The Last Blog On Dead-End Street

Exhumed Films Horrorthon Survival Guide: REVISED

2011-10-28T12:28:00.000-04:00

Last year I put together a small but handy guide to help one through a 24 hour movie marathon, but after suffering through some of m own bad advice, I have learned from my own mistakes. I now present to you a revised "Do & Do Not" list for this year's Horrorthon.

1. The Early Bird Gets The Best Seats

Do you want to make sure you get the seats you really want for the Horrorthon? Unless you purchased VIP tickets, arriving late is not a option. The doors open at 11AM, so be sure to get there so you can score a decent place in line. Also, if you are going with a large group of friends, getting there late will guarantee that you will have to sit scattershot all over the theater, most likely next to some deranged sociopath who is way too eager to share the bag of toenails he's been snacking on.

2. Dress Comfortably

From the looks of early weather reports, it's going to be really cold this weekend. Now the conundrum is that the I-House theater can get damn toasty, so the best bet is to dress for "sitting in a movie theater for 24 hours" comfortability and your own body temperature. I know last year Exhumed Films' own Joe Gervasi said that one should always dress their best, but this is a horror marathon, not a goddamn box social; Dress as you see fit for this event.

A personal note from me to the world: IF YOU COME TO THIS EVENT WITH A SPIKED MOHAWK AND SIT DIRECTLY IN FRONT OF ME PREPARE TO HAVE SAID MOHAWK SET ON FIRE. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.

3. Bring A Pillow

This year I will be bringing one of those travel neck pillows, as I believe they will be the most comfortable for this event. Hopefully I won't be wrong.

4. Have A Small Flashlight(not fleshlight. pervert.)

Being in a darkened theater for six or more hours can do a real number on the eyes, especially someone like me who has mole vision. Also I'm sure most of us will be bringing things with us that will be kept at our feet, which is why it's a good idea to have a small pocket flashlight to be able to go through your shit easily. It also comes in handy when you have to get up and go to the bathroom, as you can shine the light on the ground and not step on everyone's feet as you walk over them.

But remember: KEEP THE LIGHT LOW AS NOT TO DISTURB THE OTHER MOVIE PATRONS!

5. Bring Some Cash For Foodstuffs

The fine folks at the Grindcore House will have all kinds of delicious food & beverages for sale all throughout the event, and maybe if we're lucky, some vegan pizza from the awesome Blackbird Pizzeria.

6. Bring More Cash For DVDs, Posters & Shirts

Diabolik DVD will be set up for the first 2 films, selling an awesome assortment of horror, exploitation and sci-fi films. Exhumed Films' artist friend, Justin Miller from Haunt Love will also be there selling poster prints celebrating the crazier films of Horrorthon's past.

So please arrive with some extra spending money or some livestock and cheeses, for trade.

7. Bring Deodorant

Seriously, the theater starts to smell like one unified armpit once we start getting into the wee hours.

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That's all I can think of for right now. I sure hope this list helps those of you going this weekend or anyone going to any horror marathon around the country, either this weekend or anytime in the future.

My next post will be my post Exhumed Films Horrorthon review & reactions.

So please, everyone have fun at the Horrorthon and have a safe and happy Halloween!

Exhumed Films Week: Memories

2011-10-26T02:51:00.001-04:00

Exhumed Films week idea "borrowed" by the great people over at Dr. Terror's Blog of Horrors

This week brings us two momentous moments for localized horror: it is Exhumed Films 14th birthday and this coming weekend is their 5th annual 24 hour Horrorthon, the latter being an event that many cannot shut the hell up about. It must really suck for some of non-horror fans(I have one friend in particular who booed me the other day for bringing it up for the umpteenth time).
To celebrate the two grand occasions, I have decided to chronicle a few my own personal highs & lows of my past experiences with the events, and not just the horrorthons, but all the double features I've gone to since 2008.

-Interestingly enough, my first experience with Exhumed FIlms happened on my own birthday, back on March 7th, 2008 with their "DON'T" double feature of Don't Open The Window & Don't Go In The House(http://ihousephilly.org/oldsite/exhumeddontmiss.htm). I remember it was raining really bad that night, and neither myself nor the people I was going there with knew where the International House was located, despite writing down all the important info. Now because of all of this, we had missed most of the first feature(WINDOW). EF's very own Joseph A. Gervasi let me know this info as I bought my ticket. I stated that I was only interested in the 2nd feature, to which he replied by grabbing me by my collar and angerly letting me know that the first feature, in his words, "was a goddamned masterpiece!". Or maybe he just mentioned it was a really good movie and my annoyance about being soaking wet made it seem that harsh? Who the hell can remember.
We sat in the I-House's original famously uncomfortable seats and watched the end of Don't Open the Window. The only thing that stood out from that was my friend Sean saying that one of the zombies looks like Pete Townshend, which had me in hysterics for quite a few minutes.
As for the the follow-up feature, Don't Go in the House, this movie had very few funny moments, if any at all. The slightly out-of-place disco soundtrack was amusing, as was the scene with the main character buying a disco suit. I let out a purposely forced loud as hell laugh when you see the first girl get roasted, which kinda creeped out my friends.
All in all, my first experience with Exhumed Films was a very positive one, but for some reason, I would not be back for another showing until the second Horrorthon on November 1st, 2009.

-This leads into my next favorite EF memory, and that would would be the entirety of the 2nd annual Horrorthon. In my opinion, it's still the best line-up they have yet to put together, from the craziness of Wicked Wicked, to the sleaziness of The Boogie Man, I had fun with every movie.
The opening movie was John Carpenter's The Fog, which I had never seen before. Now, there is a certain level of excitement that comes with the EF Horrorthon, and that is because all the movies are kept secret. So when The Fog started, it has a great three minute "cold open" with John Houseman telling a ghost story to children around a campfire, all before the credits, so I had no idea what movie this was. It was thrilling.
Later on, after midnight, EF showed Island of the Damned, which is a creepily effective "evil children" movie that is about as ballsy as any movie I've ever seen before it. Experiencing such a movie at this event left a lasting impression on me.
Finally ending the Horrorthon with Return of the Living Dead was the perfect "exclamation point" on the end of a really fun ride.
I will say that the event was not entirely perfect, as some nimrod came to the event all "punked out", right down to the ridiculous spiked mohawk. He sat down right in front of me during one of the movies. Thankfully he did not stay long.

-I don't have many regrets in life, but one of them definitely is me waiting so long to start going to these semi-monthly events way back when I first read about them in the local paper. If not for that one show landing on my birthday, I might've never gone. Thank you, gentlemen, for all the great memories I've had and all the great memories I've yet to experience.

Happy 14th birthday, Exhumed Films! Heres to 14 more!

31 Days Of Horror 4: Part 3

2011-10-14T01:51:00.000-04:00

#13 Dead & Buried

This movie is an unsung horror classic if there ever was one. It's about as violent as a movie can be, with the added effect of having a great story and a deep mystery going through it. The more I watch it, the more I pick up.

After thought: Needed more Robert England, but that can be said for most films.

Best kill: Oh it's gotta be the syringe to the eye.

#14 Tales From The Crypt: Demon Knight

The 90s saw two Crypt movies, this of course is obviously the better one. I have to say that I am a bit disappointed that we never got a sequel; I would've liked to see Jada Pinkett continue the story on.

After thought :Billy Zane's evil "lord of the demons" character deserves to stand next to Jason & Freddy in the Halls of Horror.

Best kill: Zane's "fist through the cop's head" is great, but it's made even better when the head gets stuck on his hand and he starts punching people with it.

#15 The Horror Of It All

This is a fine, hour long documentary on the history of horror, from the silent era, up till the late 70s. It's currently only available on VHS, and I'd love to see it get a DVD treatment so more will see it.

#16 Psycho III

The 3rd installment in the Psycho series does not really continue the awesome that the original and the 2nd brought to the table. While it's not a bad sequel, it's just nothing special.

Is does, however, continue the "before they were stars" celebrity managers of the Bates Motel with one Mr. Jeff Fahey!

After thought: As the original Psycho was controversial for being the 1st movie to have a flushing toilet, Psycho III goes one step further and features not only the toilet, but a pretty young girl sitting and peeing on said toilet. Classy.

Best kill: I was very amused by the girl who is stabbed to death in the telephone booth, exactly like the famous "shower stabbing" from the original.

#17 Jason X

I was in the mood for something goofy, and this certainly fits the bill. While J-X is not a very good meld of horror and scifi(psst it lacks horror), it is a nice change of pace from the other 9 Friday the 13th films, and I certainly always respect trying something new.

This movie does have a glaring flaw that I just noticed with this most recent viewing: Uber-Jason(as he is called in the credits) does absolutely nothing! He kills nobody at all! He gets created, busts down a couple of doors, and then gets taken down by Seal with muscles! Total gip! It's Jason Takes Manhattan all over again! They could've easily had him turn Uber 10 minutes earlier and had him bust a few people up. Ah, but I digress. This movie does indeed feature the funniest scene in Friday history: Uber-Jason beating to death the 2 girls in the sleeping bags in the holo-chamber.

After thought: Absolutely the worst score I've ever heard in a horror movie. Hands down.

Best kill: When Jason shoves the blonde face first into the freeze chamber, let's her ice-up real good, and then proceeds to shatter her face into a red, icy mess.

#18 It's Alive*

This movie was about as unremarkable as any horror movie can be. Drab characters, drab scenery, drab dialogue and drab off-screen violence.

After thought: I had seen the sequel first, It Lives Again, at the Exhumed Film's Horrorthon last year and I enjoy it so much more.

Best kill: The milkman's death amused me, but still wasn't anything special.

to be continued...

31 Days Of Horror 4: Part 2

2011-10-12T00:28:00.000-04:00

~Continued from the previous post~

#7 The Fly 2*
As much of a classic that Chronenberg's Fly was, the sequel was every bit the opposite. It takes forever to get going, the transformation is underwhelming and the final "monster", was anything but memorable, and the producers were really hoping that the creature would be put in the same class with all the other Hollywood movie mosters throughout the decades.
After thought: Martin Brundle, much like his father, uses the teleportation pods to get tail.
Best kill: The security guard's head being crushed by the elevator is spectacular, especially when it almost got the movie an X rating.

#8 Phantasm 2
Here's a novel idea: Take a smart, scary horror film, have a major motion picture company buy the rights to it, release a sequel that's not scary, turning it into a action movie, proceed to drop the license after movie bombs. Phantasm 2 is goofy, nonsensical fun.
After thought: I NEED a replica of Reggie Banister's duel-barreled, beveled shotgun.
Best Kill: Nothing beats the gold sphere with the spinning blades getting stuck coming out the one dude's mouth.

#9 Rogue*
My 2nd croc-related movie of the month(and probably not the last), was written and directed by the same guy who did Wolf's Creek, which gave me high hopes and I was not disappointed. As far as modern "giant animal attacks" movies go, this is the current granddaddy. It's pretty obvious that the movie's whole budget was used of the croc's CGI and boy does it show. While there are a few scenes where the monster looks pretty fake, most of the time it looks fantastic.
After thought: I have to say though, the cast is pretty bland. Not horrible, but nothing special.
Best kill: I can't really say w/o spoiling the end.

#10 Pieces
Now this is a movie that can please even the most hardened gore-hound! This one is best viewed with a large crowd, as the really bad english dubbed dialogue will be more appreciated that way.
Brutal, ridiculous violence, horrific voice-over, nudity from all sexes, x-rated jigsaw puzzles, lost limbs, and a sleazy, moog-synth soundtrack makes Pieces a must see!
After thought: Keep an watchful eye out for the push-button phone, prominently displayed in a flashback set in the 1940s. Derp dee doo...
Best Kill: WHAT?! YOU MEAN I HAVE TO CHOOSE JUST ONE?!?! CAN'T BE DONE. Move along.

#11 Psycho
First time I saw this movie, I was young and didn't care much for it. Now that I'm older and more mature(boobs. farts.), I now appreciate what it did for horror films, showers and pop culture.
After thoughts: This movie stirred up controversy in the bathroom, but not because of the infamous shower scene, but because this was the first film to ever feature a flushing toilet in it. I wonder how many people were genuinely offended by this?
Best kill: Nothing beats Janet Leigh's shower death.

#12 Psycho II
This movie surprised me. I half expected a lame sequel to a movie that did not need to be sequelized, but boy was I wrong. Spooky, sleazy, atmospheric and mystery-laden, Psycho II is a worthy successor to Hitchcock's classic.
After thought: This features the first of 2 "before they were stars" managers of the Bates Motel: Mr. Dennis Franz!
Best Kill: The old woman who gets murdered with a shovel to the back of the head was pretty great AND unexpected.

31 Days of Horror 4: Part 1

2011-10-09T18:07:00.000-04:00

Above image "borrowed" from http://www.marksimonson.com/
Every year, horror-philes celebrate the month of October with a viewing of one horror(or genre related) movie a day for the entire month, while others have double features every night. And then there are those brave souls who try to cram as many "scary" movies as possible into the whole month. I fall into that 3rd category.
This will be my fourth October in a row doing this, and while I have always kept a list of what movies I've watched, I never blogged about it; this changes now. I always referred to this event as "Horrorween", but to be honest I wasn't the biggest fan of that name, but for lack of a better one, I kept it. Thankfully my fellow horror nuts on Twitter came up with the hashtag #31DaysOfHorror, which I liked so much better. It's simple and to the point.
My rules for #31DaysOfHorror:
-At least every other movie viewed has to be something I've never seen before.
-If I am having a themed marathon(all the Saw films in succession), a themed double feature(like two movies starring the same actor or similar plot), or I'm gathered with friends and they choose what we watch, well then obviously the 1st rule gets thrown out.
-Try and fit in a few other things besides movies, like documentaries and halloween specials from the 80s.
That's pretty much is for rules, as you don't need too many for this type of non-event.
I have to say that the month got off to a shaky start as on October 1st I got stuck at a friends house all day with a broken DVD player and only the most basic of cable. So as it happens, the first two films I get to watch were the edited-for-TV versions of Caddyshack and My Cousin Vinny; scary, I know.
I finally got home late that night and popped in my first movie of the month:

#1: Grindhouse
This would be the first time I would get to see Grindhouse in all it's gory glory since it was in theater's back in 2007, and boy did it have trouble keeping my interest. Now this was the first time I was sleeping in my own bed for a few days, so I was pretty tired which I'm sure didn't help. Also my tolerance for loud, obnoxious and in-your-face tongue-in-cheek horror movies has almost drained into nothingness.
On this viewing of Grindhouse, I have to say I now enjoy Death Proof much more than Planet Terror. I mean, besides a couple of solid performances and a very sexy Rose McGowan, P.T. is a mess. Why is Naveen Andrews collecting testicles? Why does Bruce Willis wink at the audience? Why does Jeff Fahey fall asleep on the floor of his restaurant after killing some infected? Why does Michael Parks' mother randomly become infected, while he does not when they are right next to one another? Why is Electra & Elise Avallen the 2 sexiest girls I've ever met? ... Forget that last one.
P.T. is a mess, a fun mess, but a mess nonetheless.
Death Proof, on the other hand, is a true throwback to exploitation films of old, one that is on-the-edge-of-your-seat scary the first time you watch it. Stuntman Mike's sudden turn from goofy bar-goer to homicidal madman is awesome, and the "ship's mast" scene later in the film is edge-of-your-seat stuff.
After thought: I would like to see a movie on the past of Freddy Rodriguez's character El Rey.
Best kill: Stuntman Mike driving his car right across the face of Vanessa Ferlito, literally ripping it off!

Hal Holbrook Double Feature
#2 Rituals*
This movie, about a group of doctors going out on their "ritual" camping trip and being stalked, tortured and murdered one by one by a mysterious person was ok. I wasn't too thrilled with the reveal of who was hunting them, but I feel a 2nd viewing would make me like this movie a bit more.
After thought: I will say it was a nice breath of fresh air to see a camping movie and not have to about a group of groping teens.
Best kill: Tough-man Holbrook strangling a comrade to death, ending his misery.

#3 Creepshow
Who the hell doesn't like Creepshow?! Although this is far from scary, it's about as much fun as you can have watching a horror film. I really enjoy how it took many actors not normally used in this genre and made the best of them. Leslie Nielsen was never meaner in any movie I ever saw, and supposedly Ted Danson does not look back at this movie very fondly, which is a damn shame.
After thought: How twisted is that kid in the beginning of the movie that he is not terrified out of his mind by that...thing outside his window? Even as a grown man that would've killed me with fright!
Best kill: I particularly enjoyed the nerdy student getting ripped apart by the creature in The Crate.

#4 An American Werewolf in London
Another classic that is virtually impossible to dislike. Not much more I can add to that.
After thought: The scene where all of David Kessler's victim's tell him different ways he can kill himself, thus ending the wolf curse, all while sitting in a porn theater, is my favorite scene in the movie.
Best kill: A police constable gets his head torn off and bounced off the hood of a car.

#5 Alligator*
We can all thank Jaws for all these killer animal movies from the early 80s, and I mean that. Most of these movies are good fun, and this one just about tops the list. Watch this one with a group.
After thought: Using a real alligator walking through a set of miniatures to make it look gargantuan is simply fantastic.
Best kill: This was limited in that department, but the pet store owner is the only one that springs to mind.

#6 The Fly(1986)
Jeff Goldblum with pec muscles does not make sense to me, but after seeing the type of acrobatics that his character has to perform late in this movie, I can understand why he had them.
After thought: Possibly the sexiest Geena Davis ever was in a movie?
Best kill: I don't recall any actual deaths in this movie(besides the end), but I will say the "arm wrestling scene" makes me cringe everytime.

-PART 2 COMING LATER-

* means "never seen before"

Elm Street Blues

2011-08-18T00:54:00.002-04:00

(oh god i hope someone gets the blog title pun)

In 2014, we will be celebrating the 30th anniversary of everyone's favorite child murderer, that bastard son of a thousand maniacs, the clawed one himself: Freddy Kruger. One assumes that would be when we were going to get an updated boxset from the one that was released way back in the golden age of DVD(1999), but it would seem that the UK cannot hold it in any longer and have decided that NOW is the time to strike. Of course not only are we getting a new DVD boxset, but a blu-ray one as well.
I'm very late to the game when it comes to blu-ray, but that was all because of an annoyance over it being a rushed-out format combined with people drinking the "Blu Kool Aid" a little too fast, hastily replacing the collection that they had spent years putting together. It all rubbed me the wrong way. I have since lightened-up on my feelings against BD(blu-ray) this past year, considering I now own a BD player(PS3) and an HD television, so moving on to the next step in technology was a no-brainer.
The BD set will be 7 movies(no Freddy vs Jason) bunched together over 5 discs, which is kind of a drag. This means 2 movies per disc, all except for New Nightmare and the disc of bonus features. Whether or not the discs with the 2 films will be dual-layered has yet to be seen. This isn't a bad idea as a cost reducing measure(the set runs about $50 I believe), but as a fan of film and a total DVD junkie(yes i still refer to BD as DVD), I prefer my films spread out, leaving plenty of room for the gobs of bonus material that I know exists.
As far as the proverbial bonus features go, this one is both interesting and lacking to say the least, as it includes a 1988 MTV show aptly entitled "The Freddy Kruger Special"(which can be found on youtube), two episodes of the Freddy's Nightmares tv series, neither of which is the first episode "origin story" that is laughably bad(maybe that's why?), and a whole section titled "Welcome to Prime Time" which I can only assume is a bunch of interviews. If this set does include new interviews, I can't help but feel that it's all a waste of space, what with the awesome 4 hour documentary NEVER SLEEP AGAIN that came out last year that left no stone unturned in the series. Any new interviews on the set would just seem redundant, and I know for a fact that their is a ton of deleted scenes, old making-of footage, trailers, tv ads, various clips from old tv shows, music videos, etc. etc. that NEEDS to be unearthed.
All in all, this set could be worth the pick-up since it's cheap enough, but hopefully the U.S. will release a better set as we edge ever closer to the series' birthday.
Scary thing is, the UK boxsets are almost always superior to the U.S. release. Let's hope that this time it's not the case.

*BTW the boxset is region 0, so despite being from the UK, it'll play on any player worldwide.

Jason Visits Manhattan: Looking at Friday 8

2011-07-28T22:59:00.000-04:00

22 years ago today, the "final" movie with the title Friday the 13th was released to the masses(at least till 2009, but more on that later); months before the trailer was popping up before movies with much glee, featuring our favorite killer goalie scaring the hell out of folks in a brand new setting! Horror fans rejoiced, as it looked as though we were getting a familiar premise in an unfamiliar territory, which is something this series desperately needed. Sadly what we got was The Love Boat followed by 15 minutes of Jason and the gang running around ~~New York City~~ Canada. This was a major disappointment when I was 12 years old, and I have to say, despite the movie having a fun "cheese factor", is still a bit of a disappointment today.
Now I understand NYC is one of the most expensive places to film, and using Canada as the faux NYC was just a way to save on that cash, but they had to figure that Jason tearing through Times Square would've been gangbusters, making the studio oodles of cash. The film went on to make $15,000,000, three times the budget. Imagine if the movie actually got good word-of-mouth, by actually taking place where the movie's title promised? It probably would've made 30 mill easily.
According to IMDB, the film was supposed to take place all over NYC; like Madison Square Garden, Brooklyn Bridge and Empire State Building. It was the studio that refused to allow this to happen because of budgetary reasons.
If the movie was not originally advertised to take place in NYC, with that scenario being a surprise for patient movie goers, Jason part 8 might be looked at with kinder eyes in hindsight. Maybe calling it Friday the 13th Part VIII: Blood Cruise and then having the destination of the boat be the something the audience is not expecting. Then not having most of the movie take place where it was originaly promised would not be a source of horror-fans complaints.
Believe it or not, this IS fixable, but that all depends on how you feel about... *looks around* R-E-M-A-K-E-S. I know, "remake" is a dirty word these days, but it doesn't have to be.
Not every remake is a blight upon mankind; The Thing, Night of the Living Dead and The Hills Have Eyes are remakes that we all agree really turned out well.
In 2009, Platinum Dunes released the Friday the 13th remake to much fan-worry. After a viewing, though, you see that as far as remakes go, this one wasn't that bad. It cleanly combines the first three films into a tidy package, as well as having a great cast of "kids" to kill and in this author's opinion, some of the best nudity ever in a slasher film. My only problem with Friday the 13th 2009 was that most of the killings in it were very uninspired. I mean, even the original film had the great scene of Kevin Bacon getting a skewer through his throat from under the bed, which was totally revolutionary back then.
The Friday remake did just well enough to have rumors of a sequel bounce around the internet for a few years now, this time taking Jason into the winter, which is a simple yet brilliant direction to take the series. Considering that movie IS a hit, the chances a third movie are likely, which is why I propose this:
Friday the 13th Part 3-D: Jason Takes Manhattan!
Now, I know what you're thinking "You, of ALL people, are suggesting a movie be released in 3D?!". Yes yes I am an outspoken hater of the way 3D has been shoved down our throats, but I loved it in My Bloody Valentine 3D, and since the O.G. F13th part 3 was 3D, I believe this would be a solid "homage", as long as it's kept simple. But more importantly, this movie would be perfect place to take Jason Voorhees and have him reign terror on NYC the way he was supposed to back in 1989.
New York has a much, MUCH different look now than it did back then. It was much more dangerous. It was grittier and dirtier. Today it's very "disneyfied" and a lot more family friendly, so Jason running rough-shot all over the most famous city on the planet would make a much bigger impact.
If this were to happen, and if it was done right, I have no problem saying that a Jason Takes Manhattan remake would be one the most anticipated horror movies in a long time.

Exhumed Films Horrorthon Year 4: Attack of the Sequels

2010-11-07T03:55:00.002-05:00

It is exactly 1 week after the 2010 Exhumed Films Horrorthon and I think I have finally recovered fully, both mentally(oh my god Boardinghouse) and physically(why the FUCK were my shins hurting?). This year was especially hard for me, as I had got ZERO sleep the night before. I decided to crash at my friend Jenna's apartment, as she lives a brisk 10 minute walk from the venue housing the event(a walk that sucks when your shins are falling apart). The problem with Jenna's place though was that she lives on the 4th floor of a building, meaning that it collects heat like it's baseball cards, and I'm a heat generator to begin with. The point I'm trying to make is that I was hurting bad walking into the Horrorthon this year, worse than any previous year, but I persevered. But you guys don't wanna hear my bitching & moaning...

The whole fun of EF's Horrorthon is that you have NO IDEA what films that will be shown, and the list of clues that is given to you beforehand is barely any help, but this year they wanted to make things interesting for us: a chance to win a Blu-ray player to whomever in the crowd was able to guess the most movies correctly. Let it be known right now that I only got one movie right, which I'll go over in my review.

So after a few announcements and a full-on lambasting from EF's own Dan Fraga, we start the festivities off at 12:15pm with 15 minutes of slasher movie trailers, which lead us into our first film(i'll give the clue, then what my guess was, then obviously the right answer):

12:30PM - Silly Slasher Sequel that is not quite as good as the original...

My guess: Child's Play 2 - We were really hoping for this one, but what we got was:

A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: The Dream Warriors

Ironically my 3rd favorite of the franchise, this was certainly a nice surprise as I had never seen it with a LIVE crowd before and let me tell you it makes all the difference. Kincade wa never funnier, Dr. Gordon was never dopier(and it was never so obvious that he was doing whatever Nancy asked of him because he wanted to fuck her bad) and this scene never seemed as stupid as it did this past weekend:

Yes Nancy... it's a door. Ugh...maybe you deserved to have John Saxon gut you like a fish.

2:00PM - Giant Monster Movie

As usual, my guess was "Godzilla's Revenge", but what we got was:

The Mighty Peking Man

I was hurting at this point, as I had not slept now for 23 hours, but I'm glad I stayed awake for this goofy gem. This BLATANT King Kong/Tarzan rip off was a bloody masterpiece! Fuck Woody Allen and Steven Spielberg, as they NEVER had a cheetah fighting a cobra in their so-called movies.

3:30PM Nifty, Creepy Horror Anthology

My best guess for this was Creepshow 2, but I don't think anyone refers to that film as "Nifty", so what we got was:

Tales From The Crypt 2(AKA The Vault Of Horror)

Sorry, folks, but this was the movie I napped during if I was to survive the rest of the marathon. I did catch the last half hour, though, as it featured a maniacally bearded Tom Baker killing people with his art.

5:15PM Campy Creature Feature Sequel that may be a little bit better than the original

I don't remember having a guess for this one, but it ended up being:

It Lives Again!

The sequel to the mutant-baby movie It's Alive, neither of which I had ever seen. This movie was fun enough but didn't have the crazy ending I was hoping for. These movies might benefit from a remake, but keep the babies animatronic, NOT CGI!

7:15PM - Zombie Movie

Ah, the ONE AND ONLY movie I guessed right:

Dawn of the Dead

Obviously the original; this print was the British cut if I'm not mistaken(and I probably am). This is just a good movie that any self respecting horrorphile loves, but I'm sure there are some "too cool for the room" pricks who say that this movie "isn't as good as people say it is".

9:30PM - Goofy, Gory Horror/Sci-Fi Exploitation Flick

My guess was the awesome Galaxy Of Terror, but what we got was:

Return of the Alien: Deadly Spawn(AKA The Deadly Spawn)

What a fantastic movie this ended up being. Just a silly, violent movie that needs to be seen with a full audience who will appreciate what ridiculous fun is to be had. Just look at this monster:

He's almost cuddly!

11:00PM - The movie that "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" wishes it could be

We were strongly hoping for Little Shop of Horrors, and a lot of others thought Repo: The Genetic Opera, but what we got was:

The Phantom of the Paradise

My brother was trying to get me to watch this movie for years, and for whatever reason I just never got around to seeing it. I'm glad I waited because seeing it for the 1st time on the big screen made all the difference. I'm pretty sure nobody I came with liked this movie as much as I did. This movie had fun songs, a great cast and a "hero" that looks like he fell out of the cartoon Battle of the Planets(G Force or Gatchaman) and had a voice that sounded like the torture droid from Jabba's Palace in Return of the Jedi. I'm surprised their has never been an action figure based on him.

12:30AM - Holy shit, the greatest, bloodiest Kung Fu movie of all time! I don't even know what else to say, I just...I mean...this movie is...holy fucking shit...

My friend Joe guessed Ichi The Killer and some guy near us was guessing Ricki-Oh or whatever it's called. I personally had no guess, but the movie was:

Five Element Ninjas

Yeah, I missed most of this one. I do not mind a subtitled film, but after 12 hours and closing in on 1AM, I just could not handle it at this time. Plus I may have been a little lit, so a walk was in order. I did come back in time to see a very nice "drawn & quartering".

2:15PM - Sleazy Slasher Movie Directed By A Genre Favorite

I had no guess here, for whatever reason, but it ended up being:

The Funhouse

This was a nice surprise, as I had never seen it and always wanted to. My only complaint here was the body count was way too low.

4:00AM - Tongue In Cheek Monster Movie Classic Directed By A Genre Favorite

No guesses, I was tired.

The Howling

Another nice surprise as I had never seen this film, either. E.T.'s mom battling werewolves? Dick Miller: occult store owner? Kinda crazy-ass ending? Awesome stuff.

5:30AM - Supernatural shocker that is so utterly ridiculous it must be seen to be believed, and even then you still probably won't believe this movie exists in our universe. Maybe the most inept movie Exhumed Films has ever screened.

Some goofballs in the audience were positive that this was going to be HAUSU, showing how little they know Exhumed Films. What we got was....wait for it:

Boardinghouse

What. The Fuck, Exhumed Films? Was there nothing more pleasant to be shown, like footage from Columbine or the Challenger explosion?

The opening to this film, which consisted of almost 5 minutes of LOUD beeping text, took years off our lives. This does not play like a straight forward, coherent movie, but instead is like your watching a collection of deleted scenes from an unfinished college film. The best you could scramble together after one viewing is that some creeper-looking dude inherits a house that MAY be possessed by a terrible special effect. The creeper dude proceeds to rent the house out to an infinite number of beautiful(for 1981) women, who seem to be haunted, tortured or murdered by someone or something. As the movie progresses you find out that creeper dude has mind powers and proceeds to move a bar of soap around while taking a bath in what could be the silliest thing I've ever seen in a movie not involving muppets.

From what I'm told this was the 1st "shot on video(shiteo)" horror movies to come out on VHS, and for some reason they felt it needed to be released in theaters, too. This movie will give cancer to you soul. Four stars!

7:15AM - Breakfast Break!

They served free cereal and showed a Mr. Magoo cartoon while I covered myself with de-lousing powder, called my mother and wept openly.

7:45AM - Influential Slasher Sequel That Many People Feel Surpasses The Original

Once again, hoped for Child's Play 2, but what we got was:

Friday the 13th Part 2

At this point I was contemplating suicide, what with the visions of Mr. Magoo killing women in a boarding house...I'm pretty sure that was the last movie I had watched at this point. Now a man with a bag on his head is scampering through the woods. I don't know what's real anymore.

9:15AM - "Animals Attack" Film With A Snazzy Sci-Fi Twist

We fucking HOPED TO MAGOO for Tremors, which would have been awesome, but what we got was:

Bug

No, not the one that came out like 2 years ago, you goose. This was William Castle's final film, about bugs(duh) that burned at the touch, and prolonged touching would result in you bursting into flames. Great movie, just hard to handle at 10 in the morning... Not the content of the movie but the screaming from the people towards the end was the worst I've ever heard. I think at the end the whole planet blew up. Or maybe that's what I saw in a dreary haze. And I think Mr. Magoo was in there somewhere.

10:45AM - Historically, the horrorthon has always ended with a zombie movie. I guess this counts...kind of.

Our guess? Evil Dead. But what we got, for the final movie, was:

The House By The Cemetery

The Lucio Fulci classic! Another nice surprise of a movie I had never seen before. Squeaky-voiced brat and his family are tortured by a super-zombie in their basement, at least that's what I was able to piece-meal together in my fogginess. This is not a movie I would've ended with, as I believe you need to go out with a bang(like Return of the Living Dead & Re-Animator from previous years), but this worked fine.

After it all ended, I went home and slept till 1AM, missing Dexter, Walking Dead and all of the Halloween festivities. Boo.

Thank you for another great year, Exhumed Films!

Exhumed Films Horrorthon: Survivor's Guide

2010-10-29T17:31:00.000-04:00

The hour is just about on us, as we are mere hours away from the 4th annual Exhumed Films Horrorthon, and I could not be more excited! I'd say only 50% of the people reading this will be going to this event, so I have put together a checklist of do's and don'ts to help yourself through this or any movie marathon:

1. The Early Bird Gets The Worm
Do you want to make sure you get the seats that you really want for the horrorthon? Then arriving late is not an option. The show starts at Noon, so arriving at 11:45AM is not the best plan of attack. Also if you are going with a large group of friends, getting there late will guarantee you will have to sit scattershot all over the theater, most likely next to some freak with broad shoulders and penchant for snoring while awake.

2. Dress Comfortably
Yes this year's Horrorthon will be falling on Halloween weekend, but that does not mean it's a good idea to come dressed in your Robot Monster costume. Best bet is to where loose sweatpants and a comfortable hoodie.
A personal note from me to the world: IF YOU COME TO THE HORRORTHON WITH A SPIKED MOHAWK AND SIT RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME I WILL PUNCH YOU IN THE BACK OF THE HEAD! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!

3. Bring A Pillow
After midnight it will start getting hard to watch the movies, especially because they will show some of the weirder films at this time. So, a soft place to rest your head is recommended(a pillow or the guy-next-to-you's man boob).

4. Have A Small Flashlight
Being in a darkened movie theater for 6 or more hours can do a real number on the eyes, especially someone like me who has mole eyes. Also I'm sure most of us will be bringing things with us(some kind of napsack) that will be kept at our feet, which is why I think it's a good idea to have a small pocket flashlight to know where your shit is. It also comes in handy when u have to get up and go to the bathroom, you can shine the light on the ground as not step on anyone's feet while you walk through the aisle.
But remember: KEEP THE LIGHT LOW AS NOT TO DISTURB THE OTHER MOVIE PATRONS!

5. Bring A Small Cooler Of Food
One of my main goals this year is to not miss any part of any movie, except for bathroom breaks. So this year I myself am bringing a small cooler with Cheerios and granola bars, a cuple of ham sandwitches, some 5 hour energies and some pop corn. I'll be all prepared so I won't have to leave to get food. This leads us right into...

6. Bring Beverages That You Don't Mind Drinking Warm
Warm soda sucks, so I am bring 2 half gallon Iced Teas from Wawa, which are still good at room temperature. I'll probably freeze them beforhand to make sure that they stay colder longer.

7. Bring Deodorant
This...is self explanatory.

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hat's all I can think of for right now. I sure hope this list helps those of you going this weekend or anyone going to any horror marathon around the country, either this weekend or anytime in the future.
My next post will be my post EF Horrorthon review and reactions. So please, everyone have a safe and happy Halloween, watch some good(or bad) horror movies this weekend and DO NOT miss The Walking Dead this Sunday night at 10PM on AMC! Stay Scared!
(ps- i am publishing this late and i do not have time to edit or spellcheck so forgive any dumb mistakes)

Exhumed Films Horrorthon Year 3: RAW FORCE

2010-10-27T06:26:00.000-04:00

It was October 23rd, 2009 and the 3rd annual Exhumed Films Horrorthon was upon us! I arrived at the International House around 10:30am to see a HUGE line of people waiting to get in already! Luckily I was able to secure my favorite seats, and was able to hold a few for my friends who were showing up later in the day(this year they will be arriving with me, as I will not miss any movies for people this year).
On to the list:

12:15PM - Beloved(by some!) horror/monster movie directed by a genre favorite - Creepshow

There isn't a horrorphile alive that doesn't adore this movie, and if their is I don't want to know them! Quite possibly has one of the oddest casts in horror movie history: Leslie Nielson. Ted Danson. Hal Holbrook. Ed Harris... All of them good actors not known for horror movies at all, which made them great casting choices.

2:30PM - Giant Monster Movie - Godzilla on Monster Island

The only thing I remember about this Godzilla flick is that it was unintentionally hilarious. Definitely better than Destroy All Monsters from the prior year.

4:15PM - Science Fiction/Horror Modern Classic - The Fly(1986)

This was a nice surprise for me, as I had never seen this David Cronenburg classic and the horrorthon was the perfect setting for it! Jeff Goldblum had never been better(except for maybe Death Wish) and Geena Davis was good casting as Goldblum's gay lover, Pete(she's a guy, right?). Best movie to watch Jeff puke all over people.

6:00PM - "Old school" gothic horror starring 2 genre favorites - The Oblong Box

I went out for dinner during this movie, so forgive my lacking anything to say about it, except that it starred Count Dooku.

8:00PM Slasher sequel that many people enjoy in spite of(or perhaps because of) it's utter stupidity - Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter

This one should've been titled Jason Vs. George McFly!

9:30PM - Definitely one of weirdest, most gratuitous, bat-shit craziest films of the evening, if not of all time - Raw Force

This movie delivered what it promised: bat-shit craziness! Ninja fighting! Naked women! Crazy commandos! Asian Hitler! Cannibal monks! Zombies! This is a great party movie! The crowd went nuts for this!

11:15PM - Stunning Giallo(italian horror) from a master of the genre - The Next Victim (A.K.A. The Strange Vice of Mrs. Wardh)

NOT the best movie to follow up Raw Force with... Kinda like your girlfriend offering foreplay AFTER you cum all over her. This movie did nothing for me, but maybe I need to see it again. I'm willing...

12:45AM - Sleazy, absurdist zombie movie guilty pleasure - City of the Living Dead(A.K.A. Nightmare City)

I remember this movie being loads of fun with an odd ending. The zombies had terrible make up, though. Looked like they had huge scabby heads. I need to see this again.

2:15AM: Verily! A sword & sandal epic unmatched in the annals of time - Hercules in the Haunted World

I remember NOTHING about this movie... Man I'm on a roll this year. I better do my best to stay more awake at this years horrorthon or GTFO! Another film starring Count Dooku.

3:45Am - Rarely screened thriller that is dark, brutal and generally unpleasant. Starring a genre favorite - Trauma(A.K.A. House on Straw Hill)

Zzzzzzzzz... What..was I snoring? Where am I? Is their a movie playing? Is that the credits? Why am I wet?

5:15AM - Ok, remember how insane movie #6 was? Or how you thought nothing could make less sense, or be more entertaining? Seriously, poke that guy sitting next to you and wake his ass up! He's not going to wanna miss this - Lady Terminator

This movie... this movie... how in the blue hell do you explain this movie? It's actually next to impossible. Yale has a whole course trying to figure out how to properly explain this movie to people. For me, the only way to describe it is "An Indonesian Terminator rip-off". The movie is loads of fun, especially with a good audience. I ended up showing it for my birthday last year.

7:30AM - Nifty, creepy and fun little horror movie starring no one you've ever heard of - The Children

What is with Exhumed Films obsession with showing movies about kids getting killed? God bless ya, EF! This gem has a bunch of diseased children burning adults alive with their bare hands. I seem to remember one adult running around cutting kids hands off with a katana blade. Four stars!

9:00AM - Enjoyable "animals attack" films starring just about every genre favorite ever - Piranha

Fantastic Joe Dante movie that shows off some early effects that he would later use in Gremlins. I heard the remake is also a ton of fun.

10:45AM - Wow, what a surprise, the horrorthon ends with yet another zombie flick. Oh Exhumed Films, you are so predictable... - Re-Animator

What a wonderful movie to end with! I am embarrassed to say I had never seen this before, but it makes seeing it on the big screen for the 1st time all the more special. Since then I've seen it two more times and I've come to the conclusion that it's the most perfect horror movie of all time. Yay or nay?

I'm pretty annoyed at myself that I missed at least 4 or 5 movies during this horrorthon, but I promise that I will not fall asleep at all this year! I'ma bringing 2 Eight Balls with me... Booya!

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I hope you enjoyed my over-views of the Exhumed Films Horrorthons, but I still have one more post to make on the subject: my own personal "survivors guide"for 24 hours of horror movies away from home. Look for that tomorrow.

Exhumed Films Horrorthon Year 2: 25 Hours!

2010-10-12T05:14:00.002-04:00

On November 1st, 2008, Exhumed Films was not only celebrating their 11th year exposing the best of sick-o cinema to the horror-philes of Philadelphia and the surrounding areas, but getting ready to put on their 2nd annual horror movie marathon(the horrorthon), only this year with a twist: the festivities were to fall on the weekend where the clocks go back a full hour, thus making the horrorthon a full hour longer! To make things even better was the fact that I was going to actually attend this year, so I was really excited!
Now I had already written a blog back in '08 on my old Myspace page(http://blogs.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendId=48088820&blogId=448467854), which was used in a City Paper article last year(yeah professional published author!), so once again this is just a general recap of the clues given and the movies shown. Also added in are my reactions to each film. Lucky you.

12:15PM - Living-Dead-Getting-Revenge Flick - The Fog

I had never sen this one before and have not watched it since, but I do remember really liking it. Time to give it another viewing, maybe side-by-side with the Tom Welling remake.

2:15PM - One of the greatest giant monster movies of all time. - Destroy All Monsters

I was never a big Godzilla fan, and this movie is a big reason why. Now while I do enjoy the whole cheesiness of the films, and who doesn't love rubber monsters beating the snot out of each other, but the 1st hour of this movie reeeaaally drags on. The final monster battle royal is awesome, but best viewed at home so you can fast forward.

3:45PM - Unique, rarely seen horror oddity - Wicked, Wicked

Now this was one of the best films shown during the horrorthon! A completely off-the-wall "slasher film" that was shown in DUO-VISION, which was simply 2 screens, side by side, showing 2 things going on at the same time in the movie. One was the killers POV, the other was he victims(it's not as annoying as it sounds). I absolutely loved this movie and have been dying to find a bootleg. Movies like this is the reason to go to the horrorthon!

5:35PM - "Old School" Science Fiction Classic - The Incredible Shrinking Man

I'm glad they showed this, because I would have never watched it on my own. This film was way ahead of it's time for the 50's, with effects that still looks good today.

6:45PM - Dinner Break - They showed a horror movie documentary called The Horror Of It All.

7:55PM - Horror sequel that is not as good as the original, but is still pretty damn entertaining in it's own right - Phantasm 2

Although it's obviously a big-budgeted, action oriented, major studio sequel to a low budget, atmospheric, independent horror tale, as the hint states, it's still damn entertaining.

9:45PM - Slasher Classic - A Nightmare on Elm Street

This movie is a beloved classic, so it really needs no extra notes from me.

11:45PM - Comedy/Monster Movie Favorite - Fright Night

As the movie opened with the "Columbia Pictures" logo, I literally became overjoyed thinking it was going to be Ghostbusters...I was not disappointed to be wrong, though.

1:30AM - Dan Fraga's favorite Halloween film of all time. - Dead & Buried

Not knowing who Dan Fraga was at the time(one of the Exhumed Films guys), guessing this movie was impossible. This is a dark, foreboding movie(from the savage-beating opening to the climactic ending) has since become one of my favorites of all time. A must see during the Halloween season!

2:00Am - Clocks are turned back a full hour

2:20PM - Sleazy/bizarre slasher guilty pleasure - The Boogey Man

I found this to be a sleazy masterpiece, with some of the craziest killings I've ever seen in a horror film! Totally worth watching while your "goonin' face".

4:00AM - I'm kind of at a loss on how to describe this film... Um... It's a horror film - Island of the Damned

This movie was balls-to-the-wall insane/awesome! Starts slow but perfectly builds to a fantastic ending. Also features one of my all-time favorite movie deaths! Another movie I never would have seen if not for the horrorthon!

5:30AM - Ridiculously goofy monster movie guilty pleasure - EQUINOX

I did not like this movie upon my 1st viewing, but I've since seen it again and enjoyed much more the 2nd go round.

7:00AM - Breakfast time! - Exhumed Films provided everyone with free cereal as they showed The Superfriends meet Frankenstein, which was just awful. I almost left when I thought they were going to show a 2nd one.

7:20AM - Horror sequel that is not as good as the original, but is still pretty damn entertaining in it's own right - The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2

If you do not love this movie, you are not a horror fan and you're no friend of mine.

9:00AM - Campy monster movie cult classic - The Food of the Gods

Oof...this movie was hard to sit through, with it being the 13th out of 14 films. The special effects were pretty good for this being a Bert I. Gordon film, but being raised a MSTIE made me not trust this movie.

10:45AM - Zombies. Gotta bring it home with zombies - The Return of the Living Dead

Unarguably the best zombie movie ever made. Think about how scary this movie is: the zombies CAN NOT BE KILLED! If you burn them, all fucking hell breaks loose! Fantastic punk rock soundtrack rounds out how awesome this movie really is. I truly feel that this is a horror film that non-horror fans can truly enjoy. Rest In Peace Danny O'Bannon!

Part 3 tomorrow! Stay scared!

Exhumed Films Horrorthon Year One: 2007

2010-10-10T03:50:00.004-04:00

As we are now just under 3 weeks away from the 4th annual Exhumed Films Horrorthon, I figured I'd write up a few blogs chronicling the past years and give my incite on how to survive an arduous tasks of 24 hours straight of 35mm horror films.
In 2007, Exhumed Films celebrated their 10 year anniversary, and to mark this occasion they started what would become a major Philly/Halloween tradition in the Horrorthon. Noon Saturday till noon Sunday, the audience is bombarded with at least 14 back to back horror(or genre related) films, all the while never knowing what films they were going to see until it's actually started. The EF crew are not merciless, as they give us a list of vague clues to hint us in on what we are going to see(I've never been right once thus far).
Now I actually missed the 2007 Horrorthon, but when I heard the movies they had shown, I was a little disappointed by how many mainstream films they ended up showing, as opposed to more obscure ones that I wanted to see. I would later learn in the years following that you want a good mix of the mainstream and the obscure, to keep things interesting. It's like listening to a good radio station; you wanna hear new music, but also have some well known favorites to keep you interested.
Since I was not at this horrorthon, I have no real experience to share with you, so I'll just go over the list of what they did play, which I located on another blog, along with the "clues":

12:15PM - Slasher Classic - "Halloween"(1978)

2:00PM - Giant Monster Movie - "Godzilla Vs. Mechagodzilla

3:45PM - Creepy, beloved Made For Television Movie - "Don't Be Afraid Of The Dark"

5:15PM - Gruesome favorite that doesn't fall into any particular genre - "Hellraiser"

7:45PM "sort-of-living-dead-but-not-exactly" classic - "Phantasm"

9:30PM - Sleazy/absurdist/infamous slasher guilty pleasure - "Pieces"

11:15PM - Comedy/monster movie favorite - "An American Werewolf In London"

12:45AM - Vampire Cult Classic - "Blacula"

2:30AM - Sleazy/absurdist/infamous zombie guilty pleasure - "Burial Ground"

4:00AM - A real obscurity that you wont think is a horror movie until it's final moments - "Teenage Mother"

5:15AM - Ridiculously goofy/trashy monster movie guilty pleasure - "Dracula Vs. Frankenstein"

7:15AM - "sort-of-living-dead-but-not-exactly" cult classic - "Demons"

8:45AM Campy monster movie cult classic - "Alligator"

10:15AM - Zombie movie that still makes me sick everytime I see it - "The Gates of Hell

Between most of the movies are all kinds of short films and old trailers which really pads things out nicely.
Look for Part 2 of this blog tomorrow.

Late Monstermaina 15 post and more:

2010-08-30T15:35:00.000-04:00

Ok, so I'm a week and a day late for my post about Monstermania, but to be honest, there was really nothing to "report". It's not like MM is the San Diego Comic Con, where horror professionals make huge horror-related announcements on upcoming movies, tv, video games and comic books. No, MM is basically about meeting A level(Robert England, John Carpenter, Bruce Campbell), B level(Rowdy Roddy piper, Zach Galligan, Sid Haig) and Z level celebrities(Dick Warlock, Ari Lehman, Alex Vincent), getting them to sign our posters, DVD's and various body parts.
With that being said, this past MM was severely underwhelming to say the least. The only person I was interested in meeting was the above mentioned Mr. Carpenter, whom I had sign my original Big Trouble in Little China poster and my They Live reprint poster with Roddy Piper's & Keith David's signatures already on it! My brother and I recently learned that Carpenter is a huge basketball fan, so we brought him one of our mother's basketball prints that she drew back in the 70's. He was very appreciative and thought they were gorgeous. After that was said and done, it was nothing but partying and DVD buying for the rest of the weekend. So as you can see, nothing to really "report".
The next Monstermania has been scheduled for March 11th-13th 2011; hotel room to be booked shortly.
~

My last blog post I reported on the much anticipated Grindhouse Blu-ray, but did not post the release date, which is Oct 5th. My apologies for being an asshole.
~
In two days it will be September 1st, and you know what that means? Nothing for you, but for me, it will start my arduous task of watching and reviewing at least one horror movie a night till Halloween. That's 61 nights of movie(of something horror/monster/grindhouse-y) watching till my eyes bleed! And I'll be doing it all for you, my dozen or so readers! This, of course, will lead us directly into...
~

The 2010 Exhumed Films 24 Hour Horror Movie Marathon! Starting at Noon on Saturday October 30th, a bombardment of 14 non-stop horror films will be thrown at a small crowd of 300+, all of which are completely unknown to the blood-craving audience, who're given a list of clues to the craziness they are about to be subjected to!
In the coming weeks I will be doing several posts on the horrorthons of the past, and also posting a handy "tip guide" to those who are going this year(or any others across the country that have sprung up recently).
I'll make this blog post interesting by throwing the very 1st clue from the very 1st horrorthon back in 2007, see if you can guess(it's a little vague, but the answer is more obvious than you think):
Film #1 Slasher Classic

Complete GRINDHOUSE FINALLY On Home Video

2010-08-10T12:41:00.000-04:00

Folks who know me know that I am not a huge fan of the whole "Blu-ray" movement and the way it's being forced down our throats by the studios, and only a few years after "standard" DVD had been released. As far as I'm concered, picture quality is based on the kind of TV you own, not the DVD player.
Lately though, Blu-ray releases have been getting my attention with great bonus features(don't think I haven't noticed the lack of bonus's on standard, assholes).
One release I've been anxiously waiting for is the Kill Bill: Whole Bloody Affair! WTF TARRANTINO! GET OFF YOUR LOVE BOAT WITH ELI ROTH AND RELEASE THIS GODDAMN MOVIE!

*breathes into paper bag*

Ok... GRINDHOUSE finally gets released as it was released in theaters back in 2007! Here's the list of what's included as well as box art:

Disc 1 - Theatrical Exhibition:

* Grindhouse Feature (Planet Terror)

* Intermission Cards

* Don't Trailer

* Werewolf Women of the S.S Trailer

* Thanksgiving Trailer

* Grindhouse Feature (Death Proof)

Disc 2

Planet Terror

* Robert Rodriguez's 10-Minute Film School

* The Badass Babes of Planet Terror

* The Guys of Planet Terror

* Casting Rebel

* Sickos, Bullets, And Explosions: The Stunts of Planet Terror

* The Friend, The Doctor, and the Real Estate Agent

* Planet Terror Poster Gallery

Death Proof

* Stunts On Wheels: The Legendary Drivers of Death Proof

* Quentin's Greatest Collaborator: Editor Sally Menke

* The Guys of Death Proof

* Kurt Russell as Stuntman Mike

* Finding Quentin's Gals

* The Uncut Version of "Baby, It's You" performed by Mary Elizabeth Winstead

* Introducing Zoe Bell

* Double Dare Trailer

* Death Proof Extended Music

* Death Proof Poster Gallery

Blu-Ray exclusive bonus features:

* Robert Rodriguez's 10-Minute Cooking School

* The Makeup Effects of Planet Terror

* The Hot Rods of Death Proof

* From Texas to Tennessee: The Production Design of Death Proof

* Trailers

* Extended Werewolf Women of The SS Trailer

* View Extended Cut Of Werewolf Women of the SS Trailer with Commentary by Director Rob Zombie

* The Making Of Werewolf Women of the SS Trailer

* Extended Don't Trailer

* View Extended Cut Of Don't Trailer with Commentary by Director Edgar Wright

* The Making of Don't Trailer

* Don't Storyboard/Trailer Comparison

* View Don't Storyboard/Trailer Comparison with Commentary by Director Edgar Wright

* Don't Storyboards Still Gallery

* Don't Poster

* The Making of Thanksgiving Trailer

* New York Times Talk with Quention Tarantino and Lynn Hirschberg at Comic Con 2006 Featuring the Directors and Cast of Grindhouse

* Grindhouse Trailer Contest Winner Hobo With A Shotgun

Add this to the upcoming awesome ALIEN boxset coming out, my anti-blu-ray days may be numbered.

(Credit to Shock Till You Drop for the info and picture)

Welcome to my nightmare!

2010-08-09T02:44:00.000-04:00

Name: Thomas A.K.
Age: 32(physically) 25(mentally)

I have been a fan of everything horror going back as far as I can remember. When I was a kid, I would sit on the edge of my folks bed, watching edited-for-television House or A Nightmare on Elm Street, making sure to keep my parents bedroom door wide open as so I could run out if the film got to be "too much" for me. Yes, I was a little wuss.
My love for the genre(mostly Elm Street at the time) got to be so bad as a kid that my folks banned me from watching ANYTHING scary, and not because I was scared at all. Nope, my teachers told my folks that it was hurting my studies. Horror cock-blocking asshole teachers! All this meant was that I was a horror-phile in the making.
Cut to 2 decades later...and I decided to start a blog about horror. Why? I have no idea. This is just my intro blog to...introduce me to all having an interest in whatever the hell it is I have to say on the subject.
My name's Tom. I like cats and nachos. Let's be horror friends!