Punk in Finland

A classically trained actor and director, Robert Englund has become one of the most revolutionary horror icons of our generation. Throughout his career, Englund starred in many well-known movies, but shot to super-stardom with his portrayal of supernatural serial killer Freddy Krueger in the NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET franchise. This unique and intimate portrait captures the man behind the glove and features interviews with Englund and his wife Nancy, Lin Shaye, Eli Roth, Tony Todd, Heather Langenkamp and more.

Sundance-Winning Doc Explores a Sisterhood of Trans Sex Workers

One of the documentaries that captured the hearts of Sundance viewers this year was Kristen Lovell and Zackary Drucker’s The Stroll. The HBO documentary explores the history of NYC’s Meatpacking District from the perspectives of the transgender sex workers who lived and worked there, one of whom included Lovell herself. They recall the years of discrimination, violence, policing, and gentrification that lead to the movement for transgender rights. It won the Sundance U.S. Documentary Special Jury Prize for Clarity of Vision. The film has received praise for Lovell and Drucker’s direction, as well as how it celebrates the strength and resilience of the trans women of color who stood their ground on West 14th Street, which they called “The Stroll.” Even as we are now in the middle of Pride Month, it is a relevant testament to one of the ongoing fights for rights within the LGBTQIA+ community. HBO has now released a trailer ahead of its release later this month.

When Cops Let a Serial Killer Terrorize Queer New York
HBO docuseries Last Call: When a Serial Killer Stalked Queer New York revisits the madman who dismembered gay men in the Nineties amid NYPD neglect

One of the most telling moments of Last Call: When a Serial Killer Stalked Queer New York, the new HBO docuseries about a serial killer who terrorized gay men in the Nineties, comes when director Anthony Caronna is interviewing a pair of retired police detectives who worked the case. The interviewer asks a pretty standard wrap-up question, something along the lines of, “Is there anything you wish I had asked?” One of the detectives replies with his own question: “Why is the emphasis on the gay part?” Well, sir, it’s a film about a murderer who killed gay men. Whom he picked up at gay bars. Thereby terrifying the gay community. And yet there remains a trace of “Don’t say gay” among the mostly straight, mostly male cops here, who doth protest that they did everything in their power to crack the case as quickly as possible. The film suggests that these two factors – a queasiness about homosexuality, and a sense of justice delayed – are closely related. This context, and a high level of craft, are what elevate Last Call above the realm of a mere serial killer procedural.

In the wake of blockbuster classic Jaws, a new subgenre was born. This new documentary explores the weird, wild cinematic legacy of sharks on film and the world's undying fascination. The documentary film features multiple interviews including of Roger Corman, producer of Sharktopus and Dinoshark; Joe Dante, who directed Corman’s Piranha; Carl Gottlieb, writer of Jaws 1, 2 & 3; Johannes Roberts, director of 47 Meters Down, and Mario Van Pebbles, who starred in Jaws the Revenge, along with the marine and environmental conservation advocate Wendy Benchley, who was married to the author Peter Benchley of the Jaws book.