Robert Eggers' THE VVITCH : A NEW ENGLAND FOLK TALE (2015)

Bad parenting, ahoy! You didn't think

That only happens now, did you? A dad

Need not be violent, and needn't drink

To wreck a fam'ly's life. Then, too, a bad

Mom helps, especially when a big black goat,

With Chekov's giant horns, is also there. 

In truest ay-two-four style, you can vote:

Is this for "real" or did they all just share

Some ergot-madness? Too, it's well-conveyed

How ev'rything must stink, as well as why

(Yes, fetch the water downstream from the maid

Who's washing goat-shit from some clothes, oh aye!).

I'd like to see this done in black and white.

Such ambiguity might up the fright...

Matt Sears' THE SKY (2020)

I love my lo-fi sci-fi, and it seems
The genre has a future, if the Earth
Continues turning, if small, nimble teams
Of young filmmakers keep at it. At first
This seems the most lo-fi, two women sit
In folding chairs out in the wilderness
And talk, and then decide to have a bit
Of magic mushroom as the End will bless
Or curse the whole world soon. Good cam'ra tricks
And psychedelic FX sure would be
Enough, but here the actresses, script, mix
Well with the other efforts. I will see
As much of Matt Sears work as e'er I may,
And hope we've years yet 'til the here-shown day.

Ari Aster's MIDSOMMAR (2019)

The folk art that foreshadows from behind
Each scene almost distracts th'unwary eye
From double-you-tee-eff that blows the mind
As Wicker Man gets blown away sky-high.
How Florence Pugh expressed emotions which
Should not exist, I marvel! But look out --
Some graphic horrors wait. My brain doth itch
From what I saw, but yes, I think about
Another viewing soon. Just how much art
Foretold just how much plot? I saw a bear
On Dani's wall in act one, and a chart
Cartoon of how her beau was going to fare...
And yes, the camera tricks worked well, as did
The scenery. A re-watch I am bid!

Bong-Joon Ho's THE HOST (2006)

A monster movie always needs a bit

Of slapstick, but these laughs come with a punch

Right to the gut. A class on how this fit

Together could, sure, benefit a bunch

Of students. Here the monster shows up soon

And clearly, and is sinuous and cool

And interesting to watch, at night or noon

(That's right: broad daylight, often tough and cruel

To creatures, only makes this better! I

Would nothing change, unless, perhaps I'd give

To Chekhov's archer more to do than fly

That arrow; Doona Bae just makes me live. 

But Ko Asung does, too, and Kan-Ho Song

Paired with her never, ever, can go wrong!

Denis Villeneuve's NEXT FLOOR (2008)

The Platform, if reversed and cut way down
Is how we might describe this now, but ere
That weird conceit came this short, grey and brown
Yet glistening, a feast no one would dare
Partake of, yet these diners gorge despite
Some risks. Not since Pete Greenaway set out
To ruin restaurants has food less brought appetite
Up to the fore. What's all of this about?
It's short, go look on YouTube, but prepare
For frightfulness and creepiness and sounds
Of dining that will make you never care
To feed again as staffers make the rounds
A-keeping up the flow of haute cuisine
E'en as we slowly guess what this all means.

Jim Jarmusch's THE DEAD DON'T DIE (2019)

Jim Jarmusch called in ev'ry favor that

Was owed him in the biz: that much is clear. 

The cast is that ridiculous. A frat

Could write this script, though. Sometimes it comes near

To cleverness, but then it has to dig

Right in our ribs. So meta, so much wit --

But not enough for comedy. A big

Ol' mess is what we have here, though some bits

Are quality, like Tilda Swinton's part.

She got to be a Scottish ninja... um.

Do these folks enjoy movies? In my heart

I think they don't. Here they're so smart, they're dumb, 

Unless it's the reverse? At least Tom Waits

And Iggy Pop had fun, I think, my mates.

Jemaine Clement's and Taika Waititi's WHAT WE DO IN THE SHADOWS (2014)

The fruit that's hanging low but never picked,
Is it still fruit? It could have rotted. I,
For one, am sick of vampires, but was tricked
With silly genre mixing by this sly
Directing duo. Monster roommates fuss
O'er household chores and how to dress without
Reflections... Ev'ry rule is played for yucks.
What ultimately made me laugh and shout
The most was early-ish; we meet a pack
Of "werewolves, not swear-wolves" out in the night,
And Waititi as Viago, calling back
To Andy Kaufmann's Latka, a delight!
It's all quite gross and silly, juvenile
But also smart. I couldn't help but smile.