Located in Tuscan, Arizona, Farmer John’s meat packing plant has been the stuff of ghostly invention since the sixties. While dilapidated it was often an attraction to many urban spelunkers, photographers and graffiti artists. One can only assume this is due to the ominous aura it exudes as defunct animal murder house.

According to local lore, more than critters in line to be BBQ fodder lost their lives at good ole Farmer John’s. In 1964 it is rumored that the factory shut down after the children of owner Warren James suspiciously went missing. The nanny, Miss Stiles, brought Sarah and Nelson by to see their father and left them in his office for only a moment but when she returned they were gone. Mr. James immediately shut down production and searched frantically for them throughout the building before contacting police. A … Read More »

There are legends and myths that have been around for centuries and have seared themselves into our minds and culture. Then there are those that have been brought to life by way of modern technologies reminding us of nightmares that should have been buried and forgotten. One such legend is known through internet popularity as Slender man.

The creature known as Slender man is said to have the appearance of a tall, lanky man in a black suit. Not so scary, right? Just wait.

He towers at six to seven feet with unusually thin limbs. His face, if you can call it that, is featureless and white, though some say that it can morph into whatever you fear the most. His arms, however, can stretch out to grab his victims and bend in unnatural ways with long, talon-like fingers used to scratch … 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 »

Sure, envelope glue usually tastes quite awful, but is there a more disgusting reason to not run your tongue along that bitter-sweet, semi-sticky track of adhesive? I’m sure that description in itself has you drooling profusely. Well, drag a sleeve across your chin and brace yourself for these popular envelope glue hoaxes and myths.

Various e-mails from various envelope manufacturing company employees have circulated the internet, grossing out people by the thousands. Even I as a child remember a rumor floating around that there were spider eggs in envelope glue and I quickly switched to simply taping them shut. Other equally icky accounts include dead rats at the bottom of glue barrels and using dirty mop water to thin out batches that are gumming up the machinery. Several sites quote an Andy Hume, who … Read More »

The creativity and inventiveness of the human mind is not only evident in the centuries of fine art and music collected throughout history. It’s also evident in the devices and vast number of methods that mankind has created to destroy one another throughout the ages. Whether it’s killing one person accused of committing a crime or of being a witch, or slaughtering people en mass as an act of war or terrorism, humanity has turned killing into a sinister and macabre form of art. In this series, we will look at the kinds of devices created when mankind’s creativity and inventiveness are unleashed in combination with their tendency for insatiable bloodlust.

The Brazen Bull was a particularly unique combination of artistry and bloodlust that dates back to Sicily in the 6th century A.D. The bull sculptures were forged out of … Read More »

Remember slasher films? In the eighties, horror was squarely within the pulpy, tongue in cheek category; namely, there were victims and there were slashers. In other words-the higher the death count-the better. Unfortunately, contemporary horror films aren’t quite what they used to be-the slasher having gone the way of Dissociative disorders like “Hide and Seek” or creepy children like in “The Orphan”. That being said, any horror film promising eighties nostalgia has me chomping at the bit.

Luckily enough, one such film promises just that, and more. Scream Park, a forthcoming feature film from debut director Cary Hill isn’t well known-but it needs to be. Before you read on, actually, have a look at the “conceptual trailer” first.

If you’re wondering to yourself, “Hey did I just see Doug Bradley, from freaking Hellraiser, and without makeup!?” then yes, you are correct. And … Read More »

A Florida woman is faced with charges of child abuse after trying to toss her 3-month-old in the ocean claiming that he was possessed by demons. Lydia Chako, 39, is to appear in court after the incident happened around 2 p.m. last Tuesday.

According to reports, Chako’s property manager called the police after visiting her apartment and noticed that it was flooded. Upon entering, the manager said she saw the woman throwing objects around her living room and ranting about how her baby was covered in snakes and lizards.

Snakes and lizards you say? Surely that must mean there are demons afoot.

Chako explained that she was “keeping the demons out” and proceeded to pick up her child by the feet and flee to the sea wall outside the complex.

Officer Brian Tejera arrived on the scene just in time to witness … Read More »

Smoking pot and getting the munchies always go hand in hand. But what if instead of craving potato chips and candy bars, you start to crave brains and human flesh? Welcome to Justin Powers’ film “Pot Zombies 2: More Pot, Less Plot.”

This film is the sequel to the low-in-budget yet highly successful film “Pot Zombies” (available on Comcast on demand). Justin created his first film with a budget of just over $900. The only money spent was for cheap halloween make up, stuff to make fake blood, gasoline, guts and meat products, food, and weed. When we asked him about the first film he said that he never thought so many people would have an interest in seeing the film, and really only expected his friends and family to watch it. When he finally … Read More »

Close your eyes and imagine… wait. Open them back up or you won’t be able to read this. Ok. Now just imagine you’ve been walking around a horror convention all day in your replica Predator costume with the shoulder laser that turns when you turn your head. You’ve picked up that rare Ash action figure to complete your collection, stood in line for 3 hours for Tony Todd’s autograph, and finally got the soft pretzel and soda for 20 bucks to quell the growl in your tummy. Now your back is hurting and all you want is something to relieve your aches and pains. You look around and spot an oasis where for a mere $10 per 5 minutes you can get a rub down from a zombie.

Zombissage is the combination of … Read More »

Have you ever witnessed something you couldn’t explain, possibly an animal seeming to be outside of nature? Or perhaps you have heard stories of such creatures, the ones that loom in dark places at night leaving strange tracks on the ground and peering at you with glowing red eyes. Creatures that stalk humans and even terrorize communities, those that are outside the realm of science. They have been spotted and talked about since ancient times and are the source of nighttime terrors and the origins of many legends and myths from our culture and from around the world.

The monsters in which I speak are being classified as cryptids, a term describing them as unknown in the animal kingdom. This pseudoscience is known as cryptozoology, and while the term is fairly recent, these creatures of the skies, forests, and deep within … 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 »

Welcome to part two of our “movie make-up” tutorial.

It occurred to me that some of you may not be fluent in aesthetics lingo or may not even know what foundation is. If you do, bare with me for the sake of those who don’t. Feel free to comment with your own information as well! Everyone has a different way of doing things; certain methods work for some people and not others. I will be doing my best to explain the “professional” make up application procedure as I learned it at beauty school and special make-up effects school, as well as my own (sometimes weird) approach.

The easiest way to get started is to visit your local drug store to pick up some crème foundations, concealer, color correction concealer, and setting powder. If you cannot find … Read More »

As a certified SFX artist, the question I’m most asked seems to be “How do I make a good fake blood?” It’s really quite easy but the thing that trips most people up is probably the food coloring. Those little egg shaped gnome things from the grocery store just wont do unless you can afford a lot of them. It’s much less aggravating (and cheaper) to hit your local crafts or kitchen supply store for some gel “icing” color. Although, if you can find powdered food coloring that stuff is crazy pigmented and great to have if you are going to be making several large batches.

While telling you what product to buy is nice, it’s useless if we don’t think about a few things first: Blood takes on various shades and consistencies. Blood oxidizes. It can clot. You don’t want … 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 »

Jody S. Dean of Sickafyed Films proves that you don’t need a monster-sized budget or A-list actors to make a horror film. All you need is a script, some talent, and a drive to entertain. His latest work, “Edward’s Julia” is a case-in-point.

Read the description of the below provided by the producer himself:

“The crazy comes out in Edward Yames, (Jody Dean) after finding out Julia, (Kelly Novinski), the woman he loves, is having an affair. When the relationship becomes fatal he finds himself falling apart and the voice of Julia threateningly haunting him.

After a strange visit from a young physic Sara Middlestone (Stephanie Walk), things start to get crazy. As Julia sends messages through her messenger, the only question is will the love of a new woman bring Edward back to normal … Read More »

If the fans of Dark Shadow were vampires themselves, the recently released trailer for Tim Burton’s upcoming remake of the classic soap opera would have been enough to drive a stake through their hearts.

Prior to the release of the trailer, fans were only treated to still images of a ghostly Johnny Deep in character as Barnabas Collins, the tragic and tortured character credited for making the original soap opera series a cult classic. But with the release of the trailer for Burton’s film, fans realized that Burton had done the unthinkable. He had taken their beloved Gothic tale of love and loss and turned it into a comedy.

While the original series, which ran from 1966-1971 on ABC, is now considered to be campy and melodramatic, creator Dan Curtis’s original take was intended to be dark, mysterious, and rarely ever intentionally … 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 »

Belief of a deceased soul being reborn into that of a new body is nothing new. The concept of reincarnation has been around since before the Middle Ages. Many religions believe the next step after death is to be begin again, to be reborn. It’s a carousel. Although the details of reincarnation vary, the basic idea remains intact.

The 1977 film “Audrey Rose” revolves around an 11 year old adolescent named Ivy Templeton. Ivy’s parents start to notice a strange man hanging around more frequently than considered normal. Ivy’s parents, Janice and Bill, come to discover that the man, Elliot Hoover, believes that Ivy is the reincarnation of his daughter Audrey Rose, who was killed in a fatal car accident along with his wife. Elliot has acquired the information of … Read More »

In a big city like New York, conflict between roommates is a common occurrence. They usually end with some choice words, one person moving out, and maybe some time in small claims court.

In one Brooklyn apartment, however, the lease was broken by dismemberment.

Sergey Mamonov, 50, and Aleksandr Zilbergleyt, 55, had only lived together for six months, but the police were called to their home seven times. Mamonov barraged them with a list of complaints about his roomie – he was loud, stayed up late, and hosted rowdy nights of drinking with friends and homeless people, to name a few.

On the night of March 25, Mamonov arrived home to find Zilbergleyt partying with guests. He kicked the company out, and the two engaged in a fistfight that ended in Zilbergleyt’s death.

Investigators believe the killing was accidental, but … Read More »

When you watch a movie like Halloween or Aliens, it becomes perfectly clear how an effective musical score can heighten the emotion of a film. John Carpenter’s simple yet erie piano arrangement in Halloween is probably as synonymous with the film series as Jamie Lee Curtis and Michael Myers themselves. And James Horner’s score for Aliens was so successful at creating a feeling of fear and frenzied military-versus-alien chaos that several other movies used Aliens’ music in their trailers to make their less exciting films seem more interesting.

This underscores how music is a key element that needs to be considered when making a horror film. A well-edited soundtrack can give even a low-budget film some extra production value. It could be the difference between a finished product that looks like a carefully planned and produced labor of love, or a … Read More »

During World War II human experimentation was on the rise. While the Nazi party was busy exterminating the Jews and conducting human experiments on twins, the Japanese Imperial Empire was conducting human experiments contributing to the evolution of Chemical and Biological Warfare. Unit 731, based in Pingfang in the district of Harbin (now Northeast China), was the headquarters to 9 subsidiary units, all of which participated in human experimentation; Unit 516, Unit 543, Unit 773, Unit 100, Unit EI 1644, Unit 1855, Unit 8604, Unit 200, Unit 9420.

While each unit was equally heinous in there procedures, Unit 100 specialized in research dealing with diseases originating from animals. To sum it up they produced disease, which were then spread via animal carriers.

Unit EI 1644 determined human susceptibility to harmful stimuli, for example infectious disease and … 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 »

Poor Satan. The guy can’t catch a break. Every day, more and more people mess up and do crazy, bloody things, and he is constantly getting blamed.

Take, for example, the case of Joseph L. Nerone, 54.

Nerone was arrested on Friday, March 30 for the murder of his mother, Elaine. Earlier that week, he went to the Chicago home they shared for a welfare check and before he left he had stabbed and beaten her to death. Elaine, 84, received stab wounds to the head and back from multiple knives and her autopsy also indicated multiple blunt force trauma.

Nerone was charged with first degree murder, but according to Assistant Cook County State’s Attorney Terry Clancy he claimed that, “Satan killed the victim and that Satan was inside him.”

People who knew the Nerones were eager to defend the devil…or … 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 »

News stories and pop culture have taught us a lot about mobster culture. Do what you’re told, pay what you owe, and don’t rat, or else you’ll be sleeping with fishes. Films like The Godfather, though harrowing and bloody, do not cross into the horror genre, and we rarely associate mafia lifestyle with the truly macabre.

That is, until some Serbian gangsters decided to up the ante and borrow from the likes of Hannibal Lecter and Leatherface.

Milan Jurisic, 37, angered members of the Belgrade’s Zemun Clan, a division of the Serbian mafia. The dispute was allegedly over money, but new evidence indicates that the source of conflict may have actually been a woman. Whatever the issue, Jurisic, who was on the run after being convicted for the assassination of Serbia’s prime minister in 2003, was in enough trouble to be hunted … Read More »