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If you're able to donate, North Carolina needs your help. One of the organizations on this list, Homeward Bound, is near to my heart. I used to volunteer there. It's a day shelter for the unhoused. And Buncombe County's homeless population just grew exponentially.
Hurricane Helene unleashed devastating flooding in the mountains of North Carolina. Here are ways to help local flood victims in Western North Carolina by donating relief funds or volunteering.
Full credit to MUBI for putting a movie as bonkers and extreme as this as a wide release in cinemas. It might be one of the most extreme films to ever get such mainstream release.
Trailers: Salem's Lot, Anora, Smile 2, Heretic Epilepsy warning: strobing, swirling images during the "Activation" sequences. There was a couple who were a bit mocking throughout, but even they were left speechless. "Jesus Christ!" as they left in the credits.
The Substance: Aging star Demi Moore splits into her younger doppelganger Margaret Qualley in Coralie Fargeat's gloriously excessive body horror, that weaponizes male gaze and body standards into an OTT gonzo comedy satire, even before an unforgettable, jaw-droppingly gory "holy shit!" finale.
ICYMI - It's no late night at the Waffle House, but the late shift at the diner is a bloodbath.
New Projector Short! Jessica Belkin's bad day at the diner gets even worse on the night shift in horror-thriller Last Straw, which is proficient and efficient take on the siege/invasion film... that then adds a new flavour to the familiar recipe.
YouTube video by Film Brain
I was surprised to find the lukewarm reviews I've read on Letterboxd, because I thought this was great. Takes what A Quiet Place started and goes even further and almost completely commits to the gimmick.
Azrael: Samara Weaving is a survivor in a post-Rapture world that has renounced speech, trying to survive a zealous cult and bloodthirsty burnt men, in this nearly-wordless horror thriller from Simon Barrett and E.L. Katz, that's a tight 84 mins of thrilling, unrelenting suspense and gore.
RIP Maggie Smith, 89. Credits include Downton Abbey, Hook, Harry Potter, The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, Clash of the Titans (1981), A Room with a View, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, The Lady in the Van, Sister Act, Richard III, The Secret Garden (1993), The Miracle Club, Gosford Park, and more.
To my relief, it appears to be the latter.