Magazine Review: Diabolique Issue 4

Do you remember the first time you picked up a horror magazine? Perhaps it was Famous Monsters in Filmland or Fangoria, but whatever magazine it was, you no doubt remember the exhilarating rush of flipping through the lurid pages and reading articles on your favorite horror icons.

I don’t know about you, but it has been a long time since I have felt that excitement about a horror magazine. Don’t get me wrong, I pretty much snap up any horror magazine I see on the newsstand, be it Rue Morgue or HorrorHound, but it has been a while since something has come around and really swept me off my feet.

Until, now, that is…

Diabolique is a gorgeous new full color magazine that takes a scholarly perspective of the genre of Gothic horror in film, literature and art from around the world. Diabolique is published bi-monthly and presents timely articles and reviews on both new and old classics. It stands apart from other horror magazines with its cerebral approach to our much-beloved genre and its retrospectives on classic horror.

I received Issue 4 for review, which contains articles on the late, great director Jean Rollin, Mario Bava’s Black Sunday, Hammer Films’ upcoming release Wakewood, the new wave of French horror, an insightful article on the new face of horror distribution and more. All the articles are thoughtfully written, and I especially enjoyed Nigel Wingrove’s “Dreams of Dead Girls & Blind Vampires”, a retrospective on visionary, but often underappreciated, French horror director Jean Rollin (who sadly passed away this past December) and “Black Sunday” by Robyn Talbot, an article on Mario Bava’s breakthrough classic of the same name (and one of my personal favorite films!).

The articles are complemented by beautiful photos, including many rare prints of stills and film posters. As an added bonus, many of these are available for purchase on Diabolique’s site, www.horrorunlimited.com, which also features web exclusives to subscribers!

I was definitely impressed by the high quality of both the articles and overall aesthetic of this wonderful new magazine. When I first started flipping through its pages, a feeling of giddiness swept through me that I hadn’t felt in a long, long time when reading a horror publication. Diabolique definitely brings back the feeling of joy and awe you experienced when you cracked open your first horror magazine.

Issues of Diabolique are available in both print and digital editions on www.horrorunlimited.com as well as in many fine bookstores (though we have been told these always sell out, so grab yours before it’s too late!). Issue 5 should be out soon, so keep your eyes peeled for this fabulous and highly recommended horror magazine that is truly the cream of the crop!

For more info and subscription information, visit Horror Unlimited!

2010 Holiday Gift Guide for Horror Fiends

Christmas is almost here and for all you slackers, that means just a few more days left to shop for your favorite horror fiends (or to use those gift cards you’ve received to get what you REALLY want)! So we’ve compiled a handy list of gifts that will warm every horror fan’s heart this holiday season.

Check out our picks below!

1. The Art of Hammer – A beautiful, full-cover coffee table book featuring the amazing poster art of Hammer Films. The Art of Hammer collects the very best and most iconic movie posters produced for the Hammer studio. This lavish hardcover brings together rare artwork from around the world. Featuring Hammer’s greatest films, including The Curse of Frankenstein, the Dracula series, and many more.

2. Lenore: Cooties - Titan Books recently re-released this collection of Roman Dirge’s “cute little dead girl” comics, and it is just gorgeous! This glossy book is perfect for your gothikly inclined friend.

3. Iron Fist’s Zombie Stomper Platform – Iron Fist Clothing makes some amazingly cool stuff, but these kicks are among my fave! Perfect for your zombie-lovin’ gal!

4. The Psycho Legacy – A kick-ass documentary on the Psycho films, I personally think every horror fan should own a copy! Interweaving ultra-rare and never-before-seen interview footage of Anthony Perkins and dozens of interviews including Robert Loggia, Olivia Hussey, Henry Thomas, Diana Scarwid, Tom Holland, Hilton Green, Mick Garris and many more, The Psycho Legacy is the first documentary to unite and explore decades of Psycho movies in one place, revealing surprises and insights into what is considered the grandfather of modern horror.

5. Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy Collector’s Edition – Speaking of documentaries, this is one of the year’s best! This special two DVD Collector’s Edition comes with a total of eight hours of entertainment, including enhanced extended interviews, 4-hour filmmaker commentary and a limited edition poster featuring original artwork by Matthew Joseph Peak. A must for any Freddy fan!

6. Splatterhouse (PS3 or XBox) – This game is pure, gory fun! Metal heads, horror freaks and hardcore action gamers, unite! Rick Taylor and the Terror Mask are back, tearing, cutting and beating their way through inhuman abominations and hordes of the undead in a tale of love, mutilation and near-insanity. A wall of metal tunes underscores blood-soaked battles with massive bosses, brutal weapons, over-the-top gore and real-time regeneration. And while your ears are ringing, a new Splatterkill System lets you get your hands bloody!

7. Zombie Pin Up Calendar 2011 or Monster Movies: 2011 Wall Calendar – Whether your horror fan is into hot chicks bloodied up like zombies or the more classic Universal movie monsters, you can’t go wrong with either of these calendars.

8. Mini Cassette Tees Horror Tees – We love Mini Cassette Tees! Not only are their t-shirts high quality, but their designs are totally unique and you won’t see them anywhere else. Their may be imitators, but these are the true originals!

9. Bloodbath Morbid Moisture Body Lotion – Bloodbath on Etsy has a ton of cool horror inspired bath and beauty products like “Lip Embalm”, “Zombie Foot Scrubby Soap”, “Dexter Slide Soap” and “Corpse Cleaner” body wash, but my fave is their “Morbid Moisture Body Lotion”. Their intoxicating scents include Cleopatra’s Curse, Creepy Colada, Death by Chocolate, Petrifying Pomegranate, Screamsicle, Vanilla Vamp and Zombie Zen!

10. Hollywood is Dead Poster Art – Artist Matt Busch has taken the world by storm this year with his “Hollywood is Dead” poster art. Check out his zombified versions of Breakfast at Tiffany’s, E.T., Jaws and more and give your fave horror fan some sick new poster art!

Book Review: Horror Movie Freak by Don Sumner

Horror Movie Freak is a “gore”-geous guide to essential horror movies that will certainly be a treat for any horror fan, especially with Halloween right around the corner! This beastly book and its glossy, full-colored photos will definitely fit right in on any horror fiend’s bookshelf!

Plus, you know you’re in good hands when the book in question is written by the knowledgeable Don Sumner of Best-Horror-Movies.com! Don has compiled quite an enjoyable book here, full of essential horror films, plus a few fun surprises! The book is broken down by categories, including “Aberrations of Nature”, “Classics” that has sub-sections like Universal Horror, Hammer Horror and Other Classics, “Foreign Horror”, “Psychotics” and so on. Not only does it have essential horror film picks for numerous sub-genres, but it has great sections like “Beginner’s Shelf”, with horror movie recommendations for newbies, “Remake Nation” that discusses horror movie reimagings, a section dedicated to scream queens and even a section that has recommendations for horror flicks to watch on Halloween.

I really dug how the book is organized. Each film is given about a page of space, and in this page Sumner gives a brief synopsis and why the film was chosen to be included in the book. There are also quotes and full color posters and photos from each film. The page layouts are beautiful and eye-catching, making the book a complete package of both brains and beauty!

Though the book covers well-known horror films that most fans have seen, it is still enjoyable to read! I may not agree with all the selections in the book (Dead Silence?! Really?!), but Sumner backs up his choices with eloquent descriptions and explanations. For the most part all of the selections are indeed essential horror viewing and I agree with about 98% of the picks.

Horror Movie Freak is a polished and fun book that is chock full of horror movie info for everyone from seasoned horror fans to genre newbies. Its high quality, both in content and design, makes it a book that is deserving of any horror fan’s bookshelf! Let your Freak flag fly and pick up this stunning book today!

Available on Amazon!

Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy (2010)

I finally got my grubby little hands on the new Nightmare on Elm Street documentary and this past holiday weekend was the perfect opportunity to watch the four-hour film uninterrupted. As soon as I popped it in I knew I was in for a treat because the opening credits are done in amazing stop-motion animation, replicating memorable scenes from the series. This stop-motion technique is used throughout the film to introduce each segment, which are broken down chronologically by film. The doc starts with the first Nightmare on Elm Street, helmed by Wes Craven, and then goes through each and every one of the series’ films, including the ill-fated television show all the way through to Freddy vs. Jason. For each film all the appropriate players, from directors, producers, actors, writers, special FX artists, etc., discuss their involvement in the films.

I loved how directors Daniel Farrands and Andrew Kasch took us through all the films chronologically to really show the progression of the series and all the hard work that went into each film, whether it was dealing with difficult directors/producers/actors, etc., working with silly scripts or creating complex special FX (most in the series were practical FX and didn’t utilize the then non-existent CGI technique). The film even touches on New Line, “the studio that Freddy built”, and how the NoES series basically launched the studio and put it on the map.

The documentary’s focus is on the people involved in creating each NoES film, and many familiar faces pop up throughout the film. Heather Langenkamp, star of the original film, Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors and New Nightmare, does a fantastic job both narrating and appearing in the documentary. Also a prevalent face is Wes Craven, who is known for hating all NoES sequels (besides his New Nightmare) and the direction the series took after the original. And, of course, the doc stars the only true “Freddy” (at least according to this horror fiend), Robert Englund. However, I love how the doc features a wide variety of people involved with the franchise instead of just focusing on just a few of the more famous face. There are lots of “where are they now?” type moments as many actors from the films are interviewed. It was a real kick to see so many actors from the films and find out what they are doing now! I loved hearing each and every one’s memories of working on the series and appreciated everyone’s honesty as they discussed tensions involved while filming, problems encountered, obstacles overcome and so on. There is definitely no sugar-coating here!

You would think a four-hour documentary would get old after a while, but this is definitely not the case with Never Sleep Again. My eyes were glued to the screen the entire time and never once did I get bored. Everyone’s personal recollections on the franchise were so unique and engaging and the filmmaking was so sharp and focused that once I started watching I couldn’t stop! I didn’t even want to take a bathroom break I was so engrossed in the film!

This retrospective is absolutely stunning – from the awesome stop-motion animation used (a clever nod to some of the special FX used within the franchise) to the sheer number of participants interviewed (pretty much the only people missing are Johnny Depp from the first film and Patricia Arquette from the third film) with everyone from Craven to Alice Cooper to metal band Dokken to all of the “final girls” (from Heather Langenkamp to Monica Keena) making an appearance, this documentary is all-encompassing! Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy is the definitive behind-the-scenes look at the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise and boogeyman Freddy Krueger himself.

Required viewing for all horror nuts and Freddy fans!

Available from Amazon!

Every Other Day is Halloween (2010)

In C.W. Prather’s documentary Every Other Day is Halloween, viewers are taken on a nostalgic and whimsical trip back in time to the golden age of television horror hosts, a time when local TV’s witching hour was ruled by ghouls and boils introducing old black and white movies for a generation of delighted fans. Prather focuses on one of the most well-known and longest running horror hosts, Count Gore De Vol, played by Dick Dyszel, as we are given a glimpse into his wacky world.

Though Count Gore De Vol is a very recognizable horror host and still makes regular appearances at conventions and hosts his own online horror show, I wasn’t that familiar with the character’s creator, Dick Dyszel. This documentary does a wonderful job at connecting the audience to the kind man behind the well-known cape! From his beginnings as playing Bozo the Clown and Captain 20 for local kid’s shows on Channel 20 in Washington D.C., we see Dyszel’s growth and desire to do something for the adults – hence Count Gore De Vol’s first show in 1973!

We are shown lots of vintage footage of Dyszel as his different characters, with the focus of course on the Count. We also see interviews with people Dyszel’s show, Creature Feature, influenced, including writers like Steve Niles (30 Days of Night), filmmakers such as Jeff Krulik (Heavy Metal Parking Lot), Scream Queens Leanna Chamish (Stakes) and Eleanor Herman (Night Beast) as well as a new generation of horror hosts including John Dimes (“Dr. Sarcofiguy”) and Jerry Moore II (“Karlos Borloff”). There are also lots of nostalgic recollections from regular old horror fans who watched his show when they were kids as well as from the man himself, Dick Dyszel. In one touching segment Dyszel recalls having Forrest J. Ackerman on the show and we are treated to rare footage of the interview.

Much of the footage shown in this documentary is rare or has never been seen before, adding to the deeply nostalgic feel of the documentary. Though I was too young to recall Count Gore De Vol’s long-running TV show Creature Feature, I still deeply appreciate the era of horror hosts and especially pioneers such as Dick Dyszel. When horror hosts seemed a thing of the past in the early ‘90s, Dyszel resurrected Count Gore De Vol and decided to host his show on the Internet (and this was back when people were still on dial-up). He is considered the first ever Internet horror host!

Nowadays, we are seeing a resurgence of horror hosts, many who claim Dyszel and his Count Gore De Vol character were huge influences on them. Many of these modern horror hosts are interviewed, including Penny Dreadful, The Bone Jangler, Karlos Borloff and more! It’s amazing to see what a gigantic impact horror hosts like Dyszel made on today’s performers and it’s pretty heartwarming to see such a great guy like Dyszel still getting adoration from fans!

Hard-working horror hosts like Dyszel basically reared a generation of horror fans and influenced a whole new breed of horror hosts to go on and inspire another generation of horror fans. Since many horror fans have horror hosts to thank for introducing them to the genre, it’s quite a treat to watch this documentary and get a behind-the-scenes peek at Dick Dyszel’s long (and still going strong) career as Count Gore De Vol!

If you are looking for a superb documentary that takes you down memory lane, check out Every Other Day is Halloween. It’s a fascinating and fun look at horror host Dick Dyszel’s life and will make you nostalgic for the golden years of horror hosts as well as make you excited for the horror hosts in years to come!

Available from Amazon!

Splatter Movie (2008)

Many people don’t know all the hard work it goes into making an independent film. Tight schedules, limited resources, limited time and, worst of all, low budgets. There is a lot of love and passion that must go into making an independent horror movie, because even after facing all those challenges, you don’t know if there will even be an audience that wants to see it! So, when I popped in Splatter Movie: The Director’s Cut, an independent movie within a movie within a movie and so on, I was intrigued to see how much it showed of the filmmaking process…and the story itself is pretty ingenious.

In Splatter Movie, director Amy Lee Parker (played by real-life director Amy Lynn Best) is setting up to shoot her latest indie horror film at Hundred Acres Manor, a vast Halloween haunt that boasts dozens of different creepy walk-throughs. A documentary crew is following her around to capture all the behind-the-scenes mayhem so they can put it on the DVD’s special features. As for the film she’s shooting, it’s about a group of filmmakers and actors going into a supposedly haunted attraction to shoot a movie…only a killer is picking them off one by one. In a case of life imitating art imitating life that is exactly what happens to Parker and her crew. Someone wearing the killer’s costume is going around actually butchering people!

Splatter Movie: The Director’s Cut is an inventive piece of indie cinema and for the most part it was a very enjoyable ride! Writer Mike Watt and director Amy Lynn Best have been writing and directing independent films with their Happy Cloud Pictures imprint for a long time now, and Splatter Movie just shows they are still on the top of their game! My main praise for the film stems from its inventive “movie within a movie within a movie, etc.” structure. It seemed that everything in the film echoed reality, from the actors names that were either the same or very close to their real names to scenes that mirrored scenes they were shooting for their film. It really makes my head spin to think about it! Kudos to Watt for such a clever premise!

I also loved how the documentary-style look of the film made you feel like you were right there with the cast and crew, going through all the trials and tribulations of making a low-budget movie. The behind-the-scenes stuff, from the makeup/special FX applications to following the bitchy assistant director around to watching a scene being filmed, was way fun and really gives you a better understanding of the challenges of making a low budget film.

There were also some amazing cameos from some familiar faces within the indie horror community. Besides Amy Lynn Best, whom many people are familiar with, we get Tom Sullivan, playing himself, who worked on The Evil Dead trilogy, scream queens Debbie Rochon and Elske McCain and many other recognizable faces. Everyone is basically playing themselves, so it’s hard to credit anyone with giving a fantastic performance, but I really loved watching Debbie Rochon every time she came on screen! And her big rape scene within the movie within the movie was absolutely hilarious (I know that sounds callous, but if you watch the movie you’ll totally understand…they totally flip your expectations upside down).

Yet, despite all the positives there were still a few drawbacks to the film, namely, the length of it. The behind-the-scenes chatter went on a bit too long and I would have liked to see more of the actual killer sooner. Though the kills were nice, with the appropriate amount of blood and gore, I felt they were too short. I found myself fast-forwarding through the more boring scenes within the film (like the copious lesbian scenes…one would have sufficed if it was needed at all) to get to the REAL action. The film definitely started dragging after about 45 minutes and the ending took way too long to wrap up (though I did appreciate the surprise reveal of the killer!). A little bit more cutting and editing and Splatter Movie would have been much more enjoyable to sit through.

The positives of the film outweigh the negatives, though, and overall I really found myself enjoying Splatter Movie. If you are an indie horror fan I think you will too!

Order it on Amazon!

Fear Itself: Season One (2009)

It seems like the horror community pretty much turned its collective back on 2008’s weekly episodic horror series, Fear Itself, originally broadcast on NBC. Even I only watched a few episodes before basically forgetting all about it. In fact, only eight episodes actually aired before the network pulled the plug on the show during the summer of 2008. Now, the series has been released on DVD with all of the 13 episodes (some even with director’s cuts) included.

Though this Mick Garris-created series might feel like just another Masters of Horror (which he also created) with a different horror director (some well-known, others not so well-known) directing each episode, I was actually quite surprised at the high quality of some of the episodes. I might even dare to say that this is better than or at least on par with the Masters of Horror series! The only real difference is that on network TV filmmakers couldn’t get away with as much blood and guts as they could on cable. This actually works in favor on Fear Itself, though, because it makes the scares all that much creepier and able to crawl under your skin more as opposed to a visceral, one-time shock of a gore scare.

The directors gracing Fear Itself with their talent include Stuart Gordon (Re-Animator, From Beyond), Mary Harron (American Psycho), John Landis (An American Werewolf in London), Darren Lynn Bousman (Repo! The Genetic Opera, Saw) and Larry Fessenden (The Last Winter, Wendigo). Some of my favorite episodes came from these well-known names, but a few lesser known names like Eduardo Rodriguez (Curandero) and John Dahl (Joy Ride) surprised me at their high quality episodes.

In fact, my favorite episode was probably Rodriguez’s “The Circle”. Set on Halloween night and opening with an eerie trick or treating scene, the episode quickly moves to a horror author and his friends holed up in a remote cabin…and two trick or treaters delivering a mysterious book where what’s written inside comes becomes horrifyingly real. This is one of the most stylish and suspenseful episodes of the series and really has some startling scenes. With the Halloween night setting exploited a bit more, this could easily turn into a frightening feature-length movie. Plus, it really makes me want to hunt down Rodriguez’s horror film Curandero.

My second favorite would have to be Darren Lynn Bousman’s twitchy end of the world episode “New Year’s Day”. This is an intense, suspenseful episode that throws you into the chaos of a mysterious catastrophe happening in the wee hours of New Year’s. The drama is heightened by jumping back and forth between the present and an earlier New Year’s Eve party our lead character attends. Though the spastic camera work and flighty editing is a bit much, overall the episode was very stylish and I loved the twist at the end!

In Larry Fessenden’s “Skin and Bones”, a rancher returns home to his family after being lost in the wilderness…but his miraculous homecoming is marred by the fact that he has become possessed by a wendigo. First of all, Doug Jones as the rancher was AMAZING! His gaunt, hollowed face was terrifying enough, but his mannerisms really sold the performance! This was a definitely creepy episode and kept my eyes glued to the screen for the entire running time!

I dug many of the other episodes, including Stuart Gordon’s “Eater”, Mary Harron’s “Community”, and Brad Anderson’s (Session 9) “Spooked”. A few of the episodes weren’t to my liking (Breck Eisner’s “The Sacrifice” was a bit too generic and “Something with Bite” by the relatively unknown Ernest R. Dickerson [Tales from the Crypt: Demon Knight] felt kind of hokey), but overall Fear Itself delivers quite a frightfully fun collection of bite-sized horror!

Don’t let Fear Itself go overlooked any longer, seek it out for some surprising and satisfying scares!

Order it on Amazon!

Frightmare (1983)

Not to be confused with the 1974 English cannibal film of the same name, Frightmare (aka The Horror Star) is the story of recently deceased horror veteran Conrad Radzoff (Ferdinand Mayne) who claims that death will be his best performance yet! The night after he is entombed into his specially constructed mausoleum (complete with a blinking neon star), a group of drama students break into the crypt and decide to take old Conrad back to their place for some partying! After a creepy dinner with the diners all wearing masks, they each take turns dancing with the corpse and one girl even goes to far as to smooch him! They put Conrad back into his coffin, but are too tuckered out to take him back to his final resting place, so they just put him in their attic and call it a night.

The next morning the cops discover Conrad is missing from the mausoleum and his widow enlists the help of a psychic medium to find out where he is. Turns out he’s in hell, but is hellbent on returning and getting revenge on the young whippersnappers that disturbed his slumber. His widow heartily agrees, saying, “Burn them! Burn them! BURN THEM!”

Having been summoned, Conrad rises from the dead and stalks the kids in the house, killing them one by one.

What is so interesting about Frightmare is that it tries to bridge the gap from Gothic-tinged Hammer horror (think fog-shrouded cemeteries, genteel-looking old men in Dracula capes, damsels in distress) with the kids-being-stalked-by-an-unstoppable-killer slasher formula. I liked the “classic horror” atmosphere of the film, but the slasher aspect felt a bit off. The story had some holes (a cop, who looks more like a mafia don, keeps popping up but doesn’t add anything to the story), pacing problems, awful dialogue (“We did something BAD!”) and the kills left a lot to be desired. Even though the result is a mixed bag, this seemingly strange combination of old and new horror styles makes Frightmare worth a look anyway.

The film was written and directed by Norman Thaddeus Vane and one good thing about his script is that he spent more time developing the character of Conrad Ragzoff than he did the kids’ characters. I felt much more empathy for Conrad than I did any of the annoying college kids, who exist mostly to get picked off. Conrad is one of the best things about the film, and the character is obviously an homage to Christopher Lee. Actor Ferdinand Mayne even resembles Lee and has the same kind of aristocratic air as he does.

Speaking of Mayne, he was truly a joy to watch in this role, especially in the opening scenes when he is still alive and in the videos he leaves behind for the funeral and those that appear to greet visitors to his crypt. Another actor to note in the film is Jeffrey Combs, who plays one of the clueless kids in one of his earlier roles. Most of the actors who play the college drama students don’t have much to do, but they all do a pretty good job of playing stupid and dying horribly. Even the “Final Girl”, just sits around and whimpers and only survives because she faints dead away at the sight of the resurrected Conrad.

As for the deaths, Conrad kills most of the kids with telekinetic powers rather than with his bare hands. One girl spontaneously combusts into a fireball, another girl gets squashed by a flying coffin, a guy gets locked in Conrad’s crypt as it fills with poisonous gas, another guy gets decapitated by a flying sword, and so on. The only “hands-on” deaths occur when a guy gets his tongue/jaw ripped out and then strangled, a woman gets her mouth stuffed with a wad of cash and another guy gets stuffed into a coffin and burnt alive in the crematorium. It was disappointing that the deaths weren’t at all gory (especially since at least half of the film was trying for that slasher vibe), but it wasn’t a deal-breaker. Instead, the film treated the deaths in the more restrained, classic horror tradition instead of going all-out like a slasher flick.

Still, there are some pretty silly scenes throughout the film besides the previously mentioned death scenes. One was the partying scene where the kids pass around Conrad’s corpse like he’s a party favor, which is so disturbing it borders on ludicrous! Another more “laugh-out-loud” scene is the over-the-top séance scene where Conrad’s widow and psychic medium are trying to contact the dead Conrad. The ladies put on such hysterical performances here that I dare you not to laugh! The film also features some god-awful music and sound effects that sound just like one of those cheap Halloween party CD’s, complete with howling and growling.

Frightmare has a lot of issues and I think it would have a lot of problems connecting with horror fans today. Still, it is an interesting little movie that tries to combine old-school horror with the slasher formula. Sometimes it doesn’t succeed, but it is still interesting enough to check out, especially if you love Gothic-tinged horror movies. Though Frightmare isn’t a “must-see” for all horror fans, those that appreciate both the old and new aspects of horror filmmaking may just find themselves enjoying it like I did!

Buy it on Amazon!

A Christmas Tale (2008)

Part of the 6 Films to Keep You Awake set that was released by Lionsgate in late 2008, A Christmas Tale is set in Spain in December of 1985 and tells the tale of five childhood friends that stumble upon a body of a woman dressed in a Santa suit that’s fallen into a deep hole in the forest. After verifying that she is still alive (by pouring soda on her head) two of the kids go get the police while the other three try to haul her out of the hole with some rope. Once at the police station, the kids are ignored by the town’s cop but find a “wanted” notice for the woman in the hole. She is a dangerous criminal named Rebeca Expósito who recently stole a bunch of money from a bank. They run back to tell the rest of the gang and together they decide to leave her in the hole until she gives up the hiding place of the money. They resort to starving and torturing her to get her to tell them where the money is. Despite their promise to let her go when they get the money, they decide to keep her in the hole, afraid she might come after them for revenge if they let her out.

Meanwhile, a few of the kids are horror fans and decide to reenact a voodoo ritual on the woman that they saw in a zombie film. Soon after, the kids assume the woman has died but later find she has escaped and they believe her to be a zombie. Undead or not, she is not out for blood against the brats that tortured her.
See, this is why I don’t want kids – they can turn out to be so sadistic! This film takes a supposedly happy-go-lucky, innocent group of kids and makes them the villains. It is so easy for them to torture a human being in the name of greed that you sympathize more with the woman, a violent bank-robber, than with the 12-year-olds. They pelt her with rocks, leave her out in the rain, starve her and taunt her…No wonder she wants to take an ax to them once she escapes!

Yep, this film carries some grim tones, but it isn’t nearly as mean-spirited as say, Eden Lake. Plus, it lightens the tone with early interactions between the Goonie-like gang of characters and the 80′s setting. We get fun references to The Karate Kid, Star Wars, Ghost Busters, that Simon electronic game and even some 80′s music (in Spanish!). Then there are a bunch of horror films you can see in the background in a kid’s room (on VHS!), including Tombs of the Blind Dead, Nightmare on Elm Street, Horror Express and more! So really, despite all their viciousness, this group of kids is pretty likable. Their carefree days of hanging out in their clubhouse, watching horror movies, playing in the woods and riding their bikes come in sharp contrast to the horror they are capable of.

The child actors in the film do a terrific job in A Christmas Tale and never once did I doubt their believability. They all acted and behaved like any 12-year-olds would and even fought amongst themselves as their problems escalated. Their interactions with each other felt very real, like they really were friends in real life. Also, the victim was played very well by Maru Valdivielso. Even though she is a criminal, she still made you feel sorry for her and by the end you did want her to seek revenge on the kids.

Unfortunately, all of the violence we see on-screen is directed at the Valdivielso’s character. She gets pretty trashed in this film and I thought the makeup department did a pretty great job showing her deterioration. The gore is pretty nil except for a impalement, which doesn’t end up being that gory anyway.

The film is beautifully shot by director Paco Plaza (who helped co-direct REC with Jaume Balaguero). Plaza really knows how to capture the feeling of being a kid. The final chase through the empty amusement park is very thrilling and really gives the film some nice tension that earlier scenes lack.

The film does drag on a bit too long in the end and while I appreciated the fun and shocking “second” finale, it felt a little tacked on. Nonetheless, A Christmas Tale was a delight to watch and comes highly recommended!

Available from Amazon!

Book Review: Splattered Beauty by Brandon Ford

We all love scream queens, there’s no doubt about that! Though we each have our personal favorites, all scream queens hold a special place in every horror fan’s heart! In Brandon Ford’s new book, Splattered Beauty, he takes his love of scream queens and crafts it into an entertainingly bloody story!

Alyssa Peyton is a struggling actress who used to be a successful, sought-after scream queen in horror flicks. After going through a messy divorce from her director husband and seeing younger, prettier actresses take her roles, Alyssa can only find solace at the bottom of a bottle or with a bottle of pills.

After signing autographs at a horror convention, she meets her #1 teenage fan, Taryn, who loves Alyssa unconditionally. After Taryn has a falling out with her strict Catholic mother, Alyssa invites Taryn into her home. Soon, Alyssa realizes she can manipulate Taryn into doing anything for her…even killing.

With this, Alyssa begins a bloody rampage against those whom she thinks have wronged her.

Splattered Beauty is a fun, fast ride. It was neat to peak behind the scenes at a scream queen’s life – going to horror conventions, going to auditions, meeting with her agent, going to movie shoots, etc. These scenes draw you into Alyssa’s life and all her failures really make you feel sympathetic toward her. It’s not until the last part of the novel that you really start to become scared of her and what she is capable of.

My only complaint with the book was that the relationship between Taryn and Alyssa felt a little forced and exploitative. Taryn’s character felt underdeveloped, even though Ford went to great pains to make the reader feel sorry for her and her predicament. By the end of the book she just came off as whiny and as an unnecessary character. I think Alyssa could have carried the book on her own, without as much involvement from Taryn.

Other than that, the book was a fun, quick read. I couldn’t stop turning the pages to see what Alyssa would do next!

Available from Amazon!

Neon Maniacs (1986)

Neon Maniacs is a delightful, though flawed, film that’s a mix of Nightbreed, Monster Squad and Street Trash topped off with a helping of green Ghostbuster-like slime. It’s no where near as good (or even half as good) as any of the previously mentioned film I’m so loosely comparing it to, but I did find myself enjoying this very guilty pleasure.

While fooling around in the park one night, a group of high school students is systemically slaughtered by a group of deformed monsters, the titular Neon Maniacs. A lone girl named Natalie (Leilani Sarelle) survives the attack after it starts to rain and the monsters mysteriously have to flee. Though she witnessed all her friends being butchered, the cops find no trace of violence or any bodies…except for random patches of green goo. No one believes Natalie and thinks the kids’ disappearances are just a silly prank. No one, that is, except for a spunky young freshman named Paula (Donna Locke) who hears about the attack and approaches Natalie at school to offer her help and support. Natalie brushes the young girl off, so Paula decides to investigate on her own. She’s an aspiring horror filmmaker, and damn if she wouldn’t like some REAL monster footage for her latest film. Following the green goop from the park, she tracks the monsters to a lair under the Golden Gate Bridge. She returns that night with a video camera and lies in wait for them to make an appearance…and sure enough they do. The monsters spot Paula, but not before it starts to rain and she gets away. Apparently water destroys the suckers, and now she knows their one weakness.

Meanwhile, Natalie is getting cozy with Steve (Alan Hayes), the resident geek and boy-next-door type. They go on a date, but it is interrupted by the maniacs, who are after Natalie because I guess they just can’t leave survivors well enough alone…One of the maniacs also goes after Paula, but she’s ready and quickly dispatches him with a wet dip in the bathtub.

Natalie, Steve and Paula join forces and devise a plan to lure the maniacs to a cheesy costume party/battle of the bands dance (be warned: there is horrible, horrible music!) they are having at the high school. They arm everyone with squirt guns, but when the maniacs show up everyone forgets their purpose and runs helter-skelter. Steve-o turns a fire hose on the maniacs and melts quite a few of them, but not before the maniacs kill a handful of kids and police officers.

The police begrudgingly believe Natalie’s story and go to the lair of the maniacs armed with squirt guns and fire hoses…but find nothing there…until the main detective decides to go back alone and take another peek…

In all honesty, Neon Maniacs is a horribly bad movie. Bad acting, bad directing, poor special FX and a nonsensical story line…but I loved (almost) every second of it!! It’s a definite B-movie (perhaps even C or D quality), but it’s still entertaining and fun.

The film is washed out and pretty rough around the edges. There’s not much flair to the direction or cinematography, but that doesn’t mean that it’s unwatchable. As for the story, it’s is pretty flimsy and not well developed at all. The neon maniacs (emphasis on the “maniacs,” as I saw no “neon” in this film), who melt if exposed to water, live in one of the dampest, foggiest places in California – San Francisco! Not to mention they chose a lair that overlooks the San Francisco Bay…which, last time I checked, was full of water! Where they came from was never explained at all either. Are they deformed humans? Are they monsters that like dressing in different outfits? Do they like to sing “YMCA” when they aren’t out tearing people to shreds? It’s not a coincidence that the maniacs have been called the Village People of horror villains!

The maniacs were all pretty cheesy, and not in the least scary. Besides their rubber masks, they’ve each got a strange motif going (like I just said, Village People!): one is a Native American, complete with some weird feathered headdress going on, another one is a cheesy-looking soldier, one’s like a hairy Neanderthal/ape-man, yet another is a surgeon and so on…and there are about twelve different maniacs! There’s one in particular that seems completely out of place (yes, more than the other ones) and looks like one-eyed dinosaur. Was that guy even in the right movie?? He looks like he should be in that Dinosaurs TV show, not as a part of the Neon Maniacs’ gang. Though the maniacs’ origins aren’t explained in the film, if I had to take a guess I’d say that a gay nightclub (hey, it is set in San Francisco) was exposed to radioactive chemicals and that’s how these freaks were created.

As for the other characters, they are all pretty annoying. Natalie just seemed like a whiny, stupid prima donna who couldn’t take care of herself. After all her friends are butchered by crazed, deformed monsters and she barely escapes death, she decides to take a dip in her pool…at night! She also goes to school the next day like nothing happened and finds time to fall for geeky Steve. When the Maniacs are butchering more people at the attack on the school, she and Steve also find time to devirginize her. Natalie sure does have her priorities screwed up! Basic rule of horror movies is that you wait until after the big baddies are for sure dead before gettin’ it on! The only endearing character out of the bunch was Paula. Her nosy demeanor and ambitious indie filmmaking (though she was filming a vampire film in broad daylight) really won me over. Her room was filled with horror memorabilia and filmmaking equipment to make any fan drool (though one has to wonder how much that editing equipment and camera cost back then!!). I also like the fact that she was a strong, independent girl who was into the macabre – not everything you see everyday in films!

The special FX in the film weren’t too bad. This being the 80′s, they were all practical. in the first 10 minutes or so we see a whole group of high schoolers get offed by the maniacs, and this really kick starts the film. Though the actual monster outfits were cheesy, it was pretty neat to see them melt when they came in contact with water. There’s not a great deal of the red stuff being flung around, but there was enough to keep me happy. Be warned, though, this movie is pure cheesy fun so don’t go looking for anything too realistic!

Neon Maniacs is for sure a guilty pleasure! If you want to have some campy, cheesy fun without having to think about silly things like a cohesive plot, Neon Maniacs comes highly recommended!

Find it on Amazon!

Fan of the Dead (2008)

Fan of the Dead is a travel documentary about Nicolas Garreau, a French fan of George A. Romero’s Living Dead series, who travels to Pennsylvania to unearth the shooting locations used in Romero’s films, including the infamous Monroeville Mall from Dawn of the Dead, the original basement used in Night of the Living Dead, the farmhouse used in Night of the Living Dead 1990, the underground military facility used in Day of the Dead, the cemetery from the original Night of the Living Dead, and many more!

Garreau also filmed his visit to the Pittsburgh Comic Convention, which features interviews with various cast members from the films and fan reactions. Stars from the films even accompany fans to the shooting sites of the mall and the small airport from Dawn of the Dead.

Fan of the Dead is the ultimate fanboy (and girl) film for those that haven’t been able to visit such hallowed sites themselves (and even for those who have to “compare notes” with Garreau). It’s like Fodor’s come to life for horror fans! Fan of the Dead is like if you and your Living Dead fanatic friends filmed yourselves visiting Romero’s stomping grounds…everything is shot via handheld camera with a decidedly “home movie” feel. However, Garreau has so much passion and love for his subject that you quickly forget about the amateur production values and just enjoy the ride alongside the charming Nicolas, who manages to befriend just about everyone on his trip!

One of the best parts in the film is when various cast members from Dawn of the Dead (Ken Foree, David Emge, Machete Zombie – Lenny Lies, Nurse Zombie – Sharon Ceccatti, Helicopter Zombie – Jim Krut, and more!) accompany a small bus load of fans for a walk around Monroeville Mall, pointing out famous (or infamous) shooting locations. Some of the same cast also joined fans for a jaunt around the small airport where the group of survivors stopped to refuel. Hearing the actors talk about filming the movie was just as exciting as watching the joy of the fans! The enthusiasm of both the fans and cast is contagious!

Of course, there were also scenes of just Garreau driving to his next location and speaking heartfelt words about the films he so loves. We also got to hear about the hardships he faced in finding the exact locations and shared his joy when he finally arrived. His trip to the military bunker used in Day of the Dead (it is now used as a warehouse) was pretty neat, as the people that work there still remember when Romero shot there and many were used as extras in his film.

The documentary (though “vacation video” seems more appropriate) did drag in a few places, but with a short running time of 60 minutes it mostly moves at a quick pace. My only big complaint was the horrible voiceover work done. Garreau speaks French most of the time, so his voice was dubbed over with an “actor’s” voice…but this guy delivered his lines so flat and unconvincing that it really detracted from the film. I don’t know why subtitles weren’t used, but if they had it would have made for a much more pleasant viewing experience.

Besides that, Fan of the Dead is a fantastic little film that will delight horror fans! It’s so much fun to see locations used 25 (or more!) years ago and say, “Holy crap! I remember that!!” I wouldn’t be surprised if Fan of the Dead revives tourism in Pennsylvania, because as soon as you see this you’ll definitely want to plan your own terrifying trip to unearth Romero’s Living Dead locations!

Fan of the Dead – Official Site

Book Review: Crimson Orgy by Austin Williams

Director Herschell Gordon Lewis and producer David Friedman forever changed the face of cinema in 1963 with their gore-drenched film, Blood Feast. Before then, the exploitation crowd was only familiar with the nudie cuties that graced their movie screens, but Lewis and Friedman tapped into the audience’s bloodlust and ever since Blood Feast reveled in its gruesome carnage-for-carnage’s-sake, the movies have never been the same.

In Crimson Orgy, author Austin Williams explores the seedy and sleazy business of making exploitation movies in the mid-60’s, specifically one notorious snuff film called Crimson Orgy. He tells the tale of Stupendous Pictures, whose owners, producer Gene Hoffman and director Sheldon Meyer (characters inspired by Lewis and Friedman), can’t wait to delve into the gore business with their new gore picture entitled Crimson Orgy. They’ve seen the success of Lewis’ Blood Feast and can’t wait to outgross him, in more ways than one! Only problem is, they have a minuscule budget and an even smaller amount of time to film the gore flick.

They hire a skeleton crew and a cast that includes a boozing leading man, an inexperienced starlet and plenty of small-bit divas who throw a tantrum ever time they need to be covered in blood. With just a week to shoot the feature and a limited supply of film to use, things quickly begin to turn sour. The isolated locale of the shoot, on an empty stretch of Florida coastline, unnerves many of the cast and crew. Not only that, but a power-hungry backwoods cop is keeping a close eye on the production, just hoping for a screw-up so that he can send them all packing back to Miami. Director Meyer is also keeping the lead actress in the dark about the film’s violence and gory set-pieces. Pretty soon, a crew member begins to unravel and disappears with several canisters of exposed film and reports of a big tropical storm off the coast convince the rest of the players that the production is cursed. When real body parts are found on-set, suspicions rise about the intentions of both Hoffman and Meyer. Was their plan all along to pull off a snuff film? Is someone really going to die in Crimson Orgy?

Author Austin Williams delves into the nitty gritty of low budget filmmaking with such a passion that B-movie lovers can’t help but appreciate and love. His story about the fictional Crimson Orgy is immediately engaging (check out the clever intro from a fake book called Ultimate Guide to Horror Movies) and filled with suspense.

Williams tells the tale from the many different perspectives of the cast, crew and assorted locals and they themselves seem straight out of a Herschell Gordon Lewis gore flick! Hidden motivations, agendas and secrets abound in the the colorful cast of characters and this keeps the pace moving steadily along. We are never given quite enough explanation on characters’ backgrounds, but I believe this works in favor of the story, leaving characters’ murky pasts a mystery.

Film buffs like me will go nuts for the description of shooting a low-budget gore film, especially for all the intrigue that goes on behind the scenes. We learn that gallons of fake blood, realistic body parts, blood-curdling screams and a can-do attitude, no matter the price, are what matter in this business. It’s also nice that Williams throws in historical facts about Blood Feast and other players in the grindhouse movie biz at the time. These little touches really make the novel and make you enjoy it all the more!

One small quibble is that, technically, Crimson Orgy isn’t a snuff film. Yes, someone does indeed die (the prologue will tell you that, so I’m not spoiling anything), but the circumstances in which it happens doesn’t quite make it “snuff.” I don’t want to say any more, but I still recommend you check out this fantastic read, despite this small annoyance, because it is time well spent for horror fans, exploitation nuts and film buffs alike.

Available on Amazon!

Summer School (2006)

Ah, summertime! When balmy days are spent sunning on the beach or lounging around the pool…unless, of course, you are like Summer School’s teenage Charlie (Simon Wallace), who prefers blocking the bright sunlight out and having horror movie marathons that go for days. Hmmm…that sounds much better than being out in the sweltering summer sun!

Charlie runs a horror movie review site and has been staying up late into the night to try to catch up on his movie viewing before he has to start summer school. His lack of sleep catches up to him on the first day of summer school. While waiting for his teacher and other students to arrive, Charlie dozes off…Only to find himself stuck in very realistic nightmares that resemble his revered horror flicks! Every time he thinks he has woken up, he is plunged back into horrifying situations that test his sense of reality and his own sanity! As Charlie tries to escape his nightmares, he quickly loses his grip on reality…

Summer School is a wonderfully clever low-budget horror film that pays homage to several subgenres of horror including satanic cults, vampires, monsters, hillbillies, slashers, Nazis and exploitation! The film is based on the experiences of writer/director Ben Trandem, who took a summer school class back in high school and spent his evenings and weekends watching B-horror films. Trandem enlisted the help of four other writers/directors – Lance Hendrickson, Steven Rhoden, Troy McCall and Mike P. Nelson – to write and direct each segment of the film. With so many “cooks in the kitchen,” Summer School should be a mess of differing storytelling styles, but surprisingly it holds up very well and doesn’t fail to entertain!

Each segment of the film is true to the subgenre that it is paying homage to. From the lighting, to the colors, to the mood and the characters it feels like a slice of horror heaven pie! I was very impressed that each filmmaker was able to keep the mood and look of the particular subgenre they were using. For example, in the vampire segment the lighting is very dark and rich, with lots of dark blues and reds used. The backwoods hillbilly segment used a bleached-out look similar to the look of the original Texas Chain Saw Massacre. Not only did the filmmakers stay true to the look and feel of the original subgenres, but they managed to cohesively tie together all the segments in a believable way.

The stories are all written quite well. Each segment really kept me guessing and wondering, is Charlie awake? Is this really happening? The nightmarish quality of the film and the different storylines really kept me interested, both visually and cerebrally.

Besides the stellar writing and direction by each of the filmmakers, the acting was also top notch. In low budget films it is easy for one (or more) bad actors to bring the whole production value down. In Summer School I couldn’t find ANY bad acting! Lead Simon Wallace does a wonderful job playing Charlie. His portrayal of a normal, intelligent kid under a lot of duress who eventually loses his grip on reality was engaging and entirely believable. Keep your eyes on Wallace; if he wants to, he will go far! The rest of the cast did a spectacular job as well. I enjoyed watching Amy Cocchiarella, who played Charlie’s love interest Lindsey, as well as Tony D. Czech and Lance Hendrickson (no, not THAT one) as Charlie’s goofy friends. Ty Richardson was also great as the school’s police man/Nazi!

Each of the segments were perfect, 15 minute examples of their particular subgenres with the special FX to back ‘em up. For a movie that was shot on an $8,000 budget, I’d say the special FX were impressive. Steven Rhoden and Ben Trandem (who both wrote and directed) handled the special FX. While not a gorefest, there are some excellent and realistic shots of blood and other nasties! I particularly enjoyed the brutal Nazisploitation segment.

Summer School is a film that schools most high-budget Hollywood horror flicks and is a film made by horror fans for horror fans (that’s actually good!!). Heck, if you’re a true horror fan, I don’t see how you couldn’t enjoy Summer School!

Summer School – Official Website

Popcorn (1991)

A fun slasher movie that’s heavy on the cheese and camp, Popcorn is a 1991 release but feels like it is straight outta the 80’s!

A group of film students are putting on an all night horrorthon in an old theater where 15 or so years ago a cult film director staged his final act by killing his family and setting the theater on fire. His body was never found, but many perished in the flames. Now, the students are going to convert the very same theater into hoppin’ party central!

The student are going to show three 50’s films – one in 3-D, one in aroma-vision and the other with rigged theater seats that will shock the audience! While preparations for the show are underway, Maggie (Jill Schoelen), one of the film students, keeps having trippy nightmares about “The Possessor.” Sure enough, “The Possessor” was the batty cult director’s last film.

When opening night rolls around, Maggie is convinced that the director is back and out to slaughter all those in attendance! The killer dons different masks that can make him look like anyone he wants to as he stalks and kills those in the packed theater. Maggie must uncover who the killer is and confront her past if she is to survive!

Popcorn is purely a fluff movie that is flawed but still manages to be fun and entertaining. Horror buffs will delight in the gags that the film students plan to accompany each horror movie they are showing, as well as the cheesy movies themselves! The renovation of the old theater is one of my favorite sequences and even though the movie looks pretty low budget, it looks like they spent a bundle on the wicked cool props for the theater. I soooo want a “Shock Clock” now!

My main complaint is that the film looks low budget – the picture is muddled, fuzzy and not very clear. I watch low budget films all the time, but I guess I just expected this one to have higher production values. I also thought that Maggie’s backstory was unnecessary and her nightmares that looked straight out of an Argento film didn’t fit in with the rest of the film’s visuals.

Also, while Jill Schoelen does a fantastic job in her role as Maggie, the rest of the cast is just…lacking. Either they don’t stand out enough or overact to the point of reducing me to giggles. There are some noteworthy “big names” in the film – Tony Roberts plays the students’ professor, Dee Wallace-Stone plays Maggie’s mother and Ray Walston (Mr. Hand from Fast Times at Ridgemont High) plays a benefactor.

As with this kind of movie, there are plot holes, weak performances, poor production values and, surprisingly for a slasher, very little blood splatter and not really any gore. Still, Popcorn is a charming film that should warm any horror fan’s heart. It’s the perfect film to curl up on the couch with. Just don’t forget to bring the popcorn!

Available on Amazon!

Freak Out (2006)

This had to be made by a fellow horror fan - the film is populated by clever references to classic horror flicks. Not only that, but it features an original and hilarious storyline that simultaneously pokes fun at and pays homage to the horror genre. A great indie film made by horror fans for horror fans.

The plot concerns Merv and his friend Onkey, who happen to find an escaped mental patient in Merv's house. Merv is a horror fanatic that has horror posters plastered over every inch of his room and spends his days watching slasher flicks. When he finds the timid and effeminate mental patient in his shower, he has the brilliant idea of training him to be the next great slasher killer. Merv and Onkey begin training Looney, beginning with dressing him in a fitting outfit for a killer - orange jumpsuit, burlap potato sack over his head and a hockey mask. Next, they train him how to stalk and kill, though Looney's weapon of choice is a spatula. When Looney begins to kill, though, Merv has second thoughts and must stop him before he and Onkey are next.

More of a comedy than anything, this film is more heavy on parody than blood. In this case, I was laughing so much that it wasn't a bad thing. Some will compare it to the Scary Movie franchise, but I believe comparing Freak Out to the banality of those films is quite offensive. Freak Out is a step (or two) above those movies. Sure, it is still silly and features some low brow humor (a major plot point centers on "bum feelers"), but it is catered to horror fans, not dumbed down for general audiences.

Its low budget does show, but not enough to be distracting. Some production whores might be bothered by the slightly shaky camera shots, etc., but those used to independent films won't bat an eye. For an indie, I thought it was shot quite well. My main complaint was the audio. The characters already have accents, and coupled with bad audio and NO subtitles made for a very spotty viewing. The soundtrack, though, is impressively top-notch, featuring mostly unsigned bands, but wow! What a difference in mood a good soundtrack makes!

A very fun movie for us horror fans; some of the best parts were just looking at all of Merv's horror posters, memorabilia, etc. in his room and catching all the nods and winks to other horror films. I have too many other favorite scenes to talk about (how could I pick just one?!), but just know this is a comedy that all true horror fans should appreciate.

Check it out on Amazon!