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DEAD BY DAWN William Castle, Karen Gillan and err... classroom safety fi lms feature in the 4-day horror event
A pril is not an especially spooky month, but horror film fans have a reason to be happy at this time of year as Dead By Dawn, Scotland’s annual horror film festival, kicks off its 21st edition.
The festival features several UK premieres, including Karen Gillan’s new film, Oculus (pictured), about a woman trying to prove her brother innocent of murder by exposing a supernatural phenomenon, and Antoine Barraud’s existential pot-holing yarn Les Gouffres. Takashi Miike’s anti-bullying project Lesson of Evil, and Daniel Stamm’s ‘let’s play a game’ thriller 13 Sins will also receive their debut UK outings, while other programme highlights include Gerard Johnstone’s ghost story Housebound and documentary shocker Killer Legends, the new film from Josh Zeman and Rachel Mills (Cropsey). There’s something for classic horror movie fans too, with a special screening of two of
William Castle’s most beloved films, House on Haunted Hill, featuring Vincent Price, and Mr Sardonicus, as well as a selection of the best of the genre from the last 50 years, including Friday the 13th, Candyman, Twilight Zone: The Movie and The Howling. However, the most esoteric offering the festival has is ostensibly its most normal. School of Shock: Pain and Pleasure in the Classroom Safety Film is a selection of the most notorious films from the sub-sub- genre of ‘classic-era’ classroom films made from the 1940s–80s, featuring heavy-handed looks at subjects such as drug abuse, venereal disease and how to stop a paedophile. Being safe has never looked so terrifying. (Colin Robertson) Filmhouse, Edinburgh, Thu 24–Sun 27 Apr. Passes are £75 for the four days, available at the Filmhouse box office or online at filmhousecinema.com
HITLIST THE BEST FILM RELEASES & EVENTS
✽ The Amazing Spider-Man 2 The second film in the new reboot of the
Spider-Man franchise is energetic, enjoyable and has excellent special effects. See review, page 57. On general release now.
✽ Alec Guinness retrospective A celebration of the renowned English actor:
see him in The Ladykillers, The Lavender Hill Mob and Tinker TaIlor Soldier Spy as part of this season of films and TV. See preview, page 63. Filmhouse, Edinburgh, until Wed 30 Apr.
✽ We Are the Best! Joyful coming-of-age
drama from Swedish director Lukas Moodysson, about three girls who form a punk band in 1982. See review, page 59. Limited release from Fri 18 Apr.
Filmhouse, Edinburgh, Thu 24–Sun 27 Apr.
✽ Dead by Dawn See preview, left. ✽ Frank Michael Fassbender and
Maggie Gyllenhaal star in this comedy about an eccentric pop band fronted by the mysterious Frank.
Written by Jon Ronson and inspired by his experiences playing with papier mache head- wearer Frank Sidebottom. See review, page 59. Limited release from Fri 9 May.
✽ Magic Magic Smart psychological thriller about a teen on a trip to Chile. Starring Michael Cera and the brilliant Juno Temple. See feature, page 56 and review, page 58. Limited release from Fri 9 May.
✽ The Wind Rises A beautifully realised, fictionalised account of the life of flight
engineer Jiro Horikoshi, from the acclaimed Studio Ghibli. See review, page 58. Limited release from Fri 9 May.
17 Apr–15 May 2014 THE LIST 55