Lip Hook: A Tale of Rural Unease

This grim British import by Hine (War of Kings Prelude) and Stafford (The Man Who Laughs) tells a dark tale of a remote village where poisonous marsh vapors fill the air, an insect factory is the main source of employment, and a pagan cult is twisted by a woman on the run. Sophia and Vince are fleeing from persons unknown when Sophia makes the choice to take a dead-end turn towards Lip Hook. It’s not clear whether an early encounter with a cloud of insects imparts some magic to her or whether she already possesses the ability to bend people to her will through sex, but she soon has much of Lip Hook under her power, reviving and perverting a goddess cult that once was celebrated there. A bloody clash is inevitable with the local squire, Lord Huxley, who owns the factory that secretly supplies disease-bearing vermin to the Ministry of Defense. Stafford’s colors are dark and his figures misshapen and unlovely, as befits this ugly tale. This is one for fans of weird horror. (Nov.)