A smart compact thriller with a memorably vicious edge, Last Straw is a calling card for debut director Alan Scott Neal. Viewers expecting another low budget siege thriller, this time taking place in a roadside diner, may find themselves surprised by the surprises contained within, leading onto a film that although it does not re-invent or galvanise its own sub-genre earns more than enough in keeping the viewer gripped with its relevant and character driven edge.

A series of shocking, grisly murders take place in a small French village amid a mountainous landscape. Simultaneously, several children have gone missing, one of them turning out to be the son of a couple who have become the latest victims to have met their end in spectacularly gruesome fashion. Turning up on the scene to investigate if the missing children could be linked to a series of abductions across the country is police captain Franck, turning up at the same time as big city detective Elisabeth who has been called into investigate the murders. Despite bristling against each other, and the resentful small town small police force, they find their investigations melding together when they discover the local legend of a monstrous figure who feeds on the souls of the dead.

This science-fiction potboiler will no doubt capture the interest of the more discerning genre fan by the film’s geographical location alone. Those expecting something wholly original and with something more to chew on thematically than most recent sci-fi films and shows may find themselves a little short changed with what is on offer here.

For those of you who may have missed the first instalment of the Baby Assassin's franchise, you may or may not be disappointed to discover that these films do not in fact feature infants who are highly skilled in the art of death but two young women, Chisato and Mahiro, fresh out of high school who despite their highly lethal line of work are more preoccupied with elaborate desserts and holding down a series of low paying day jobs to pay the rent for the day-glo coloured apartment they are forced to share by the Assassin’s Guild.

The restful act of sleeping at night has become an often-memorable battleground against evil spirits who seem intent on destroying their victim’s body and/or soul. Whether it was the mysterious demon from PARANORMAL ACTIVITY or Freddy Krueger with his nifty line in glove wear the threat has been out there for quite some time now, waiting for its moment to strike when all we want is a good night’s kip.

After making a real impact with her debut feature SAINT MAUDE, Rose Glass returns with her second feature. Fans of that particular film, myself included, rewarding it my film of the year for this site back in 2020 after its Glasgow FrightFest screening, will no doubt be keen to see how Glass would follow up that nightmarish study of a woman spinning out of control with her belief in God. Glass doubles down here with this tale of two women spinning out of control this with the catalysts this time being love, body building, steroids and guns.