Well, my hunch was right... I thought "Zombieland" was going to kick some ass. It did and it was an official hit. It pulled in over $25Million from 3,900+ screens and it proved that, although strange bedfellows, horror and comedy can make a lovely couple. To put it in perspective, "Zombieland" actually had the second highest opening gross for a zombie movie, just behind the "Dawn of the Dead" remake. This is good news for horror, as there have been some real stinkers coming out lately, including "Jennifer's Body", "Pandorum" and "Whiteout". Hopefully it turns the tables and sets the tone for upcoming horror releases, as there's a bunch of films to look forward to, including: "The Crazies", "Saw VI" and a few others... Raise your glass, here's looking to closing out 2009 on a high note.Anyhow, there are so many movies out on DVD this week, I'm flustered and I don't know where to start. Not only that, a lot of them are good. I've seen a few of these already and there's a few that I've heard lots of good things about. So, as I can't really comment on many of them, I URGE you to go to our Youtube page and check out all the trailers. Also, you can click on the titles and go to their Amazon pages, where you can learn more and even buy them. So, right to it...
Sam Raimi's Ghost House Pictures is coming out with a few films this week, including the highly acclaimed "The Children
"; plus the "The Thaw
" with Val Kilmer, which looks like a bit of a rip-off of "The Thing"; "Seventh Moon
", which is from "Blair Witch" helmer Eduardo Sanchez; and, finally, "Offspring
". I'd like to duly not that TWO of these films are what I term 'killer kid' movies. Both "The Children" and "Offspring" are about psycho kids... and I picked this a few months ago - killer kid films are going to be the next big thing. That and 'adult baby' films. Well, one out of two ain't bad.Just in time for Halloween, from Warner Bros and Legendary Pictures, it's the straight to DVD "Trick 'r Treat
". It looks like they were originally going for a theatrical release with this, as it looks pretty good and has great production value. Also, I may be mistaken, but I think they may have an adult baby in the film... watch the trailer, it's quick... but it's there.Oh, what's that? ANOTHER killer kid film? That's right, this one's called "It's Alive
" and, once again, it looks good. 'When the baby sleeps, be quiet. Be very, very quiet.'Don't paint me in a corner, just because I like slasher films, gore flicks and I'm a big advocate of nudity, I DID go to film school and that means that I can appreciate a good artsy film, especially if it has horror elements... and Ron Pearlman. "Dark Country
", from Sony Originals, fits the bill. I'll check it out. It's also got Thomas Jane in it.And then there's the remake of "Children of the Corn
", which is a SyFy original. Draw your own conclusions here.I briefly read about "Staunton Hill
", then checked out the trailer. About 30 secs in, I thought I had it pinned. Then came the creepy farm folks and the TCM references... Sold. I'm in."Feeding Grounds
" looks like an indie horror, very slow build up in the trailer. Not sure, need to know more on this one.Oh, Lance Henrickson, either you're going for the creepy old man look these days or the sands of time have not treated you so well. Honestly, does he smoke 10 packs a day and sleep in a tanning bed? Check out the trailer for "Seamstress
" and take a look at that face. The film actually looks pretty good, though. Could be one of the best of the week.I can't really figure out "Senseless
", as I'll I could find was a German trailer. Is it a German film? I think that trailer's dubbed, though. Either way, I have no idea of what's going on in the trailer, but it looks like it could be pretty good.For a second, I thought it was 1994 again... Check out the trailer for "Skull Heads
" and tell me you don't long for the days when you used to wait for new Charles Band films... or was I the only guy that was excited about "Puppet Master III: Toulon's Revenge" before it came out?If you're a Dead Harvey reader, you'll want to check out "Horror 101
". It's a collection of five indie horror films, including "Beneath the Surface", "Zombies Anonymous" and a few other Dead Harvey favorites.I love the title "It's My Party and I'll Die if I Want To!
" and the film looks pretty damn good, too. Also, it looks like it's full of practical effects and even has a cameo from Tom Savini. Not only that, what's with the 'choose your own adventure horror'? How's that work? I'll bite...Also, look for "Hide And Creep
", which looks alright; "I Spit Chew on Your Grave!
", which looks EXTREMELY low budget, but in a good, good way... there's "Bleed With Me
" and I don't even know what language it's in. Also, "Splatter Movie: The Director's Cut
", which is from Amy Lynn Best and is FULL of indie horror legends, such as Debbie Rochon, Aaron Bernard and Tom Sullivan.Oh... and look for rereleases of "The Gate
" and "Audition: Collector's Edition
"Damn, that was a lot to get through...
", which we covered a while ago. It's a pretty cool deal, as it was based on the true story of a lady who accidentally hit a pedestrian with her car. Then, with the homeless man trapped in the car's windshield, she drives home and debates what to do. So, she figures that the accident will destroy her life and she opts to let the man die slowly in her garage... and the homeless guy figures that out and painfully tries to escape. It was directed by Stuart Gordan, who you should remember as the guy behind "Re-Animator" and "From Beyond", and it won him the Silver Raven award at the Brussels International Festival of Fantasy Film, as well the Staff Prize for Narrative Feature at the San Francisco Indiefest. It stars Mena Suvari as the driver... Stephen Rea as the homeless guy.
", which as orginally called "Complexx", is from the Netherlands and it's in Dutch. It's from director Robert Arthur Jansen, who co-wrote it with Clifford Adsonn and it's his directorial debut. As it's from the Netherlands, I have NO idea of who any of the actors are... the film is about five people who get locked in a maze-like entertainment complex to play a special level for an online game in reality. However, they soon discover the bizarre rules of this game get more and more horrifying and deadly.
", which comes out today, as well. It's got some indie horror classics in it, including Tiffany Shepis, Debbie Rochon, Linnea Quigley and it's even got old Lloyd Kaufman in it, as well. Shea also directed "The Night Owl", which was part of the "Tomb of Terrors" 50 pack and "Clarks". It's about a group of college kids who win a trip to New Orleans for Mardi Gras, where the bodies start to pile up right, smack dab in the middle of the biggest party of the year.
". I know you've heard the name "Ghost House" and seen the logo, but I'll tell you a bit more about them, in case you don't much more than that. Ghost House is a joint venture between Mandate Pictures, Sam Raimi and Rob Tapert. Tapert's the long time producing partner to Sam Raimi and if you don't know who Sam Raimi is, you probably shouldn't be reading this site. They came out with a slew of decent films, including: The Grudge, The Grudge 2, The Messengers, 30 Days of Night and Boogeyman. Their next film is the Sam Raimi directed, Drag Me To Hell. Anyhow, they just came out with "Ghost House Underground", which acquired a bunch of indie horror films for direct-to-DVD release. Like I said above, you can buy the entire set or buy each film individually. Here are the films in the set...
" got quite a bit of buzz on the festival circuit. It was directed by Gregg Bishop and stars Jared Kusnitz, Greyson Chadwick and Chandler Darby. If you couldn't guess from the title, the dead rise to eat the living on the night of the big High-School Prom. Of course, the only people who can stop them are the losers who couldn't get dates to the dance.
" is directed by Gabriele Albanesi and stars Daniela Albanesi, Daniele Grassetti and Gennaro Diana. It's about a woman who escapes a group of bullies seeking to rape her and she takes refuge with a seemingly kind couple... who have a dark secret hidden in their quiet, secluded house.
" is directed by Michael Roesch and Peter Sheere and stars Sid Haig, Ken Foree, Jason Connery and Victoria Pratt. So, I'm assuming you know who Sid Haig and Ken Foree are... anyhow, they team up again in this claustrophobic thriller about a team of vampire hunters who must infiltrate a nest of the undead to save one of their own.
" is directed by Pete Riski and stars the LORDI, Skye Bennett, Noah Huntley and Dominique McElligott. We've also covered this film in the past... LORDI is a heavy metal quintet from Finland that are a lot like GWAR, in that they dress up in elaborate monster-like costumes. Anyhow, they're HUGE in Finland. So huge that they spawned comics, books and, now, this film, which is about a father and his autistic daughter that try to escape a hospital that has mysteriously become a portal for dark creatures from a different world.
" is directed by Martin Barnewitz and stars Neel Ronholt, Mikkel Arndt, Julie R. Olgaard and Jon Lange. I don't know anything about the film, but with those names, I'm assuming it's from somewhere in the Netherlands? It's about a girl who moves into a haunted university dormitory.
" is directed by Igor Shavlack and stars Dmitri Orlov, Svetlana Metkina, Aleksandr Vysokovsky and Yuliya Mikhailova... I haven't heard of this one, either... but I'm thinking it's from Russia? It's about a bank heist turned deadly, when the robbers and their hostages flee to the abandoned underground subway station where they encounter the Trackman... a deformed madman that prowls the darkness.
" is directed by Dave Payne and stars Michael Muhney, Wilmer Calderon and Desmond Askew. It's about a sheriff and his son who chase casino robbers, only to find that they're all being chased by something else. They're not really advertising it or anything, but this has to be the sequel to Payne's 2005 film, "Reeker", which was pretty damned good.
" is directed by Ole Bornedal and stars Paprika Steen, Jonas Wandschneider, Ulrich Thomsen and Sonja Richter... Okay, Sweden? It's about the sixth grade students of a small town who begin to realize that their new substitute teacher is an alien. When the parents don't believe them, they are forced to take matters into their own hands... and that's actually a really cool idea... I'm going to have to check that one out, for sure.