Gore Galore As Film4 FrightFest Returns To Leicester Square

By Stuart Black Last edited 104 months ago
Gore Galore As Film4 FrightFest Returns To Leicester Square

Gallons of ketchup are set to splash the screens of Leicester Square next month as Film4 FrightFest returns with a cornucopia of murder, madness and mayhem.

The 16th edition of this ever-popular splatterfest will see 76 horror films screened over five days with old classics such as S&M slanted shocker Hellraiser and a rabid pack of world premieres including Howl, in which a group of commuters leave Waterloo station only to find themselves stuck with some unfriendly feral creatures from the country when their train breaks down. Here's the trailer, though please note, it's probably NSFW.

There are lashings of other London-linked films including the very talented Blaine Brothers' debut Nina Forever, about a stubborn, undead girlfriend. Sexy and gruesome in equal measure, this zom-rom-com was filmed in a studio in Kennington. The trailer's below, though be warned this one's definitely NSFW.

We're most excited however about the directorial debut of Sightseers star Steve Oram. Set in South London and billed as a disturbing comedy where all the dialogue is replaced with monkey noises, this one scoops the prize for best title of the festival by being called simply: AAAAAAAAH! The film features Oram alongside fellow comedians Julian Barratt, Noel Fielding and Alice Lowe plus Toyah Willcox and a soundtrack by cult prog rockers King Crimson. Here’s the trailer, which is extremely NSFW.

Elsewhere there are mutant killer bees in Stung, highschool 'splatstick' in the nicely-named Deathgasm, and a zombie fight club in, erm, Zombie Fight Club. There are also several big name directors with new films including Bernard Rose with a modern day take on Frankenstein, and Iain Softley with Curve about a predatory hitchhiker. There's also Japanese schlockmeister Takashi Miike with Over Your Dead Body, and Saw director James Wan's seance-gone-wrong saga Demonic. Also worth a look is Rabid Dogs, an unfinished work by Italian legend Mario Bava, which has now been finished by a new team of filmmakers.

Film4 FrightFest runs from 27-31 August at the Vue Cinema, Leicester Square with other screenings in the Prince Charles cinema. For the full schedule of films visit the website. Single tickets go on sale from 25 July at £13.25 though festival passes are now available (at £185), as are day passes (£30/£60 depending on the day).

Last Updated 23 July 2015