CENSOR (2021)

Directed By: Prano Bailey-Bond  Written By: Prano Bailey-Bond & Anthony Fletcher  Cinematography: Annika Summerson  Editor: Mark Towns 

Cast: Niamh Alger, Michael Smiley, Nicholas Burns, Vincent Franklin, Sophia La Porta, Adrian Schiller

After viewing a strangely familiar video nasty, Enid, a film censor, sets out to solve the past mystery of her sister's disappearance, embarking on a quest that dissolves the line between fiction and reality.

A film devoted to video nasties films that were banned or cut in the 1980’s when it came to content in The UK we follow a censor on a board.

The film isn’t what one might suspect which might be of a censor going mad and killing those she finds deplorable or those who make grotesque films and u leashes them on the public 

No Instead it goes the route of a slow burn horror more of a drama that is more of a character study who slowly breaks down and loses their grip. Dealing with childhood trauma that the job seems to release and come to the surface 

Most of the violence throughout is from the movies she watches until the third act when the film offers some gore of its own 

Throughout the film keeps a creepy vibe and is stunning in it’s detail to the time period it is ye in the 1980’s and obviously an homage and indebted to the films it aspires to be and influenced by.

The film has a Great ending which really saves the film. That one wishes the film had been more like but it did need that build-up to get to that point of what feels like transcendence 

As before, The film might remind the audience slightly of 8MM before it becomes its own.

As it’s not what one expects watching the film it is well thought out and actually a bit deeper than expected. Unfortunately it still ends up being slightly disappointing from a certain standpoint. 

Though as the film goes into it’s Third act it goes past unsettling to actually quite brilliant and scary. 

Grade: C