bit to make something that feels like a real hidden gem. Do your bit to uncover it, and share the pleasing glimmer of it with others.

8/10

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Shudder Saturday: The Incident (2011)

AKA Asylum Blackout.

I remember hearing about The Incident back when it was first released. It was receiving generally good word of mouth among the horror community and people were seeking it out. The main difference was the title, because it was called Asylum Blackout then. I don't know what prompted the title change, especially when the new choice seems a lot worse than the original one, but at least I was able to check out the film again, as I had somehow forgotten to review it a decade ago.

George (Rupert Evans), Mac (Kenny Doughty), and Ricky (Joseph Kennedy) are three friends, bandmates, and work colleagues. Their friendship is strained at times, the band isn't working together very well, but at least their job is standard canteen work. Well, standard canteen work in an asylum for the criminally insane, where they also work alongside William (Marcus Garvey). This puts them in a very dangerous situation when a power cut leads to the exterior doors all being closed (electronic locks meaning that they will not be moved) and the inmates deciding to revolt.

Although this is, to date, the only feature from director Alexandre Courtès, unless I am overlooking something, The Incident is a well-constructed and decent little horror movie. It makes the most of the main location, largely taking place within the asylum, without feeling restrained by it (because, well, the plot depends on the characters being trapped there). The script, by S. Craig Zahler, and a bit of input from Jérôme Fansten, is decent for setting up the characters, their surroundings, and the atmosphere of panic and dread once the power goes off. It's no classic, but it does a good enough job, with the biggest flaw probably being the main characters not standing out enough as individuals.

Evans, Doughty, Kennedy, and Garvey are decent leads, all being easy enough to like without having to present themselves as perfect. Dave Legeno is a formidable figure as the head guard, J. B., and Richard Brake is used for his ability to be chilling and scary, playing an inmate named Harry who may well be the ringleader of the mayhem inside the asylum. There are also enjoyable little turns from Darren Kent, also playing an inmate, and Anna Skellern, disappointingly underused in the role of Lynn, the girlfriend of George.

Although it proves to be surprisingly restrained in places, The Incident is punctuated by moments of serious nastiness and unpleasantness. It works well by showing one or two horrors and allowing viewers to consider the bigger picture, although I realise that could also lead to some viewers feeling short-served. I like it. I liked it when it was called Asylum Blackout and I like it now (lesser title and all). 

Overall, despite some moments that could be lit better, and despite lacking a great score to underline the visuals, this is an effective little horror movie that holds up as a great example of making the most of one intriguing central idea.

7/10

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3 From Hell (2019)

Here's the one thing that I know about the feature film career of Rob Zombie. I am one of the many voices making up part of the problem. I LOVE his first film, he still hasn't topped it for me. It's a carnival sideshow experience in which you are taken by a variety of eye-catching grotesqueries by someone you don't entirely trust. Unfortunately, every movie he has given us after that one has been more of the same, with the exception of two movies that many fans didn't care for. I love The Haunted World Of El Superbeasto. I didn't love The Lords Of Salem. Sadly, the more that Zombie retreats back into his comfort zone, the more I appreciate him trying to channel Ken Russell in The Lords Of Salem, and the less likely it is that we will ever see him try that again.

Which brings us to 3 From Hell, a film that continues the saga of "the Firefly family", the notorious and nasty criminals we last saw being abruptly halted by a hail of bullets as they headed towards a police roadblock. The basic plot is similar to The Devil's Rejects, it's three bad people doing bad things until a final encounter leads them towards either another victory or potential death.

Sheri Moon Zombie, Bill Moseley, and Sid Haig in place? Check (although the role for Haig was greatly reduced, he has only one main scene, when news of his illness came along just before his death this year). A decent soundtrack? Check (note - it's still a bold move for ANY film to use In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida even all these years after Manhunter). Maniacs who like to deliver verbose dialogue before they commit their atrocities? Check. A '70s aesthetic throughout, no matter what time the film is supposed to be set in? Check. The baddies being a lot smarter/luckier than anyone with their M.O. would be? Check.

On paper, this should be another easy win for Zombie. It's not though. Although it fails in different ways to 31 (which remains arguably his worst film), it still fails. Some fans may disagree with that, and I'm happy that Zombie is at least keeping his core fanbase happy. He seems to have a good relationship with them, and often delivers just what they want. It's just a shame that he doesn't take a chance nowadays on exploring other genre styles that will allow him to grow more, and potentially surprise audiences.

Most, but not all, of the problems here like with Zombie himself. The script is more of the nonsense that he likes to hear being delivered by his favourite actors, always a mix of gleeful nihilism and purported wisdom from those who are savvy enough not to be constrained by the laws imposed upon society by men who just weren't brave enough to give in to their base desires at all times. It also all starts off on the wrong foot, a double whammy of viewers being told a time period that never feels right and an air of sympathy for the main characters that you just can't see ever happening. EVER. Nobody onscreen is worth supporting.

The second main problem, aside from anything done directly by Zombie, comes from the main performances. Few people onscreen are actually bad, but they're rarely actually good either. Moseley is pretty much in self-parody territory now, pushed into that area by Zombie, and every moment he's onscreen feels a bit silly. Richard Brake, stepping in to the void left by Haig, has the potential to make a better impression in the role of Winslow AKA "Foxy", but he ends up looking and sounding far too much like Moseley. That leaves us with Mrs Zombie, who is the worst of the three, and suffers the most from the script. There's just no way anyone would consider her for a parole hearing, for example, given her history of constant unpredictable madness, and she's getting a bit too old to play the role in the same giggling and coquettish way she did back in House Of 1000 Corpses. You get supporting roles for people such as Daniel Roebuch, Jeff Daniel Phillips, Dee Wallace, Bill Oberst Jr, Danny Trejo, Pancho Moler, Emilio Rivera, and many others, although some are little more than the most fleeting of cameos it is some light relief to spot some of the familiar faces dotted around.

With House Of 1000 Corpses and The Devil's Rejects, Zombie delivered one hell of a double-bill. That hasn't changed. It's just that some people will have an inferior third instalment they can choose to watch at the end. Or, and bear with me, we can all forget it exists and just stay a lot happier. This film says nothing worthwhile, does nothing new, and deserves, well, I am sure you can guess.

3/10

Here's the movie available from Rob Zombie's site (because he needs the clicks more than I do . . . the blogger typed sarcastically).

Mubi Monday: Mandy (2018)

Something a bit different this week, and something that keeps me on track with the horror element for the month. MUBI now has a MUBI Go feature, offering subscribers a cinema ticket to one film per week, subject to availability at your local cinemas. And this week they offered up Mandy. Well, it would have been rude to refuse the offer.

Panos Cosmatos made quite a name for himself with his feature debut, Beyond The Black Rainbow. I still haven't seen that film, despite all the praise heaped upon it, but I couldn't resist the pull of Mandy when it was sold to me as, essentially, Nicolas Cage angrily battling demons.

Cage lives with the woman he loves (Mandy, played by Andrea Riseborough) in a cabin in the woods. It seems to be an idyllic life they lead, with Cage working hard during the day so that he can relax and watch Nightbeast with his loved one in the evening. But that is all spoiled when an evil cult member spies Mandy and decides that he has to have her. So he sends some demon bikers along, which is when things start to get completely insane.

The first reason to see Mandy is the glorious visual style of Cosmatos. Almost every frame is painted like the lurid cover of some pulp sci-fi or fantasy novel. This is a landscape that feels like someone has blended the works of Michael Moorcock and Piers Anthony and then poured them directly onto the screen. It's a truly stunning feast for the eyes. Based on this, and from what I had heard already, I really do need to see Beyond The Black Rainbow ASAP. Cosmatos may not have churned out many movies but his quality over quantity approach means I can be fully caught up very quickly.

The second reason to see this movie is Nicolas Cage. The rest of the cast all do a good job (Riseborough is always pretty great, Linus Roache and Ned Dennehy are two of the main cult members, and you get fantastic small turns from Richard Brake and Bill Duke) but Cage is the one going through a transformation here, from simple man living in contentment to grief-stricken victim to, well, a weapon-wielding kind of demi-god. The shooting style helps to show this, as Cage becomes stronger and stronger on his quest for vengeance, culminating in some final scenes that I won't detail here. Let me just say that I would love to see his character able to reappear in some future film that develops him further.

Other reasons to see the movie include the lush score by the late Johann Johannson, a crazy Cheddar Goblin advert (a turning point for the whole movie, created by someone who helped make the viral hit "Too Many Cooks"), a sparse script that still manages to contain a number of chilling lines, and the fact that it's the best Hellraiser movie in almost two decades, even if it's not ACTUALLY an instalment of that franchise.

Well worth seeing on the big screen, you won't believe your eyes and ears. And you may well find yourself, as I did, eagerly awaiting a repeat viewing. It's an audio-visual experience that I can see myself wanting to have again and again and again.

9/10

A lot of people may want to buy the soundtrack here.
Americans can buy it here.