Every year, Halloween aficionados converge on the Long Beach Convention Center at the end of July to celebrate the official start of Halloween season. There, one can find everything from haunts in the Hall of Shadows, vendors in the main hall, horror celebrities signing autographs in the autograph section, special effects, merchandise, and just about anything you could want to get you in the Halloween mood in one place. There’s a panel room where this year many showed what they have been working on, but also discussions on issues affecting Halloween and horror fans, there are live podcasts recordings in front of audiences, food trucks, art, even a cultural exhibit around Day of the Dead, and a cat relaxation area with cats and kittens to play with and adopt.
Category Archives: Halloween Horror Month
Satanic Hispanics (2022)
Five stories and wraparound all about Latine culture, tales, and folklore brought together by five directors. Starting with a police raid, the film brings a man found on the scene of a massive crime to the police station where he tells a few tales before things go to hell in the station itself.
Two Witches (2021)
Two intertwined stories of witches, one revolving around a pregnant girl, her partner, and two of their friends, the other revolving around roommates and witchcraft. When these two stories connect, something much larger is at play.
BAD MOVIE MONDAY: ABSURD (1981)
ABSURD is a 1981 Italian slasher movie directed by the legendary Joe D’Amato. It stars George Eastman, Annie Belle, and Edmund Purdom. It was initially written as a sequel to ANTHROPOPHAGUS but, as the legend goes, they rewrote the script when Eastman thought the original was terrible. That’s the “official” narrative, which I personally think is a load of horseshit. My two cents? Slasher movies were pulling in big numbers and the producers, after smelling money the way sharks smell blood, decided to rip off John Carpenter. Literally. There are a bunch of scenes in this film that, while not totally ripped off from Halloween 1 and 2, are close enough that I’m shocked D’Amato wasn’t sued.
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Streaming Sundays: ‘Interview With The Vampire’ Is One Of The Best Retellings Of A Classic Tale
BAD MOVIE MONDAY: TRUTH OR DARE? A CRITICAL MADNESS (1986)
TRUTH OR DARE? A CRITICAL MADNESS is a 1986 slasher film directed by Tim Ritter. Its first twenty minutes or so began as a segment in an anthology called “Twisted Illusion” released the year before. It is… not good. The plot holes are… huge. The acting is… a disaster. The direction… I can’t even tell you what the hell was going on there. What I’m trying to say is that this was very nearly the worst movie I have ever personally suggested for Bad Movie Monday, and I’ve suggested a lot of howlers. Which, of course, means it was the BEST movie I ever suggested. So prepare yourselves if you decide to ever watch this for yourselves. This was a hell of a ride.
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Spirit Halloween (2022)
Friends who have decided to not go trick or treating for the first time go spend the night in a temporary Halloween store that opened nearby. Of course, things go wrong.
Frost (2022)
A pregnant woman goes to visit her estranged father at his remote mountain house. After they reconnect, they decide to go fishing. On the road, they get in an accident and become stranded. Their will to survive is all they have to make it out alive.