The DTV Digest

Episode 303: Wake Up Dead Man, Troll 2, Nightfall, End of Year Round-up

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays, everyone! This is our final episode of 2025 and we've managed to get not only Rich back on, alongside Mike, Steve and Amanda, but also Nathan Lunn, who had previously joined us for our 300th episode!
Unfortunately, however, the DTV market tends to dry up during the month of December so instead we have turned our attention to two highly anticipated films on Netflix - as usual, click the link to see a trailer for each film!
We kick off with WAKE UP DEAD MAN (Netflix), the third "Knives Out" film and probably one of THE most anticipated films of the year, in which Daniel Craig returns as Benoit Blanc to solve a locked room murder mystery!
Next is TROLL 2 (Netflix), Roar Uthaug's sequel to the well-received Norse Kaiju movie!
Our Short Shot is NIGHTFALL - click the link to see the whole short film, and you may wish to check out their previous dino-flick, THE HATCHLING!
Instead of a Throwback this week, we end the show with a round-table looking at our favourite Top Five DTV titles of the year - take a listen and see if you agree!
Follow the Short Shots  on X where you will find hundreds of links to awesome short films!
Don't forget to also check out our main show, the DTV DIGEST on X and FACEBOOK!
We are also now on Bluesky! Follow us here: @thedtvdigest.bsky.social and @dtvshortshots.bsky.social
 
 

Episode 302 - Dracula, Quarantine 19, The Final Party, He Kills At Night, Manor of Darkness, The Perfect Gamble, Can You Hear Me, Hostages, Long Shadows, Coyotes, Misfire, Riot

In this episode Mike, Steve and Amanda cover no less than 10 new releases! As usual, click the link to see a trailer for each film!
We kick off with Luc Besson's version of DRACULA (Signature Entertainment), which bears more than a likeness to Coppola's version!
Next up is QUARANTINE 19 (Trinity Content Partners), a Turkish film shot in English about the contestants of a Big Brother-style reality show finding themselves isolated during a pandemic.
THE FINAL PARTY (Trinity Content Partners) is a nasty, nihilistic film about rich kids gatecrashing a party...
HE KILLS AT NIGHT (4Digital Media) finds a woman fighting for survival when she is abducted by a serial killer on Christmas Eve!
MANOR OF DARKNESS (Indie Rights) is an extended version of one of director Blake Ridder's many short films, about a group of pretend filmmakers stuck in a creepy manor house!
PERFECT GAMBLE (High Fliers Films) finds David Arquette running an underground casino and trying to keep the Russian mafia from taking over!
CAN YOU HEAR ME? (High Fliers Films) is a WW1 set love story with supernatural overtones!
HOSTAGES (Signature Entertainment) finds a group of social media addicts caught up in a possible terrorist attack.
LONG SHADOWS (4Digital Media) is a western in which a young man searches for those who murdered his mother and left him for dead as a child.
COYOTES (Signature Entertainment) finds yuppies Justin Long and Kate Bosworth trapped with their teen daughter when a pack of ferocious coyotes lays siege to their home. 
Our Short Shot is MISFIRE, directed by Jean-Paul Ly! Click the link to see the whole 15 min film!
Our DTV Throwback is RIOT, in which cop Matthew Reese gets himself thrown into the same prison where the man who killed his wife is hiding. You can find this on Amazon Prime as well as other streaming Services!
Follow the Short Shots  on X where you will find hundreds of links to awesome short films!
Don't forget to also check out our main show, the DTV DIGEST on X and FACEBOOK!
We are also now on Bluesky! Follow us here: @thedtvdigest.bsky.social and @dtvshortshots.bsky.social
 
 
 

Episode 301: Bride Hard, Shark Island, The Naughty List of Mr Scrooge, M: Beyond the Wasteland, Bone Lake, Nazi Supersoldier, Director's Cut, A Desert, Full Moon Gloryhole, From Beijing With Love

This week Mike, Steve, Amanda and Will tackle the latest films to be hitting home media. As usual, click the links to see trailers for each of the films!
 
We kick off with BRIDE HARD (Signature Entertainment) in which superspy Rebel Wilson must thwart Stephen Dorff and his mercenaries when they gate-crash her best friend's wedding!
SHARK ISLAND (High Fliers Films) finds a group of supermodels on a tropical island, surrounded by sharks and hunted by a killer after a $20Million necklace...
THE NAUGHTY LIST OF MR SCROOGE (Miracle Media) sounds cringe but is actually about a group of ex-college friends being hunted by a masked killer during a holiday weekend!
M: BEYOND THE WASTELAND (GrimmVision) is a Serbian post-apocalypse tale which follows a young boy seeking answers about his past...
BONE LAKE (Signature Entertainment) - finds two couples double-booked at the same luxury weekend getaway...
NAZI SUPERSOLDIER (4Digital Media) is a German Independent horror about some journalism students discovering a secret bunker....
DIRECTOR'S CUT (Miracle Media) is about a local metal band agreeing to make a music video with a strange director...
A DESERT (Blue Finch Film Releasing) finds a photographer crossing paths with a dangerous couple out in the desert...
Our Short Shot is FULL MOON GLORYHOLE - warning, this is NSFW! Click the link, to watch the whole 5 min short!
Our DTV Throwback is FROM BEIJING WITH LOVE, starring and co-directed by Stephen Chow (Chow Sing Chi) in his love-letter to all things Bond, mixed with a 90s HN aesthetic. You can find a high quality version on Amazon Prime.
Follow the Short Shots  on X where you will find hundreds of links to awesome short films!
Don't forget to also check out our main show, the DTV DIGEST on X and FACEBOOK!
We are also now on Bluesky! Follow us here: @thedtvdigest.bsky.social and @dtvshortshots.bsky.social
 
 
 

Episode 300! The Bitter Taste, Please Don't Feed The Children, The Cellar. The Partisan, Borley Rectory: The Awakening, Forgive Us All, The House at Hallow End, Guns and Moses, Snow Angel

Nearly nine years in the making, we have reached our 300th episode! To mark the occasion, we invited some guests to join the regular team:
Tom Jolliffe is a screenwriter and producer, who has appeared on the show before; Nathan Lunn, who has recently completed his book on Kaiju films which will be published next year, and Will Bentley, who has also contributed in the past!
We have a lot to get through this week so take a deep breath and lets dive in!
Kicking off with THE BITTER TASTE (4Digital Media), in which a former pentathlete must rely on her old skills to survive strange goings-on at an old castle!
PLEASE DON'T FEED THE CHILDREN (Signature Entertainment) is the latest post-apocalypse-set film and one of two on this episode!
THE CELLAR (4Digital Media) is an independent horror film in which a young woman tries to outwit and escape from her captors.
THE PARTISAN (High Fliers) is a WW2 thriller set in rural France and based upon the true-life spy, Krystyna Skarbek.
BORELEY RECTORY: THE AWAKENING (Kaleidoscope Film Distribution) is the latest of a long line of films made about the most haunted place in England!
FORGIVE US ALL (Lightbulb Film Distribution) is the 2nd post-apocalypse set film for this week, albeit this one is set in Australia...
THE HOUSE AT HALLOW END (Signature Entertainment) is a horror film in which a young mother finds her baby at risk from supernatural forces!
GUNS AND MOSES (4Digital Media) is an off-kilter detective story about a Rabbi trying to solve a murder.
SNOW ANGEL (4Digital Media) finds a young woman dealing with a traumatic event that she can't seem to escape from
STRANGE HARVEST (Vertigo Releasing) is a faux documentary about the manhunt for a serial killer who may have a supernatural agenda.
Our Short Shot is the excellent THE SECOND TIME AROUND, in which a young waitress is visited by an old woman at closing time. Usually we would place a link for the film, but you can find it on the Channel 4 streaming app!
Our DTV Throwback was chosen by guest Tom Jolliffe: CONUNDRUM is a police procedural/murder mystery starring Michael Beihn and Marge Helgenberger as cops trying to bust a triad smuggling operation. You can find this on Amazon Prime, and no doubt other streaming services...
Follow the Short Shots  on X where you will find hundreds of links to awesome short films!
Don't forget to also check out our main show, the DTV DIGEST on X and FACEBOOK!
We are also now on Bluesky! Follow us here: @thedtvdigest.bsky.social and @dtvshortshots.bsky.social
 

Episode 299: Beast of War, London Calling, Delivery Run, Red Plague, The Severed Sun, Helloween, Night Shift, Downtime

In this episode Mike, Rich, Steve and Amanda tackle six new releases: as usual, click the links to see a trailer for each film...
 
We kick off with BEAST OF WAR (Signature Entertainment) - set during WW2, it finds a bunch of army recruits at the mercy of a great white shark when their ship is sunk...
LONDON CALLING (Signature Entertainment) stars Josh Duhamel as a down-on-his-luck hitman having to take his boss's son under his wing...
DELIVERY RUN (Plaion Pictures) is a Duel-like tale of a food delivery driver beset by an unknown snowplow driver...
RED PLAGUE (4Digital Media) is a post-apocalyptic zombie story as a grizzled survivor has to escort a young woman across the desert...
THE SEVERED SUN (Blue Finch Film Releasing) is set in a secluded religious community where a young woman is accused of killing her husband and cavorting with the devil...
HELLOWEEN (Miracle Media) is a British mash-up of several genre sources and sees a psychotic clown escaping an asylum and wreaking havoc!
Our Short Shot is NIGHT SHIFT, about bonds of friendship, becoming an adult and other Life Changes - and a werewolf. Click the link to watch the whole 30min short!
Our DTV Throwback is DOWNTIME. This is an off-shoot of the Dr Who Franchise, and features several actors and characters from "classic" Dr Who. You can find it on Amazon Prime...
Follow the Short Shots  on X where you will find hundreds of links to awesome short films!
Don't forget to also check out our main show, the DTV DIGEST on X and FACEBOOK!
We are also now on Bluesky! Follow us here: @thedtvdigest.bsky.social and @dtvshortshots.bsky.social

Episode 298: Prisoner of War, A Breed Apart, Bone Face, Devil In The Dust, Scurry, The Drowned, Diablo, First Sight, Dollman vs Demonic Toys

In this episode Mike, Rich, Steve and Amanda tackle seven new releases, including two Scott Adkins movies! As usual, click the links to see a trailer for each film.We kick off with the WW2 set PRISONER OF WAR (Kaleidoscope Home Entertainment) in which Scott Adkins is shot down over the Philippiines, captured by the Japanese and forced to fight for the commandant's entertainment. Scott's co-star in the Debt Collector films, Louis Mandylor, directs!
A BREED APART (Signature Entertainment) sees a bunch of influences invited to a tropical island to help rescue some feral dogs. Its as dumb as it sounds, but is it entertaining?
BONEFACE (High Fliers Films) takes the usual summer camp slasher scenario and turns it into a murder whodunnit...
DEVIL IN THE DUST (Signature Entertainment) finds Guy Pearce having to help a mother and daughter trek across the old west to find a faith healer for the daughter, who may be possessed or a carrier for a deadly contagion...
SCURRY (Signature Entertainment) is set during an alien invasion of sorts and focuses on two people trapped in underground tunnels...
THE DROWNED (Vertigo Releasing) takes the premise of Reservoir Dogs and adds a supernatural element to it...
DIABLO (Signature Entertainment) is our second Scott Adkins film, here teaming up with the awesome Marko Zaror and director Ernesto Díaz Espinoza for some mayhem in Colombia!
Our Short Shot is FIRST SIGHT, a futuristic dating story with a dark twist. Click the link to see the whole 20 minute short!
Our DTV Throwback is DOLLMAN VS DEMONIC TOYS - possibly the most cynical cash-in ever conceived. You can see it on Amazon Prime and other platforms.
 
Follow the Short Shots  on X where you will find hundreds of links to awesome short films!
Don't forget to also check out our main show, the DTV DIGEST on X and FACEBOOK!
We are also now on Bluesky! Follow us here: @thedtvdigest.bsky.social and @dtvshortshots.bsky.social
 

Episode 297: Mission Alarum, Americana, In Vitro, Psycho Therapy, Sovereign, Riff Raff, The Astronaut, The Shephers Code II: Road Back, The Milk Situation, Open Grave

This week Mike, Rich, Steve and Amanda take a look at eight new releases; as usual, click the links to see a trailer for each film!
We kick off with MISSION ALARUM (aka Alarum) (Signature Entertainment), in which two enemy agents fall in love and go off-grid in Poland, only to have the CIA hunt them down...
AMERICANA (Lion's Gate UK) is the story of a group of strangers all trying to get their hands on a priceless artefact in South Dakota...
IN VITRO (Plaion Pictures) finds husband and wife farmers trying to use clone technology on cattle...and other things...
PYSCHO THERAPY: THE SHALLOW TALE OF A WRITER WHO DECIDED TO WRITE ABOUT A SERIAL KILLER (The Movie Partnership) finds a retired serial killer accidentally becoming a marriage therapist for a writer.
SOVEREIGN (Signature Entertainment) finds a father and son battling against the judicial system and ending up on the run from the police.
RIFF RAFF (Signature Entertainment) sees a retired crime boss having to deal with his kids, ex wife and mobsters on the warpath at his Christmas family getaway. 
THE ASTRONAUT (Signature Entertainment) follows a female astronaut recuperating after her first solo mission, only to start to think that an alien has come back to Earth with her...
THE SHEPHERD CODE II: ROAD BACK (M and M Film Productions) finds former agents coming out of retirement when one of their own is kidnapped.
Our Short shot is THE MILK SITUATION, in which two guys offer their cleaning services to an office block littered with demons. Click the link to watch the whole short film!
Our DV Throwback is OPEN GRAVE, in which an amnesiac awakens in an open mass grave, with no idea who he is or why he is there. This is available on Amazon Prime, as well as other platforms such as Plex.
Follow the Short Shots  on X where you will find hundreds of links to awesome short films!
Don't forget to also check out our main show, the DTV DIGEST on X and FACEBOOK!
We are also now on Bluesky! Follow us here: @thedtvdigest.bsky.social and @dtvshortshots.bsky.social
 

Episode 296: Bad Man, Little Jaffna, Don Q, Purgatory Jack, Resurrection Road, The Invisible Raptor, The Occupant, Unsinkable, Howl at the Dead, Perfect Target

This week Mike and Rich are joined once more by Amanda, whose work over on Eastern Kicks you can find HERE! This week we tackle 8 new releases - click the links to see the trailers for each movie!
 
We kick off with BAD MAN (Vertigo Releasing) in which Seann William Scott plays a no nonsense cop who travels to a small town to rattle some cages and egos along the way.
LITTLE JAFFNA (Blue Finch Releasing) is about an undercover cop investigating Sri Lankan gangs using organised crime to fund the Tamil Tigers back home...
DON Q (Reel2Reel Films) see's Armand Assante as an aging gent living in Little Italy and pining for the old days...
PURGATORY JACK (4Digital Media) is an odd tale about a private eye living in Purgatory
RESURRECTION ROAD (High Fliers) is set during the American Civil War and follows a squad of black soldiers on a suicide mission - which is about to get worse!
THE INVISIBLE RAPTOR (The Movie Partnership) sets a Paleontologist up against a genetically engineered velociraptor...which is invisible...
THE OCCUPANT (Signature Entertainment) is a film which starts as a survival movie but veers into different genres....
UNSINKABLE (High Fliers) documents the findings of a sub-committee held to discover the evens leading up to and during the tragic sinking of the Titanic.
 
Our short shot is HOWL AT THE DEAD - click the link to watch the whole short film!
 
We round off with our DTV Throwback: PERFECT TARGET stars Daniel Bernhardt as an ex-soldier hired to assist in a South American president's security but finds himself framed for his assassination. You can find this film on Amazon Prime and other streaming platforms. 
Follow the Short Shots  on X where you will find hundreds of links to awesome short films!
Don't forget to also check out our main show, the DTV DIGEST on X and FACEBOOK!
We are also now on Bluesky! Follow us here: @thedtvdigest.bsky.social and @dtvshortshots.bsky.social
 

Episode 295 - Somnium, Borderline, Derelict, All the Lost Ones, Dark Summer, The Spawn, Dollman

In this episode, Mike and Rich are joined by guest presenter, Amanda! Between us we tackle five new releases - as usual, click the links to watch the trailer for each film!
 
We start with SOMNIUM (Lightbulb Film Distribution), in which a young woman starts working the night shift at a dream clinic...
Next is BORDERLINE (The Movie Partnership), which stars Samara Weaving as a 90's popstar being stalked by a delusional psychopath - funnier than it sounds!
DERELICT is an art-house take on a revenge thriller, set on a council estate...
ALL THE LOST ONES (Miracle Media) is a futuristic thriller set during a civil war, where a group of people are on the run from a militia...
DARK SUMMER (Miracle Media) finds two best friends entertaining the worst possible idea ever...
Our short shot is the German production, THE SPAWN, about a woman and her friends trying to stop the execution of a woman condemned as a witch - click the link to watch the whole short film!
Our DTV Throwback is DOLLMAN, starring Tim Thomerson and Jackie Earle Haley, and was directed by the late, great, Albert Pyun. You can check it out for free as an Amazon Prime subscriber, or on Plex and other platforms! You may also want to check out this episode of GOODBADFLICKS which covers the film!
Follow the Short Shots  on X where you will find hundreds of links to awesome short films!
Don't forget to also check out our main show, the DTV DIGEST on X and FACEBOOK!
We are also now on Bluesky! Follow us here: @thedtvdigest.bsky.social and @dtvshortshots.bsky.social

Episode 294 - Fright Fest Special! The Home, Your Host, Pig Hill, Above the Knee, 213 Bones, NoSeeUms, Cover, Super Happy Fun Clown, Video Barn, I'll Always Know What You Did Last Summer

In this episode Mike, Rich and Steve review 8 films which are all receiving their premier at this year's London Fright Fest! NB - we normally mention the distributor for each film, but some have yet to find a home. Nevertheless, click the link to see the trailer for each movie!
We kick off with THE HOME (Signature Entertainment), where Pete Davidson starts work as a care assistant, only to learn the place has some dark secrets!
Next is YOUR HOST, a SAW-like film in which Jackie Earl Haley plays a former game-show host punishing those he holds responsible for his fall from fame and fortune. 
PIG HILL is the home of legendary pig men, and a young woman is intent on finding the truth behind the legend!
ABOVE THE KNEE (Blue Finch Film Releasing) is a Norwegian psycho-drama in which a young man is convinced his leg doesn't belong to him and wants to remove it!
213 BONES is a 90's set slasher where an anthropology class is being hunted by a masked killer!
NoSeeUms  mixes racial history with the supernatural as a young black girl is haunted by visions on a weekend getaway!
COVER (The Horror Collective) finds a stamp collector involved with a woman claiming to be on the run from her abusive boyfriend!
SUPER HAPPY FUN CLOWN is a young woman who has a psychotic break and goes on a killing spree!
 
Our Short Shot is VIDEO BARN, in which a young woman working at a video rental store suddenly goes missing. Click the link to watch the whole short film!
Our DTV Throwback is I'LL ALWAYS KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER, the third installment of the original series and the first to go straight to DVD. We watched this on TUBI, and other streaming platforms may have it also.
Follow the Short Shots  on X where you will find hundreds of links to awesome short films!
Don't forget to also check out our main show, the DTV DIGEST on X and FACEBOOK!
We are also now on Bluesky! Follow us here: @thedtvdigest.bsky.social and @dtvshortshots.bsky.social