R.I.P. Christopher Lee

I doubt we'll ever see an actor of his caliber again. 

The Horrors of William Shatner

Many of the Star Trek cast have appeared in horror movies, but none of them have been in more than William Shatner.

That's what you get for flying coah

Shatner’s first foray into horror was in a Twilight Zone episode.  “Nightmare at 20,000 feet”  has become a classic and was even remade in the 1983 Twilight Zone movie.  

His next horror role was not nearly as sucessful.  Incubus released in 1966 was doomed mostly because it was subtitled in English and spoken entirely in Esperanto.   Add in the fact it wasn’t a particularly good movie and it vanished quickly.  

1975’s The Devil’s Rain also starred John Travolta, Tom Skerritt and Ernest Borgnine as the devil.  The biggest marketing gimmick for the film was that Anton LaVey was a technical advisor.  LaVey was the high priest of the Church of Satan at the time.  The film was a staple on late night TV for years and  really deserves a good Blu-Ray release.  

Kingdom of the Spiders is another Creature Feature classic.  Filmed way before CGI the cast had to deal with thousands of real tarantulas.  This is a movie that can really creep out arachnophobes. 

 

Despite all of his horror film roles there was one thing in 1978 that cemented his place in horror history.  Tommy Lee Wallace used a cheap Captain Kirk mask and altered it into the now classic Myers mask.

Late Phases

There hasn't been a really good werewolf movie in a long time.  Thanks to Late Phases we have another classic.

The strength of the film comes from two areas.  One is the script by Eric Stolze.  Stolze takes a different direction than many werewolf movies. He keeps the action focused on one character, and you really get into his head this way.  The other is the performance of Nick Damici.  Damici really does a great job as Ambrose.  

It's also great to see a film that relies on practical effects instead of CG.  Be on the lookout for some cameos from famous faces of yesterday. 

This is on Netflix right now, but do yourself a favor and buy it. 

Underrated Horror

From time to time horror movies come along and they don't get the respect they deserve.  Sometimes this get remedied years later, but a few always take longer.  Here are two that I think deserve a second look from the horror community.

House of Wax.  Released in 2005 and although it shares a title with the 1953 Vincent Price film, that's all they have in common.  The biggest reason this movie got a bad rap was one of its stars.  Paris Hilton, while widely hated at the time, did a good job in the movie.  The films plot was actually more reminiscent of another underrated film Tourist Trap. While the movie doesn't really break any new ground, it's a well made and an effective horror film. 

 Dead Silence Under studio pressure to produce another horror film after SAW, James Wan and Leigh Whannell delivered this film.  This movie has several very creepy scenes. 

"Soon you'll be in more successful things"

Let's be honest, it's hard not to make a ventriloquist dummy creepy.  Not everything in it makes 100% sense, but it still works.  The ending is definitely a memorable one!

So take a second look at these and have an open mind when you do.  I think you'll be surprised.  

The horrors of Mega-Con

I went to Mega-Con in Orlando this weekend.  Here are some of the horror related Cosplays I saw and a couple of shots of Norman Reedus.

It Follows

At least it was a roomy backseat. 

I saw this last night and I really enjoyed it. I wouldn't say it was the scariest movie I've ever seen, but it was the most original concept.

It was shot beautifully, very reminiscent of "Halloween". There were lots of wide shots and it made you start scanning the background for things. 

The set design felt very real too, the houses actually looked lived in.  Many movies have perfect looking homes and it never quite feels real.  These are houses that have dirty walls, mismatched furniture and cluttered rooms. 

 My biggest complaint is that they never really got into the history of the creature. I wanted to know why it was doing what it does.

I've had worse dates honestly.

 The actors feel as real as the surroundings. These aren't the typical pretty teens who look like they came from a modelling shoot. Maika Monroe, who was amazing in "The Guest" continues to shine here. 

Writer/director David Robert Mitchell has earned a place in horror history with this one. 

The Taking of Deborah Logan

I wasn't keen on the idea of another found footage film, but I'm glad I took a chance on this one.

Written by Gavin Heffernan and Adam Robitel and directed by Robitel as well.  The pair did a great job with the story and Robitel creates some truly creepy imagery.

What distinguishes this from other found footage films is the story.  It's more than just people in the dark shouting.  The characters all have developed stories and don't behave in typical horror movie fashion.

Jill Larson does an amazing job in the titular role.  He transformation is amazing and terrifying.


This is a very impressive debut from Adam Robietl and I hope he does more in the horror genre.