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10 Things I’ve Learned from Bruce Campbell

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Today is the birthday of a god among men.  A true legend, really.  His name is Bruce Campbell, and if you don’t know it you should!  He is a veteran of horror, science fiction, and television for decades now.  In fact, many of us fine writers here at iHorror have been raised on his cinematography, and it has shaped us into the fine human beings we are today.  *snicker*

Saying that, there have been many lessons Mr. Campbell has taught me through his roles and personal appearances over the years, and what better opportunity to share those with you than now?

  1. You can never be too confident

 
Bruce has exhibited in many of his films, as well at many of his panels, you can’t be too confident.  Some may say he’s being cocky, but cocky, confident, where’s the line?  It’s sort of a grey area, right?  If he wasn’t so cocky we wouldn’t love him as much as we do.

  1. Charm gets you everywhere


Bruce knows how to swoon.  Whether it’s as Jack in Jack of all trades, Brisco in Brisco County Jr., or Ash in Ash vs Evil Dead (wow… his character’s names are in a lot of his work!) the man knows how to swoon.  This is what made him a perfect candidate for his short lived Old Spice commercials.  Never seen it?  Take a gander bellow!

 

  1. If you want to make it in Hollywood, sometimes you have to get beaten up by the director.


If you know anything about Evil Dead director Sam Raimi and Bruce Campbell’s relationship, you know Raimi put him through hell on the movie sets.  He would beat him with tree branches and even make Bruce beat himself up when his hand gets possessed.  Raimi is quite the sadist behind the camera, and Bruce is a glutton for punishment for continuing to work with him for so many years.  I guess that’s the price you pay for friendship.

 

  1. It’s ok to “go back to the well.”


While some people frown upon sequels and reboots, the deadite fans have clamored for more Ash by the one and only Bruce Campbell.  No substitutes will do.  After a 22 year hiatus between Army of Darkness and Ash vs Evil Dead, Bruce finally picked up the chainsaw and redeemed his role in the new television series and fans couldn’t be happier.  It has been received well from horror aficionados and critics alike, which shows sometimes it’s ok to go back to the well for inspiration and continuation of the same story.

 

  1. Find what you love and make it work for you!

Sam Raimi and Bruce have been friends since high school, and when they discussed making movies together they knew they had to do a small budget preview of what they were capable of to bring to investors.  Cue Within the Woods, a short horror film written, directed, and produced by Raimi and starring Campbell and Ellen Sandweiss (Cheryl Williams from Evil Dead.)  For $1600 the low budget movie was made and even though its success was a slow burn it eventually caught the eye of investors and helped fund Evil Dead.

 

  1. Keep your options open.

 

Bruce didn’t just stick to television and movies once he hit the big time, he has also done voice work for cartoons and video games.  He’s even organized his own Bruce Campbell film festival!

 

  1. Take chances.

This ties into #5, but if those two high school turned Western Michigan University students didn’t take the chances they did, nobody would know their names today.  Beginning with low budget filmmaking and special effects but with a butt load of determination, passion, and heart lead both of these men into the careers they have today.

 

  1. Never forget where you came from.


By staying true to his beginnings, continuing to work with his co-actors and crew he began with, as well as respecting his fans (in his own twisted way) Bruce has always shown appreciation and gratitude, never forgetting his humble beginnings in Royal Oak, Michigan.

  1. Appreciate your fans.Bruce is a horror convention legend! He has appeared at conventions coast to coast, and you never know what he is going to say or do.  His witty and sarcastic demeanor have fans begging for more.  I’ve seen people be insulted (in good jest) from this guy and you would have thought by their reaction that they were blessed by the Pope!
  2. Ok, maybe Nathan Fillion isn’t your “typical fan” but I couldn’t pass up this pic.

 

  1. Never be afraid to be yourself.

If you’ve seen Bruce at a convention you know he is pure, raw, unforgiving Bruce.  He doesn’t make excuses and he doesn’t do apologies.  He will tell you exactly like it is.  But that’s part of what endears us to him.  He probably wonders why we come back for his verbal beatings time and time again, but maybe because it’s his brutal honesty and jokes.  For others it’s his charm and good looks, ladies and gents alike.  But it all boils down to the fact there is no one else like him in the industry, and as long as he keeps making movies and television shows, writing, books, and appearing at conventions, we’ll continue to support him.

 

Read more about your favorite groovy actor here in appearances you may have forgotten he made!

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Editorial

7 Great ‘Scream’ Fan Films & Shorts Worth a Watch

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The Scream franchise is such an iconic series, that many budding filmmakers take inspiration from it and make their own sequels or, at least, build upon the original universe created by screenwriter Kevin Williamson. YouTube is the perfect medium to showcase these talents (and budgets) with fan-made homages with their own personal twists.

The great thing about Ghostface is that he can appear anywhere, in any town, he just needs the signature mask, knife, and unhinged motive. Thanks to Fair Use laws it’s possible to expand upon Wes Craven’s creation by simply getting a group of young adults together and killing them off one by one. Oh, and don’t forget the twist. You’ll notice that Roger Jackson’s famous Ghostface voice is uncanny valley, but you get the gist.

We have gathered five fan films/shorts related to Scream that we thought were pretty good. Although they can’t possibly match the beats of a $33 million blockbuster, they get by on what they have. But who needs money? If you’re talented and motivated anything is possible as proven by these filmmakers who are well on their way to the big leagues.

Take a look at the below films and let us know what you think. And while you’re at it, leave these young filmmakers a thumbs up, or leave them a comment to encourage them to create more films. Besides, where else are you going to see Ghostface vs. a Katana all set to a hip-hop soundtrack?

Scream Live (2023)

Scream Live

Ghostface (2021)

Ghostface

Ghost Face (2023)

Ghost Face

Don’t Scream (2022)

Don’t Scream

Scream: A Fan Film (2023)

Scream: A Fan Film

The Scream (2023)

The Scream

A Scream Fan Film (2023)

A Scream Fan Film
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Another Creepy Spider Movie Hits Shudder This Month

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Good spider films are a theme this year. First, we had Sting and then there was Infested. The former is still in theaters and the latter is coming to Shudder starting April 26.

Infested has been getting some good reviews. People are saying that it’s not only a great creature feature but also a social commentary on racism in France.

According to IMDb: Writer/director Sébastien Vanicek was looking for ideas around the discrimination faced by black and Arab-looking people in France, and that led him to spiders, which are rarely welcome in homes; whenever they’re spotted, they’re swatted. As everyone in the story (people and spiders) is treated like vermin by society, the title came to him naturally.

Shudder has become the gold standard for streaming horror content. Since 2016, the service has been offering fans an expansive library of genre movies. in 2017, they began to stream exclusive content.

Since then Shudder has become a powerhouse in the film festival circuit, buying distribution rights to movies, or just producing some of their own. Just like Netflix, they give a film a short theatrical run before adding it to their library exclusively for subscribers.

Late Night With the Devil is a great example. It was released theatrically on March 22 and will begin streaming on the platform starting April 19.

While not getting the same buzz as Late Night, Infested is a festival favorite and many have said if you suffer from arachnophobia, you might want to take heed before watching it.

Infested

According to the synopsis, our main character, Kalib is turning 30 and dealing with some family issues. “He’s fighting with his sister over an inheritance and has cut ties with his best friend. Fascinated by exotic animals, he finds a venomous spider in a shop and brings it back to his apartment. It only takes a moment for the spider to escape and reproduce, turning the whole building into a dreadful web trap. The only option for Kaleb and his friends is to find a way out and survive.”

The film will be available to watch on Shudder starting April 26.

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Part Concert, Part Horror Movie M. Night Shyamalan’s ‘Trap’ Trailer Released

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In true Shyamalan form, he sets his film Trap inside a social situation where we aren’t sure what is going on. Hopefully, there is a twist at the end. Furthermore, we hope it’s better than the one in his divisive 2021 movie Old.

The trailer seemingly gives away a lot, but, as in the past, you can’t rely on his trailers because they are often red herrings and you are being gaslit to think a certain way. For instance, his movie Knock at the Cabin was completely different than what the trailer implied and if you hadn’t read the book on which the film is based it was still like going in blind.

The plot for Trap is being dubbed an “experience” and we aren’t quite sure what that means. If we were to guess based on the trailer, it’s a concert movie wrapped around a horror mystery. There are original songs performed by Saleka, who plays Lady Raven, a kind of Taylor Swift/Lady Gaga hybrid. They have even set up a Lady Raven website to further the illusion.

Here is the fresh trailer:

According to the synopsis, a father takes his daughter to one of Lady Raven’s jam-packed concerts, “where they realize they’re at the center of a dark and sinister event.”

Written and directed by M. Night Shyamalan, Trap stars Josh Hartnett, Ariel Donoghue, Saleka Shyamalan, Hayley Mills and Allison Pill. The film is produced by Ashwin Rajan, Marc Bienstock and M. Night Shyamalan. The executive producer is Steven Schneider.

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