Available now on DVD & Blu-ray™ In this chilling reboot of the ’80s horror classic, LANDON LIBOIRON stars as high school senior Will Kidman, whose infatuation with a beautiful classmate (LINDSEY SHAW) begins to trigger certain teenage animal instincts. But when a mysterious woman (IVANA MILICEVIC) with a shocking secret re-enters his life, Will learns that he is heir to a powerful line of werewolves. Now he finds he has a choice to make: succumbing to his primal nature or turning against his own. In order to fight the destiny of his legacy and save the girl of his dreams, he must battle not only his growing blood lust but an army of fearsome beasts hell-bent on killing us all. Tonight, the full moon rises. The horror begins anew. This is THE HOWLING REBORN.
Starring:
LANDON LIBOIRON (“Terra Nova”, “Degrassi: The Next Generation”)
LINDSEY SHAW (“Pretty Little Liars”, “10 Things I Hate About You”, “Ned’s Declassified School Survival Guide”)
IVANA MILICEVIC (Casino Royale, Vanilla Sky, Battle in Seattle)
NIELS SCHNEIDER (winner of the Prix Compard at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival often given to a rising star; past winners include Marion Cotillard, Audrey Tautou, Gael Garcia-Bernal and Jonathon Meyers)
“The best Scream since the original! Funny, clever and scary as hell.” –Life & Style Weekly
“Pure Genius.” –RichardRoeper.com
Directed by suspense master and director of the first trilogy, WES CRAVEN, Scream 4 is the newest installment in the acclaimed franchise that ushered in a new wave of horror in the 1990s. In Scream 4, Sidney Prescott (NEVE CAMPBELL), now the author of a self-help book, returns home to Woodsboro on the last stop of her book tour. There she reconnects with Sheriff Dewey (DAVID ARQUETTE) and Gale (COURTENEY COX), who are now married, as well as her cousin Jill (EMMA ROBERTS). Unfortunately Sidney’s appearance also brings about the return of Ghost Face, putting Sidney, Gale, and Dewey, along with Jill, her friends (HAYDEN PANETTIERE, RORY CULKIN, ADAM BRODY) and the whole town of Woodsboro in danger.
Starring:
COURTNEY COX (“Cougar Town”, “Friends”)
NEVE CAMPBELL (Wild Things, The Craft)
EMMA ROBERTS (Valentine’s Day, Hotel For Dogs)
HAYDEN PANETTIERE (“Heroes”, I Love You Beth Cooper)
DAVID ARQUETTE (Never Been Kissed)
Directed By WES CRAVEN (Scream 1-3, A Nightmare On Elm Street, The Hills Have Eyes) http://starzhomeentertainment.cmail4.com/t/y/l/ghklkd/jiktkttky/i/
Within my remit for Horror Addicts, I take pride in bringing you the best of European and Extreme cinema – and so far I’ve tried to combine the two in every film. This time, I’m dropping the Extreme Cinema tag and will be showcasing a French film which disturbs not from pushing the boundaries of violence, taste and decency, but from building ultra-taut suspense and terror.
“Them” (or “Ils” as it is called in its native tongue) is a tense chiller directed by David Moreau and Xavier Palud. It is set in semi-rural Romania, where the protagonists Clementine and Lucas have relocated – she is teaching French in the local school and he is a writer. Presumably due to the favorable exchange rate between France and Romania, the couple have acquired a large old house in extensive grounds – and it is here that their horror is to take place.
“Them” is essentially a “home invasion” movie, but unlike other recent offerings in this sub-genre it is not a tale of thugs holding the innocent captive and torturing them. Instead, it is about the terror of being hunted and the fear of helplessness. It has a pounding sense of violation, and the shattering of sanctuary.
To make a film with the aspiration to truly scare takes a great deal of skill, and this prowess is successfully evident in “Them”. The viewer senses they are in the hands of craftsman from the beginning. The film opens to show a sequence which lets the viewer know what they are to be afraid of, and then takes a slow-burn approach to build the characters, the prey, layer by layer until we care sufficiently about what then happens to them. However, this isn’t laborious – too much characterization can be dull but here the pacing is timed perfectly.
Just as the viewers become acquainted with the couple, Clementine awakes to hear a strange noise outside their home. Lucas goes to investigate, and from here the film seeps into the nervous system with long, drawn out, suspense sequences where the protagonists are assailed in their vast home by unseen intruders.
A nightmarish atmosphere is created by the “cat and mouse” game which plays-out through attics, corridors and dusty, disused rooms. The highest praise is worthy of the directors for refusing to use cheap jump scares – not once is the audience conned by a phoney smash-cut. Instead a minimalist score of humming and repetitive bass notes combines with the eerie noises made by the attackers. We feel the fear of the hunted as they run and hide – desperately trying to stay unseen; but the things in their house are coming and they want the couple to know it! There are many of them and we are never quite sure what they are.
“Them” employs a lot of set pieces common to such movies: the scary phone call and the electricity getting cut, amongst others; but it does them so well and combines them with tricks of its own that it does not lessen the impact of the film.
The empty house provides a terrifying setting for events to unfold; even this factor is escalated with the rising tension as the pursuit spills into the grounds and through woodland, ultimately ending up in labyrinthine catacombs. The directors have a firm grip on base human fears such as claustrophobia, fear of the dark and the terror of being hunted; they conduct these with devastating precision.
The ending of the “Them” needed to be worthy of the tension built through the flawlessly short running time, and it honored the previous 70 minutes by not only being traumatic and harrowing but also by producing an image that verged on the artistic – one of those celluloid moments where the viewer is transcended from the fiction and feels the character as if they were really there. Purely as a visual it is on a par with the final shot of Leather Face in “Texas Chainsaw Massacre”.
“Them” doesn’t cheat the viewer, and neither does it patronize with silly scares. It masterfully sculpts fear and inflicts dread with finely honed precision. Hitchcock would have been proud to make this film.
h o s t e s s: Emerian Rich
s t a f f
Knightmist, Sapphire Neal, David Watson, Ed Pope, Dan Shaurette
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How would you react if you looked out a window and saw someone murdered? Would you scream, would you call the police, or would you find yourself in shock?
The film Shock, gives us an insight into one of the possibilities to my queries. One Janet Steward (Anabel Shaw) is staying at a hotel and she hears a loud argument taking place. As most people would, she takes a moment to look and see what the heated argument is about. She witnesses a horrific sight as she sees a man murder a woman. Janet is later found by her war veteran husband in a complete comatose state. She is taken to a mental hospital where she will find herself treated by Dr. Richard Cross, played by Vincent Price.
Fans of Vincent Price will automatically come to see him as the villain in this film as most know that was the type of role he was best known for. Shock is a film that will not disappoint Price’s fans as we get to see a master of his art portray his character in a great way.
We get to watch as this masterful actor finds ways to make all those attached to Janet believe she has truly lost her mind. Dr. Cross is aided on this quest by Nurse Elaine Jordan (Lynn Bari) who just happens to be the good doctor’s lover.
Shock has a short running time that modern movie viewers may not care for, but even with it’s shorten span, the film packs a great punch. The film is a thrilling twisted tale as we get to witness what the good doctor is able to get away with, within his own asylum. The rest of the cast also turn in some great roles and that includes actor Frank Latimore who plays Janet’s husband, Lt. Paul Stewart.
Vincent Price fans will greatly appreciate this film as it captures Price at the peak of his acting career. Those who love psychological thrillers will also find the film quite engrossing. Another factor is that we get an idea of some of the old medical practices that were used to treat those with psychological issues. It is one of these methods that help to bring the movie to a climax, but not quite to the ending. As any Price film, the film ends in such away you may find yourself asking questions.
Frontiers opens to give us a vision of France set in the immediate future amidst rioting and chaos in the build up to, and subsequent election of, an extreme right-wing political party. The story begins to focus on a group of young adults who get split up in the turmoil of the urban landscape. Following a gun fight with the police in which one of their number is shot, they decide to reconvene in the countryside. That’s all you need to know about the build up to Frontiers, it provides an atmospheric backdrop, but ultimately the crux of the film is about the group landing themselves as captives to a family of fascist cannibals!
Of course, the group fleeing the city are variously imprisoned on the family’s estate which consist of an abattoir, disused mine and various farm buildings. One by one they meet their demise until the final showdown.
Frontiers gradually introduces a cast of antagonists within a hierarchical family of Nazi’s with a predilection for human flesh. This point is never pushed too far, the family view their victims as nothing more than the swine they also keep –they are not slavering savages, and the understatement and normality of the cannibalism serves to make it all the more deranged.
It would be unduly critical to worry too much about Frontiers being a French New Wave rip-off of Texas Chainsaw Massacre – it doesn’t matter particularly because it is done very well. Perhaps calling it an homage is more appropriate as it’s not a carbon copy, it just has very similar elements to the 70’s classic. It stands alone just fine and lack of innovation does not necessarily make a film poor – indeed this is a good, solid horror film. Frontiers is well acted and plays out within a depressingly bleak farm complex of filthy outhouses and abattoirs. Empathy with the victims is competently achieved and, vitally for a film like this, it is hard not to wish the worst kind of vengeance on the tormentors.
Most importantly however, Frontiers delivers on the gore and violence. Let’s not be coy, anyone wilfully deciding to watch a film about people being held captive by cannibal fascists is going to be let down by timidity on the directors behalf! Xavier Gens does not disappoint, the violence is graphic and visceral but it happens for a reason and to progress the film, rather than being a collection of set-pieces. Despite featuring people being steamed alive and obliterated with circular saws, everything feels very proportionate within the scenario the viewer is immersed in. We have violence to cringe at and violence to cheer – it’s very satisfying and does not become overwhelming.
What elevates Frontiers above other films of this ilk is the pace in which it races to its conclusion. Once the sprint for the finish begins, this film really lets rip and assaults the senses not just visually but in the tension and excitement it generates. Hope, despair, elation, vengeance, anger, fear – the audience is immersed in all of this amidst a setting of mud, blood and violence.
Does the story end well for our main protagonist? The film is not left hanging open, and it does have a sense of completion, but despite reaching safety of a sort – it is not clear if the survivor truly has found salvation. What price security over freedom?
The Ghoul is a 1933 British Horror film starring Boris Karloff as THE GHOUL!
What’s interesting is that after it’s release, it disappeared and was considered to be a lost film. The current copy that we all watched was found in the early 1980′s, in a forgotten film vault at Shepperton Studios. The vault was cleared and inside — the dormant nitrate camera negative in perfect condition. The film was kinda like The Ghoul in the film, kept in a sarcophagi, until after death, when it awoke! The film didn’t kill anyone that we know about, but the image of The Ghoul will stay with anyone who watches it.
This is one of those classic tales— the Egyptian curse, those that don’t believe, those that do and suddenly… the monster rises from the tomb to attack everyone! What I loved most about the movie was the huge mansion all dark and looming with Egyptian carvings casting interesting shapes on the walls. It really gave it a spooky sense of appeal.
Another movie of the era, Dracula, had the same sort of foreboding sets. Dracula is my all time favorite horror classic.
Here’s what David had to say about it:
Dracula was released on February 14th 1931 and was directed by Tod Browning and starred Bela Lugosi as Dracula, Edward Van Sloan as Van Helsing, and Dwight Frye as Renfield.
The story begins with a stage coach riding through the Carpathian Mountains in Eastern Europe, carrying Renfield to Castle Dracula to meet with the count to talk about property he is buying in England. Dracula feeds on Renfield and turns him into a slave and then heads off on a ship to London where he meets Lucy Weston and turns her into a vampire. Dracula then turns his sights on Mina, but before he can turn her Dr. Van Helsing and Mina’s fiancé, John Harker, discover that he is a vampire and try to stop him before it’s too late.
Dracula is not one of the best movies of all time but Bela Lugosi gives a great performance that makes this movie a classic.
What do you think about these two films? What is your favorite 1930’s horror flick?
FANS SELECT “ROSWELL” CONCEPT FOR SYFY AND IGN.COM B MOVIE MOGUL SATURDAY ORIGINAL MOVIE. JASON CONNERY (THE DEVIL’S TOMB, 51) WILL DIRECT THE AFTER DARK CO-PRODUCTION FROM A SCRIPT BY TIM TORI (PROWL, HYSTERIA, DRAGON EYES)
New York, NY – December 16, 2010 – After more than 20,000 votes for three possible choices, fans have selected a “Roswell” story line for Syfy and IGN.com’s B Movie Mogul – the online development and production site that lets fans weigh in on an upcoming Syfy Saturday Original Movie. The winning concept will be: Another spaceship crash lands in Roswell, New Mexico, and a dangerous alien creature escapes. Authorities soon realize there is something under the earth in Roswell that has been attracting spacecraft since 1947, and maybe even before. Now they have to uncover that secret while they hunt and kill the creature. Directing the “Roswell” movie will be Jason Connery, son of the legendary former James Bond star Sean Connery, whose credits include The Devil’s Tomb and the upcoming Syfy Saturday Original Movie 51, premiering in First Quarter 2011. Tim Tori, whose credits include Prowl, Hysteria and the upcoming Dragon Eyes, is attached as the writer. Independent motion picture studio After Dark Films, which created the popular Horrorfest: 8 Films to Die For Festival, will produce the movie. But now the fun really begins! Running through the end of the year at http://www.ign.com/syfy/, B Movie Mogul will ask fans to use their imagination and vote on specific plot points of the movie:
1. How does the first character who dies meet his or her grisly demise?
A. Decapitated
B. Swallowed
C. Squashed
2. Before our Comic Relief character becomes a reluctant battler of aliens, what is his or her day job?
A. Socially inept scientist with wild conspiracy theories that link Roswell to the JFK assassination
B. Slacker college student who learned everything he knows about aliens from first person shooter games
C. Stressed-out waitress who blames a shift in Earth’s vibrational energies for the breakup of her last relationship.
3. The biggest, baddest guy on the sweep team should be named:
A. Marion
B. Tweety
C. Freckles
4. Somewhere in the film, which completely random object is used to get our main
characters out of a sticky situation?
A. A glow in the dark yo-yo
B. A Turkey baster
C. A bowling ball with only two holes
5. Who is the token character of wisdom who saves our asses with a crucial piece of info?
A. Sarcastic Preacher with a crossbow
B. Creepy Roswell Museum owner
C. Homeless man who was once abducted
6. Somewhere in the film, a character will say the following line of dialogue:
A. “Let’s go get gooey!”
B. “Bring me the alien’s head. If it has one.”
C. “No wonder they do so much anal probing.”
These six questions will roll out two at a time. The results of all the poll questions will be announced in early 2011.
AFTER DARK FILMS ANNOUNCES SEVENTH ORIGINAL TITLE
SECONDS APART PACKS A TERRIFYING ONE-TWO PUNCH
Los Angeles, CA (Dec. 9th, 2010) — After Dark Films CEO Courtney Solomon has announced, SECONDS APART, as part of the After Dark Originals “A New Brand of Fear” line-up. The film is directed by award winning short-film director Antonio Negret (Towards Darkness) and stars Orlando Jones (Beyond a Reasonable Doubt, Evolution) and twins Gary Entin (Rest Stop, The Seeker) & Edmund Entin (Rest Stop, The Seeker, The New Daughter).
Seth and Jonah are murderous twins who share an evil kinship. Damned from the moment of their births, the brothers possess a talent for telekinesis – a power they are suspected of misusing in the most horrific ways imaginable. As fellow students meet gory fates, a local investigator suspects the twins are connected to these gruesome murders, culminating in one final showdown of brother against brother, evil against evil.
Says Producer Courtney Solomon, “Everyone’s heard about that creepy ‘twin thing.’” You just can’t under-estimate the power of twins, and this film is seasoned by the exceptional performances of Gary and Edmund Entin”.
Seconds Apart, from Executive Producers Courtney Solomon and Stephanie Caleb, was shot in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. A release date for Seconds Apart and all eight Originals is scheduled for late January 2011. The series was developed in partnership with Lionsgate. Exclusive content can be found on facebook at www.facebook.com/secondsapartmovie
After Dark Films made an unprecedented commitment to the production of eight original horror films this year under the After Dark Originals “A New Brand of Fear” label, continuing the Company’s mission of supporting first time independent film writers and directors. The creation
of the AD Originals slate is just another example of the Company’s commitment to the indie film industry.
Unlike After Dark’s “8 Films To Die For®”, After Dark Originals are wholly financed and produced by After Dark Films. The ADO slate runs the gamut of the genre, from paranormal phenomena, black magic, and vengeful ghosts to psychological trauma, murderous psychopaths, vampires and the undead. After Dark polled its fans and is delivering the kinds of movies they asked for!
AFTERDARK: husk
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
AFTER DARK FILMS SHOWS ITS METTLE WITH LATEST TITLE
HUSK SOWS FEAR AND REAPS HORROR IN THE LATEST
“AFTER DARK ORIGINALS” FILM
Los Angeles, CA (November 15, 2010) — After Dark Films CEO Courtney Solomon has once again planted terror into the hearts of horror fans. Husk, the sixth chilling feature film as part of the AFTER DARK ORIGINALS is a gruesome tale written and directed by Brett Simmons (Mark of Love) based on Simmons’ short film of the same name. The film stars Wes Chatham (The Unit, In the Valley of Elah), C.J. Thomason (The Big Bank Theory), and Devon Graye (Scar 3D and Showtime’s Dexter).
When a murder of crows smash into the windshield causing their car to crash, the group of young friends, inside, are forced to abandon the vehicle. Stranded beside a desolate cornfield, they see a light on in a window and decide to go in search of help. They head into the fields but instead of finding sanctuary they discover something evil and unnatural lurking in the corn. “Think classic original horror films when you think of HUSK!”, says Solomon. “This film is a real throwback to that time; the true 1960s creepiness, a nerve-wracking suspenseful script, and real character development”.
Husk, from Executive Producers Limor Diamant, Allen Zeman, & Stephanie Caleb, and Producer Courtney Solomon, was shot in Iowa and is currently in post-production. Release date for Husk and all eight Originals is scheduled for January 2011. The series was developed in partnership with Lionsgate.
After Dark Films made an unprecedented commitment to the production of eight original horror films this year under the After Dark Originals label, continuing the Company’s mantra of supporting first time independent film writers and directors. The creation of the AD Originals (www.afterdarkoriginals.com) slate is just another example of the Company’s commitment to the Indie film industry.
Unlike After Dark’s “8 Films To Die For®”, After Dark Originals are wholly financed and produced by After Dark Films. The ADO slate runs the gamut of the genre, from paranormal phenomena, black magic, and vengeful ghosts to psychological trauma, murderous psychopaths, vampires and the undead. After Dark polled its fans and is delivering the kinds of movies they asked for!
After Dark Films:
Founded in 2006 by film producer/director/writer Courtney Solomon and real estate and textile financier Allan Zeman, After Dark Films is a leader in independent film finance, production and acquisition of genre films for theatrical release.
After Dark is perhaps best known for its creation and execution of After Dark Horrorfest® – 8 Films to Die For® (www.horrorfestonline.com). Debuting in 2006, After Dark Horrorfest ® is a one week national film festival that celebrates all areas of the horror genre. In its first year, Horrorfest became the first film festival in history to break into the Top 10 at the national box office, grossing over $2.5 million Additionally, it reached great success with over 1.6 million DVDs currently in circulation through distribution partner Lionsgate.
After Dark’s initial film release was the box office success An American Haunting (2006), written, directed and produced by Courtney Solomon. An American Haunting opened at the #2 spot in the nation, and maintained its position for four weeks. Subsequent releases include The Abandoned; Skinwalkers, starring Jason Behr, Rhona Mitra and Matthew Knight; Captivity, starring Elisha Cuthbert and directed by Oscar-nominee Roland Joffe (The Killing Fields), and Frontier(s), directed by Xavier Gens (Hitman). Building upon the success of Horrorfest®, After Dark Films has developed a second series in partnership with Syfy and Lionsgate entitled, After Dark Originals. The series is set to debut in the January 2011.
Death of a Ghost Hunter is a low budget Horror Film that came out in 2007. The cast is primarily made up of unknown actors but the actress Patti Tindall, who plays the lead Carter Simms, does a great job. The rest of the cast are actors that may someday be seen in more films, or in the case of actor Mike Marsh, writing them.
The film opens with a story about how a family was murdered and then we see what appears to be an old film showing us what happened the night in question. There is a woman in white walking with a bloody knife, dragging a garbage bag, before washing her hands, placing the knife in the block and then shooting herself.
We then are informed how a renowned Ghost Hunter, Carter Simms, has been hired for $5000 to investigate the home by its current owner. It appears the home hasn’t seen many occupants since the murder and a caretaker had a terrible experience there. Carter takes the assignment and is told that she will have some people working with her. Carter is told that a writer and a videographer will be joining her during her investigation. Although Carter prefers to work alone, she accepts this fact as she is getting $5000 to investigate. There is one problem though, when the first night of the investigation begins, an additional person shows up saying she has been asked to assist the investigation as well.
The film moves along as we watch the Ghost Hunter meet with her team and plan her investigation. This is a great part of the film as we get to see the thought process and planning that goes into her investigation. This is something that is shown other times during the film and includes the use of a white board in the process. This shows almost a methodical police like plan of action to solve a crime and as the film progresses it appears that they just maybe solving a crime.
Death of a Ghost Hunter is a film that is somewhat unique in its telling. It takes time to show the process used in the investigation. There are points of conflict that come from the unexpected guest, but this adds to some tension in the film. As things start to get more interesting in the investigation and the bumps in the night become more real, the film really starts to break out to being a chilling tale. There is plenty to keep the viewer on edge and keep a person nervous and scared.
The acting in the film can be a bit off at times, but if you can let yourself get past that, you will find a great film. The way the film helps the viewer to uncover what happened that fateful night when the family was murdered is greatly done and you may find yourself trying to guess what happened. The film is certainly something worth viewing. The interaction of the characters, the plot, and the visuals used in the film are extraordinary considering its possible budget. Paranormal, thriller, suspense, and horror fans will enjoy this movie if they are willing to give it a shot.
