All Things HORROR

THE PRESENCE Review

Creating an original idea and executing it are very different things. The Presence manages to succeed at giving a unique story, but its implementation leaves something to be desired. Atmosphere takes hold in director Tom Provost?s debut supernatural thriller, following a woman (Mira Sorvino) visiting a cabin in the woods as an apparition stalks about. Where the film really makes its mark is how it turns genre staples on their head, but getting there may leave some underwhelmed. The film builds to an exciting climax that will leave many talking due to the interesting notions it puts forth or the confusing way it is expressed?but they will be talking.

Sounds intersting.
 
CHUD.com — DVD REVIEW: THE LAST LOVECRAFT: RELIC OF CTHULHU

The horror comedy tone of the film easily owes a lot to films like Evil Dead 2 or Shaun of the Dead, and while the film is neither as memorable nor as funny as those films, it doesn?t hurt the genre. It never tries to be too serious, even though there is a lot of death sprinkled throughout, but it?s all very light in tone. The characters have some decent chemistry together, but my problem is that you never really feel like they?re on a ?journey?. It doesn?t even feel like they travel more than a mile from where they live, and the climax of the film takes place in some sort of open canyon in a trailer. The final battle is pretty anti-climactic and poorly done, but you can never be too pissed at a film that was never aiming higher than ?B-movie? anyway. This is the kind of film that you?d hate the guts out of if it was made by anybody you had even remotely heard of before, or had reason to expect greatness from.

The film is heavily set up for a sequel, and while the intentions of the filmmakers to make another one is unclear, with a bigger budget it could actually not suck. I?m not saying this is a film you need to rush out and buy, but if you get a chance to see it and like Lovecraft (if you don?t, kill yourself) you might not be disappointed. If you?re a fan of Lovecraft it isn?t close to being the best thing he?s ever been attached to (that?s Re-Animator for you folks playing at home) but you could do far, far, worse. It?s a mostly silly film that doesn?t take itself all too seriously. I hate to spoil this, but the titular baddie never makes an appearance other than during the animated sequence in the film. Which is pretty disappointing, because I think you?ll all agree that the presence of Cthulhu (even a poor-CG Cthulhu) would elevate the quality of almost anything it was in. Oh well. Here?s hoping (ok, maybe not hoping?..maybe ?mildly concerned for the potential existence of? works better) there?s a sequel!
 
CHUD.com ? The B Movie Column 4.9.11

Takes a while, SCROLL DOWN...but a really good take on Of Unknown Origin. Peter Weller vs. a really big rat. Me and my stoner buddy went to see this during our, 'let's get high and go see a really bad flick' phase(Lou Ferrigno's HERCULES owns the category), anyway...this was one of those, shoulda been a laugh but wasn't. Good flick.
 
Re-Animator The Musical Extends Itself Like an Unfurled Intestine | Horror Movie, DVD, & Book Reviews, News, Interviews at Dread Central

Good news for you folks in Los Angeles who have not witnessed the absolute mad genius that is Re-Animator The Musical! More dates have been added (including midnight shows) and more gore will be flowing freely! I'm STILL washing the blood off me! What an experience!

Starting April 22nd, midnight shows on Friday nights and 3:30 pm matinee performances on Sunday afternoons have been added at The Steve Allen Theater. Hit up that link for directions and ticket info. You WON'T be sorry! Hell, if you live out of state, believe us when we say this is totally worth flying in for!

In 1985 Stuart Gordon directed his first feature film and created a sensation. It was ?Re-Animator,? a smashing success based on a horror story by H.P. Lovecraft. The film delivered as many laughs as it did screams, making it a cult classic among horror fans, and won a Critic?s Prize at the Cannes Film Festival. Now Gordon is back with his co-writers Dennis Paoli and William J. Norris and composer/lyricist Mark Nutter to turn ?Re-Animator? into a musical for the stage.

Special effects are being done by the same guys who did them for the 1985 movie: Tony Doublin, John Naulin, and John Beuchler. And the blood will flow so freely that the first rows will literally be designated as a ?splash zone.? Needless to say, the show is not for small children.
 
MAD MONSTER magazine

Mad Monster Magazine is ALIVE! | Horror Movie, DVD, & Book Reviews, News, Interviews at Dread Central

From the Press Release
In the tradition of iconic horror mags of the past century, MAD MONSTER is creepy and creative entertainment and media commentary at its best. As early as 1896 when Georges M?li?s presented his film, ?House of the Devil?, Horror, Sci-Fi and Fantasy movies have captured the imagination of the public. And by the 1950?s ?classic? horror magazines began to do more than just delight readers. These periodicals actually turned the spotlight from the stars in front of the camera to the artists and craftspeople behind the scenes - the people who MADE the monsters we love to loathe. Disciples of the monster mag movement turned out to be people like Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, Guillermo Del Toro, Tom Hanks, Billy Bob Thornton, Peter Jackson and many others.
 
ok so...

Choose - ShockTillYouDrop.com

which I posted about earlier on this thread is a wash, but they reference The Killing Gene...

As I watched Choose, I kept being reminded of the vastly superior The Killing Gene from 2007, directed by Tom Shankland, who went on to make the amazing “killer kids” movie The Children.

The Killing Gene, known in its film festival life as Waz before being re-titled for domestic DVD release, is a film noir-influenced take on a killer who forces life-or-death decisions on carefully selected victims. While it sounds very similar to Choose on the surface, The Killing Gene has what Choose doesn't have: a very good screenplay, good acting and solid directing.

Want to see a memorable and effective riff on the ideas behind Seven and Saw? Skip Choose and seek out The Killing Gene.


Love Killing Gene...Stellen Skaarsgard is awesome. And The Children was pretty solid too.
 
Exclusive Update: Adam Green on Hatchet 3 | Horror Movie, DVD, & Book Reviews, News, Interviews at Dread Central

"I am not writing the script for Hatchet 3 right now as I am focused on Killer Pizza and another project that hasn't even been announced yet," says franchise creator Adam Green. "While I intend to see Danielle Harris' "Marybeth" character return in the third installment, nothing is in stone yet, and the actual production is still a ways away as right now ArieScope is finishing Chillerama and working on other projects that need to wrap up first."

"Given what my next year or two looks like right now, I may just be producing Hatchet 3 as stated in our official press release, so who knows what direction this could all go in under a possibly different writer or director. I'm staying as open-minded as possible. Everything else you're reading online is just excitement and enthusiasm for the next Hatchet film, which is terrific to see, but there are no accurate facts in it and there is nothing to report at this time."

 
adgy-san said:
Film features: 30 Greatest Slasher Movies | TotalFilm.com

I kind of give this list a little more credence based solely on the fact that I'm unfamiliar with at least half of the movies on it.
Click to expand...

Pretty all-inclusive. I have to see that one (Stage Fright?) with the chainsaw killer in the owl mask. I have at least heard of all of these, seen most of em. The real expert is VegasHockey...this is his area of expertise.
 
redwhitblue.jpg


IFC MIdnight Sees Red White & Blue in May | Horror Movie, DVD, & Book Reviews, News, Interviews at Dread Central

Really good word of mouth on this one...apparently a slow burn(tm Adgy) that descends into madness. Have to be honest, I want to see it:phos:...but all I have seen/read leads me to believe this might be a bit more lowbudge/indy talktalktalkandaheavyending kind of groove. You have been warned.
 
As an escaped Catholic school student, I find this interesting...

catechism.jpg


Let me preface my review of The Catechism Cataclysm by saying that I love quirky genre films. Movies like the recently released Rubber or even a classic like Saturday the 14th Strikes Back make me giddy like an eight-year-old girl at a Jonas Brothers concert (or whatever it is those darned kids are listening to these days). So if you?re not down with weird and abstract horror, then you may want to move along because The Catechism Cataclysm is not for you. However, if you?re like me and feel ?the weirder, the better? is horror you can dig on, then read on, my friend.

At the start of The Catechism Cataclysm, we meet Father Billy (Little), a socially awkward priest who regales his parishioners with inappropriate morality tales he learned growing up from the one man he?s always idolized: his sister?s one-time rocker boyfriend, Robbie (Longstreet). After Billy is asked to go on a sabbatical from his church by fellow man of the cloth Father O?Herlihy (Dalton), Billy uses his newfound free time to locate his idol Robbie in an effort to get some answers from the man he reveres most (talk about worshipping false idols!).

Once the two reconnect, the ball begins awkwardly rolling. Billy gushes on about days gone by, and Robbie, now a failed musician and miserable shell of a man, struggles to even remember who Billy or his sister were since he apparently was somewhat of a man-whore back in his more rockin? days. For some reason, maybe out of pity or maybe out of the sheer amusement of hanging out with a fanboy for a day, Robbie agrees to go on a canoe trip with Father Billy. Once the two embark on a seemingly quiet and enjoyable day, things go downhill fast when the duo get lost in the woods. And that?s when everything really takes a turn for the worse for both Robbie and Father Billy, but the ride couldn?t possibly be more awesome and enjoyable for the audience than what writer/director Todd Rohal cooks up for the third act.

When lost pals Robbie and Father Billy see two nameless Asian tourists (Maddox and Lanham, who are called Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn on the IMDB but aren?t actually referenced with names in the film - which adds to the mystery and charm of the flick) who happen to float by on the very same river they got lost on. The men flag down the two strange girls and camp out with them for the night, even though the ladies don?t speak a lick of English.

However, what our leads don?t know is that Tom and Huck have some deadly ulterior motives, and to say anything from there would be a major disservice to anyone wanting to see the movie. What I can say is that from that point The Catechism Cataclysm goes in a very odd and violent direction which can be best described as Wicker Man meets Scanners meets Eraserhead. And Rohal?s brilliant ending has a Demon Knight meets The Texas Chain Saw Massacre vibe that left me smiling for quite a while after the film?s conclusion.

The Catechism Cataclysm is one of those quirky little movies that defies true definition so I imagine it is something David Lynch would enthusiastically approve of. The buddy comedy turned bizarre nightmare caught me completely off guard and turned out to be one of the most refreshing films I had the opportunity to check out during the 2011 South by Southwest Film Festival last month.

Even though there?s a very slow build to the epic insanity that occurs in The Catechism Cataclysm?s third act, you never mind the ride, much to the credit of the chemistry between the two leads, Little and Longstreet, who deliver performances that masterfully range from awkward to heartbreaking to infuriating to hilarious.

Rohal, whose previous works are also exercises in oddity, once again delivers an oddball flick that works on many different levels and demonstrates his poise as a unique filmmaker. I imagine that if The Catechism Cataclysm can connect with its audience, it has the potential to be a midnight cult classic that fans will discover for years to come.
 
Relativity Acquires House at the End of the Street - ShockTillYouDrop.com

Relativity Media announced today that it has closed a deal to acquire US distribution rights to FilmNation Entertainment and A Bigger Boat's thriller House at the End of the Street, starring Jennifer Lawrence (upcoming X-Men: First Class, Winter's Bone), Elizabeth Shue (Leaving Las Vegas) and Max Theriot (My Soul to Take).

Directed by Mark Tonderai (Hush) and written by David Loucka (Dream House), the film is about a mother (Shue) and daughter (Lawrence) who move into a new community and find themselves next door to a house in which a psychotic young girl murdered her parents. While the locals insist the girl vanished after the brutal murders, the young newcomer befriends the surviving son (Theriot) and discovers the sinister story is far from over.
 
Everything I've heard about Red, White and Blue has made me want to see it almost as much as A Serbian Film.
 
adgy-san said:
The Playlist?s Guide To Horror Sequels Worth Screaming About > The Playlist

An interesting list. There's a number of films on it that I haven't seen, but heard were ****. Like the Psycho sequels and Exorcist III.

I would love to hear thoughts from those that have seen these. Big Lots has a a DVD of all 3 Psycho sequels for $6 and I almost buy it every time...
Click to expand...


Exorcist 3 was actually quite good. One particular hallway scene Kingsqueen and I can never forget. I enjoyed the Psycho sequels...kinda spinning wheels, but not bad. Actually, one of them, where Norman is actually not doing the killing(others are doing it in his style, till he snaps) was kinda good. I am watching Rec2 right now, so I will let you know, but it does seem like an extension of the first flick. The rest of these are some of the best.
Except for Curse of the Cat People(which I have not seen) I figger I can answer your questions re:the rest.
 
The thread is prolly gone, but, long story short, most of the opinions sounded like solid rental/kinda underacheived. A lot of what I read was consistent that Hopkins chews a little scenery, which...if you like him, might be worth the price of admission.
 
adgy-san said:
The Playlist?s Guide To Horror Sequels Worth Screaming About > The Playlist

An interesting list. There's a number of films on it that I haven't seen, but heard were ****. Like the Psycho sequels and Exorcist III.

I would love to hear thoughts from those that have seen these. Big Lots has a a DVD of all 3 Psycho sequels for $6 and I almost buy it every time...
Click to expand...

Yeah, you should get that Psycho set. I got mine when Circuit City had their going out of business sale, lol!

I think that Psycho 2 and 4 are pretty good. The thing about Norman Bates is that unlike most horror protagonists, it's easier to sympathize with him, and as such, getting more of a back story about him lead to good movies. In the second Psycho we get a view of his attempt to try to be normal. And in the fourth we get the story of his mother and how she mistreated him.

Just my personal opinion, but I think that the sequels are worth watching.
 
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