Where Horror Lives
Looking to cash in on the low-budget grindhouse aesthetic that Rob Zombie and Eli Roth perfected, Anthony Leone’s 2020 indie horror, Hacksaw, hits VOD platforms this week. To his credit, first-time director Leone is almost a one-man show, taking on writing, producing, and cinematography credits. Though Leone demonstrates ambition, Hacksaw follows a familiar blueprint. Based […]
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Over the course of his career, director Abel Ferrara amassed some impressive Grindhouse credentials. His wide-spanning filmography includes an early pornographic movie, the cult rape-revenge Ms 45, and neo-noir crime thrillers King of New York and Dangerous Game. Ferrara made the gonzo 1992 thriller, Bad Lieutenant, and the critically acclaimed The Funeral. Few filmmakers have […]
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Last year, Joe Begos impressed with his trippy indie horror-thriller, Bliss. In fact, Bliss was a solid enough effort to make my list of 10 best movies of 2019. Now Begos is following up his modern take on the vampire with an ‘urban siege’ movie in the tradition of Assault on Precinct 13. Though it’s […]
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Silent Night, Deadly Night boasts a history shared by few ’80’s horror films. Arguably its infamy far outreaches its quality. At its best, Silent Night, Deadly Night is a sleazy B-movie that hits the ‘so bad, it’s good’ switch. Many horror fans may just consider it plain bad. But when this Christmas chiller was released […]
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If there was a movie begging for a remake … I Spit On Your Grave was not that movie. Most film pundits consider director Meir Zarchi’s 1978 ‘rape-revenge’ film to be among the most controversial movies made. Following its release, critics trashed it while some countries outright banned it. In the 1980’s, for instance, England […]
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Eli Roth is one of the more divisive filmmakers in the horror genre today. Though his filmography is relatively small, Roth has had his hand in numerous projects, including AMC’s recent Eli Roth’s History of Horror. In the early 2000’s, Roth emerged alongside filmmakers noted for pushing the envelope of onscreen violence including Rob Zombie […]
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With all the news trickling in about the upcoming sequel to The Devil’s Rejects, 3 From Hell, it’s a good time to re-visit Rob Zombie’s filmography. Admittedly, I have been a huge fan of Zombie’s music from his days with White Zombie. Both Astro-Creep 2000 and Hellbilly Deluxe remain among some of my favourite albums. Given his […]
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Italian-Canadian film director Panos Cosmatos waited awhile before following up his debut feature, Beyond the Black Rainbow. Based on the buzz his latest release, Mandy, generated at the Sundance Film Festival, it was worth the wait. Considered a mix of surrealist horror and action, Mandy has steadily built anticipation based on its trailers and word-of-mouth. […]
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The rape-revenge thriller has a controversial place within the larger horror genre. Films like The Last House on the Left and I Spit On Your Grave courted controversy way back in the 1970’s. While both of these films have been remade in the last decade, critical attention on sexual violence in media has only intensified. […]
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The term ‘downrange’ is a military term referring to a combat zone. It’s an apt title for the Ryuhei Kitamura horror-thriller that merges survival horror with slasher film sensibilities. Downrange debuted last September at the Midnight Madness event of the Toronto International Film Festival. Earlier this week, the horror-streaming platform, Shudder, made Downrange available for […]
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