Hi, I'm Dave. I’m a Rondo Award-nominated cult film critic and historian. Welcome to Reel Cult Obscura, launched in October 2026.

MISSION STATEMENT

I value quality over quantity, but I'll be updating this blog as often as humanly possible. My focus encompasses anything that falls under the broad, wild umbrella of cult cinema—including horror, sci-fi, fantasy, film noir, neo-noir, exploitation and Euro cult. Expect deep dives into milestone anniversaries, obscure curios, relevant new releases, and everything in between.

I inject my personality into my work to share my genuine passion with you. I’m deeply informed and fiercely own my opinions. I, and I alone, decide if a film is good—no one dictates my taste. But I'm always inclusive. When I started writing film criticism, I made myself two promises: I will be honest and impartial, and I won’t disappear up my own arse. 

This space is about YOUR passion for cult cinema, too. I encourage constructive, lively discussions in the comments so we can build a true community of cult film lovers.

ORIGINS

I was born and raised in the suburbs of South East London, England, spending the first half of my life there before relocating to Thailand.

I spent much of my misspent youth consumed by cinema: devouring big screen new releases and TV broadcasts, renting videotapes, collecting physical media, reading movie books and magazines, and watching documentaries on the subject. My lifelong obsession with cult films was truly forged watching Alex Cox and Mark Cousins host the legendary BBC2 series, Moviedrome (1988 - 2000).

BEGINNINGS AS A FILM WRITER

I’m a self-taught writer. I first cut my teeth in film criticism by launching a blog back in 2012. It was a massive learning curve, but it was the best way to start, and I managed to build a respectable following along the way.

In 2016, the blog was good enough to land me contributor positions for two top-tier movie websites - one dedicated to horror, the other to broader cult cinema. I then took the blog down at some point. The contributing work continued my learning curve, as it allowed me to hone my skills benefiting from experienced editors, and I reached a wider audience.

This path led to a major milestone in 2019 when I secured print work for a popular film magazine. Over the next five years, I had eight features published in a prominent horror movie publication, with four scoring the central front-cover feature. This run included an exhaustive, five-issue franchise retrospective that earned a nomination for Best Article at the 21st Rondo Hatton Classic Horror Awards in 2023.

A BUMPY ROAD

I’ve had my fair share of setbacks, however, and I’m essentially starting over as a writer.

The website contributing work was going fine until 2019 when I lost all of my momentum, as I started to have personal problems that continued for years. This was when I was offered the magazine work, and it couldn't have come at a worse time, but I couldn’t turn it down, because I knew I might not get an opportunity like this again. 

By the time I finished this work in 2021, I hadn’t been published online for two and a half years, but I still couldn’t fully commit to writing, so I couldn’t inquire about new contributor positions or start my own site. The editor-in-chief who hired me for the horror movie website had left, so I went back to the cult film one, but I could only write sporadically. By 2024, it became clear that this website was a shadow of what it was, so I left, and it died that year. I then decided to take time off from writing completely until my personal issues finally ended.

A FRESH START

Now I have my life back, I have a renewed focus on writing. I’m going to make the most of my love for film and writing about it, because this experience has taught me that life can easily take away our dreams. I’m working harder than I ever have, and I'm writing better than I ever have with my most personal work.

Dave J. Wilson