By the 1970s, horror found itself in a transition stage. Studios like Hammer Films and American International Pictures, which had dominated the genre in the previous decade, were looking pretty dated. That is, the Gothic horror of Hammer’s Dracula and Frankenstein series and AIP’s Edgar Allan Poe adaptations struggled to compete with horror’s shift to […]
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Horror loves events. Not just holiday-themed movies, either. After Halloween defied box office expectations in 1978, the horror genre was looking to adapt just about any holiday or calendar event. Hence, we have Christmas and Valentine’s Day-themed movies alongside April Fool’s Day and Friday the 13th. We’ve got Prom Night and Graduation Day and even […]
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Last week, Orion Pictures released their adaptation of the classic Brothers Grimm fairytale, Hansel and Gretel – Gretel & Hansel. The latest directorial feature from Oz Perkins (The Blackcoat’s Daughter) re-visits a classic horror narrative – the evil witch in the woods. Though vampires, werewolves, and zombie have all enjoyed cycles of mainstream popularity, witches […]
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On April 25 1953, Warner Bros Studios released House of Wax. It was the first Hollywood color film to use 3-D technology. Additionally, it marked Vincent Price’s first foray into the horror genre. What followed was a legendary career for the horror icon. Its story of a brilliant wax sculptor, driven mad by betrayal and disfigurement, […]
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Legendary director and producer Roger Corman’s career spans several decades. From 1954 to the early 1970’s, Corman directed over 50 movies. Today, he’s still producing feature length films. His low-budget approach aesthetics played a significant role in the growth of the indie movie scene in the 1960’s and 1970’s. Like William Castle, Roger Corman cut […]
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Not everyone loves Valentine’s Day. If you’re single or recently had your heart broken, it’s a bit of an exclusive holiday. Romantic comedies aren’t everyone’s cup of tea. Or maybe you’re just worn out from all the Hallmark Christmas movies on Netflix. In this Chopping Block column, I have a list of five ‘alternative’ romantic […]
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On October 25th, 1993, we lost a horror icon – Vincent Price. Baby boomers grew up watching Price in Roger Corman’s B-movie adaptations of Edgar Allan Poe. For horror-obsessed Canadian kids like me who grew up in the 1970’s and 1980s’, Vincent Price was Dr. Anton Phibes and the host of Hamilton-produced kids show, The […]
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Legendary director and producer William Castle was the master of gimmicks. Most of his work was cheesy, low budget B-films. But Castle filmed and marketed his productions with a childlike enthusiasm. As a result, Castle’s movies have retained much of their charms in spite of the passing years. One of Castle’s best movies was The […]
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