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November 1, 2026

A Binge too Far #68: The untold story of the theatrical Sweeney films (1977 – 2012)

Posted by Christos Mouroukis

Frame from Sweeney! (1977)

The British hit TV series Sweeney (1975 – 1978) spawned three films, and we take a brief look.

Sweeney! (1977) poster

Sweeney! (1977)

After a snitch he was taking information from is murdered, Detective Inspector Jack Regan (John Thaw) is framed and suspended from duty. Now without his badge he will go underground and try to clear his name. But upon recovering the truth, he will find himself trapped in a deadly political conspiracy game that involves pimping and pandering.

Extended from the hit British TV series Sweeney (1975 – 1978) this is a brilliant crime drama (in fact, one of the best examples that came from the U.K. during that period), masterfully directed by David Wickes, and featuring a surprisingly welcome and generous amount of shootouts and other action set-pieces.

Sweeney 2 (1978)

Sweeney 2 (1978) poster

Detective Inspector Jack Regan (returning John Thaw) and his partner Detective Stg. George Carter (also returning Dennis Waterman) are on the trail of armed robbers who target banks. This sequel directed by Tom Clegg is another great addition to the crime and police procedure genre. For most of the time it is action-packed with shootouts and car chases, and delivers the goods.

The Sweeney (2012)

The Sweeney (2012) poster

In present day London, Flying Squad officers Detective Inspector Jack Regan [Ray Winstone from The Departed (2006)], Detective Constable George Carter (Plan B), and Detective Constable Nancy Lewis [Haley Atwell, recently in Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One (2023)] are on the trail of armed robbers, who other than stealing a few million pounds worth of gold, end up murdering someone, but it appears that the killing was pre-planned. When Nancy falls dead from one of the gang’s shooters, and Jack ends up in prison, the case becomes personal.

Directed by Nick Love (who also wrote the screenplay, with John Hodge) this mega-production (for U.K. standards) is suffering from a first half that is too subtle for its own good (the Michael Mann principles of noir action cannot apply to British films easily), but rewards the audience with a bombastic second half, full of shootouts and car chases, in some very interesting (if a bit touristic) London locations.

Afterword

There is also a French remake called Antigang (2012) and set in Paris, which was successful enough to guarantee a sequel, in the form of Antigang: La Releve (2023) – both directed by Benjamin Rocher – but I have not see either.

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October 1, 2026

A Binge too Far #67: The ferocious Strangers trilogy (2024 - 2026)

Posted by Christos Mouroukis

Stunning frame from The Strangers: Chapter 1 (2024)

The Strangers (2008) is a modern horror masterpiece that was a sensation with audiences and genre critics alike, and it was followed but not equalled by a belated sequel in the form of The Strangers: Prey at Night (2018). In 2002 it was announced that the franchise will embark on a new trilogy, and here’s my brief thoughts on it, as it was recently concluded with an overall very successful theatrical run.

The Strangers: Chapter 1 (2024)

A young couple [Madelaine Petsch from Sightless (2020) and Froy Gutierrez from Initiation (2020)] embark on a road trip to Oregon to celebrate their 5^th anniversary when their car breaks down during a stop at a small redneck town, the local folk of which doesn’t seem to welcome New Yorkers. When the couple is forced to stay at a local barn, they get attacked by a small group of masked assailants.

Masterfully directed by Renny Harlin [Devil’s Pass (2013)] who takes the home invasion genre into a different and very interesting direction, as he minimizes the violence (the film’s R rating is a bit harsh, to be honest) and opts for eerie atmosphere (the dark cinematography by Jose David Montero is brilliant) and claustrophobic set-pieces that will have you biting your nails through the film’s entire running time.

The Strangers: Chapter 2 (2025)

I cannot share even the basic and foremost details on the plot of the second chapter of the trilogy because it would spoil the first film and I wouldn’t want to do this in case you haven’t seen it yet. What I can tell though is that director Renny Harlin here feels more liberated from the source material and leaves behind the ‘home invasion’ genre and opts for that of ‘survival thriller’ and does it extremely good. Brutal, mean-spirited, bleak, and effective, this is horror done right.

The Strangers: Chapter 3 (2026)

Similarly to the previous review I cannot share even the slightest of plot details for this concluding chapter of the recent trilogy because I would spoil the first entry. What can be said though is that despite filming all three outings in one go (they were shot back-to-back in Slovakia) director Renny Harlin is changing the thematic and tone in this sequel once again, as he opts for a more ‘torture porn’ direction, offering tons of gore and several extra kills. It is actually a miracle that he managed to achieve that with such a compressed production schedule and on such a tiny budget, and the films seem to be connected only with some cast members and the uniting cinematography; other than that it is as if we are watching not only opuses from different directors, but as mentioned before even of different genres altogether. Critics panned the trilogy, and other than the first entry they didn’t fare well at the box-office either, but I liked all of them.

September 1, 2026

A Binge too Far #66: Sins of the X trilogy (2022 – 2023)

Posted by Christos Mouroukis

X (2022) poster

They started with CGI visual effects, then they continued their backgrounds, then they showed us fake animals, and now we see CGI actors. Does anyone make real cinema anymore, you ask? Many filmmakers still make awesome pictures with practical gore special effects, the fact that you ignore them and opt for buying a ticket to a Marvel blockbuster infested with CGI is your fault. Support real cinema!

X (2022) poster featuring Mia Goth

X (2022)

Set deep in the ‘Bible Belt’, Texas, and in 1979 when the age of the ‘chic porno’ filmic movement was pretty much over and done with, this follows the cast and crew of a Houston adult film production that rents an old couple’s barn in the middle of nowhere, whereupon they aim to shoot their latest hit, ‘The Farmer’s Daughter’. Even at first glance the Texan hospitality doesn’t seem to be what it usually advertises itself as, but things will become even more nightmarish as the entourage starts getting killed, one member at a time.

A24 and writer/director Ti West [who had helmed the perfection that is The House of the Devil (2009)] have done it again, in creating cinema with guts and as such it should be cherished. This is the most fun I’ve had watching a movie since I can’t remember when. It is aesthetically perfect as 1979 porn is brought to life without indulging into any retro-styled anomalies, while the casting is spot-on too and so is the killer soundtrack. If you can imagine The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974) for a new generation you’d get a pretty good idea how awesome this is, but it also nods at other films by Tobe Hooper, such as Eaten Alive (1976), especially when a crocodile gets involved along the way. Shot in New Zealand back-to-back with a prequel called Pearl and that we’ll see in 2022, this premiered at South by Southwest before receiving a theatrical release which resulted in love by critics and audiences alike. It is hands down my favorite horror film of the year.

Pearl (2022) poster

Pearl (2022)

Set in 1918 during the influenza pandemic (and addressing it a lot, resulting in relevant storytelling), this prequel tells the story of the titular character (Mia Goth, in a career-defining starring role), who feels imprisoned in her life as a farm girl in Texas, oppressed by a psychotic mother and a sick father, and dreams of making it in the movies as a dancer. But other than her well-meant life goal, she is also suffering from her own psychopathic tendencies that start – as usual – with torturing and killing animals and eventually escalates to greater violence.

Featuring epic monologues for its star (Mia Goth also wrote the screenplay, with Ti West), this is masterful cinema (courtesy of director Ti West) celebrating images of the past, without ever being annoyingly retro. It is homage to the cinema we grew up with, spiced up with tons of transgression and gore, this is an audiovisual experience unlike any other, and it should be cherished for ages to come. Premiering at the Venice International Film Festival, it was loved by critics and audiences alike, going on to gross $9 million, on a $1 million budget, essentially becoming an all around success.

MaXXXine (2024) poster

MaXXXine (2024)

Set in 1985 Hollywood, amidst the murders committed by the notorious serial killer nicknamed ‘The Night Stalker’ and the satanic panic that targeted music and cinema, the final act of the trilogy tells the story of the titular porn actress (Mia Goth) and her journey to becoming a legitimate movie star, but in reality it is a tale of blood and mayhem.

Debauchery, drugs, fame, corruption, backstabbing, and an inexplicable desire to become famous for no apparent reason, are the ingredients of a recipe that many taste when they try to make it in Hollywood, but as this new film from writer/director Ti West tells us, the place is a dump and it will devour your soul. However, this is all the protagonist needs and she will do anything to become somebody, no matter what the cost may be. It is the most colorful and vibrant entry of the series, it has the best soundtrack, it was a great box-office success (it grossed $21.1 million), but most importantly it is more than great cinema, it is actual fucking poetry.

August 1, 2026

A Binge too Far #65 – Honey... trilogy (1989 – 1997)

Posted by Christos Mouroukis

Rick Moranis in Honey, I Shrunk the Kids (1989)

What you least expected from this column would be a retrospective on a Disney live-action family comedy trilogy, yet here we are!

Honey, I Shurunk... (1989)

Honey, I Shrunk the Kids (1989)

Moronic inventor and failed scientist Wayne Szalinski (Rick Moranis) makes a machine that would shrink objects and then bring them back to their regular or bigger size; if anything such a devise could possibly change the world, but what it changes instead is his family’s life when the kids become so small he cannot see them, and their adventure begins in the front yard.

Taking its cue from the masterful The Incredible Shrinking Man (1957), this family comedy from director Joe Johnson [still a hot shot in Hollywood as he recently helmed Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)], really benefits mostly from the story by our favourites Stuart Gordon [Re-Animator (1985)], Brian Yuzna [The Dentist (1996)], and Ed Naha (who wrote the screenplay, with Tom Schulman), and of course its stunning special effects (the team behind them received a BAFTA Award), resulting in a box-office that nobody saw coming, grossing $222.7 million to become Disney’s biggest live-action hit at that time, not to mention a staple on the VHS market.

Honey, I Blew Up the... (1992)

Honey, I Blew Up the Kid (1992)

The moronic inventor Wayne Szalinski (Rick Moranis) has science gone wrong again, and this time he grows his son (Robert Oliveri, returning from the original film) to great proportions.

Based on the characters by Ed Naha, Stuart Gordon, and Brian Yuzna, this time the story was written by Gary Goodrow (an actor by trade), who also penned the screenplay with Thom Eberhardt [Night of the Comet (1984)] and Peter Elbling (another actor by trade), taking its cue from another 1950s size-centric sci-fi cheapy, namely Attack of the 50 Foot Woman (1958), only to sadly remind us how much more attractive these oldies are. The special effects and production values are top-notch for the time this was made (and you couldn’t expect anything less with a $32 million budget), and overall it has this air of old Hollywood about it, yet there is no soul to it and it can be dismissed easily. It grossed $96 million, which was a success, but nowhere the splash the original had made at the box-office. Also, several films with a much lower budget went on to make much more entertaining versions of the theme, including Fred Olen Ray’s Attack of the 60 Foot Centrefolds (1995) and Christopher Guest’s TV movie Attack of the 50 Ft. Woman (1993).

Honey, We Shrunk... (1997)

Honey, We Shrunk Ourselves (1997)

While trying to make a tiki statute smaller, the awkward moronic inventor Wayne Szalinski (Rick Moranis) shrinks himself and his brother [Stuart Pankin from Arachnophobia (1990)] and their wives [Eve Gordon, later in The Grudge 2 (2006), and Robin Bartlett, later in Shutter Island (2010)]; starting a household quest to notify their kids, who in the meanwhile have a pyjama party.

Directed by Dean Cundey (an acclaimed cinematographer by trade), this is surprisingly good for a straight-to-video movie (it was the first live-action film released by Disney with this – new then – approach to distribution), and even the special effects are not second rate, as they successfully channel the monster movies of the yesteryear, with sequences that include cockroaches and spiders. And also, at a mere 74 minutes long, it never outstays its welcome as a comedy/adventure for the entire family.

July 1, 2026

A Binge too Far #64 - the Battlestar Galactica 2000s TV movies (2007 - 2012)

Posted by Christos Mouroukis

Frame from Battlestar Galactica: Razor (2007)

The recent television phenomenon of Battlestar Galactica (2004 – 2009) – which I will tackle on Static Age, soon – spawned three TV movies, and here are my brief thoughts on them.

Battlestar Galactica: Razor

Battlestar Galactica: Razor (2007)

Set during the first month of Lee Adama’s Pegasus command, this feature-length special was directed by Felix Enriquez Alcala, and premiered on the Sci Fi channel. During its first half it feels like a standard TV movie, but the second half becomes quite spectacular and appealing even to casual viewers that may not be fans of the series.

The TV show’s developer Ronald D. Moore was approached by Universal Studios Home Entertainment for this production with the aim to be sold later as a standalone release on the then-booming DVD market. The screenplay by Michael Taylor takes place after the second season’s The Captain’s Hand and before the Lay down Your Burdens episodes. You can either view the 81 minute version that was originally broadcasted, or the 101 minute extended version. For the purpose of supporting the release, the studio broadcasted the Razor Flashbacks webisodes that we tackled on Static Age.

Battlestar Galactica: The Plan

Battlestar Galactica: The Plan (2009)

Following the events of Cylon’s aim to destroy the human race, this TV movie directed by Edward James Olmos employs a lot of footage from the 2003 mini-series and the 2004 proper series, but also offers loads of newly shot footage, with surprisingly seamless results. It was originally made available on home video, and it later premiered on the SyFy channel.

Battlestar Galactica: Blood & Chrome (2012)

Set in the tenth year of the First Cylon War, the story focuses on the rise of William Adama (Luca Pasqualino) who starts as a rookie pilot fresh off the Academy, and after following a long journey he becomes a hero.

Created by Michael Taylor and David Eick, this was a 10-episode online series, directed by Jonas Pate that was later edited as a feature-length TV movie and aired on the SyFy channel. It works as a prequel to the 2004 TV series and it is essential viewing for fans of the show.

June 22, 2026

Sleeper Hold!! Available from Splatter Theatre Press!

Posted by Jeff

Professional wrestling can be dangerous. Broken bones, crushed dreams... murder. Twenty years ago, acclaimed writer, David Hayes, told author Jeff Dolniak about a project former professional wrestler Joe Broni wanted to do. This was his story of love, betrayal, and murder. It tells the sordid tale of how an independent wrestling promotion was menaced by a black-gloved killer, hellbent on destroying everyone... except for the popular Tanya the Tyrant. What connected her to the deranged fiend? Find out here, in Sleeper Hold! From the author: "Joe invited me out to his favorite greasy spoon for lunch. I paid. It was ok because it was Joe. We chatted for hours on how we would attack the project. It was surreal. I loved watching Joe as a kid. He lost every match but he still left an indelible mark on young Jeff. As time went on, I found out things about Joe. Things about the business that would forever change how I thought about the circus surrounding the squared circle. Horrors. A darkness that went beyond the sweaty athletes in spandex. Splatter Theatre Press has been brave enough to distribute this book." Featuring contributions by Paul Counelis , Kurt Belcher, Caleb Thusat, and Dalyn Viker. Buy your copy now! https://splattertheatre.com/products/sleeper-hold

June 1, 2026

A Binge too Far #63: The Hand that Rocks the Cradle duo (1992 – 2025)

Posted by Christos Mouroukis

Frame from The Hand that Rocks the Cradle (1992)

This is the last installment of A Binge too far that tackles duos of film, as from next month I’ll be doing trilogies for the foreseeable future, so enjoy!

The Hand that Rocks... (1992)

The Hand that Rocks the Cradle (1992)

After pregnant woman Claire Bartel [Annabella Sciorra from Jungle Fever (1991)] is molested by her gynecologist [John de Lancie, later in Crank: High Voltage (2009)] her husband (Matt McCoy) rightfully decides to file a complaint that results in the story going public and in turn forces the perverted doctor to commit suicide. What’s more, when the deceased’s wife [Rebecca De Mornay, later in Identity (2003)] loses her baby, she is sworn revenge to the couple she accuses for the death of her husband.

The film grabs its title from a 1865 William Ross Wallace poem, but the screenplay by Amanda Silver [Jurassic World (2015)] was mostly inspired by a comic opera called The Pirates of Penzance (1879), although you couldn’t tell, as it is just a typical early-1990s thriller, even if a bit above average. Its mediocrity is mostly the result of a flat direction by Curtis Hanson [L.A. Confidential (1997)] as all he does is conventional coverage that is only occasionally salvaged by some good performances (including Julianne Moore). Despite all that it grossed a stunning $140 million (unheard for such a film, even during the subgenre’s heyday) on a modest $11.9 million budget, while it also became a massive renter on home video.

The Hand that Rocks... (2025)

The Hand that Rocks the Cradle (2025)

An upper class couple [Mary Elizabeth Winstead from 10 Cloverfield Lane (2016) and Raul Castillo from Smile 2 (2024)] hire a nanny [the immensely beautiful, but also eerie and menacing Maika Monroe from the masterful It Follows (2014)] for their kids, who on first sight is a struggling and kind person, but maybe she is hiding something.

Although this more of a Cape Fear (1991) remake with gender and racial roles swapped (of course the male lead should be Mexican and the female leads current or former lesbians), rather than a remake of the same-titled film from 1992, it is still a very interesting psychological thriller that grabs your attention and has you on an edgy feeling throughout its running time. It is a nail-biting experience despite the by-the-numbers approach to directing by Michelle Garza Cervera [Huesera (2022)], but what surprised me was the cruel and realistic gore make-up effects during the (few and far between, to be honest) acts of violence on screen.

May 1, 2026

A Binge too Far #62: Extreme Cinema Associate Guerrilla Metropolitana’s duo (2023 – 2025)

Posted by Christos Mouroukis

The Benefactress (2025)

Following four short films [Bits (2021), My Special Superhero – a visual subtext of madness and rejection (2021), The Baron and the Harpsichord (2021), and The Censor – A British horror tale of real politics and social-moral code (2021)] that drew attention in underground movie cycles, filmmaker Guerrilla Metropolitana delivered a duo of strange films that delved deep into carnage and mayhem; and I couldn’t think of a better writer to tackle them than myself.

Dariuss (2023) poster

Dariuss (2023)

A couple (Ila Argento and Archibad Kane) is grieving, following the disappearance of their young daughter (Medusa S), until they descent into a downward spiral of madness and murder at the hands of a maniac (Guerrilla Metropolitana).

In case you haven’t seen something really sick recently, writer/director/producer/cinematographer Guerrilla Metropolitana and his motley crew of anonymous conspirators (other actors are credited equally pseudonymously as Marie Antoinette de Robespierre and Sarah Isabel) delivers a masterwork of insanity that is a punch on the senses not because of the rape and gore on display, but rather its sheer bizarre qualities.

Playing with editing, the use of sound and other techniques that would normally be employed by a ‘video art’ project, this carnage is a statement on grief and a commentary on what it is like to be a lost soul. It is also very blatantly asks what is art, but as the film says the best questions remain unanswered. The bottom line is that the entire project feels more appropriate in an art gallery, rather than a movie theatre.

The end result is not exciting (by any means) but very fascinating (in every possible way and by all means). I am not very keen on ‘art-house’ cinema, but this is something totally different, unique, and original, so much that it is difficult to categorize it and understand why and how it works, but it definitely does. Metropolitana is constantly breaking audiovisual boundaries and is also offering the deepest, darkest, and meaningful masturbation scene I’ve seen since the 1970s films of Jess Franco.

The Benefactress (2025)

The Benefactress: An Exposure of Cinematic Freedom (2025)

This time around writer/director Guerrilla Metropolitana breaks down the walls of Meta cinema by simultaneously including in his script the supposed financer of it (an anonymous rich woman appearing via video link) and himself masturbating, licking, fucking, raping, and whatnot with his acting assemble.

The first question the film imposes is how far an artist’s freedom can go, and to me the answer is really simple, as I believe that an artist should be free to do whatever he feels like and express himself in any way he needs to. However, the question I imposed to myself during this viewing experience (and pretty early on too) is if the audience wants to see such freedoms expressed (rape and murder, to be precise – on shaky video distorted by brilliant editing), but I couldn’t care less for the rest of the world, and for me it is enough that I want to see this, and most importantly I demand to be able to see this, as censorship must be eliminated.

Back to the film under review, it must be said that this is not really cinema, but it is alien art. The title doesn’t fully describe it either, as it is not exactly an exposure of cinematic freedom, but rather an achievement in perversion. The project is also original in that it doesn’t really have a running time – it defies time, as watching it has you lost in a netherworld beyond anything you have seen before.

Finally, it must be noted that you shouldn’t compare this to the work of David Lynch who was a rich person with all the money one could get from major studios yet he failed to deliver a single artistic film; what Guerrilla Metropolitana does here is high art with zero budget, and as such it should be cherished on every occasion. Have we finally found this generation’s Jess Franco? I hope so, but this will only happen if Metropolitana finds the courage to become more prolific.

April 1, 2026

A Binge too Far #61: The Creep duo (2014 – 2017)

Posted by Christos Mouroukis

Frame from Creep (2014)

As we are about to tackle Shudder’s The Creep Tapes (2014) in Static Age, we take a look at the two Jason Blum-produced films that spawned the hit TV series.

Creep (2014) poster

Creep (2014)

Down on his luck, videographer Aaron Franklin (Patrick Brice) answers an online advertisement from Josef (Marc Duplass) who’s supposedly dying from a brain tumour, and wants his last days to be filmed in order to be presented as a gift to his yet-unborn child. It ends up that the advertiser becomes obsessed with the videographer, justifying the film’s title as he gradually becomes a creep.

The protagonist duo penned the screenplay (with Brice directing and Duplass producing), of what must be the most boring time I’ve hard with a horror movie in many years. Following a successful premiere at the South by Southwest film festival (I don’t know what the audience was thinking), it had a bit of turbulent history (I think I know what the distributors were thinking) until it found a home on video on demand, when it was hailed by critics as some sort of great psychological thriller. To me it is just another found footage trash that becomes even worse because all you see on screen is two people talking. Had the two male leads developed a homoerotic romance, things could be a bit more interesting.

Creep 2 (2017) poster

Creep 2 (2017)

A Youtuber and all around alternative semi-Goth girl (Desiree Akhavan) is answering an online ad by serial killer (Marc Duplass) who seems to have suicidal tendencies.

Written by Patrick Brice (who also directed) and Marc Duplass, this sequel is admittedly a better effort than its predecessor, mainly due to some surprisingly clever choices it makes with its camera work and editing, as well as the screenplay which just when you thought you knew where it’s going it heads into a totally different direction.

Be warned though that despite its ‘woke’ approach (both central characters seem to be gay) – that comes along with full frontal male nudity, but only a mere glimpse of tit from the female – and its very brief time (like the first film the running time is again thankfully under 80 minutes long), this is unmistakably boring; just not as much as the original.

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November 1, 2026

A Binge too Far #68: The untold story of the theatrical Sweeney films (1977 – 2012)

October 1, 2026

A Binge too Far #67: The ferocious Strangers trilogy (2024 - 2026)

September 1, 2026

A Binge too Far #66: Sins of the X trilogy (2022 – 2023)

August 1, 2026

A Binge too Far #65 – Honey... trilogy (1989 – 1997)

July 1, 2026

A Binge too Far #64 - the Battlestar Galactica 2000s TV movies (2007 - 2012)

June 22, 2026

Sleeper Hold!! Available from Splatter Theatre Press!

June 1, 2026

A Binge too Far #63: The Hand that Rocks the Cradle duo (1992 – 2025)

May 1, 2026

A Binge too Far #62: Extreme Cinema Associate Guerrilla Metropolitana’s duo (2023 – 2025)

April 1, 2026

A Binge too Far #61: The Creep duo (2014 – 2017)

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