The beautifully terrifying celebration of horror Shock and Gore is back for another season of raging blood, violence, thrills and fear in an unprecedented slew of scream inducing films. Expect Q&As, introductions, themed parties and foodie events housed in the beautiful Electric Cinema. Over twenty films across nine pulse shredding days. For the full lineup go here  Here are our picks.

The Ghoul + Q&A (dir: Gareth Tunley, 2017, cert 15)
A disconcertingly Lynchian debut from Brit Gareth Tunley who pokes a mischievous stick into dark suburbia with this melancholically surreal cop drama. Intelligent and surprising; ‘The Ghoul’ flouts convention and subtly wreaks emotional havoc, as homicide detective Chris’ mind and universe unravel and reality becomes a shifting and nebulous entity, or does it? An exciting debut. Q&A with director Tunley following the screening.
Fri 28 Jul 6pm at Electric, Station Street, Birmingham B5 4DY £9.50 www.theelectric.co.uk

Dawn of the Dead vs Shaun of the Dead Shock and Gore Party
Two giants of the zombie genre go head to head at the Shock and Gore opening night party, the evening begins with themed cocktails, big screen video games and zombie shorts before midnight screenings of George Romero’s gruelling dissection of consumer culture and Edgar Wright’s hilariously loving tribute are unleashed on screens 1 and 2.
Fri 28 Jul 10.30pm at Electric, Station Street, Birmingham B5 4DY £9.50 choose Dawn of the Dead  here or Shaun of the Dead here

Multiple Maniacs (dir: John Waters, 1970, cert 18)
Just what John Water’s homage to the grotesque needed was a brand spanking new digital print and here it is. A sickening feast for the senses as we join Divine’s Cavalcade of Perversion and a raft of gross out characters plumbing eye watering levels of wholesome depravity. A dizzying spiral of degeneracy through blasphemy, murder and rape by a giant crustacean named Lobstora, and this really only scratches the surface. We’re looking forward to a good wallow in its legendary filth.
Sat 29 Jul 10.30pm  at Electric, Station Street, Birmingham B5 4DY £9.50 www.theelectric.co.uk

The Wicker Man w/ Conjurer’s Kitchen (dir: Robin Hardy, 1973, cert 15)
Quite simply one of the greatest horror films ever made. The terrifying thrill of seeing Edward Woodward’s virginal policeman Sergeant Howie led a merry; and very creepy, dance by the citizens of the Island of Summerisle to its shocking finale, is an unforgettable cinematic moment. Christopher Lee, as the island’s eponymous Lord, was never better than as the pagan patriarch manipulating the bewildered Howie to his doom. Nightmarish treats will be available from the devilishly imaginative Conjurer’s Kitchen including foreskins, masks will be worn and fancy dress is encouraged. Just be careful where they take you.
Sun 30 Jul 3pm at Electric, Station Street, Birmingham B5 4DY £20.70 www.theelectric.co.uk

Taxi Driver (dir: Martin Scorsese, 1976, cert 18)
Scorsese’s masterpiece of misguided vigilantism needs no introduction. If you haven’t experienced this seminal work on the big screen then you have missed one of cinema’s fundamental joys. Restored and reissued to celebrate its 40th anniversary Taxi Driver sparks with a discordant energy few films possess. Robert De Niro’s Travis Bickle is arguably one of cinema’s most iconic characters, his power fortified by the grudging knowledge that somewhere right now some lost soul is inevitably staring into a mirror and playing out his own ‘you looking at me’ scene. Essential cinema.
Sun 30 Jul to Thu 3 Aug  at Electric, Station Street, Birmingham B5 4DY £9.50 www.theelectric.co.uk

The Living Dead at Manchester Morgue (dir: Jorge Grau, 1974, cert 18)
Rare outing on the big screen for the criminally underrated Spanish/Italian zombie horror. Set in the north of England; though mostly shot in Italy, the bona fide fully certificated video nasty, it made it onto the original Department of Public Prosecutions hit list in 1984, is badly dubbed and terribly acted but is a riotous explosion of imaginative splatter and gore. Kitsch, violent and utterly bonkers.
Sun 30 Jul 8pm at Electric, Station Street, Birmingham B5 4DY £9.50 www.theelectric.co.uk