Minutes Past Midnight

Minutes Past Midnight is a collection of short films presented, in part, by Rue Morgue, a magazine this reviewer holds in esteem above all others, so naturally, I had to check it out. As with any anthology (book or film), some segments stand about above the others. There were, however, two segments that particularly stood out to me.

The first is director, James Moran's British romantic comedy, "Crazy for You," starring Arthur Darvill (Doctor Who's Rory) as a serial killer, driven to crime by the sight of polka dots thanks to a childhood tragedy, who falls in love with a charming young lady played by Hannah Tointon (The Inbetweeners, The Children) who, unfortunately, loves polka dots. This is a charming story, beautifully shot and featuring two incredibly likable leads. Moran also co-wrote one of my all time favorite horror movies, Severance, and I would love to see what he could do directing a feature.

My other favorite is the following short, Kevin McTurk's "The Mill at Calder's End," a horror story done with exquisitely detailed puppets that takes its notes from M.R. James, Lovecraft, and Hammer studios (one puppet even bears a striking resemblance to Peter Cushing). The main characters are voiced perfectly by Jason Flemyng (a personal favorite), and scream queen goddess, Barbara Steele. Director McTurk is primarily a special effects man who has worked on films such as Jurassic Park, In the Mouth of Madness, and Lake Placid.

Of the rest, the opener, "Never Tear Us Apart" (director: Sid Zanforlin) is a lot of fun, and Ryan Lightbourn's "Roid Rage" (I can almost guarantee you you're picturing the wrong kind of roids...) is disgusting but features some impressively gnarly practical effects and plays out like Quentin Tarantino on bad acid. Penultimate segment, "Ghost Train," directed by Lee Cronin, is one of the most technically accomplished films of the lot. The tragic story is well acted and beautifully shot, and the primary settings are simultaneously gorgeous and haunting. "Ghost Train" is only flawed by the short film format; I was left needing so much more.

The only two segments I really didn't like Francisco Sonic Kim's "Awake" and Christian Rivers's "Feeder." Both are well acted, and "Feeder" features some good music, but I simply cannot stomach animals being hurt. I know its fictional, but I just can't.

The final segment, Robert Boocheck's Horrific, also suffers (in my eyes) from featuring the death of an animal, but at least doesn't linger on the cruelty of it like the others. It features an impressive physical performance from sole actor, Mike C. Nelson. While I couldn't look past the goat death earlier in the segment, maybe viewers with stronger stomachs could. And, to be fair, "Horrific" is about a chupacabra, a creature whose name literally translates as "goat sucker," so I don't know what I was expecting.

Overall, Minutes Past Midnight is a strong collection. There are several promising directors at work here whom I'd love to see in charge of feature films. I eagerly await more from Moran and McTurk in particular, and Cronin actually recently released his first feature film, The Hole in the Ground, which has now been bounced to the top of my watch list.