The Whisper Man (2026)

 "If you're lonely, sad and blue, the Whisper Man will come for you...

This film is, I suppose, a harbinger of the future- no big screen release, straight on to Netflix. Yet we no longer live in a world where I could differentiate on this blog between films and feature length one-off TV dramas. Yes, this had no cinema release, but the cast, the production values... I can't say that this isn't a film. It's something I'll have to let go. Just like people pronouncing "h" as "haitch", as I was taught never to do. Language changes, and so does the way we consume culture.

This is bloody good, though. A well-executed thriller based on an apparent copycat killer taking the same methodology of an old serial killer from the '80s, with a clever plot and lots of excitement. It reminds me a little of Se7en, Zodiac, even Saw,  but thankfully more in the sense of story than gore, which is quite rightly not dwelt upon here.

The characterisation is very much worthy of the impressive cast, who most certainly do not disappoint, with Michael Keaton particularly impressive. And, importantly, this film is about something, at its heart being about family, the importance of relationships, and indeed of kindness and forgiveness between the generations, accepting that we are all fallible human beings.

Highly recommended. This film fulfils all the requirements of a good serial killer crime thriller yet it works on more than a surface level.

Krampus (2015)

"Because that's what family is. We have to get along with them, even if we don't have much in common."

This film was suggested for me by Mrs Llamastrangler in a particularly evil moment as the Christmas film to blog this year. Next time I'm doing bloody Die Hard.

The German legend of the Krampus seems not to have travelled to this country with Prince Albert alongside Christmas cards and Christmas trees, but it seems to be impinging more and more on popular culture, particularly in the United States; I first heard of the legend from an episode of Grimm a couple of years ago. I suppose it's calling out for a good horror film but, well, this is not it.

Let me tell you the plot, shall I? A family squabble a lot. A kid wishes for it to stop. The Krampus arrives and offs them all. The kid regrets it and the adults all come back, except for those who really don't deserve it. And that's it. No stars, no wit, no fun. You don't care about any of the characters and it's boring, boring, boring.

Yep. Definitely Die Hard next year.