Coraline is a Children’s horror film and, unsurprisingly, has been quite controversial within parental forums with some arguing it is too scary for it’s PG rating. The Nightmare Before Christmas – also directed by Henry Selick – provoked a similar reaction yet is a firm family favourite with a strong cult following. It’s very different from a regular children’s film, which may account for its success. Likewise Coraline is a refreshing break from the same-old same-old and pushes the envelope on children’s entertainment. It’s frightening in a surreal, psychological way evocative of nightmares with a sprinkling of creepiness. But by embodying these intangible childhood fears it also tackles how to deal with them, and is ultimately empowering and uplifting.

Coraline is a stop-motion animation and the hand-crafted feel is particularly appropriate to its theme. With the introduction of computer-generated animation stop-motion, which is a painstakingly slow process, is becoming increasingly rare. Coraline’s visuals are breathtaking with minute attention to detail in every frame. It’s a work of art with beautiful, atmospheric scenery and luscious, touchable textures. I could forgive a multitude of sins for something this pretty.

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Director Pedro Chaves takes the hot seat and tells us all about his new movie Reiki!

Tell me about Reiki the Movie; what’s it about?

Reiki is a low budget action-fantasy feature film from Belgium. It tells the story of Vann and Hansel who awaken in a destroyed factory in the middle of nowhere with no memories of who they are… EXCEPT flashbacks from 400 years ago! During their exploration of the factory they meet Reisha, a girl who’s been running away from a group called “The Order”, witch-hunters that have been hunting witches since the dawn of time. Reisha tells Vann and Hansel that their flashbacks are true, they are memories of their past lives! Now Vann and Hansel must try to figure out who they are, why they awakened in this forgotten place, and survive their fight against the Order whilst protecting Reisha!

Sounds Exciting! Now, (if it’s not too much of a spoiler) why is the film called Reiki? Isn’t that a kind of massage?

Yeah, I heard that Reiki was a kind of Japanese massage; funnily enough when we started production nobody knew and it was just afterwards that some people told us. Actually there are some things alike between the movie Reiki and the Reiki massage (though very small).
Reiki is the name of the sword in the movie. The Reiki sword is a special sword that can cut the astral line of a human being, which means when a person is killed with the Reiki sword they won’t be able to reincarnate anymore,  thus they meet a true and absolute death.
The name of the sword has an hidden meaning, but if I told you it would be a huge spoiler! (more…)

Mysteries of the Arcana is a Fantasy webcomic and fellow member of the Webcomic Planet Collective. Inspired by Tarot the story involves travel to different universes, or ‘Arcana’ as they are called. As such it is, literally, a colliding of worlds. There are many weird and wonderful creatures to encounter with elements from several different genres all mixed together creating a big a tasty stew! It’s difficult to anticipate what happens next as each universe is different, bringing together a great variety of magic, technology and, erm, stuff!

The story (written by J. Gray) moves quickly, getting across the important points as briefly as possible and then moving on. The art (by Keith W.) matches it perfectly, communicating just enough information and impact. But skip a bit and you’ll be confused so you need to read the whole thing.

The main characters are Chys and Theresa. Chrys is a Bisexual elf and experienced Arcana traveller. She’s on a mission to save her Mother and so far the story concentrates on that. Theresa is a Catholic from Earth and entirely new to all this. She’s a bit grim but has her funny side.

But so far my favorite character is Mandrake the Faerie! Because I love Faeries and she is awesome! So go check out Mysteries of the Arcana – easy to pick up, hard to put down. It’s one of the few webcomics I’m actually up-to-date with. Now how’s that for a recommendation!