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In 2012, filmmaker Andrew Dominik released the follow-up to his critically acclaimed film, The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford; its name, Killing Them Softly. Unfolding during the 2008 Presidential election, this film tells the story of a hitman hired to tie up loose ends following the robbery of a high-stakes Mafia poker game.

Related 10 Underrated Gangster Movies That Are Flawless From Beginning to End

There are plenty of underrated gangster films that are just as good as many of the iconic staples in the genre.

At the time of its release, Killing Them Softly became a misunderstood failure in nearly every sense of the word, one that earned the rarest of cinematic audience scores and almost burnt down all the goodwill its relatively novice filmmaker had made for himself. If Killing Them Softly is remembered for anything today, it's for being one of the final movies to feature...

From one 1999 horror remake to another. After rewatching The Haunting with eyes that were both more critical and 25 years older, it got me thinking about the other remake that came out that year. One that was a remake of a far sillier movie and that was the first effort from a new studio, namely Dark Castle Entertainment. The original was from a far less dark castle in that of schlock and gimmick purveyor William Castle and it starred Vincent Price as a man offering strangers money to stay in an allegedly haunted house for a night. While The Haunting failed on multiple levels to improve with age, how does House on Haunted Hill (watch it Here) look after a quarter of a century? Does its cheesy yet graphic tone feel at home in the time of A24 and elevated horror or should it forfeit its 1 million dollar check and leave the cursed grounds forever.

Welcome, digital daredevils and web wanderers, to a spooky safari through the shadowy realms of the internet where technology doesn’t just connect us—it wants to destroy us. Prepare to dive deep into a world where your next online friend request could be your last, and that seemingly innocent video call might just drag you into an abyss of digital despair. We’re about to embark on a virtual voyage through the best technology horror movies that the dark web* has to offer. (*Or just your local streaming service)

Forget haunted houses and foggy graveyards; the real scares are lurking in your inbox and hiding behind your screen. These internet horror movies prove that the most terrifying monsters are not the ones under the bed but the ones inside our machines. Whether it’s creepy social media horror movies that make you question the person on the other side of the screen,...

For as long as horror movies have existed, there have been carny-like marketing campaigns boasting audience members fainting, vomiting, running out of theaters in terror, and in some of the most extreme cases, having a heart attack. Films like "Psycho," "The Exorcist," and even 2023's "Talk To Me" have all become modern urban legends with the reported reactions from fans, but few films come close to the reputation of "Antrum." The Canuxploitation film from David Amito and Michael Laicini is two films in one: a documentary about "Antrum," a lost film from the 1970s that has been connected with over 85 deaths, and the remaining footage from the only known print of the film. Before the film plays, a warning covers the screen.

Legal Notice: By continuing to watch this film you agree that the producers of this film have made you aware of the history and danger(s) associated with 'Antrum.

The late 1990s and early 2000s were a weird era for films. There is definitely an influence from Y2K, and it seemed like there was an attitude that anything goes from some and a tightening of the belt from others. The world was in an odd place, and this influenced everything in culture like music, television, and films. 2002 gave us a wide variety of horror, like Queen of the Damned, Fear Dot Com, Cabin Fever, Bubba Ho-Tep, Dog Soldiers, and Bloody Mallory. This was the end of an era and the start of another for David Arquette it seemed. A time when he tested the “leading man” waters. Unfortunately, it didn’t quite go as planned as box office bomb after box office bomb came. Films like Ravenous, Ready to Rumble, 3000 Miles to Graceland, See Spot Run, and The Grey Zone all featured Arquette in some form but...

William Malone, a Master of Horror behind such films as Creature, House on Haunted Hill, and Parasomnia, once took a stab at mixing early internet tech with horror in FeardotCom, which starred Stephen Dorff and was released in theaters by Warner Bros. Pictures in 2002.

The film has been making a bit of a resurgence and maybe even having a renaissance with horror fans newly appreciating the much-maligned techy horror film that followed Dorff as a New York City detective who investigates mysterious deaths occurring 48 hours after users log onto feardotcom.

Now, you can judge for yourself as FeardotCom is streaming exclusively on Screambox today, alongside Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III, the 1990 sequel starring Viggo Mortensen (The Lord of the Rings) and Ken Foree (Dawn of the Dead)!

March is a huge month on Screambox as we’ll also be releasing the second season of “The Island” from Pandorum director Christian Alvart,...

There’s a surprisingly nasty edge to this tolerable yet derivative wannabe franchise-starter about a cursed game from the 80s

It’s strange that the silly but mostly tolerable horror Choose or Die was an acquisition rather than a homegrown Netflix original given how much it seems algorithmically modeled for the notoriously formula-obsessed platform. It stars Asa Butterfield, an in-house star thanks to the success of Sex Education. It’s contemporary-set but baked in 80s nostalgia, something that also inspires the aesthetic of the aforementioned comedy series as well as the entirety of long-running hit Stranger Things. It also focuses on a cursed video game, making it a close cousin to the streamer’s interactive Black Mirror hit Bandersnatch. It’s a film destined to live its days in the “if you like” container.

It’ll probably fare well there as fans of the above might find just about enough...

New Japanese distributor has also secured rights to two further Zhang features.

New Japanese distributor Foggy has swooped on all Japanese rights to Zhang Lu’s romantic drama Yanagawa in a deal with China’s Parallax Films.

It is the first Chinese film from the Korean-Chinese director in over 10 years and won the top prize at this week’s Vesoul International Film Festival of Asian Cinema in France, following its world premiere at Busan in October. It is also set to open Japan’s Osaka Asian Film Festival on March 10.

Starring Japanese actor Sosuke Ikematsu and China’s Ni Ni and Zhang Luyi,...

Titles include Japan-set, Chinese-language romance ‘Yanagawa’.

Chinese sales company Parallax Films is one of the few from Asia to have a physical presence in Cannes, and co-founder and head of international sales Cao Liuying is in town with a trio of new titles.

Japan-set romantic drama Yanagawa is the first Chinese-language film by Korean-Chinese director Zhang Lu in over 10 years. It stars China’s Ni Ni with Japanese actor Sosuke Ikematsu.

Parallax is also handling Wang Xide’s debut feature A Chat which recounts the loss and grief of three generations of women; and Zhang Chi’s sci-fi thriller Annular Eclipse,...

The Parallax View Soundtrack by Michael Small will be available Coming Friday May 7th from Cinema Paradiso Recordings on limited edition color vinyl and deluxe bundles.

“Michael Small’s score raises the spectre of all that is hidden in American history, and superimposes them in a collage that reveals itself to be the unseen hands that shape it.” – Jim O’Rourke

Cinema Paradiso Recordings is proud to announce the release of the soundtrack to the motion picture ‘The Parallax View’, on vinyl for the first time ever, this coming May 7th 2021. Based on the book by Loren Singer, The Parallax View is directed and produced by Alan J Pakula as the second installment of his Political Paranoia trilogy – alongside Klute (1971) and All the President’s Men (1976). With cinematography by Gordon Willis and starring Warren Beatty, this political thriller from 1974 is perhaps even more relevant today than it was back then. The...

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By Todd Garbarini

The late Loren Adelson Singer, who passed away in 2009, has published several novels as an author, among them That’s the House, There (1973), Boca Grande (1974), and Making Good (1993). His first work, 1970’s The Parallax View, published by Doubleday, was written as an answer to his disdain for the printing business he worked at with his father-in-law and proved to be enough of a success to permit him to become a paid author. The inspiration for the book came from the covert operations he assisted in while training with the Office of Strategic Services and was penned following the high-profile political assassinations of the 1960’s. It also provided the blueprint for the film of the same title directed by the late Alan J. Pakula, the second in his informally named “paranoia trilogy,” bookended by Klute (1971) and All the President’s Men...

Paranoia strikes deep! Alan J. Pakula made The Watergate-era conspiracy creepshow in this sinister extrapolation of political trends. Warren Beatty’s investigative reporter thinks he has an inside track to expose and destroy what looks like a shadow assassination bureau. If the technology of 1974 could be made this efficient, our own Brave New World of ‘truth control’ seems even scarier. Pakula and cameraman Gordon Willis found a Panavision style that fully expresses the faceless corporate menace; the ‘Parallax Recruitment Montage’ is still the most terrifying piece of psych-out Agit-prop ever assembled.

The Parallax View

Blu-ray

The Criterion Collection 1064

1974 / Color / 2:39 widescreen / 102 min. / available through The Criterion Collection / Street Date February 9, 2021 / 39.95

Starring: Warren Beatty, Hume Cronyn, Paula Prentiss, William Daniels, Jo Ann Harris, Walter McGinn, Jim Davis, Stacy Keach Sr., Ford Rainey, Richard Bull, Kenneth Mars, Bill McKinney, Craig R. Baxley, Anthony Zerbe.

Cinematography: Gordon Willis

Film Editor: John W. Wheeler...

Oh, my freakin' Gawd. As an episode, Pandora Season 2 Episode 10 was pretty "meh" with a little bit of "argh" thrown in.

As a season finale, it could've been salvageable if they'd ended it at Aleka's fun speech about returning to her hugely misogynistic society to grow them a new way of being.

It might even have worked to have the Ancients wipe everything out, and then Jax gets to see how a new universe starts à la Ragnorak, in a way.

But their choice to play a mulligan/do-over card and then drag out the exposition for an unfathomable fifteen minutes reads to me like they didn't know where they were going with it all.

Regarding the mission of The Ancients, if I squint really hard, I can see how bringing a delegation of the different races to testify on behalf of the universe makes sense.

Additionally, having Xander's wackadoodle...

I was a bit skeptical about Star Trek: Lower Decks, though was at least willing to give it a try. But after two unfunny episodes, I’m about ready to tap out. It’s not that I don’t think Star Trek can’t be a knockabout animated comedy, but I wish it was more focused, less hyperactive and actually had something to say about being at the bottom of the Starfleet food chain.

Despite that, the show is at least good at dropping references to obscure Star Trek stuff. So far, we’ve seen a Benzite, a character wearing a ‘skant’ and the reappearance of Jean-Luc Picard’s beloved dune buggy. But now the series has dropped a mention of something that has even hardened Trekkies scratching their heads.

In the second episode, we saw Ensign Rutherford in a training simulator failing in various embarrassing ways. At one point,...

Stars: Naomi Prentice, Nelson Ritthaler, Hattie Smith, Ted Gianopulos, Bette Smith, Taylor Flowers, Brooke Lorraine | Written and Directed by Michael W. Bachochin

Trying to explain exactly what Parallax is about is slightly complicated. It can be written in simple terms but that just wouldn’t cover the half of it. Parallax is a complex movie with lots of ideas, some of which I will try to explain – even if I didn’t necessarily understand them all!

The movie follows an artist who wakes up in a life she does not recognise. Slowly she tries to unravel the life she is in but her recurring nightmares of drowning every time she falls asleep and discoveries she finds through her painting lead her to what she believes is her ‘real’ life. It sounds complicated written down like that and in truth it isn’t much easier to follow on screen.

For much...

We have an exclusive clip from Michael W. Bachochin's highly-anticipated 2020 science-fiction movie, Parallax. The movie has not premiered at any festivals over the past few months, due to the world's current state of affairs. However, the Primal Group aims to bring the Psychodrama/science-fiction to the masses this summer. Major movie theaters chains have been shut down since the beginning of the year, but Parallax is scheduled to open exclusively in theaters on July 10th.

Parallax focuses on a young artist who wakes up in a life that she doesn't recognize, spending her time asleep haunted by nightmares of drowning in a black abysmal void. As she begins to uncover the truths of the life that she's found herself in, the gravity of her failing reality weighs heavily on her psychological identity and the reliability of her sanity is called into question. Director Michael W. Bachochin has conjured some pretty...

The Groundbreaking New Sci-fi Feature From Michael W.Bachochin Sci-fi Feature ”Parallax” Showing Only In Theaters From July 10 Michael W.Bachochin’s highly-anticipated Psychodrama/science-fiction feature Parallax releases in theaters this summer. A young artist wakes up in a life that she doesn’t recognize, spending her time asleep haunted by nightmares of drowning in a black abysmal void. …

The post First Clip from Parallax – In Theaters July 10 appeared first on Hnn | Horrornews.net.

Look for Michael W. Bachochin’s highly-anticipated psychodrama/science-fiction feature Parallax in theaters beginning July 10th. Check out the mind-bending trailer and read more about the movie below. Synopsis:a young artist wakes up in a life that she doesn’t recognize, spending her time asleep haunted by nightmares of drowning in a black abysmal void. As she begins to uncover […] More...

Michael W.Bachochin’s highly-anticipated Psychodrama/science-fiction feature Parallax releases in theaters this summer. Check out the trailer:

A young artist wakes up in a life that she doesn’t recognize, spending her time asleep haunted by nightmares of drowning in a black abysmal void. As she begins to uncover the truths of the life that she’s found herself in, the gravity of her failing reality weighs heavily on her psychological identity and the reliability of her sanity is called into question.

Naomi Prentice, Nelson Ritthaler, Hattie Smith and Ted Gianopulos star.

Parallax, written and directed by Michael W.Bachochin, is produced by Bachochin, Brooke Lorraine and Yuself Baig.

The post Sci-fi Feature Parallax Showing Only in Theaters Starting July 10th appeared first on We Are Movie Geeks.

We're back with an extra-packed edition of Horror Highlights! In today's installment, we have a look at the Parallax trailer, details on Fantaspoa' 2020 online festival, a preview of Cult of Dracula, details on Max Brook's online Wizard World event, info on Followed's drive-in release, details on Ha-Ha! Horror Collector’s Edition, an announcement for My Favorite Horror Movie's fundraiser, and the trailer for The Oak Room:

Parallax: "Michael W.Bachochin’s highly-anticipated Psychodrama/science-fiction feature Parallax releases in theaters this summer.

A young artist wakes up in a life that she doesn't recognize, spending her time asleep haunted by nightmares of drowning in a black abysmal void. As she begins to uncover the truths of the life that she's found herself in, the gravity of her failing reality weighs heavily on her psychological identity and the reliability of her sanity is called into question.

Naomi Prentice, Nelson Ritthaler, Hattie Smith and Ted Gianopulos star.

Do you see the tree? The Primal Group has released an official trailer for an indie "psychodrama" meets sci-fi film called Parallax, that is debuting next month despite not hitting any festivals before then. This is a rather strange and peculiar looking film. Naomi Prentice stars as a young artist named Naomi who wakes up in a life that she doesn't recognize, spending her time asleep haunted by nightmares of drowning in a black abysmal void. As she tries to figure out the truth, she begins to question "her psychological identity". The main cast includes Nelson Ritthaler, Hattie Smith, and Ted Gianopulos. It's not easy to figure out what the heck is going on in this trailer, but there's some slick footage. The final scene of her touching the painting as the blue dot begins to swirl is the most intriguing shot from this. Let's hope this might be good.

Following their announcement earlier this summer that they'll be releasing the House on Haunted Hill 1999 remake on a Collector's Edition Blu-ray, Scream Factory has now unveiled the full list of special features and technical specs ahead of the movie's October 9th home media release:

Press Release: One night in the house, one million bucks, no questions asked. But there is a catch for anyone who accepts the offer. Murder is a way of life at the House on Haunted Hill, a jolting, effects-ramped remake of William Castle’s 1959 cult classic. Produced by Robert Zemeckis, Joel Silver, and Gilbert Adler, and directed by William Malone, House On Haunted Hill stars Geoffrey Rush (The King’s Speech), Famke Janssen (X-Men), Taye Diggs (Empire), Ali Larter (Resident Evil: The Final Chapter), Bridgette Wilson (Mortal Kombat) with Peter Gallagher (Covert Affairs) and Chris Kattan (The Middle). On October 9, 2018, Scream Factory™ is proud to present...

Darren Aronofsky has been talking a lot about the meaning behind his new film, Mother!, following harsh critical response and a weak opening weekend at the box office, and in a recent interview, he contended that the film was meant to provoke, not please.

"How, if you walk out of this movie, are you not going to give it an 'F'?" he said in an interview with radio host John Horn following a recent screening at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. "It's a punch. It's a total punch.

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Deep Impact Vs Armageddon is not the only time similar movies have landed around the same time...

Usually, a competing project is poison for a studio. Especially in the era now where a blockbuster costs the national budget of a small country to get out into the world, you don't want to be up against a film with similar subject matter.

Yet this keeps happening, time and time again. Even now, there are two live action Jungle Book movies in various stages of production, for example. And let us not forget when K-9 and Turner And Hooch once did battle...

But how have the movie showdowns of old turned out? And are there any instances where everyone's a winner?

Er, not many as it happens...

The Haunting Vs The House On Haunted Hill

Let's start with two reasonably budgeted horror films, that both got wide releases. Jan De Bont...

While we often lament some of the films that end up stuck in development Hell, never to become realized on the big screen, there are some films we should all be glad never came to fruition.

Sometimes they don’t get it! We all know that the film industry is a business and they want to make money, but Hollywood doesn’t always realize that the best way to do that is to make a good film. Sometimes, Hollywood’s habit of taking a known property and stretching them out to absurd proportions proves that they just don’t get the point. Fortunately, there are times when someone recognizes a bad idea and puts on the brakes. Below is a list of 14 films where someone was smart enough to notice that they were making a pile of trash and threw in the towel.

Beetlejuice Goes Hawaiian

Due to the success of Beetlejuice,...

With movies like House on Haunted Hill (1999), Parasomnia, and FearDotCom on his resume, you’d think Hollywood would be knocking on filmmaker William Malone’s door, but alas, that’s not the world we live in anymore. Instead, a guy like Malone… Continue Reading →

The post How You Can Help William Malone Open Thallium’s Box appeared first on Dread Central.

Feardotcom (2002) Director: William Malone Stars: Stephen Dorff, Natascha McElhone, Stephen Rea An evil website slowly drives its users insane until they die. And this was 10 years before Buzzfeed. Here's the best example of how stupid and terrible Feardotcom is. The original title was supposed to be the much more sensible Fear.Com. However, the studio greenlit the film without checking to see if that domain name was available and when the actual owner of...

Yes, Rock & Shock, the legendary Worcester, Mass., horror and metal festival, is still four months away, but organizers have released a tiny taste of what festival-goers can expect this October 17-19. Read on to learn what celebrity guests and musical acts are already lined up for the show.

Rock and Shock is not only Doctor Gash's favorite weekend of the year, but it's one of the coolest and most intimate festivals one can attend. And the first wave of celebrities should have everyone marking their calendars and making plans to head to Worcester this October.

Brad Dourif, who's done everything from voicing Chucky in the Child's Play series to Lord of the Rings, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest and "Deadwood" just to name a few, will be making a rare festival appearance. Additionally , Dourif's daughter, Fiona Dourif (Curse of Chucky, "True Blood") will be appearing as well.

Also on...

With I, Frankenstein in theatres, The Creature is sure to be on a lot of people's minds; and if you're in the UK, you'll soon get a chance to check out Michael Sarrazin in the role when 1970's TV movie Frankenstein: The True Story finally arrives to your shores.

One of the most acclaimed versions of Mary Shelley’s classic tale, Frankenstein: The True Story, featuring a stellar all-star cast including James Mason and Leonard Whiting, makes its UK DVD debut on 10 March 2014 thanks to Second Sight Films.

Originally airing on NBC in 1973, this much lauded film also stars David McCallum ("The Man From U.N.C.L.E."), Jane Seymour ("Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman"), Tom Baker ("Doctor Who"), Ralph Richardson (Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes), John Gielgud (Ghandi), Peter Sallis (Last of the Summer Wine), and Michael Sarrazin (They Shoot Horses, Don't They?; Feardotcom) as The Creature.

Synopsis:

In 19th century England,...

Short Starts presents a weekly short film from the start of a filmmaker or actor’s career. Twenty years ago, a young Ewan McGregor began his acting career with a short film made for Channel 4 called Family Style. The 11-minute, black and white effort was also the directorial debut of Justin Chadwick, whose latest, Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom, was just acquired for distribution by The Weinstein Co. Back in 1993, McGregor still had long hair, a look you’ll find familiar if you’ve seen Shallow Grave, and was far from being a great actor. His crying scene in Family Style is pretty awful. But look at what two decades does for a guy, going from a breakthrough role in Trainspotting to portraying a young Obi-Wan Kenobi and working with Woody Allen, Baz Luhrman, Peter Greenaway, Todd Haynes, Tim Burton, Ridley Scott, Ron Howard, Steven Soderbergh and Roman Polanski, earning...

William Malone should have developed amour-plated skin by now if the barrage of undying criticism of his work is anything to go by. FeardotCom for instance, not totally without a bit of B-movie charm, provoked a critical fury that any filmmaker would find difficult to deal with. Recently Malone sat down with Dread Central to reflect on his career and also talk about what looks to be an interesting year ahead...

"Things are good," Malone told us."I've just finished a new script that I'm very excited about. I'm about to take it out to see if I can get the financing (always scary). It's interesting going through your questions as this has, of late, been a very introspective time for me. I've had a lot of time while writing to review my past efforts. This invariably leads to examining my methods and motives."

When asked if he looks back...

Nicholas Pike is the composer of the upcoming miniseries Bag of Bones. The project based on Stephen King’s bestselling novel is directed by Mick Garris who previously helmed the TV adaptations of The Stand and The Shining. The four-hour miniseries stars Pierce Brosnan as a man who is unable to stop grieving for his deceased wife. After returning to the lakeside retreat they shared, he inadvertently gets involved in a local custody battle – while having nightmares about his dead wife. Melissa George, Annabeth Gish, Anika Noni Rose, William Schallert, Jason Priestley and Caitlin Carmichael are co-starring. Pike (Return to Me, Feardotcom) has previously worked with the director on The Shining, as well as the 2004 horror thriller Riding the Bullet and the TV shows Masters of Horror and Fear Itself. Bag of Bones is set to air on two consecutive nights on A&E this December. Check out the trailer...

Photo: Warner Bros. I was completely out of the loop when it came to Ballistic: Ecks vs. Sever, a film predominantly known at this point as the worst reviewed movie of the last decade by RottenTomatoes standards. So, when I decided I would follow in the footsteps of my previous look at Skyline and regularly take a look back at movies considered to be among the worst ever that I had not yet seen, there was no better place to start.

In short, yes, this is a bad film. Terrible in fact. Is it the worst? That's all relative to the discussion. Worst in what way? Plot? Characters? Execution? Entertainment? In all honesty, this is a film I would consider a perfect entry in a new age of grindhouse. All I could think of while watching the inexplicable amount of explosions, lack of story and silly predicaments was of Robert Rodriguez...

Actor Michael Sarrazin, whose roles in the genre have ranged from The Creature in the 1973 TV movie "Frankenstein: The True Story" to a small supporting part in FeardotCom, has passed away in Montreal after a brief battle with cancer. He was 70.

Aside from the aforementioned appearances, along with a few more on TV's "The Outer Limits" and "Poltergeist: The Legacy", Sarrazin was best known (and beloved) by horror fans for his portrayal of the titular character in director J. Lee Thompson's 1975 classic The Reincarnation of Peter Proud. In the non-genre realm, Sarrazin's greatest acclaim came for his performance opposite Jane Fonda in Sydney Pollack's Depression era-set They Shoot Horses, Don't They?.

Sarrazin was born Jacques Michel André Sarrazin in Quebec City in 1940. "Michael was one of the most talented, generous and committed actors I have ever worked with," George Mihalka, who directed Sarrazin in 1993's La Florida, told the Montreal Gazette.

It just dawned on me today that I completely forgot about Parasomnia when I was doing my favorite films of the year. It really is tough to keep up on the many pictures I watch, and William Malone’s sleeper spectacle is one that I saw some time back. It is a blessing in disguise that I was absent-minded because it allows me to put his sleeping beauty fable in the spotlight. The irony is Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland made some many critics worst list, whereas Parasomnia is Alice in Acidland and will make you forget than expensive blunder. Here is the interview I did with William Malone prior to the Blu-ray/DVD release of the flick.

Jason Bene: You are a huge devotee of the 1920 silent film The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. How much of that style and vision can be seen in Parasomnia?

William Malone:...

You’ve gotta give it up to director William Malone – the helmer of 1999's gory House on Haunted Hill remake and the universally reviled 2002's FeardotCom has conjured up something of an original idea for his new film Parasomnia. Parasomnia is the story of Laura Baxter (Cherilyn Wilson), who suffers from a rare form of parasomnia that leaves her asleep for the majority of her life. She is physically capable and generally healthy but tragically rendered comatose for days and months at a time.

Kept in a hospital bed and fed intravenously on a regular basis, Laura seems doomed to this existence until Danny Sloan (Dylan Purcell) stumbles across her room while visiting a friend in rehab. Danny is taken with Laura almost immediately and strives to find out more about her. Coincidentally, in the room next to Laura, serial killer and master hypnotist Byron Volpe (Patrick Kilpatrick - best name ever?...

Writer/director/producer William Malone’s Parasomnia is a most unusual, visually enthralling horror film, so it’s fitting that the movie was the centerpiece of an unusual, visually enthralling event benefitting the American Cinematheque, which hosted the event at the Egyptian Theatre, and the Museum of Contemporary Art (Moca) in Los Angeles. The evening was a tribute to the work of the late Polish artist Zdzislaw Beksinski (pronounced Boo-shin-ski), whose paintings inspired much of Malone’s Parasomnia imagery; the film credits Beksinski with “conceptual art.”

Before Parasomnia (pictured) was screened, Richard Elfman (director of Forbidden Zone, Shrunken Heads and Modern Vampires) moderated a Q&A panel with Malone and fellow horrormakers Wes Craven, Mick Garris, Stuart Gordon and Tobe Hooper in a discussion of the influence of art on their filmmaking, followed by a slide show and discussion of Beksinski’s work. Fango caught up with the filmmakers afterward for some one-on-one insights.

Year: 2009

Director: William Malone

Writers: William Malone

IMDb: link

Trailer: link

Review by: cyberhal

Rating: 7.3 out of 10

This was the premiere of Parasomnia and the Director Bill Malone (Fear.com, House on Haunted Hill) was present to tell us that the inspiration for his movie came as he was watching the Cabinet of Dr Caligari (1920). Also eating popcorn were cast members Dylan Purcell, Cherilyn Wilson, Patrick Kilpartrick, Jeffrey Combs, Timothy Bottoms and Cinematographer Christian Sebaldt. Parasomnia is a Sleeping Beauty legend reinvention with dashes of Beetlejuice and Pan's Labyrinth. Despite a fine performance from Patrick Kilpatrick as the evil hypnotist, Dr Volpe ( a performance so good, I little bird tells me it got him picked up for the new Mixed Martial Arts project by the Argentinean fight man Hector Echavarria), and some very stylish camera work, the film as a whole is somewhat patchy in the story and the character development department.

Why anyone would want to sequelize the abysmal remake of The Amityville Horror (review) is beyond me, but at least it seems like those in charge are taking a page from the endless sequels to the original film and going the route of ridiculousness.

Bloody Disgusting learned today that MGM is looking to create a new chapter in the Amityville saga, one that will instantly ensure that the film is forever dated; they want a story focused on the internet and multimedia. Because if there’s one thing we all know works so well in horror, it’s films that have to do with the internet. Who can forget the classic terrors of Fear Dot Com, The Card Player or Cry Wolf?

Considering past Amityville sequels have dealt with haunted dollhouses, clocks and mirrors, I guess a haunted interwebs might be a step up ... but hopefully this project will fade...

I hope you're sitting down for this little gem of a scoop... MGM is currently out to writers for a new AMITYVILLE HORROR film. The franchise will continue on as a direct-to-disc release, with more than one sequel planned. But here's the kicker, MGM wants the story to be focused around multimedia and "the internet" (I'm not kidding, how lame is that?). Haven't these 'effin suits learned anything from THE MANGLER 2.0, STRANGELAND, CRY WOLF, STAY ALIVE, SCREAM 3, PULSE, FEAR DOT COM, among others? What do you guys think they should do with the next AMITYVILLE HORROR? For those of you who don't know, in the original '70s film, which is based on "supposed" true events, newlyweds move into a house where a murder was committed, and experience strange manifestations which drive them away.

COLOGNE, Germany -- Lew Horwitz, founder and former head of veteran financing group LHO, has signed on as an adviser to leading independent German film fund VIP, VIP co-head Andreas Schmid has said. A 24-year film financing veteran, Horwitz helped source backing for such films as Nine 1/2 Weeks, My Big Fat Greek Wedding and The Devil and Daniel Webster. He also has plenty of experience with the German film fund scene, having worked with various funds on projects spanning FearDotCom, Undisputed and Patty Jenkins' Monster, which was co-financed by VIP. Horwitz will advise VIP on contract negotiations with independent producers and studios as well as future projects. Munich-based VIP, Germany's largest independent film fund, has raised hundreds of millions of dollars in private investor capital to back big-budget features like The Punisher and independent fare like The I Inside. Upcoming projects include the Adrien Brody-Keira Knightley thriller The Jacket and Havoc, starring Kevin Spacey, Morgan Freeman and Justin Timberlake. VIP's latest fund has so far raised about $150 million, and the company expects to top $200 million by year's end.

In its 20th weekend of release, IFC Films' seemingly indestructible My Big Fat Greek Wedding already has lasted longer than some Hollywood marriages. During the otherwise lackluster Labor Day weekend, it moved up the charts, bettering its fourth place finish last weekend as it vaulted over Sony/Revolution's XXX and Dimension Films' Spy Kids 2 to lodge itself in the No. 2 slot. Wedding expanded into 1,619 theaters. Witnessing a 55% uptick in business during the weekend's first three days, it picked up an estimated $14.6 million to bring its overflowing dowry to $82.3 million. With a per-theater average of $9,018, Wedding challenged Buena Vista's Signs, directed by M. Night Shyamalan, which nevertheless remained in the top spot for the second week in a row as it scared up another $16.5 million in 3,437 houses (for a per-theater average of $4,801), bringing its total to date to $195.1 million. Slipping by a mere 6% -- again, comparing the first three days of the holiday weekend against the three days of last weekend -- Signs is on track to cruise easily past the $200 million mark. Arriving in the middle of the pack was the weekend's one new wide release, Warner Bros. Pictures' frightener FearDotCom, directed by William Malone. Debuting in 2,550 theaters, the movie scared up just $7.12 million.