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Steven Soderbergh's "Presence" is steadily building a reputation as an unconventional ghost story, with the maverick director choosing to, in effect, play the ghost himself and shoot the entire film from the ghost's point of view. As my review out of the 2024 Sundance Film Festival (where the film premiered) explains, this technique allows "Presence" to straddle the line between a found footage movie and a character Pov film in a subversively clever way: While the camera is disembodied enough to move at will and be present in situations that another human person couldn't observe, Soderbergh never lets us forget the fact that there's an identity to this point of view, even if the entity itself doesn't know who they are at first.

This perspective means that "Presence" is less a terrifying supernatural horror film and more of a thoughtful, character-based thriller, because after all, we know where the ghost...

The director’s new BFI season championing hidden gems of British film, hot on the heels of his Powell and Pressburger documentary, reveals some of the inspirations of a film-making great and passionate fan

This weekend, the BFI Southbank in London begins a season of films entitled Martin Scorsese Selects Hidden Gems of British Cinema. Among the treats that caught my eye are a terrific Terence Fisher double bill (1948’s To the Public Danger and 1952’s Stolen Face), Roy Ward Baker’s Dr Jekyll and Sister Hyde (1971), John Hough’s The Legend of Hell House (1973) and a rare nitrate-print screening of Alberto Cavalcanti’s dark 1942 gem, Went the Day Well?

The fact that a director whose own extraordinary CV includes Taxi Driver (1973), Raging Bull (1980), The Last Temptation of Christ (1988), Casino (1995), Gangs of New York (2002), The Wolf of Wall Street (2013) and, just last year, Killers of the Flower Moon should curate...

"Once the sound of the future, now awesomely retro..." Every month, the Criterion Channel streaming service (one of the best in cinema) debuts a series of programming collections. Each one features a batch of films with a particular theme or connection by actor / director / composer. This is one of the best sets that I need to feature! One of June's latest offerings is Synth Soundtracks - a collection of 20 films featuring synthesizer scores, ranging from classics like Forbidden Planet (1956) and Thief (1981) to more obscure titles like Space Is the Place (1974) and Cat People (1982). Everyone knows Vangelis' iconic synth score for Blade Runner, but this selection went with Vangelis' other film Missing (1982). I enjoy this kind of curation because there's such a range of unique movies, not only expected classics. This also includes: A Clockwork Orange (1971), Shogun Assassin (1980), The Legend of Hell House (1973), Liquid Sky (1982), Tenebrae (1982), For All Mankind (1989), Delta Space...

Oh, Canada debuting this week on the Croisette is high time to see lesser-seen Schrader on the Criterion Channel, who’ll debut an 11-title series including the likes of Touch, The Canyons, and Patty Hearst, while Old Boyfriends (written with his brother Leonard) and his own “Adventures in Moviegoing” are also programmed. Five films by Jean Grémillon, a rather underappreciated figure of French cinema, will be showing

Series-wise, there’s an appreciation of the synth soundtrack stretching all the way back to 1956’s Forbidden Planet while, naturally, finding its glut of titles in the ’70s and ’80s––Argento and Carpenter, obviously, but also Tarkovsky and Peter Weir. A Prince and restorations of films by Bob Odenkirk, Obayashi, John Greyson, and Jacques Rivette (whose Duelle is a masterpiece of the highest order) make streaming debuts. I Am Cuba, Girlfight, The Royal Tenenbaums, and Dazed and Confused are June’s Criterion Editions.

Movies about kids with powers are a hit with audiences of all ages, leading to profitable franchises and subcultures. While many movies follow similar themes, there are diverse genres like superheroes, dystopia, and fantasy in this subgenre. Successful franchises like Harry Potter and Percy Jackson have paved the way for more movies about kids with powers to come.

There are a lot of movies about kids with powers, mostly in superhero films and magical young adult fantasy releases. It's a popular subgenre of movies that attracts audiences of all ages, making them some of the most profitable franchises of all time as well. One franchise that features children with magical powers has not only made over $7.7 billion worldwide at the box office, but spawned sequels, theme park rides, and an entire subculture that revolved around the magical world. Thanks to those success stories, more movies about kids with powers are sure to come,...

National Geographic’s new female-led docuseries Queens premieres March 4th on National Geographic and will stream on Disney+ and Hulu the next day.

“Helmed by a female-led production team from around the world — groundbreaking in the natural history space — and guided by powerful narration from award-winning actress Angela Bassett, Queens is bringing the natural world into focus through the female lens for the very first time.”

Did you catch the magnificent trailer for FX’s Shogun during the Super Bowl? It was a daunting task to remake the classic miniseries, and it almost didn’t happen.

“It wasn’t just the length; it was the subject matter, or Marks’ impression of it, from the book’s reputation and from its famed 1980 miniseries adaptation: his notion of a story about a white European arriving in a strange land. ‘The silhouette of a character who kind of looks like me, wearing clothes...

Screen legend Bette Davis led Disney’s valiant but flawed attempt at the horror genre. The Watcher in the Woods began development in the late-1970s after the rights were secured to Florence Engel Randall’s young adult novel. Turmoil plagued the filming process, with producers often intervening to tone down the movie, much to the frustrations of director John Hough. At the time, Hough was best known for the 1973 movie The Legend of Hell House, a haunted house horror certainly not for younger audiences. With Disney wanting to maintain their family-friendly approach, The Watcher in the Woods could not afford to go too dark. Nevertheless, there is an unsettling atmosphere to the film, and while there is no bad language, violence, or sexual content, it is chilling from the first minute. Hough uses nerve-shredding Pov shots to suggest a dangerous presence nearby with malignant intentions for the unsuspecting protagonists.

The Mike Flanagan Netflix era has come to an end, as Flanagan and his partner Trevor Macy are leaving the streaming service behind for a new deal with Amazon. That means we likely won't ever get a third season of Flanagan's "Haunting" series, which kicked off with the excellent "The Haunting of Hill House" and continued with "The Haunting of Bly Manor." "Hill House" was a (loose) adaptation of the Shirley Jackson novel of the same name, while "Bly Manor" took inspiration from "The Turn of the Screw" and several other ghost stories penned by Henry James. But what tale of terror would Flanagan and company have relied on if the show had returned for a third season?

We now know the answer, thanks to Flanagan himself. The filmmaker has written an introduction for the new Suntup Editions release of Richard Matheson's "Hell House," and in said introduction, Flanagan...

This morning, Suntup Editions has announced a fine press limited edition of the 1971 novel Hell House by Richard Matheson, featuring new exclusive material including an introduction by R.C. Matheson, a foreword by Mike Flanagan and afterword by Nancy A. Collins.

In his foreword, Flanagan reveals that had there been a third season of his ‘Haunting’ series for Netflix, it would have been an adaptation of Hell House!

Flanagan explains, “When I adapted Shirley Jackson’s The Haunting of Hill House as a Netflix series, there was much talk about how to continue the Haunting anthology. We followed Hill House with The Haunting of Bly Manor, based on numerous ghost stories by Henry James. Had there been a third season, I wanted that season to be The Haunting of Hell House. It was actually the first title we explored when Hill House was over, but the rights were spoken for and...

Amazon is running a massive sale on over 100 Scream Factory titles today, including some of the lowest-ever prices on their 4K UHDs and Blu-rays. Now is the time to stock up!

Here are some of the top horror highlights from the sale…

Halloween 4K UHDs:

Halloween – $22.99 Halloween II – $20.99 Halloween III – $20.99 Halloween 4 – $20.99 Halloween 5 – $19.99 Halloween 6 / Halloween H20 / Halloween: Resurrection – $59.99

John Carpenter 4K UHDs:

They Live – $18.99 They Live [Steelbook] – $23.99 The Fog – $19.99 The Fog [Steelbook] – $25.99 Prince of Darkness – $19.99 Escape From New York – $20.99 Halloween – $22.99

4K UHDs:

Child’s Play – $22.99 Child’s Play 2 – $20.99 Child’s Play 3 – $19.99 The Howling – $19.99 The Funhouse – $19.99 Slumber Party Massacre / Slumber Party Massacre II – $20.99 Carrie – $20.99 Carrie [Steelbook] – $22.17 Brotherhood of the Wolf – $20.99 Cat People – $20.99 Happy Death Day – $20.99 Happy Death Day 2U – $20.99 Army of Darkness – $21.99 Evil Dead (2013) – $21.99 Dog Soldiers – $21.99 The Haunting of Julia – $21.99 Lifeforce – $21.99 Krampus: The Naughty Cut – $21.99 Alligator – $21.99 The People Under the Stairs -$22.99 Bubba Ho-Tep – $22.99 The Exorcist III – $22.99 Dawn of the Dead (2004) – $22.99 Motel Hell – $22.99 Dead Silence – $22.99 The Return of the Living Dead...

Gayle Hunnicutt, the Texas-born actor known for 1969’s “Marlowe” and her role as Vanessa Beaumont in “Dallas,” died on Aug. 31 in London, according to The Times of London. She was 80.

Hunnicutt played Vanessa Beaumont, an English aristocrat who shares an illegitimate son with Larry Hagman’s J.R. Ewing, in the final three seasons of “Dallas” from 1989 to 1991.

Born on Feb. 6, 1943, in Fort Worth, Texas, Hunnicutt made her television debut in 1966 on the NBC sitcom “Mister Roberts.” She guested on several series in the ’60s, including “The Beverly Hillbillies,” “Hey Landlord,” “Love on a Rooftop” and “Get Smart.”

On the film side, Hunnicutt starred opposite James Garner in the 1969 neo-noir crime film “Marlowe,” in which she played television star Mavis Wald. She appeared in more than 30 films during her career, including “The Wild Angels,” “P.J.,” “Freelance,” “Running Scared,” “Target” and “The Legend of Hell House” opposite Roddy McDowell.

Hunnicutt married...

Gayle Hunnicutt, whose best-known work came as Vanessa Beaumont, the mother of J.R. Ewing’s illegitimate son, in the final three seasons of Dallas, has died per multiple U.K. reports. Hunnicutt died last Thursday at a hospital in London, according to her ex-husband Simon Jenkins. She was 80 years old.

That Hunnicutt would find fame playing Vanessa Beaumont, a Brit, on a TV show called Dallas was a bit ironic for a woman born in Fort Worth. But it was entirely sensible given that the actress spent much of her career in British TV and movies, even marrying the be-knighted Jenkins before returning to work in the U.S.

Her TV career began with a role on the shortlived small-screen adaptation of Mister Roberts and included roles on The Beverly Hillbillies, Get Smart and in Marlowe opposite James Garner.

In 1970, Hunnicutt met and later married David Hemmings, who himself...

With San Diego Comic-Con only two months away, we're already starting to get a heads up on the horror comics and events you won't want to miss, and we are excited to exclusively reveal that Storm King Comics will debut Usher Down, the latest volume in their popular anthology series John Carpenter’s Night Terrors. A chilling ghost story "set in perhaps history’s most fabled haunted house," we have all the details and a look at the cover art.

The release of Usher Down coincides with the 10th anniversary celebration of Storm King Comics, the first comic book publishing company to be founded by a woman, producing legend Sandy King Carpenter, with multiple activations planned at this year’s Comic-Con International: San Diego. Written by Jason Henderson and illustrated by Greg Scott, with colors by Felipe Sobreiro and letters by Ed Dukeshire, Usher Down kicks off the 2023 slate of...

Director Alex Proyas has teamed up with U.K.-based 108 Media to launch a slate of collaborations, kicking off with 35 million feature film project “Sister Darkness.”

The 1930s, U.K.-set story follows the newly wed, but unhappy, Alice who stumbles across her doppelganger Isla. Her existence is a mystery seeped in a tale of bloody retribution against her oppressors, a hellish supernatural nightscape and an uprising against the deceitful aristocracy.

From a script by Proyas, the film will be shot in Australia from late-2022 into mid-2023, using a fully virtual production process specially developed and refined by Proyas’ VFX studio Heretic Foundation. No cast attachments have been announced yet.

The multi-faceted deal was struck and negotiated by 108 Media’s CEO Abhi Rastogi and president of production Justin Deimen, supported by Rod Smith, director, acquisitions, and Steven Rosser (legal counsel) with Heretic Foundation’s CEO & creative director Proyas, Gm and executive producer Andrew Robinson,...

The origins of electronic music in cinema go back to the first half of the 20th century. This mix is a homage to some of those moments.It begins with a 1930s Pathé archive example of an early version of what would become a synthesizer, before moving into Dmitri Shostakovich’s first use of theremin on screen in the 1931’s Alone, directed by Grigori Kozintsev. Originally a silent film, Alone gained a soundtrack by Shostakovich just before release once film sound was made available in Russia. Bernard Herrmann’s iconic use of the theremin in The Day The Earth Stood Still (1951) has a wonderful moment in this mix wherein we hear the studio sketches of this score’s creation. Taken from the 2018 reissue of the score, this recording presents studio outtakes and rehearsal moments during the production. Herrmann can be heard in the background prompting different actions from his orchestra.

Hammer Horror: Four Gothic Horror Films

Blu ray – All Region

Imprint

1971-72

Starring Ingrid Pitt, Peter Cushing, Eric Porter

Cinematography by Kenneth Talbot, Dick Bush

Directed by Peter Sasdy, John Hough, Robert Young

In December of 1959, Hammer Studios released a bit of Yuletide cheer called The Stranglers from Bombay, a censor-baiting melodrama highlighted by severed limbs and Marie Devereux’s cleavage. The studio would spend the next decade expanding upon those themes and wore the inevitable X Certificates like badges of honor. But as an ancient reprobate said, “Politicians, ugly buildings, and whores all get respectable if they last long enough” and by the seventies the bad boys of Bray seemed positively sedate. Though the power to shock had waned, Hammer was still a thriving business—there were two Dracula films produced in 1970 alone. Still, no one could blame them for shaking things up—Anthony Hinds, the studio’s guiding light,...

You got witch-hunting in my vampirism! Yeah? Well, you got vampirism in my witch-hunting! Deliciously combined, Hammer’s Twins of Evil (1971) pits religious fanaticism against vampiric seduction in the third and final film of the Karnstein trilogy, and it’s a fittingly erotic and spirited sendoff.

Released by Rank Film Distributors in the U.K. and Universal Pictures stateside, Twins of Evil was part of a double bill with Hands of the Ripper, and as these things do, brought in the casual viewer looking for a little mayhem to tide them over. Twins of Evil however, still manages to seduce the viewer through muscular filmmaking and solid performances, with the biggest draw being the stunning Collinson sisters, Mary and Madeleine, as our titular characters. They make it one of the most lascivious of the latter day Hammer films; no small feat, that.

We open on Central Europe in the late...

The hangman Albert Pierrepoint (of Pierrepoint – The Last Hangman) makes a small but important appearance in Peter Medak’s 1991 film about the controversial 1953 execution of Derek Bentley for the murder of a policeman The film stars Christopher Eccleston as the doomed Bentley, Tom Courtenay as his father and a supporting cast featuring a who’s who of British character actors including Edward Hardwicke (Watson of BBC’s Sherlock Holmes), Michael Gough (Horror of Dracula) and Clive Revill (The Legend of Hell House) as the executioner Pierrepoint. Even though Bentley’s words ” Let him have it ” were ambiguous when the policeman demanded the shooter hand over the gun, the jury, under prejudicial instruction from the judge, decided the words meant “Shoot him!”

The post Let Him Have It appeared first on Trailers From Hell.

Scarlett Johansson in Under The Skin Edinburgh International Film Festival has announced it will host a retrospective entitled The Big Score, which will explore innovation in film scoring as part of next year's festival.

The section will include an in-depth focus on score pioneers Mica Levi and Delia Derbyshire (The Legend Of Hell House), a dynamic tribute to Ennio Morricone and an journey through jazz cinema.

Levi’s first score, for Jonathan Glazer’s Under the Skin (2013), earned her the Best Composer accolade at the European Film Awards in 2014 and a nomination for the BAFTA award for Best Film Music in 2015. Her second, Pablo Larraín’s Jackie (2016), saw her nominated for Best Original Score at the 89th Academy Awards.

Films include will include Michael Almereyda’s Marjorie Prime (2017), Pablo Larraín’s Jackie (2016) and Jonathan Glazer’s Glasgow-set Under The Skin (2013).

Senior Programmer and curator of The Big Score programme,...

As we hit the midway point of October, we have a ton of new horror and sci-fi hitting Blu-ray and DVD this week, featuring a slew of new genre offerings and tons of cult classics. In terms of recent releases, Rob Zombie’s 3 From Hell arrives on Blu, DVD, and 4K Ultra HD this Tuesday, and if you happened to miss the latest from Alexandra Aja, Crawl is making its way onto both Blu and DVD (and is a film this writer highly recommends—perfect for some aquatic horror thrills this October).

Speaking of seasonal horror movies, Haunt comes home this week, and if you can’t get enough of Mike Flanagan’s The Haunting of Hill House, Lionsgate is putting out a special director’s edition release that fans are definitely going to want to pick up.

In terms of classic horror, Häxan is getting the Criterion treatment (and...

The haunted house has always been one of the elemental settings in horror – the materialization of externalized evil – and is enjoying considerable success today through the likes of The Conjuring multiverse. When horror entered the ‘70s, ghosts became passé as audiences clamored for more visceral thrills that reflected the current societal concerns; despair marbled with a bit of hope became the name of the game, as films like The Exorcist presented strong opinions regarding faith in the face of crises. Six months earlier however saw the release of The Legend of Hell House (1973), a somewhat traditional yet exceptional spookshow with just enough ‘70s pessimism to fit in nicely with the decade’s mores.

Released by 20th Century Fox in the U.S. mid June, Legend received mixed reviews from critics; some admired its somewhat restrained scares and performances, while others felt it didn’t lean enough into the lurid material...

It’s the end of an era. On March 20, the Walt Disney Co. will complete its $71.2 billion acquisition of key assets in Rupert Murdoch’s media empire. That marks the final drumbeat for the historic 20th Century Fox as one of Hollywood’s six major studios, as brands such as FX, Fox Searchlight and NatGeo are folded into the Magic Kingdom. To memorialize the passing of a giant in the media space, Variety spoke with the filmmakers and executives responsible for some of Fox’s most memorable movies and shows.

Guillermo del Toro

Director, “The Shape of Water”

“Over more than 25 years since my first film, ‘Cronos,’ began attracting attention, I cannot remember a time that I was not involved with some division of 20th Century Fox.

My good friend Jim Cameron, who has had his own share of successes at Fox, was the first person to recommend me to the studio.

While ghost stories and the supernatural have made a recent resurgence at the box office (think The Conjuring and Hereditary), there was a time in horror when they lay as dormant as a long-forgotten spirit: the early ’80s. Okay, The Amityville Horror (1979) did big business, and The Shining (1980) did well, but these were exceptions, not rules. Audiences were more apt to take in masked killers and teens in peril than adults dealing with psychic crises of the soul and heart. Leave it to Severin Films to unearth and give the deluxe Blu-ray treatment to The Changeling (1980), Peter Medak’s riveting meditation on retribution and the deep shadows of the past that is long overdue for celebration.

Celebrated composer John Russell (George C. Scott – Patton) moves to Seattle four months after his wife and daughter are killed in a horrendous roadside accident. Looking for a place to write in peace, he...

Here’s a confession: I’m not really a cat guy. I have nothing against the critters, and I do get why a lot of people love them; loyalty, beauty, etc. I’m just a dog person. I’m assuming the lead character of Eye of the Cat (1969) is too, because he has one lulu of a cat phobia in this sly and amusing thriller.

Ailurophobia is the exact term for an extreme fear of cats, and I won’t use the word again because it’s a bitch to spell and I ain’t no fancy lad neither. Eye of the Cat was released in June by Universal with the tagline “Terror that tears the screams right out of your throat!” This would not be true unless you also suffer from a debilitating fear of felines; but what you do get is a solid little mystery with a lot of twists,...

Brit film producer Jonathan Sothcott and his London based production house Hereford Films are set to release their first nerve-jangling horror feature Aura this August. The “Blumhouse style” Us-set science horror explores the curious world of Kirlian energy/photography within the context of a supernatural, possession movie. It’s an innovative and frightening looking spin on a classic horror concept, that blends the best of many sub-genres.

“Aura tells the story of Mitch Walker and his wife Diane who inherist his uncle’s house. Inside they discover an old camera designed for Kirlian Photography – the practice of capturing the subject’s ‘Aura’. Mitch’s sister Karen suffered a serious trauma at the house during her childhood after being tied up by their uncle and has been institutionalized ever since. As Mitch pieces the facts together with the help of local clairvoyant, Ada, he realizes that their uncle was in fact...

Frightening felines attack in Eye of the Cat, a 1969 horror film out now on Blu-ray from Scream Factory, and we've been provided with three copies to give away to lucky Daily Dead readers.

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Prize Details: (3) Winners will receive (1) Blu-ray copy of Eye of the Cat.

How to Enter: We're giving Daily Dead readers multiple chances to enter and win:

1. Instagram: Following us on Instagram during the contest period will give you an automatic contest entry. Make sure to follow us at:

https://www.instagram.com/dailydead/

2. Email: For a chance to win via email, send an email to contest@dailydead.com with the subject "Eye of the Cat Contest". Be sure to include your name and mailing address.

Entry Details: The contest will end at 12:01am Est on January 23rd. This contest is only open to those who are eighteen years of age or older that live in the United States.

Welcome back for another week of horror and sci-fi home entertainment releases, readers! January 16th features plenty of intriguing offerings, from cult classics to sequels of cult classics to even a few recent films as well. If you happened to miss Blade Runner 2049, Happy Death Day, or The Snowman in theaters, all three are making their way home this Tuesday. Severin Films has put together The Amicus Collection (which features Asylum, And Now The Screaming Starts and The Beast Must Die), and Scream Factory is giving Eye of the Cat the Blu-ray treatment as well.

Beyond Skyline is also coming to Blu on January 16th, and for all you Joe Dante fans out there, Shout Select has put together a Collector’s Edition release of Matinee that looks like it’s a must-have.

The Amicus Collection (Severin Films, Blu-ray)

Known as The Studio That Dripped Blood, the British film...

Start out 2018 with some of the latest releases from Scream Factory! Though they’re probably best known for releasing definitive Blu-ray editions of many of our most treasured horror movies, one of the things I like best about Scream Factory is their willingness to use their brand to put out smaller films and oddball curiosities that would probably not otherwise see the light of day on the format. Let’s take a look at three such titles, all recently released on Blu-ray from Scream Factory.

First up is American Gothic, a tongue-in-cheek horror comedy from 1988 starring Yvonne De Carlo and Rod Steiger as the parents of a family of backwoods misfits living on a secluded island where a group of young people suddenly appear after their prop plane breaks down and forces them to land. Before you can say “this family is probably a bunch of murderous maniacs,” the murderous...

With Christmas now only a week away, there’s a big day of genre-related home entertainment releases to look forward to in the meantime, just in case you were in need of some last-minute gift ideas (or if you were looking to spoil yourself, which is totally cool). Easily my most anticipated Blu-ray release for all of 2017, Synapse Films' stunning 4K restoration of Suspiria gets the royal treatment via an incredible three-disc limited edition Steelbook set this Tuesday, and Severin Films is also keeping busy with their HD upgrade of The Amicus Collection, which includes Asylum, And Now The Screaming Starts, and The Beast Must Die.

Other notable Blu-ray and DVD releases for December 19th include American Gothic, Leatherface, mother!, and the limited edition Steelbook for Donnie Darko.

American Gothic (Scream Factory, Blu-ray)

A new tale of terror from the director of The Legend of Hell House and The Incubus.

"The family that slays together, stays together" in John Hough's American Gothic, and with the 1988 horror film coming to Blu-ray beginning December 19th from Scream Factory, we've been provided with three high-def copies to give away to lucky Daily Dead readers.

---------

Prize Details: (3) Winners will receive (1) Blu-ray copy of American Gothic.

How to Enter: We're giving Daily Dead readers multiple chances to enter and win:

1. Instagram: Following us on Instagram during the contest period will give you an automatic contest entry. Make sure to follow us at:

https://www.instagram.com/dailydead/

2. Email: For a chance to win via email, send an email to contest@dailydead.com with the subject "American Gothic Contest". Be sure to include your name and mailing address.

Entry Details: The contest will end at 12:01am Est on December 25th. This contest is only open to those who are eighteen years of age...

Mark Harrison Oct 31, 2017

Want to enhance your horror movie? Make sure you sign up a cat...

This feature contains broad spoilers for several horror movies featuring cats, including Alien, Cat People, Drag Me To Hell, Fallen, A Girl Walks Home Alone At Night, Pet Sematary and The Voices.

The relationship between humans and cats over time has given way to a number of cultural impressions and outright superstitions. Ancient Egyptians associated them with gods. In the Middle Ages, they were linked with witches and killed en masse, which probably hastened the spread of the Black Plague through the rodent population. And in the modern day, it's interchangeably lucky or not if a black cat crosses your path.

Like anything with such a wide array of symbolic links, movies have presented cats as characters in different ways over the years. It's their abiding association with the supernatural – whether as an omen...

Happy October, boils and ghouls! Now that our favorite month has officially kicked off, that means many of us are putting together a list of must-watch movies to get into the Halloween spirit. With that in mind, this writer has once again pulled together a varied list of 31 (well, technically more than 31, but who can resist cheating a bit when it comes to horror movies?) films that are currently streaming on Netflix that should undoubtedly get you primed for the big day on October 31st.

It’s worth noting that several great titles not included on this list are making their way to Netflix during October that would also make for great Scary Movie Month additions, including Cult of Chucky on 10/3, Raw on 10/4, and the Stephen King adaptation 1922 on 10/20, with season 2 of Stranger Things kicking off on 10/27.

Happy viewing, everyone, and look for more Halloween-related articles coming your way all month long,...

We’ve covered plenty of obscure films available on iTunes in previous From VHS to VOD columns but Apple’s digital service is not the only VOD service making waves into the strange and obscure – there’s plenty of odd, unseen and unreleased (well unreleased on disc formats) films available on Amazon Video.

Unlike iTunes, a lot of the more obscure titles are only available for streaming rather than purchase, though the wide variety of films you don’t, and probably won’t see elsewhere makes up for that. Like iTunes there are some truly obscure films hidden away in the depths of Amazon’s vast collection of movies. Some of which have been made available in the UK for the first time since VHS and a Lot that have been added to the service in their original uncut form!

So, with that said here’s highlight some of the best (well,...

After taking viewers into Hell House and journeying to Witch Mountain, director John Hough introduced moviegoers to an island where strangers are sinners, and "Ma" and "Pa" aren't afraid to dole out lethal punishment. Initially announced during Scream Factory's Comic-Con reveals, the American Gothic (1988) Blu-ray now has an official December release date and cover (featuring the film's original poster art):

From Scream Factory: "We are now taking pre-orders for our upcoming release of the eccentric stranded-on-an-island 1988 thriller American Gothic which makes its Blu-ray format debut! Release date is planned for December 19th.

When six young friends fly off on a weekend getaway and suddenly find themselves with engine trouble, they have no choice but to land on a remote Pacific island. Looking for shelter, they are grateful when they meet "Ma" and "Pa" and their children – an bizarre family still living in the backwoods as if it's still the 1920s.

A tale of terror from the director of The Legend of Hell House. Back in July, Scream Factory announced a handful of upcoming 2017/2018 Blu-ray titles at San Diego Comic Con, one of which was the 1988 film American Gothic. Today we’ve learned that the film will make its Blu-ray debut on December 19. In […]...

Paul Childs Aug 18, 2017

We take another look back at the public information films put out by the Central Office Of Information...

I’m sat writing this on the balcony of my apartment overlooking the majestic Salford Quays. It’s a lovely afternoon and the sun is beating down as families, all dressed in their finest summer attire, chomp on ice-cream while enjoying a relaxing canal side stroll.

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Down on the other side of the canal basin is a group of boys, maybe thirteen or fourteen years old (plus a few much younger ones), dressed in nothing but swimming trunks. They’re goading each other on to leap from the bridge into the dark waters below. One by one they take the plunge, all the while laughing and whooping.

The wait is over for home media horror fans, as nine new Blu-ray titles were announced for release later this year and in 2018 at Scream Factory's coveted annual Comic-Con panel, including Collector's Edition releases of Drag Me to Hell, The Strangers, and Misery.

From Scream Factory: "We just revealed the following upcoming Scream Factory Blu-ray releases at our Comic Con panel this evening. Here's the line-up that will be coming soon to you in Nov and early 2018:

Silent Night Deadly Night (1984) – Ho Ho Horror! The anti-holiday slasher cult classic favorite is being prepped for release before Christmas.

Misery (Collector’s Edition) (1990) – Hide the sledgehammers! Stephen King and Rob Reiner’s iconic classic receives the deluxe treatment it rightfully deserves.

Drag Me To Hell (Collector’s Edition) (2009) – We go more in-depth into Sam Raimi’s wildly-entertaining and wicked soul-cursing hit film.

The Strangers (Collector’s Edition) (2008) – One of...

Warning: if you’re not a Kate Jackson fan, today’s column may not work in your favor. Plus, we probably shouldn’t hang out. I first fell in love with Ms. Jackson (if you’re nasty) when I was six. At the time, she was starring on Charlie’s Angels, along with Farrah Blah-Blah and Jaclyn What’s Her Name, but I think maybe I liked Kate best. Her long black hair, radiant smile, and raspy sing song drawl mesmerized me for the remainder of that show’s run. But for fans of horror, Kate worked with Dan Curtis on Dark Shadows, before landing one of the leads in Satan’s School for Girls (1973), producer Aaron Spelling’s venture into one of the ‘70s greatest capitalist ventures, Satanic Panic. It’s a fun romp; and spoiler alert - Kate is great in it. (She’s just the most, don’t you think?...

One of my favorite things to do every October is to binge-watch as many horror and sci-fi movies as possible (something I can guarantee I’m not alone in doing), and for those of you with Netflix, the streaming service can be an invaluable resource this time of year, although I do remember a time when there were a lot more options than we get these days.

That being said, I culled Netflix's entire library and put together 31 great movie choices that will undoubtedly get you into a macabre mood to celebrate Halloween this year. Take a look at our Netflix list below, featuring one film for each day of October, and get ready to enjoy an entire month’s worth of fright-filled fun, courtesy of Netflix’s streaming database.

Creep (2014)

Looking for work, Aaron (Patrick Brice) comes across a cryptic online ad: “$1,000 for the day. Filming service. Discretion is appreciated.

This October, Nitehawk Cinema will once again host a full night of frights with their fourth annual “A Nite to Dismember” movie marathon. Featuring a “House of Horrors” theme, this year’s marathon will feature 35mm prints of The Exorcist, The Black Cat, The Legend of Hell House, and Night of the Demons, as well as a screening of Under the Shadow.

Press Release: Nitehawk Cinema is proud to announce our fourth annual all-night Halloween screening A Nite To Dismember – one of New York’s most popular Halloween events for film lovers. Past themes have included “classic,” “sequel,” and “decades of horror.” This year we welcome you to: House Of Horrors.

Starting at midnight and continuing until after dawn, we’ll screen some of the scariest haunted house films past and present on glorious 35mm: The Exorcist, The Black Cat, The Legend of Hell House, and Night of the Demons...

When it comes to horror and sci-fi movies from 1986, there are several milestone titles that always come to mind first: Aliens, The Fly, Blue Velvet, Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives, Manhunter, Poltergeist II: The Other Side, or even Psycho III, just to name a few. But like any great year of cinema, there are always a few underrated gems that get overshadowed along the way and should receive a little extra love. Here are six films from 1986 that I think deserve to be on every genre fan’s radar:

F/X: A movie about a special effects artist who gets mixed up in a government conspiracy, at a time when practical effects were in their heyday? Yes, please. F/X isn’t a film I hear a ton of folks talk about, but it has been on cable a lot lately, which means I’ve spent a few nights revisiting it,...

Sometimes in horror, a giant creature will do. It takes us back to a simpler time, I think. A time when an oversized spider, or a massive lizard sparked shuttered eyes at the Drive-In or local theatre. It feels almost like a cleansing; a reset of the scare-o-meter back to the innocent levels of the Saturday matinee. And if you were a kid in the ‘70s, Bert I. Gordon’s The Food of the Gods (1976) fit the bill nicely.

Released in June by Aip stateside, and then rolled out across the world in ’77, Food brought in $1 million at the gate (good revenue by Aip standards) and the reviews were, not surprisingly, as low grade as the budget. But hey, legendary schlockmeister Gordon did not survive the biz on good copy. And what kind of reviews would you expect from a movie that features giant chickens, gargantuan rats, and Marjoe Gortner?...

Shock talks to director Paul Hough about his horror/fantasy music The Invitation To Armageddon. Writer/Director Paul Hough (The Human Race, son of The Legend Of Hell House director John Hough) recently released his latest effort, a maniacal short film starring the members of Steampunk collective “The League of S.T.E.A.M.” called The Invitation To Armageddon, a go-for-broke…

The post Interview: Director Paul Hough on Steampunk Musical The Invitation To Armageddon appeared first on Shock Till You Drop.

As a horror fan, sometimes you just want to wade in the waters of the absurd and inane. To bath in the bathetic, and wash in the ridiculous. If you’re up for a swim, throw on your trunks and join me for Herbert J. Leder’s It! (1967), a modern retelling of the Golem legend dry humped by Psycho. And if that description piques your interest, take the plunge with me, won’t you?

Produced by Seven Arts Pictures and distributed by Warner Brothers/Seven Arts, It! was released in the UK (where it was filmed) in July of ’67 followed by the U.S. in November. Frequently paired with Leder’s previous film, The Frozen Dead (’66), the U.S. print of It! was in black and white, as opposed to the glorious Eastmancolour on display and as intended. The film was also known as Anger of the Golem, and Curse of the Golem,...

A haunted house film is a tough sell. No masked stalker, no creatures that eviscerate and certainly no zombies lurching down those shadowed halls. A single setting, a dark secret, a group of people terrified by something is usually your standard template, and even the best haunted house flick doth not stray from the formula. So the trick is to convince the viewers once you get them inside – something that the low on budget, high on conviction, and seldom talked about The Evil (1978) accomplishes admirably.

Barely distributed in May of ‘78 by Roger Corman’s New World Pictures, The Evil was made for $700,000 Us and came and went very quickly. The filmmakers complained about the paltry distribution, but I’m sure Corman turned a profit somewhere down the line – he usually did. So from the modest budget, to the generic sounding title (why not just call it Horror Movie?) to the not exactly topical sub genre,...

The Miskatonic Institute, seeking to educate and enlighten the masses on the intricacies, beauty and terror of the wide swath of that which we call horror films, is back for a second season. Co-director Kier-La Janisse and Virginie Selavy have put together an eclectic and fascinating program for early January, including talks about J.G. Ballard, a discussion with great director John Hough (The Watcher in the Woods, The Legend of Hell House), a talk on music in horror films, and much more. The events will once again take place at the Horse Hospital. Having attended last year, I can highly recommend for those who are both new to horror cinema, or for those aficionados who might learn something new. Visiting instructor Jack Sargeant (author of...

[Read the whole post on twitchfilm.com...]...

Filmmaker Paul Hough launches terrifying viral video channel. Writer/Director Paul Hough (The Human Race, son of The Legend Of Hell House director John Hough) has just announced his latest project… Don’T Turn Around is a terrifying new YouTube channel launched by the filmmaker and his collaborators in a bid to create original, terrifying short horror films…

The post Filmmaker Paul Hough Unleashes Terrifying New YouTube Channel appeared first on Shock Till You Drop.

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20. The Innocents

Directed by Jack Clayton

Written by William Archibald and Truman Capote

UK, 1961

Genre: Hauntings

The Innocents, which was co-written by Truman Capote, is the first of many screen adaptations of The Turn of the Screw. If you’ve never heard of it, don’t feel bad because most people haven’t – but The Innocents deserves its rightful spot on any list of great horror films. Here is one of the few films where the ghost story takes place mostly in daylight, and the lush photography, which earned cinematographer Freddie Francis one of his two Oscar wins, is simply stunning. Meanwhile, director Jack Clayton and Francis made great use of long, steady shots, which suggest corruption is lurking everywhere inside the grand estate. The Innocents also features three amazing performances; the first two come courtesy of child actors Pamela Franklin (The Legend of Hell House), and Martin Stephens (Village of the Damned...

Sarah Dobbs Oct 27, 2019

Do houses have memories? These ones seem to. We pick our favorite haunted house movies and TV shows...

The haunted house is a staple horror device. Usually hundreds of years old, ideally massive, and imposing with as many turrets as its roof can bear, there’s nothing like a haunted house to give you the creeps.

But making this list wasn’t as easy as you’d think. To qualify for the list, a film had to feature an actual haunted house – which immediately rules out many of the films that spring to mind when you read that title. The Shining, for example, is about a haunted hotel, not a house. Paranormal Activity initially seems like it’s about a haunted house, but it’s not the house that’s haunted, and also the supernatural entity is a demon, not a ghost. Ditto Insidious, which has some ghosts,...

Sarah Dobbs Oct 18, 2018

Do houses have memories? These ones seem to. We pick our favorite haunted house movies and TV shows...

The haunted house is a staple horror device. Usually hundreds of years old, ideally massive, and imposing with as many turrets as its roof can bear, there’s nothing like a haunted house to give you the creeps.

But making this list wasn’t as easy as you’d think. To qualify for the list, a film had to feature an actual haunted house – which immediately rules out many of the films that spring to mind when you read that title. The Shining, for example, is about a haunted hotel, not a house. Paranormal Activity initially seems like it’s about a haunted house, but it’s not the house that’s haunted, and also the supernatural entity is a demon, not a ghost. Ditto Insidious, which has some ghosts,...