Mike's Ten Best Screeners & Unreleased Horror Films of 2011

One of the greatest pleasures of co-hosting this site and film series in Boston has been looking for "the-next-big-thing". The underground/independent films are the ones constantly pushing the boundaries of horror with young and hungry upstarts driven by passion rather than the bottom line. This year we found a number of films took common horror tropes (zombies, haunted houses, kids stuck in the woods) that took the ordinary and twisted it on its ear. Filmmakers like Drew Bolduc proved the spirit of John Waters gross outs are alive and well in this overly cautious and PC era.  Richard Marr Griffin is a Roger Corman for modern times, cranking out low budget films that rank higher on the entertainment scale than movies with fifty times the resources. Midwest filmmaker Patrick Rea took the tongue in cheek humor cribbed from EC comics that he infuses with his short films and turned out one of the best kids-in-peril thrillers of the year.

Listed below are the ten best independent/unreleased films that landed in my mailbox this year. With any luck, these hidden gems will populate "The Big Guys" best-of lists in 2012. For our top-ten wide release films of the year check out our link here.

10.Kiss The Abyss (from Mike's original review)Watching Kiss The Abyss, I couldn’t help but catch references to other classic stories. The film has Shakespearian overtones, not only with its theme of star crossed lovers, but also in a powerful patriarch’s inability to loosen his grip on his family, and how it ends up costing him everything. The movie also recalls O Henry’s The Money’s Paw in ways that will seem obvious once you see the film...Kiss The Abyss works because of its restraint. It focuses more on the relationships between its characters and provides a pair of human monsters whose evil far outstrips that of its central creature. It works in moments that keep the audience off kilter, and it benefits from strong performances across the board.  It’s a different sort of indie horror-where a lesser film would focus on the blood and gore, Winkler’s much more interested in exploring what really makes a monster.(read full review)

9. Seeking Wellness (from Mike's original review) I have to give writer/director Daniel Scheidkraut a lot of credit for this film. Yes, it’s artsy experimental cinema, and your own mileage will vary depending on your tolerance for such things. That said, we watch movies in order to become enthralled in the experience. I watch horror for many reasons. One is to be entertained, but there’s also that side that wants to be repulsed and shocked yet unable to tear myself away from the proceedings. Aside from the surreal nature of the final classroom scenes, Scheidkraut coaxes natural performances from his players, lending a realistic edge to the bizarre, almost dreamlike quality of the film.(read full review)

8. The Taint (from Mike's original review) When a film opens up with black and white images zoomed in on ladies' breasts then immediately has our main character interrupted mid-coitus and chased down by a dookie-dropping, sickle-wielding psychopath who has his cock exposed through shit stained onesie pajamas, you get a fairly good idea from the outset what kind of time you're in for. Drew Bolduc's low budget opus The Taint manages to be equal part hilarious and offensive by providing the kind of film the retarded love child birthed by John Waters and David Cronenberg would create. (read full review)

7. Fugue (from Mike's original review) Fugue follows Paranormal Activity’s lead as a ghost story that removes the paranormal from its traditional gothic trappings and evokes a sense of dread in the normally safe confines of a suburban home. The flashbacks and ghostly snippets make for some outstanding scares. In particular, the moments Charlotte finds herself trapped in a garage and unable to shake the feeling that something has set its sight on her. Stepansky lights this scene in spectacular fashion as the camera pans around Charlotte, she’s perfectly silhouetted in pitch black. It’s a moment that should have audiences holding their collective breath, waiting for something to jump out of the shadows.  Though the house seems sunny and well lit (and as a fun bit of trivia-it’s Ms. Stepansky’s actual home) the walls seem to constrict themselves around Charlotte as the film progresses. (read full review)

6. The Disco Exorcist (from Mike's original review) This is the second film I’ve seen from genre director Richard Griffin in a month, and like Atomic Brain Invasion, Griffin displays a remarkable knack for recreating the era of movie making he’s paying homage to here. That said, the two films are wildly different in tone, with Brain Invasion playing out as family friendly fare for those of us that got bitten by the horror bug while glued to the boob tube watching Creature Double Feature, and The Disco Exorcist recreates the seedy, cum-filled low budget gore fests that would fit nicely on a triple bill on 42^nd street...Disco is a horror comedy with a heavy emphasis on the funny. Actually, The Disco Exorcist veers more towards seventies adult films rather than horror for much of its runtime. I can’t emphasize this point enough: there is a shit ton of fucking in this film. As Romanski, Reed gets to do more plowing than the city of Boston municipal services between the months of December and March.  (read full review)

5. Absentia (from Mike's original review) All the above is well and good, but you’re reading a horror film site, not a family drama site. If Absentia didn’t deliver in the scares department, it would be a failure. Thankfully Absentia is equally strong in this department. In place of false jump scares are quick bursts where Daniel’s “ghost” pops up in unexpected places (the closet scene made me jump out of my seat). This gives ways to deeper, unsettling terror that taps into our primal fear of feeling unsafe and helpless in our own homes. Watching the film from the comfort of my sofa, I found the need to pause it midway through in order to deadbolt the front door and take a quick breather. (read full review)

4.Exhumed (full review coming soon)The second of Richard Griffin's two films on the list, Exhumed is a completely different beast than the lighter, comedic flair shown in previous films The Disco Exorcist and 50's matinee inspired sci-fi romp Atomic Brain Invasion. Filmed in black and white, Griffin packs the film with stark yet gorgeous images, and nearly any moment could be paused, printed and framed as a work of art. The story of the last, damaged remains of a doomsday cult sets the viewer's teeth on edge with a slow burn of unsettling images and situations, then punctures any sense of normalcy with outbursts of extreme violence. Indie stalwart Debbie Rochon and stage actor Michael Thruber add gravitas to their roles as parental figures in a dwindling "family". Exhumed has received a pair of pre-release screenings locally and will make its way through special screenings and festivals throughout the early stages of 2012.  (Exhumed Facebook page)

3. I Didn't Come Here To Die (from Mike's original review) IDCHTD is one of the more enjoyable horror comedy romps I’ve had the fortune to stumble upon in a long while. What sets the film apart is Sullivan’s sense of whimsy among the carnage. IDCHTD takes a situation played out often in horror-“A group of sex starved young adults head out into the woods only to wind up in pieces”-and twists conventions ever so slightly on their ears. Instead of a masked psychopath, our crew meets their makers due to poor judgment, panicked and sloppy decision making and a blatant disregard for one’s surroundings.  The best moments in IDCHTD play out in a vein similar to the Final Destination series, except instead of a chain of microscopic occurrences setting off a domino cataclysm, our volunteers might still be around if they abided by the old expression “look before you leap”. (read full review)

2. Nailbiter (full review coming soon) This was one of my most anticipated films heading in to the year, and the screener did not disappoint. This is simple story telling at its finest: a mother and her three daughters get escape a fast moving tornado only to discover they're not alone in their storm shelter.it's an old school monster movie with beautiful practical effects and creature design that makes the most out of it's mostly one location shoot. Kendal Sinn crafts a script that delivers a believable and likable family, and Meg Saricks teenage Jennifer reminded me of Sarah Michelle Gellar at the height of her Buffy days.   What's funny is the light, almost breezy pace of the film until it takes an unexpected dark turn at the start of the third act. I think I might have done a double take on my sofa with a 'What the...did that thing just...?' It's always a pleasure when you think a movie is moving towards one conclusion, only to find out you're on a completely different ride, and it's best to just shut up, hang on and enjoy it. (Nailbiter Facebook page)

1. Ashes (from Mike's original review)In a lesser film, Stanton would be the caricature of a mad doctor, imbued with a God complex and paranoia that bring about his eventual downfall. In the case of Ashes, Matar’s script and Krause’s dynamite performance imbue the doctor with decency. This is the case of a man wanting to do the right thing that allows his self confidence to bring about his downfall. The film takes great pains to show the doctor working himself to exhaustion at the expense of his own health and personal life. Even when he’s with his wife (the knockout Sierra Fisk) and daughter his attention keeps wandering back to the breakthrough he’s on the threshold of. (read full review)

What Did Our Favorite Horror Personalities Find Under Their Tree?

On behalf of Chris, here’s hoping all our readers had themselves a very Merry Christmas. With the holidays in full bloom it has been a bit slow around these parts. Speaking for myself, I thoroughly enjoyed spending my first full Christmas season with wife and daughter, and that left little room for writing. Don’t worry though, things are about to get back to normal, and the following week we’ll be putting a bow on 2011. First, let’s take one last moment to suck in the holiday, and reflect on what I hope a few of certain horror personalities find in their Christmas stocking tomorrow morning.

Tom Six- A new idea. While I enjoyed the novelty of the first Human Centipede, and Dietrich Laser ‘s mad scientist was one to add to the pantheon, the second film is nothing more than an exercise in excess. It’s a big “fuck you” to fans and critics surprised at how tame the first actually was. Featuring getting chiseled out of mouths and faces stapled to asses in up close and personal detail but a fat, mute midget isn’t my idea of a good time. There’s no doubting Six has talent and can market an idea. Let’s see him develop something new instead of carrying on with this franchise.

Ashlynn Yennie Conversely, I’d like to see the middle section from the first film and head of the second (now that’s movin’ on up like the Jeffersons!) get a chance to display her talents in something that doesn’t require someone’s mouth to be sutured to her bunghole.

Wes Craven & George Romero- A gold watch. Some circles debate whether Craven deserves the title of “Master of Horror”, but anyone with Last House on the Left, The Hills Have Eyes, A Nightmare on Elm Street and the first Scream film on their resume has earned the rank.  However, his recent output demonstrates a skill set on the decline. My Soul To Take is a convoluted, ugly and unwatchable mess. Scream 4 is good for a view, but it’s ultimately a weightless film whose attempts to skewer modern horror conventions come up feeble when compared to the first entry. As for Uncle George, seeing his name atop Deadtime Stories served as a reminder that it’s been a long, long time since Day of the Dead.  Perhaps it’s times for these luminaries to step away from the camera before their reputation suffers further.

John Carpenter One more masterpiece. By all accounts The Ward, Carpenter’s first feature in over a decade, is no great shakes. I’m holding out hopes that the project-for-hire was simply a matter of shaking off the cobwebs, and the man that brought us Halloween, The Thing and Escape From New York has one more crown jewel left.

AJ Bowen A role that makes him a household name. From A House of the Devil to The Signal to his bang-up performance in A Horrible Way To Die, Bowen is often the best thing on screen in anything he appears. However, part of the downside of starring on smart, character driven indies is your film gets shown on a handful of screens if you’re lucky and only the horror diehards get to appreciate this guy’s talent. Here’s hoping the Lionsgate Film’s hotly anticipated home invasion film You’re Next will provide him the wider audience he deserves.

Richard Marr Griffin For Murder University to get the funding it’s asking for. The director of The Disco Exorcist, Atomic Brain Invasion and upcoming thriller Exhumed is fast becoming a modern day Roger Corman. His films are fast, cheap to make and highly entertaining. His upcoming horror comedy is a gimmick free affair looking to take the horror comedy back to school. By the way, you can help make this Christmas wish come true by clicking the link in our sidebar and making a contribution. 

The Soska Sisters For American Mary to make the twins household names. Their feature film, Dead Hooker In A Trunk comes out stateside on DVD courtesy of IFC Midnight soon. The follow up takes a darker turn that the fun, 42^nd St cinemas inspired romp. I for one am excited to see what they come up with when they have more money to play with beside what they can redeem from cashing in a vanload of empty soda cans.

Sam Raimi For a visit from the Ghost of Deadites Past that will show him handing the reigns over to an untested director, doing away with Ash and moving from Three Stooges inspired slapstick towards a darker story that focuses on a girl’s struggle with drug addiction does not make for an Evil Dead film. It’s time for the most nattily attired director in Hollywood to take the reins back on his baby and bring Bruce Campbell and his chin back for the ride as well. 

So you Got An iPad For Christmas: Must Have Horror Themed Apps

Maybe you’ve got a rich uncle that loves to blow wads of cash on you or maybe you’re fleet of foot and sticky of finger and managed to outpace mall security or maybe Santa just plain overlooked what a rotten bastard you were all year (cat fur is VERY difficult to clean out of the blender you know) but somehow you’ve wound up with a shiny new iPad under the Christmas tree this year.  Of course your first question as a horror fan is what are the best apps to put on that gorgeous ten incher. After playing around with my own (stop it) for a couple of weeks, I’ve come up with a handful of apps that any horror fan should download right away. 

The Rue Morgue App 

Among the monthly periodicals, Canada’s rue Morgue stands head and shoulders above the rest. In the age of instant news online, magazines needed to reinvent themselves, and no one gives you more in depth coverage and well thought out and researched articles than RM. The app allows you to download current and back issues of Rue Morgue directly to your iPad. Even better, the  app saves you 50% off the newsstand cover price as each issue is only $4.99 to download. Even shrunken down to the iPad screen size the font is easy to read and the photos, art and layout look gorgeous on the screen. If your eyesight isn’t what it used to be, double tapping the screen allows you zoom in with no loss of resolution or detail.  The app download comes with a free digital copy of issue 100 for those that want to give it a spin.

The Walking Dead 

With the ratings success of the AMC television series, it’s no surprise that the source material is tearing up the New York Times Bestseller lists . While I’m resigned to the fact that I watch the show out of a sense of obligation as a horror fan and it’s one of the rare programs that’s not about true crime involving gruesomely murdered husbands with large life insurance policies that my wife enjoys, there’s no denying the power of Kirkman’s never ending zombie tale. At 92 issues (including 15 soft cover collections) and counting readers need to reserve a lot of space on the bookshelf. This app acts as a comic book store allowing you to purchase individual issues for $1.99 a pop (a 33% savings) or trade paperbacks for $9.99 each (also a 33% savings). New readers can download the first issue free.

Zombie Exodus and Vampire As a child of the 80’s I have nothing but love for the old Choose Your Adventure books. These free text-based role playing games bring back warm memories of opening the door to the right and falling down a worm hole where the flesh is rent from my bones over the course of 1,000 agonizing years. The first game finds you in the middle of a zombie outbreak. Your sister is lost somewhere in the city and it’s up to you to find her. The second game spans nearly 200 years and finds the player taking on the role of a newly created vampire. The games are ongoing and in need of new chapters, but it’s fun customizing your character and playing through the scenarios a different way each time.

Netflix Not so much for the ability to stream titles directly to your 10” screen (though the movies do look awesome) as for the newly updated GUI.  Horror fans can dig DEEP into the Instant offerings with the category broken down in to sub categories including B-Movies, Gory flicks, camp and classic horror, foreign horror, slashers and Satanic fare and more. I added about two dozen titles to my queue that I failed to see on any of my other devices capable of surfing the instant catalog. Movies can be added directly to your instant queue or watched right away.   

The Horror! Trivia Game 

This is a nifty little game for a couple bucks. It consists of screen shots and artist renditions from famous horror films and the player is in a race against the clock to rack up right answers and points. I’m within 8 points of the high score, and knowing I’m that close is getting me a little twitchy on my answer finger. My one complaint is it seems every third screen shot is from The Shining. We get it. It’s a great film. Let’s try to fig a little deeper.

Retro Horror TV Granted, this one’s not much more than a fancy skin stretched around a YouTube feed for public domain horror movies. But if you remember your Grandma’s TV-the one with rabbit ears that pulled in two stations and had knobs instead of a clicker for control-then this app will bring a smile to your face. There’s even an analog dial that allows users to “adjust” the image for snow and retro television ads (everyone I’ve seen contains some variation of young boys playing ‘Cowboys & Indians’). To call the selection of films cheesy would be an insult to the great state of Wisconsin but for a free download (spending a $1.99 gets you a commercial free version) this will put a smile on your face.

These are a handful of apps I’ve been playing with so far. I haven’t touched gaming on the iPad, but the $1.99 special on an Evil Dead game (it looks like you control a bobble head version of Ash) is tempting. 

The Best Horror of 2011 Part One

At first blush 2011 wasn't a great year for horror fans. The year started with a whimper as warmed over and watered down "horror-lite" in the form of The Roommate and Red Riding Hood failed to excite audiences. The remake train kept chugging along, except with all the heavy hitter franchises over and done with, studios scrambled to remake anything with a "name" attached to it rather than try to come up with ideas on their own. The results were box office poison. After four months of  no wide releases, August saw a new film dumped onto 3,000 screen each week, yet no one reminded audiences to show up. Final Destination 5, Shark Night, Apollo 18 and Fright Night 3D all under performed and the abysmal Creature set box office lows for attendance per screen.

Yet if you look a little deeper, this was a banner year for the genre. New advances in streaming technology and video on demand services allowed companies like Magnet and IFC Midnight to release high quality genre films throughout the year to rabid fans flat screen TVs. Independent theaters looking for an edge gave high quality indies theatrical screens. James Wan and Leigh Whannel proved once again you don't need to throw 50 million dollars on screen to scare audiences with the spectacular haunted house gem Insidious. Redbox allowed patrons picking up a quart of milk and a stick of butter to add festival favorites Bereavement and A Horrible Way To Die to the shopping cart (these films are consistently sold old every time I check). For a pittance of a budget, newcomer Jason Eisner out-Grindhouse-d Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez and introduced the phrase "Welcome to Fucktown" into the everyday vernacular.

The films that didn't make the cut would be at or near my top ten any other year. Stake Land proved vampires don't have to sparkle and can still be ballsy. REC 2 upped the ante of the first film and added a terrific exorcist twist. The Thing prequel/quasi reboot had its flaws but mostly succeeded by paying homage to Carpenter's masterpiece. Paranormal Activity 3 added new mythology to the story and provided some much needed new scares to the mix. Rubber proved the french can do the surreal just as well as ultra gore, and I'll never look at a set of Michelins the same way again. Bloody Disgusting entered the game with a quiet German zombie flick Rammbock and continued to put out a series of smaller, high concept horror films throughout the year.

This year I'm breaking my top ten into two lists. The first list looks at the top ten films that received either a theatrical release, hit DVD shelves or were available via video-on-demand through services like Vudu, Amazon or your local cable provider. The one exception to this list has already been picked up by IFC Films and was too good not to include. I'll publish a second list later this week of the top ten screeners we received along with unreleased independent films that audiences will hopefully have a chance to experience for themselves  in 2012.

Top Ten Wide Release Films of 2011

10a. In Their Sleep from Mike's original review: The du Potet’s eschew the constant over the top violence and gore of Inside (a film which, for all its merits felt like a Roadrunner cartoon by its end) for a much quieter film that is punctuated by moments of breath stealing atrocities. Flashbacks and fantasy sequences litter the film, keeping the viewer guessing while peeling back layers of truth. Similar to the first act of Inside the victims have no idea their home has been breached. This tact provides the psychological terrors of the film. The idea that one can be nestled within their confines, completely oblivious to the torment that lays an arm’s length away plays itself out with stark results. Items that are supposed to provide a sense of security serve to imprison victims instead: in one of the most harrowing sequences of the film a small girl leaps at a deadbolt, with escape just out of the reach of her clutching fingers. (full review)

10b. Hobo With A Shotgun from Mike's original review: Hobo with A Shotgun could have been a one trick pony, a fancy name delivered with a shit eating grin that delivered nothing more than the promise of a homeless dude blowing away street trash in the most cornball and satirical ways. Instead it's a much better, more accomplished film. It works due to the decision to have Rutger Hauer plays his character straight amidst the insanity that surrounds him keeping the film grounded. Hauer wears all the indignities he's suffered through in every crag and wrinkle in his face.There's no need for an exposition filed back story, Hauer's actions and world weary tone when delivering hamfisted justice say it all. (full review)

9. Tucker and Dale Vs. Evil from Mike's original review: Spot on casting goes a long way in this film. It’s a buddy comedy first and foremost, and Tudyk and Labine share a breezy chemistry with one another that allows the audience to buy them as longtime friends. Tudyk comes off as a sort of big brother to the dimwitted Labine. He never comes off as exasperated or mean spirited. Alan Tudyk can’t not be funny on film. TMZ could release home footage of him exposing himself to cub scouts while shooting up heroin and I’m sure there’d be at least three gut busting laughs. Both Tudyk and Labine come off a so likeable that it becomes apparent after spending thirty seconds with them the pair couldn’t harm a fly let alone shove a psych major headfirst down a wood chipper. (full review)

8. Bereavement from Mike's original review: Rickaby's portrayal of Sutter, along with the odd twists his relationship Martin takes lift this above the standard hack and slash formula. Sutter's first few scenes hold true to standard tropes, with him being the strong silent type, and Mena filming him without revealing his face, reminiscent of the truck driver in High Tension. As the film continues and the bodies pile up, Sutter's inner turmoil and psychosis externalize themselves. There's two way conversations with character's that aren't there and his repeating of a mantra: "If they can't feel, then they have no fear, but if they have no fear, why do they run?" He's torn by his actions, seemingly looking for a way out, but these invisible demons keep pulling him back in. Rickaby gives his killer a sense of turmoil and empathy rarely seen in the genre. By the end, you begin to feel the slightest twinges of sympathy for the man. (full review)

7. Troll Hunter from Mike's original review: Yet despite the Brothers Grimm backdrop, Trollhunter has as much in common with the ode to workplace tedium Office Space as it does folklore. Far from all out Troll action, Ovredal depicts the tedium that overwhelms Hans’ work for maximum comic effect. Hans exposes hunting the creatures as more of a bureaucratic hassle rather than action and adventure. There’s endless forms (oh those dreaded TPS reports!) to fill out after each hunt, not to mention endless hours of travel, of fact gathering and of setting up stake outs in the ass end of nowhere. It’s both sad and funny that while his tagalongs view Hans as national hero, he’s just a working class schlub wearing homemade armor muttering under his breath how much he hates his life moments before getting battered into unconsciousness. (full review)

6. A Horrible Way To Die Another film I desperately need to wrap up my review on. Whle I'm not a fan of Adam Wingaard's need for six blurry transitions a minute there's no denying the greatness of AJ Bowen's performance as a conflicted serial killer and the overlapping story of his ex's battling addictions and fumbling new romance.

5. Attack The Block from Mike's original review: In spite of the heavy issues dealing with the gaps in the classes, Cornish’s film brims with frantic energy and whip smart humor. In between moments of blood curling horror lives fantastic physical gags and sharp dialogue. Cornish keeps the camera fast moving and lively, with the focus cutting and zooming throughout the action sequences where the kids find themselves surrounded by the  monsters. The electronic soundtrack makes for perfect accompaniment to the often chaotic action on screen. Cornish also has a knack for building tension. (full review)

4. Insidious from Mike's original review: One casualty of American horror films this past decade has been the presence of the supernatural. To be sure, there have been exceptions here and there, as the success of the Paranormal Activity franchise will attest to. However, with a country deluged by multiple wars, financial turmoil, religious fundamentalism at home and abroad and sharp division among political ideologies, other worldly fears seem quaint by comparison. As a result, American audiences want their terror to be something tangible, and the past decade has seen the rise of torture films, extremely realistic gore and violence, home invasion flicks and hostile foreign territories. As the creative force behind the original Saw, writer Leigh Whannell and director James Wan have done more than their fair part to influence that trend. However, with the gratuitous torture phase and remake train beginning to slow down, the pair has returned to try their hand at a modern day haunted house fright flick. (full review)

3. The Corridor from Mike's Original review: The aftermath of the friends’ trip to the woods play out back in the cabin in terrifying fashion. The Corridor provides jolting moments of terror. It’s not that the violence presented on screen is far above and beyond the norm in this type of film. Rather, it’s the casual, almost relaxed way a group of lifelong friends tear in to one another that makes it riveting. Also, while it would usually be a kiss of death to say any part of a movie reminds one of The Fourth Kind, there’s an unnerving scene involving a videotaped message from the mother that provides a startling moment. (full review)

2. I Saw The Devil At some point I'm going to have to do a full review of this stunning piece of Korean exploitation from Jee-Woon Kim (A Tale of Two Sisters). On the surface the story of a lawman seeking revenge on the serial killer who murdered his fiance is a simple one. However, Kim fills the story with so many variables, including a wide left turn to a cannibal's lair two thirds of the way through that the viewer never knows what is coming next. Gorgeously filmed (I DARE you to find a scene in an American genre film as striking as the opening moments of snowfall as seen through the view of a bis' windshield wipers) and featuring another stunning performance from Oldboy's Min-sik Choi, this is the most perverse and engrossing serial killer film since Silence of the Lambs. an absolute must see for any fan of K-horror with visuals that justify the existence of the Blu Ray format.

1. The Woman from Mike's Original Review: As difficult as McKee’s film is to sit through at times, it’s essential viewing. Fans and critics often decry modern horror as lacking the fortitude to tackle difficult subject matter with any substance. McKee presents a portrait of systematic abuse and violence that goes on behind the close doors of many a seemingly happy suburban home. He does not sensationalize the violence like the Hostels or Saws of the world. In the past year films like A Serbian Film and The Human Centipede have garnered headlines with shocking material and graphic, exaggerated on screen violence.Mckee takes the opposite tact by almost underplaying what we see on screen. (full review)


There you have it folks. How did we do? Are there any glaring omissions? Films we loved that you'd rather stick a sewing needle through both eyes rather than watch again? Give us your feedback you sons of bitches. 

Home Invasion For The Holidays: In Their Sleep

For the past decade the French have owned the home invasion horror subgenre. The films High Tension, Inside, (to a lesser extent) Martyrs, and ILS have taken the familiar comfort of home’s four walls and transformed them into a cavalcade of terror, mayhem and death. The sibling team of Caroline and Eric du Potet (producers of Inside) add to the impressive list with In Their Sleep.

A year removed from her son’s tragic accident/suicide Sarah (the original La Femme Nikita, Anne Parillaud) remains a depressed shell of her former self. The quaint fixer-upper countryside villa remains in a state of disrepair as her husband abandoned her to deal with his own grief, leaving the crumbling walls and scattered home repair materials a fitting metaphor for Sarah’s own life. She works herself to the point of collapse as a nurse just to have a routine to numb the hours of the day. Exhausted to the point of distraction, she is ordered home by the hospital to rest.  In her jittery state she doesn’t notice Arthur until the moment he leaps in front of her car in an attempt to hail her down.

Arthur fears for his life. A man burglarized his home, and Arthur saw his face. Now he fears the man will kill him in order to not get caught. The car barreling down the road, tailing Sarah and Arthur lends credibility to his story, so Sarah takes him to her home once the stranger gives up the chase. His fears prove correct when the stranger breaks in to Sarah’s home in the late hours of night and trashes the place in fury while the pair attempt to hide.

The du Potet’s eschew the constant over the top violence and gore of Inside (a film which, for all its merits felt like a Roadrunner cartoon by its end) for a much quieter film that is punctuated by moments of breath stealing atrocities. Flashbacks and fantasy sequences litter the film, keeping the viewer guessing while peeling back layers of truth. Similar to the first act of Inside the victims have no idea their home has been breached. This tact provides the psychological terrors of the film. The idea that one can be nestled within their confines, completely oblivious to the torment that lays an arm’s length away plays itself out with stark results. Items that are supposed to provide a sense of security serve to imprison victims instead: in one of the most harrowing sequences of the film a small girl leaps at a deadbolt, with escape just out of the reach of her clutching fingers. The quaint, almost charming nature of an earlier flashback where the unaware family shares a meal and conversation while the intruder casually rummages through their belongings gives way tohorror soon enough. 

Parillaud’s performance is the glue that holds it all together. She’s a beaten woman long before she encounters Arthur. While she’s a smart and resourceful woman, anything or anyone she wants to live for has long since been removed from her. She’s often one step away from putting the puzzle pieces together, yet backs away knowing the truth would prove pointless in the end. At times she seems to put one foot in front of the other only because it’s what’s expected of her. By the film’s closing moments, breathtaking in both its beauty and mundane nature, it’s fair to question whether death would provide a welcome relief and reward of a sort for her.

For fans of extreme French horror, In Their Sleep may prove to tame for their liking. It lacks the monotonous violence of Martyrs that pound the viewer into submission or the batshit craziness of Sheitan, Inside or Frontiers. However, the ripped from the headlines aspect of the film, strong performances and stunning landscapes of the French countryside make it compelling viewing, easily one of the year’s best efforts, for those that crave a realistic horror film.  

In Their Sleep is available on DVD, Blu Ray, and Netflix Instant Watch

A Flaccid Freddy Gets Fingered In 'A Wet Dream On Elm Street'

We get some odd news and press releases in our email box every now and then. Recently we got word about the subject of this review, a triple X parody of everyone's favorite fedora wearing serial killer. On a lark I emailed the PR agent back and said if they want to send us a copy, we'll review it. A few days later lo and behold it turned up in our email box. Aside from knowing that I really, really like boobs I'm not well versed enough to review porn, I brought in good friend and resident sexologist KendrahwithanH for a guest post.  You should check out her Tumblr account http://kendrahwithanh.tumblr.com/ and check out her outstanding comic strips and artwork. 

If there’s one thing I like, it is good 80’s horror movies. If there is a second thing, it would be porn parodies. Apparently, director Lee Roy Myers felt similarly and thus, A Wet Dream On Elm Street was born – the tag line reads “If you don’t wake up wet, you won’t wake up at all.”

Sadly the movie had neither effect on me. In the original Nightmare on Elm Street, high school student Nancy Thompson is terrorized by Freddy Krueger, who kills her boyfriend, her friends and both her parents. True 80’s camp style leaves a lot of room for sexy scenes to be elaborated upon, since most of them feature semi-nude teenage girls. In porn, you can’t actually have a movie take place in high school but you still need the hot young girls. So to recreate the feel of the original Nightmare, you do the next best thing – host a 2-year high school reunion.  A male high school teacher, played by Chris Johnson, educates the only three attendees (all female of course) on the legend of this bizarro-Freddy. Instead of killing children like his 80’s inspiration, he sells drastically overpriced sex toys out of his car trunk. The townspeople, outraged over the high prices of trunk-dildos, decided to set him on fire. Don’t worry viewers, it’s only from the waist up, so you can delete that mental image. Instead of sharp knives to terrorize his victims with, his glove is fused together with 5 shiny black vibrators.

And now Freddy is back to exact revenge on the town by sexing their women into permanent comas filled with orgasms and sexual ecstasy. Tell me again… where is the bad part of that?

The movie opens with a 30 minute sex scene featuring the girl from the cover of the movie, who was actually pretty cute. You get the idea that she and her male partner are supposed to be a teenage couple. The entire scene goes on with no background music whatsoever, which would normally not be an issue for me except that the sound guy decided the gagging noises needed a little extra “boost.” The overlapping tracks of slurping and gagging would be distracting to even the horniest of viewers, and it was a disappointing trend for every following scene in the movie.

After all is said and done the girl wakes up from her post-coital nap to the nudging of Freddy’s vibe-fingers. My favorite part of this entire movie? Her first exclamation upon discovering him instead of her boyfriend. “Oh! Edward James Olmos?! I love ALL your movies!” I had to give this film at least the credit of making me laugh uncontrollably for a good 5 minutes. Freddy immediately ruins this by turning directly to the camera and complaining that he never gets mistaken for a burned Brad Pitt.

The whole film has a very gonzo-like atmosphere to it, despite the attempt at a plotline. The scenes are all overly bright, as if they are filmed in an office with overhead fluorescents.  The staged High School Reunion is so sloppily put together that the signs might as well have been drawn in crayon with backwards letters. This all seems to be the point though, as the actors poke fun at the obviously ridiculous scenarios and don’t seem to take their roles too seriously.  There are even several scenes where the actors mess up their own names, acknowledge it, and laugh it off. This makes it hard to hate it too much.

The most memorable sex scene occurs between the male teacher (Johnson) and one of his female students. What stands out most about this scene is that Johnson is a one-man bukkake party. As a person who considers herself something of a porn connoisseur I feel like nothing really fazes me anymore, but this scene had me completely nauseous. What pours out of this man is simply not natural, but is certainly a special skill for those who are so inclined to watch. Keep a bucket handy, you know, for… whatever.

Attempting to ignore the parody part and trying to focus on the sexy scenes proved to be impossible. None of the actresses are particularly attractive enough to be especially turned on and the only thing horrifying about this film is their acting. If you are looking for something sexy, this movie is severely lacking. If you are looking for funny porn, there are a few key moments in here that I’m glad to have seen, but other parodies have certainly done better. I’d recommend just watching the original Nightmare on Elm Street and imagining Heather Langenkamp naked.

Horror In Short: Watch the Superb "Beating Hearts" Free On Vimeo

From now until January 1st, you have the opportunity to watch one of the best short horror films we've ever received for free online.

While I'm loathe to give away too many details about Matthew Garrett's film, let me say simply that it's a short that rewards viewers for multiple viewings. Each viewing peels back a new layer until the visceral horror of the first showings gives ways to revelations much darker and more unseemly. It's the kind of film that burrows itself into your psyche for days on end.

The short will be available commercially as an added bonus to the DVD release of Garrett's feature Morris County. For the time being, get a head start and enjoy this one as much as you can these next two weeks.


Beating Hearts from Matthew Garrett on Vimeo.

New on Netflix: Three Studios Bringing High Quality Horror To your Instant Queue

As troubled as the business side of the service has been this year (price hikes and a dead-before-arrival brain fart of an idea to divide the streaming and physical media side in two led to 8000,000 customers cancelling their service while the stock plummeted) there’s no denying the Netflix Instant Watch service continues to grow by leads and bounds in terms of quality content.

For the horror fans, the days of surfing the instant queue only to stumble across a never ending of Grade Z schlock filmed on a film school dropout’s grandparents VHS-C camcorder are coming to an end. Three of the top studios distributing horror have released a steady stream of quality titles any good horror genre fan would want to curl up on the sofa with:

Bloody Disgusting Selects

The partnership between Bloody Disgusting and AMC was meant to bring small horror to the big screen. So far there’s been about a half dozen titles released, with Trent Hegga’s comedic deconstruction of the revenge/torture porn subgenre “CHOP” hitting theaters and VOD two days after you’ve eaten your Christmas pudding.  

The first wave of titles has been available on DVD for a few months, and as of this week is now available on Instant Watch. YellowBrickRoad (full review) was one of my favorite films from the 2010 NYC Horror Film Fest. While the ending doesn’t hold up to any sort of logic test but one group’s quest to walk the trail a whole town disappeared on decades prior takes enough twists and turns and provides iconic moments to make up for that. German (made for TV) film Rammbock  is a well regarded zombie flick heavy on the heartbreak. Cold Fish marks the return of Japanese auteur Shion Sono (Suicide Girls Club) with another bizarre, head scratching entry that manages to compel the viewer with visual eye candy even as it confounds the hell out of them.  

Magnet

Embracing the VOD model along with providing limited theatrical runs, Magnet has brought some of the smartest, best made horror films to audiences these past few years. The style and subject matter of their releases run across a wide spectrum, with only the high quality of the body of work connecting them. From Troma Films homage Hobo With A Shotgun (full review), to plague ridden parable for modern extremism Black Death (full review), to the wildly funny and beautiful Troll Hunter (Chris' Review)to the best serial killer film since Seven (I Saw The Devil) there’s a bottomless well of films to satisfy anyone’s taste.

IFC Films

Via their “Midnight” imprint, IFC releases smart, low budget indie fare that straddles the line between horror and drama. Along with low-key domestic fare like Simon Rumley’s Red, White & Blue (full review), IFC scours the globe for genre fare. French and Spanish home invasion thrillers In Their Sleep and Kidnapped, Italian possession film Exorcismus (full review), dramady Vampires have all recently come available. 

[REC] 3 Trailer Drops A Bag Of Awesome On Your Head

Spanish horror series [REC] earned international praise for the first film's innovative blending of the found footage subgenre with a zombie outbreak within the claustrophobic confines of a quarantined apartment building. Kicking off moments after the first ended, [REC] 2 expanded the mythology of the series by introducing the concept of demonic possession while keeping the scope of the film within the sealed off confines of the building. The two films could be viewed as one long masterpiece.

The new trailer for [REC] 3: Genesis shows the series to stretching its legs a bit, and the awesomeness of the trailer means all other films will be competing for second most anticipated flick of 2012. While the first two films were a collaboration between Juame Balaguero and Paco Plaza, the are handling the next two installments individually with Plaza taking the reigns for Genesis. The friendly competition between the pair could elevate the series even high as each individual tries to outdo the other.

Without saying too much about the contents of the trailer (just watch it yourself, it'll make your freaking day), two thoughts spring to mind:

First-it looks like Plaza will shift the film away from faux documentary into a more traditional narrative. The way it's done looks clever and drew a big chuckle from me by answering the age old "Why the hell are these people still filming when they're two seconds away from becoming zombie chow?" [REC] 2 skirted this issue with the innovative use of the cameras embedded in the task force's helmets. Plaza (wisely) decided going to that well a third time would be one two many.

Second, the shots of a wild-eyed bride, her wedding dress caked in gore as she brandishes a chainsaw brought back memories of Senor Chin and Evil Dead 2. With reports coming from the set of the ED remake that the new film will head in a more somber direction, Plaza may hoist the title of the king of slapstick horror (the ball is in your court Mr. James Gunn).

Look for some sort of release of [REC] 3 in the spring of 2012.

Ho Ho Horror: Dear Santa, All I Want For Xmas Is...

Ring-A-Ding-Ding folks. Although I’ve crossed the age where I’m closer to 40 than 30, I’m not ashamed to admit that I’m a low down, no good present whore. Shove a box with colorful wrapping paper and a well tied bow in my hands and I get as giddy as a fat kid when it’s pizza day for school lunch (do scoohl’s still serve the square cheese slices with a side of dish of cheese sticks? I used to LOVE mashing chunks of cheese onto that toasted Italian delight).

Christmas time is a boon for horror fans. Despite the Halloween title getting all the love, there are actually more genre films centered around Christmas. We’ll talk about some holiday genre favorites at a later date, but for right now it’s time for a brief list of goodies any self respecting horror fan would love to find under his or her tree.

If anyone wants to forward this list to my wife, I won’t object.

For the fashionista: One of the many fine offerings from the folks at FRIGHT RAGS

My love affair for this teeshirt/hoodie site began with the purchase of the They Live “OBEY” tee shirt and has continued through my latest pick up, which proudly informs anyone that gazes at it that ‘The Wolfman Has Nards”. The site currently has about three dozen designs that can ship out in time for the holidays. I will warn you, some designs are better in theory than practice (I’m looking at you, Freddy Krueger cuddling a barrel full of kittens tee shirt) so choose wisely. Personally, I find the simpler the design the better it looks worn out in public.

For fans of The Walking Dead: The Walking Dead Compendium volume one

The AMC show may be all over the map quality wise, but there’s no denying it draws in viewers-three times the amount of critical darling Mad Men as a matte rof fact. There’s no doubt that only a fraction of the audience have ever picked up the source material and that’s a shame because the long running comic never ceases to amaze. Volume 1 collects the first 48 issues of the comic and introduces one of the all time great villains in The Governor.

For the high falutin "I don't even own a TV" reading types:

John Dies At The End (Jason Pargin writing as  David Wong) 
An odd mashup up of The X-Files meets Harold & Kumar, this pair of slacker paranormal busters might be the only pair that can prevent the world from getting sucked down a hellish vortex that would end with all mankind having their brains feasted upon by telepathic space slugs for eternity. The novel's a hoot and moves at a breakneck pace. As of today Don Coscarelli is working on the post production of the 2012 film, so catch the source material before it hits the big screen.

Harbour (John Ajvide Lindquivst) 
We could say "From the writer of "Let The right One In" and leave it at that, but that would be pretty lazy. Lindquivst manages to take classic monsters (vampires, zombies) and craft small, personal tales that resonate with universal emotions but still convey moments of pure terror. His third novel explores a family trying to pick up the pieces after their daughter's disappearance while trying to figure out why the townspeople are hiding critical information.

Do Not Enter, Dead Inside (Various) 
If Max Brooks' World War Z tackles the zombie apocalypse on an epic scale, this project from the site Lost Zombies  looks at the epidemic from the ground level. Composed of handwritten notes, scraps of papers and the fragmented thoughts left behind by the survivors (and the dead), DNE, DI is often chilling and often inspiring by putting a fresh approach at a tired subject.











Horror DVD’s & Blu Rays That Should Be In your Stocking

There’s been far too many terrific home releases this year to even attempt a partial list of what you should hope makes its way into your stocking. Bill Lustig's Blue Underground label has banged out pristine reissues of sleazy grindhouse and exploitation fare and more Fulchi than you can shake a stick at and jammed the discs full of the bonus material hardcore fans crave. This is just a smattering of what they're offering:

EXHUMED Digs Up A Rhode Island Premiere Date

Horror fans in the Providence area should circle Saturday December 17th on their calendars. Fresh off its world premiere at the Orpheum Theater in Foxboro Exhumed, the latest film from director Richard Marr Griffin makes its debut in the city it was filmed at the Bell Street Chapel  for two screenings at 7pm and 9pm.

Michael Thruber and Debbie Rochon anchor a cast of strong performances as parental figures of a dying cult terrified of the outside world looking to expand their "family". Filmed in black and white, Exhumed is a slow burn of a film with disturbing visuals punctuated by brief outbursts of shocking violence. It's a film that will set viewer's teeth on edge.

We'll have a full review of Exhumed up in the near future, but for the time being rest assured if you have a chance to catch the film on the 17th, you will not be disappointed.

Exhumed also starts Michael Reed, Sarah Nicklin, Rich Tretheway and Evalena Marie and was written by Guy Benoit.

Rather than go the trailer route, I thought it's be of more interest to post the behind the scenes look with  the cast and crew of Exhumed on local Providence NBC affiliate. 

Looking Ahead To 2012

Normally I’d say it’s too early in December to start looking towards next year’s slate of films. However, since the remainder of the year looks like a shit sandwich when it comes to horror, now seems like as good a time as any to wistfully pine for the last page of this year’s calendar tear itself off and make way for the New Year.

Perhaps Hollywood believes the Mayans are on to something and want one final blowout of good films before the planet is sucked into nothingness. Unlike the first quarter of this year where moviegoers were forced to consume dreck like The Roommate (i.e. the cinematic equivalent of eating a steaming bowl of dog vomit), the early months of 2012 feature a number of films with promise. 

The Devil Inside Maybe there is a little “end of days” fervor in the air, as exorcism films have come back into vogue these past couple years (The Last Exorcism, The Rite, Exorcismus). The latest entry finds a young girl trying to figure out why her mentally unstable mother snapped and murdered three people during her own exorcism two decades prior.  The trailer gives off an effective creepy vibe, kicking off with a 911 call and pressing on with the hall marks of the subgenre of late: demonic voices, bodies contorted in impossible angles and the like. Sure you can cue the inevitable critics saying how the film won’t measure up to The Exorcist, but it’s high time as horror fans we just own up to the fact that no genre film that’s come down the pike since has either.  

The Woman In Black I’ve mentioned this film in passing before. The film marks a return of Hammer Studios to the atmospheric tales that made it famous and Daniel Radcliffe’s first role post-Potter. It’s based on the Susan Hill novel, a chilling and moody modern ghost story. If surprise hits Insidious and the Paranormal Activity proved anything, it’s that current audiences don’t need multiple goregasms to enjoy a horror film. This simple story of a dead woman’s ghost signaling the imminent death of a child and a young lawyer that gets caught up in the mystery looks like it will be the venerable British studio’s return to glory.   

  

Cabin In The Woods I love Joss Whedon and have ever since the second season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer sucked me into its vortex of awesomeness. No much is known about the Whedon penned and Drew Goddard helmed “Cabin” since it was shelved three years ago amid MGM Studios financial woes. All we have to go on so far is this new poster which leads me to believe a Rubix cube is somehow involved in this story about a bunch of teens that make their way out to a cabin that’s get this…in the woods (holy shit!!!) except that Whedon has promised to turn horror clichés on their ear. I imagine there will be snarky dialogue and girl power. Honestly, you had me at “From the Creator of ‘Buffy the Vampire Slayer’ and ‘Firefly’”.

The Innkeepers Ti West’s long awaited follow up to House of the Devil (my #1 film of 2009) actually gets the pre-theatrical video on demand treatment at the end of the December before getting a limited big screen run in February. I’m going to try and hold out until it hits theaters though something tells me my will power will last all of three days. Sara Paxton has earned raves as one half of a would-be ghost busting team moonlighting as employees in a run down and haunted New England hotel with all the Yankee gothic trimmings.

The Divide Xavier Gans post apocalyptic thriller looks like it might be a glorious mess of a movie. Coming out in limited release in February, it tells the story of a band of survivors that hole themselves up in their buildings basement in an attempt to survive nuclear fallout. Tensions rise, egos get bruised and violence ensues. Gans’ debut, the French torture fest Frontiers put its heroine through a wringer to the extent that viewers wished she’d be offed just to end her misery. To this date it’s the only horror movie I’ve ever seen where its survivor resembles an epileptic sufferer off her mediation for the last third of its runtime. If that’s the type of trauma one family of incestuous Nazi cannibals can inflict, I can only giggle in anticipation what terrors he can concoct for the survivors of an end-of-days cataclysm.