We LOVE It When Our Friends Become Successful

Hey all! I just wanted to give a quick shout-out to my buddy Chris Nash. His debut feature In A Violent Nature is hitting screens this weekend. You should go see it!

I've known Nash for close to two decades and after having worked on a half-dozen projects with him, I know what a talented and driven guy he is. He deserves the spotlight. I urge you to support indie films like this, so Shudder and other companies continue to foster unique voices like Nash, Kyle Edward Ball & Robert Morgan.

If you are a fan of slashers, this should be a no-brainer, as even if you're not down with ambient and deliberate narrative of IAVN, you'll at least be thrilled by the visceral kills. That's basically what I told Nash after I saw it, “Man, sure there's gonna be a bunch of people that say, this is fucking boring, but there's also gonna be sizable subset that really dig and appreciate what you were trying to do here.”

If you're the latter, make your voice heard!

Red Iron Road

Hey all. I just wanted to let you know about an exciting new animated anthology series that is dropping today on Tubi (among others) called Red Iron Road. It features six different stories (most of which I have seen and are ace) with varying styles recalling everything from Secret of NIMH to Heavy Metal to A Scanner Darkly. Check out the trailer below, and then give it a whirl!

It Came From The Archives 32!

When I was at that VHS meet recently, I also picked up a video retailer trailer reel from 1992 that I have now digitized for your enjoyment. It's a whopper with over fourty trailers, including Waxwork II, Fear, Seed People and Moon 44. Check it out.

In My Element.

Photo courtesy Nathan Boone

HMG: The Best of Sex and Violence

The next entry in the Horror Movie Guide was a title I was actually shocked I was able to find. It was Ken Dixon's Wizard Video trailer reel entitled The Best of Sex and Violence.

On those two things I can safely say it delivers, showcasing the goriest and sleaziest bits and pieces of Wizard Video's catalogue circa 1981. These were the early days of Charles Band before he moved onto greener(?) pastures with Empire and Full Moon. What's amusing is I think that's Brinke Stevens on the poster and she's not even in this...

As a trailer reel, it serves its purpose, but as a spectator, it doesn't have the prestige of Terror In The Aisles which followed three years later or even the entertainment value of watching dtunk Cameron Mitchell cosplay it up with Michelle Bauer in Continental Video's Terror On Tape the year after that. 

Let's face it, the only thing breaking up the trailers in The Best of Sex and Violence are awkwardly cheesy asides from John Carradine. He's slumming here and considering we're talking about John-fucking-Carradine, THAT is really saying something. Jesus, some of these one-liners were cringe even in the eighties.

On the bright side, my takeaway here is being introduced to some lovely ladies like Dixie Peabody and Phyllis Davis (whom I guess I did see in Beyond the Valley of the Dolls). Everything about this is the epitome of thrown together, but hey hope they sold some tapes out of it. The Guide had some understandable disdain for it;.

As for admonishing people for watching ninety minutes of trailers, they obviously didn't foresee the YouTube generation. or the Trailer Trauma or Video Nasties DVD compilations or five-hour long documentaries like In Search of Darkness. Different strokes (stabs?) I guess...

The Quarry

The trailer for Supermassive's newest CYOD slasher The Quarry just dropped and holy shit I am stoked for this!

I've been enjoying their Dark Anthology games - that last one House Of Ashes was a real nerve-shredder - but this is their first full-fledged title since 2013's Until Dawn. Looks like it's starred up to the tits, as well.

June 10th can't come soon enough!

Chamber of Terror

Behold the new teaser trailer for The Chamber of Terror, the production I worked on this past March. Look for it next year at a festival near you.

That Girl...

Darkside Releasing recently dropped a new trailer for Girl With A Straight Razor starring my old muse Ali Chappell.

As far as neo-giallos go, this looks spot on. GWASR hits Blu-ray and VOD on August 17th.

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.

The Clapboard Jungle

Here's the new trailer for Justin McConnell's documentary The Clapboard Jungle.

When it says “five year journey”, that is no hyperbole. I've known Justin for many years now and I've been in the periphery of some of the projects and events that take place in the film so I'm eager to see it all put together. 

There were times when I thought it may never be finished. Not for lack of effort or funds, it's just tough to find an end point in a project like this. Life is life, right? It ebbs and flows and chapters are not as easily discernible as they are on the printed page.

The Clapboard Jungle will premiere on March 26th at the Canadian Film Fest.

NYG.

Geez, I wish I lived in New York - at least in October - so I could catch this screening of Black Gloves and Razors at Brooklyn's Spectacle Theater. Once a legendary bootleg tape of the gialli's greatest hits cobbled together by musician Sam McKinlay, it has now been digitized and ready to stain the walls of the Spectacle red. Here's the sizzle reel.

I don't often succumb to FOMO - because frankly my own city has an embarrassment of riches - but DAYAMMMMM. Black Gloves and Razors plays the Spectacle Theater Oct 5th and 31st.

Direct To Video.

I'll just leave this right here...

I've got one word for Dustin Ferguson's new project, Direct to Video... SOLD!

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Hey all. I'm just checking before attending a friend's movie marathon all day. Here's some interesting stuff for the week.

My Head Is Killing Me.

Ahead of the anticipated second season of their horror series Channel Zero, SyFy has released this teaser.

Creepy shit, and so simple! The second season will focus on the Creepypasta story No-End House and will premiere on October 1st. I can't wait!

Bava Bound!

Remember when I was incredibly jealous of the Mario Bava retrospective that was happening in NYC and desperately hoped that it would somehow make it to Toronto? Well, my prayers have been answered! From August 11th to 13th, The Royal Cinema & Horror-Rama are bringing four of Bava's classics here.

I am so stoked for this. Planet of the Vampires and Kill Baby, Kill are two of the most influential pictures out there, Black Sunday features one of Barbara Steele's most striking performances and I've not even seen Hatchet For A Honeymoon, so this is a real treat. For more info, visit The Royal's website here.

For The Birds.

I saw this cool little construct on Bloody Disgusting this week. Reddit user murdrfaze has fashioned themselves a birdhouse replica of the cabin from the Sam Raimi classic The Evil Dead.

Apparently due to the demand, murdrfaze has decided to build ten for sale on his Etsy page. No word on when that will be, but if you'd like to read the original BD article, click here.

That's it for me kiddies, I got me some movies to watch. Have a great rest of the weekend! 

Trailer Tuesdays: Hotline

Here's a trailer for the Lynda Carter thriller vehicle, Hotline.

I would watch this, however three things jumped out at me while watching this trailer. First, the phrase “crisis worker is being bugged by a crank caller” seems like a weird phrase to use, like he's giving her wet willies instead of harassing her by phone. Second, I somehow immediately identified this as a TV movie. And third, when Carter hits that dude at the end, I'd wager that's where she discovers that her trusted confidant is the killer and makes her escape. Horror 101 peeps!

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Hello all! I hope you're enjoying your weekend and that sweet spot in between Canada Day and Fourth of July. Here's what I've got for you.

Bava Buffet.

While it is often that I wish I could attend something that is screening in NYC, this takes the torta, so to speak. The Quad Cinema in New York will be celebrating the work of Italian icon Mario Bava in July by playing twenty-one (!) of his classic films.

Mario Bava's Black Sabbath (1963)

Kicking off July. the Mondo Bava series also will play other such titles as Blood & Black Lace, Black Sabbath, Bay of Blood, Shock and a new 4K restoration of his seminal sci-fi title Planet of the Vampires. For the full line-up, click here.

Planet of the Vampires (1965)

I can only pray to any higher power that will listen that some organization in the Big Smoke will bring this series to Toronto. I'm crossing my black gloved fingers.

Trailer Two-Fer.

I have a couple of trailers here, the first of which is for the newest Child's Play movie, Cult of Chucky. 

I still haven't seen the one from a few years ago yet, but fortunately a friend is having a Chucky marathon this month so I'll be able to catch up soon enough. Second is the trailer for Black Fawn's newest The Heretics.

Each picture these guys make as part of their eight picture deal with Breakthrough is better than the last and having worked with two of the leads (Ry Barrett & Jorja Cadence) in the past, I am expecting good things. Look for both titles later this year.

If Only.

Lastly, since I'm still clocking in nightly sessions with Gun Media's Friday the 13th game, I thought this mock-up was particularly awesome.

I'm afraid I don't know who is responsible for this, but I like to think there is an alternative universe where these titles actually exist. What a childhood that would be!

Getting Reel!

I had intended this to be a VHS Fridays post, but the movie I randomly picked off my shelf - Lewis J. Force's Night After Night After Night - was such an unbearable bore I had to abort.

In its place, I decided to post that A-Pix trailer reel I mentioned a few weeks back. It's got some real doozies from the nineties including, coincidentally enough, Jeff Obrow's take on The Mummy starring Lou Gossett  Jr. Enjoy!

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Hello all. Your weekend is going well I hope and if it's not, maybe these little horror morsels will lift your spirits.

But What A View.

The new trailer for Gabriel Carrer's newest, Death on Scenic Drive dropped this week.

I enjoyed his previous film The Demolisher for its look, tone and use of music and it looks like a lot of the same team has been utilized on screen for this one. I'll no doubt be seeing somewhere (whether it be Fantasia, TAD or BITS) this year, so it's nice to have that to look forward to.

A Mother's Love.

Ahead of the May 26th release of their Friday The 13th video game, Gun Media posted these two Pamela Voorhees tapes.

Apparently these “Pamela Tapes” will be unlockables that you can find throughout the levels. I think it's a nice little extra, and actress Jen Burton has done a pretty great job of recreating the original performance by Betsy Palmer.

How Swede It Is.

I found a trailer for a new Scandinavian horror called Robin.

A Danish/Swedish co-production looks like it's definitely got the visuals down. Robin premiered the Brussels International Film Festival earlier this month, so hopefully it comes my way at some point. The last similarly-themed Swedish horror I saw was Filip Tegstedt's Marianne, and that stuck with me for a good long while.

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Hey all! Hope you avoided getting duped by any April Fools' shenanigrams yesterday. I guarantee all the following stuff is legit...

It Arrives.

The trailer for the upcoming adaptation of Stephen King's opus It hit the Web this week.

I have to admit that I am pretty impressed by this. The production has just the right amount of modern filmmaking sheen on it, and this new representation of Pennywise actually gave me goosebumps. It hits theatres on August 8th.

Oh Beverly!

The Void hits select theatres and VOD this Friday, but for now here is this clip.

This is a great example of what you can expect from this movie and you'll be glad to hear that it only gets crazier from here. I wasn't joking when I said this was one of the most authentic manifestations of eighties freak show hellscapes you will ever see.

The Empire Strikes Back.

A massive Blu-ray set of announced this week. Fans of Charles Band will already know that before he became the mogul behind nineties macabre mainstay Full Moon Entertainment, he ran Empire Pictures. To commemorate this wild era in home video history, Band will be releasing this huge box set.

Limited to 600 pieces, this box set will include 18 films on 15 discs as well as other goodies. This set will include such canonical titles as Ghoulies, Trancers, Eliminators, From Beyond, Terrorvision, Troll, Dolls, Prison, Ghost Town and Metalstorm (in both standard and 3D versions). The box set will be available on www.FullMoonDirect.com starting April 28th.

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Hey all. We've gone back into the deep freeze here, so I'm just typing here to keep warm. Here's what I've got for you this week.

South By Goodies.

SXSW is happening right now and there's a bunch of exciting looking things going on there. First, there's a very cool project made by a couple of kooky Canadians (Laurence Morais & Sebastien Landry) called Game of Death.

Produced by members of Rockzaline and Black Pills, this project was originally shot as web series, but has been cut together as a feature to premiere at SXSW. Game of Death is set to premiere digitally following the festival.

Also screening is Aaron Burns' Madre.

Madre will be available exclusively on Netflix later this year. Lastly, here's a trailer for the trippy indie Like Me starring Addison Timlin, Larry Fessenden and Jeremy Gardner.

Yep, looks like I've got a lot to look forward to in the near future.

Darkness Falls.

I just saw a release trailer for the newest project by survival horror pioneer Frédérick Raynal's 2Dark.

I completely forgot this was coming out. Looks like I know what I'll be doing on the weekend of March 17th.

Give A Little Lovecraft.

Lastly, I just wanted to throw up a short film. Directed by Christopher Goodman & Kate Walshe and starring Jack Parker, enjoy this adaptation of the H.P. Lovecraft story “The Colour Out Of Space”.

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Hey all. Today is the big day if you're a sports fan. For myself, it's just another reason to sit on the couch and drink beer. Before that though, here's some stuff to chew on.

Funko Peaks.

In Funko's bid for world domination, they recently announced a line of Twin Peaks Pops for release in time for the new season in May.

I myself am trying to quietly rationalize that I just pre-ordered cute toys based on a show about the brutal murder of a teen girl. If you share the same moral flexibility, you can check out the whole line here.

Super Spots.

With the Super Bowl comes big movie trailers. In addition to Ghost In The Shell and another one of those Michael Bay movies, we've also got a new look at the upcoming space thriller Life.

I have to chuckle about all the fan backlash of this being another “Alien rip-off”. First of all, this looks way more palatable than the actual Alien movie we're getting this year and secondly, these naysayers are off base. I've read the script and it's actually much closer to being The Blob in space. Does that not sound like something you would want to watch? Because for me it does. Life actually has some decent set pieces and it looks like they spent the money to properly realize them. But what can you do, right? Haters gonna hate.

That Girl.

Ahead of its upcoming release (Feb 16th on DirecTV and Mar 31st in theatres) The Blackcoat's Daughter has a new trailer.

I like this trailer a lot. It captures the atmospheric tone of the piece, but is cut in such a way that you don't really know what it's about. It has been almost a year-and-a-half since I watched this at TIFF and I'm very much looking forward to seeing it again.