Category: Horror Movies (Page 77 of 96)

Icons of Horror

December 7, 2008 /

It’s a testament to the strength of the England’s famed Hammer Studios that, while the shock/fear factor of the studio’s “graphic violence” has definitely faded over the decades, three of the four films in this package of lesser known offerings still provide plenty of old fashioned horror/thriller fun. It’s just a shame the box art is so ugly. 1960’s “The Two Faces of Dr. Jekyll” eschews Hammer’s usual decapitations and hand-removals in favor of lots of implied sexuality and heavy use of the B-word in a silly but entertaining twist on the Robert Louis Stevenson tale. Here, the nutty professor…I mean repressed, cuckolded doctor (Paul Massie) becomes a suave, better looking (and suddenly beardless) version of himself who decides to do the obvious – go out and get laid, and also do something about his no good wife (hot Dawn Addams) and her ultra-suave louse of a lover (Christopher Lee, often hilarious in one of his best roles).

The Terrence Fisher-directed “The Curse of the Mummy’s Tomb” from 1964 is exactly what it sounds like and even more amusing, despite the absence of Lee, who played the mumster the first time around. Also directed by Fisher that year, “The Gorgon” is the only a stinker of the set, a leaden blend of 19th century horror and ancient Greek mythology that even Hammer stalwarts Lee and Peter Cushing cannot save. 1961’s “Scream of Fear” might have a lousy name, but it’s a more than fitting finale. A modern day black and white thriller featuring strong performances from Susan Strasberg, Ann Todd, and Christopher Lee (who else?) as an untrustworthy French medic, it starts out as a truly creepy spin on “Gaslight,” but turns out to be a nasty, clever treat from the team of writer-producer Jimmy Sangster and director Seth Holt (“The Nanny”). Modern day gorehounds can have their torture porn, I’ll take Hammer.

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Actors, Actresses, External Movie DVDs, External Movies, Horror Movies, Movie DVD Quicktakes, Movie DVDs, Movies, Reviews

Day of the Dead

November 27, 2008 /

First Look Studios is one crafty little company. Attempting to piggyback on the success of Zack Snyder’s “Dawn of the Dead,” the indie label greenlit a remake of George A. Romero’s third zombie flick, “Day of the Dead,” and even went so far as to cast Ving Rhames in a supporting role. It was all done in the hope that fans would believe the film was a follow-up to the 2004 remake of “Dawn,” and since it’s a pretty shady move on their part, I have no problem spoiling the fact that Rhames (playing a completely different character) dies within the first 20 minutes. The rest of the film is spent following a group of soldiers (led by Mena Suvari and Nick Cannon) around a small Colorado town trying to escape a virus outbreak that has turned certain people into flesh-eating zombies. Passed around like a bad cold, the new virus angle may sound like an interesting twist to a familiar tale, but it’s actually much worse. Somehow, this outbreak is only affecting one city, and though some victims turn into zombies after being bitten, others don’t. WTF? As for the zombies themselves, director Steve Miner has decided to stick with the newer, faster versions, but in order to produce their superhuman speed, he resorts to amateurish tricks like speeding up the tape. It’s all pretty lame stuff, and though an action sequence midway through offers gory headshots aplenty, it’s the only shining moment in a poorly made cash grab more than deserving of the direct-to-video treatment.

Click to buy “Day of the Dead”

External Movie DVDs, Horror Movies, Movie DVD Quicktakes, Movie DVDs, Movies

10 Vampire Films That Should Be Made In The Wake Of The Success of “Twilight”

November 19, 2008 /

“Twilight” is shaping up to be a full-fledged film phenomenon…and whenever there’s a phenomenon, you can count on Hollywood trying to reproduce it quickly and in sub-par fashion, so prepare for a huge glut of new vampire-themed movies in the very near future.

The good news in this case, however, is that there’s a lot of great source material out there already, so let’s hope at least a few of the suits have good taste when it comes to buying up the rights to adapt certain books to film form…but since we have a really bad feeling that they don’t, we figured we’d throw a few suggestions their way for vampire flicks we’d like to see made. And, yes, we know that our #1 pick isn’t a book, but it’s so far ahead of the pack when it comes to the must-make vampire movies that we put it there, anyway.

(P.S. The movie adaptation of Darren Shan’s “Cirque de Freak” is finished and due for release in February 2009, or else it’d be on this list for sure.)

10. “Bloodsucking Fiends,” by Christopher Moore. Not only is this a solid mixture of horror and humor, focusing on a hot young redhead who moves to San Francisco, is promptly bitten by a vampire, and has to learn to adapt to her new lifestyle, but it already has a sequel ready to roll. Better yet, it’s called “You Suck”!
9. “Fevre Dream,” by George R.R. Martin. Are you kidding? I’m a fan of pretty much anything written by the guy who created the “Wild Cards” series, but this novel about vampires on a steamboat has earned reviews which feature the phrase “Bram Stoker meets Mark Twain,” which is high praise by most people’s standards.
8. “Lost Souls,” by Poppy Z. Brite. Maybe it’s just because I enjoy pretty much any film revolving around a band, but I’d love to see the adventures of Lost Souls? make it to the big screen.
7. “Jonathan Barrett, Gentleman Vampire,” by P.N. Elrod. It’s set during the American Revolution, with Barrett on the side of the British. Surely the success of HBO’s “John Adams” has made history cool again, and what better way to make it even cooler than to add vampires to it?
6. “Riley Jensen, Guardian,” by Keri Arthur. A half-vampire, half-werewolf in Australia who works for Melbourne’s Directorate of Other Races. “Underworld” meets “Torchwood,” anyone? I’m sold already.
5. “Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter,” by Laurell K. Hamilton. It’s already got a huge fan base between the sixteen novels and various comic books, but for those who don’t know Ms. Baker, she can re-animate the dead, licensed vampire hunter/executioner, and she has a lot of sex. I’m simplifying, of course, but, hey, it got your attention, didn’t it?
4. “They Thirst,” by Robert R. McCammon. The dastardly Prince Vulkan, master of the vampires, is hell bent on taking over Los Angeles as part of his quest to transform the entire population of the planet into the undead. Their opposition? A police captain, a comedian, a reporter, a junior high school student, and a Catholic priest who’s a former heroin addict and has just been diagnosed with Lou Gehrig’s Disease.
3. “Carrion Comfort,” by Dan Simmons. Actually, this is such an epic tale that it might warrant a full-fledged mini-series rather than just a film.
2. “Vampire Academy,” by Richelle Mead. Rose Hathaway is a half-vampire / half-human teenager who’s simultaneously finishing high school and training to fight evil vampires determined to destroy the Moroi vampire race, a.k.a. the good vampires. Bonus superhero-ish aspect: each Moroi can control an element, either fire, earth, water, air, or – on rare occasions – spirit.There are two other books in the saga, with a fourth set for release next year. Surely someone has already started work on a script, because it seems tailor-made for a film.
1. “Angel.” Come on, Joss, you and I both know that the time couldn’t be more right. The kids love the vampires, and although David Boreanaz is on his fourth season of “Bones” and has now officially escaped permanent typecasting, he ain’t getting any younger, so if he’s going to play the immortal undead, it’s time to make your move and make an “Angel” movie. In fact, while you’re at it, you might as well go ahead and make it a big ol’ epic that incorporates “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” as well. We’re really excited about “Dollhouse,” Mr. Whedon, but, c’mon, it’s Fox. Your schedule will be free and clear within a few weeks of its premiere, so let’s go ahead and get this ball rolling right now.

Action Movies, Actors, External Entertainment, External Movies, Horror Movies, Movie Comedies, Movie Dramas, Movies, TV, TV Action, TV Dramas, TV Sci-Fi

Haunted Histories Collection Vol. One & Two

October 28, 2008 /

If creepy tales of haunted houses and other landmarks are your thing, then you might want to pick up either or both of the sets titled “Haunted Histories Collection,” produced by the History Channel. But those looking for subjects slightly more sinister will also find plenty of thought-provoking material alongside the standard ghost stories contained on these affordably priced box sets. Each set is comprised of five documentaries that range from limp to goose-bump inducing, depending on your tastes.

The first volume features two obligatory titles called “Hauntings” and “Poltergeist” that deliver various tales and reenactments amounting to about what you’d expect. The set delves a little deeper on “The Haunted History of Halloween,” which is amiable yet informative fare covering the history of the holiday. “Salem Witch Trials” covers not only the infamous Massachusetts trials, but also the history of witch hunting in general. Finally, there’s the cherry on the cake, “Vampire Secrets,” which at 90 minutes runs twice as long as the other docs on the set. It might as well be R-rated, given the sheer amount of blood spilled while detailing the exploits of famous vampires such as Countess Elizabeth Báthory, who allegedly killed as many as 600 young women for their blood back in the 1500s, and the more recent case of Rod Ferrell, a disturbed Kentucky teen who took the role-playing game “Vampire: The Masquerade” far too seriously.

Volume Two again offers up two platters of garden variety ghost tales, and follows them with two docs that make an excellent double feature due to their Haitian connections: “Zombies” and “Voodoo Rituals,” neither of which are for those with weak stomachs. The final doc is the keeper, though. “In Search of the Real Frankenstein” traces the roots of Mary Shelley’s mad scientist all the way back to a trio of real scientists working on experiments eerily similar to her fictitious counterpart back in the day, and pretty much everything short of the walking dead can be traced back to their work. If there’s anything to be gleaned from either set, it’s that sometimes fantasy is close enough to reality to keep you awake at night.

Click to buy “Haunted Histories Collection, Vol. 1”

Click to buy “Haunted Histories Collection, Vol. 2”

Documentaries, Horror Movies, Reviews, TV, TV DVD Quicktakes, TV DVDs

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