Sequels often fall short of the original and never has this been more true than with Howling II. The original Howling, released in 1981 and directed by Joe Dante, achieved box office success and helped reinvigorate the werewolf genre in the early 80s. The sequel was released in 1985 and has only a thin tie-in... Continue Reading →
Dynasty of Fear
In 1972, Hammer Film Productions released a double bill titled Women in Terror. With some influence from the giallo all'italiana film genre popular at the time, both films were psychological horrors including mystery elements. As the title of the double feature implied, the films focused on terrorized women and how a lack of comprehension about... Continue Reading →
Creature Features: A Good Way To Watch A Bad Movie
Hosted movie shows have long been a staple for fans of the horror and sci-fi genres. These series date back to the 50s and 60s when notable hosts such as Vampira and Ghoulardi kept horror fans company while they watched genre films of the time. In the 80s and 90s, Elvira and Joe Bob Briggs... Continue Reading →
Roger Corman, The Cinematic Cheese Doctor
Let’s get one thing out of the way up front. Producer/Director Roger Corman is responsible for some great movies. His many films starring Vincent Price and based on the works of Edgar Allan Poe immediately come to mind. But Corman knew he was in the B-movie business and took pride in making films with next... Continue Reading →
Crimson Peak: This House is Not a Home
Guillermo del Toro, director and co-writer of Crimson Peak (2015) would be the first to tell you it is not a horror film. Actually I take that back. The first person to emphatically state what Crimson Peak is not, is the film’s protagonist, Edith Cushing. In an early scene, when Edith’s manuscript is dismissed by... Continue Reading →
The Lodge: A Slow-Burning Chiller
Released in 2019, shortly before the start of the pandemic, The Lodge is a movie for our times. Co-directed by Severin Fiala and Veronika Franz, the film centres around a broken family who travel for a holiday at an isolated lodge to try to regain some semblance of normalcy after the mother's sudden suicide. After... Continue Reading →
Virtual Blood in the Snow
Attending film festivals really hasn’t been an option for most of this year due to…well you know. Film makers have had to find other ways to bring their work to the masses such as streaming services or VOD. I was pleased to hear that one of my favourite annual events, Blood in the Snow Film... Continue Reading →
October Fast Cuts: The Final Slash
Another Halloween season has come and gone and, despite everyone wearing masks, it was not as festive as we would have liked. I hope you all still managed to sneak in a little ghoulish fun…at a safe social distance of course. For me, while I missed being able to attend the horror conventions and film... Continue Reading →
October Fast Cuts: The Middle Slice
Welcome to the second part of my October horror movie extravaganza (part one can be found here). I, along with nearly every other horror fan in the world, have decided to ring in the Halloween season by watching a horror movie every night this month. Unlike about 20% of those other fans, I have a... Continue Reading →
October Fast Cuts: The Initial Hack
We horror aficionados have always claimed October as our own. Unfortunately, the state of the world has put a definite damper on all horror and Halloween related festivities. But, if we cannot go out to haunt the land, we can use the opportunity to shutter ourselves away in a dank dungeon and watch as much... Continue Reading →
Deadball: Take Me Out in the Ballgame
Major League Baseball is officially returning later this month (I am personally counting the days) so I thought this would be the perfect time to review Deadball, perhaps the finest Japanese baseball-horror film ever made. Released in 2011, Deadball is as much a comedy as a horror film. The "story" centres on Jubeh (Tak Sakaguchi),... Continue Reading →
Greasy Magic: An Interview with Author Scott S. Phillips
Regular readers of this site (are there such a thing?) will have noticed that I occasionally make mention of Cheese-Magnet.com. It was on Cheese Magnet that I weaseled my way into my first blogging opportunity. I was in a bit over my head writing alongside real, published authors but was welcomed into the fold nonetheless. ... Continue Reading →
Christopher Lee, Legends Never Die
(This article originally appeared, in a slightly different form, in June of 2015 on the site GeekPr0n.com. Gone but not forgotten.) Today marks what would have been Christopher Lee’s ninety-eighth birthday. It’s been almost five years since his passing and it is still hard to accept. Christopher Lee gave us numerous reasons to assume he... Continue Reading →
That Time Vincent Price Went Clubbing
Have you ever wondered what it would be like if Vincent Price went clubbing? Well wonder no more, just watch The Monster Club! This 1981 anthology film walks the line between horror and comedy and perhaps a little more on the comedy side than was initially intended. Vincent Price plays a vampire named Eramus who... Continue Reading →
When It Flies…Someone Dies!
Horror is a very broad genre. Horror by definition elicits fear and shock or, at the very least, attempts to elicit those emotions. Beyond that basic criterion, there is plenty of room for interpretation. Monsters, ghosts, and other supernatural elements are certainly ingrained in our idea of horror entertainment but they are not necessary components. ... Continue Reading →