While time has seemingly ceased to exist in year two of the global pandemic, we’ve had no shortage of entertainment options. More films have had simultaneous theatrical releases and digital releases and most film festivals have been hybrid this year, offering both in-person and virtual access to journalists as well as audiences. We’re hoping this trend continues in 2022 to allow accessibility to all.
With that said, 2021 has been a great year for horror. I’ve been very fortunate to be able to view and cover some truly amazing horror films this year. As the world still feels like it’s in a state of chaos, I’ve continued to turn to horror as a form of therapy. I’ve seen some fantastic horror movies and shows this year that not only provided an escape from reality, but also showcased some wildly talented filmmaking. In no particular order, the...
With that said, 2021 has been a great year for horror. I’ve been very fortunate to be able to view and cover some truly amazing horror films this year. As the world still feels like it’s in a state of chaos, I’ve continued to turn to horror as a form of therapy. I’ve seen some fantastic horror movies and shows this year that not only provided an escape from reality, but also showcased some wildly talented filmmaking. In no particular order, the...
- 1/7/2022
- by Michelle Swope
- DailyDead
Folk horror can take on a variety of different forms. From classics like The Wicker Man, to new takes on tried and true fairy tales like Gretel & Hansel, to the contemplative pieces like The Witch, there are endless methods of digging into an often told story or notion that has been passed down through the generations.
Jordan Graham brings his own unique spin to this subgenre with his new film, Sator. Here, a family struggles to understand a spirit that has seemingly been among them for years. One that their grandmother Nani (June Peterson) had spoken to frequently in her youth. She was so connected to the entity, in fact, that she used to do automatic writing wherein she would enter a trance-like state and write down what she believed the spirit was telling her.
After the death of his mother, Adam (Gabriel Nicholson) has slowly grown more disconnected from Nonni,...
Jordan Graham brings his own unique spin to this subgenre with his new film, Sator. Here, a family struggles to understand a spirit that has seemingly been among them for years. One that their grandmother Nani (June Peterson) had spoken to frequently in her youth. She was so connected to the entity, in fact, that she used to do automatic writing wherein she would enter a trance-like state and write down what she believed the spirit was telling her.
After the death of his mother, Adam (Gabriel Nicholson) has slowly grown more disconnected from Nonni,...
- 2/22/2021
- by Emily von Seele
- DailyDead
A terrifying supernatural being haunts this disturbing tale of spooky shenanigans in the dark heart of the forest
This extremely low-budget horror film is a lot like a bunch of movies you know – particularly The Blair Witch Project and The Witch, as well as the experimental cinema of Kenneth Anger – but also not quite like anything else. It’s a kind of uniqueness to be treasured, although genre fans may feel frustrated with how slowly the plot reveals itself, its degraded visual style, and its wilful obliqueness.
Shot mostly in a snowy forest and a log cabin that writer-director Jordan Graham built himself, the film mixes staged scenes with found material. It’s performed mostly by actors but also by Graham’s grandmother June Peterson, who appears to have dementia in real life and whose belief in a supernatural being called Sator who watches over her forms the seed around...
This extremely low-budget horror film is a lot like a bunch of movies you know – particularly The Blair Witch Project and The Witch, as well as the experimental cinema of Kenneth Anger – but also not quite like anything else. It’s a kind of uniqueness to be treasured, although genre fans may feel frustrated with how slowly the plot reveals itself, its degraded visual style, and its wilful obliqueness.
Shot mostly in a snowy forest and a log cabin that writer-director Jordan Graham built himself, the film mixes staged scenes with found material. It’s performed mostly by actors but also by Graham’s grandmother June Peterson, who appears to have dementia in real life and whose belief in a supernatural being called Sator who watches over her forms the seed around...
- 2/11/2021
- by Leslie Felperin
- The Guardian - Film News
Stars: Michael Daniel, Rachel Johnson, Aurora Lowe, Gabe Nicholson, June Peterson, Wendy Taylor | Written and Directed by Jordan Graham
In very basic terms, Sator could be described as either a ‘cabin in the woods’-style horror movie or even a ghost story but both of these short sub genre descriptions would be pretty far off the mark and give you no idea about what the movie actually is. Even blending those two styles together doesn’t detail what Sator is. So what exactly is it then?
It does involve an individual that has isolated himself from the world and yes he lives in a cabin in the woods. This man, Adam, has a grandmother who for her whole life has listened to a spirit named Sator. This spirit is now entering Adam’s life in different ways and seems to be becoming malevolent and very much upsetting his life.
There...
In very basic terms, Sator could be described as either a ‘cabin in the woods’-style horror movie or even a ghost story but both of these short sub genre descriptions would be pretty far off the mark and give you no idea about what the movie actually is. Even blending those two styles together doesn’t detail what Sator is. So what exactly is it then?
It does involve an individual that has isolated himself from the world and yes he lives in a cabin in the woods. This man, Adam, has a grandmother who for her whole life has listened to a spirit named Sator. This spirit is now entering Adam’s life in different ways and seems to be becoming malevolent and very much upsetting his life.
There...
- 2/10/2021
- by Alain Elliott
- Nerdly
Sator, an unnerving, poetic horror film set in remote woodland in northern California, is billed as the work of one man. Jordan Graham wrote, directed, produced, shot, managed light and sound, edited and wrote the score. He even built the log cabin where much of it is set, giving it a weathered look at the speaks to the family legacy at the heart of the story. But did he really create it, or did someone - of something - else have a hand? That's the question you might find yourself asking when you learn that his own grandmother, June Peterson, is the source of the sinister character who haunts its hero, a manipulative character said to have an interest in families, for whose sake Graham made ongoing adjustments to his work.
Peterson appears here as Nani, the hero's grandmother. Both actress and character - the two are really one, just in.
Peterson appears here as Nani, the hero's grandmother. Both actress and character - the two are really one, just in.
- 2/9/2021
- by Jennie Kermode
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
Jordan Graham’s grandmother used to hear voices and write the words being spoken down as though they were messages she needed to both understand and follow. She called the orator Sator, “his” name scrawled upon the pieces of paper that ultimately gave these trances permanence through physical form. I can’t imagine how it must have felt for writer/director Graham (who also takes on pretty much every other behind the scenes position a feature-length film demands) to experience the phenomenon—especially considering June Peterson wasn’t the only one in his family to have her dementia take that form. Her mother was afflicted as well as her mother, the voices becoming a mainstay for generations. And when June finally lost her memories of everyone she loves, Graham admits she never forgot Sator’s name.
It’s a fascinating bit of reality perfectly suited for the supernatural horror treatment...
It’s a fascinating bit of reality perfectly suited for the supernatural horror treatment...
- 8/1/2019
- by Jared Mobarak
- The Film Stage
Stars: Michael Daniel, Rachel Johnson, Aurora Lowe, Gabe Nicholson, June Peterson, Wendy Taylor | Written and Directed by Jordan Graham
In very basic terms, Sator could be described as either a ‘cabin in the woods’-style horror movie or even a ghost story but both of these short sub genre descriptions would be pretty far off the mark and give you no idea about what the movie actually is. Even blending those two styles together doesn’t detail what Sator is. So what exactly is it then?
It does involve an individual that has isolated himself from the world and yes he lives in a cabin in the woods. This man, Adam, has a grandmother who for her whole life has listened to a spirit named Sator. This spirit is now entering Adam’s life in different ways and seems to be becoming malevolent and very much upsetting his life.
There...
In very basic terms, Sator could be described as either a ‘cabin in the woods’-style horror movie or even a ghost story but both of these short sub genre descriptions would be pretty far off the mark and give you no idea about what the movie actually is. Even blending those two styles together doesn’t detail what Sator is. So what exactly is it then?
It does involve an individual that has isolated himself from the world and yes he lives in a cabin in the woods. This man, Adam, has a grandmother who for her whole life has listened to a spirit named Sator. This spirit is now entering Adam’s life in different ways and seems to be becoming malevolent and very much upsetting his life.
There...
- 7/26/2019
- by Alain Elliott
- Nerdly
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