The Flintstones Meet Rockula and Frankenstone (1979)

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I fondly remember renting “Meet Rockula and Frankenstone” quite often from our local videos store when I was a kid, and thankfully the movie genuinely holds up. Like all great comedy series, the Flintstones have had their share of crossovers, and this time they have the misfortune of meeting Dracula and Frankenstone. Or their stone age counterparts, as it were. While it’s not raucously funny as when Abbot and Costello met them, it’s a darn good short movie with the Flintstones doing what they do best.

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Alvin and the Chipmunks Meet the Wolfman (2000)

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I guess there’s not much you can do when you cross a children’s cartoon series with a monster traditionally known for mauling people to death. That said, “Meet the Wolfman” is probably the weaker pairing in the Chipmunks animated movies, mainly because the writers don’t do much with Laurence Talbot and his ability to transform in to the wolfman. It only makes sense the Chipmunks would eventually come across Laurence Talbot, but I think there could have been a much more entertaining result to come from his meeting them. Talbot is played more as a menacing presence that moves in next door from the Chipmunks.

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Scary Movie (2000)

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Keenan Ivory Wayans never really hit that high that he did with “I’m Gonna Git You Sucka!”, but it’s interesting to see that “Scary Movie” comes shockingly close to the same comedy gold that the aforementioned film did, many times. Brandishing the original title for Wes Craven’s “Scream,” Wayans and co. never quite hit the timelessness of “Airplane!” mainly because you didn’t have to see the original movies from “Airplane!” to understand its humor. With “Scary Movie,” however, you have to have an education in late nineties horror.

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Campfire Tales (1997)

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Urban Folklore and Legends have comprised some of the best tall tales and words of warning ever created. Often times they’re based on some grain of fact, and can serve as subtext for the dangers of premarital sex, and not talking to strangers. “Campfire Tales” from 1997 is one of the few anthology films that pulls from the catalog of urban legends and utilizes them to produce a pretty great horror film. Directed by a trio of talented filmmakers, “Campfire Tales” is one of the few anthology films that have shrunk away in to obscurity unfairly. In the gamut of anthology horror, “Campfire Tales” is a strong contender for one of the top ten. It’s shocking that the movie is barely discussed when good anthologies are discussed.

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Tales From The Crypt Presents: Bordello Of Blood (1996) – Collector’s Edition [Blu-ray]

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If there is a movie in the attempted “Tales from the Crypt” movie anthology series that feels like an extended episode of the original series, it’s surely “Bordello of Blood.” When you get down to it, there’s just so much more substance in “Demon Knight,” but Gilbert Adler’s “Bordello of Blood” seems to capture the zaniness and inherent silliness of the original television series, while also sticking to casting a lot of C grade character actors for the films’ respective roles. That’s not intended as a slight to the cast, but compared to “Demon Knight,” the cast of “Bordello of Blood” seem like second stringers. “Bordello of Blood” will satiate those that want the dark humor and menace of the series.

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Resolution (2013)

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One of my top ten films of 2013, it’s so refreshing to see indie filmmakers actually try to challenge the conventions of not just horror but of fiction altogether. A film like “Resolution” would easily be a terrible effort in the wrong hands, but the combined genius of Justin Benson, and Aaron Moorhead make it a success on every conceivable level. This is a more cerebral take on 2012’s “Cabin in the Woods,” where in the world visited by the viewer is very self-aware. In fact, “Resolution” is so much more aware of the audience and yet it still comes out a winner in the end.

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Contracted Phase II (2015)

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If you needed any clarification of what the end result of “Contracted” was, then “Phase II” pretty much shows all of its cards for its audience. That may either be a plus for the audience returning to see how the narrative unfolds, or a major missed opportunity for folks that appreciate some ambiguity. True, both films are in essence body horror movies, but they also transform in to brutally creepy and unique zombie films that rely on the grotesque nature of transforming in to the undead. Basically, “Contracted” builds on a more morbid and damaging form of disease transferred through bodily fluids that begin to take massive tolls on its victims.

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