Martin Scorsese birthday favourites lists are starting to look like: 1. Boxcar Bertha 2. Italianamerican 3. Bad music video 4.That American Express commercial. 5. Hugo

Audience review: Bad Shabbos. Curzon Mayfair. November 16th. (Jewish Film Festival) This screening attracted a fairly narrow demographic who knew exactly what they'd come for. No talking, no rustling, no fidgeting, just uproarious laughter. *****/5 - a shayne audience

Last night at the Jewish Film Festival I saw Bad Shabbos. There are familiar tropes (Long Story Short starts the same way), but they're done really well. Excellent performances, with Method Man bringing the most surprises (and I'd like to think, a touch of The Angel Levine). I laughed a *lot*.

The bloody neighbours have gone out and left John Cage’s 4’33 on full blast again.

Last night I watched The Ruins. I have a soft spot for "killer vine" movies because despite there being relatively few of them, it's still a recognisable subgenre. This one is also a "tourists go where they shouldn't" film, and it wrings a lot of tension out of a simple premise.

Yes!!!

Last night I watched Angst, a 1983 Austrian horror /thriller that regularly shows up on "disturbing movies" lists. Think Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer made by Herzog and you're in the right area. It's not a fun watch but the cinematography, lead performance and general bleakness are compelling.

'Train Going Over A Bridge At Night' - Eric Ravilious, 1935.

I was looking through the various Frankenstein books I have on my shelves and rediscovered this 1970s Corgi illustrated and abridged edition, which ends with the delightful vision of the Monster in a hooded snow jacket and mittens cavorting in the snow.

I played this again last night on my phone. Can't believe: a) I made this b) how long the damn thing took

Who cares about James Bond? Why not go for a spy who is also a serial killer? Meet Russel Stickles... Link to buy book below

Love this story. The Louvre heist is truly the gift that keeps on giving.

*Carpenter writes Thing$ on a whiteboard, execs cheer*

Shttl (I also agree with the people who've picked Aftersun and The Beast, but I will never miss an opportunity to try to get more people to see Shttl.)

Aftersun

For those who aren't keeping up, Mamdani is a Zionist now (for condeming swastika graffiti on a yeshiva)

In an attempt to cut down on doomscrolling, over the past few weeks I played (and completed) three "Room" games on my phone. They're beautifully designed puzzle games by UK indie Fireproof Games. Reader, I paid for them. That's how good they are.

RIP Gilson Lavis First came across him as I fell in love with Squeeze & he was their drummer but he played with Buddy Holly & Jerry Lee Lewis previously. Anyway, here’s a perfect kitchen sink pop song. youtu.be/RQciegmLPAo?...

Incredible as it may seem, today is the birthday of TWO men who each invented a musical instrument that was named after them by adding "phone" to the end of their name. John Philip Sousa (1854-1932): the Sousaphone Adolphe Sax (1814-1894): the Saxophone #musicsky #conicindence #synchronicity

I've written a new audio adaptation of one of Dickens' other Christmas books, The Cricket On The Hearth, and it's available now to buy as a bundle with The Haunted Man scripted by @jonnymorris.bsky.social. Mine stars Graham Fellows, his stars Paterson Joseph! averageromp.com/the-cricket-...

I finished Long Story Short S1, Raphael Bob-Waksberg animated comedy about Jewish identity. There's a line to walk between representation and stereotyping, but episodes 7 & 8 do things I've never seen before. I don't know how wide an audience there is for this, but I laughed and cried and loved it.

Coming soon: "It's the thin end of the wedge" www.worldofmoose.com/collections/...

Kim Newman's Dracula shelfie is a beauty to behold!

Audience review: Hester Street. NFT2. November 3rd. There were Yiddishists behind me, laughing extra loudly to make sure everyone knew they understood nuances the subtitles lost. But honestly, if my Yiddish was that good, I'd do the same. ****/5 (And wonderful to see so many young people there.)

Last night in NFT2 I saw Hester Street, Joan Micklin Silver's charming story of Jewish immigrants in New York in the late 1800s. The recreation of the Lower East Side feels almost like ethnography, but what makes it so much more is Carol Kane's magical performance. A small miracle of a film.

Yes to the del Toro Frankenstein exhibition at Oxford Street Selfridges. Spend that Netflix cash, Guillermo! Now can we crowdfund a show for Coppola's Dracula? Where are those Eiko Ishioka costumes hiding...

If you're in London between now and November 9th, there is a gorgeous *free* (and under advertised) Frankenstein exhibition at Selfridges. Costumes, designs, models, and first editions of the novel. (Thanks to mirror-lurking @johnnymains.co.uk for taking me there!) www.selfridges.com/GB/en/stores...

Fridge magnet / matchbox combo. A timely Halloween gift. Thank you @johnnymains.co.uk

Last night I double-billed Halloween and Blow Out. Carpenter so utterly codifies the genre that a mere 3 years later De Palma is able to deconstruct it in a single sequence. Halloween is a perfectly distilled campfire tale. Blow Out is pure movie, as if a film wrote itself. Happy Halloween 🎃

Last night, Nadia Latif joined Directors UK members for a screening of #TheManInMyBasement, followed by a fascinating discussion with George Amponsah on the work that went into directing her feature film debut. Thanks to everyone who joined us for a great evening! 📸Jon Cartwright

Wow - those are quite phenomenal headlines given the details of the story. Ahh look, he’s just a ‘nerdy’ guy. No harm done. You need to scroll down to paragraph 13 of the Sky piece to find the full story! 🧵 1/9

Your daily reminder that the government continues to commercially support an individual who wants to destroy it through fascist violence.

For the love of all that is holy, our government, our MPs, our institutions and anyone who cares about the core values of liberal democracy (however flawed) has to stop using X as the default platform. The deck is stacked. It's like trying to change the world by writing for The Mail or The Sun.

Audience review: The Man In My Basement. The Garden Cinema (Directors UK screening). October 28th. Some mild lateness. Removing coats from empty seats would be a kindness. But still ****/5 overall. And *****/5 for the man who leapt up to tell the cinema they hadn't dimmed the lights correctly.

Last night I saw Nadia Latif's debut feature The Man In My Basement. It uses the language of horror (the most ominous stained glass since Suspiria) to tell a more meditative story and subverts standard burial ground tropes. Beautifully shot and acted; Corey Hawkins is electrifying. I liked it a lot.

To Be Or Not To Be (1942) #filmsky

Well, finally reached and breached 3k followers on here. Still no regrets at leaving Twitter, even though my audience was a much larger one. Follow for occasional horror, wryness, AuDHD caused shenanigans and lost ghosts, some of them my own.

My aim is to somehow sell 100 online tickets to this - I really hope you can make it, will be an evening of Christmas ghosts and fancies!

What do you get for a legend on her 123rd birthday... www.bbc.com/news/article...

A MAN AT WAR is three years old today! I'm so proud of this novel. The reaction to Russell Stickles was unexpected and lovely but I've not sold any hard copies for about six months now. Available over there on that *m*z*n

This is a terrific piece and even though it doesn't mention it specifically, the discussion of static shots is relevant to what I liked so much about Lake Mungo.

Audience review: Frankenstein. The Castle Cinema. October 25th. An early showing with an audience of 6. Perfect. *****/5 (can't complain about bathroom breaks during a 2.5 hour film.) Also, I think the Castle has improved its Screen 1 projection, which makes this lovely cinema even better.

Yesterday at The Castle Cinema I saw Frankenstein. Having recently revisited the novel, I was surprised by some of the choices, but there are great moments, Jacob Elordi is a terrific monster and it's impossible to begrudge Guillermo Del Toro for making what is clearly a big-hearted labour of love.

My most popular cartoon by a long chalk is also oddly niche, in that it mostly appeals to a generation who remember the song it refers to and enjoy the nostalgia for their youth. I can draw one for you if you like. www.worldofmoose.com/collections/...

During today's shopping expedition I reached the inescapable conclusion that I have become the kind of person who likes having a little chat with the cashier.

Last night I finally watched Australian chiller, Lake Mungo. It regularly shows up on "best found footage" lists, though it's more in the style of an Errol Morris documentary. It's also one of the best ghost stories I've seen in a long time. The Twin Peaks influence doesn't hurt either. I loved it.

I feel like somewhere in a strategy meeting on this some adviser must have said "okay guys we're using black and pink beads - but we have to make the black beads the ones we keep, and the pink ones the ones we remove for optics - ok?"