[EVENT REVIEW] I ❤ HORROR 4-film marathon gave fans a night of romantic gore and blood
Valentine’s Day is celebrated with a fancy dinner, some chocolates, flowers maybe? Not for The Frida Cinema. They curated four films dubbed “Good for her” and honestly, we’re for it! The four films we went on a romantic journey with were: ‘IT Follows’, ‘Ready or Not’, ‘Jennifer’s Body’, and ‘The Love Witch’. I’ve seen all four of these films and I love the first three a lot, The Love Witch however is my least favorite and it’s truly a bummer because it’s a very pretty aesthetically pleasing-looking film. It also fits this genre of films perfectly, but I see why they put it at the end of this marathon and not ‘Jennifer’s Body’. The majority of the crowd had seen either one or maybe two of the films which was shocking because these are dubbed as cult classics and fan favorites.
The night started great with a packed crowd ready to take on the evening. ‘It Follows’ is about a young woman who is followed by an unknown supernatural force after a sexual encounter. This was a nice starter for the evening because it’s light, short, and has that fun indie feel showing us how dangerous a monster (STD) can be even though no one else can see it. Seeing the early work of David Robert Mitchell was also a treat.
Next up we had ‘Ready or Not’ which we caught in theaters back in 2019 so it was fun to revisit this on the big screen with a crowd who had mostly seen it. ‘Ready or Not’ follows A bride's wedding night takes a sinister turn when her eccentric new in-laws force her to take part in a terrifying game. Our lead Samara Weaving has been taking over the horror scene as of late and she knocked it out of the park with this one!
The third film of the night was ‘Jennifer’s Body’ and of course the fan favorite judging by all the ladies wearing her iconic pink jacket in the theater. ‘Jennifer’s Body’ follows A newly-possessed high-school cheerleader who turns into a succubus who specializes in killing her male classmates. Can her best friend put an end to the horror? When this was released, it was panned because people “didn’t get what they expected” which was a sex romp with two female leads and a “naked” Megan Fox having sex with every guy in the film. Fortunately, the film has turned people’s heads and allowed them to see the film as a strong feminist message.
The final film of the night was ‘The Love Witch’ and I opted to leave before this one because I was exhausted and honestly, I’m not the biggest fan of this film. My partner, however, stayed and he said the theater was packed like it was for the ‘Jennifer’s Body’ screening which was amazing.
Supporting your local cinema, arthouse, and movie theater, is so important nowadays and I’m grateful we have a beautiful arthouse theater albeit 45 mins away, it’s worth the drive out every time :)
Review by: Krystina Alfonso
