Following their film’s shoot, a director with his cast and crew meet up at the studio for a wrap party. Soon, it’s clear someone else is there wanting to make their own meta version of the slasher film being celebrated. Continue reading
Tag Archives: Horror
Dark Windows (2023)
It’s surprising how out of left field Alex Herron’s “Dark Windows” has come, as it’s a movie that sneaks up on you but leaves you exhausted by the time the credits roll. “Dark Windows” is one of the best horror movies of 2023 but it’s also one of the most depressing movies I’ve seen in years. It’s a movie that pulls no punches and will leave you wrecked with despair and thinking about what you’ve just seen for a while. I was very certain that I knew what was going on during “Dark Windows,” but then writer Wolf Kraft subverted all of my expectations and really sent a cold chill up my back.
Demonic Toys: Jack-Attack (2023)
I’m assuming that these side quests for characters from “Demonic Toys” and “Puppet Master” are leading to something big down the road, but I can’t be too sure. Truthfully the side quest/spin offs of the flagship Full Moon franchises have been really hit or miss, but “Jack-Attack” has so far been one of the best. It’s only an hour in length and is short on story, but it compensates in carnage and some cool kills.
Swamp Thing (1982): MVD Rewind LaserVision Collection [4K UHD/Blu-Ray]
It’s too bad that in Wes Craven’s long and storied filmmaking career that “Swamp Thing” is the movie that’s aged the worst. It seemed like a slam dunk for the director, but his approach toward “Swamp Thing” never quite rises above niche horror camp. Even when adapting the source material as straight faced as possible, “Swamp Thing” is really never great as, say, “A Nightmare on Elm Street” and that’s probably because the movie itself jumps back and forth in tone and aesthetic. It goes from cheesy monster movie to an attempt at a Beauty and the Beast tale. It garners clear moments of pure camp and then tries to offer allegories on God complex drawing obvious influence from “The Island of Dr. Moreau.”
Sharknado (2013): 10th Anniversary Edition
The Pop Culture Phenomenon That Took The World By Storm Comes Back to 500+ Cinemas Nationwide, fully Remastered, for Two Nights Only On August 15th & 16th. Tickets are available for purchase.
Back in 2013 a lot of people gave The Asylum guff, and could not predict the kind of pop culture sensation they would eventually produce. “Sharknado” is that classic bit of pop culture camp lightning in a bottle like “Snakes on a Plane” or “Birdemic” where the public is just infatuated with the sheer absurdity of it all. “Sharknado” took a lot of the media by storm back in 2013, leaning heavily in to its ridiculous premise to produce what is—well, still just an okay bit of cult cinema. The Asylum with Anthony C. Ferrante knew what they were giving us, and it shows in every scene of their movie.
King On Screen (2023)
The best thing about “King on Screen” is the prologue by Daphne Baiwir which finds her walking in to a shop called the “Creepshop” where she hopes to show a painting she’d purchased. The setting, the characters, and the items in the shop are all subtle visual and verbal references to Stephen King and elements of Stephen King’s stories. It’s something that hooked me in right away and I quite loved the entire effects of Baiwir being savvy to King enough to deliver something of an ode to King. It compensates for “King on Screen” which, in its root, is another basic talking head documentary.
The Tomb of Dracula (Yami no Teiō: Kyūketsuki Dorakyura) (1985)
DRACULA WEEK
Also known as “Dracula Sovereign of the Damned,” and “The Emperor of Darkness: The Vampire Dracula,” Toei’s “Tomb of Dracula” is loosely adapted from the “The Tomb of Dracula” Marvel Book comic series published from 1972 to 1979. I like to think the Marvel comics are so much better than what Toei has offered fans, as they squeeze in all of those stories in to such a hastily made ninety minute movie. And you can tell there’s so much here added in a rush as the movie is so badly made.