Period Pains Become Even More Monstrous in The Cramps: A Period Piece (FANTASTIC)
Title: The Cramps: A Period Piece
First Non-Festival Release: TBD
Director: Brook H. Cellars
Writer: Brook H. Cellars
Runtime: 89 Minutes
Starring: Lauren Kitchen, Brooklyn Woods, Harlie Madison
Where to Watch: Check out where to find it here
This film’s review was written after its screening at the Fantastic Film Festival in 2025.
Endometriosis is a terrible condition that affects roughly 190 million women worldwide. Cast aside as mere wimps to the expected discomfort of period cramps, women who suffer with endometriosis, and similar conditions, learn to suffer in silence in a society unwilling to accommodate them.
At an undisclosed time in the past, Agnes Applewhite (Lauren Kitchen) secretly accepts a new job at a beauty salon despite the clear disapproval of her controlling mother (Brooklyn Woods) and conflicted, yet distant sister Liberty (Harlie Madison). Her first day at the hair salon goes well. Her colleagues, pyrophobic Holiday Hitchcocker (Michelle Malentina) and delightfully peppy satanist Teddy Teabody (Wicken Taylor), along with her new boss Laverne Lancaster (Martini Bear) do their best to make Agnes feel welcome despite their longtime rivalry with another shop distracting their efforts. Life is looking up for Agnes. It is, until what initially starts out as Agnes’s chronic period cramps turn into a far deadlier problem.
The Cramps: A Period Piece is a delightfully quirky and campy creature feature that proudly wears its inspiration on its sleeve.
Writer/director Brooke H. Cellars introduces audiences to this delightful world with a clear and earnest vision. From the get-go, it’s clear that the world of The Cramps: A Period Piece is silly to its core. Over-the-top arguments, a truly inspired monster, and a consistent stream of melodrama allow the film to depict the absurdity of ignoring women’s issues. The issues Agnes faces are never downplayed but are instead depicted in a way to elevate the issues while highlighting the stupidity of those ignoring them. Either in the ways society historically holds women down (limited employment opportunities, familial expectations, healthcare providers ignoring concerns, emphasis on beauty over other traits, etc) and in the ways individuals prop it up (sabotaging other women, enforcing conformity, etc), The Cramps: A Period Piece shows the dangers in capitulation to these sensibilities.
Quirky characters and snappy dialogue elevate the picture even more, mocking the ridiculousness of taboo topics that hold weight in its universe and ours. Imbuing a consistent culture of camp, The Cramps: A Period Piece wears its queer influences on its sleeve. Full of strong and interesting women, there’s a welcome consistency in its characters to project modern sensibilities against its 1950s backdrop. Flipping the script on femininity, Cellars ensures each woman authentically exists in this world without relying on shock value. The result? A story full of distinct style, memorable characters, and devastating reads. It isn’t all for show either. Take Wicken Taylor’s Teddy Teabody. An even-tempered, sprite-like Satanist who only wants to lift other women up, Teddy challenges conventions of feminist women depicted in film. One example of many, the care in which Cellars takes to create her characters and world is appreciated.
Taking inspiration from many horror films from the time, The Cramps: A Period Piece makes a memorable and fun monster out of period cramps. Paying homage to the monsters of the past, the creature of The Cramps: A Period Piece fits in its universe like a glove. Imitating the bodysuit monsters popular for the time, the period cramps here are a tactile oddity. Slippery yet solid in form, the blob of blood is in a class of its own, torpedoing through anyone bold enough to put Agnes in harm’s way. While never scary, the period cramp demon is memorable enough to earn commendation.
While there’s plenty to love in this debut feature, some hard-to-ignore technical elements make it hard to fully embrace. Out of sync audio creates this infuriating feedback loop where dialogue creeps out of the actor’s mouths sometimes seconds after it’s been said. While it certainly harkens back to a simpler time for productions, its intentional or otherwise use in a modern film is flat out irritating.
There’s so much to appreciate in The Cramps: A Period Piece that it easily overshadows the flaws it does have. A laser-like focus on its vision, this indie horror comedy takes great care to create a world worth exploring and characters that make the journey feel exuberant. The few times in which its production values creep through cannot cancel out the meticulous attention to detail in terms of set design, wardrobe, and depiction of its period setting. Sure to become a cult classic, The Cramps: A Period Piece is a special little treasure that is bound to make many horror fans feel seen.
Overall Score? 7/10
