Jonathan C. Gillespie's Blog

Sometimes history comes calling, and sometimes it arrives with a truck full of body-bags when it does. As a history buff, recent events have filled me with a kind of morbid curiosity–at our shores, it seems, is a generational crisis one typically only reads about in the past tense. But what’s most alarming about the […]

So having settled into 40, here’s how I’d summarize it so far: In your twenties, you’re rushing around learning who you are, caring way more about things you can’t change than you should, and generally pushing yourself hard. Often too hard. Every goal is attainable, every bit of grandeur within your grasp, every slogan and […]

As scary as some horror films are, there’s often a comfortable gulf the viewer can cross after the credits roll. They toss the popcorn bin in the trash or put on some music; perhaps say goodbye to friends, maybe head on to a shower and bed. And this process comes easier when the director or [...]

When I began this review series, I promised I’d also be raising zombies from way out in the back of the graveyard, highlighting some of the more independent and lesser-known horror films out there. Well, based on what I’ve seen, He Never Died escaped notice from quite a few people, and it’s the perfect time [...]

Neil Marshall made a name for himself, justifiably, with 2005’s The Descent, but prior to crafting that film’s claustrophobic horror, he’d given us Dog Soldiers. Here we find good writing, acting, and Marshall’s characteristically excellent execution of practical effects. I love how Dog Soldiers doesn’t pick on soft targets. Many horror films inflict their monsters [...]

The Salem Witch Trials haunt our culture, and are one of the inevitable points of discussion whenever a debate arises concerning the merits of atheism or religious belief. I think one aspect of the phenomenon is often overlooked. Human beings have a tendency to externalize the emotions of the moment. The early New England settlers [...]

One of the things I’ve learned from having children is how little I’d understood about the experience before. There isn’t much I’d say someone is unentitled to comment on without having undertaken, but this? Definitely. It has been both the most rewarding thing I’ve ever done, and the hardest. Take the range of emotions you’ve [...]

It’s one thing for a horror film to feature supernatural encounters or marauding monsters. It’s quite another when its antagonist is something Out There. Out There is that place where civilization gives way to an environment in which our comfortable status as nature’s apex predators is no longer certain. There’s something about that which assails [...]

We’ve covered wide-release films and indie darlings already in this series of reviews, but early on I promised some deep cuts (pun intended, given the subject matter), and it’s time to roll one out on the mortuary slab. At first glance, there’s no earthly reason “A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night” should work. It’s [...]

It Follows won wide acclaim, so I struggled with whether or not to include it in this series. But it’s just too damned good at what it sets out to do to leave out. This is a film that burns into life in its first few minutes, demanding we respect its monster. Not since Jaws [...]