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This is the spot where I discuss, and offer my opinions on, different topics (both horror-related and not) each month. I decided to create this page because I find that I often come across things that either interest me, excite me or maybe just bug me. For example, I'll often read about movie projects that I have a strong interest in, or opinion on, for one reason or another. This page gives me a forum to discuss these things. Anyone who has feedback concerning what I have to say here, feel free to contact me. I'd also like to point out that the following is just my opinion, and everyone is free to agree or disagree with what I have to say. ENJOY!
SUBJECT: Some cool movies from 2001-2002. January 2003
This column presents a list of some of my favorite movies of 2001 and 2002. The horror movies on the list are: Forests of the Dead, Halloween Resurrection, Jason X, The Others, Queen of the Damned, The Ring and Slashers. The non-horror movies are Ghost World and Moulin Rouge.
SUBJECT:Darkness Falls:The movie that could've been. February 2003
The movie Darkness Falls is an entertaining little "thriller" with some creepy moments and vivid imagery. However I believe it was made about twenty years too late, because it borrows heavily from movies of decades past, including A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors and Wes Craven'sNew Nightmare.
SUBJECT: Fangoria Magazine - still going strong after over 200 issues. March 2003
FANGORIA is a high-quality magazine dedicated to all things horror-related that has been around since
the late 1970's. Sections of Fangoria include Monster Invasion, dedicated to breaking horror news, The
Video Eye of Dr. Cyclops & DVD Dungeon, focusing on movies released on tape and DVD, respectively,
and Fangoria Retrospectives, covering movies from the past. Also featured is the very unique Notes
From The Underground section, comprised of articles written by low/no-budget filmmakers like myself.
SUBJECT: Actor profile: Crispin Glover - A genre comeback. April 2003
The new remake of Willard (a 70's cult film about a boy and a pack of rats) provides a good vehicle for
the genre comeback of a very interesting actor. I vividly remember Crispin Glover from previous film appearances like Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter, and the dark and edgy teen drama River's Edge.
In fact Crispin Glover has been steadily working in movies throughout the decades, but in true character
actor tradition has remained under the radar. It would really be something if the new Willard changed that.
SUBJECT: The Chiller Theatre Toy, Model & Film Expo: An overview. May 2003
The Chiller Theatre Toy, Model & Film Expo is one of the biggest horror, film and memorabilia conventions on the East Coast. It's held twice a year in New Jersey, and gives movie fans a chance to meet a diverse variety of guests, ranging from Jason Voorhees actor Kane Hodder to indie scream queen Misty Mundae. Another draw of this impressive show is the large merchandise rooms where one can buy anything and everything movie and television-related.
SUBJECT: Rob Zombie's House of 1000 Corpses- An artistic misfire? June 2003
I admire the fact that Rob Zombie was able to stay true to his vision and make the movie he wanted to,
and also get it into theaters. However despite some interesting stylistic excesses reminiscent of Quentin Tarantino, this movie didn't work for me for several reasons. First and foremost was the fact that it seemed
to be a thin, often senseless imitation of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Also several artistic choices by the director were simply not effective, and several characters were so over-the-top as to be annoying. I'd recommend checking out the film so everyone can decide for themselves if House of 1000 Corpses hits the mark, or if it is in fact a well-intentioned artistic misfire.
SUBJECT:New Projects, New Beginnings - some random thoughts. July 2003
My latest project is a comedy called Of Theatre & Bikinis. The challenges involved with this movie have been different from my past horror pictures. For one thing, in a comedy dialog can be key to the success
or failure of a scene, because if it's not funny things fall flat. I'm also working with quite a few new people this time around, which is challenging as well. And finally, shooting entirely during the day using artificial light (sunlight) is quite different from shooting a horrific scene at night.
SUBJECT: Q & A Time August 2003
In this Q & A session I answer questions about how the internet, the World Wide Web and E-mail have influenced my movie productions and helped me do my job better as an independent filmmaker.
Not too long ago I was asked to answer some questions for an article on independent filmmakers that was
to appear in a new print publication about B-movies. Unfortunately (to my knowledge) the article was never published. So I decided to post the questions and answers in this column. Hope you find it interesting.
Q: There are lots of technology advances (DV cameras, DVD, the increasing affordability of computer-generated graphics) that have affected the budget film industry, but what Internet-specific services have
most affected your own work? List some sites and/or services that help you do your job better or faster,
SUBJECT: "Freddy vs. Jason" - Why it worked. September 2003
The concern over how Freddy and Jason would exist in the same universe was alleviated right from the start
in the ingenious Freddy vs. Jason. The movie contained trademark elements from both series, including
a segment in Freddy's boiler room, and a skinny-dipping scene with all the nudity and exploitation one has come to expect from a Friday the 13th movie. The new film also gives insight into the motivations of each character while introducing a compelling new horror tale. Good performances all around highlight this excellent new movie as well.
SUBJECT:Movie Recommendation- "Underworld"
The Summer 2003 horror movie season ends on a high note. October 2003
The vampires vs. werewolves movie Underworld was a cool studio picture for 2003. I liked this film
because it had interesting characters, compelling situations, and a rich story. I also enjoyed the mix of
genres present, as the movie is part Matrix-style action, part horror movie. My only minor quibbles center around the fact that high-tech weapons are usually favored when battles take place, and a lack of developing the relationship between Selene (Kate Beckinsale), and her human love interest Michael (Scott Speedman). Overall however, Underworld is an entertaining, action-oriented film that successfully combines the vampire and werewolf horror subgenres.
SUBJECT: Needless remakes of classic horror films - part 2November 2003
Plus:A review of "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre" (2003)
I wasn't eagerly awaiting the remake of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, but tried to remain objective when
I went to see it at the theater. While discussing remakes that night with a friend, I decided a good idea would
be to require these movies to have "THE REMAKE" put into the title. The new Chainsaw has some good characters and visceral elements that make it very effective, while not quite matching up to the original version in terms of overall intensity. It's interesting that they focused so much on Sheriff Hoyt, essentially making him the main character. My only real criticism of the film is that lead actress Jessica Biel is just too damn hot, and therefore distracting, for a movie like this.
SUBJECT: The horror of the PG-13 rating. December 2003
In recent years PG-13 rated horror films have become tremendously successful. Many of these efforts have proven that gallons of cinematic blood and other visceral elements aren't always needed to create effective suspense and scares. This success is good because it draws bigger audiences to the horror genre and also results in more movies being produced. At the same time, independent and underground filmmakers not restricted by MPAA-mandated ratings are free to provide content to fright fans who like their horror more on
the extreme side.
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As I've mentioned in previous columns, 2003 has been a banner year for horror films. Several R-rated films
I really liked - Underworld, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003), and especially Freddy vs. Jason * - have done well at the box office. However, the real trend in fright fare (which I noticed emerging in 2002) has been the prevalence of the PG-13 rating. More and more I see studios gearing their horror releases toward younger audiences and holding back on the more visceral elements in favor of suspense and/or off-screen violence. An example of a youth-targeted approach would be Darkness Falls **, whereas a film like
The Others *** (which appealed largely to older audiences because of its subject matter and pacing) was all
about generating mood and suspense through unseen elements. This approach has proven very financially successful, with many PG-13 efforts generating huge box office revenues well over the 100-million dollar mark. This level of success is less prevalent with R-rated efforts because the potentially huge teen/pre-teen audience is kept out of theaters. Additionally (and more importantly), many PG-13 pictures have been artistically and critically successful as well, proving that it is possible to make a movie that scares, creeps out, or at least affects viewers, without dumping gallons of blood onto the set. An obvious past cinematic example would be the 1999 release The Sixth Sense, which achieved all of the above with just a sprinkling of visceral elements.
Quite awhile back I wrote a column (TFTM, Sept. 2002) about the trend of remaking, and in most cases butchering, classic horror films. Well, unfortunately, that trend is still alive and well today. Even though this summer has been a great time for our beloved horror genre, and even though most of the movies released have been original creations (or at least sequels), this month brings us the remake of another seminal classic "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre". While Tobe Hooper's cult shocker is admittedly not among my favorite films, the news that it was going to be remade caused me to involuntarily roll my eyes and groan. The original movie was a raw, documentary-style independent film that had a look and feel that is not likely to be duplicated by any of today's filmmakers. The 1974 Chainsaw is one of those movies on that short list of films which really disturbed me.* When I went to the theatre to see the remake on opening night (yes, despite my feelings on these remakes I'm usually still a glutton for punishment as soon as they come out) I had to keep telling myself
to try and remain objective and not compare it to the original. And to a certain extent, I succeeded in that task.
After the spectacular "Freddy vs. Jason", I felt quite happy and satisfied. This was the movie I had been
waiting for forever, and luckily it didn't disappoint (see last month's TFTM column to read my praise of the film).
I really didn't care all that much what other horror releases arrived in theatres. However, since the success of Freddy vs. Jason, much to my surprise horror has continued to be red hot in the remaining weeks of summer 2003. After the battle of the horror titans came a cool little independent sort-of zombie film called "Cabin Fever", followed by the even cooler studio picture "Underworld", which tells the story of an ancient battle between vampires and lycans (werewolves). Read More...
As I write this, the long-anticipated horror extravaganza Freddy vs. Jason has opened in theaters across the country and brought in big revenues. The movie came in #1 at the box office in the first two weekends of its release. Being a big Nightmare on Elm Street fan, and also someone who enjoys the Friday the 13th films, I'm very happy about this. What I'm most excited about however, is not just that the movie did well, but that it was very, very good. Read More...
In this column I want to reflect on what it has been like to begin shooting a new movie after not having done any *filming for close to a year. This essay will be different from most of my previous TFTM columns in that I'm not going to offer an in-depth analysis of a particular topic, but rather just write down some random thoughts about my experiences to date on my most recent production. I would ask regular readers of the column to indulge this attempt at "off-the cuff" writing. Read More...
Rocker Rob Zombie's new horror flick House of 1000 Corpses was one that I had been looking forward to seeing for awhile. The word was that this film would be one of the most raw and shocking horror movies to
hit theaters in a long time. It was reported that the movie was originally going to be distributed by Universal Pictures until they actually saw what Rob had created. Apparently they found the film to be too intense and dropped it. To me this meant there was a very good chance the movie was going to be something special. After Universal let it go a lot of time went by and rumors flew about different distribution deals, until Lions Gate Films picked it up and it was finally released to theaters. Now that I've seen the movie I can understand why everybody was talking about it. However I can also honestly say that I was very disappointed with it.
For those who aren't familiar with it, the Chiller Theatre Toy, Model & Film Expo is quite simply one of the most elaborate horror, film and memorabilia conventions on the East Coast. The show, held twice a year in New Jersey, is an entertaining three day gathering of fans, collectors and talent. For the movie fan the convention is a place to meet people in the business. Read More...
In the new movie Willard - a remake of a 70's cult film - which was released last month, it's all Crispin Glover. The actor appears in just about every shot of this quirky, dark little picture. Willard is a social misfit with a domineering mother. He is ostracized and tormented at work by a cruel boss. His life takes a strange turn
when he gains command of an army of rats, which he uses to exact revenge on those who have wronged him. People who have seen the movie will probably agree that while it's not what you would call "straight horror"
(it's only rated PG-13), it's nonetheless twisted and disturbing mainly due to Glover's performance. He makes Willard a twitchy, nervous, angst-ridden, and highly unstable fellow, in a deliciously over-the-top performance which is further intensified by many tight close-ups on his face. Many scenes - especially those between
Willard and his overbearing mother* - are quite creepy and unsettling to say the least. This movie highlights what is so interesting about Crispin Glover: mainly, that he is just that - interesting to watch. Willard also
serves as Glover's welcome return to the fright genre. Read More...
This month I'd like to take the time to pay tribute to one of the best genre magazines around today: FANGORIA. For those not familiar with Fango (as it's often called for short), the magazine is a monthly publication covering all aspects of the horror genre. From its inception in the late seventies right up to the current issue, Fango has devotedly covered everything from American mainstream horror cinema to obscure Euro-horror pictures. Besides focusing on individual movies, the magazine regularly profiles actors, directors, and other behind-the-scenes people involved in the production and distribution of horror movies. They also look at such topics as horror literature, horror film festivals, and the horror theme park industry. However, the heart and soul of the magazine revolves around horror cinema. Read More...
In this TFTM column I'd like to talk about the movie Darkness Falls, as I believe that the film warrants an in-depth discussion. The plot deals with the malevolent spirit of a woman named Matilda Dixon, who has come back to terrorize residents of a town where she was wrongfully hung 150 years earlier. Formerly a good-hearted "tooth fairy" who was kind to all the children and would reward them when they lost a tooth, she is now their worst nightmare. Read More...
As I mentioned in a previous column, I don't often use this space to recommend and review movies. However, when I was thinking about what to write for this TFTM column, it occurred to me that it might be fun to make a list of my choices for favorite movies of the year. As I began compiling the list of movies that I liked, and began using the Internet Movie Database to check spellings of titles and actors names etc., I saw that some of these movies are actually listed with the date 2001 next to them. Therefore, I will also put (2001) next to any of these picks. These are movies that stuck in my head more than a few minutes after I left the theater or turned off the VCR or DVD player. I'm not going to give a ranking, because I believe all of these pictures have their own merits and are too dissimilar to one another (whether because of budget, genre, or whatever) to be ranked in numerical order. I've always found alphabetical order to be a simple enough method for many things. I will also divide the list into two groups: Horror and Non-horror. So here it goes. Enjoy. Read More...
