The Good Sisters (2010)

Dir: JimmyO Burril

"The Good Sisters" tells a strange tale of two witch sisters (scream queens April Monique Burril and Debbie Rochon) living in a boarding house full of people who may or may not be out to kill them and it's a rare example of what can be achieved when small-scale indie horror takes itself seriously. While I'm sure as Hell not averse to balls-out gonzoid splatter played for yuks, it does sometimes feel as though filmmakers are writing themselves a get-out clause, lest anyone criticise their efforts ("well, we weren't taking it seriously, so nyah!"). This is why, despite its limitations and the odd flaw, "The Good Sisters" really impressed me. It has the balls to be a smart, character-driven and mostly quite sombre film even though it clearly didn't cost much to make. Writer/director Burril excels at penning good, naturalistic dialogue and the film's increasingly paranoid atmosphere lends weight to the punch that's delivered when the gore kicks in. Don't go into it expecting glossy cinematic perfection but do keep an eye on Forbidden Pictures because, if this is anything to go by, greatness is very much on the horizon for them. ***