Horror movie previews have a tough job to do. They need to capture the essence of a film in 3 minutes or less and give away enough of the film to make you want to see it, but not so much that they spoil the surprises of the film. Audiences don’t want to feel disappointed because all of the scariest stuff was shown in the preview, and since most horror movies will lose a chunk of their potential audience when they get slapped with an R-rating, the pressure is really on for studios to crank out great previews that make even a mediocre movie look like a must-see cinema event. They want to disturb the audience enough to leave them saying, “I have got to see that movie!”

Here are several horror movie previews for some upcoming 2013 films, as well … Read More »

Released August 31st was the suspense thriller The Tall Man, starring Jessica Biel (Texas Chainsaw remake, The Illusionist) and co-starring Stephen McHattie (Pontypool, Exit Humanity). The film is about a small mining town called Cold Rock that is suffering from more than the loss of jobs after the mine shuts down. A dark secret is harbored among the community and amid the depressed citizens and bleak attitudes, children are being taken from them vanishing almost instantly. A legend spawns about a mysterious figure called The Tall Man, a name that was mutually given by the parents of Cold Rock. Some claim to have seen a dark hooded figure coming in and out of the dense forests at night…

The film opens with Julia Denning, played by Jessica Biel, as the town nurse who works for the local free clinic and is … Read More »

The next installment of Paranormal Activity has just released a full trailer.  Just like the first three horror masterpieces, Paranormal Activity 4 is again centered around home-video footage of the paranormal haunting innocent victims.  This time around it seems as though it’s a blonde teenager who is being haunted.  This installment features Katie Featherston like the previous three as well as “Glee’s” Dianna Agron, Sprague Grayden, and Brady Allen.  This one based on the trailer alone looks as though it will not let down the franchise that has already raked in close to $600 million.  We may finally find out what demon-Katie does with Hunter, her kidnapped nephew.  Also, this time around the film takes place in November of 2011 rather than the 80′s which was the setting for Paranormal Activity 3.  It is set to hit theaters October 19, 2012.

Released today was the trailer for the upcoming film The Tall Man, a suspense thriller about a mysterious figure that is the cause of missing children surrounding a small town called Cold Rock. The film is starring Jessica Biel (Texas Chainsaw Massacre remake, The Illusionist) who plays a nurse living in the town with her young son. Dismissive of the Tall Man legend, she comes to be a believer when upon coming home she finds that her boy’s room is empty. Rushing downstairs she catches a glimpse of a dark figure holding him and chases after it desperate to find out where her child was taken and what this legend really is.

The legend of Tall Man in this movie is similar to the popular urban legend called Slender man, who is also a mythical tall and dark creature who steals … Read More »

Directors: The Vicious Brothers
Release Year: 2011

I know what you’re thinking. Another crappy P.O.V. (point of view) horror movie fully equipt with a shaky lens and bad zoom. That is precisely what kept me from watching this on Netflix. I would casually pass over it thinking it was just another Ghost Hunters rip off type of show having not paid attention to the length which is 92 mins, about the time of a feature film. But, after I caught the trailer on my Facebook feed it all became clear. I was intrigued while viewing the goosebumps inducing preview which doesn’t do the movie justice, so don’t skip out due to any preconceived notions you may have about the “mockumentary” genre.

The premise of the film surrounds a group of amateur ghost hunters who are trying to make it big with their show … Read More »

Yes the rumors you have heard are true, this is indeed a very….um….what’s the word….starts with an F, any ways that’s not important.

ON TO THE MOVIE!

Nice change of pace, the victim is male.  Typical scum bag horn ball that I assume is the bad guy at first. But NO! He is our hapless victim taken away and knocked unconscious.

He wakes up in a very dingy cell, with two very upset men, who promptly begin a series of physical, psychological, and pharmacologic torture. Some seem to make very little, to no sense at certain moments. But, they are twisted and barbed.

They make him wear a dress, and continue with the torture, burn away his finger prints and announce “you are not you”.

There are really only three actors in this movie (extras and people dead before the movie began aside) and one … Read More »

Children of the Corn, yes they made another one. The 8th I think…if you count the SyFy original one. Well, I have seen worse! If that’s a compliment then take it as you will.

This movie had pretty much nothing to do with any of the other movies, which in some cases is a good thing.

“Based on a story by Steven King” is what I saw at the beginning…..boy that is a stretch as it has nothing to do with Steven Kings short story.

Obviously shot on a very low-budget and missing of any physical presence that makes the budget meaningless. It is about a young couple who, after being victims of a breakdown, which is the way they all seem to start, must camp for the night with a weird and aggressive preacher. The preacher being a staple in any Steven King story … Read More »

Director: James Watkins

Date: February 2012

“During afternoon tea, there’s a shift in the air, a bone-trembling chill that tells you she’s there. There are those that say the whole town is cursed, but the house on the marsh is by far the worst. What she wants is unknown but she always comes back, the spectre of darkness, the woman in black.”

So goes the haunting rhyme that set up the trailer for the film “The Woman in Black”, a Hammer Studios production. The film takes place in the Victorian era and stars Daniel Radcliffe (Harry Potter series) as Arthur Kipps, a broken lawyer still trying to recover from the death of his wife who died during childbirth. Arthur is sent to a creepy seaside town known as Eel Marsh where he is assigned to handle the estate of the infamous Eel Marsh … Read More »

Director: Mathew Kohnen
Date: 2007

I was searching for something a little outside the box…

Okay, #1 I have been a fan of zombies for a long time, and I still have a warm (or maybe cold) place my heart for them. But they are getting a little too popular now, and beginning to be too popular to like, if you know what I mean.  I’m getting a little bored with them.

So I was trying to find something about zombies…with a twist. And I found it!!

This movie is only for those of you who like lots and lots of comedy in your horror.

Did mention lots?

I must say, this really threw me for a loop, even the Netflix description didn’t prepare  me for what the movie was actually about.

Four friends eat some extremely green dairy treats and turn into zombies, but they don’t know it. This is no spoiler, its … Read More »

Director: Wes Craven
Date: 2010

The story of a killer getting killed then coming back to murder children years later has been used and abused through the years in the film industry. It seems to be the basis of most classic horror. When we take a look at the stories of Michael Myers, Jason Voorhees, or Freddy Krueger there is a common thread, vengeance. “My Soul to Take” follows this same basic premise and adds a little twist to it.

Abel is a family man with a daughter and a pregnant wife who realizes his own secret, he has split personalities and one of them is a murderer. The murderer side warns Abel not to tell the police or he will kill his family. One fateful night, he calls his doctor to tell him of the murders only to realize he has killed … Read More »

Directors: Rémy Belvaux, André Bonzel
Date: September 1992
Language: French

Now there are several types of horror movies in this world, some to make you scream, some to disgust you, some to make you root for the bad guy, some even to make you laugh.

“Man Bites Dog” is a little bit of all of those. Ben is your average, run of the mill serial killer. Remy and Andre are the documentary crew following him around.  Not only are they the writers, directors and producers, but they also use their own real first names.

I don’t think you can get any “darker comedy” than this — it’s even in black and white!

The script comes off very “spur of the moment”, almost improved sometimes, which really helps to add to the documentary feel of the film.

The original score written for the movie is well thought out, and fits the … Read More »

Director: Nick Lyon
Date: 2011 (t.v.)

Picture this, if you will. Zombies!

I know it’s hard to imagine. It’s easy if you try.
Zombies everywhere, very few humans left on Earth

They let you know right off in the opening that the human race is going down like a meteor crash. The VM2 virus was let loose upon mankind and it was goodbye for 90 percent of the people on Earth in a very short period of time. (The zombie virus is called VM2. V.M. are the initials of one of the writer’s fiancés).

A group of survivors comes out from hiding as the horror subsides and the dead have won. The living begin to try to make their way across the country to the island of Catalina off the cost of California

I noticed a lot a “shout outs” to other Zombie … Read More »

Director: John McNaughton
Date: 1986

Dead Naked Girls, there’s several of them the first few minutes of the movie.

So the movie is off with bang! Sort of…you don’t actually get to see any of these murders, and a couple of them look confusing…One happened with a coke bottle, I think.

That’s one way to get your attention. Well, slowly pan over and get your attention. But its a good start anyways!

Michael Rooker is amazing and very believable as our hero: humble, soft-spoken killer Henry Lee. Who recently got out of jail, only to go back to his old habits. Murder is a hard habit to break apparently.

Occasionally I got the feeling like I was watching a 70’s porno……..just shut up and get to the good parts.
But the good parts do come in surprising waves of violence, as murder after murder filled the screen. … Read More »

Date: October 2007
Director: Andrew Cymek

Cross over films that span genres are probably some of the best films out there. When you think it’s a dark comedy about some guy writing a script and it turns into an intense drama with murder and drug smuggling. Or folks are running from the newly risen dead but are quirky enough to make you laugh as they deal with the once normal world turned sour. Dark Rising is a genre crosser but I’m not saying it was done in an agreeable manner.

Picture a Dolf Longrin looking social outcast named Jason, hell-bent on getting back together with his ex-fiancé. He has a brilliant idea of re-kindling the flame by inviting her and two of her friends on a camping trip with his buddy who is obsessed with shooting phone sex line commercials. Unbeknownst to Jason, … Read More »

Directed By: Joel Anderson
Date: 2008

Back in 1999 a mockumentary swept through the horror scene and caused quite the raucous. The Blair Witch Project brought dark woods and hand held camera usage to a whole new level. Since then a smattering of this type of film style has run rampant in the film genre we hold dear. From zombies, to mutants, to a giant city-destroying thing, we have seen many, many hand-shaken moments that make us want to vomit when ogling them on the big screen.

Lake Mungo is the story of a father, mother, son, and daughter out for a fun day of swimming and enjoying some nice weather. The day is shattered when Alice, the daughter, drowns while attempting to swim back to shore. After her funeral, the fun begins to happen around the house. So much is going on … Read More »

Released 2001
Directed by Guillermo del Toro

Foreign films have an odd way of feeling so real that it’s scary. I’m not sure if it’s the shooting style, the fact that the actors are mostly unknown to me, or that I have to read so I can’t find all of the blemishes that would typically stand out in your American horror film. While subtitles deter some, I welcome the test of my reading comprehension.

The story of “The Devils Backbone” has striking similarities to “Pan’s Labyrinth”, another film Toro directed and wrote 5 years later. In “The Devil’s Backbone” we follow the story of a young son of a soldier killed in war. The son, Carlos, is left at an orphanage and has to fend for himself against bullies, a grounds keeper with a mean streak, and the ghost of a boy who … Read More »

Director: William Friedkin
Date: December, 1973

Somewhere between science and superstition, there is another world, a world of darkness. Things beyond rationality and reason have a tendency of making us search for the answers to the questions we cannot fully comprehend. We simply cannot accept the fact that sometimes there exist situations that are beyond our control, that shake us to the very core of our humanity, that everything, including our faith, becomes tested.

I never had the luxury of seeing “The Exorcist” when it hit theaters. Reports from 1973 speak of viewers fleeing from the movie in shock and of stunned silence reigning throughout packed movie houses. Although audiences have become more desensitized to the images conveyed in the film, “The Exorcist” has withstood the test of time and remains one of cinema’s greatest horror movies ever.

The story is based on a … Read More »

Director: Steve Miner
Date: July, 1998

In 1998, John Carpenter’s Halloween, a film that had inspired a decade’s worth of bloody slasher movies, was turning twenty years old. To date, the original Halloween has been one of the few entries into its gory genre to inspire praise from critics, rather than the scorn reserved for most of the so-called “splatter films.” There’s good reason for that: Halloween is a well-crafted excursion into terror, where the focus is on shivers, not fake blood and gross-out wounds.

The travesty is that the sequels that followed the predecessor never matched the effectiveness. Sure, Halloween 2 could have been considered campy fun, but once we arrived to the final indignity of Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers, the thrill was dead and buried. So when Dimension studios opted to commemorate the anniversary of the original by releasing … Read More »

Director: Samuel Bayer
Date: April 2010

Hollywood should really be ashamed of itself. There are so many untold and underutilized stories, yet production companies keep falling back to remaking classics they shouldn’t really touch. Have you seen the retelling of A Streetcar Named Desire or Citizen Kane? No? That’s because they’d never touch them. Why? Because they’ve been labeled classics and people are afraid to go hardcore against the grain. Yet we are seeing all too often a remake of a horror movie that would have been better off left alone.

I’m talking the “I Spit on Your Grave”, “Last House on the Left”, and “Prom Night” type remakes. The ones that punch you in the gut because the original was so good, and then someone comes along with a few extra bucks and hopes to do something better. I am not talking … Read More »

Director: Scott Reynolds
Date : August 1997

It’s creepy! It’s quirky! You guessed right, it’s from New Zealand! This cult thriller about therapist Dr. Karen Schumaker (Rebecca Hobbs) attempting her new controversial method on seriously disturbed serial killer Simon Cartwright (Paolo Rotondo) is reminiscent of another kiwi classic, Peter Jackson’s “DeadAlive.” That’s because many of the “Lord of the Rings” crew worked on “The Ugly.” Simon Raby’s style is hard to miss whether he is the director of photography or cinematographer. Along with Gary Mackay’s art design and production designer Grant Major there is no question that these talented fellows also worked on the LotR trilogy.

In retrospect, the only real relation between “The Ugly” and “DeadAlive” is the complex, brutally honest characters. And by “honest”, I mean bizarre and by “characters”, I literally mean characters. Between the dreadlocked-shirtless-tattooed-sadist attendant and the roaming … Read More »

Director: Philip Gelatt
Date: April 2011

Poor Gloria (Alexandra Chando), nobody seems to understand her. Even her mother (Betsy Aidem) locks her door from the outside and will not allow her to leave the house. Is this due to the dozens of insects skewered and pinned to her bedroom walls, or because her mom is a total control freak?

Soon the family’s sorted history is illuminated, but only droplets at a time. In the beginning all we know is that this family has been exiled by the rest of the residents of their small farming community and the Bell family is somehow involved. Gloria, her brother, and her parents are just starting to lose their wits to isolation when a stranger in white knocks at their door in need of a place to stay. Taken aback by … Read More »

Directed By: Chris Nohan
Date: April 2009

There are very few original stories hitting the horror scene today. Many are a retelling of either something much older or simply putting a relative or new age twist on an already solid story. Blood is no different. It is a regurgitation of the created hunting the creator. Like Blade, Saya is a half-breed hunting the full bloods.

The gist of the story line is that a government secret agent half-breed demon (vampire) enlisted to hunt demons is sent to a Navy base school to lure in and kill the head demon. The head demon Onigen is the oldest and vilest of all the demons, and it is her destiny to kill it. It is explained that the demons were sent to test our virtues but she is there to push back. So we see Saya … Read More »

Directed by: Justin Powers
Date: February 2006

Troma is one of those movie distributors that you pretty much know what you are going to get: Low budget entertainment that is made for the love of making a movie. They are typically films that folks with little to no cash have to make and create a fun exciting piece. Now, you know there will most likely be blood, guts, and some T&A, but isn’t that the point of some horror films? Sometimes it’s better to not throw a ton of cash at something when less then 10K and some innovation will suffice.

Now imagine if some radioactive weed hit the streets and everyone heard it blows your mind, except that when you smoke it your skin turns green, your eyes light up, and you get the munchies for human flesh. That is the basic … Read More »

Director: John Landis
Date: August 1981

Although the early 1980’s were not kind to most traditional monsters- vampires, mummies, gargoyles- the first two years of the decade featured three prominent werewolf movie adaptations. The first to reach the big screen was Joe Dante’s “The Howling” in late 1980. Following suit was “Wolfen”, a ho-hum snoozer starring Albert Finney. Finally in the late summer of 1981, director John Landis of “Animal House” and “Blues Brothers” fame released his venture into horror titled “An American Werewolf in London”. From that moment forward the standard for werewolf cinema was set.

While backpacking through Europe, American students David Kessler (David Naughton) and Jack Goodman (Griffin Dunne) are cold and tired and seek refuge in a nearby pub dubiously named “The Slaughtered Lamb”. Natives there are uncommonly hostile, to the point of forcing the young men out despite … Read More »

Director:  Matthijs van Heijningen Jr
Date: October 2011

When I heard about a “remake” of John Carpenter’s CLASSIC masterpiece, one of the greatest “chillers” of all time, as well as one of my favorite horror movies ever, I was pissed! I was going to boycott it, and refuse to see this blasphemy! Would you repaint the Mona Lisa? Re carve Venus Di’ Milo?

But then I read something that changed my mind.

IT’S A PREQUEL!!!

This is something they should have made much more public, no one seemed to know it was a prequel.
Finding out what happened at the first camp where the “Thing” was defrosted sounded interesting. I started to watch it with low hopes, expecting a bunch of changes that I was going to hate and kept my laptop handy to tear it to pieces. I had a problem as I began my … Read More »

Since the discovery of fossils throughout the world, dinosaurs have captured the imaginations of young and old alike. Their appearances on screen in such films as King Kong and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s The Lost World have only fueled the nations love and curiosity of the beasts that roamed over 65 million years ago. So when Steven Spielberg released his genetically engineered dinosaur opus “Jurassic Park” in 1993, the world was once again engulfed in dino-fever.

The drawback to such popular movies as Jurassic Park is that there is always some dumbed down, direct to video knock-off that finds its way into being. And thus we come to the horrific spectacle of dinosaur/genetic cinema known as “Carnosaur.”

The hilariously ingenious (and I use the term loosely) plot follows Dr. Jane Tiptree (Diane Ladd) and her quest to restore our world back to … Read More »

Director: Uwe Bell
Date: October 2003

In the early 90′s, movie adaptations of video game storylines began to hit the market. They were all pretty much crap until the new millennia. We started seeing the sexy Laura Croft, the limits of computer generated imaging (CGI) being pushed with Final Fantasy, and the start of a rash of horror based video game movies with Resident Evil. This is a double edged sword, because as much as I enjoy playing horror games and would love to see them done on the big screen, most of the times they’ll take an awesome twisting story line and really butcher the hell out of it. Or you take a title and just re-write the entire idea into a campy horror show full of throw backs to the 80′s and attempts at showing what you can do with … Read More »

Director: Bruce Campbell
Date: September, 2007

Hail to the king baby. Or at least politely wave if you’re a fan of Bruce Campbell- he of steel chin, chainsaw slashing, boom stick wielding, sugar-receiving Evil Dead fame.

Campbell produces, directs, and stars in “My Name is Bruce”- a cheeky, cheesy, spoof in which the beloved B-movie actor goes toe to toe with a resurrected Chinese demon. The film embraces what it is, simply stupid, yet if you’re a Campbell fan, a fun little waste of time.

Jeff (Taylor Sharpe) is a Goth-encrusted outcast in the small town of Goldlick who is obsessed with his favorite B-list thespian. Unfortunately Jeff has never gotten the chance to make love the Bruce Campbell way, and an intended petting session in a graveyard unleashes the wraith of Guan Di- the violent, angry-eyed patron saint of bean curd. (Yes, bean … Read More »

Director: Brian Pulido
Date: January 2009

Who hasn’t thought of being wild and crazy just before a big change? Especially if that big change is having your best friend move out of state after accepting a dream job. This is what happens with the Graves sisters just before the older sister moves from Arizona to New York.

These two girls decide to buy comics, pierce their belly buttons, and check out a punk band, then road trip all while documenting the experience on a camcorder. Sounds like a great time, right? Well, while traveling along the dusty roads they hit Screamers, a diner where a waitress…

Holy crap! Is that the guy from “Candyman”? It is and he’s playing a reverend. How cool is that?

So, they hit this diner where a waitress tells them about a really haunted mine down the road they should … Read More »

Director: Tommy Wirkola
Date: June 2009
Language: Norwegian

Thank you, Norway for bringing a new zombie movie into the world that doesn’t get dramatic about the quest for man’s survival. Don’t get me wrong, when executed properly the struggle can be the second most interesting part (first being the zombies, of course).

The story begins with five med students on their way to a secluded cabin on a mountain for a vacation. The sixth member and connection to the cabin is meeting them but is cross-country skiing her way there. After the laborious trek up the mountain, the gang settles in to their accommodations the way any college students would; cold beer, good music and friendly banter. As darkness falls on the quiet snow covered cabin, a strange older man knocks at their door demanding coffee and informing the … Read More »