Iron Sky

Bat-shit crazy Nazis on the Moon lunacy brilliance. Starring the always fantastic Udo Kier, we follow 2 astronauts who land upon the moon and soon discover a secret Nazi base which has been mining rare substances since they arrived in 1945 and whose plans include returning to Earth to kill anyone not fitting the Aryan ideal. Enter former black model, turned astronaut (of course) James Washington who is quickly captured and Aryanised (ie turned white!). The Nazis then set off to earth to capture mobile phones which will allow them to complete their computer and send their troops to Earth.

This is, as all Nazi films of late seem to be, rather silly, but in a good way. It's an entertaining film that clearly doesn't take itself seriously, even going so far as to have a Sarah Palin-esque president of the USA in the future. For an obviously low-budget film, the effects are actually really rather good and the storyline, although not surprisingly weak in parts, is entertaining enough to allow you to continue to enjoy from start to finish.

The director, rather controversially, chose the Berlin Film Festival to show the preview screening, but this bold move seems to have paid off, the trailers went viral almost instantly. Definitely one to watch, enjoy and not take too seriously.

Strippers vs Werewolves

Nope, I haven't made this shit up. I really have just watched Strippers vs Werewolves. I really don't need to go into any more details than that, that is the film. A selection of ex-soap star actors and actresses play strippers who don't get their kit off and werewolves who are as thick as pig-shit.

Despite my opening paragraph, it's actually not that bad a film. Yes, it's rubbish, but it's rubbish in a strangely entertaining way. The script is pretty poor, the acting is hammy to say the least, but somehow it just makes you smile like a small child with wind!

The scenes with the vampire hunter at the very end are actually rather funny, and even if you haven't enjoyed the film, you should raise a smile in his scenes.

Probably one for the horror film enthusiast or for those who have had a few pints on the weekend and need something ridiculous to switch on in the background and not waste a whole load of brain power on. If that's you, then this is your film.

Begotten

Like something ripped from a nightmare and aborted onto the screen, Begotten is a film which, once watched, will never be forgotten. The basic premis of this film is that God disembowels himself, leaving Mother Earth to impregnate herself with his seed, post mortem. We then bear witness to the Son of Earth - Flesh on Bone, writhing in agony in a barren wasteland as cannibals set upon both him and Mother Earth, beating, cutting and slicing them both.

The film is, as you can see from the trailer above, filmed in grainy black and white, and, as is always the way with experimental cinema, is often so difficult to watch because of the wild zooms, lingering close-ups on nothingness and over-exposed shots. There is also no speech in this film, just a background noise which tries its best to explain what is going on through the sound of birds singing, rushing water etc.

For a B&W film, this is surprisingly gory in places (although why this is a surprise I do not know, the film was made in the 1990s, not the 1920s) and also has some graphic sexual images.

Certainly not one for the mainstream horror fan, but those with an interest in independent, experimental cinema and film students alike may want to check this one out, it's certainly not your run-of-the-mill Hollywood film by any means.

I don't normally do this, but whilst reading up about this film before watching it, I stumbled upon the following review on IMDB and it made me laugh so much, I thought I'd reproduce it here for your enjoyment:

"Stand up and cheer! Begotten is the warm and fuzzy tale for the whole family that Disney has been attempting for years. The film, about the birth of a messiah who has seizures in the woods and is dragged around by lepers has the whole country laughing uncontrollably. The plot appeals on multiple levels to children and adults (funny guys in robes for the kids, caesarean childbirth for the older folk) and is one of the cleverest scripts to come along since Thomas Edison's classic The Sneeze. A film that pays homage to the Keystone Kops, Tennessee Williams, Jean-Luc Godard and those lovable muppets the muppets, Begotten is one of two films you won't want to miss. The other is Don't Look Back."