The Lost, Macabre Art of Swedish Funeral Confectionery

The Lost, Macabre Art of Swedish Funeral Confectionery

Attendees at the funeral of Adolf Emanuel Kjellén, in the autumn of 1884, received beautiful, solemn keepsakes. Small, sugar-sculpture doves perched among black lace and fabric flowers, all affixed to pieces of black paper. Inside each elaborate wrapper was a morsel of hard candy. Some mourners even flipped such mementos over and left heart-wrenching inscriptions….

The Malaysian Penanggalan Haunts Pregnant Women and Newborns

The Malaysian Penanggalan Haunts Pregnant Women and Newborns

A young mother is rocking her newborn to sleep when suddenly the smell of vinegar fills the air. She quickly pulls the curtain back, and sure enough, the disembodied head of a woman is floating just outside the window, with long, finger-like tendrils slithering out toward her child. In a panic, the mother slams the…

DAMNATION: The Bleak and the Beautiful

DAMNATION: The Bleak and the Beautiful

The fifth feature film from legendary Hungarian filmmaker Béla Tarr, Damnation chronicles the sad stasis of a depressed alcoholic who is obsessively in love with the married singer at one of his favorite watering holes. First released in 1988, a new 4K restoration from the film’s original 35mm camera negative debuted as part of the…

London Film Festival 2020: ANOTHER ROUND

London Film Festival 2020: ANOTHER ROUND

Thomas Vinterberg, one of Denmark’s most renowned and acclaimed filmmakers, returned with aplomb at this year’s London Film Festival. Another Round, on the back of strong reviews and a place as part of the Cannes Official Selection, took home Best Film from this year’s LFF, voted for by audiences for the first time. It is…

Great Camp Santanoni in Newcomb, New York

Great Camp Santanoni in Newcomb, New York

The Adirondacks is known for its sprawling rustic private summer homes known as Great Camps, but only one is publicly owned. Read moreA Guide to The Perfect Bong Joon-ho MarathonCamp Santanoni constructed between 1892-1893, is a sprawling log building modeled after a Japanese temple. It sits at the end of a five-mile historic carriage road,…

10 Most Affectingly Bleak Downer Endings in Horror

10 Most Affectingly Bleak Downer Endings in Horror

October is defined in Webster’s Dictionary as “31 days of horror.” Don’t bother looking it up; it’s true. Most people take that to mean highlighting one horror movie a day, but here at FSR, we’ve taken that up a spooky notch or nine by celebrating each day with a top ten list. This article about…

San Marino Jinja in Serravalle, San Marino

San Marino Jinja in Serravalle, San Marino

Shinto, or Shintoism, is a pantheistic and animistic religion that originated in Japan. Lacking a doctrine, it’s more a traditional culture rather than a strict religion for most Japanese people. Reportedly there are over 88,000 Shinto shrines in Japan, so spotting one in the country is rather easy, as most neighborhoods have a jinja (“shrine”) of…

Supernova Film Review

Supernova Film Review

★★★★★ Directed by: #HarryMacqueen Read moreA Guide to The Perfect Bong Joon-ho MarathonWritten by: #HarryMacqueen Starring: #ColinFirth, #StanleyTucci Read moreRobert Stack Finally Solves a Mystery in ‘The Strange and Deadly Occurrence’,,Film Review by: ,,Andrew Young If you are going into Harry Macqueen’s ‘dementia drama’ Supernova expecting it to be a gruelling experience then you may…

‘Gadebuscher Münzschläger’ in Gadebusch, Germany

‘Gadebuscher Münzschläger’ in Gadebusch, Germany

Before the advent of minting machinery, coins were individually crafted by hand. Referred to as hammered coinage, they were created by placing a blank piece of metal (called flan) between two dies. The metal was then struck on an anvil. Read moreA Guide to The Perfect Bong Joon-ho MarathonDuring the late 16th-century, the town of…

MANK Trailer

MANK Trailer

Hollywood looks back at itself in Mank, the latest from director David Fincher. Citizen Kane was Orson Welles’ baby. No one doubts that the young man who directed, produced, co-wrote, and starred in the film that would become known as the greatest of all time deserved the praise lavished on him, but it’s that co-writer credit –…

Pine Ridge Pet Cemetery in Dedham, Massachusetts

Pine Ridge Pet Cemetery in Dedham, Massachusetts

The Pine Ridge Pet Cemetery occupies approximately ten pastoral acres on the campus of the Animal Rescue League of Boston in Dedham, Massachusetts. The organization’s founder, Anna Harris Smith, established the cemetery in 1907 and envisioned it as a complement to a shelter for abused and neglected animals. It was also a retirement home for…

For Sale: The Entire Spycraft Collection of New York’s KGB Museum

For Sale: The Entire Spycraft Collection of New York’s KGB Museum

In September 1978, the Bulgarian writer Georgi Markov was killed in London under highly suspicious circumstances. The playwright had defected from his Soviet-allied home country in 1969 and spent the ensuing years appearing on American and West German radio programs, so his demise was always going to raise eyebrows. It was the cause of death,…

Resti del Ponte Romano (Roman Bridge in Rieti) in Rieti, Italy

Resti del Ponte Romano (Roman Bridge in Rieti) in Rieti, Italy

The Velino river scenically winds a slow path around the historical city center of Rieti, a town located in Sabina, north-east of Rome. Read moreA Guide to The Perfect Bong Joon-ho MarathonWhen crossing the modern bridge (Ponte Romano or Ponte Velino) visitors will notice the sunken remains of an old Roman bridge in the waters…

The Deadly Do-Overs of Horror’s Staple Slashers

The Deadly Do-Overs of Horror’s Staple Slashers

Welcome to Carnage Classified, a monthly column where we break down the historical and social influence of all things horror, then rank the films of each month’s category accordingly. Franchises, movements, filmmakers, sub-genres, etc…It’s all here! This entry is about slasher remakes. Let’s get to the breakdown. For horror fans, October is the best time…

Filmmaker Interview with Sonia Nassery Cole

Filmmaker Interview with Sonia Nassery Cole

Filmmaker Interview by: Jason Knight For those who have not seen it yet, what is I Am You about? I Am You is based on the true story of Afghan refugees, their will to survive, and the dramatic conditions they endure on their journeys. We follow Massoud, a young man, who embarks on a perilous…

Watch: Creepy Pandemic Horror Short ‘Face Mask’ by Huber & Allen

Watch: Creepy Pandemic Horror Short ‘Face Mask’ by Huber & Allen

“Which one of these houses do you live in?” Don’t forget your mask! Or else. This creepy new horror short is from filmmakers Zak White and Todd Spence, the same duo that makes lots of horror shorts all year long for Midnight Video. Face Mask is their latest creation, a social commentary horror about the…

Joe Rogan Stares Down Cancel Culture Mob by Interviewing Alex Jones

Joe Rogan Stares Down Cancel Culture Mob by Interviewing Alex Jones

Joe Rogan sent some seriously mixed signals on free expression in recent months. The podcast superstar vowed to maintain editorial control over the “Joe Rogan Experience” after accepting a massive check from Spotify to join its platform. Read moreA Guide to The Perfect Bong Joon-ho MarathonThe audio giant quickly put that vow to the test,…

Selling Yourself: SAVING MR. BANKS

Selling Yourself: SAVING MR. BANKS

It is inevitable that the famous sometimes have a hand in their own depictions in media. That is to say, from living figures, one can expect a level of involvement from a subject relating to their portrayal onscreen. For instance, the recent Rocketman, a fantastical retelling of Elton John‘s life and career, was initiated by…