As a host of filmmakers continue their efforts to ape the dirty, gritty aesthetic of ‘70s American horror, it’s refreshing and winning to see a film that so captures the veneer of the same period’s Eurochillers. And however much it intended to or not, 11-11-11 hits that nail on the head, generating plenty of charm amidst its faults.

It’s not just another title in a seemingly endless parade of gimmick 3D films. This is 3D done right.  From Director Kim Ji-hun comes the underwater 3D monster thriller SECTOR 7. Thousands of leagues beneath the sea, a giant vein of oil rests in the mysterious depths of location Sector 7.  Abandoned 30 years ago after a horrible unexplained accident, a young crew has returned to succeed where their predecessors have failed, trying to tap this legendary oil vein.  However, unbeknownst this foolhardy crew, there is a lot more down there then just oil. 

I DIDN'T COME HERE TO DIE is the story of six twenty-somethings who retreat to the woods on a humanitarian effort but find something much more sinister. Let's take a look at whether this mad shocker is worth the hike...

One of the world premieres at this year’s Toronto After Dark Film Festival was the new zombie-action flick WAR OF THE DEAD, which played as a double feature with the buddy comedy DEADHEADS during “Zombie Appreciation Day” at the tail end of the city’s infamous Zombie Walk (with these filmmakers as the guests of honor). WAR has had quite the tortured history—over eight years in the making with major changes in the cast, the production team and even the title (it started filming as STONE’S WAR, starring James Van Der Beek!). The production has so many stops and starts that it’s likely no one thought it would ever see the light of day. So it’s quite a surprise that WAR OF THE DEAD has turned out to be an extremely impressive debut by Finland’s Marko Mäkilaakso.

Three is a magic number. As we all know, it’s perfect for learning, a la SCHOOLHOUSE ROCK, and the standard for taut, twisty character thrillers, a la KNIFE IN THE WATER and DEAD CALM. Taking a stab at the latter, Carl Tibbetts’ RETREAT shoots for frustrating claustrophobia without escape, but comes up short of the bar set by the aforementioned and very fondly remembered titles.

First, a disclaimer: URBAN EXPLORER played Screamfest this week, and there was an error. The version that screened had no subtitles, with the theater even stopping the film for five minutes to attempt to fix the problem, to no avail. That said, the large majority of the movie was in English, body language and inflection came across clear and I’m not sure if the subtitles would have actually improved the movie any. 

In following up the found-footage horror hit of 2009, PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 2 constructed a clever plot that took place before, during and after its predecessor, but often took the point of view out of the place where the terror was most primal. PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 3 has a much more prosaic storyline, but it does, if you’ll pardon the phrase, put the camera back in the bedroom where it belongs.