System Preference by Ugo Bienvenu - Graphic Novel Review

 

'Information is the future, history is the past. Where data storage is scarce and social media reigns supreme, history is simply deleted. An archivist risks everything to save humanity's greatest works, hiding them inside the memory of the surrogate robot carrying his unborn child. But when he is discovered, the cost of preserving the past may be his family's future.'

We live in a time where we have more access to information than at any other point in human history, though we are seeing restrictions and rollbacks on our rights to access certain things in many places now. There's simply more entertainment, history, and academic texts than a single person could experience in their entire lifetime if that was all they did. But what happens when that ever expanding information reaches a breaking point, when our ability to store and record that can't keep up with its production? This is one of the key questions of System Preference a graphic novel that creates an interesting, and often morally grey future.

We're introduced to this world through Yves Mathon, a young man with a beautiful wife, a child on the way, and a well paying job. However, he's recently gone though the loss of his father, and he's come to hate his work. Yves is an archivist, whose job it is to go through huge data stores, select historical works, and evaluate if they need to be deleted to make more storage space. Whilst this doesn't sound bad on the surface, it means he has to destroy great works of fiction, pieces of art that have inspired and shaped the world to make space for people's fashion photos, and their vlogs about their daily lives. Yves feels like he's destroying the vital pieces of our past so that the inane, almost pointless slop of the modern day can be saved.

Going against regulations, Yves has been stealing copies of these works and sneaking them out of work, uploading them into Mikki, the family robot who also happens to be carrying his unborn daughter; a piece of tech that allows his wife to forgo being pregnant. However, this decision is putting his family at risk, as those who've done similar in the past have simply vanished. So when the powers that be discover what Yves is doing he and his family must go on the run; a choice that leads to shocking consequences for them.

In a lot of ways System Preference feels like a story of two halves, two narratives that could have easily carried their own books, but who work wonderfully here to produce a finished piece that manages to explore some interesting themes.

The first half of the book follows Yves as he puts everything on the line to save pieces of the past, and shows us how sterile the world has become in a lot of ways. Whilst this world isn't as cold and controlled as some dystopian tech futures we've seen in fiction it has a lack of any real hope. We see that the entertainment being produced in this time is soulless, made to order where hairstyles, faces, and actions can be changed in post at the direction of the studios. It's made for no one and everyone at the same time, with no vision behind it, no aim other than to be made. At the same time we see that what would still be considered art, pieces in galleries and shows, are being made simply for money, with the artists themselves admitting they know their work won't last, won't make an impact or inspire. It feels like people are going through the motions of creativity without any real passion or reason to do so.

In this way it feels like System Preference is a piece that's in part taking aim at AI 'art', even if that was perhaps not the intention of Ugo Bienvenu. We live in a time where resources are being used and destroyed so that people who have never wanted to create art, who have never cared to explore learning to do so, to develop those skills can type some commands into a machine and have it spit out flat, fake, soulless 'art' for them. Whether it be still images or videos, this fake art takes from what's come before, what's been created by others who had that passion, who were trying to make something special, and has been recycled into something no one wants. And the internet is being swamped with it, real human art is being pushed aside for this slop, and it's leading to a future like the one Bienvenu has created here.

This half of the book has the most drama, the looming threat that Yves is going to have people come for him, to steal him away in the middle of the night. There's an underlying sense of dread to these scenes, and you can't help but see this future as a sanitised hell, one where any non-conformity, any act of love is seen as other and wrong. And when that hammer does drop the book almost becomes a thriller, with Yves and his family having to vanish, running from pursuers, staying off the grid in order to survive.

However, at the halfway point disaster strikes, and the entire tone of the novel changes. Due to tragedy, Mikki and the baby he's carrying, Isi, are the only survivors, forced to run into the forest to survive. Finding an old home off the grid and long forgotten, Mikki begins the task of raising young Isi, being the parents she's lost.

Things slow down in this half of the book, and whilst we know that the two of them are still in danger that threat moves into the background as we focus on the relationship between this girl and her robot guardian. Mikki does his best to raise Isi, teaching her how to survive in the world, how to cook, hunt for food, care for her body, and to love the wonders of nature. He also shares with her her fathers love of the art that he stole away from deletion, sharing films with Isi, reciting poetry and stories to her. It's a beautiful section, one that continues the theme of saving our history so that it can be imparted to future generations, but also examining if machines, robots may some day be human enough to be able to care for us.

The book doesn't outright say that Mikki loves Isi, and based on earlier conversations in the book it seems like Mikki goes out of his way to tell the reader that he's incapable of love, but if that's true it's hard to lay all of his actions and choices squarely on programming. The bond that forms between this machine and girl feels like love, it feels parental, and you come to care for the two of them greatly.

System Preference is a fairly layered and complex narrative, but it's balanced out with some simple, elegant artwork. Bienvenu keeps things straightforward, with fairly flat, large blocks of colour with minimal use of colours for shading or layering. People and environments are largely big blocks of single colours, and it creates a sense of simplicity, of functionality without passion that fits the tone of the world that Bienvenu has made. This changes in the second half of the book, when we enter the countryside. Here, the trees have multiple shades of green in them, rocks are more than one simple colour, and animals have life to them. Mikki and Isi are still coloured simply, showing how out of place they are, how they've brought some of that sterility of the human world with them. It's a subtle detail, but once you notice it it becomes very obvious, and I think it further adds to Bienvenu's theme of how humanity has lost something of itself.

System Preference is a fantastic read, one that has a lot more to say then you first think, and is a book that even though you can ready pretty quickly in a single sitting, it invites you to go back and read it again, to dive deeper into it and examine what it's trying to say.

System Preference is available now from Titan Comics.

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Night of the Living Dead by John A. Russo - Book Review

 

'The classic film that changed cinema by redefining horror and zombies forever. George A. Romero’s hit movie is reimagined in this novel by John Russo, the co-screenwriter of the beloved flick.

'While visiting their father’s grave, Barbara and Johnny see a man slowly approaching them. Grotesque and ghost-pale, the man kills Johnny. Barbara manages to flee to a nearby farmhouse, where six other strangers have gathered to escape an outbreak of the unburied dead returning to life and attacking the living. This ragtag group struggle to fend off the horde of flesh-eating ghouls. Will any of them make it out alive?'

Night of the Living Dead was a gamechanger in many ways. Not only was it the beginning of the career of one of the most respected names in the horror genre in George A. Romero, but it forever forged a new type of monster in Romero's undead. Instead of the more ghoul-like slave zombies resurrected with magic audiences were given the shambling, flesh eating corpses that most people would think of when hearing the word zombie nowadays. Whilst not every aspect of the creature was locked in yet, and these features tend to change from story to story, you cannot deny that Night of the Living Dead forever changed the horror landscape and created one of the most used monsters to date.

The film became one of the most shown horror films of all time, thanks to a mistake that put the film into public domain immediately. Instead of being a bad thing, this made it so any movie theatre, drive-in, or television station in the world could show it; and this 'mistake' did more to help the film and the careers of those involved in it than anything the filmmakers could have done. With the film coming close to its 60th anniversary, and with zombies being the go to monster in film, TV, and video games for decades now, it feels like a perfect time to dive into the novelisation of the film written by the co-creator of the film John A. Russo.

The book is immediately striking, with a beautiful cover that features the image of the infected Karen Cooper, a character whose shocking turn into one of the undead is one of the more memorable moments from the original film. The black and white image is accompanied by the books title in big, red letters that stand out on the mostly white cover, evoking the black and white imagery of the film itself wonderfully. The back cover is also more than worth pouring over, with some imagery from the film and bold text that feel more like a movie poster then a normal back cover. 

The story itself stays very true to the events of the film, and those hoping to see something new in the pages of this book might be a little dissappointed as there's no alternate scenes or new events and characters added to the narrative. However, Russo does go out of his way to try and add more context to what we have on the screen. The opening scene in particular stands out for this as we get some time inside Johnny's head before he dies, seeing from his perspective and building on what was only really suggested in the film in regards to his relationship with his sister. As the story progresses, however, these moments aren't always found, and there are times where things feel a little light in comparison; which is a shame as the novel format would allow us a much better opportunity to find out how characters are handling things and the thoughts that they don't openly share.

For myself, the book slows down where the film didn't. The opening scene in the graveyard is translated wonderfully, and it's a delight to follow Barbara as her world is shattered and she's forced to run for her life. However, once she reaches the farmhouse and Ben enters the story Barbara is reduced to much more of a background figure, passive and unreactive a lot of the time. I understand that this is because the character is in shock, but the pace shudders to a crawl when this happens, and it almost feels like Russo is just describing what's happening rather than making the moment feel alive a lot of the time. I can't also help but feel that this might be part of why the book is as short as it is, at around 180 pages, as there's little meat on the bones; perhaps because the dead got to it first?

As someone who really enjoys the film though, I couldn't hate the book for simply retelling the movie's events as even with very basic, quick to read prose it's still a great story. Is it as good as the film though? Well, I'd have to say no, as unless you've seen the film a lot, or have a photographic memory, your imagination isn't going to be framing or pacing things the same way that Romero did, and much of the punch and creativity of the final piece is missing here; kind of showing that even a strong story and script can be given more in the hands of a competent director. Weirdly, however, no matter how much I tried I couldn't picture it in colour, and my imagination presented me with the story in black and white, possibly yet another testament to the iconic nature of the movie being so good that even my brain tried to recreate it without colour.

I enjoyed Night of the Living Dead, and thanks to its short length it didn't take long to finish. It made for a fun way to start the Halloween season, ushering in October with the book, and for those who are fans of the work it'll make for a nice read. The new edition from Titan Books is also gorgeous, and if you're looking to get a copy you should definitely grab the hardcover while you're able.

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Scottish Government Betrays Transgender Students

 

The Scottish government has given new instructions to its schools that say that transgender students must be banned from the correct toilet facilities, either forcing them into the incorrect toilets that could put them at risk of harm, or to provide them with separate facilities that segregate them from cisgender students.

Holyrood ministers has issued new guidance that say that pupils can only access toilets that correspond with their 'biological sex', a reversal on their previous stance that trans students can use the facilities that match their gender identity, or that they feel most comfortable in. 

As with other guidance given across the UK following the UK Supreme Court Ruling on sex as outlined in the Equality Act 2010, this new guidance tries to reduce trans students (and everyone) to 'biological sex', yet does not lay out what it means by that.

There are probably some people reading this who are going to jump in with their very simple 'but it's easy, male and female!' response, but sex is neither binary, nor simple, no matter how much anti-trans bigots want it to be. As they like to say, facts don't care about their feelings.

Without clear definitions on what sex is from the government issuing these guidance's there is very little to enforce this. Are they referring to genotypic sex, the type of chromosomes someone has? If so, they need to address the fact that there are more than two groupings of chromosomes, and that there are masculine presenting people who are physically male with XX chromosomes, as well as women with XY chromosomes; so what are they and the variety of people who fall outside the supposed XX/XY binary?

Transphobes celebrating the loss of trans rights outside court

Are they referring to only genitals, and if so how will this be enforced in schools? Are they suggesting that someone needs to be present at the toilets to check what students have in their underwear before they're allowed to go inside? This hardly seems practical, nor decent, and I don't think sexually abusing every student who wants to take a piss is a good policy. Or are they talking about phenotypic sex attributes, which in itself is a whole slew of physical characteristics that can vary, can be modified, and mean different things in different cultures? 

The UK Supreme Court and government officials have said over and over again that these new segregationist, bigoted guidance and laws 'bring clarity', yet have not once been clear on what they mean. 'Biological sex' is a broad phrase with dozens of variables, none of which define someone's sex individually. This is why these rulings have been called unscientific and biologically illiterate by medical professionals and biologists. Yet here we are, yet again seeing parts of the UK government charging ahead with policies that are only designed to harm people, with no grounding in reality or science.

In making the declaration that trans students in Scotland must be singled out like this, outed to their peers, forced into unsafe environments, or removed completely, it is only furthering harm towards children. Literal fucking children. What happens when a child is outed as trans and is bullied? What happens when bigoted kids wait outside the special trans only toilets to jump any kid who comes out? What happens when cisgender kids are accused of being trans and attacked? What happens with children are so bullied and abused in large part to these policies that they take their own lives? How many dead and hurt children will be enough before people see that these policies aren't just stupid, but cruel?

The Scottish government has turned its back on its children. It's given in to the loud, cruel screams of awful bigots who have made it clear that they want trans people gone, whether that be legalised out of public life or just dead. Everyone who has backed this should feel shame, they should feel guilt when children end up hurt, and they shouldn't be anywhere near decision making power like this, because they've demonstrated that they don't care about science, they don't care about children, and they aren't worthy of respect.

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Sanda vol. 1 by Paru Itagaki - Blog Tour

 

'In a future where youth is preserved as a means of survival, there is no time for trivial celebrations like Christmas - until Kazushige Sanda awakens the legendary power of Santa Claus. He teams up with Shiori Fuyumura and Hitoshi Amaya to find their missing classmate, but they must keep his powers and their investigation a secret, all while navigating the terrors of middle school.'

In the UK Santa is something that most of us would take for granted. He's been a part of the mythology of Christmas for so long that it would be hard to think about the Christmas season without him; he's become so central a figure to the holiday that losing him would destroy Christmas more than losing the religious side of it. And this seems to be one of the key plot points in Paru Itagaki's Sanda. 

Set in the year 2080, we meet a group of young teens at the Daikoku Welfare Academy, a huge boarding school in Japan. In this future something has happened to decimate the birth rate, and we learn that there are less than 50,000 children under the age of fifteen, and that as such kids are kept in huge educational facilities to be kept safe, and are treated with so much care and concern that adults will pretty much let them do whatever they want. The reasons for this change aren't revealed in the first volume, but based on some other facts we could perhaps make some theories.

Another unusual thing about this future is that despite it being the middle of December there are no Christmas decorations, that the weather is warm instead of cold, and that the kids are at school as normal on December 25th. Christmas seems to be a thing of the past, a long forgotten thing that some of the kids are only vaguely aware of as a story passed down over the years. 

In the middle of this we're introduced to Sanda, a teenage boy who's one of his class reps, and has a crush on Fuyumura, the slightly odd, very tall girl in his class with some pretty spooky looking eyes. We're introduced to the two of them as Fuyumura is chasing Sanda around their classroom with a kitchen knife, threatening to stab him. It seems that Fuyumura is a bit unstable, and perhaps her creepy exterior is a sign that there's something a bit darker to this girl. However, she has a valid reason to try and kill Sanda; you see, she's convinced that Sanda is a descendent of the legendary Santa Claus, and that she needs Santa's help to find her missing best friend, Ono.

Through some schenanigans, Fuyumura is able to prove her suspicions correct, and reveals to Sanda that he is indeed a descendent of Santa, and when the young teen wears something red it transforms him in the huge, buff, bearded form of Santa (or Santa by way of a fighting game character). With Sanda's new power to transform into Santa unlocked, Fuyumura must try to convince the freaked out boy that helping her is the right thing to do. This proves easier said than done as Sanda has to contend with figuring out all of his strange powers, a terrifying old principal who may be sucking life out of students, and a shadowy conspiracy to hunt Santa.

Sanda is a hard book to describe. It's part high school drama, part dark comedy, with a mystery story focus, and transformation shenanigans and bizarre super powers thrown into the mix, all with a Christmas theme. It's the kind of book that when you hear it described sounds like some kind of fever dream, or a plot created by throwing random words together; and this was a big part of why I wanted to pick up a copy of the book because I had to see just how it all actually works. And despite how weird it sounds, Sanda is an incredibly charming, funny, and enjoyable book.

One of the things that instantly stands out about Sanda is just how different it looks. There is a lot of variety in manga art, and different artists produce some varied and beautiful work, but there's something about Sanda that stood out as different to others I'd read almost straight away. The first thing that made me feel that way was the eyes. Itagaki has a way of drawing eyes that gives the characters a spooky, sometimes crazy look to them that feels different to other manga characters. This slightly off kilter quality is present in other ways too, such as the overly creepy school principal, and the way that Santa is always presented on the page, looking over everyone, drawn as if the reader is looking up at him, with proportions feeling skewed and off. Sanda has a vibe to it that I think could be described as 'manga by way of Tim Burton'.

The tone of the story works wonderfully with this strange art, and there's a very dark edge to the events in the book. There's a violent stabbing, a classroom gets blown up, someone's face gets slashed, and there's an almost constant feeling of danger and unease, yet the book never goes into horror territory, and thanks to its humour lands more as quirky. Things are dark, but not made to frighten, it's silly but not slapstick. To make another comparison to a piece of western media, Sanda has something of an Addams Family kind of flavour to it where it has those darker trappings, but designed in a way to delight rather than to offput. 

The books central characters definitely create this feeling too. Sanda himself is a pretty normal kid for the most part. He has a crush on a girl, he enjoys sweets, and he's just trying to navigate school the best he can. He's a nice kid who finds himself in a weird situation. Fuyumura on the other hand is absolutely weird. She's always intense, she's fairly withdrawn, and she's quick to violence. She's the complete opposite to Sanda, and the two of them make a wonderful double act because of this. Introduced a little later in the first volume is Hitoshi, one of the other boys in their class who comes into the narrative somewhat antagonistic, but ends up a part of the team as we learn he's not all that bad, and that actual villains are around too. I think it's a bit too early to really know what kind of character he is and what his dynamic with the other two is like, but he's a pretty enjoyable character too.

Volume one very much feels like set-up, of introducing us to this odd future and establishing the rules for the Santa transformation, as well as setting up the pieces of the the initial mystery. There are hints at a bigger narrative to come that makes it feel like things could get even weirder, and definitely make me interesting in seeing what comes next. I also love that despite Sanda having a crush on Fuyumura in the beginning the book doesn't make anything creepy with that, especially when Sanda transforms into an adult, but also heavily hints at a queer romance dynamic in the series too.

Sanda is a weird book. Half the time reading it I had to make sure I was actually seeing what I was seeing because it felt so bizarre, but there wasn't a single time when I was bored with it. Paru Itagaki has created something that feels pretty unique, with some artwork that I find genuinely delightful in how boldly different it is. I'm looking forward to seeing the series continue, and to seeing buff, shirtless Santa Clause fight some villains.

Sanda volume 1 is available now from Titan Manga.

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Yan: Vol 2 by Chang Sheng - Manga Review

 

'Winner of the prestigious Golden Comic Award, Yan Volume 2 cements its place as a standout title in Taiwan’s rapidly growing manga and graphic novel scene. Acclaimed creator Chang Sheng continues his genre-defying series with even higher stakes, transporting readers between modern-day Taiwan and a bleak dystopian future.

'What began as a personal vendetta has become a race to save the world from an A.I.-ruled apocalypse. As the group leaps through time, they must uncover buried secrets from Taiwan’s past to alter a chilling future that looms just ahead. The resurrected Peking Opera performer Tieh-Hua—as deadly as she is enigmatic—is joined by a disgraced detective, a missing Go prodigy with visions of the future, and a suspicious time-traveller, each playing a role in this tangled narrative.

'Chang Sheng masterfully fuses science fiction with Taiwanese cultural heritage and supernatural mystery, accompanied by his opulently detailed artwork and worlds. Yan Volume 2 is a bold, visually stunning exploration of identity, justice, and fate—blending high-octane action with philosophical intrigue. For fans of Baby and The Hidden Level, this is Chang Sheng at his most inventive yet.'

The first volume of Yan was easily one of the most impressive books that I've read this year, and my excitement for the second volume was pretty high; and I find that this can sometimes be a negative thing as your expectations for what comes next can become too high for the final product to meet. It's why we can see fans of things complain about the latest instalment of a franchise if they've had too long to build it up in their mind. Thankfully, I didn't have too long to wait for the second volume of Yan, and that there was no way my mind could have exceeded what Chang Sheng manages to deliver with this brilliant second part.

The first volume of Yan very much felt like a mystery story. A young woman accused of murdering her entire family gets locked away for twenty years, but the place she's being held is destroyed in a massive explosion with no survivors. She shows up a decade later, having not aged, and begins a quest of revenge to find out who really killed her family and why. A retired cop comes back to work to try and solve the case. It's fairly simple, even with the hints at something larger moving the pieces from the background, and even with the introduction of a teenage girl capable of seeing five minutes into the future. The sci-fi elements were definitely there, but the book felt fairly grounded whilst being fantastical.

This shifts quite dramatically in the second volume, which opens with Yan Tieh-Hua running into a fight with a huge laser beam shooting robot in the opening pages. Where the first volume slowly introduces you to the story this one throws you into the thick of it, and gives you some of the best choreographed comic book action I've seen in a long while. Sheng understands how to make the images on the page feel full of motion and power, and a sense of urgency that makes each panel flow into the next. The action scenes scattered throughout the book are fantastic, and as the story builds and we get new, powerful players enter the conflict it really sells the idea that even this volume is just a preview of even bigger things to come. 

The story also opens up in some pretty interesting ways, and shifts the narrative away from focusing purely on Yan Tieh-Hua, and gives us instead a story that spans time, universes, and possibly even leads to the apocalypse. The narrative doesn't abandon Yan Tieh-Hua's tale to bring these new elements in, however, and instead makes her past a more important piece in the overall puzzle, introducing a tech mogul whose own tragic past and motivations to creating a deadly weapon might be connected to our central heroine in terrible ways. 

We also get a new ally added to the rag-tag band of heroes in the form of Herlock, who was seen briefly in the first volume as a helmet wearing portal hopper who seemed to be travelling through time. Introduced fully here, we discover that his actual origin and abilities are much bigger than you could have theorised, and his addition brings some pretty cool new abilities to the team. All of this comes in handy as volume two seems to introduce the big bad for the story (at least I hope it is because it's already pretty scary and powerful) in the form of Thirteen, an AI that might just bring about the end of the world.

Thirteen makes for an amazing antagonist in the latter parts of this volume, posing a physical threat that's able to push our band of heroes to their limits, which considering the group consists of someone with super strength, someone who can teleport and has a gun that erases things from existence, and a girl who can see the future to predict all your moves, is a hell of a thing. This volume ups the ante in such a way that I have no idea how our protagonists are going to manage to come out on top; which makes things incredibly exciting.

Yan volume two answers a load of questions, it provides new pieces of the puzzle, and explains some big questions from the first book; but it also poses way more questions than it answers. The book ends in such a way that you're going to struggle to predict what comes next, where you feel no closer to solving the mystery, and you've got less of an understanding of our heroine than when it began. But, the experience is so damn good that none of that detracts from the quality, and just makes you want to see what comes next even more.

Yan has managed to not only keep its quality into this second volume, but has upped it. I gave the last book a five star rating, and this gets the same because that's the maximum I go to, but in truth this one is even better. If you're missing out on this series you're going to regret it some day, so do yourself a favour and jump on board now.

Yan: Vol 2 is out now from Titan Manga.

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Somnium - Film Review

 

Racheal Cain's directorial debut, Somnium, is an interesting piece that tries to blur the line between dream and reality, but one that pushes the science fiction and horror elements into the background far enough that those coming looking for something special might be left a little disappointed.

Somnium tells the story of Gemma (Chloë Levine), a young woman from a small town in Georgia who moves to LA to pursue her dream of becoming an actress. She moves her small pile of possessions into a run down apartment, and begins hunting for jobs, both acting and not. Her desperate need for work eventually leads her to Somnium, a building with a help wanted sign hanging out front. With no knowledge of what the place does, she walks inside and manages to sweettalk herself a job; she's desperate for money after all, so why be picky about where you're working?

Gemma learns that Somnium is a special sleep therapy centre where people pay to be put into sleep states for weeks at a time and to have the staff at Somnium pump their brans with specially crafted dreams. The aim is to shape their perception of reality and give them their desires, whether that's money, fame, or love. What does this mean, do these dreams become fake memories, does it drive their new waking life like hypnotic suggestion, does it alter reality? The film never really goes into this, nor does it explain how a small four person team in a kind of old looking private clinic in LA has such advanced, potentially world changing technology. All that Gemma, and the audience, need to worry about is her night shifts baby sitting the sleeping patients.

Whilst spending her nights alone in the clinic with the sleepers, Gemma focuses her days on her own dream, and attends auditions. From what we see of her she's a great actress, and her auditions go well, but ultimately don't seem to go anywhere, and she's soon running out of money, and losing out on hope. She finds potential help in the form of Brooks (Jonathon Schaech), an older man 'in the business' who says he can help her career. The initial reaction of expecting Brooks to be some kind of predator, either trying to pressure Gemma into sex or some other dark path, never really materialises, and the film instead leaves you to make up your own mind about whether or not he should be trusted.

During these scenes Gemma begins to notice strange noises in her apartment, and begins to see a monstrous, twisted figure in the dark rooms of Somnium in the deep of night. Sadly, these elements are mostly secondary for much of the film, and whilst Gemma's journey and experiences in LA are entertaining enough, and played wonderfully by Levine, they're not exactly what the film was selling itself on in trailers. I was honestly pretty surprised and disappointed at how few and far between the horror elements were in the actual film, and pretty much ever moment in the trailer is what you get in the final film. It feels like Somnium sold itself as a horror piece, only to pull the rug out and give viewers a drama instead. 

There are some great performances in Somnium, and the film is both competently written and shot, but when I spend the entire film thinking 'the horror stuff must be coming soon' only for the end credits to roll I can't help but feel somewhat disappointed. And maybe that's just me, and other people will get on much better with it than I do; especially if you know these elements are going to be light going in. Somnium labels itself as a science fiction film, but the sci-fi is more of a seasoning to the main course.

Somnium is available on digital download now.

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The Innkeepers - Limited Edition 4K UHD/Blu-ray Review

 

I've not seen many of Ti West's movies, and The Innkeepers was my first experience of his work when it was first released. At the time the film didn't really click with me, and I filed it away until I watched his truly horrifying The Sacrament, a film that's so realistic in its horror that it sent shivers down my spine. When Second Sight announced that they were releasing a new 4K UHD Limited Edition version of the film I thought that perhaps now might be a good time to give it another try, to see if perhaps my views on it have chanced in the near decade and a half since its release. 

The Innkeepers takes place in the real life Yankee Pedlar Inn, though in a dramatized version of it that sees the old building on the edge of going out of business. Despite having been around for decades, illustrated in a great opening sequence showing the building's evolution over the years, not many people are staying there, and the place is only a week away from closing for good. The place is operating with a skeleton crew of two, Claire (Sara Paxton) and Luke (Pat Healey).

The two of them have been largely bored at work, especially as there are only two guests in the building, and have been spending their time looking into the reported haunting inside the Inn. Years ago a bride took her own life in the hotel, and people have reported strange events ever since. Armed with an EVP recorder, a rather shoddy website, and the desire to catch something cool, they spend their shifts trying to contact the spirit walking the halls of the Yankee Pedlar. However, when spooky events begin to finally happen it sets them on a path that will put their lives in danger.

Horror is a broad genre, one that can do slow burn, that can be fast paced, it can have buckets of blood, or it can leave things to your imagination. You're never quite sure what you're going to get just from the label 'horror', and for much of the runtime of The Innkeepers I'd struggle to really consider it horror. Perhaps one of the best films to compare The Innkeepers to would be Kevin Smith's Clerks, a film with very little plot, that focuses on a handful of characters, and is mostly two people standing around chatting. The Innkeepers follows this mould, with the casual conversations between Claire and Luke being much of the focus of the movie. 

Whether you consider this comparison to be a good thing or not would depend on your tastes, as the person who I first watched the film with loved both of those films, and I didn't really like them much. For me, too much of The Innkeepers was given over to personal relationships, meandering moments, and humour that didn't quite land for me. Yes, the characters are nice enough, with Sara Paxton doing a wonderful job in the lead role, but when 80% of the film feels like a relationship drama rather than a horror it's not really enough to keep me fully invested.

When the horror does appear on screen it felt a little too late to really salvage the experience for me. Spooky dead people suddenly appearing on the screen to make Claire scream and run away and not much more, after an hour of build up, honestly left me feeling a little short changed. I don't know why I felt like this, as some of my favourite horror films feature their main antagonist or object of fear very little, films like Alien, Jaws, or Sinister. But where I think perhaps those work more for me than The Innkeepers is that those films felt tense throughout, they had atmosphere, and characters were engaging. The Innkeepers has almost no tension, the film isn't all that visually engaging, and none of the characters are really memorable or all that entertaining.

I really hoped that by giving the film another chance I'd finally click with it, that I'd see what made a lot of people give it high scores and praise; but I guess The Innkeepers just isn't a film that does what I need. That's not to say it's bad, there's a lot of decent moments, a strong cast, and good dialogue. It's a competently made film that it's absolutely possible to love, so don't let my bad experience with it stop you from giving it a watch.

Alongside the film the new release comes with a slew of extra features. There are two audio commentary tracks for the movie. The first one features Ti West, who wrote, directed, and edited the film, along with Producers Larry Fessenden and Peter Phok, and Sound Designer Graham Reznick. The second commentary has West joined by actors Sarah Paxton and Pat Healey. The tracks are both decent, and offer different insights into the film. The second track has a bit more of a relaxed feel to it, with the cast reminiscing on what it felt like making the film, where as the other has more technical details and behind the scenes facts. There are also several new interviews, including Ti West, Pat Healey, Larry Fesenden, Director of Photography Eliot Rockett, Composer Jeff Grace, and Line Producer Jacob Jaffke. A behind the scenes featurette and a trailer round out the on disc features. As with other Second Sight Limited Editon's, The Innkeepers also comes with a slipcase featuring new artwork, 6 collectors art cards, and a 120-page book with essays and writing about the film.

The Innkeepers wasn't quite to my taste, but it's a competently made film that many will enjoy. The film has a strong fanbase and has been popular for well over a decade, and if you're one of those fans this new release makes for an excellent new edition packed with brand new extras.

The Innkeepers Limited Edition 4K UHD/Blu-ray is available now from Second Sight.

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40 Acres - Film Review

 

There's a big focus on post-apocalypse media lately (not a surprise when the world seems to be hellbent on getting to that point), and whilst a lot of these stories throw in some vaguely fantastical element, such as the undead, a rage virus, or fungus zombies, 40 Acres instead takes a much more subdued and realistic approach to the end of the world. The result of this is a film that might feel less overtly bleak or fatalistic than others, it's one where when the awful things do start to begin they hit all the harder because it's not monsters that these people need to fear, but very real, very familiar violence.

40 Acres tells the story of the Freeman family, headed up by Hailey (Danielle Deadwyler), and her husband Galen (Michael Greyeyes), who met whilst serving as soldiers years before. A number of years ago, a fungal spore spread across the world, affecting crops and plants the world over. This resulted in mass starvation, war, and civilisation falling apart as farmable land became the most valuable resource. Hailey and Galen have an isolated farm in Canada, where they live with their children, Emmanuel (Kateem O'Connor), and Raine (Leenah Robinson), who Hailey and Galen brought together from previous relationships respectively; and Danis (Jaeda LaBlanc) and Cookie (Haile Amare), who they had together. 

With their farmland a valuable resource, and their only means to survive, Hailey and Galen has used their military training to secure the farm, and to raise their four children to be fighters. Despite this ability to survive, demonstrated with a brutal opening sequence showing what happens when raiders come to call, their life leaves them isolated and alone. Whilst Hailey is content with this, needing only the infrequent interaction with a friend over the radio, her son Emmanuel has reached the age where he needs other people. 

When news hits the Freeman's that some of the surrounding farms inside their trading network have gone silent, and that a roving gang of cannibals might be to blame, the family must come together to defend what they have. But when Emmanuel discovers a beautiful young woman just outside their fence, asking for help, it sets the entire family on a dangerous path. 

As the name of the film implies, 40 Acres is slightly more than just a post apocalypse home invasion story. Following the American Civil War, freed Black slaves were promised 40 acres of land and a mule as a form of reparation for how they were treated. This promise was largely a lie, and is part of a larger system of failed promises, broken systems, and outright cruelty that have been used to target people of colour in the US. With the name of the film in mind, it's easy to also spot that the vast majority of the film's cast are people of colour, with the Freeman family being of both Black and Canadian Native descent. In contrast, every single one of the raiders and cannibals who appear in the film is white, with the only good white person being Hailey's friend.

The film isn't overtly about racism or colonisation, but the themes are very much there. The people we're watching are suffering at the hands of brutalist white people, who've come for their land and resources, and will literally use up these people's bodies to keep themselves going, treating them as little more than meat to be consumed. I think writer/director R.T. Thorne made a very deliberate choice in this, and to toss many of the racist stereotypes that were used against Black and brown people over the centuries back onto the white oppressors. The white man is the one that is violent, that eats humans, that doesn't want to build their own society but will come and invade yours. I can't help but feel that 40 Acres has a lot to say, and that much smarter people than myself will be able to watch the film and pick out all kind of nuance and clever details that I certainly missed.

Outside of the themes of the film, 40 Acres is a damn fine film. The Freeman family makes for interesting protagonists, and watching their dynamic and the cracks that form from that makes the film very engaging. You can't argue that Hailey and Galen have kept their family alive by raising them like soldiers, but you can also see how it's creating some divisions, such as Raine not being allowed to read a certain book because she wasn't told to read it, or Emmanuel being a young man with no chance of finding love because he's never allowed to leave. The family dynamics have no clear right or wrong, as you can see why the parents have done what they've done and approve of some of it, whilst also understanding why the children are pushing back. 

The cast present this wonderfully, particularly Danielle Deadwyler and Kateem O'Connor, whose mother son relationship is the central piece of the film. Each of them delivers strong performances, with Deadwyler being the stand out as an incredibly intense mother who you'd never want to cross. She brings intense grit and determination to the role, and you believe that she used to be a soldier; yet despite this you can also see a large amount of both love and guilt shining through. The film touches upon a troubled past between Hailey and her son, giving us a couple of flashbacks that informs a lot of their relationship with very little, and it makes you re-evaluate much of what you've seen between the two of them. 

40 Acres doesn't try to break the post-apocalypse mould, and a lot of what you get here you'll have experienced before; but I also feel that it's not trying to do this. Instead, it's telling a familiar story through a different lens. It has interesting themes and commentary that can be largely overlooked in favour of a fairly by the numbers movie that will still entertain, or it can be examined in greater depth to give viewers an experience that sets it aside from others in the genre. How much you get from the film will depend on you to a certain extent, but if you go in willing to see more, and to learn, 40 Acres becomes a wonderfully inventive and memorable addition to the genre.

40 Acres is in UK cinemas now, and available to download digitally today.

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Lilly Wachowski Producing All Trans Cast Movie 'Dolls'

 

Lilly Wachowski, one of the famous Wachowski sisters who created the hit franchise The Matrix, is producing a new short movie, Dolls, that features and entirely trans cast. 

The short movie is set to be the directorial debut of Geena Rocero, a trans filmmaker, and is a sci-fi thriller take on the 70's cult classic The Stepford Wives. The film will feature Yên Sen, Arewà Basit, Macy Rodman, and several other trans actresses, as well as director Geena Rocero, and producer Lilly Wachowski.

The new film tells the story of a private investigator who is looking into the mystery of a missing girl that has a connection to a dating workshop for trans women that may actually be a front for some kind of cult. Gene, the head of the workshop, claims to only be trying to help and empower trans women in processing their relationship problems. 

Geena Rocero said that 'Dolls is my attempt to birth the internal chatter that ruminates in my head. All those years admiring directors like Claire Denis, Lucrecia Martel and Park Chan-wook, I told myself to give it a shot, it’s the only way to find out.'

Producer Lilly Wachowski is no stranger to films depicting the trans experience, with the film she made with her sister Lana, who is also a trans woman, The Matrix being long discussed as a trans allegory. Despite numerous pushbacks to this interpretation by fans who dislike trans people, both directors have stated that The Matrix is indeed a trans movie, and wouldn't exist without those elements. Lilly Wachowski has been working to help other transgender filmmakers break their way into the industry over the last several years.

'Dolls a fever dream reflecting on assimilation and the investigation of trans identity,' Wachowski said. So proud to be part of this beautiful, weird, striking debut!'

The film's title is an overt reference to the term 'dolls', which has been used within the trans community to refer to trans women for decades, and is believed to have originated in the 1980's ballroom community. The term has moved back into the spot recently after queer fashion designer Connor Ives released a range of 'Protect the Dolls' shirts that received attention after being worn by celebrities such as Pedro Pascal, Tilda Swinton, Alan Cumming, and Laverne Cox.

There is currently no release date confirmed for Dolls, though the film has been submitted to a number of upcoming festivals. 

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A Palace Near the Wind by Ai Jiang - Book Review

 

'Sometimes called Wind Walkers for their ability to command the wind, unlike their human rulers, the Feng people have bark faces, carved limbs, arms of braided branches, and hair of needle threads. Bound by duty and tradition, Liu Lufeng, the eldest princess of the Feng royalty, is the next bride to the human king. The negotiation of bridewealth is the only way to stop the expansion of the humans so that the Feng can keep their lands, people, and culture intact. As the eldest, Lufeng should be the next in line to lead the people of Feng, and in the past, that made her sisters disposable. Thankful that her youngest sister, Chuiliu, is too young for a sacrificial marriage, she steps in with plans to kill the king to finally stop the marriages.

'But when she starts to uncover the truth about her peoples' origins and realizes Chuiliu will never be safe from the humans, she must learn to let go of duty and tradition, choose her allies carefully, and risk the unknown in order to free her family and shape her own fate.'

A Palace Near the Wind is the first novella in a duology that takes readers to a fantastical world filled with interesting characters, imaginative races, unique locations, and plot intrigue that manages to pack a surprising amount into just 200 pages that will have you wondering just how author Ai Jiang was able to make it all work as well as she does.

The narrative follows Princess Liu Lufeng, a member of the Feng people, a race of people with wooden skin, hair made of thorns, and a deep attachment to nature. The Feng people are ruled over harshly by the humans, whose king takes Feng royalty as brides. With Lufeng having been chosen to be the next sacrificial bride she decides not to stick with tradition, not to become a willing sexual slave, but instead chooses to free her people from future oppression by murdering the king. However, upon arriving at the castle Lufeng learns that many of her preconceptions about the people she finds there are wrong, and she becomes faced with some difficult decisions. 

There's part of my that wonders why this book is a novella duology, as 200 pages really doesn't feel like enough, despite just how much Jiang gives us here. Doubling that to a complete 400 page book would feel absolutely fine to me, but that could also be down to me having gotten to the end of the book and immediately wanting to read more, so my complaint isn't really justified as I was just going through story withdrawal.

Despite the short length, a lot of attention is given over to the world-building in A Palace Near the Wind and you come away thinking that Jiang has some very clear, very cleverly thought out ideas for her setting that if you're anything like me you'll want to see played out over several more books. 

It does feel like Jiang is exploring some very clear themes at times too. There seems to be a nature vs technology/modernisation narrative that could be subtle enough that people only take at a surface, fantasy level, but there were times where it felt like the book was also looking at these themes through the lens of colonialism and the erasure of indigenous peoples, which isn't something that I've seen all too often and was very happy to see here. 

The book also has a very anti-meat stance too, with descriptions of eating meat that are written in very grotesque ways, and it does come across as very skewed towards being pro-veganism or vegetarian. I will acknowledge that veganism is probably the most moral stance when it comes to food, but I do also find when people try to push it in such ways, trying to villainise meat consumption, or attempts to make those who eat meat feel guilty it can just strengthen opposition to veganism, and further animosity.

A Palace Near the Wind is a wonderfully imaginative blending of fantasy and science fiction, one with some great ideas and an often wonderful way of exploring the world its creating.

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