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Click here to read our french "Der Samurai" movie review, directed by Till Kleinert with Michel Diercks, Pit Bukowski, Uwe Preuss.A wolf strives through the woods around an isolated German village. Jakob the young local police officer is onto him, but scents something more in the darkness. What he finds is a man, it seems, wild eyed, of wiry build, in a dress. He carries a katana, a Samurai sword. When the Samurai invites Jakob to follow him on his crusade towards the village, it becomes Jakob's mission to pursue the lunatic to end this wanton destruction. At the end of the night Jakob has experienced too much, is too far from whom he once was. Something hidden has been unleashed to meet the first rays of daylight....

Click here to read our french "Der Samurai" movie review, directed by Till Kleinert with Michel Diercks, Pit Bukowski, Uwe Preuss.A wolf strives through the woods around an isolated German village. Jakob the young local police officer is onto him, but scents something more in the darkness. What he finds is a man, it seems, wild eyed, of wiry build, in a dress. He carries a katana, a Samurai sword. When the Samurai invites Jakob to follow him on his crusade towards the village, it becomes Jakob's mission to pursue the lunatic to end this wanton destruction. At the end of the night Jakob has experienced too much, is too far from whom he once was. Something hidden has been unleashed to meet the first rays of daylight....

Director/writer: Till Kleinert. Cast: Michel Diercks, Pit Bukowski. Der Samurai is, essentially, Till Kleinert's bizarre, gruesome take on “Little Red Riding Hood,” mixed with the typical 'making of a samurai' story. Kleinert's picture brings something strange and ferocious to a fairy tale that is often lacklustre in its re-telling. The samurai component may not appease samurai cinema enthusiasts, however heads do roll, and the combination of the two story lines surprisingly works well together in this twisted, Lynchian nightmare. Although some of the concepts are over done, the acting is convincing and the cinematography is brilliant. This film is definitely worth watching for lovers of creepy, arthouse cinema, but steer clear if you're after a blockbuster slasher flick. Actor Pit Bukowski as Der SamuraiThe film follows Jakob (Michel Diercks), a small town police officer, as he attempts to catch a wolf on the loose. Jacob struggles to belong...

Jakob (Michel Diercks) tries to unleash the beast.

It’s a small production originally made as a graduation film, but it has drawn praise from critics around the world and festival audiences love it. Now The Samurai is set for DVD release in the UK. The story of a shy policeman in a small German town and the mysterious cross-dressing stranger who tries to bring him out of his shell by wreaking havoc with a sword – and who just might be connected to the wolf he has secretly been feeding – it’s a film that is greater than the sum of its parts, a film that challenges and entertains without sacrificing its central ambiguity. It was a pleasure to talk to its young director, Till Kleinert, and ask where it all began.

Pit Bukowski as the Samurai

“I’d been a student for a very long time,” he told me.

Stars: Michel Diercks, Pit Bukowski, Uwe Preuss, Kaja Blachnik, Christopher Kane | Written and Directed by Till Kleinert

The Samurai is the latest horror film to come out of Germany, and unlike it’s splatter brethren to which I am more accustomed, this is less of a typical plot-led story and more a fantastical, metaphorical fairytale that explores the struggle with sexual identity.

The plot, what there is of it, follows police officer Jakob (Diercks), a quiet, some would say naive, young man who is obsessed with a wolf that is creating havoc on the small-town he calls his beat. When a package arrives at the station addressed to Lone Wolf, it’s owner calling one night asking for him to deliver it to a mysterious cabin in the woods, Jakob can’t help but be intrigued. Going to the abandoned house, Jakob finds the packages owner, a strange young man wearing a white dress,...

The Festival du Nouveau Cinema has arrived and because of it’s strong line-up, there is no way it is possible to see everything worth watching. Faced with an impossible task I proposed myself to focus on just one section of this year’s festival, Temps Ø, which is celebrating it’s 10th year in 2014. This section features the more obscure and rebel films of the Fnc, programed for an audience who enjoy witty cinematic experiences. My most anticipated films from the Temps Ø section this year is a mix of genres and styles that explore different themes and influences.

Der Samurai (Last Samurai)

Directed by Till Kleinert

Der Samurai directed by Till Kleinert, who will be present at the festival, is an under 80 minutes long feature set in a wooded region of the German-Polish border. It is a neo-giallo cat and mouse tale of Samurai (Pit Bukowski), a cross-dressing...

A dark German fairytale that dabbles in cross-dressing, latent sexuality and – yes – katana-wielding, The Samurai is one of the most daring and stylish, if flawed, films we've caught at FrightFest. Awash in shadow-dappled imagery and boasting a pair of fantastic lead performances, the story begins with police officer Jakob (Michel Diercks) going into the woods to leave a sack of bloody meat for a wolf. Later, he receives a mysterious package for a man living in the woods. When he goes to deliver it, he encounters The Samurai (Pit...

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Stars: Michel Diercks, Pit Bukowski, Uwe Preuss, Kaja Blachnik, Christopher Kane | Written and Directed by Till Kleinert

The Samurai is the latest horror film to come out of Germany, and unlike it’s splatter brethren to which I am more accustomed, this is less of a typical plot-led story and more a fantastical, metaphorical fairytale that explores the struggle with sexual identity.

The plot, what there is of it, follows police officer Jakob (Diercks), a quiet, some would say naive, young man who is obsessed with a wolf that is creating havoc on the small-town he calls his beat. When a package arrives at the station addressed to Lone Wolf, it’s owner calling one night asking for him to deliver it to a mysterious cabin in the woods, Jakob can’t help but be intrigued. Going to the abandoned house, Jakob finds the packages owner, a strange young man wearing a white dress,...

This year’s Film4 FrightFest guest list brings together the great, the grand and the gifted as over 100 filmmakers, performers, writers and producers from all over the world make their way to the Vue West End for the 15th Film4 FrightFest event which runs from Thursday 21st – Monday 25th August. Highlights – at least as far as we here at Nerdly are concerned – include the legend(s) that are Robert Englund (A Nightmare on Elm St.) and Alan Moore (Watchmen), the infamous Jorg Buttgereit (Nekromantik), Frightfest fave Adam Green (Hatchet, Holliston), the always-wonderful Jessica Cameron (Truth or Dare, The Tour) and friend to Nerdly, Federico Zampaglone (Tulpa) whose short Remember I’m possibly looking forward to seeing the most at this years festival!

Check out the press release below:

He lit up the 1980s and 90s genre landscape with one of the classic horror performances of all time as Freddy Krueger...

In the Red Room with a Vue, the chorus of delighted FrightFester’s are set to join together in joyous song for the chorus of their clawed and shrivelled icon…

“One, two, Freddy’s coming for you.

Three, four, Better lock your door

Five, six, grab your crucifix.

Seven, eight, Gonna stay up late.

Nine, ten, He’s back again.”

If life can be described as a disappointment, of a vortex of uncertainty, then the one constant is FILM4 FrightFest, which, like a beacon of light, guides us to safely towards a guaranteed trip of unadulterated pleasure into the Dark Heart of Cinema every August Bank Holiday.

So what news has fallen upon our ears to add a little more detail to what the landscape of FrightFest 15 looks like?

Well, this year’s Film4 FrightFest guest list brings together the great, the grand and the gifted as over 100 filmmakers, performers,...

“I’m your boyfriend now, Nancy.” It may be hard to believe, but it’s been thirty years since Robert Englund’s Freddy Krueger said those words to Heather Langenkamp’s Nancy in Wes Craven’s A Nightmare on Elm Street. A 30th anniversary screening of the film is taking place at this year’s Film4 FrightFest, and Englund has been announced as a member of a guest lineup that includes Alan Moore.

Taking place at London’s Vue West End, the 15th Film4 FrightFest will run from August 21st – 25th. In addition to celebrating the 30th anniversary of A Nightmare on Elm Street, Robert Englund will also be unveiling his latest film, The Last Showing.

Actress Maika Monroe will be on hand for the UK premiere of The Guest, and director John McNaughton (Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer) will screen his latest film, The Harvest. Also of note...

Nightmare on Elm Street star and comic-book legend set for horror festival.

Film4 FrightFest (Aug 21-25) has unveiled its guest list, topped by A Nightmare On Elm Street star Robert Englund.

The Us horror actor will attend the festival to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Wes Craven classic, screening on Aug 24, and to launch the latest production in which he stars, The Last Showing, which screens Aug 22.

Festival co-director Alan Jones described Englund as “one of the genre’s originals” and “an icon of fright”.

In support of opening film The Guest, Us actress Maika Monroe will present the UK premiere of the thriller, directed by Adam Wingard and co-starring Downton Abbey’s Dan Stevens. Monroe is also the star of horror It Follows, which debuted at Cannes.

Alan Moore, the author of bestselling graphic novels Watchmen, V for Vendetta and From Hell, will attend the festival to introduce and discuss his short film trilogy Show Pieces...

The line-up for this year's Film4 FrightFest in London has just been announced – and boy, is it a doozy! Sporting a record-breaking 38 UK/European premieres and 11 world premieres, this August is going to be an exciting time in the genre calendar.

Check it all out right here, including lots of new images!

This year Film4 FrightFest will be moving from its previous home at Leicester Square's Empire Cinema to the nearby Vue Cinema (also on Leicester Square), prompting an ingenious reshuffle of the screening arrangements.

All main screen films will be presented at different times across three different screens, with two extra screens reserved for single-slot screenings of the various films hitting this year's Discovery Screens.

Here's the full list of goodies:

Main Screens (5, 6, 7)

Thursday Aug 21

Opening Night Film - The Guest (UK Premiere)

Director: Adam Wingard. Cast: Dan Stevens, Maika Monroe, Brendan Meyer, Sheila Kelley, Leland Orser. USA 2014. 99 mins.

Film4 FrightFest 2014, returning for its 15th year, unveils its biggest line-up ever. From Thurs 21 August to Monday 25 August, the UK’s leading event for genre fans will be at the Vue West End, Leicester Square, to present sixty-four films plus twenty shorts across five screens. There are sixteen countries representing five continents with a record-breaking thirty-eight UK or European premieres and eleven world premieres.

Are you ready for a monstrous and memorable mayhem of killer claws, cannibalism, cult classics, murderous musicals, chiller thrillers, graphic novel action and sick celluloid masterpieces? Then prepare yourself for the biggest, strongest and most eclectic must-see programme in Film4 FrightFest’s history.

From the opening night turbo-driven thrill-ride The Guest to the UK premiere of the closing night mesmeric sci-fi fantasy The Signal, FrightFest has netted the latest works from genre big-hitters such as Eli Roth (The Green Inferno), Alan Moore and Mitch Jenkins (Show...

So how do you deal with folks who just want to punch every homosexual man, woman, and other "gender-disabled" creature on the nose? Hold up a mirror so they can view their own obtuseness -- or teach their victims to be victors?

Gossipist Perez Hilton, whom many rifle-toting, Bible-thumping parents would not want near their tots, wrote a book not that long ago for ankle-biters entitled The Boy with Pink Hair. Vibrantly illustrated by Jen Hill, the tome is all about a young lad with coral locks born to loving parents who tell him to embrace his difference. He does exactly that and becomes a highly successful prepubescent cook whose recipes for pink goodies are gobbled up the globe over. Moral of the tale: "His difference did make a difference. Only his difference was not his pink hair -- not really. His difference was that he followed his own special...

The fear of otherness drives most horror movies, since what we can't explain (or choose not to) also happens to be very, very scary. For the East Germany villagers in "Der Samurai," a truly bizarre, utterly nightmarish horror thriller, they know what's out there: wolves. Wolves stalk the surrounding forests and occasionally come into the village, overturning trashcans and menacing local pets. But there is something even more menacing that comes out of the woods one night: a transvestite, in a pristine white dress (almost like a wedding gown), wielding a samurai sword. And this samurai wreaks a lot more havoc than any wolf ever could.The movie opens with a young beat cop (Michel Diercks) leaving a bag of bloody innards in the woods. It's a startling image to start the movie with, for sure, and only gradually does it become apparent who this guy is. Still, it's unclear...