Deirdre Crimmins

Deirdre Crimmins

Senior Critic
Deirdre Crimmins is Chicago-based freelance film critic and a member of the Chicago Film Critics Association. She contributes regularly to Rue Morgue magazine, previously she wrote for both High Def Digest and Birth.Movies.Death. Though a lifelong horror film fan, she also loves a good musical or screwball comedy when the mood strikes.

Articles by Deirdre Crimmins:


  • July 24, 2020
    Radioactive Review: Intermittently Glowing Biopic

    Radioactive is a largely competent biopic of the scientist Marie Curie. The film does a serviceable job of fleshing out the woman who is often nodded toward in history books, though the lead performance pulls much of that weight.  Rosamund Pike stars as the feisty and brilliant Marie. Radioactive spans most of her adult life, […]

  • July 22, 2020
    Marionette Review: A “Real Movie” With Heady Aspirations

    Marionette suffers a touch from its attempts at philosophy 101, but shines when it embraces its true nature as a nutty horror film which writes its own crazy rules.  A good friend of mine cheekily refers to a “real movie” (in quotes) as a film that has a person on fire. I’m happy to report […]

  • July 7, 2020
    The Beach House Review: Sunny Summer Scares

    The Beach House is smart. It has smart characters, a smart “monster,” and a smart main character. It assumes its audience is smart and never talks down to them. But best of all, it is effective, terrifying and unpredictable, and downright perfectly gross. The Beach House starts out like so many horror films, in a […]

  • July 6, 2020
    We Are Little Zombies Review: Boogieing with Bereavement

    Highly stylized and based squarely in satire, We Are Little Zombies somehow manages to be a heartfelt look at what makes a family and what it means to grieve. Don’t let that description lead you to think this is a mournful, or somber film. In fact, it is a neon-drenched, 8-bit music video that lulls […]

  • June 22, 2020
    Irresistible Review: Not Pointless, but Dulled

    If ever there was a time we needed Jon Stewart’s biting political commentary, it is now. The funny man turned filmmaker turns his attention to the absurdity of US elections in his second time in the director’s chair with Irresistible, though his teeth are not as sharp as they used to be.  The film’s opening […]

  • Mike Myers as Stuart McKenzie in So I Married an Axe Murderer
    June 21, 2020
    Shelf Help: Who’s Your Daddy?

    Father’s Day can cause a lot of mixed feelings, because fathers, and family in general, can elicit a slew of mixed feelings. But for all of their complications, there are just as many versions of dads on screen. Today we asked our Shelfers: Which on-screen dad reminds you of your off-screen dad?   Jefferson Davis: […]

  • June 19, 2020
    Babyteeth Review: Forever Young Love

    Babyteeth is the first feature from longtime television and short film director Shannon Murphy. The quiet film focuses on ordinary characters going through a tough situation, with wobbling skill.  Milla (Eliza Scanlen, Little Women) first meets Moses (Toby Wallace) on a train platform. The teenage girl is in her school uniform when the tattooed wanderer […]

  • Fantasia Festival 2020
    June 9, 2020
    Fantasia’s First Wave Announcement is Ready for Your Eyeballs

    If there is one place you would expect perseverance and adaption, it is a genre film festival. The unknown future and imminent apocalypse have been imagined long before these fests existed, and they know that there are plenty of stories to still be told after the world as we know it disappears. Coming hot off […]

  • June 5, 2020
    Shirley Review: The Fame and Infamy of Shirley Jackson

    Writing is a cerebral process that does not lend itself easily to the screen. From The Shining to Adaptation to Delirious, the cinematic history of showing writers honing their craft is a rocky road. Shirley aims to expose us to bits of Shirley Jackson’s creative process, but much like the character herself, we never get […]

  • June 4, 2020
    Becky Review: Preteen Pandemonium Rages On

    “Hell hath no fury like a grumpy 13-year-old.” Isn’t that how the saying goes? Right on the cusp between independence and protection, the end of tweendom is always an especially rough phase to traverse. In Becky, co-directors Jonathan Milott and Cary Murnion (Cooties) once again turn their attention to the trials of childhood to showcase […]

  • May 21, 2020
    New teaser for Sundance haunter “Relic” haunts memories

    Already being called the best horror film of 2020 (aside from the nightly news), Relic shook up the Sundance Film Festival in January and it will be coming to haunt your eyeballs on July 10. Here is the latest teaser trailer to whet your appetite. Enjoy!    

  • April 27, 2020
    Blood Quantum Review: A New Twist On An Undead Tale

    Always on-brand, zombie movies refuse to die, and with good reason. These undead, hungry creatures are a projection of the worst parts of our humanity and there will never be any shortage of those. Blood Quantum takes an older monster, puts it in an even older cultural war, and attempts to present this as a […]

  • Butt Boy Movie
    April 18, 2020
    Butt Boy Review: Wonderful Worrying Weirdness

    If you are at all turned off by the title Butt Boy, this movie is not for you. The title to the whimsical, dark, and sometimes hilarious oddity serves as a warning flag rather than an enticement. However if you are even slightly intrigued, this one is for you.  Writer-director Tyler Cornack and co-writer Ryan […]

  • April 12, 2020
    Shelf Help: Easter Egg Hunt

    Easter observer or not, nearly everyone can get behind a cinematic Easter egg. Those little self-referential nods from the filmmaker to the audience that lets them know we are in on their little jokes. Though some films or shows go a little overboard with their egg hunt, a perfectly placed Easter egg is a beautiful […]

  • April 7, 2020
    Shelf Help: Cry It Out

    There is no denying that stress is running high these days. While there are plenty of movies and television shows to help you escape the madness and temporarily avoid the crummy state of the world, this week our Shelfers are leaning in to their emotions and letting it all go. What do you watch when […]