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.
Here's another Kickstarter worth taking a gander at if you're into either black humour and/or weird indie cinema. Last year you may recall an Australian film called Cat Sick Blues getting under my skin. Well, director Dave Jackson (who is now calling Japan his home) is campaigning funds for his new short, Gacha Gacha. Check out the pitch video below.
As troubling as Cat Sick Blues was I can't help but support fresh new voices in genre cinema, now matter how perverse they may be. Click here for more info.
The Kickstarter campaign for Scott Schirmer's latest opus, The Bad Man launched today. As you can see from the trailer below, it has just the level of depravity you would expect from the director of Found and Harvest Lake. Maybe more!
The Bad Man was a project that had long been in the pipe so it's great to see it finally coming to fruition. As with previous campaigns, The Bad Man is already almost finished and these pre-orders will facilitate the rest of the production.
Hello all. I'll use this opportunity between IFFF and BITS to get in a little Don't Kill the Messenger post - well that and watch eight Freddy movies but more on that later. Here's what I've got.
Stranger Pulp.
Artist Butcher Billy is at it again, this time envisioning each Stranger Things 2 episode as its own pulp paperback novel.
I might as well sound off on the second season while I'm on the subject. I liked it well enough, but I feel like The Duffer Brothers kind of doubled down on the less desirable aspects of the show, as they hit the “look it's the eighties” vibe even harder this time around. I get that they were often using it to mirror thematic elements - Dragon's Lair foreshadowing the Max/Lucas/Dustin love triangle for instance - but it was decidedly distracting, especially when I'd seen it done less sensationally in It this summer.
I dug the new characters Max and Kali, but never felt they weren't given as much to do as they should have been. Mainly, I just have to echo Max's statement to Lucas in episode five - something to the effect of “I liked it, but it was derivative in parts and I just wish it had a little more originality”.
Sadie Sink as "Mad" Max Mayfield.
I mean, did they think that re-staging the battle scene from Aliens (with Paul Reiser no less) was going to be met with anything but chuckles at best and eye rolls at worst? Anyway, moving on.
Vamp's Gotta Eat.
I wanted to plug a Kickstarter campaign for a local short project called TiCK.
Burke and Wessel are both local film community fixtures, so I'd like to see this succeed. Twenty-Four by Thirty-Six was a really entertaining documentary and Wessell's last short Ink had a really unique energy to it. If you feel like dropping some coin, click here.
I'm looking forward to this, as not only does it feature some of my favourite people, but it looks like Carrer has gone full-Refn, something that I know he has been wanting to do for quite sometime. I believe this is set to be released in the coming months, so keep your eyes out.
Hey guys! I've extricated myself from watching the second stanza of Stranger Things long enough to regale you with some recent goings on around the Web. Today, I will be undergoing some legendary suffering, but more on that next week. For now, enjoy your Sunday!
Bite-Sized Awesome.
I've been watching hundreds of short films over the last few months for different fests, so it's a little funny that one of the best this year
has come from an outside source. Fox and Mars got together to broadcast some two-minute horror shorts over the last week or so. They were all decent, but the one brought to us by Skittles was far and away the best.
That's some “next level” storytelling right there. Kudos to filmmakers Simon Allen & Toby Meakins for pulling that one off. To check out the M&M's, Starburst and Snickers shorts, click here.
Ride Along.
Local filmmaker Mikey McMurran burst onto the scene a few years ago with his irreverent Xmas horror, Secret Santa. Now, he's currently crowdfunding for his newest project, the comedy horror anthology The Final Ride. Here's the pitch below.
I think that vintage workout video featuring Ry Barrett may be worth the price of admission alone. To contribute to the campaign, click here.
Neon & Palm Trees.
I found this awesome retrofier app online this week. Check it out!
Hey all! I have recovered from TIFF and now have a few more days to relax before the busiest month of the year starts. Here's what I've got for you today.
Stranger Eighties.
With the upcoming second season of Stranger Things approaching, The Duffer Brothers have been releasing one-sheet posters on Twitter to celebrate their influences. I'm sure I don't need to include the originals for you to get where they were coming from.
Stranger Things returns to Netflix on October 27.
Haunted Puppets.
Those who have seen Kevin McTurk's Mill at Calder's End (now available on the Minutes Past Midnight anthology) know his puppetry skills are second-to-none. Currently he is hard at work on his newest opus, The Haunted Swordsman and he needs your help.
This is an all or nothing campaign, so please give if you want to see this project come to fruition.
Toulon's Trunk.
I received an email last week about this upcoming release from Full Moon and I just had to post about it.
It's such a gorgeous set and very hard for me to refuse. When you think of it, twelve discs for two-fitty ain't half bad. Hmmmm. The set will be available for presale here starting October 2nd.
Hey all. With some time now between festivals, I can catch a breather and touch on some cool things from around the Web.
Stay Tuned.
SyFy recently aired some promos for their upcoming anthology horror show, Channel Zero.
Based on stories that originated from Creepypasta (for those who don't know they are essentially online urban legends), I love that this show was filmed in Canada, since there a few popular Creepypasta tales set in the Great White North. I'd love to see an adaptation of '1999' in the future.
Mr. Bear wants to play with you.
Channel Zero, consisting of a six-episode arc entitled Candle Cove, premieres on October 11th.
My Kind of Art!
The poster documentary Twenty-Four By Thirty-Six had its premiere at Fantastic Fest a few days ago and to mark the occasion, the production released this fabulous new poster.
Artists Paul Ainsworth, Joshua Budich, Sara Deck, Gary Pullin and Matt Ryan Tobin all contributed to the above poster. I cannot wait to see it when it finally screens here in Toronto.
Good Advice.
I recently came across this Kickstarter for a Friday the 13th fan film, Never Hike Alone. While fan films are largely tedious affairs - I posted about one for Halloween that was less than ideal a few months ago - I have to admit that the teaser trailer (that originally hit the Web back in May) was impressively well shot. Take a look for yourself below.
Hey all. This edition of Don't Kill the Messenger is going to be decidedly retro. Here's what I've got for you this week.
Slashermania!
A while back, I spoke of an indie comics project from the UK called Slashermania. The brainchild of Russell Hillman, he seeks to combine the best elements of Friday the 13th and The Running Man into one big, well, Slashermania.
The Kickstarter campaign has just begun, so check out the pitch trailer below.
If this seems like your bag, check out the campaign page by going here.
Viva Giallo!
Last year at Sitges saw the premiere of Luciano Onetti's modern giallo, Francesca. Now, it is set to be released on home video by Unearthed Films on September 27th. Check out the Blu-ray artwork and trailer below.
Survive!
Here is the new poster for Rob Zombie's newest flick 31.
As we all know, Zombie is pretty hit and miss, but I'm still interested in checking this one out, even if it does look more like 1000 Corpses than Devil's Rejects. 31 is set to be released on October 21st.
My friend Serena recently introduced me to a new board game called Mixtape Massacre.
The game takes place in the town of Tall Oaks, an unfortunate little village that harbours more slashers per capita than any place in the universe. But unlike games like Betrayal at House on the Hill and Camp Grizzly where you are stalked by said killers, in Mixtape YOU get to be the antagonist.
After choosing one of ten knock-offs of Jason, Freddy, Leatherface, Chucky, Pinhead, Hannibal, Pennywise, Gremlin, Carrie or Sadako, you actively lumber around town looking for victims - and souvenirs.
The rule book looks intimidating at first, but it's actually pretty simple to learn if you just dive in. It's mainly just drawing cards and rolling special dice.
And avoiding the other players because if you end up in the same area together, it's franchise vs. franchise! The game is won once someone acquires a certain amount of souvenirs or there is one slasher left standing.
This is a really fun game that we've played a few times now. It could do with an expansion pack of cards, as we've already started to see repeats, but the art is great and the eighties references are good for many a chuckle.
Mixtape Massacre is coming off a successful Kickstarter campaign, so if you want more info check out the website here. At sixty bones, it is pretty pricey, but if you're into novelty board games and eighties pop culture, there's tons of enjoyment to be had here. Happy hunting!
Hey all! It's been a huge weekend of horror and sports, so this post is coming to you from the past. Check it out.
Maron Talks To The Masters.
Marc Maron of the WTF Podcast recently interviewed the impressive one-two punch of John Carpenter and Joe Dante about their careers, their inspirations and just filmmaking in general. Click on the image below!
Groovy!
Scape Goat Productions, the cats responsible for the Evil Dead 2 comic books, have a new project on the go - The Evil Dead 2 Board Game.
There is currently a Kickstarter campaign going for this, and considering they've already reached 250% of their goal, the demand is obviously there. If you'd like to have one for your very own, click here.
Silencio!
This isn't a piece of news, I just laid eyes on this gorgeous Mulholland Drive print from Kevin Tong yesterday and I wanted to post it.
Of course, the Mondo release was last year, so now it is worth hundreds and hundreds of dollars and it will never be mine, but holy moly, is it a thing of beauty. *sigh
Hello all! I'm shaking off a video game hangover this morning, but here's what I've got for you today.
What's Your Pleasure, Sir?
While surfing this week, I came across a pre-order for this gorgeous little trinket from MezcoToyz.
Modelled on the Lament Configuration from Hellraiser III, this beauty boasts an apparent 43,252,003,274,489,856,000 combinations. While delivery on pre-orders won't be until the fall, a twenty-five dollar price tag (with shipping) is virtually irresistible. Click here to order your own doorway into hell.
Your Move, Creep!
I found two interesting crowd fund projects this week. The first is for Cult Screenings UK and Dead Mouse Productions' Kickstarter for the RoboCop documentary, RoboDoc.
This doc looks really great and just the pitch video makes me want to watch it again. To contribute, click here. The second is 88 Films newest Italian Collection restoration through Indiegogo, which includes the following films;
For more info on how you can make these happen, click here.
Don't Go In...
Recently, the trailer for Adam Wingard & Simon Barrett's newest collaboration, The Woods dropped online.
Judging from how much I dug You're Next and The Guest, I'm sure I can expect another wild ride. The Woods is set for release on September 16th.
Good morning everyone! It's crazy to think I'm three-quarters of the way to three hundred of these things, but the numbers don't lie. Here's what I've got for you this week.
The Bad Man.
I've spoken here many times about the 2013 movie Found. Now director Scott Schirmer has a new nightmare in the works, a sadistic abduction horror called The Bad Man. His Indiana-based filmmaking collective already has many pieces in place, but are also looking for your help to bring this devilish little piece to life.
Schirmer has a knack for pushing boundaries, so I bet there is more to this project than meets the eye. If The Bad Man looks like something you'd be interested in seeing, you can contribute by visiting the Kickstarter page here.
Dead Love.
Here's a thing of grotesque beauty, it's the Arrow cover art for their upcoming Blu-ray release of Jörg Buttgereit’s 1991 flick Nekromantik 2.
This run, releasing November 2nd, is limited to 3000 and has a slew of extras, including a commentary track, new interviews and a making of doc. The release also includes the soundtrack with a one-hundred page booklet. For more info, check out Arrow's site here.
Crazy Love.
A trailer came through my inbox this week for Canadian director Jon Knautz's newest effort, Goddess Of Love.
Being impressed by his debut Jack Brooks, and his under-appreciated gem of a follow-up The Shrine, I am very interested to see where he is at now. Goddess will premiere at London's FrightFest later this month and then at the prestigious genre festival Sitges in October.
Hey all. Hope you are all having a great weekend. Here's what I've got for you this week.
The Ashman Cometh.
Comic-Con is winding down today, but we got a sizable amount of trailers to gush over, including Star Wars VII, Batman vs. Superman & Suicide Squad, but none more important to horror fans than the commercial for the new series from Sam Raimi, Ash Vs Evil Dead.
Ray Santiago, Bruce Campbell & Dana DeLorenzo in Ash Vs. Evil Dead.
I'm gonna be honest with you, I was skeptical about this. Not that it would be good, but that it would ever happen. Raimi & Campbell have been poo-pooing an Evil Dead 4 for so many years, I never believed them when they started considering it. Though I guess the successes of Drag Me To Hell and Alvarez's Evil Dead remake was enough to resurrect the Deadites once more. Anyhoo, the trailer below is nothing short of very, very promising.
After Spartacus, Starz seems like a very good place for this. I see that Lucy Lawless is already on board, so here's hoping that Raimi can bring in more of his long time collaborators, like his brother Ted and Dan Hicks. Ash vs. Evil Dead premieres this Halloween.
Prowling.
Here's a sweet limited edition poster for The Prowler created by artist Trevor Henderson.
For info on picking up this super limited edition poster, go here.
A Game That Plays You.
I discovered a super cool crowdfunding for something called Hyde the other day. It looks like a new type of Escape Room game mixed with Halloween amusement ride. But with a twist, as you are hooked up to heart monitors, which give you to power to affect your environment. Check out the video below.
You still have 5 days to contribute, so if you'd like to help this become a reality, click here for more info.
Hey everyone. I hope you all are enjoying your holidays, no matter on which side of the 49th parallel you reside. It was a fairly slow week on the news front, but take a gander at these.
Don't Go In The Barn!
Check out the new trailer for Alejandro Amenábar's upcoming thriller Regression.
This is Amenábar's first horror since 2001's The Others, so I am keen to welcome him back into the fold. While the trailer doesn't wow, I eagerly await my first opportunity to see Emma Watson onscreen, as never having been into Harry Potter, I feel her all-too-brief appearance in the This Is The End was not really a true gauge of this lady's talents. Also, Ethan Hawke is currently on good terms with me after the fantastic Predestination washed out the bad taste left by the last act of Sinister. Regression releases August 28th.
Color Me Kubrick.
Thanks to the site Dangerous Minds, I discovered artist Tomer Hanuka's Stanley Kubrick series this week.
I love this guy's style and attention to detail. It is sublime how well it lends itself to the wonderful tapestries that Kubrick wove over his fifty-year career. There are two more pieces in the series to be released at a later date, so stay tuned to his site for the reveal.
Meet The Monsters.
Here is a cool Kickstarter campaign from UK artist Karen Ruffles.
So please give generously, so Karen can visualize all the monsters that live in the shadows of Northern England. To contribute and check out the various rewards, click here.
