Review : Panic Button (2011)

Director:

Chris Crow

Writers:

Frazer Lee, John Shackleton, and 2 more credits »

Stars:

Scarlett Alice Johnson, Jack Gordon and Michael Jibson

Four strangers win a competition on the popular social-networking website All2Gether, and are offered a trip to New York via private jet. When they get on board, however, a new game is presented to them. One that will show them for who the really are, and in which their lack of participation will have serious consequences.... 

"Facebook - Never has there been a more wretched hive of scum and villainy" - Me

I hadn't heard of PANIC BUTTON until the day I watched it, (yesterday as it happens), and had no idea what it was dealing with, other than the fact that it had something to do with social networking, and was British. Now right away, that combination inspires dread in me. You see, Ive seen CHAT ROOM, and it was ninety odd minutes of my life and my sanity that I can never reclaim. That film tried as hard as can be, to be on the pulse of today's widespread self-whoring media obsession, but managed to be about ten years too late. Has anyone even been in a chat room since the early noughties? I didn't even know the things still existed.

Where that film was filled to the brim with upper class wankers, whom you wanted to eviscerate on sight.....PANIC BUTTON is filled to the brim with upper class wankers who you want to eviscerate on sight, too....at least I did.

Horror Hotel Cinema : Madman (1982)

Welcome back to the midnight show, friendo's...

This weeks mini-masterpiece needs to no introduction whatsoever. Why, you ask? Because I reviewed this little gem right here!

Go read that, then come back here, and watch 'Madman Marz' killing visually challenging cast members in style!

Review : Madman (1982)

Director:

Joe Giannone

Writers:

Joe Giannone (screenplay), Joe Giannone (story), and 1 more credit »

Stars:

Gaylen Ross, Tony Fish and Harriet Bass

Legend tells of a deranged madman, who lives deep in the woods surrounding some summer camp or other, and if you say his name above a whisper, he'll come looking for you, brandishing an axe and an attitude problem. Cue dumb teenage kids shouting his name out into the dark woodlands. Bad idea, son....

Believe it or not, this much-ignored little slasher sits proudly among my very favourite of the sub-genre, alongside BLACK CHRISTMAS, HALLOWEEN, THE BURNING, A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET and COLD PREY 1 & 2. I just cant get enough of this film, from its lumbering, doom-laden opening theme to its horrendous casting. Its just perfection.

Review : Don't Be Afraid of the Dark (2010)

 

Director:

Troy Nixey

Writers:

Guillermo del Toro (screenplay), Matthew Robbins (screenplay), and 1 more credit »

Stars:

Katie Holmes, Guy Pearce and Bailee Madison

A young girl sent to live with her father and his new girlfriend discovers creatures in her new home who want to claim her as one of their own.

When reviewing  DON'T BE AFRAID OF THE DARK, I found myself in a state of internal conflict. Its been my hardest review to articulate by far, so bear with me and by the end it'll all make sense, I hope...

Anything with Guillermo Del Toro's name on it is usually a guaranteed work worth experiencing. Whether he's in the directors chair, (PAN'S LABYRINTH, THE DEVIL'S BACKBONE), or working in a producing capacity, (EL ORFANTO, JULIA'S EYES), his unique vision, cinematic aesthetic and storytelling prowess are always upfront. DON'T BE AFRAID OF THE DARK is no different, at least on the surface.

Taking on the role of both Writer and producer, this time Del Toro is dipping his toes into the shark infested water that is ' THE REMAKE'. Yep, DON'T BE AFRAID is a remake of a TV movie from the 80s that made quite an impression on many who saw it. I caught it for the first time last year and I really couldn't see what all the fuss was about. It had a cool concept that plays on a whole host of childhood fears, yet I found the execution to be severely lacking. In my mind, its a film that was ripe for a remake. After all, instead of remaking all the stone cold classics like HALLOWEEN, why not take a flawed work and push to make it better; make it what it could have been?

Interview : Zena, The Real Queen of Horror

Hello, Friendo's...

One of the most enjoyable things about working in the blog-o-sphere is the sharing of our work with fellow writers, and having the chance to discover their work for yourself. As I set about creating my own slice of online Horror, I would scour the net looking for like-minded Horror-hungry souls, who's work would inspire and inflect my own, Among the very finest of these discoveries was coming across Zena's popular little corner of the Internet, THE REAL QUEEN OF HORROR. 

The first thing I noticed was the lack of conformity. Zena is, (shock!! horror!!) a young, black woman! I know, I know....its unthinkable, but true! In a world where Horror fans are normally viewed within the cliche of morbidly overweight, spotty white 'Death Metal' fans, (thanks for that, Mainstream Media), it's always fun to see the blatantly false stereotype being shot down on sight.

Review : 11.11.11 (2011)

Director:

Darren Lynn Bousman

Writer:

Darren Lynn Bousman (screenplay)

Stars:

Timothy Gibbs, Michael Landes and Brendan Price

 

After the death of his wife and child, an author who has lost his faith in God, travels to Barcelona to visit his estranged brother, (a preacher) and dying father, where he  comes to realize that many important events in his life all seem relate to the number 11. As he investigates, he finds himself trapped in an ever-worsening nightmare that could herald the apocalypse. Demonic entities and Hellish visions begin to plague his every moment, as he comes to learn the terrible truth behind the mystery, and all the time the date 11-11-11 draws slowly nearer....

What the fuck happened?

 

Lets get this straight. I loved MOTHERS DAY. I enjoyed all of Darren Lynn Bousmans previous efforts, but I freaking loved MOTHERS DAY. (Heres the proof!). That film was vicious, unrelenting, intelligent and paced within an inch of its life. It managed to hold court with the French New Wave of Horror, and not embarrass itself, and it was one of the few remakes that not only surpassed the original, but kicked its teeth out and left it bleeding on the racetrack.. Bousman has been growing and growing as a filmmaker. The guy has serious skill's behind a camera and crew....

Horror Hotel Cinema : Hammer House of Horror - The Silent Scream (1980)

Hello, one and all....

The Horror Hotel Cinema has yet another rare classic for your viewing pleasure, tonight. This one only runs at an hour long, as it is, in fact, part of a TV spin-off venture that the fabled Hammer Studio's partook of, in the last leg of their saga. The series was called, HAMMER HOUSE OF HORROR, and was a hugely successful, if short-lived, set of mini-movies, dealing in a variety of Horror's; (demons, occultism and haunted houses, among others), each one with a different cast, writers and director. It was very much the MASTERS OF HORROR of its time.

I'm unsure what impact the show had on the rest of the world, but in the UK it was a big hit, and has taken its rightful place in the public consciousness, spanning two generations. Its a fine show, with some fine acting, not least in THE SILENT SCREAM...