‘There’s a new name for terror…’

Parents is a 1989 American black comedy horror film directed by Bob Balaban from a screenplay by Christopher Hawthorne. It stars Randy Quaid, Mary Beth Hurt, Sandy Dennis and Bryan Madorsky.

The film received a mixed response from critics and fared poorly commercially – grossing $870,532 in the US on a budget of $3 million – but has since developed a cult following.

On January 31, 2017, Parents is released on Blu-ray as part of the Vestron Video Collector’s Series. The following special features have been announced:

• Audio Commentary with Director Bob Balaban and Producer Bonnie Palef
• Isolated Score Selections/Audio Interview with Composer Jonathan Elias
• Four Featurettes:
• ‘Leftovers To Be’ with Screenwriter Christopher Hawthorne
• ‘Mother’s Day’ with Actress Mary Beth Hurt
• ‘Inside Out’ with Director of Photography Robin Vidgeon
• ‘Vintage Tastes’ with Decorative Consultant Yolando Cuomo
• Original Theatrical Trailer
• Radio Spots
• Still Gallery

Plot:

Ten-year-old Michael Laemle has moved with his parents Nick and Lily from Massachusetts to a new neighborhood in 1954 suburbia. As Michael is very socially awkward and also has an overly active imagination, he has trouble making friends at school. He is also prone to extremely weird dreams, such as dreaming that he has jumped into bed- only for it to collapse into a pool of blood.

Emotionally distraught from the move and the dreams, Michael is traumatized by accidentally viewing his parents having sex (he believes that he is seeing them biting into one another) and by viewing his father cutting into a corpse in the Division of Human Testing at Toxico, where Nick is developing a chemical defoliant (like Agent Orange) for use in jungles.

As time progresses, Michael begins to suspect that his parents are cannibals, after he discovers (or dreams that he discovers) body parts hanging on a meat hook in the basement…

Reviews:

“…it would have been very easy and much more profitable to follow the over-the-top wacky, campy route a la Eating Raoul. The fact that Balaban chose to remain so low-key, unrelentingly grim, and  blackly funny is something to be respected.” Jim Knipfel, Den of Geek!

“There is not enough weight or complexity to the material to justify the serious approach, and while the potential for considerable black comedy exists, Balaban only scratches the surface. The laughs never come.” Roger Ebert

Buy: Amazon.com

“A surprisingly perfect picture from first‑time director Bob Balaban (previously best-known as a mild-mannered character actor), this makes unsettling use of kitsch ‘50s suburban décor (kidney-shaped coffee tables), creepy‑comic performances and subversive ideas (the message is don’t trust your parents).” Kim Newman, Empire

“The satire of the 50’s is more bland than biting, dependent on authentically garish costumes and sets. And when the horror-film scenes begin to intrude on normal life (what is hanging from the cellar ceiling, anyway?) Mr. Balaban can’t make the dark elements seem comic enough to mesh with the rest of this nightmarish joke.” Caryn James, The New York Times

“Neither particularly witty nor horrific, Parents is simply a predictably boring product of its time, although cashing in on 1950s nostalgia in 1989 is the equivalent of releasing a disco record in 1979 — a day late and a dollar short.” Patrick Mitchell, The Film Yap

Buy: Amazon.com | Amazon.co.uk

Cast and characters:

• Randy Quaid as Nick Laemle
• Mary Beth Hurt as Lily Laemle
• Sandy Dennis as Millie Dew
• Bryan Madorsky as Michael Laemle
• Juno Mills-Cockell as Sheila Zellner
• Kathryn Grody as Miss Baxter
• Deborah Rush as Mrs. Zellner
• Graham Jarvis as Mr. Zellner
• Helen Carscallen as Grandmother
• Warren Van Evera as Grandfather
• Wayne Robson as Lab Attendant

Filming locations:

Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Wikipedia | IMDb

‘Love hurts.’

The Fiancé is a 2016 American bigfoot horror film written and directed by Mark Allen Michaels (Valentine DayZ; Mind Rage) and produced by Staci Layne Wilson (Fetish Factory) and Kate Rees Davies (Altered Perception) for Firebreathing Films.

Main cast:

Carrie Keagan, Dallas Valdez, Douglas Tait, Curt Lambert, Danni Lang, Staci Layne Wilson, Tony Snegoff, Kate Rees Davies, Dallas Valdez, Curt Lambert, Aaron Kai,  Ed Morrell, Robert Acres, Larz Yungbliut, Alison Roedel, Isaiah Waldron, Seamus Cattaneo.

Plot:

When a beautiful bride-to-be is bitten by the legendary creature, Bigfoot, she becomes a brutal force of nature hellbent on breaking her engagement – and her fiancé…

Reviews:

” …a fun, character driven take on the Bigfoot genre. It managed to feel fresh and new in a subject that has been done to death. If you like being able to invest a little bit more than face value in your horror films, then I highly recommend this Sasquatch flick with a twist.” Charlie Cargile, PopHorror.com

Interviews:

Carrie Keagan, Staci Layne Wilson and makeup artist Michelle Sforzo talk to Legion of Leia

Mark Allen Michaels talks to Redlands Daily Facts

Filming Locations:

Topanga Canyon, California, USA

IMDb | Twitter | Official site

‘There are some very good reasons to be afraid of the dark.’

Fright Night is a 1985 American horror film written and directed by Tom Holland (scriptwriter The Beast Within; Psycho II; Scream for Help, and future director of Thinner and Child’s Play).

The film was produced by Herb Jaffe (Nightflyers; Motel Hell; Demon Seed) and Brad Fiedel (The Terminator) provided the synth soundtrack score.

While writing the script for Cloak & Dagger, Tom Holland amused himself when he conceived the idea of a horror-movie fan becoming convinced that his next door neighbor was a vampire, but he didn’t initially think this premise was enough to sustain a story. “What’s he gonna do,” Holland asked, “because everybody’s gonna think he’s mad!”

In that era, many local TV affiliates in the United States had horror hosts (perhaps the most famous are Zacherle, Svengoolie, and the nationally syndicated Elvira), so Holland decided it would be natural for the boy to seek aid from his local host. “The minute I had Peter Vincent, I had the story. Charley Brewster was the engine, but Peter Vincent was the heart.”

The film was released on August 2, 1985, and grossed $24.9 million at the US box office; the second highest-grossing horror film of the year, surpassed only by A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy’s Revenge (interestingly, both share a homo-erotic sub-text). It was followed by a sequel, Fright Night Part 2 in 1988, and a remake in 2011, which was in turn followed by Fright Night 2: New Blood in 2013.

In 1989, the film was unofficially remade in India as Amavasai Iravil (“Moonless Night”). Set at Christmas time, this version mirrors the original film, but the Peter Vincent character’s occupation was changed to a priest.

Between 1988-1993, NOW Comics published twenty-seven Fright Night comic books. The original film was adapted as the first two issues of the series.

Buy Blu-ray: Amazon.co.uk

Plot:

Seventeen-year-old Charley Brewster is a fan of both traditional horror films and a horror TV series entitled Fright Night, hosted by former movie vampire hunter Peter Vincent. One evening, Charley discovers that his new next door neighbour Jerry Dandrige, is a vampire responsible for the disappearances of several victims. Charley tries to tell his mother and asks his friends for help.

In desperation, he contacts the police, but they believe that he is imagining things and ignore his claims after he reveals his suspicions to them when he accompanies a homicide officer to Jerry’s house.

That night, Charley gets a visit from Jerry, who offers Charley a choice: forget about his vampire identity – or else. Charlie refuses, brandishing his crucifix at Jerry. When Jerry stops Charley and slowly tries to push him out the window to his death, Charlie stabs Jerry’s hand with a pencil. Enraged, Jerry destroys Charley’s car in retaliation and informs Charley that he will do much worse to him later…

Buy: Amazon.com

Reviews:

“McDowall’s performance is wickedly funny, and he must have enjoyed it, chewing the scenery on his horror-movie program and then chewing real scenery down in the vampire’s basement. Fright Night is not a distinguished movie, but it has a lot of fun being undistinguished.” Roger Ebert

“Chris Sarandon is terrific as the vampire, quite affable and debonair until his fingernails start to grow and his eyes get that glow. William Ragsdale superbly maintains due sympathy as a fairly typical youngster who can’t get anybody to believe him about the odd new neighbor next door.” Variety

“Holland embraces the most hackneyed vampire mythologies out of respect for the institution, but innovates upon them with wry humor and fresh makeup designs. Jerry’s vampire form transforms from a swingin’ ‘80s player to a red-eyed, grotesque faced creature heralding vamps from The Lost Boys and From Dusk Till Dawn.” Brian Eggert, Deep Focus Review

“The special effect are fantastic. Its all in camera, from the glory days before anyone, never mind George Romero and pals, would use CG for blood splatter. They’re gruesome, convincing and in one particular scene involving Evil Ed, help to convey deep compassion for a monster.” Kyle Scott, The Horror Hotel

“Perhaps the best of the 1980s vampires-in-the-‘burbs flicks makes fine use of all the conventions of the sub-genre and combines them with first-rate effects.” Mike Mayo, The Horror Show Guide

Buy: Amazon.com | Amazon.co.uk | Amazon.ca

“It’s dotty, a little ragged (particularly in Stephen Geoffery’s overbearing buddy who gets a vampiric makeover) and fairly tame in the shock department, but it has a wining guile. Holland injects a light tribute to the forgotten joys of traditional horror movies, the enthralling fantasy of vampires, werewolves and Frankenstein’s monster.” Ian Nathan, Empire

Buy: Amazon.com

Choice dialogue:

Peter Vincent: “Nobody wants to see vampire killers anymore, or vampires either. Apparently all they want are demented madmen running around in ski masks hacking up young virgins.”

Cast and characters:

• Chris Sarandon as Jerry Dandrige
• William Ragsdale as Charley Brewster
• Amanda Bearse as Amy Peterson
• Roddy McDowall as Peter Vincent
• Stephen Geoffreys as Edward “Evil Ed” Thompson
• Jonathan Stark as Billy Cole
• Dorothy Fielding as Judy Brewster
• Art J. Evans as Detective Lennox

Wikipedia | IMDb

‘Making a killing. One client at a time.’

Fear, Inc. is a 2016 American dark comedy horror film directed by Vincent Masciale (The Walking Fred) from a screenplay by Luke Barnett. It is a feature length version of their 2014 short of the same title.

Main cast:

Lucas Neff, Caitlin Stasey, Chris Marquette, Stephanie Drake, Mark Moses, Abigail Breslin, Richard Riehle, Patrick Renna, Naomi Grossman, Eric Lange, Ronnie Gene Blevins, David Ury, Ashlynn Yennie, Marlon Young.

Plot:

A horror junkie and his friends sign up with a company that brings their customer’s greatest fears to life…

Reviews:

” …the movie nails the contradictory mindset of the horror viewer, while hilariously double-, triple- and quadruple-bluffing the reality effects that lovers of scary movies crave to give their horror ‘edge’.” Anton Bitel, Sight & Sound

“Self-awareness isn’t a friend to Fear, Inc. It’s far more effective as a sly offering of ghoulish encounters, packing in all the gore and dread it can handle. Masciale and Barnett treat it as more of a goof, watering down scares and blowing a perfectly fertile premise about a potentially eventful, twisted Halloween night.” Brian Orndorf, Blu-ray.com

“Director Vincent Masciale attempts to out-meta heavyweights such as Cabin In The Woods, but his self-serving plea to genre lovers comes across as more desperate than inspirational.” Matt Donato, We Got This Covered

“Director Vincent Masciale clearly scored one great location (the fancy house), and uses it to its maximum potential, which is the dream of all budding auteurs. Yet he fails to make it look all that interesting. The best visual flair comes in the masks the Fear, Inc. stalkers wear…” Luke Y. Thompson, Nerdist

“By my count, the film manages at least five ties to wrench the audience from one false sense of certainty to another, but by number three, you just don’t care anymore. In this case, familiarity just breeds tedium.” Piers Marchant, Pop Matters

“The film is in on its own joke enough for us to go with the goofy hijinks. The kills are all based on other movies, many of which were referenced in Scream. While Scream settled for showing its characters watching Halloween, Fear, Inc is actually referencing the movies that the movie that referenced the movies references and recreating those classic scenes.” Fred Topel, We Live Film

IMDb | Official site

‘Upset the head… and you’re dead!’

Head of the Family is a 1996 American comedy horror film directed by co-producer Charles Band [as Robert Talbot] (Puppet Master: Axis Termination; Evil Bong; Crash!) from a screenplay by Neal Marshall Stevens [as Benjamin Carr] (Thir13en Ghosts; Hellraiser: Deader; The Killer Eye), based on Band’s storyline.

Full Moon Entertainment is releasing the film on Blu-ray on December 20, 2016.

A sequel, Bride of the Head of the Family, has been announced more than once but it has never been produced. Meanwhile, the film has spawned various items of merchandise such as t-shirts, mugs, mouse mats and resin figures.

Main cast:

Blake Adams (The Killer Eye; Lurking Fear), Jacqueline Lovell (The Killer Eye; Hideous!), Bob Schott (Fear), James Jones, Alexandria Quinn,Gordon Jennison Noice, J.W. Perra, Vicki Skinner, Robert J. Ferrelli, Bruce Adel, Gary Anello, Dyer McHenry, Rob Roeser, Steven Novak, Van Epperson.

Plot:

Howard (Gordon Jennison Noice) is the meanest nastiest thug in town, a criminal with a hot wife Loretta (Jacqueline Lovell). Loretta’s problem is she’s having an affair with Lance (Blake Adams), owner of the town diner and Howard’s getting suspicious.

Driving back from one of their nightly flings, Lance witnesses the local family of weirdos, the Stackpools, dragging a man from his truck and into their house. Seeing this as an opportunity, Lance discovers the Stackpools’ terrible secret.

They are quintuplets but instead of being born as a normal human, they each have one of the traits of one human being: One is extremely strong; one has extremely well-developed senses; one is extremely attractive (Alexandria Quinn); and, one is extremely intelligent.

The whole family is run by the one who has super intelligence, the ‘head of the family’ from the title, Myron (J.W. Perra). Little more than a giant head with hands in a wheelchair, Myron psychically controls his other siblings, but seeks more…

Reviews:

“Lovell is treated to a tongue-on-flesh scene that posits her as Full Moon’s ’90s-era Barbara Crampton, participating in what is easily the most unnerving nipple licking ever committed to 35mm. This scene alone makes Head of the Family worth a watch for any self-respecting Full Moon fan; it’s the perfect synthesis of the grotesque and softcore that the company does so well.” Ike, Yell! magazine

“It’s not likely to become any movie buff’s favorite piece of cinema ever, but it has a fun story, some good practical effects (the makeup job on Myron is quite a piece of work, as are a few of the surgery-aftermath applicatons), a decent script, and plenty of Grade-A nudity to boot.” Mad Mad Mad Mad Movies

“The inadequate financing apparently prevented the filmmakers from even using real fire during the finale, leaving far too much to the imagination – so much, in fact, that nothing appears resolved, as if the story just tapers off with no clear conclusion. Nevertheless, the dual lack of plausibility and clothing, mixed with a few bits of outrageously accidental humor, make this cult film a perversely erotic, strangely worthwhile watch.” Mike Massie, Gone with the Twins

Wikipedia | IMDb | Image credits: Yell! magazine

Another Evil is a 2016 American supernatural comedy horror film written and directed by Carson Mell. It stars Steve Zissis, Mark Proksch, Jennifer Irwin, Dax Flame, Dan Bakkedhal, Steve Little, Mariko Munro.

The film debuted at the SXSW Film Festival on 12 March 2016 and is being distributed by Raven Banner.

Plot:

After encountering a ghost in their vacation home, Dan (Joey Lee) and his wife Mary (Jennifer Irwin) consult an exorcist. Unsatisfied with the verdict, Dan goes behind his wife’s back to seek a second opinion, and secretly hires Os (Mark Proksch) who promises to get rid of the beings.

Os and Dan spend a week together in the vacation home exorcising the “EFD” (Evil Fully Determined) beings, but Dan soon realises that ridding the home of evil won’t be as simple as it seems…

Reviews:

“Nothing else this year can match Another Evil for its expert chills, comic dialogue, Office-level cringe and disturbing themes. A film where character differences and social awkwardness are as much the sources of ill-ease as any demonic activity, Mell has made richly textured work operating on numerous levels. It’s a seriously impressive directorial debut.” Martyn Conterio, Cine Vue

“Beautifully written, funny and awkward, this plays like Patrick Brice and Mark Duplass’s Creep (2014) for ghostbusters, and leaves viewers to unpack for themselves where (if anywhere) the evil promised by the title lies.” Anton Bitel, Sight & Sound

“Another Evil is somewhat unpredictable and nicely played, but so low-key that the comedy as well as everything else feels almost too modest for feature scale; it has the throwaway, anecdotal tenor of a droll short. It doesn’t bore, but at 90 minutes it lacks the kind of heft, hilarity or other assertive quality that render its pleasant-enough progress memorable.” Dennis Harvey, Variety

” …finds room for both absurd comedy and sincere character work. The film moves smoothly between truly frightening beats, laugh out loud dialogue, and some painful observations on a pitiful life, and in doing so it stands well apart from its typical haunted house brethren.” Rob Hunter, Film School Rejects

“Mell’s script does a terrific job of keeping the plot off-kilter between comedy and horror. It is certainly two-thirds in favor of the latter, but even as it reaches its climax it is left to each viewer whether they should be laughing or horrified at the antagonist’s initiative. Or is he the protagonist? That’s just part of the fun of this often hilarious oddity.” Erik Childress, RogerEbert.com

IMDb

‘Work can be killer’

Office Uprising is a 2017 comedy zombie horror film directed by former stuntman Lin Oeding. It stars Brenton Thwaites (Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales; Oculus), Jane Levy (Monster Trucks; Don’t Breathe; Evil Dead), Karan Soni (Ghostbusters), and Zachary Levi.

Set inside one of the world’s leading arms manufacturers where a substance is slipped into the employees’ drinks by the board of directors that supposedly makes them work more efficiently.

Due to a slacker within the company, though, they are fed the wrong formula and start turning into homicidal maniacs — leaving the slacker needing to step up his game to rescue himself and his friends from the growing zombie plague inside the company compound…

Main cast:

Brenton Thwaites, Jane Levy, Karan Soni, Ian Harding, Sam Daly, Zachary Levi, Alan Ritchson, Mickey Gooch Jr., Stephen Oyoung, Acorye’ White, Morgan Lindholm, Roger J. Timber, Fred Minix.

Filming locations:

Birmingham, Alabama, USA

IMDb

‘Filled with sweet revenge’

Killer Piñata is a 2015 American comedy horror film about a possessed piñata. It was directed by Stephen Tramontana from a screenplay co-written with Megan MacManus.

The film will be released on Blu-ray, DVD, and VHS on January 18 via LC Films. Special features include:

• Audio commentary
• Deleted/extended scenes
• Bloopers

Meanwhile, the film is already available online via Amazon.com

Main cast:

Lindsay Ashcroft, Nate Bryan, Billy Chengary, Sheila Edmiston, Elvis Garcia, Daniel Hawkes, Eliza-Jane Morris, Davinia Palmer, Steven James Price, Joette Waters, Nick Weeks.

Plot:

A possessed piñata, seeking to avenge the savagery that humanity has inflicted on his kind, picks off a group of friends, one by one, in an unending night of terror…

Reviews:

“The laughs are few, the smiles are more frequent, the occasional wit is apparent, and the run-time is long enough to show the weaknesses of the filmmakers; it should have been cut down by an hour or so, removing the excesses and leaving a tighter, funnier, and more satisfying half-hour to forty-five minute short…” Ben Spurling, HorrorNews.net

” …the whole enterprise is so unassuming and good-humoured that it’s easy to forgive its many failings, even though it does commit a few of what I would consider cardinal sins of no-budget schlock horror: for one thing, it outstays its welcome just a little at a full 90 minutes in length…” Ben Bussey, Brutal As Hell

IMDb | Facebook | Official site

‘The rubber that rubs you out !!!’

Killer Condom – original title Kondom des Grauens (translation: “Condom of Horror” – is a 1996 German horror comedy based on the comic book of the same name by Dylan Kenyon.

The film was directed by Martin Walz and featured Kurt Scobbie as its special effects coordinator. Artist H.R. Giger (Species; Alien) was a creative consultant. It was distributed in the United States by Troma Entertainment.

Image courtesy: www.unzeit.de

Plot:

New York City: Gay detective Luigi Mackeroni (Udo Samel) has been hired to investigate a series of bizarre attacks at the Hotel Quickie in which male guests have all had their penises mysteriously bitten off.

Whilst at the crime scene, he enlists the services of a gigolo named Billy and invites him up to the crime room. Before the two men engage in sex, a carnivorous living condom interrupts them and bites off Mackeroni’s right testicle.

Now on a personal vendetta, Mackeroni begins his lone quest to not only bring a stop to the rash of condom attacks, but also face his true feelings toward Billy the gigolo…

Image courtesy of VHS Wasteland

Reviews:

‘One part crime drama, one part comedy, one part ultra-low budget horror movie (dig the cardboard cut out of a nurse float pass the door in the hospital) and one part gay movie. That’s right, this certainly isn’t a movie for everyone. If you have a problem with seeing naked guys together, you best leave right now and not look back.’ IGN

“The carnivorous contraceptive, which admittedly shares some similarities to Giger’s work on the sandworm from Dune, has teeth like a lamprey and makes cartoon sound effects as it squirms around … Killer Condom is not your average B-movie, but if you’re looking for something a bit different, it definitely is awfully good.” Jason Adams, JoBlo.com

” …we still have the danger of AIDS this is a film that is willing to show you the dangers of carnivorous condoms. On top that this film poke fun at the stereotypes of macho men and action hero’s. Also the film has a nice gritty sleaze feel to it being full of hookers, perverts and religious fanatics.” HorrorNews.net

Wikipedia | IMDb

‘Trapped in time. Surrounded by evil. Low on gas.’

Army of Darkness – aka Bruce Campbell vs. Army of Darkness – is a 1992 American comedy horror film directed by Sam Raimi from a screenplay co-written with Ivan Raimi. It was co-produced by Robert Tapert and Bruce Campbell. It stars the latter and Embeth Davidtz. Principal filming took place in California during 1991.

It is the third entry in the Evil Dead franchise, following The Evil Dead (1981) and Evil Dead II (1987). In it, Ash Williams (Campbell) is trapped in the Middle Ages and battles the undead in his quest to return to the present.

The makeup and creature effects for the film were handled by two different companies: Tony Gardner and his company Alterian, Inc. were responsible for the Ash & Sheila Makeup Effects, while Kurtzman, Nicotero & Berger EFX Group was credited for the remaining Special Makeup Effects characters.

Danny Elfman, who composed the score for Darkman, wrote the “March of the Dead” theme for Army of Darkness. Joseph LoDuca, who composed the music for The Evil Dead and Evil Dead II, scored the remainder of the film.

Army of Darkness premiered on October 9, 1992 at the Sitges Film Festival, and was released in the United States on February 19, 1993. It grossed $21.5 million against a $11 million budget.

Buy: Amazon.co.uk

The S-Mart ending was shot for the American release; Universal Pictures wanted to end the film on a high note for the character of Ash. The original ending, preferred by Raimi and Campbell themselves, is one in which Ash is shown being placed in a cave and given a potion which will put him to sleep for centuries. Echoing his experience in botching the recovery of the Necronomicon, Ash mishandles the specific instructions for the potion, accidentally taking an extra dose. Ash awakes and arises from his cave to find himself in a post-apocalyptic future, in which the city of London is in ruins. The original ending has subsequently been restored to the director’s cut of some releases.

Over the years, there were numerous rumours of an Army of Darkness 2 film being in development but Ash finally returned in the wonderful 2015 TV series Ash vs Evil Dead, with no mention of his medieval adventures in the first series due to copyright reasons.

Opening plot:

Being transported to the Middle Ages, Ash Williams is captured by Lord Arthur’s men, who suspect him an agent for Duke Henry, with whom Arthur is at war. He is enslaved along with the captured Henry, his gun and chainsaw confiscated, and is taken to a castle.

Ash is thrown in a pit where he kills a Deadite and regains his weapons from Arthur’s Wise Man. After demanding Henry and his men be set free, as he knew it was a witch hunt, and killing a Deadite publicly, Ash is celebrated as a hero. He grows attracted to Sheila, the sister of one of Arthur’s fallen knights.

According to the Wise Man, the only way Ash can return to his time is through the magical Necronomicon Ex-Mortis. Ash then starts his search for the Necronomicon. As he enters a haunted forest, an unseen force pursues Ash into a windmill, crashing into a mirror. Small reflections of Ash in the mirror shards come to life, with one becoming a life-sized clone, after which Ash kills and buries it.

When he arrives at the Necronomicon‘s location, he finds three books instead of one and determines which is the actual book. Attempting to say the phrase that will allow him to remove the book safely – “Klaatu barada nikto”, he forgets and tries to unsuccessfully mumble and cough “nikto”. He then grabs it and rushes back, while the dead and his evil copy resurrect, uniting into the Army of Darkness…

Buy: Amazon.co.uk

On October 27, 2015 Shout Factory! released a Collector’s Edition Blu-ray with the following special features:

Disc One (Theatrical Version – 81 min.) – 1080p High-Definition Widescreen (1.78:1), DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 & 2.0
-Medieval Times: The Making Of “Army Of Darkness” Featuring Interviews With Star & Co-Producer Bruce Campbell, Actors Marcus Gilbert, Ted Raimi, Timothy Quill, Richard Grove, Bill Moseley, Patricia Tallman And Angela Featherstone, Director Of Photography Bill Pope, Editor Bob Murawski, Production Designer Anthony Tremblay, Composer Joseph Lo Duca, Costume Designer Ida Gearon, Special Make-Up Effects Artists Howard Berger, Tony Gardner, Robert Kurtzman, And Greg Nicotero, Performer And Effects Artist William Bryan, Mechanical Effects Artist Gary Jones, First Assistant Director John Cameron, Visual Effects Supervisor William Mesa, and Stunt Coordinator Christopher Doyle (96 min.)
-Original Ending
-Original Opening with Optional Commentary By Sam Raimi And Bruce Campbell
-Deleted Scenes with Optional Commentary By Sam Raimi And Bruce Campbell
-Theatrical Trailer
-TV Spots
-Home Video Promo

Disc Two (Director’s Cut – 96 min.) – 1080p High-Definition Widescreen (1.78:1), DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 & 2.0
-Audio Commentary with Director Sam Raimi, Actor Bruce Campbell, and Co-Writer Ivan Raimi
-Additional Behind-The-Scenes Footage From KNB Effects (55 min.)
-Vintage “Creating The Deadites” Featurette (21 min.)
-Vintage “Making Of” Featurette
-Extended Interview Clips With Sam Raimi, Bruce Campbell, and Robert Tapert

Disc Three (International Cut – 88 min.) – 1080p High-Definition Widescreen (1.78:1), DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 & 2.0
-4K Scan Of The International Inter-positive
-Television Version With Additional Footage (90 min., Standard Definition (1.33:1), DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0)
-Theatrical Trailer
-Still Galleries With Rare Behind-The-Scenes Photos From Production Designer Anthony Tremblay, Visual Effects Supervisor William Mesa And Special Make-Up Effects Artists Tony Gardner, and KNB EFX, Inc. (Over 200 Stills)
-Still Gallery Of Props And Rare Photos From The Collection Of Super Fan Dennis Carter Jr.
-Storyboards For Deleted Or Alternate Scenes
-Vintage “The Men Behind The Army” Featurette (19 min.)

Buy: Amazon.com

Reviews:

The setting is Frank Frazetta by way of Monty Python, the action strictly Three Stooges Meet Jason and the Argonauts (lots of eye-boinking). Like Brian De Palma, Raimi borrows from a lot of sources but mooshes the stolen elements into an inspired style all his own … Raimi doesn’t have a thing on his mind except to give you a raucous good time, and he does.” Rob Gonsalves, eFilmCritic.com

“With its glorious effects — not to mention a robust Bernard Herrmann-esque score by Joseph LoDuca — this film is first and foremost a tribute to Ray Harryhausen, though Raimi also finds room for shout-outs to William Shakespeare, The Day the Earth Stood Still and especially The Three Stooges.” Matt Brunson, Creative Loafing

Buy: Amazon.com

” …unlike Raimi’s other Evil Dead flicks, the effect of all this cinematic wizardry has no unnerving cumulative effect … Without the visceral impact and maniacal energy of its predecessors, Army of Darkness fails as anything but a tongue-in-cheek kids’ adventure show.” Steve Newton, Ear of Newt

” …as this is mainly a comedy, its accomplishments there must also be mentioned. Aside from the numerous one-liners that are still often quoted to this day, just about as much of the comedy is physical as well. Great examples include a long portion of the film’s second act in which Ash is questing for The Necronomicon. It basically becomes a one-man show… Jeff Beck, The Blu Spot

“…the film spends its latter portion staging a prolonged battle between militias of men and skeletons that’s short on inspiration and urgency, and thus serves only to highlight Raimi’s clever (for the early ‘90s, at least) melding of live-action and stop-motion effects. By opting for gonzo mania over any element of unnerving otherworldly terror, the film proves just a throwaway goof, and ultimately one with an inflated sense of its own funniness.” Nick Schager, Lessons of Darkness

Buy: Amazon.co.uk

The film spawned a comic book series. Army of Darkness comics are based on the film of the same name published originally by Dark Horse Comics, and later by Dynamite Entertainment who initially published them through Devil’s Due Publishing. The stories follow the adventures of the Evil Dead series, Ash Williams, and has included a number of crossovers with a wide variety of characters such as, Marvel Zombies, Darkman, Freddy Krueger, Jason Voorhees, Dracula, Xena, Danger Girl, Re-Animator and even Barack Obama.

Cast and characters:

• Bruce Campbell as Ash Williams/Evil Ash
• Embeth Davidtz as Sheila
• Marcus Gilbert as Lord Arthur
• Ian Abercrombie as Wise man
• Richard Grove as Duke Henry the Red
• Timothy Patrick Quill as Blacksmith
• Michael Earl Reid as Gold Tooth
• Bridget Fonda as Linda
• Patricia Tallman as Possessed witch
• Ted Raimi as Cowardly warrior/Second supportive villager/Anthony, the S-Mart clerk
• Angela Featherstone as S-Mart store girl
• Noah Gillispie as Pit Monster

Filming locations:

Bronson Canyon, Vasquez Rocks Natural Area Park, and near Acton, on the edge of the Mojave Desert, California

Wikipedia | IMDb | Image credits: Wrong Side of the Art!

Prevenge is a 2016 British comedy horror film written, directed by and starring Alice Lowe (Sightseers; The Ghoul; The World’s End; Kill List; Hot Fuzz).

Ruth is a pregnant woman on a killing spree. Her misanthropic unborn baby dictates Ruth’s murderous actions, holding society responsible for the absence of a father. The child speaks to Ruth from the womb, coaching her to lure and ultimately kill her unsuspecting victims.

Struggling with her conscience, loneliness, and a strange strain of prepartum madness, Ruth must ultimately choose between redemption and destruction at the moment of motherhood…

The Gennaker/Western Edge Pictures production will be released in the UK on 10 February 2017 via Kaleidoscope Film Distribution.

Main cast:

Alice Lowe, Jo Hartley (Inbred), Dan Renton Skinner (The Ghoul; High-Rise), Gemma Whelan (The Wolfman), Kayvan Novak (Doctor Who), Kate Dickie (The Frankenstein Chronicles; Prometheus; The Witch), Tom Davis, Mike Wozniak, Tom Meeten, Eileen Davies, Grace Calder, Sara Dee, Leila Hoffman, Marc Bessant, Della Moon Synnott.

Reviews:

” …while Prevenge delivers cult thrills and devilish humour, Lowe is adept at probing the existential darkness of her protagonist … However, all the while, there is a glint in her eye – a thrill, no doubt shared by Lowe, of subverting expectations, of stepping out from behind the sanctified image of the glowing mum-to-be, and embracing a transgressive madness.” Michael Leader, Sight & Sound

“Prevenge is a breathtaking, savage debut from Alice Lowe, one that boasts horrific moral deprivation and a sense of humor drenched in maternal madness … Sympathy, fear, admiration, doubt – those are just a handful of the emotions Lowe so emphatically conveys on-screen, and they explosively combine for the film’s final, absolutely perfect closing frame.” Matt Donato, We Got This Covered

“Having both a really rough-and-ready cinematography and quite a shaky filming style, there seems a very conscious effort to place Prevenge within a proud tradition of low-budget British slasher fiction … it definitely feels like a film that seems destined to become a cult classic.” Thomas Humphrey, Screen Anarchy

” …a neat, often very funny, but in many ways bleak psycho thriller of brooding maternal fear that embraces an alternative look at established roles of motherhood and pregnancy in its own violent manner and its great to see the British genre scene producing surprising and original, often transgressive work.” James Pemberton, UK Horror Scene

IMDb

‘Terror is relative’

Caesar and Otto’s Paranormal Halloween is a 2015 American comedy horror film written and directed by Dave Campfield. It is the sixth film in the Caesar and Otto series.

The film references The Exorcist, The Amityville Horror, Paranormal Activity, Sinister, Insidious, The Conjuring and many more.

Main cast:

Dave Campfield, Paul Chomicki, Ken MacFarlane, Deron Miller, Scott Aguilar, Avi K. Garg, Samantha Barrios, Josephine Iannece, JamieLee Ackerman. Scream queens such as Felissa Rose, Brinke Stevens, Tiffany Shepis, Monique Dupree, and Debbie Rochon have cameo roles.

Plot:

Half-brothers Caesar and Otto live out some of horror’s most terrifying scenes when they agree to house-sit a home filled with ghostly visions, levitating objects and possessions…

Reviews:

“While Paranormal Halloween is yet another funny and clever look at the wacky brothers that happen to walk into a horrific situation time and time again, Campfield also provides a biting satire on Hollywood, and the ongoing struggle of the horror filmmaker to keep up with trends and gain some success out of an ever fickle audience.” Felix Vasquez, Cinema Crazed

“Goofball parody humour isn’t everyone’s thing, but at the very least there’s some heart and thought behind much of the gags. I did have a problem with the use of unnecessary characters and scenes, all of which could’ve easily been left on the cutting-room floor, as they interrupted the pacing.” Pat Torfe, Bloody Disgusting

” …this isn’t some lame sub-Scary Movie comedy that thinks just referencing something makes it a joke. Dave crafts funny gags out of this intertextuality and self-referentiality, weaving it into the character-based farce that is the brothers’ lives.” MJ Simpson, Cult films and the people who make them

Buy: Amazon.com | Amazon.co.uk

Cast and characters:

• Dave Campfield as Caesar Denovio
• Paul Chomicki as Otto Denovio
• Scott Aguilar as Fred Denovio
• Deron Miller as Father Jason Steiger
• JamieLee Ackerman as Kyla
• Beverly Randolph as Shari Hartlin
• Brinke Stevens as Sashi
• Josephine Iannece as Gilda
• Ken Macfarlane as Jerry
• Samantha Barrios as Roberta
• Felissa Rose as Lakota
• Tiffany Shepis as Jamie tremain
• Andre Gower as Sam Wellner
• Vernon Wells as Guy Hunsinger
• Sean Whalen as Monsignor Winston

Filming locations:

13780 Rayen Street – Arleta, California, USA

Wikipedia | IMDb

‘The world will quake in fear’

Arachnoquake is a 2012 American made-for-television horror film directed by prolific Griff Furst (I Am Omega; Wolvesbayne; Mask Maker; Lake Placid III; Swamp Shark) from a screenplay by Eric Forsberg (Ghost Shark; Mega Piranha; Snakes on a Train) and Paul A. Birkett (Night Wings; Haunted High; Hellhounds).

The Active Entertainment production premiered on the Syfy cable television channel on 23rd June 2012.

Main cast:

Megan Adelle (Straw Dogs), Gralen Bryant Banks (Beast of the Bering Sea; American Horror House), Paul Boocock, Edward Furlong (The Zombie King; Brainscan), Tiara Ashleigh, Tracey Gold, Bug Hall, Olivia Hardt, Grant James, Ethan Phillips, Lucky Johnson, Earl Maddox.

Plot:

A massive earthquake unleashes hordes of fire-breathing albino spiders and they embark on a murderous rampage through New Orleans. Worse still, some of the spiders are becoming bigger and bigger…

Buy: Amazon.com

Reviews:

“While the effects aren’t as terrible as the usual Syfy CGI, the are certainly cheesy enough to laugh at. That’s the point though. This isn’t a movie that was made to be serious. This was made to be fun and it really is a success on that factor. It’s one of those rare B-movies that is just as enjoyable without a group of drunk friends making fun of it.” Dead Derrick’s Horror Movie Reviews

“Unrealistic endings are commonplace in films, but the plan which eventually brings down the spiders is perhaps the most ridiculous in the history of motion pictures … Arachnoquake has its problems, but if you’re searching for the worst film ever you won’t find it here. You might even enjoy it, so it back and prepare for 86 minutes of jumping, fire-breathing mayhem.” Alex Morrison, That Film Guy

“It’s broad, dumb, obvious, and (almost) entirely predictable. It’s nothing more than yet another Saturday night cable TV time-filler, and it’s quite possibly the silliest movie you’ll see all month — and yet, if you’re a monster movie enthusiast (and I’m guessing you are), you may just find a few stray threads of relative amusement here.” FearNet

Buy: Amazon.co.uk | Amazon.com 

“In the wake of Speed and The Faculty, there are few bus-based action possibilities that have not been explored, and Arachnoquake doesn’t even try. Things perk up briefly during a doomed attempt to defend a supermarket with bug spray, and there’s an entertaining water-based chase, but little else to get excited about.” Jennie Kermode, Eye for Film

IMDb

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Related entries: Arachnoquake | Big Ass Spider! | Curse of the Black Widow | The Giant Spider Invasion | Highgate Cemetery | In the Spider’s Web | Kingdom of the Spiders | Mesa of Lost Women | Nude for Satan | This Night I’ll Possess Your Corpse | The Web of Fear: A Brief History of Spider Horror Cinema

Matinee is a 1993 comedy film directed by Joe Dante (Burying the Ex; Trapped Ashes; Gremlins; The Howling; Piranha) from a screenplay by Jerico Stone (My Stepmother Is an Alien) and Charlie Haas (Gremlins 2: The New Batch; Martians Go Home), the latter also portraying a schoolteacher.

The film is an ensemble piece about a William Castle (13 Ghosts; The Tingler; Mr. Sardonicus)-type independent filmmaker, with the home front in the Cuban Missile Crisis as a backdrop.

Joe Dante has said that the financing of the movie was difficult:

“Matinee got made through a fluke. The company that was paying for us went out of business and didn’t have any money. Universal, which was the distributor, had put in a little money, and we went to them and begged them to buy into the whole movie, and to their everlasting sorrow they went ahead and did it. [Laughs.]” (the film took $9,532,895 at the box office in the United States)

Main cast:

John Goodman (Kong: SkullIsland; 10 Cloverfield Lane; Arachnophobia), Cathy Moriarty (Casper; White of the Eye), Simon Fenton, Omri Katz, Lisa Jakub, Robert Picardo and Kellie Martin. Genre regulars Dick Miller and Kevin McCarthy have cameo roles.

A then-unknown Naomi Watts (Shut In; King Kong; The Ring) has a small role as a character in film within the film, The Shook-Up Shopping Cart.

Opening plot:

In Key West, Florida in October 1962, boys Gene Loomis (Fenton) and his brother Dennis (Lee) live on a military base (N.A.S. Key West); their father is away on a nearby submarine.

After hearing the announcement of an exclusive engagement of Lawrence Woolsey’s (Goodman) new sensational sci-fi horror film Mant! (“Half man! Half ant!” “in Atomo-Vision and Rumble-Rama!”), including Woolsey’s appearance in-person, they arrive home to President Kennedy’s television interruption, stating the presence of Soviet missiles in Cuba.

Woolsey concludes that this atmosphere of fear and paranoia is the perfect environment in which to open his atomic-radiation-themed film…

In the UK, the film was released on Blu-ray by Arrow Video on 12th September 2016

Buy: Amazon.com

• High definition digital transfer supplied by NBC Universal
• Lossless stereo audio
• Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
• Paranoia in Ant Vision, a discussion with director Joe Dante about the making of the film
• Mant!, the full length version of the film-within-a-film
• Discussion with Joe Dante on the effects of Mant!
• Vintage making of featurette
• Rare on-set footage, sourced from Joe Dante’s personal collection
• Original theatrical trailer
• Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Graham Humphreys

Reviews:

“Joe Dante has always been a clever, witty and subversive film-maker, and Matinee is one of the best of his films to display these talents. His love for the cinema of the period means that Mant!, our film-within-a-film is spot-on for a 1950s monster movie…” John Llewellyn Probert, House of Mortal Cinema

“There are a lot of big laughs in Matinee, and not many moments when I didn’t have a wide smile on my face” Roger Ebert

“The scenes from “Mant”, shot in black and white, that Dante and Haas have cooked up are some of the best movie satires on film. It’s not easy to parody a genre that’s already close to self-parody but the filmmakers triumph again and again. Actors such as Kevin McCarthy turn up in cameos for that all important deja-vu effect, and the special-effects are imperially tacky.” Peter Rainer, Los Angeles Times

“Matinee, which devotes a lot of energy to the minor artifacts of American pop culture circa 1962, is funny and ingenious up to a point. Eventually, it becomes much too cluttered, with an oversupply of minor characters and a labored bomb-and-horror-film parallel that necessitates bringing down the movie house…” Janet Maslin, The New York Times

“The charm of Matinee, a witty and affectionate homage to the sci-fi trash of yesteryear, is that director Joe Dante (Gremlins) appreciates both the tackiness and the awe.” Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly

“At the same time that Dante has a field day brutally satirizing our desire to scare ourselves and others, he also re-creates early-60s clichés with a relish and a feeling for detail that come very close to love.” Jonathan Rosenbaum

“Dante’s movie is a romp, no doubt, but its nostalgia is a heartier variety than what we usually get, and it leaves us with an undercurrent of uneasiness that is unusual for a genre most often content enough to look back through amber. Woolsey’s words resonate for every youngster who has searched for reasons to explain their attraction to the scary side of cinema and memories of the places where those images were first encountered, but in Matinee there’s another terror with which to contend, one not so easily held at bay.” Sergio Leone and the Infield Fly Rule

Interview:

Director Joe Dante interviewed by Glenn Erickson for DVD Savant

Buy Ghouls, Gimmicks and Gold: Horror Films and the American Movie Business, 1953 – 1968
 Amazon.com | Amazon.co.uk

Music:

The original score was composed by Jerry Goldsmith (Poltergeist; Alien; The Omen).

Several cues from previous films were also used, arranged and conducted by Dick Jacobs, including music from Son of Dracula (1943); It Came from Outer Space (1953); Tarantula (1955); The Deadly Mantis (1957); This Island Earth (1955), Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954); Revenge of the Creature (1955); The Creature Walks Among Us (1956).

Cast and characters:

• John Goodman as Lawrence Woolsey
• Cathy Moriarty as Ruth Corday / Carole
• Simon Fenton as Gene Loomis
• Omri Katz as Stan
• Lisa Jakub as Sandra
• Kellie Martin as Sherry
• Jesse Lee as Dennis Loomis
• Lucinda Jenney as Anne Loomis
• James Villemaire as Harvey Starkweather
• Robert Picardo as Howard, the Theater Manager
• Jesse White as Mr. Spector
• Dick Miller as Herb Denning
• John Sayles (writer of Alligator; The Howling; Piranha) as Bob
• David Clennon as Jack
• Lucy Butler as Rhonda
• Belinda Balaski as Stan’s Mom
• Naomi Watts as Shopping Cart Starlet

Wikipedia | IMDb

Ghastlies is a 2016 American comedy horror film directed by Brett Kelly (My Fair Zombie; Homicycle; Jurassic Shark) from a screenplay by Chris Bavota (shorts: Never Tear Us Apart; Attack of the Brainsucker; After Ate).

The film stars Kim Valentine (Monster Pool: Chapter Two), Kendra Summerfield (Raiders of the Lost Shark), Jessica Huether, and Julie Racine.

Four sorority sisters accidentally unleash a trio of ghastly ghouls from an underground bunker during a weekend getaway in the country…

Main cast:

Kim Valentine, Kendra Summerfield, Jessica Huether, Julie Racine, Eric Deniverville, Joel Elliot, Kyle Martellacci, John Migliore (The Drownsman; Bite; Poltergeist Encounters; et al), Janet Hetherington, Peter Whittaker, Jurgen Vollrath, Kyle Martellacci.

IMDb | Facebook

‘Some people are the death of the party’

Garden Party Massacre is a 2017 comedy horror film written, co-produced, directed by and starring Gregory Blair (Deadly Revisions).

A gathering of friends goes seriously awry when an uninvited guest appears. With a pick-axe. And an attitude…

Gregory Blair commented: “I love films that successfully walk that line between horror and comedy, whether it’s witty and referential like Scream or giddy low camp like Army of Darkness.”

The film is currently in post-production via Pix/See Productions.

Main cast:

Andy Gates (My Haunted House; Haunting of Cellblock 11; Zombies in the Basement), Nichole Bagby, David Leeper, Douglas Green, LeJon, Lise Hart, Art Roberts, Gregory Blair, Tiffani Fest, Marv Blauvelt, Dawna Lee Heising, Matt Weinglass,  Audrey Mitchell, Carrie Jones, Sam Ghazi, David Biber, C.J. Gilmore, Raymond Vinsik Williams, Susan Land, and Olivia Land.

IMDb | Official site | Facebook | Twitter

‘We suck at this’

Atlanta Vampire Movie is a 2017 comedy horror film directed by Giles Shepherd (Ace the Zombie: The Motion Picture) from a screenplay by Wiley McCain.

Carmilla (Chelsea Howard) inadvertently infects Ron (Carl W Childers), Fang (Elena House), and Corey (Jevocas Green) with her vampirism.

While attending a support group recommended by Dr. Acula (Stan Bowman) for what is thought to be a medical condition, the three connect back with Carmilla and learn the truth of their new existence.

Cast out by Martin (Edward Solis) and the old vampires, pursued by the determined Eddie Van Helsing (John Johnson), Ron and Carmilla seek to maintain some humanity and lead their menage through the challenges of vampire life in the modern world…

The film is currently in post-production.

IMDb | Facebook

‘Love hurts…’

Psychos in Love is a 1987 American black comedy horror film produced, edited, photographed and directed by Gorman Bechard (Galactic Gigolo; Cemetery High; Disconnected) from a screenplay co-written with Carmine Capobianco. The latter provided the Casio CZ synth score and also co-stars.

The $75,000 movie was filmed on 16mm. Some scenes were improvised and the fourth wall is broken.

Joe (Carmine Capobianco), a bartender in a strip joint, and Kate (Debi Thibeault), a manicurist, meet after trying to find a significant other for a long time. They share a hatred for grapes and are both murderers.

Before meeting Kate, Joe murdered many women after bringing them to his home. A cannibal plumber, Herman (Frank Stewart), blackmails the serial killers…

Buy: Amazon.com | Amazon.co.uk | Amazon.ca

Main cast:

Carmine Capobianco (Model Hunger; The Sins of Dracula; I Spill Your Guts), Debi Thibeault (Cemetery High), Cecelia Wilde (Pledge Night), Robert Suttile, Lum Chang Pang, Danny Noyes, Herb Klinger, Wally Gribauskas, Peach Gribauskas, LeeAnne Baker (Mutant Hunt; Breeders; Necropolis), Michael Citriniti, Angela Nicholas (The Domicile), Eric Lutes (Legend of the Mummy; Legion of Fire: Killer Ants!), Ed Powers.

Reviews:

“Although at times the pacing is sluggish and only about half the jokes are funny, it does have a zany originality […] While certainly not for the squeamish, Psychos in Love does have a certain grotesque charm and may achieve a minor sort of cult status among fans of the bizarre.” TV Guide

“This critic didn’t like this movie when he first saw it back in the late ’80s, and nothing has changed since then. He didn’t find it funny, inventive, or scary.” Bill Gibron, DVD Talk

“There’s really not much of a plot to Psychos in Love but there is a lot to enjoy. The film’s humor hits most of its marks, never taking itself too seriously, however several running gags, such as the grape monologue, quickly wear out their welcome. The lead actor’s self awareness, that they are characters in a low budget slasher picture, also tends to cause more confusion than it does laughter.” Jason McElreath, DVD Drive-In

” …on top of being funny, gory, and, of course, sexy, it’s got a sweet and tender side. I don’t know why I’m acting all surprised; after all, the word “love” is in the freaking title. It’s just that I was genuinely moved by the film’s love story…” House of Self Indulgence

“It’s a black comedy, obviously, that owes more than a little debt to Paul Bartel’s 1982 Eating Raoul, minus that film’s smugness. But hands down the reason it works is due to the natural chemistry of stars Carmine Capobianco and Debi Thibeault.” Mike Watt, Fervid Filmmaking: 66 Cult Pictures of Vision, Verve and No Self-Restraint

Buy: Amazon.com | Amazon.co.uk | Amazon.ca

” …does a great job of successfully combining elements of horror and comedy perfectly. A lot of horror comedies have trouble pulling this off but that wasn’t the case with Psychos in Love. The humor is actually very funny (I loved the rants that Joe and Kate both have about their hatred of grapes, the excellent musical montage, and  thought the scene at the video store was nothing short of priceless)…” Todd Martin, HorrorNews.net

“This is a really clever, funny, quick-paced, well acted indie flick that never takes itself seriously and knows exactly what kind of movie it is.” Anything Horror

“Psychos in Love is exceptionally well-made for an amateur feature too. The editing is excellent, with the pace moving quickly through the film’s many murder segments. The first clue that it’s more than just your average horror film are the very funny interview segments in black & white that seem quite prophetic in the current reality TV obsessed culture.” Silver Emulsion Film Reviews

“Chintzy synth music, a topless new wave chick, non sequitur monologues to the camera, even a theme song… if you’re in the right frame of mind, it doesn’t get better than this.” Nathaniel Thompson, DVD Delirium Volume 4

Buy: Amazon.co.uk | Amazon.com | Amazon.ca

Choice dialogue:

“Grapes? Grapes? I hate grapes. I loath grapes, all kinds of grapes. I hate purple grapes, I hate green grapes, I hate grapes with seeds, I hate grapes without seeds, I hate them peeled and non peeled; I hate them in bunches, one at a time, or in small groups of twos and threes. I f*cking hate grapes!!”

Release:

The film was released on VHS in 1987, distributed by Wizard Video. It was released on DVD by Shriek Show, a division of Media Blasters, in 2009. The special features include commentaries, a behind the scenes look at the film’s production, multiple beginning credits, longer scenes, the film’s trailer, a picture gallery, and parts of the 2003 stage production.

Filming locations:

Goshen, Hartford, Naugatuck, Waterbury and Watertown, Connecticut, USA

Buy: Amazon.com | Amazon.co.uk | Amazon.ca

Wikipedia | IMDb | Official site |

Image thanks: HorrorNews.net | Silver Emulsion Film Reviews

The Munsters Today is an American TV comedy series that aired in syndication from October 8, 1988 to May 25, 1991. It was a sequel to the original 1960s sitcom The Munsters.

The colour revival starred John Schuck (as Herman), Lee Meriwether (Lily), Howard Morton (Grandpa), Hilary Van Dyke (Marilyn) and Jason Marsden (Eddie), and broadcast 72 episodes from October 8, 1988, to May 25, 1991, giving it more first-run episodes than the original series.

The pilot explained the 22-year gap following the original series by showing the family as they were in 1966 when an accident took place; the family then proceeds to wake up in 1988.

The series lasted three seasons on syndicated television, and proved popular with international audiences. It was created following a failed attempt to revive the show with most of the original cast (Fred Gwynne, Al Lewis and Yvonne De Carlo) in the 1981 NBC telefilm The Munsters’ Revenge. Gwynne turned down the chance to reprise his role as Herman, while Lewis was apparently unhappy at not being asked to return as Grandpa.

Season One (1988–89)

• “Still the Munsters After All These Years” (Pilot) – Grandpa creates a “Sleeping Machine” which makes the user fall asleep for a selected amount of time. While the victim is asleep, his/her age does not change. The machine was tested on the entire family. When Grandpa sets the dial for 30 minutes and shuts the door, a flash of light and a falling beam change the dial to “Forever.” Twenty-two years later, a developer named Mr. Preston (Dave Madden) and his assistant want to buy the Munsters’ home and turn it into a parking lot. Mr. Preston and his assistant are exploring the house. Mr. Preston forces his employee to search Grandpa’s lab; after getting tangled in spider webs he knocks the dial to “off.” The Munster family awakens to the world of 1988. They all struggle to find their way in the strange new era.
• “Vampire Pie”- Herman decides to enter a baking contest, using an old family recipe. Too bad there was an ingredient Grandpa forgot…
• “A Little Russian Dressing”
• “Flyweight Champion of the World”- After being bullied, Grandpa mixes Eddie a strong-man formula, that inflates Eddie’s ego as well as his muscles
• “Magna Cum Munsters”- After feeling useless for not being asked questions in his home, Herman takes night school, which leads him to the fourth grade: in Eddie’s class
• “Designing Munsters”
• “Farewell, Grandpa” – Grandpa is in big trouble when the family finds out he forgot to get a green-card when he came to the country. After Herman breaks him out, only an invisibility potion can save them
• “Corporate Munsters” – Stock that Herman bought many years ago has accumulated so much that he holds a position in the business. However, he debates keeping the job when it conflicts with Eddie and the Father/Son day
• “Herman The Astronaut”
• “Rock Fever”
• “Professor Grandpa”
• “Say Ahh”
• “A Hero Ain’t Nothin’ but a Cereal”- After saving a kid, Herman becomes a hero. When a cereal company offers him a deal, he accepts. But once he finds out the cereal is a flop, will he keep on endorsing it?
• “Computer Mating”- Grandpa gets a new girlfriend after feeling lonely. But after finding out his girlfriend has buried a large amount of husbands, Herman and Lily fear for Grandpa’s life
• “McMunsters”
• “One Flu Over The Munster’s Nest”
• “Green Eyed Munsters”- Herman gets jealous when Lily’s teacher takes up too much of her time. Will he win her back?
• “The Not So Great Escape”
• “Two Left Feet”
• “Lights, Camera, Munsters” – Marilyn gets to make a movie for a project, while the family debates what type of film she should do. Meanwhile, Eddie is doing poor in school, causing panic for the teacher when a parent teacher conference is in order
• “Neighborly Munsters” – With new neighbors next door, everyone tries to make a good impression, while the wife tries to do everything to get a fancy pool in her yard (which would dig into the Munster’s) except talk with them
• “Munster Hoopster” – Eddie wants to take up basketball, so that Herman can brag about him. Only one problem: he can’t sink a shot!
• “Don’t Cry Wolfman” – When two burglars hide the fortune in the Munster house, they were asleep. Now that they are awake, they devise a plan: one would pretend to be one of them. Unfortunately, he comes into the Munster’s ways, and even saves them. In the end, the ‘wolfman’ burglar, and the Munsters all vote to return the money
• “The Howling”
• “Eau De Munster” When the town wants to demolish Munster Moore for a museum, Herman tries to put a stop to it. Only one problem: Grandpa accidentally got him with a love potion, which take effect on the woman running the idea

Season Two (1989–90)

• “Three Hundred Something”
• “No Place Like Home”
• “Raging Hormones”
• “Murder in Munster Land”
• “Trail”
• “It’s A Wonderful Afterlife”
• “The Eyes Have It”
• “It’s a Sad, Sad World”
• “Melting Pot”
• “Once in a Blue Moon”
• “Drac The Ripper”
• “Gateman and Son”
• “Reunion”
• “Pants on Fire”
• “Munstergeist”
• “Never Say Die”
• “It’s a Baby”
• “Tell’em Herman Sent You”
• “Thicker Than Water”
• “Misadventures in Time”
• “Will The Real Herman Munster Please Stand Up?”
• “Deadlock”
• “Take This Job and Shovel It”
• “That’s Gratitude”

Season Three (1990–91)

• “The Silver Bullet”
• “The Reel Munsters”
• “Wishing You Were Here”
• “Three Munsters and a Baby”
• “It’s My Party and I’ll Die If I Want To”
• “Makin’ Waves”
• “Just Another Pretty Face” (remake of an original episode from the 1960s series)
• “Kiss, Kiss”
• “Mind Reader”
• “No More Mr. Nice Guy”
• “A House Divided”
• “A Matter of Trust”
• “Large”
• “Genie from Hell”
• “Lotsa Luck”
• “If I Only Knew Now”
• “Beating of Your Heart”
• “Parenthood vs. Childhood”
• “Das Trunk”
• “A Camping We Will Go”
• “Breaking the Chain”
• “Diary of a Mad Munster Wife”
• “The Bet”
• “Family Night”

Wikipedia | IMDb | Related: The Munsters: TV series, movies, spin-offs and merchandise – article by David Flint

‘A murder a day keeps the landlord away!’

Homebodies is a 1974 American black comedy horror film directed by Larry Yust from a screenplay co-written with Howard Kaminsky and Bennett Sims. It was distributed in the United States by Avco Embassy Pictures.

The film features a cast of veteran actors, including Ian Wolfe, Ruth McDevitt (Kolchak: The Night Stalker), Peter Brocco (The Killing Kind), and Douglas Fowley. The plot centers on elderly residents resorting to murder to protect their condemned Cincinnati building…

Reviews:

“This film is one part social commentary and one part horror film. The murderous impulses of these octogenarians are at once comical and repulsive and the graphic depiction of the gruesome acts, while minimal is effective. The deeper, melancholy message about how we dispose of our aged is also on full display.” The Obscurity Factor

“This quirky film doesn’t quite hit all the marks, but still remains a unique example of a multi-layered black comedy in a market that was increasingly dominated by teenage body count movies and flicks about demented hillbillies.” Brian Albright, Regional Horror Films, 1958 – 1990

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“The subsequent mayhem is depicted with humour, nicely controlled tension, and – somehow – with dignity. Towards the end, the group’s leader (76-year-old Paula Trueman, a saner version of Ruth Gordon) gets carried away into excess, and the film goes off the rails with her. But on balance it’s remarkably convincing.” Geoff Brown, Time Out London

“By making the old folks multiple murderers the film sacrifices credibility as a morality tale, but it gains instead a wit and irony that would have perhaps amused Hitchcock, and should certainly appeal to those who appreciate black comedies such as Arsenic and Old Lace and The Ladykillers.” Stephen Thrower, Nightmare USA

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” …topnotch production values (on what appears to be a modest budget), an inventive script which manages to combine grisly black humour, gripping suspense and genuine pathos, crisp direction and superb character performances all round.” The Aurum Film Encyclopedia: Horror

Cast and characters:

• Peter Brocco as Mr. Blakely
• Frances Fuller as Miss Emily
• William Hansen as Mr. Sandy
• Ruth McDevitt as Mrs. Loomis
• Paula Trueman as Mattie
• Ian Wolfe as Mr. Loomis
• Linda Marsh as Miss Pollack
• Douglas Fowley as Mr. Crawford
• Kenneth Tobey as Construction Boss

Filming locations:

Cincinnati, Ohio, USA

Wikipedia | IMDb | Image thanks: The Obscurity Factor | Temple of Schlock