In addition to the usual reviews and comments you would find on a horror movie blog, this is also a document of the wonderfully vast horror movie section of the video store I worked at in my youth.

Friday, March 27, 2020

Bark At The Moon

I've been keeping myself busy during quarantine in all sorts of ways, including doing this puzzle that's been in my parent's crawlspace for decades.





I guess I should be thankful that after fourty years of meddling Clarke children there are only three missing pieces. Stay safe, kiddies.

Wednesday, March 25, 2020

R.I.P. Stuart Gordon 1947-2020

Man, as if there wasn't enough bad news going around. I was really sad to hear about the passing of iconic filmmaker Stuart Gordon yesterday. He was 72.

Director Stuart Gordon 1947-2020

Gordon was a horror staple. He was one of those mavericks that really flourished during the video store boom of the eighties. Even if you are not a horror fan, you must recall the cover boxes of such seminal films as Re-Animator, From Beyond and Dolls. That is one hell of a trio and where I was first introduced to both Jeff Combs and Barbara Crampton.


His career went far beyond that era though. His work with Full Moon provided two of its best efforts in Pit & The Pendulum and Castle Freak.


Gordon also impressed with his post-millenium efforts, such as Dagon (still one of the best Lovecraft adaptations imo), Edmond and my personal fave, King of the Ants. If these titles are unfamiliar to you, now is the perfect time to discover them.


Rest in peace, Mr. Gordon. You will be missed.

Tuesday, March 24, 2020

Tuesday, March 17, 2020

Tuesday, March 10, 2020

Analog Rainbows

I found this 2018 YouTube video by 4096 and it is so beautiful and hypnotic. Enjoy it below.

Monday, March 9, 2020

R.I.P. Max von Sydow 1929-2020

I was gutted to hear about the passing of actor Max von Sydow yesterday. He was 90. Von Sydow was a ubiquitous figure of my childhood. Whether it was as Ming the Merciless in Flash Gordon, Brewmeister Smith in Strange Brew, Doctor Novotny in Dreamscape or his turn as Ernst Blofeld in Never Say Never Again, he was a mainstay on my television.

Max von Sydow 1929-2020

Von Sydow seemed ageless to me, as a teen, mainly because Dick Smith's make-up on him in The Exorcist was so convincing that I thought him was older than he actually was. This man was a giant, not only in stature, but also in character. His career in film and television spanned eight decades, more recently appearing as the Three-eyed Raven in Game of Thrones and Lor San Tekka in The Force Awakens.

Rest in peace, good sir.

Friday, March 6, 2020

VHYes!


Last Sunday, I checked out a little movie called VHYes.


This movie had been rolling around the festival circuit and I was overjoyed that my pal Landry was able to set up a screening locally at the Revue Cinema. If you're not familiar, the premise of VHYes is that we're watching an old home video tape. Originally a wedding video, it has subsequently been recorded over with all manner of late night TV shows, adverts and the childhood shenanigans of Ralph (Mason McNulty) and his best friend, Josh (Rahm Braslaw).



VHYes is the brainchild of Jack Henry Robbins (son of Tim & Susan Sarandon who also cameo in the movie) and he's created a hypnotic vortex of nostalgia here that I was, of course, on board with. Over the course of its seventy minutes, it crosses back and forth through about half-a-dozen narratives, even incorporating one of Robbins earlier works - Painting With Joan from 2016 - into the mix.


Though this idea is not new - mavericks like Ross Sutherland, Chris LaMartina and even Adult Swim have been experimenting with VHS iconography for years - Robbins has definitely harnessed its power with wonderfully entertaining results.

In addition to the screening, there was also a VHS swap where I was able to snag these babies, in exchange for my big box of The Big Brawl and Centennial Collection copy of The Great Dictator.


And then if that wasn't enough, there was ninety minutes of vintage eighties stuff after the movie, including choice cuts like the Spider & His Amazing Friends episode featuring the X-Men (you know, the one where Wolverine has an Aussie accent for some reason) and Mr. T's PSA special Be Somebody!


A fantastic night! If you dig VHS culture - and I assume you do or else why would you be here? - be sure to check out VHYes.

Tuesday, March 3, 2020

PG!

Ahead of its premiere at SXSW later this month, here's the brand new trailer for Steve Kostanski's Psycho Goreman.



It looks like everything I expected it to be! Look for it to hit a screen near you later this year.

Monday, March 2, 2020

HXFF Awards.

Today, we announced the awards for this Hexploitation Film Festival. Justin Harding & Rob Brunner's Making Monsters and Jason Axinn's To Your Last Death lead the way with four awards each. For the full list, click the pic above or right here