Aug 9th Horror Trivia Screening List

To all those who came here from the event or Storm Crow's FB page, welcome! I am Jay, one half of the horror trivia quizmasters and this is my humble blog.

If you heard a title while at the last event and thought “oh that movie sounds cool, I should check that out”, here's a comprehensive list of all the films that were mentioned. Click on the titles to be redirected to their Imdb listing.

For everyone else, maybe there's one or two here you have yet to catch. Horror Trivia Night happens at Storm Crow Manor in Toronto. If you're in the area, come on down! Register here. If you're not local, we do often stream the event on @ruemorguemag Instagram.

Cocaine Bear (2023)

The Howling II (1985)

End of Days (1999)

The Innocents (2021)

The Strangers (2008)

Valentine (2001)

House of Wax (2005)

Dawn of the Dead (2004)

House of 1000 Corpses (2003)

Dead Silence (2007)

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003)

Friday the 13th (2009)

The House of the Devil (2009)

Shaun of the Dead (2004)

Cannibal Holocaust (1980)

The Blair Witch Project (1999)

Host (2020)

Diary of the Dead (2007)

REC (2007)

One Cut of the Dead (2017)

Paranormal Activity (2007)

Grave Encounters (2011)

The Bay (2012)

V/H/S/99 (2022)

Psychic or Psycho?

This week's tape is Stefan Avalos & Lance Weiler's 1998 faux documentary The Last Broadcast.

David Leigh (David Beard) documents his search for the truth behind the murders of three filmmakers in the Pine Barrens.

I am reticent to call this a “found footage” movie because it was made before it was even a thing. Sure, there were pioneers like Cannibal Holocaust and Man Bites Dog, but this concept was still very new in the West. It wasn't until The Blair Witch Project burst onto the scene a year later that the floodgates opened. I do have to give the filmmakers credit for what they accomplished for under a grand. That's a fraction of even Blair's budget!

Fact or Fiction? hosts Steven & Locus.

The Last Broadcast was definitely innovative - it's apparently the first feature to be shot and edited entirely on digital equipment - but it is also very rough around the edges. Ten minutes in, I was like "is this what this is?" At times I wondered if it was supposed to be a parody, and I guess in some ways it is. I did have a chuckle reliving pre-millennium tech like IRC and big-ass laptops - that have batteries that last forever and connect to the Internet in the middle of the forest!

Obviously, the comparisons between this and Blair are easy to see, and it is no surprise which one became a household name - and it's not just because of the latter's groundbreaking marketing campaign. Both are raw, but while Blair focused on story and bone-chilling lore, The Last Broadcast clung to its clunky and often wooden film within a film narrative. For a film about looking for the Jersey Devil, there's very little time allotted to said legend. Seemed like a bit of a missed opportunity to me.

The whole medium is the message diatribe Leigh drones on about toward the end is a bit eye-rolling and then the climax happens. In theory, it is quite unsettling, but that moment is so clumsily edited together it left me going, wut?  Despite The Last Broadcast's shortcomings, it is still an amusing time capsule of a subgenre that has become one of horror's touchstones. 

I is for Incantation (2022)

After Grotesque and Hellgate, I needed to watch something that had a good chance of being halfway decent. I remembered the Taiwanese film Incantation getting a little buzz when it recently hit Netflix so here we are.

Mother Li Ronan (Hsuan-yen Tsai) goes to extremes to protect her daughter from a curse she contracted years earlier.

Yeah, this was pretty solid and serviceable as both Asian horror and found footage. The lore is dense and believable, especially when you factor in the story was inspired by a real family in the 2000s that thought they were possessed by angry spirits.

Hsuan-yen Tsai as Li Ronan in Incantation

I think the found footage angle works for the most part. I mean, it's no Noroi: The Curse, but the story is good enough to warrant the format. And in true Asian horror fashion, there are some decent scare set pieces, including the one in the shrine of the priest and his wife. 

I'd say Incantation's main detractor is it's a little long in the tooth. It holds off showing what is actually inside the “infamous” tunnel for a little too long. It's one of those cursed films where you get the idea that said curse is stronger than everyone involved so the third act is you just waiting for it to kill everyone off.

Overall, worth a watch and certainly a breath of fresh air from the stale dreck I took in the least few days. And as soon as I say that, tomorrow we have a movie about a shark whisperer...

D is for Deadstream (2022)

I've decided to switch it up this time and talk about something brand spanking new, Joseph & Vanessa Winter's found footage horror, Deadstream.

Disgraced YouTuber Shawn (co-director Joseph Winter) decides to hold his comeback livestream in the most haunted house in America. It does not go well.

This was a film that I missed while I was at Fantasia, but everyone who saw it said it was a blast, though there was some question about whether it would be as enjoyable outside of festival screening environment. However, after seeing the Winters' segment in V/H/S/99 at Midnight Madness, I was confident it would still slay in my living room. I was correct, Deadstream is wicked fun.

It had a very good setup, introducing us to an all-too-familiar YouTube-style personality who is a borderline d-bag, but at least not a total garbage human like the protagonist in last year's Dashcam. Shawn is genuinely witty and I was enjoying myself even before the shit hits the fan.

Joseph Winter as Shawn in Deadstream

 

Deadstream also wades through a lot of the usual found footage pitfalls quite adroitly, by not only using the character's fame and ego to keep him at the scene and filming now matter how bad things get, but also using his viewer comments to cleverly convey exposition. The Winters' also have a solid grasp of escalation, in that just when you think it is nearing its conclusion, it still has gas in the tank.

Much like V/H/S/99, the antagonists are abundant and well conceived and the gore is really well done. I find well executed set pieces in found footage extra impressive because of the heightened difficulty of timing. I also of course got a kick out of the Evil Dead nods - or I guess because this was POV, Resident Evil 7? 

Deadstream is perfect October viewing and the Winters' have now fully staked their claim as exciting new voices in horror.

2017 Preview.

We made it, guys! Here were are in 2017 with a new slate of horror films for which to look forward. Let's take a look.

Since it's January, we can first look to Park City and I see three possible winners in Damien Power's Killing Ground, Cary Murnion & Jonathan Milott's actioner Bushwick and the anthology XX.

The horror anthology has made a full-on comeback in recent years, so I'm hoping this female-centric affair keeps the momentum going. The pedigree is certainly there, as Karyn Kusama killed it with The Invitation last year and up-and-comers Roxanne Benjamin and Jovanka Vuckovic could really cement their reputations.

I am fully aware I may be the only one, but I'm super chuffed I get not only a new Resident Evil movie to start the year, but also an Underworld flick. I love these two ladies so much. I'll watch them dispatch monsters for as long they want to do it, God bless 'em.

#DontJudgeMe

It looks like last year's The Shallows performed well enough for this whole shark thing to keep going in 2017. Though the long-gestating Meg won't see the light of day until next year, there's a new found-footage shark tale called Cage Dive coming up. I'll be able to take the sensationalized affair of Meg, but the horrifying reality of this one, man? Honestly, I wimped out halfway through the trailer.

Some other A-list genre fare that looks decent are Gore Verbinski's Cure for Wellness and Colm Mcarthy's The Girl with All the Gifts. I saw a listing for Stefan Ruzowitzky's Patient Zero and was all like “yeah, this sure looks like a zer-- Natalie Dormer's in this??? Ok... I'll watch it (sigh)” More enticing I think, is Jordan Peele's take on horror with Get Out.

Then there's M. Night Shayamalan's Split. Fuck man, you never know what you're going to get with this guy. I enjoyed The Visit and thought it was a good bounce back from a series of misfires, but I don't know. This could be a solid thriller or a fucking trainwreck. I think it will depend on who M. Night thinks is the star here, him or James McAvoy.

Out of all the indies in this year's landscape, the most intriguing might be Monolith. The premise is delicious and of a new wave of horror that has sprung from our over-reliance on technology.

Looking through all the titles it was a veritable sea of remakes and sequels. I know this is par for the course these days, but holy... so many I don't give a shit about. I am reasonably receptive to It, or at least I have no desire to shut it out like Suspiria, F13, Flatliners et al.

These sequels though. I think the only one I'm actually upset about not being excited for is Alien: Covenant. I don't need more Prometheus. Every single Alien movie that gets made seems to get us further and further away from what made the first two remarkable. Anyway, I digress.

My parting words here would be to make sure you support Julia Ducournau's Raw and Greg McLean's The Belko Experiment when they hopefully hit theatres in 2017. These are the kinds of films that keep the genre fresh and exciting, not recycled tripe we've seen a million times before.

Yep, Old People Are Scary.

Before I dig into the TIFF stuff, I wanted to post about The Visit, M. Night Shyamalan's newest venture that released this past weekend.

Two teens visiting their estranged grandparents for the first time start witnessing weird occurrences when the sun goes down.

Despite how terrible most people think his last two blockbusters were, they still made money overseas, so he's still a bankable asset to the bean counters. I say that in case you were wondering how people still give him cash to make movies after his last five (and one-third) efforts. Apparently Shyamalan used his fee from After Earth to finance The Visit, so I do have to admire his gumption in the face of popular opinion.

And good on him for doing so because The Visit is actually pretty decent. Shyamalan has ditched the overblown and convoluted plots and just kept things simple with four characters together for a week on a farm. It became very clear to me while watching this Shyamalan being intentionally funny is much more enjoyable to watch than Shyamalan being unintentionally funny. And there is a lot of comedy to be had here which creates a nice balance with the more horrific elements.

Due to this being a more intimate piece, the actors were the focus and I thought they were solid across the board. The teenagers Becka (Olivia DeJonge) and Tyler (Ed Oxenbould), once I got my initial annoyance of them spewing dialogue that no one their age would ever say, gave very natural performances and worked well together as siblings.

Pop Pop (Peter McRobbie), Tyler (Ed Oxenbould) & Nanna (Deanna Dunagan) in The Visit. 

The Visit has a nice build and I didn't find the found footage format too distracting, as the pretense by which it was introduced was believable enough to justify its existence. The movie was produced by Jason Blum (of Paranormal Activity, Insidious et al) and I can see his influence in here, as well. Shyamalan & Blum together create an interesting hybrid of the modern and classical.

As you would expect, there was an inevitable twist in The Visit and it was well crafted enough that I only figured it out moments before the reveal. It had a cool campfire story quality to it that I dug. I also appreciated that Shyamalan kept himself (and his ego) out of this one, and though there is a “swing away” moment at the climax, it was nowhere near as preposterous as the one in Signs.

The Visit had a simple narrative and was well executed on both sides of the camera. I also feel this was a sizable step toward the public image redemption of M. Night Shayamalan.

Netflix Pix 10.0

There were a few notable horror titles recently added to Netflix North, so I figured this lazy Friday would be a good time to showcase a few of them.

This is a film from a few years ago that sadly flew under the radar. Jamie Collet-Solla (before becoming Liam Neeson's action partner) breathed some really fresh ideas into a story that could laid there like a dead fish. In addition to some solid performances from Peter Sarsgaard & Vera Farmiga, the real standout is then ten-year-old Isabelle Fuhrman as the titular character. Much like Ellen Page in Hard Candy, she is a force to be reckoned with. Small packages don't always contain good things.

This was a huge leap forward for Rob Zombie in my opinion, as the MTV sensibilities of his previous works were abandoned for something more cinematic. The obvious love of films from days gone by is still here, but he seems much more restrained in Lords and lets pace and atmosphere take over. The cinematography and score also help to gloss over what is a fairly thin plot. I'm definitely interested to see on what side of the fence his next flick “31” falls on.

Likely my fave horror film of 2013, Oculus gave me everything I wanted. Mike Flanagan builds on the atmosphere and dread of his previous indie Absentia and weaves a very impressive tale. I feel this is one of the best examples of seamlessly juggling two different timelines within the same space. The cast is strong across the board and the scare pieces are really effective, at least to me anyway.

I just saw this a few weeks ago and was really impressed by it. Mark Duplass keeps showing his versatility having been involved in several genres, from comedy (TV's The League) to romantic drama (The One I Love) to horror (Baghead). Creep is an incredibly simple tale, with the camera pointed at Duplass for most of the film. The escalation as his antics become more uncomfortable for his interviewer is palpable and I liked that they kept finding new ways to invigorate its “found footage” narrative. That is by no means an easy feat in this day and age.

So, there you have it; four titles to keep you occupied should you feel the need to curl up with Big Red. But, for right now, GET OUTSIDE. It's beautiful out!!!

A Hellmouth Holiday.

After checking out the solid actioner Momentum, I made a last minute decision to get back in line to see The Paz Brothers' horror film, JeruZalem.

Two friends Sarah (Danielle Jadelyn) & Rachel (Yael Grobglas) are vacationing in Jerusalem, when the biblical End of Days suddenly rocks the city.

At its core, JeruZalem is a pretty standard found footage horror film, but there are some elements that really elevate it.

The first is the use of Google Glass, which Sarah puts on at the beginning of the film. By making the lenses prescription – and having her bag carrying her other pair of glasses subsequently stolen – the filmmakers cleverly circumvented any logistical problems about why she continued filming once all hell broke loose. Additionally, because we were privy to Glass's HUD, the Paz Brothers also found new ways to visually relay exposition and story through the device. How this tech could potentially pull up anybody's Facebook profile via facial recognition may have been the scariest part of the movie.

The calm before the storm.

Secondly, the location is breathtaking. The movie travelled throughout Jerusalem and as everything was first person, you really felt like you were walking the streets with the characters. I was quite impressed by how much footage they captured – in holy places and the like – and found out later they filmed under the guise of a documentary to grab that stuff.

The performances were natural and solid across the board, though Sarah did get a little whiny towards the end. She was also the one making the majority of the bad decisions, which was cause for frustration. And while it is true the “Z” in the title is bit of a misnomer, I can see why they tried to incorporate it into their marketing campaign.

Lastly, you have to take into consideration that, apart from Aharon Keshales & Navot Papushado (the duo behind Rabies and Big Bad Wolves), this is the first full blown horror film to come out of Israel. JeruZalem's production values rival much of Hollywood's output, so if these are Israel's baby steps into genre territory, then we in for some great things when they really get their legs under them.

Many feel zombies and found footage are both played out tropes, but I say JeruZalem is worthy of your attention.

DKTM 267

Hey everyone. It's been a lazy weekend chock full of Netflix, but here are some weekly horrors to keep up the routine.

New York Horrors.

Did you know that New York is home to over seven-hundred horror movie locations? Well, filmmaker Ted Geoghegan (whose debut We Are Still Here just hit VOD this weekend) is currently putting together, with the help of resident New Yorker and Fangoria editor Michael Gingold, a tome that catalogues all such locations.

Past horrors have included flicks helmed by the likes of Lucio Fulci, Roman Polanski, Larry Cohen and Ivan Reitman. Click the image above to check out a cheat sheet of seven classic genre locations in The Big Apple.

Creeper.

I'm a big fan of The Duplass Brothers and it looks like they've returned to the horror well after 2008's Baghead with the SXSW selection Creep. Here's the trailer.

Sure, it just seems like simple found footage, but I can already tell from the trailer that this could be a really intense yarn. The film releases on iTunes later this month.

Fatal Frames.

A few weeks back, I posted about some cool gaming technology called Night Terrors. By using their phone app, you can interact with any environment via augmented reality. This week, they released a second trailer, which you can see below.

The IndieGogo campaign is still going, and you can pre-order the app for just five dollars. Night Terrors is set to release in January of next year.

Digging In.

Last week I checked out a screening of Adam Green's newest flick Digging Up The Marrow.

A filmmaker (Adam Green as himself) and his crew become involved with an eccentric ex-detective named William Dekker (Ray Wise) who claims he's discovered a race of beings that live underground in something called The Marrow.

Despite some minor quibbles, I found Digging Up The Marrow to be quite an entertaining yarn. I knew almost nothing about it going in (a rarity these days) other than that it was a faux documentary starring Green and Wise, so the air of mystery added to the allure.

The movie builds a well-realized mythology through the images and stories provided by artist Alex Pardee. I found out after that the project was five years in the making, when Pardee first met Green at a convention and talked about this world he had created. Green was so enraptured, they began fleshing out an idea to bring the Marrow to the big screen.

One of Alex Pardee's original art pieces.

Now that The Marrow has been realized, I was relieved to see that it wasn't all smoke and mirrors and there were not only some actual monsters in this, but they were also, much appreciatively, done practically. Perhaps taking a cue from the 1990 film Nightbreed - an obvious influence - they tried to make the inhabitants of the Marrow look as real as possible and for the most part, they succeeded. I felt they may have gone for something a bit beyond their means with the featured monster of the climax, but still, good on them for trying.

But the real heart of this picture is Ray Wise, as William Dekker. He is excellent in this. You believe what he's saying, even as he becomes increasingly erratic as the movie goes on. His presence strengthens the proceedings, as the parts with Green and his cohorts can be a little clumsy at times. A lot of the piece feels improvised, but apparently everything was rigidly scripted, so I can only praise Green for that. It takes skill to fabricate the awkwardness of natural behaviour.

Ray Wise as William Dekker with “Vance”  

There are those out there who have become irritated with Green's persona (of which he plays an exaggerated version in the film), but I've always thought him to be a passionate filmmaker. His appearance in Toronto while promoting Hatchet in 2007 was rather endearing and I've kept my eye on him since. Sure, he has his vanity project in Holliston, and the Hatchet franchise as a safety net, but he also does really interesting one-offs like Frozen and this. These are the self-contained stories I'm really interested in and I can only hope he keeps on making them in the future.

Amen!

After being highly recommended by a friend of mine several months ago, I finally managed to check out Elliot Goldner's found footage offering from the UK, The Borderlands.

A team is sent by the Vatican to the English countryside to investigate unexplained events at a local church.

Now this is how you make a found footage film, people! I think it is a crime that this film is not more well known among horror fans, at least on this side of the pond. To be honest, I'm shocked that North American genre festivals weren't lining up to screen this after its showing at London's Frightfest in 2013.

The Borderlands has everything going for it. We spend a lot of time getting to know the two inherently likable leads Gray (Robin Hill) and Deacon (Gordon Kennedy) as due to some fine storytelling the setting was almost immediately unsettling. The use of the head cams was a stroke of genius for it not only supplied a more digestible viewpoint, but also sidestepped the usual why-are-they-still-filming logistics.

The scene of the miracle(?)

I can't really stress enough how much of a found footage master class this was. It should also be noted that without the benefit of a score, most of the tension had to be created visually and the skill involved in the last act was admirable. The best found footage films are able to harness the chaotic nature of the format, yet also be technically adept enough to show you everything you need to see. Blair Witch did it. [REC] did it. And now The Borderlands has done it.

The other thing it shares with those two classics is one hell of a finish. Even several days later, I am still thinking about it. I woke up the next day and wondered if it, in fact, had ended that way, or if I just dreamed it. The film's conclusion was as bizarre as it was disturbing and I don't think I've seen one as horrifying in quite some time.

Gordon Kennedy as Deacon in The Borderlands.

If you haven't figured it out yet, I am a big fan of this movie and urge you to seek it out. Where can you see it? Well, Imdb lists a domestic release of Feb 24th, and even though a company called Grindstone bought the US rights about a year ago, I couldn't find anything more about actual distribution. So who knows? All I can say is, keep your eyes peeled.