Coronavirus Mortality Updates: 2020 - 2023 |
NOVEMBER 4 |
John Carpenter's THEY LIVE Turns 36
It's flawed but cool and more than a little hypocritical. The evergreen pop-influence of John Carpenter's THEY LIVE.
And -
Kenneth Branaugh's FRANKENSTEIN is 30
Francis Ford Copolla, hot off the success of Bram Stoker's DRACULA, wanted this to be prefaced with Mary Shelley's name to indicate that this movie would be closer to the original intent of the novel same as he did with Bram.
He bought a script from Steph Lady (her only produced screenplay), and soon realized that the undertaking was too huge to be both a Director and Producer. So Francis eventually hired Kenneth Branaugh who, once hired, disagreed with Copolla's vision. Ken brought in screenwriter Frank Darabont who at that time was best known for his work on sequels and remakes (A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET 3, THE BLOB [1988], THE FLY II) to make changes.
What changes?
To Kenneth, what this movie really needed is something to spice it up! Something Mary Shelley's book never had and what Kenneth never dared to do to his own Productions and that's Way More Sex: featuring his new girlfriend, Helena Bonham Carter.
The fights between Copolla and Branaugh weren't epic but the wounds inflicted were apparently deep, as Francis wound up publically denouncing his own movie, Mary Shelley's FRANKENSTEIN, as did Frank Darabont when he said in later interviews that Branaugh mishandled the movie.
Plus -
19 Years Ago the Sky Fell on Disney
The growing cult-status of Director Mark Dindal's CHICKEN LITTLE.
Also -
8 Years of DOCTOR STRANGE
It built great box office, but despite the fan popular actors, the character isn't building much following. What's going on with DOCTOR STRANGE?
Finale -
HAPPY HORROR BIRTHDAYS TO -
By E.C. McMullen Jr.
Actor Olivia Taylor Dudley (CHILLERAMA, CHERNOBYL DIARIES, TRANSENDENCE, THE BARBER [2014], DUDE BRO PARTY MASSACRE III, THE VATICAN TAPES, APPLETON, PARANORMAL ACTIVITY: THE GHOST DIMENSION, THE MAGICIANS [TV], SHE DIES TOMORROW, CRAWLSPACE, ONYX FORTUITOUS AND THE TALISMAN OF SOULS) is 38.
Look for Olivia in the upcoming 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025 Thriller, CANARY. Also expected in 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025, CHUCK HANK AND THE SAN DIEGO TWINS.
Actor, Stuntman Ken Kirzinger (FRIDAY THE 13th PART VIII: JASON TAKES MANHATTAN, THE X-FILES [TV], THE 13TH WARRIOR, MISSION TO MARS, THIR13EN GHOSTS, INSOMNIA, DREAMCATCHER, X2, FREDDY VS. JASON, PAYCHECK, THE FOG [2005], X-MEN: THE LAST STAND, THE INCREDIBLE HULK, WRONG TURN 2: DEAD END, JOY RIDE 2, WATCHMEN, THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL [2008], X-MEN ORIGINS: WOLVERINE, THE TWILIGHT SAGA: NEW MOON, THE CABIN IN THE WOODS, JOY RIDE 3, and more) is 64.
Ken Kirzinger shares a birthday month with FREDDY VS. JASON alumni, Katherine Isabelle.
Actor Travis Van Winkle (CONFESSION, LEFT IN DARKNESS, ASYLUM [2008], FRIDAY THE 13TH [2009], BLOODWORK, 247°F, RITES OF PASSAGE, THE LAST SHIP [TV], INSTINCT [TV]) is 41.
SUNDAY -
Actor Debbie Rochon (NEGATIVES, BANNED, VALERIE, BLACK EASTER, REGENERATED MAN, ABDUCTED II, SHRIEK OF THE LYCANTHROPE, DEPRAVED, TROMEO AND JULIET, SANTA CLAWS, EVIL AMBITIONS, CYBER VENGEANCE, THE VAMPIRE'S SEDUCTION, ALIEN AGENDA, RAGE OF THE WEREWOLF, TERROR FIRMER, HELLBLOCK 13, CITIZEN TOXIE: THE TOXIC AVENGER IV, THE RESURRECTION GAME, MULVA: ZOMBIE ASS KICKER!, KILLJOY 2, VAMPIRE QUEEN, DEADLY STINGERS, CHAINSAW CHEERLEADERS, DEAD END [2010], SINEATERS, IMAGO, SICK, DEATH HOUSE, ALTERSCAPE, FANTASMA [2018], SHAKESPEARE'S SH*TSTORM, and a whole lot more) is 56.
SFX MUA, Actor Tom Savini (DEAD OF NIGHT, MARTIN, DAWN OF THE DEAD, MANIAC, CREEPSHOW, CREEPSHOW 2, DAY OF THE DEAD, TWO EVIL EYES, HEARTSTOPPER, INNOCENT BLOOD, THE DEMOLITIONIST, FROM DUSK TILL DAWN, THE MONSTER MAN, WEB OF DARKNESS, CHILDREN OF THE LIVING DEAD, EYES ARE UPON YOU, TED BUNDY, BLOOD BATH, ZOMBIEGEDDON, VICIOUS, DAWN OF THE DEAD [2004], FOREST OF THE DAMNED, LAND OF THE DEAD, GRINDHOUSE, PLANET TERROR, DIARY OF THE DEAD, THE DEAD MATTER, HORRORWEEN, DEATH FROM ABOVE, COOL AS HELL, THE SADIST [2013], FROM DUSK TILL DAWN [TV], and way more) is 78.
Actor Gemma Ward (STRANGERS, PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: ON STRANGER TIDES) is 37.
What Began in Japan 70 Years Ago Became a World-Wide Phenomenon
Believe it or not, Japan's GOJIRA didn't reach U.S. shores until 2004: 50 Years! This is why: GODZILLA - 1954.
CARRIE Turns 48
It was 1976, Hollywood movie public schools were segregated, and White kids preyed on White. Which was a foolish thing to do if you bullied CARRIE White.
It was 19 Years Ago When We Danced After Dark
Great Script, Great Direction, Great Acting, and Great Practical Effects. Then the investors saw all that and decided to go with a crap cheap cgi finale. Why one of the scariest movies you may have never watched (though you've probably seen a ton of its freaky movie stills through years of Social Media memes) got limited release and why you should seek out Mike Mendez' THE GRAVEDANCERS.
HAPPY HALLOWEEN Part 3...
The Second Day of Dia de los Muertos: Remembrance.
SATURDAY DIA DE LOS MUERTOS FELIZ CUMPLEAÑOS TO -
Writer Peter Atkins (MORNINGSTAR, BIG THUNDER, HELLBOUND: HELLRAISER 2, HELLRAISER III, WISHMASTER, HELLRAISER: BLOODLINE, PRISONERS OF THE SUN) is 69.
Actor Samantha Ferris (DEADLOCKED, BLACKWOODS, SHATTERED, LOST IN THE DARK, THE 4400 [TV], SUPERNATURAL [TV], GRACE, THE KILLING MACHINE, THE TALL MAN, SOMEWHERE BETWEEN, SALVATION [TV], NEWLYWED AND DEAD, DEVIL IN OHIO [TV]) is 56.
Actor Katharine Isabelle (KNIGHT MOVES, VOYAGE OF TERROR, DISTURBING BEHAVIOR, Da VINCI'S INQUEST [TV], GINGER SNAPS [all], BONES, INSOMNIA, CARRIE [2002], FREDDY VS. JASON, SPOOKY HOUSE, SHOW ME, OGRE, RAMPAGE, HARD RIDE TO HELL, 30 DAYS OF NIGHT: DARK DAYS, AMERICAN MARY, BEING HUMAN [TV], 13 EERIE, TORMENT, PRIMARY, SEE NO EVIL 2, 88, HANNIBAL [TV], THE GIRL IN THE PHOTOGRAPHS, BAD TIMES AT THE EL ROYALE, THE ORDER [TV], THE GREEN SEA, NIGHT OF THE ANIMATED DEAD) is 43.
Actor Michael Bailey Smith (A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET 5, THE FANTASTIC FOUR [1994], CYBORG 3, SPACE MARINES, LOVE HER MADLY, CHARMED [TV], MEN IN BLACK II, BLACK MASK 2, MONSTER MAN, CLAWED, THE HILLS HAVE EYES [2006], THE HILLS HAVE EYES II [2007], CHAIN LETTER, BLOOD SHOT, BLACK RIDER: REVELATION ROAD, KIDS VS MONSTERS) is 67.
JACOB'S LADDER Turns 34
Review of JACOB'S LADDER by Bram Stoker award winning author and fellow Feo Amante alumni, Brian Keene.
MONSTERS, INC. is 23
I was there on opening day to see it on the giant screen! Remembering MONSTERS, INC.
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NOVEMBER 1 |
HAPPY HALLOWEEN: DAY 2...
The centerpiece of this banner for Día de Muertos or Día de los Muertos
is the art of José Guadalupe Posada.
Countries adopt a wide variety of foreign holidays and make them their own, instilling their own customs into them, and world-wide the examples are many: HALLOWEEN, Christmas, Mardi Gras, Easter, St. Patrick's Day, and more.
Even in China, their resolutely non-religious government still celebrates Christmas and goes to great expense to hire Caucasian men to fly in and cosplay as Santa for the children.
Purists say Day of the Dead, which begins on November 1 and ends on November 2, is not a Mexican version of Halloween*. Yet Hallowmass (revamped to All Saint's Day), which also begins on Nov. 1, bears striking similarities to the Latin America version. Moreover no one can deny the obvious, that down through the years children and adults from both cultures increasingly celebrate with dressing up in costume and, depending on the state/cuidad, going door to door asking for dulce (candy). HALLOWEEN and DÍA de los MUERTOS are no longer the somber Catholic Feast for the Dead the European church created centuries ago.
33 Days of HALLOWEEN! Day 32
*Halloween comes from Hallowtide or Allhallowtide, which begins, not ends, on October 31 and continues through Nov. 2.
And -
DOWN TO THE BONE by René Castillo
Plus -
PHANTOM OF THE PARADISE Turns 50
I was a kid when I saw this movie playing at a Science Fiction convention. They had a huge screen set-up and a far better sound system than I've heard at any subsequent conventions. I'd gone to the screening room to catch a different movie and Brian De Palma's passion project was so good I still can't remember the name of the movie I originally went to see!
Even stranger than the fact that this movie tanked at the theaters, is how this experimental 20th Century Fox movie spent decades being the midnight movie event to see in One Small Town, years before 20th Century Fox's next experimental Horror Comedy Musical, THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW.
How on earth did a twisted comedic riff on the cut-throat recording industry and a morally corrupt and self-praising Hollywood so resonate with a backwoods farming community deep in the middle-of-nowhere - somewhere - Canada? Discover the bizarre life and times of Writer and Director Brian De Palma's PHANTOM OF THE PARADISE.
Also -
A NIGHTMARE ON ELMSTREET 2 Turns 39
It was the beginning of the "Odd Number Good, Even Number Bad" judgement on the A NIGHTMARE ON ELMSTREET movies. New Line Cinema Producer, Robert Shaye took full credit for this sequel and Wes Craven's name was nowhere to be seen. It would take decades and a lot of effort, and so money, for A NIGHTMARE ON ELMSTREET 2: FREDDY'S REVENGE, to find an audience.
Finale -
DIA DE LOS MUERTOS FELIZ CUMPLEAÑOS TO -
By E.C. McMullen Jr.
Actor Toni Collette (THE SIXTH SENSE, SHAFT, CHANGING LANES, THE NIGHT LISTENER, LIKE MINDS, THE DEAD GIRLS, JASPER JONES, FRIGHT NIGHT [2011], HITCHCOCK, HOSTAGES [TV], KRAMPUS [2015], UNLOCKED, HEREDITARY, VELVET BUZZSAW, KNIVES OUT, I'M THINKING OF ENDING THINGS, STOWAWAY, NIGHTMARE ALLEY, PIECES OF HER [TV], THE STAIRCASE [TV], THE POWER [TV], RUBY GILLMAN TEENAGE KRAKEN, JUROR #2) is 52.
Look for Toni in the upcoming 2023, 2024, 2025 Thriller, MICKEY 7.
Writer, Director, Producer Lucky McKee (MAY, Masters of Horror: SICK GIRL, THE LOST, ROMAN, THE WOODS, RED, THE WOMAN, ALL CHEERLEADERS DIE, THE MAN WHO KILLED HITLER AND THEN THE BIGFOOT, KINDRED SPIRITS, DEATHCEMBER, OLD MAN, THE WEIRD KIDZ) is 48.
Actor Natalia Tena (HARRY POTTER AND THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX, HARRY POTTER AND THE HALF-BLOOD PRINCE, WOMB, HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS PART 1 & 2, GAME OF THRONES [TV], 50 KISSES, RESIDUE, THE REFUGEES [TV], ORIGIN [TV], THE BABY, JOHN WICK CHAPTER 4, BORDERLINE) is 40.
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OCTOBER 31 |
HAPPY HALLOWEEN!
Colin Cunningham's CENTIGRADE
From time to time actors produce their own short movies in order to play a role that no one is offering. This is Colin Cunningham's CENTIGRADE.
And -
What is the Scariest Edge of Your Seat Horror Thriller You've Probably Never Seen?
SPLINTER Turns 16 Today
It swept film festival award categories, astounding audiences and revving up for one hell of a U.S. release.
But nobody famous made it, was in it, or took it under their wing.
So Magnet distributing, which has a solid overall track record in finding the best in indie Horror Thriller movies, took Director Toby Wilkins masterpiece into their VOD model where all movies go to die and disappear.
It is available on disc, but this is one you'll have to hunt for, and this is why you should: SPLINTER.
Plus -
HAPPY HORROR BIRTHDAYS TO -
By E.C. McMullen Jr.
Writer, Director, Producer, Peter Jackson (BAD TASTE, MEET THE FEEBLES, BRAIN DEAD / DEAD-ALIVE, HEAVENLY CREATURES, THE FRIGHTENERS, THE LORD OF THE RINGS [all], KING KONG, DISTRICT 9, THE LOVELY BONES, THE HOBBIT, MORTAL ENGINES) is 63.
Actor Stephen Rea (CRY OF THE BANSHEE, THE COMPANY OF WOLVES, THE DOCTOR AND THE DEVILS, INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE, HACKS, IN DREAMS, FEAR DOTCOM, THE I INSIDE, CONTROL, V FOR VENDETTA, SISTERS, THE REAPING, STUCK, THE DEVIL'S MERCY, THE HEAVY, ROADKILL, THE SHADOW LINE [TV], UNDERWORLD: AWAKENING, WEREWOLF: THE BEAST AMONG US, UTOPIA [TV], COUNTERPART [TV], THANKSGIVING [TV], GRETA, CYPRESS AVENUE, THE STRANGER [TV], FLESH AND BLOOD [TV], NIGHTRIDE) is 78.
Look for Stephen in the 2024, 2025 Horror, VISITATION.
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OCT. 30 |
It's HALLOWEEN EVE!
HALLOWEEN II Is 43
John Carpenter hated the pointless retread of a HALLOWEEN II, calling it "An abomination". Yet contractual obligations being what they were, he had to write and release another in at least the capacity of Producer, along with his co-writer and producer, Debra Hill.
This was the result and response in 1981 to HALLOWEEN II.
And -
John Carpenter's VAMPIRES is 26
If you saw this movie long after its 1998, you may among those who like / love it more than audiences did on its theatrical release. Through no fault of John, things were going on in the news cycle that put a definite slant on U.S. audiences being able to leave their cares at the door and enjoy John Carpenter's VAMPIRES.
Also -
HAPPY HORROR THRILLER BIRTHDAYS TO -
By E.C. McMullen Jr.
Actor Sarah Carter (MINDSTORM, TRAPPED, WISHMASTER 3, FINAL DESTINATION 2, SKINWALKERS, DOA: DEAD OR ALIVE, KILLING ZELDA SPARKS, FREAK DOG aka RED MIST, THE TOYMAN KILLER, GUARDIAN [2014], FALLING SKIES [TV], FALLING SKIES: THE ENEMY WITHIN [TV], ROGUE [TV], THE GURU AND THE GYPSY, NOSFERATU) is 44.
Look for Sarah in the upcoming 2025 Mystery Thriller, A PITY.
Sarah shares a birthday with her FINAL DESTINATION 2 alumni,
Actor Shaun Sipos (FINAL DESTINATION 2, THE SKULLS III, THE GRUDGE 2, SHARK [TV], LOST BOYS: THE TRIBE, RAMPAGE [2009], ENTER NOWHERE, TEXAS CHAINSAW 3D, A MOTHER'S RAGE, THE VAMPIRE DIARIES [TV], THE REMAINING, DARK MATTER [2015-2017 TV], THE SANDMAN [2017], INSOMNIA [TV], KRYPTON [TV], NIGHT RAIDERS, OUTER RANGE) is 43.
Look for Shaun in the upcoming 2023, 2024, 2025 Thriller, BLACK DIAMOND.
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