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Folks, I just got done digging through the dustiest, crustiest, mustiest box of 80s schlock that I could get my hands on and… Well, I found something I needed to share with you guys. Now, the art of making an original horror film with unique ideas, clever storytelling, and engaging characters to bounce off a scary antagonist can be damning if not extremely difficult. And this movie is proof that sometimes it can be Too difficult because it has none of those things. 1980’s The Boogey Man (watch it Here) is the story of a pair of siblings as they battle with the trauma of their childhood and the return of an evil entity that once possessed them in a blood-soaked trance. The movie was written, directed, and produced by German actor Ulli Lommel and starred his then wife (Suzanna Love) and her brother Nick Love as the film’s main protagonists.

Shudder in the heat. July can feel never-ending as fans of horror wait for spooky season to get in full gear with September/October approaching. But time marches forward to that exciting day when Saw X comes out. In the meantime, you have your Shudder vault to keep you occupied.

So what is the streaming service adding for the month? Lots of 70s and 80s stuff is on the menu today with weird aplenty. What these movies have though is that spark of creativity that made that era of horror so memorable and delightful. Even if the films weren't the best, they still carried someone's vision, and the results were usually akin to a fever dream, and sometimes that's all you really need.

Sharksploitation (July 21)

Now initially, you might think it's another bad sharknado-style movie or a shark exorcist, perhaps. But it's actually a documentary detailing the history of how...

Out of Cannes, Spanish horror The Boogeyman: The Origin of the Myth (El Hombre Del Saco) has been acquired for release in several territories, with Deadline reporting this morning that Mantícora has picked up all rights for Latin America, the U.S. and Canada.

Deadline’s report continues, “In addition, Amazon’s Prime Video has acquired Spanish SVOD rights, and Antena 3 grabbed free-tv rights.”

“The film follows a group of teenagers who discover that the terrifying legend of The Bogeyman is real after the mysterious disappearances of several children in a small town.”

Ángel Gómez Hernández directed the film, written by Juma Fodde (You Shall Not Sleep), Ignacio García Cucucovich, Ángel Gómez Hernández (Voces) and Gustavo Hernández (The Silent House). World rights are represented by FilmSharks.

Javier Botet, Macarena Gomez (HBO’s 30 Coins) and Manolo Solo star in The Boogeyman: The Origin of the Myth.

The post ‘The...

This Obi-Wan Kenobi article contains spoilers.

Obi-Wan Kenobi brings back Ewan McGregor and Hayden Christensen to their iconic Star Wars roles, but the show also boasts a very strong ensemble cast beyond its central stars. There’s Moses Ingram as the menacing new villain Reva and Rupert Friend as the Grand Inquisitor, as well as quite a few welcome surprises fans will be talking about far after the credits have rolled.

Here are the Obi-Wan Kenobi actors you need to know and where you’ve seen them before:

Ewan McGregor as Obi-Wan Kenobi

You know Ewan McGregor well. But in case you somehow missed the Prequel Trilogy, McGregor first played the role of Obi-Wan Kenobi in 1999’s The Phantom Menace, reprising the role in Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith. Before Star Wars, he was best known for his character Mark Renton in Danny Boyle’s Trainspotting.

The first bit of casting news for the film adaptation of Stephen King's short story, "The Boogeyman," has dropped. A certain Yellowjacket, Sophie Thatcher, is flying in, and she's bringing Chris Messina with her. With this news also comes more details about the direction the movie will take with King's original story, first published in "Cavalier" magazine in 1973 before appearing in book form in his 1978 collection, "Night Shift."

Deadline reports that Thatcher and Messina will star in the upcoming Hulu adaptation. Thatcher has enjoyed breakthrough success of late in Showtime's "Yellowjackets," which just aired the finale of its first season two weeks back and...

The post Stephen King's Boogeyman Adds Yellowjackets Actress Sophie Thatcher and Chris Messina appeared first on /Film.

Fresh off the incredible first season of Showtime’s “Yellowjackets,” actress Sophie Thatcher has lined up a role in Rob Savage‘s (Host) upcoming Stephen King adaptation. Savage will be adapting King’s short story The Boogeyman for Hulu and 20th Century Studios, and Deadline reports that Thatcher will star alongside Chris Messina (Birds of Prey). Sophie Thatcher plays young Natalie […]

The post “Yellowjackets” Star Sophie Thatcher Enters the World of Stephen King in ‘The Boogeyman’ Movie appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Exclusive: Sophie Thatcher, who is coming off her breakout role in the hit Showtime series Yellowjackets, and Chris Messina are set to star in the 20th Century Studios adaptation of the Stephen King short story The Boogeyman, with 21 Laps producing.

The film will debut on Hulu, with Rob Savage set to direct. 21 Laps’ Shawn Levy, Dan Levine & Dan Cohen are producing. Production is expected to start next month.

Mark Heyman has been writing the script after Scott Beck & Bryan Woods and Akela Cooper wrote the original drafts. It originally was developed by 21 Laps as a Fox film and now finds new life through Hulu. They’ll begin prep and casting quickly to start early next year. Beck and Woods are exec producers.

The Boogeyman was published in 1978 as part of The Night Shift collection of short stories that King wrote over the years for magazines. It was collected in...

In July of 2020, horror streaming service Shudder released an hour-long horror movie called "Host" shot entirely over the video messenger service and certified Mvp of Covid-19, Zoom. With most of Hollywood at a screeching production halt and the world relegated to staying indoors, "Host" was an exciting — and straight-up terrifying — new release. Following the success of "Host," Savage directed the film "Dashcam" for Blumhouse, which played at the Toronto International Film Festival, the London Film Festival, and Sitges. Now, director Rob Savage is set to direct a two-hour adaptation of the Stephen King short story "The Boogeyman" with 20th Century Studios for...

The post Stephen King Adaptation The Boogeyman is Heading to Hulu appeared first on /Film.

After making a name for himself in the horror world with last year’s Shudder movie Host, Rob Savage has set up his next project, and this time around he’s tackling Stephen King. Deadline reports that Savage will be adapting King’s short story The Boogeyman for Hulu and 20th Century Studios. The film is expected to debut exclusively […]...

Exclusive: 20th/Hulu are moving forward with The Boogeyman, a two hour film based on the Stephen King short story. Production will be this winter/spring in New Orleans. Rob Savage (Host and Dashcam) is set to direct. 21 Laps’ Shawn Levy, Dan Levine & Dan Cohen are producing.

Mark Heyman (Black Swan) has been writing the script which Scott Beck & Bryan Woods (A Quiet Place) and Akela Cooper (Malignant) wrote the original drafts. It was originally developed by 21 Laps as a Fox film and now will find new life through Hulu. They’ll begin prep and casting quickly to start early next year.

The Boogeyman was first published in 1978 as part of The Night Shift collection of short stories that King wrote over the years for magazines. It was collected in a bestselling anthology and published the year after The Shining became a huge bestseller for the author. This will be...

Shawn Levy, with his company 21 Laps Entertainment, has signed a first-look feature deal with Netflix, which also extended the director’s current television overall deal with the streamer.

Levy’s 21 Laps Entertainment has over six series in production and more than 15 additional series and films in active development at Netflix. The company’s credits over the past 15 years have included the “Night at the Museum” franchise as well as the Oscar-winning film “Arrival.”

21 Laps’ Netflix series include “Strangers Things,” “Unsolved Mysteries,” “Dash & Lily,” as well as the upcoming fantasy epic series “Shadow and Bone” and recently announced “Lost Ollie.” 21 Laps has 10 feature films in development at Netflix, and produced the new upcoming horror-thriller, “There’s Someone Inside Your House,” alongside James Wan. That film will be released next year.

“My ambition with 21 Laps was to build a company that would be fiercely committed to empowering storytellers across a broad swathe of genres,...

Almost since he became a best-selling author, Stephen King has seen his work adapted for the movies and television.

Just two years after his first novel, 1974’s Carrie, was published, a film version directed by Brian De Palma was a massive hit, earning Oscar nominations for stars Sissy Spacek and Piper Laurie. The floodgates opened after that, with a TV miniseries based on his second novel, ‘Salem’s Lot (1979), Stanley Kubrick’s high-profile film of The Shining (1980), Creepshow (1982), Cujo (1983), The Dead Zone (1983), Christine (1983), Children of the Corn (1984), Firestarter (1984), Silver Bullet (1985), and many more coming quickly during the next few years.

King adaptations continued well into the late 1980s, 1990s and 2000s, although the quality began to trail off and many were either quickie cash-ins, direct-to-video clunkers or both. There were high points, of course: Pet Sematary (1989), Misery (1990), The Shawshank Redemption (1994), the TV miniseries of The Stand (1994), Dolores Claiborne (1995), 1408 (2007), and The Mist (2007) are all standouts.

Scott Beck and Bryan Woods (A Quiet Place) were hired to write an adaptation of Stephen King’s short story The Boogeyman (checks notes) two years ago. And today, they have an update. Let’s read on. Woods tells ComicBook.com: “We’ve got a script that we’re super excited about. I think development is kind of growing and […]...

For the last two weeks, we here at Daily Dead have been doing our best to laud and commemorate the 40th anniversaries of all the great horror and science fiction films that were released throughout the year 1980. And as we get set to wrap up our extensive coverage today and tomorrow, we thought it might be fun to reach out to some fantastic voices in the realm of genre entertainment.

So, for today’s Class of 1980 celebration, we will be featuring the likes of Kelli Maroney, Bill Moseley, Adrian Roe, Ben Rock, Axelle Carolyn, Drew McWeeny, April Wolfe, Graham Skipper, and Brian Collins all discussing a variety of notable horror and sci-fi movies from 1980, including Dressed to Kill, The Changeling, The Visitor, The Apple, Friday the 13th, The Boogeyman, Mad Max, Battle Beyond the Stars, and The Fog.

And be sure to head back tomorrow for part two of our final Class of 1980 celebration,...

Movies such as “Maleficent” and “Joker” have popularized films that tell a story from the villain’s point of view, but could “Friday the 13th” from Jason Voorhees’ perspective work? It appears Stephen King has already cracked a successful story, as the famed horror author has revealed on social media that his best unused idea is for a novel called “I Jason.” Per King, the “first-person narrative” tells the story of the “Friday the 13th” franchise through Voorhees’ eyes: “Killed over and over again at Camp Crystal Lake. What a hellish, existential fate!”

“Just thinking about the legal thicket one would have to go through to get permissions makes my head ache,” King added. “And my heart, that too. But gosh, shouldn’t someone tell Jason’s side of the story? Blumhouse could do it as a movie.”

King’s pitch sounds like a “Groundhog’s Day” spin on the “Friday the 13th” format,...

Movies such as “Maleficent” and “Joker” have popularized films that tell a story from the villain’s point of view, but could “Friday the 13th” from Jason Voorhees’ perspective work? It appears Stephen King has already cracked a successful story, as the famed horror author has revealed on social media that his best unused idea is for a novel called “I Jason.” Per King, the “first-person narrative” tells the story of the “Friday the 13th” franchise through Voorhees’ eyes: “Killed over and over again at Camp Crystal Lake. What a hellish, existential fate!”

“Just thinking about the legal thicket one would have to go through to get permissions makes my head ache,” King added. “And my heart, that too. But gosh, shouldn’t someone tell Jason’s side of the story? Blumhouse could do it as a movie.”

King’s pitch sounds like a “Groundhog’s Day” spin on the “Friday the 13th” format,...

Sony Pictures has acquired in a competitive auction the rights to sci-fi thriller from “A Quiet Place” writers, Scott Beck and Bryan Woods, and producer Sam Raimi.

Beck and Woods will write, direct and produce the untitled film based on their original script, all within their newly-formed production banner Beck/Woods. Raimi will also produce with Zainab Azizi for his Raimi Productions, as will Debbie Liebling.

Plot details for the Beck and Woods idea is being kept under wraps, but it’s said to have a “big twist at the end.”

Also Read: Sam Raimi Casually Confirms He's Directing 'Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness'

“Raimi Productions is proud to be teaming up with Scott Beck and Bryan Woods. They have exceeded all expectations in my experience with them at Quibi and we have the utmost confidence in their brilliant story. I am honored to once again be joining...

Sometimes you come around on a film; perhaps not a complete 180 degrees, but somewhere over 90 and enough to make one reevaluate previous harsh judgments. And so it is with The Boogey Man (1980), German art house director Ulli Lommel’s paean to psychic residue and familial discourse as filtered through a ludicrous mash-up of The Exorcist, Halloween, and The Amityville Horror. Once attuned to its peculiar charms, it’s hard to resist.

Distributed by The Jerry Gross Organization (Zombie) in early November, The Boogey Man was a huge success – probably baffling Lommel and definitely baffling the critics, who were none too kind at the time (nor are most now). Made for a paltry $300,000, the film brought in between $25 and 35 million, depending on which accountant you ask. Big numbers for a film filled with technical inconsistency, mostly poor acting, and enough plot for three films.

Little Lacey and Willy are stuck at...

According to a variety of sources, including Bloody-Disgusting, famed German cult filmmaker Ulli Lommel has passed away this weekend after suffering heart failure at the age of 72.

His most well known movie is probably The Boogeyman, a 1980 supernatural horror pic starring Suzanna Love, John Carradine and Ron James. Lommel also wrote the script for the film, which follows two siblings targeted by the ghost of their mother’s boyfriend, whose soul was once imprisoned in a mirror.

The Boogeyman was a financial success and spawned two sequels. What’s most interesting, however, is that Lommel was actually working on a new TV series entitled Boogeyman Chronicles. He’d already directed the first episode, too, which is intended to air in 2018. It’s unknown how exactly it’ll fit in with the film, but there’s something exciting about revisiting old franchises and properties, especially with the original director attached.

In recent years,...

Halloween may be over, but horror reigns supreme all year long on Shudder. The streaming service's November titles include Phantasm: Remastered, The Exorcist III, Penance, Happy Birthday to Me, Therapy, Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale, and many more must-watch movies.

Press Release: As many a horror fan is wont to say, Halloween is an all-year endeavor. And though Samhain has ended, you could say Shudder is just getting started. Following our premiere of the stellar miniseries Beyond The Walls, we’re all too excited to be the exclusive home of Phantasm: Remastered (joined by Phantasm III and IV). Headed by Jj Abrams and Bad Robot, this brand new restoration of Don Coscarelli’s American independent horror classic is the best you’ve ever seen it. Vividly rediscover the surreal journey of Mike, Jody and Reggie, up against the unknowable forces of The Tall Man, his extradimensional dwarves and the sphere.

One Way Static is now taking pre-orders for two October vinyl releases. The first - and this is the way that get my little black heart pumping - is Simon Boswell's score for Stagefright (or Stage Fright or Stagefright: Aquarius or Bloody Bird or Deliria - you pick the title you prefer) by Michele Soavi. Those in the U.S. can pre-order this one through Light in the Attic.

The post Stagefright, The Boogey Man Soundtracks Are Heading to Vinyl appeared first on Shock Till You Drop.

In 1975, Steven Spielberg’s Jaws made theatergoers scared to swim in the ocean. Two years later, another movie made viewers wary of the sea: the Nazi zombies in Ken Wiederhorn’s Shock Waves. Like the antagonist of Jaws, the Nazi zombies stalk and kill humans, and fans of this cult classic can soon see these creepy soldiers in high definition with Blue Underground’s upcoming Blu-ray release of Shock Waves.

Coming to Blu-ray and DVD on November 25th and available to pre-order beginning on October 14th, Blue Underground’s release of Shock Waves will be displayed in 1080p high definition with DTS-hd master audio. The Special Edition DVD is a re-release of the version Blue Underground unveiled in 2003, with several new extras now included. Both releases have the following special features:

Audio Commentary with Co-Writer/Director Ken Wiederhorn, Make-Up Designer Alan Ormsby and Filmmaker Fred Olen Ray Nazi Zombies On...

Aquatic Nazi zombies abound in high definition. I've waited my whole life to type that sentence. That's right, Dreadheads; Shock Waves is making its way to the land of 1080p, and we'll likely never be the same.

From the Press Release

Beneath The Living… Beyond The Dead… From The Depths of Hell's Ocean!

In the dark days of World War II, the Nazi High Command ordered its scientists to create a top secret race of indestructible zombie storm troopers – un-living, unfeeling, unstoppable monstrosities that killed with their bare hands. They were known as The Death Corps. No member of this horrific SS unit was ever captured by the Allied Forces – and, somewhere off the coast of Florida, they have survived…

Peter Cushing (Star Wars), Brooke Adams (Invasion Of The Body Snatchers) and John Carradine (The Boogey Man) star in this suspenseful and genuinely creepy shocker co-written and directed by Ken Wiederhorn...

It has been such a long time since I sat down to watch Shock Waves that I can barely recall a single image from the film. Thankfully, Blue Underground has my back, as they will be releasing the film to Blu-ray & DVD on November 25th this year. If you aren’t familiar with Blue Underground, or what they do, they are one of the premiere boutique labels that have been a prolific distributor in cult and genre home video releases. I have a pretty large collection of Blue Underground Blu-rays. I think I’m only missing two of their releases, actually. I have the Hell of the Living Dead/Rats double feature sitting on my desk, and I will be tearing through that one tonight. Look for a review of that this week, and be sure and pre-order a copy of Shock Waves for yourself. Check out the press release below for detailed release info.

Perhaps the most eagerly anticipated home video release of this year is Scream Factory/Anchor Bay's Halloween: The Complete Collection Blu-ray set, which contains every single film in the franchise and is jam-packed with bonus content both new and old.

Today comes word that the set will come equipped with a newly-recorded commentary track with Jamie Lee Curtis and Halloween H20 director Steve Miner. Included with the exciting press release was a picture of Curtis and Miner recording the track, a reunion that's sure to bring a smile to your face.

Check it out below, and read on for all the information you need to know about the September 23rd release!

Keep your eyes peeled for an announcement outlining all the great newly produced interviews, featurettes, behind-the-scenes footage, and more that will be included in the 15-disc Deluxe Edition.

Halloween Box Set Release Details

Last year the horror classic...

Fans are anxiously awaiting the September release of the Halloween Complete Collection Blu-ray set, which will contain all new bonus features. While the full list of special features have not yet been revealed and are still being finalized, it has been announced that Jamie Lee Curtis and Steve Miner got together for a brand new Halloween H20 commentary track:

“Work continues on the Halloween Complete Collection Blu-ray set. Bonus features continue to be added on a daily basis, and an announcement is forthcoming outlining all the great newly produced interviews, featurettes, behind-the-scenes footage and more that will be included in the 15-disc Deluxe Edition.

So, as we near our nation’s birthday, please enjoy the attached behind-the-scenes photo of the actress who helped launched the historic franchise — Jamie Lee Curtis, as she sat down with Halloween H20 director Steve Miner (r) and moderator Sean Clark (c) for a new commentary...

So the big question everyone has been wondering since the announcement of the next Halloween film was whether or not it would continue on in the universe set up by Rob Zombie. Recently Collider caught up with Malek Akkad at the Saturn Awards, who shed some light on the subject.

“I can’t talk about it too much right now," says Akkad. "It will definitely keep elements and bring in new elements. But I really want to bring it back to kind of like, the classic – because the last one got a little dark – I want to bring it back to the classic Friday night horror film that people will really like.”

When asked about the ill-fated Halloween 3D, which was announced a couple of years back...

"Todd Farmer and Patrick Lussier did a script. The next day after the last one came out, we were back in production for Halloween 3D.

Happy Friday the 13th! In celebration of this infamous and terror-inducing date (and with all due respect to that other masked fellow associated with today), Anchor Bay Entertainment and Scream Factory proudly unveil the official art for the September 23rd release of the Halloween The Complete Collection Blu-ray. Please see artwork below of the 15-disc Deluxe Edition and the 10-disc set. Stay tuned for more details, including updates on the bonus features and photos taken from behind the scenes!

For the legions of Halloween fans, the Deluxe Edition boasts 15 discs and contains all the Halloween feature films - Halloween, Halloween II, Halloween III: Season of the Witch, Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers, Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers, Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers, Halloween: H20, Halloween: Resurrection, Rob Zombie's Halloween and Halloween II. The set includes the never before released producers cut of Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers...

Get ready to feast your eyes and glut your soul on the sexiest thing to hit the Halloween franchise since P.J. Soles bared her breasts and beckoned to a ghost-sheet-wearing Shape. See anything you like? Indeed!

From the Press Release

Last year the horror classic Halloween celebrated 35 years of terror for those willing to partake in its vision of unrelenting horror. But that was only the beginning of the celebration.

What producers Moustapha Akkad, Debra Hill, and Irwin Yablans; writer/director John Carpenter; and stars Jamie Lee Curtis and Donald Pleasence started in 1978 has transformed into one of the most durable, iconic – and copiously studied -- horror film franchises ever created. Before Jason, before Freddy, and before Jigsaw, there was… Michael. Over the years audiences have lived and relived the terrors of Michael Myers through ten feature films as well as various re-edits and alternate versions; yet, to date, the...

Scream Factory and Anchor Bay recently announced that they’ve teamed up for Halloween The Complete Collection Blu-ray box set. The 15-disc collection that includes all of the Halloween movies together for the first time, including the rare producer’s cut of Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers, and we now have a look at the new artwork created for the set:

“Beverly Hills, CA – Last year, the horror classic Halloween celebrated 35 years of terror for those willing to partake in its vision of unrelenting horror. But that was only the beginning of the celebration. What producers Moustapha Akkad, Debra Hill and Irwin Yablans, writer/director John Carpenter and stars Jamie Lee Curtis & Donald Pleasence started in 1978 has transformed into one of the most durable, iconic – and copiously studied — horror film franchises ever created. Before Jason, before Freddy, and before Jigsaw, there was…Michael. Over the years, audiences have lived...

Last year, the horror classic Halloween celebrated 35 years of terror for those willing to partake in its vision of unrelenting horror. But that was only the beginning of the celebration. What producers Moustapha Akkad, Debra Hill and Irwin Yablans, writer/director John Carpenter and stars Jamie Lee Curtis & Donald Pleasence started in 1978 has transformed into one of the most durable, iconic - and copiously studied -- horror film franchises ever created. Before Jason, before Freddy, and before Jigsaw, there was...Michael. Over the years, audiences have lived and relived the terrors of Michael Myers through ten feature films, as well as various re-edits and alternate versions. Yet to date, the complete saga of Michael Myers could only be told in pieces, in individual DVD and Blu-ray releases, with the rights spread across multiple home entertainment studios.

Until now...

Through the unprecedented collaboration of rival home entertainment companies Anchor Bay Entertainment...

Ladies and gentlemen... We now present to you reason number 89,098,0127,091 to Love The Scream Factory and Anchor Bay... the long talked about, highly demanded Producer's Cut of Halloween 6: The Curse of Michael Myers is hitting Blu-ray with a whole lot more!

From the Press Release

Last year, the horror classic Halloween celebrated 35 years of terror for those willing to partake in its vision of unrelenting horror. But that was only the beginning of the celebration. What producers Moustapha Akkad, Debra Hill and Irwin Yablans, writer/director John Carpenter and stars Jamie Lee Curtis & Donald Pleasence started in 1978 has transformed into one of the most durable, iconic – and copiously studied -- horror film franchises ever created. Before Jason, before Freddy, and before Jigsaw, there was…Michael. Over the years, audiences have lived and relived the terrors of Michael Myers through ten feature films, as well as various re-edits and alternate versions.

While the secret was spoiled by Amazon over the weekend, it is still nice to get all the official details of the Halloween: The Complete Collection Blu-Ray Set. Read below for the official release. After you get done with that, be sure to read our post on why this collection will still be missing important footage.

The press release states that “Artwork and bonus features to be announced in the next couple of months” so we will update this as soon as we have it.

From the Press Release

Last year, the horror classic Halloween celebrated 35 years of terror for those willing to partake in its vision of unrelenting horror. But that was only the beginning of the celebration. What producers Moustapha Akkad, Debra Hill and Irwin Yablans, writer/director John Carpenter and stars Jamie Lee Curtis & Donald Pleasence started in 1978 has transformed into one of the most durable,...

In recent years, we’ve seen Halloween II and III on Blu-ray from Scream Factory, with Anchor Bay releasing Halloween, Halloween 4, and Halloween 5 on Blu-ray. Now, both companies have teamed up for Halloween The Complete Collection Blu-ray box set, a 15-disc collection that includes all of the Halloween movies together for the first time:

“Beverly Hills, CA – Last year, the horror classic Halloween celebrated 35 years of terror for those willing to partake in its vision of unrelenting horror. But that was only the beginning of the celebration. What producers Moustapha Akkad, Debra Hill and Irwin Yablans, writer/director John Carpenter and stars Jamie Lee Curtis & Donald Pleasence started in 1978 has transformed into one of the most durable, iconic – and copiously studied — horror film franchises ever created. Before Jason, before Freddy, and before Jigsaw, there was…Michael. Over the years, audiences have lived and relived the terrors of Michael Myers through ten feature films,...

Much fun is to be had with inept directors, whether is is wetting yourself laughing at their terrible films or putting out a petition for them to retire. What is amusing to note about inept directors is their profligacy and intestinal fortitude. The critics may hate them but they keep on beavering away adding new inept films to their repertoire whether people like it or not.

Most of the directors in this list are cult directors. There may be terrible directors working in mainstream Hollywood. I don’t know mainstream so I can’t comment upon them, but I would be interested if you told me about them below. Feel free to add your very own inept director and enjoy the list!

10. Ulli Lommel

Given a break by Fassbinder as an actor, Lommel starred in many Fassbinder films which I quite enjoy, being a student of the German language. When Fassbinder died,...

There’s a part of me that wants to compare the new rattlesnake revenge thriller Venom to the 1977 flick Orca. That film had a killer whale seeking retribution against the whaler that murdered its mother, and this new film has a rattlesnake hell-bent for revenge against the motorist that ran over its mate.

First-time feature length filmmaker Gary Breslin helms this serpentine Jaws that sees a mother and daughter pitted against a relentless rattlesnake stalking them throughout the desert via the pheromone the mother got on herself after running over the rattler’s mate. If the paralyzing fear of the rattlesnake wasn’t bad enough, the mom gets bitten by the lethally venomous snake, mother and daughter wind up broken down and forced to trek through the blazing desert sun, and then they find themselves pursued by not only the slithering snake but also a cadre of armed thugs after...

The reason I do what I do for Killer Film is because of one man: Chas Balun. Some of you may have never heard of him, but if you were a horror fan growing up in the 80′s and 90′s, he was the rebel reviewer you looked up to who never pandered to filmmakers and studios. His work in Fangoria magazine was perfection, and his column in Gorezone, Piece ‘O Mind, is the stuff of legend. Sadly, we lost Chas. late in 2009 to cancer, but I was lucky enough to become good friends with him, and every article I publish has a little of his style and charisma in them.

Here is a sample of his massive writing skills, taken from his book The Connoisseur’s Guide to the Contemporary Horror Film, which is a foreword into my interview with director Ulli Lommel.

An ambitious thriller with an intriguing storyline...

I really am a glass is half full kind of guy. I look past director’s not-so amazing films and concentrate on when they were on fire and hitting their marks. Filmmaker Ulli Lommel was rocking and rolling in the 80′s with one diverse horror movie after another. There is nothing more exciting for me than introducing an obscure flick to a new audience. Ulli Lommel granted me a rare interview on The Devonsville Terror, a tale of witchcraft, which was quite daring at the time considering American audiences were in the midst of a slasher craze.

Jason Bene: Within the horror community you are best known for your 1980 film The Boogeyman. I have always had a soft spot for The Devonsville Terror and respected the fact that you were making something fresh and original. What made you decide to do a modern day witchcraft movie?

Ulli Lommel: I...

New DVD celebrates the 80s heyday of video nasties - a genre that didn't quite corrupt the nation's youth … or its dogs

Hard to believe now, but back in the early 1980s Britain was under attack. A sustained attack from a foe more insidious and corrupting than anything that had assailed our shores before; a demonic force that destroyed our mental health, that could deprave all who came into contact with it. Highly scientific studies proved beyond all doubt the peril we were all in, especially our children and even our pets. This was the menace that came from something called a "Video Nasty".

There are two things you should know about that opening paragraph: firstly, everything in it was at one time believed by our leaders of the day (yes, even the bit about pets). And second, they were completely wrong on every count. It was a shameful period in our recent history,...

Cologne, Germany -- Julie Delpy, whose directorial debut, "2 Days in Paris" lit up the 2007 Berlinale, returns this year with her period thriller "The Countess," which will have its world premiere at Berlin's Panorama sidebar.

Jose Padilha, whose corrupt cops drama "The Elite Squad" was last year's surprise winner of the Berlinale Golden Bear, also has booked a return flight, for the Panorama premiere of "Garapa," his documentary examining poverty in Brazil.

Other highlights of 2009 Panorama lineup include "Absolute Evil," a crime thriller which teams up cult director Ulli Lommel ("The Boogeyman") with star David Carradine; the documentary "Coyote" from Chema Rodriquez ("The Railroad All-Stars") which looks at the issue of human trafficking and "Der Knochenmann" (The Bone Man) from veteran Austrian director Wolfgang Murnberger ("Silentium").

Actress Rie Rasmussen ("Angel-a") will unspool her directorial debut, "Human Zoo," which focuses on the trauma of a woman living in Paris who escaped the horrors of the Balkan war.