“Irrelevant Details Mar What Could Have Been A Been An Excellent Example Of The ‘Body Horror’ Genre.” Eric England‘s “Contracted” isn’t a bad movie by any stretch. It looks good, is well-acted, and competently shot. It’s also damned irritating. “Contracted” is in the vein of David Cronenberg‘s ‘Body Horror’ films, such as “Scanners,” “Videodrome” and […]
“Antiviral” is worth seeing, though it’s too cold, distant and clinical to be called enjoyable.” I really want to believe that that “Antiviral” had something to say about the nature of fame, and its costs. But, as the saying goes, if wishes were horses, beggars would ride. The film, the first by Brandon Cronenberg (the […]
What is it about identical twins – as opposed to fraternal – that makes them so creepy (I mean the type that doesn’t seem to understand that, despite looking alike, that they are two separate individuals)? These twins – that seem to exist only exist only in movies, like David Cronenberg’s excellent “Dead Ringers,” – […]
I wrote in October of last year that Sam Raimi was planning a remake – a term that’s always synonymous with*maximum suckage – of Tobe Hooper’s “Poltergeist.” That’s still happening, though Raimi is producing, not directing. That job will be handled by Gil Kenan. Prior to this gig, he helmed “Monster House” and “City Of […]
Finally a ‘Red Band’ trailer that justifies the name! I am a huge Danny Boyle fan. Even when his films don’t quite strike the right tone, such as “A Life Less Ordinary,” “Sunshine,” and I would argue, “The Beach,” they’re still worth watching. His “Trainspotting” is perhaps the best film that I have ever seen […]
“Here’s to all the kisses I snatched, and vice versa.” —Fred Chu Think about it for a moment, you’ll get it. One of Marvel Studios’ Phase Two projects is a feature film version of Doctor Strange, Master of the Mystic Arts. I still think that Ioan Gruffudd should play Strange, though who should direct? On […]
Excuse me for a moment. That’s better. Now that I found a little release, I can ask the question I find myself asking way more often that I would like lately, which is: Why in (insert perferred deity here) name are they remaking David Cronenberg’s “Videodrome?” Cronenberg himself attempted, not nearly as successfully, to revisit […]
Sometimes it’s difficult to be a horror fan because, to paraphrase Rodney Dangerfield: “We don’t get no respect.” I don’t know what what other conclusion to reach when studios are turning out drivel like “Hellraiser: Revelations.” We want nuance. We want character development. We want pathos. And sure, we want some gore and violence accompanying […]
I have been re-reading H.P. Lovecraft’s “At The Mountains Of Madness,” and–as much as I hate to say it–I am somewhat glad that the powers-that-be at Universal pulled the plug (Sure, for all the wrong reasons, but whatever). Don’t take that to mean that Guillermo Del Toro couldn’t have made an engrossing and terrifying film; […]
Many horror films, be they of the ‘Saw’ or “Friday the 13th” variety, are a lot of things, but scary isn’t one of them. This is often because their stock and trade is shock, and violence is the means to that end. They’re not particularly scary because fear involves mood and atmosphere, things that takes […]
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