Bloodsucking Bastards (2015) [Film4 FrightFest 2015]

Posted on September 15, 2015 by Emilie Black

Film4 FrightFest 2015

Office work can be soul sucking, it can be deathly boring. Evan works in such an office where there is very low morale and sales are not going well. To help this situation, his boss Ted hires Max, Evan’s old nemesis. Shortly after this, odd things start happening and eventually Evan believes something is very, very wrong in the office. After the first dead body turns up, he tries to get help from the HR person, his ex-girlfriend who think he must have gone crazy. Eventually, a second incident gets Evan to reach out to his best friend Tim for help. They eventually round up their rag tag three musketeers with Frank, the office security guard who knows more than he lets on. Together, they take on Max and his vampire minions.

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Shocker (1989): Collector’s Edition [Blu-Ray]

Posted on September 10, 2015 by Felix Vasquez

It baffles me to this day that “Shocker” is still considered one of Wes Craven’s best films. It’s especially baffling considering Craven has not only pulled off much better genre films, but because “Shocker” is really just a remake of “Nightmare on Elm Street.” A vicious serial killer wreaks revenge on his pursuers through supernatural means which allow him to shift through his own dimensions, can contact our protagonist through dreams, and does battle with a lone teenager who enters his realm in the finale and confronts him. It’s the exact same film from beginning to end, except it has a much more prevalent self awareness than “Nightmare” did.

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Stung (2015) [FrightFest 2015]

Posted on September 10, 2015 by Emilie Black

FrightFest 2015

Julia has inherited her father’s catering company and has a big event to work at Mrs. Perch’s estate. This is a yearly event and is attended by the most affluent people in town; it could make or break her. To help her out, she has hired bartender Paul who has a less than subtle crush on her. Mrs. Perch and her son Sydney are what some might call a bit eccentric and their mansion also has a beautiful greenhouse filled with very lush plants and flowers. As Julia, Paul, and a stoner musician hired for entertainment prepare for the event, slightly bigger than usual wasps come out of an in ground nest quickly becoming a pest but no more than regular bugs. After the dinner guests arrive and start mingling, more and more wasps show up. Soon the mayhem starts as really big wasps take over and attack the guests, implanting their eggs in them which eventually burst out of their human hosts as even bigger wasps looking to attack anything that moves.

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We Are Still Here (2015) [FrightFest 2015]

Posted on September 9, 2015 by Emilie Black

FrightFest 2015

Anne and Paul Sacchetti lost their son to a car accident. In an effort to move on, they relocate to New England, to a quaint looking house made for a family. No sooner have they arrived do odd things start happening. Higher than normal heat in the basement, frames falling over, possible apparitions, … A few weeks into their living there, the Sacchettis are visited by the McCabe and are told that the house needs a family. As the phenomena multiply, Anne becomes certain it’s their dead son letting them know he’s there with them. To get to the bottom of this, she invites her friend May who is a medium to come spend a weekend and possibly try to reach her son. Once May and her husband Jacob arrive, something is clearly not right. One day, while May and Anne are out shopping, the men have a séance which turns very bad and is followed by all hell breaking loose.

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Hostile (2015) [Fantasia Film Festival]

Posted on September 4, 2015 by Emilie Black

FANTASIA FILM FESTIVAL

Two orphan sisters, Emilie and Anna, are taken in by Meredith who only wants to give them as good a life as she possibly can. Not long after the girls move in, odd and scary phenomena starts happening. The girls act out and Meredith calls a reality show, SOS Adoption, for help. Their host Chloe and her cameraman Chris come to stay with the girls while they send their new mom away. The odd events and the scare factor kick up a notch after she leaves. This is only exacerbated by the fact that Chloe thinks they might be facing a case of possession as she has seen one before.

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Five Essential Wes Craven Films

Posted on September 2, 2015 by Felix Vasquez

As a hardcore horror fan I cut my teeth on the films of John Carpenter, George Romero, and Wes Craven. They were just the trio of horror masters that were always there from the time I started exploring the horror world, and I always took them for granted as wizards of cinema that would always be there. Sadly our horror icons are mortal, and Wes Craven has passed on. His death will surely rattle the horror world for a long time, and that’s because Craven was an important face of the genre right until his death, and he’ll be important long after he’s died. We can take solace in the fact that Craven affected a ton of people, and will live on forever through his vast and unique library of horror films and thrillers.

True, he’d stumbled on occasion with films like “Shocker,” and “Cursed,” but when he was on point, he’d deliver a horror film that would change the entire genre for a long time. He did so through a ghost faced slasher, a clawed dream demon, and an exploitation film about psychotic hippies. Craven always seemed like such an affable and good spirited individual with a smile permanently plastered on his face. He seemed to enjoy creating horror films that would haunt us and make us think at the same time. It’s a shame we won’t see anything new from Craven anymore, but we can celebrate the diverse output of really interesting and often celebrated horror movies that continue to influence generations. With respect to the legacy of Wes Craven, these are five of his films that are essential viewing for any movie buff interested in horror 101.

Here’s to you, Wes. Thanks for entertaining us, scaring us, and enlightening us. May you rest in peace.

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The Walking Dead: The Complete Fifth Season [Blu-Ray/Digital]

Posted on August 26, 2015 by Felix Vasquez

One thing I love about “The Walking Dead” is that when they promise their season will open with a bang, they open with a bang that’s deafening and mind blowing. After season four’s more downbeat opening, season five hits the ground running and wastes absolutely no time exploring the effect the Governor’s raid on Rick’s prison sanctuary has had. After the big raid, every one of the group found themselves scattered all over the country, and desperately looking for safety through the promise of the mysterious Terminus. Much to Rick’s suspicion, Terminus is not the safe haven everyone is hoping for, and he, along with Carl, and Michonne find themselves trapped in a train car with the rest of their group. Meanwhile, Carol and Tyrese are with Judith on their way to Terminus before all roads collide and fate plays yet another hand.

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