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Film: If It Bleeds
Year: 2025
Director: Matthew Hersh
Writer: Matthew Hersh and Smauel Gonzalez Jr.
Starring: Catherine Corcoran, Justin Miles and Doug Jones
Review:
Now this was a film that when I first thought of the title thought it had to do with the Stephen King collection of short stories. I soon realized this was playing on the adage for news stories, ‘if it bleeds, it leads’. I will say that this is an anthology film. Since it has the same filmmaking crew throughout, I’m going to cover it as a feature. This also played on day two of Nightmares Film Festival.
Synopsis: follows the story of Diane Winters (Catherine Corcoran), a young and ambitious news reporter, and her skilled cameraman Simon (Justin Miles), as they delve into a series of gruesome murders that unfold throughout a chaotic and violent day.
We start this by seeing a news story at a petting zoo. Diane is doing the report with her cameraman. She’s upset as she wants to tell more hard hitting stories. She has a plan. Prior to this, she bought a police scanner. She asks Simon to give her one day, help her chase down things that happen and in return, she will get a drink with him. He reluctantly agrees.
Before bringing up what the stories that she follows are, there is a rival reporter named Elijah Enoch (Andy Davoli). He makes it to the first one she goes for. We see that he is bribing police officers, which makes it more difficult for her. She won’t give up though.
Now what this does is have our reporters go to the scene, give their report and we see what happened. The first is a group made up of two couples and the host. Tristan (Khleo Thomas) is with Monica (Gigi Gustin) and they’re joined by Billy (Adam Bucci), his girlfriend Tiffany (Maren Altman). The house they’re at belongs to LeeAnna Vamp. She has a new game to play. It has wooden cards that when you pick, knock on the lid three times and it brings whatever entity is represented. Tristan doesn’t want to play and tries to get out before it is too late.
There is also an older woman, Evelyn Winthrop (Constance Forslund) who had a successful television show with a puppet named Chip (voiced by John Kassir). Evelyn dies and it goes to her niece, Grace. She thinks back to an odd encounter she had. Chip has plans for her as the show might have been more real than anyone realized.
Then I believe our final tale revolves around Dana Goodwin (Krsy Fox). She moved to Los Angeles to be an actress. Things aren’t going well and her mother, Melinda (Bonnie Aarons), isn’t happy. Dana’s agent is Kelly (Dee Wallace). She shows up with a part for Dana. The problem is that she needs plastic surgery. Dr. Charles (Doug Jones) is known around town, but his reputation isn’t great. We see that things he does ruins more than just looks.
Now that’s where I’ll leave my recap and introduction to the characters. I’ll then include that co-writer/director Matthew Hersh was in attendance. He brought up that he decided to do an anthology as his feature debut, because he could film things, use actors he wanted to work with and then come back to make more as he could. I do think that this is an interesting strategy that worked well.
What about anthologies is that I prefer them to have a wraparound. This one is interesting since the title is playing on the news story adage so following around an aspiring reporter makes sense. It is interesting that looking back, I knew about this film due to following Corcoran on social media. She posted when she was cast and then gave updates. I thought she was great as Diane. She is gorgeous so what she does to manipulate Simon makes sense. There are subtle things that happen with her character as we go along. I thought her performance fit perfectly for what was needed.
Let me then touch on the story. The structure, following a reporter (Diane) and cameraman (Simon) covering the stories, works well. Elijah's bribery of the police contrasts with Diane and Simon's creativity. Reveals address an earlier concern. While multiple supernatural events seem wild, the writing credits that by incorporating an inner connection, weaving the stories into a strong conclusion.
I’ll then say that I like what they do with the shorts. We have one that is full blown supernatural. There is a puppet tale that feels inspired by the Dead of Night segment. I like how this goes in a different direction, more akin to a ‘Lambchop’s Playalong’. The most grounded would be ‘Botched’, where we have plastic surgery gone wrong.
Then over to the acting. I’ve already credited Corcoran for her role. I like the more we learn about her, the worse she becomes. Miles plays well off her. I like Davoli as her rival. We also have great cameos here by Jones, Wallace and Kassir. I also like Thomas, Gustin, Altman, Aarons, Fox, Kirby Bliss Blanton, Vamp and Forlsund. Everyone fit what was needed in bringing life to their characters.
All that is left then is filmmaking. The consistent team behind the film is a strength. It's interesting that Hersh made this in the style of Night of the Living Dead—filming when he had the money and returning later. This segmented process works well for piecing it together, aided by the news story framing and interwoven narratives. The cinematography and framing were solid, and the music was appropriate. The practical effects were good, and while some minor CGI doesn't hold up perfectly, it wasn't a major issue. Credit is also due to the editing.
In conclusion, this clever and effective anthology horror film utilizes the "if it bleeds, it leads" news reporter wraparound to great effect. The creative structure allows director Hersh to successfully weave disparate segments—ranging from supernatural to body horror and a creepy puppet tale—into a cohesive feature. Corcoran's compelling performance as the ambitious Diane Winters, supported by strong genre veterans, anchors the film. Despite minor CGI flaws, solid practical effects and a consistent filmmaking team ensure the segments are engaging and varied. Overall, it's a strong feature debut that successfully connects terrifying events under a single chaotic day of TV news.
My Rating: 6.5 out of 10