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Disaster Films Vs. Horror Films

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EDITORIAL

Apocalypse TV streaming service is giving disaster film lovers everything they need to destroy the world and they are tying it in with the horror market.  But it got me to thinking about the disaster film genre and if it does indeed belong under horror.

There’s that age-old debate about horror and science fiction and whether they are exclusive of one another. Is Alien a horror film, a sci-fi film or a sci-fi film with horror elements, or vice-versa?

To me, Alien is a horror film that happens to take place in space, but that’s just my opinion. Anyone else who has their own can cast their comments below.

But disaster films are completely different. I have always thought of them as being in a class by themselves, but then what about World War Z and Dawn of the Dead?

These films don’t destroy the world with meteors or extreme weather, they do it with zombies, classic horror monsters.

Then we are back to the Alien question: if a disaster film contains zombies or other apocalyptic monsters are the films then classified as horror?

Before you ask, why does it have to be classified as anything but a movie? Keep in mind every movie ever made has been filed under something.

War of the Worlds is another example. Hostile aliens destroy cities all over the world, hunting down humans, evaporating them with death rays.

It sounds like horror to me.

I know a lot of you will say, “Horror is subjective, everyone has their own definition of it.” And that is true, we have discussed this before.

But consider iHorror covering San Andreas or Geostorm, does that bruise the feelings of the hardcore fans, the purists who don’t think these films are horror movies at all? And yes, we care what you think.

Nicolás López and Eli Roth’s experiment Aftershock was a crossover between the genres.  On the one hand, a devastating tragedy destroyed a city, but that released a horde of Purge-type criminals who attack our heroes in gruesome and bloody ways. Not to mention the collateral damage of falling concrete, glass, etc.

So to that end, can we classify Roth’s film as horror, or keep it strictly a disaster?

Listen, I don’t think any of us want to extend the labels of the genre to an nth degree: Shaun of the Dead is a horror/comedy/disaster/action/romance.

We want our genre classes singular; otherwise, they wouldn’t exist in the first place.

The world could probably use fewer labels, but in entertainment, they are a part of the initial pitch. Even IMDb needs to organize their database.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GvLjD72Nbmk

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’28 Years Later’ Trilogy Taking Shape With Serious Star Power

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28 years later

Danny Boyle is revisiting his 28 Days Later universe with three new films. He will direct the first, 28 Years Later, with two more to follow. Deadline is reporting that sources say Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, and Ralph Fiennes have been cast for the first entry, a sequel to the original. Details are being kept under wraps so we don’t know how or if the first original sequel 28 Weeks Later fits into the project.

Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Ralph Fiennes

Boyle will direct the first movie but it’s unclear which role he will take on in the subsequent films. What is known is Candyman (2021) director Nia DaCosta is scheduled to direct the second film in this trilogy and that the third will be filmed immediately afterward. Whether DaCosta will direct both is still unclear.

Alex Garland is writing the scripts. Garland is having a successful time at the box office right now. He wrote and directed the current action/thriller Civil War which was just knocked out of the theatrical top spot by Radio Silence’s Abigail.

There is no word yet on when, or where, 28 Years Later will start production.

28 Days Later

The original film followed Jim (Cillian Murphy) who wakes from a coma to find that London is currently dealing with a zombie outbreak.

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Watch ‘The Burning’ At The Location Where It Was Filmed

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Fangoria is reporting that fans of the 1981 slasher The Burning will be able to have a screening of the film at the location where it was filmed. The movie is set at Camp Blackfoot which is actually the Stonehaven Nature Preserve in Ransomville, New York.

This ticketed event will take place on August 3. Guests will be able to take a tour of the grounds as well as enjoy some campfire snacks along with the screening of The Burning.

The Burning

The film came out in the early ’80s when teen slashers were being churned out in magnum force. Thanks to Sean S. Cunningham’s Friday the 13th, filmmakers wanted to get in on the low-budget, high-profit movie market and a casket load of these types of films were produced, some better than others.

The Burning is one of the good ones, mostly because of the special effects from Tom Savini who had just come off of his groundbreaking work on Dawn of the Dead and Friday the 13th. He declined to do the sequel because of its illogical premise and instead signed on to do this movie. Also, a young Jason Alexander who would later go on to play George in Seinfeld is a featured player.

Because of its practical gore, The Burning had to be heavily edited before it received an R-rating. The MPAA was under the thumb of protest groups and political bigwigs to censor violent films at the time because slashers were just so graphic and detailed in their gore.

Tickets are $50, and if you want a special t-shirt, that will cost you another $25, You can get all the information by visiting the On Set Cinema webpage.

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‘Longlegs’ Creepy “Part 2” Teaser Appears on Instagram

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Longlegs

Neon Films released an Insta-teaser for their horror film Longlegs today. Titled Dirty: Part 2, the clip only furthers the mystery of what we are in for when this movie is finally released on July 12.

The official logline is: FBI Agent Lee Harker is assigned to an unsolved serial killer case that takes unexpected turns, revealing evidence of the occult. Harker discovers a personal connection to the killer and must stop him before he strikes again.

Directed by former actor Oz Perkins who also gave us The Blackcoat’s Daughter and Gretel & Hansel, Longlegs is already creating buzz with its moody images and cryptic hints. The film is rated R for bloody violence, and disturbing images.

Longlegs stars Nicolas Cage, Maika Monroe, and Alicia Witt.

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