New On Demand and digital download from Reel 2 Reel Films in the UK, I’ll let you know when it’s available in the States!

NIGHTMARE RADIO: THE NIGHT STALKER (2022)

Directed by Carlos Goitia (“The Night Stalker” Wraparound), Ryan J. Thompson (“Playtime”), Nathan Crooker (“Payback”), Lorcan Finnegan (“Foxes”), Adam O’Brien (“Insane”), Mia Kate Russell (“Liz Drives”), David M. Night Maire (“Chateau Savignon”).
Written by Camilo Zaffora, Taz Pereyra (“The Night Stalker” Wraparound), Ryan J. Thompson (“Playtime”), Nathan Crooker (“Payback”), Garret Shanley (“Foxes”), Adam O’Brien, Julien Maisoneuve (“Insane”), Mia Kate Russell (“Liz Drives”), David M. Night Maire (“Chateau Savignon”).
Find out more about this film here!!

A while back I suggested that someone gather all of these short films that have been showing up on YouTube and at festivals and distribute them in one anthology movie. Now, it doesn’t make for the most seamless of anthologies, but it allows a viewer to see a nice helping of horror shorts. Well, I’m glad someone listened to me, or at least had the same idea. NIGHTMARE RADIO is a series of anthologies put out by Black Mandala that does just that. Let’s go over the collection of shorts in NIGHTMARE RADIO: THE NIGHT STALKER.

The wraparound segment, entitled THE NIGHT STALKER, does what it is supposed to do. It focuses on a radio announcer named Candy (Paula Brasca) being stalked by a caller while she requests listeners to call in with their own short stories. Which…make up the rest of the movie. One thing I will give this segment, it is chilling and comes to a very disturbing conclusion. It’s difficult to write a story connecting a bunch of other stories to, but this one does just that, and manages to tell a compelling story with strong acting that might be the best of the bunch.

There are a few very short films towards the beginning of this collection that really are more like cinematic jokes with punchlines, though the tone is very dark and more jump scares than anything that’ll make you laugh. These two segments, “Playtime” and “Playback” are best left experienced than talked about, but they’re potent.

“Foxes” is a twisted little tale about a lonely wife who begins feeling a kinship with the foxes how have been rummaging through her trash at night. This fascination takes an unexpected turn, making this one memorable little snippet. While the CG is a bit dodgy, it makes its point.

“Insane” is kind of cliched, as it takes place in an abandoned hospital haunted by a former nurse. This one has better CG and has some wonderfully suspenseful moments, ending in a gory fashion. Though the story has been told numerous times, it still is well made and works despite the cliches.

Another short, “Liz Drives,” plays with expectations with an often told urban legend about a woman being pursued by a frantic man in a car. I like the twists this short took. I wasn’t expecting them.

“Chateau Savignon” is the final short. It’s kind of predictable, but manages to be suspenseful nevertheless. It’s about a winery who takes special care of its patrons, especially when they show up alone. There are a couple of twists, but this one was pretty straight forward, though it was well filmed.

Top to bottom, there are some good shorts to be seen in this anthology and what makes it stand out from the rest is that NIGHTMARE RADIO: THE NIGHT STALKER has a winner of a story tying the whole thing together.

Check out the trailer here!!