Before going into the fun new horror film Censor, you should know what a “video nasty” is. A colloquial term coined in the United Kingdom in the 1980s “video nasties” were the films distributed on video cassettes that were criticized for their violent content by the press and various religious organizations. In her directorial debut, Prano Bailey-Bond puts these graphic films at the center of the story about a film censor (Niamh Algar) who, after viewing a strangely familiar video nasty, sets out to solve the past mystery of her sister’s disappearance and embarks on a quest that dissolves the line between fiction and reality.

Expression

While operating within the familiarities of the horror genre that fans will hope for, Prano Bailey-Bond also flexes her deeper knowledge and appreciation of the genre with the plot’s central connection to “video nasties.” The fun Bailey-Bond brings to the screen with the video nasties’ campy kills, titles, and even videocassette jackets are going to be some of the film’s most memorable moments. And on a more personal level, it’s clear that Bailey-Bond is expressing her voice through the central character Enid (Niamh Algar), a young and beautiful woman who is more interested in losing herself in her career of grisly fantasy than following a more traditional life path. Censor has a strong and empowering female perspective about being a woman both in the workplace and in danger, which Algar is game for the whole time.

Expression: 4 out of 5 stars

Daring

It’s always fun to see a movie where evil isn’t just a boogeyman but something deeper, more spiritual, and the descent that we take following Enid’s psychological unraveling is a fun journey. For a film that is so knowledgable about video nasties and the fun that’s had in staging violence in film, though, Censor‘s disturbances are aimed at the more heady paranoia of mental instability rather than blood-spurting horror sequences. There are only one or two jump scares and a few moments of grisly slasher fun, all handled quite mildly. I wonder if Censor had allowed itself to indulge in the genre’s more bloody mayhem what further fun we could have had within this set-up.

Daring: 3 out of 5 stars

Craft

For a modestly made indie movie, there is still distinguishable filmmaking skill on display. One accomplishment capturing 1980s UK style where one might assume Stranger Things is happening across the pond. The throwback to the videotape era will always be fun to indulge in and seeing Enid watch these horror films within this horror film gives Censor further depth. Then, of course, there are the slasher elements that are handled well. What I found most impressive were the moments where the filmmaking style shifts, occurring when Enid loses grip of reality and we would slowly track into the screen and the world of horror fun. The slow use of color that consumes her drab world – that of red and paranormal blue – along with tilted camera framing blossoms into a large world of real vision and scope.

Craft: 3 out of 5 stars

Impact

For a film with shocking and grisly deaths, Censor actually ends up hitting on the softer side in terms of an all-out gorefest. However, the deeper human truth that Bailey-Bond expresses here is even more terrifying in its relatability. It’s telling that after her sister goes missing during childhood, Enid grows up to become a film censor, choosing to submerge herself in such gruesome and violent content, striving to single-handedly extricate the most horrific moments from the public’s (and specifically children’s) consumption. But when a particular video nasty becomes the center of a national headline for an inspired real-life murder, Enid is left shaken, and the trauma of her horrific past haunts her again. Bailey-Bond shows the unconscious ways that we try to stave off events that are too hard to make sense of in a disturbing moment and what worlds we then create for ourselves to cope. In asking the audience what fears are we running from, and what actions we take in an attempt to push those unendurable memories out of our minds, Censor is a film that will stick around and stir inside our minds.

Impact: 3 out of 5 stars

Conclusion

At 84 minutes, Censor is perfect for casual audiences looking for a fun time with a horror movie, as well as for the more seasoned horror fans looking to indulge their appetites with the throwback to “video nasties.” If you were wondering what a video store clerk’s re-imagining of Midsommar and Mandy might look like, you might want to queue up Censor quickly.

Conclusion: 3.5 out of 5 stars

84 minutes. Not rated. ‘Censor’ begins playing in LA theaters this Friday at The Landmark Westwood, Alamo Drafthouse and the Laemmle Glendale.