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5 Writers Inspired by Lovecraft’s Influence Over Horror – iHorror

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Lovecraft’s creativity stretches well beyond his humble grave and permeates our culture. Regardless of any individual’s specific taste in the genre – and whether they like or dislike his ingenious tales of cosmic despair – none can deny Lovecraft’s predominant influence over horror as we know it today.

Lovecraft, like Poe before him, paved a road of terror for other writers to soon follow thereafter.

The Road of Dark Delights

That path is a dangerous one, make no mistake about it. It’s an unbeaten lane that leads writers straight into the dark of the woods where men distort their natural shapes into grotesque abominations. It is a gloom where fathers abandon their own children to the mercy of cannibal hags, and where the shadows themselves walk in the malice of Satan’s own will. Every house we encounter along this path is haunted – or worse – possessed by hideous strengths.

image courtesy of artist Michael Whelan

Be wary who you encounter along this road. The gaunt widow who passes you by on her bike will later be heard cackling from the sky aloft her broom. The trees creak and moan with ghostly woe, and once Night falls, if you see a light glowing from the grove, beware! The goat-headed beast will surely be there dancing among a naked orgy of his accursed children.

The Path of Horror is a wicked (and incredible) one! It draws in writers, then locks in readers. This road is littered with howling skulls beneath a chill fog, but fret not – you will not be alone for long.

A Man in Black who walks between the stalks may be your guide into a waking plague. Perhaps a horseman in search for his head will be seen in the gossamer distance. Or maybe a carriage will carry you as close to Castle Dracula as it dares to go.

Yes, the nightmare visions of those who forged a way through the realm of fear are numerous, and we connect with them so well. Uncertainty, anxiety, and dread are all part of our lives, unfortunately, and none are exempt from turmoil.

Writers are simply able to take our uncertainties and give them a voice. One that allows the reader to vent their own anxieties through the safety of the written word, and to a minor degree, experience the haunted world of doom, death, and despair around them.

Once finished, the reader can close the book and get on with living life on this beautiful planet. It does no one any good dwelling on the “what ifs” in life, and the horror writer simply gives a much-needed voice to the unknown fears that are out there – sealing them away cover to cover.

It’s a voice that we all can face and overcome.

Continue to the next page for more of Lovecraft’s influence on horror.

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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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Woman Brings Corpse Into Bank To Sign Loan Papers

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Warning: This is a disturbing story.

You have to be pretty desperate for money to do what this Brazilian woman did at the bank to get a loan. She wheeled in a fresh corpse to endorse the contract and she seemingly thought the bank employees wouldn’t notice. They did.

This weird and disturbing story comes via ScreenGeek an entertainment digital publication. They write that a woman identified as Erika de Souza Vieira Nunes pushed a man she identified as her uncle into the bank pleading with him to sign loan papers for $3,400. 

If you’re squeamish or easily triggered, be aware that the video captured of the situation is disturbing. 

Latin America’s largest commercial network, TV Globo, reported on the crime, and according to ScreenGeek this is what Nunes says in Portuguese during the attempted transaction. 

“Uncle, are you paying attention? You must sign [the loan contract]. If you don’t sign, there’s no way, as I cannot sign on your behalf!”

She then adds: “Sign so you can spare me further headaches; I can’t bear it any longer.” 

At first we thought this might be a hoax, but according to Brazilian police, the uncle, 68-year-old Paulo Roberto Braga had passed away earlier that day.

 “She attempted to feign his signature for the loan. He entered the bank already deceased,” Police Chief Fábio Luiz said in an interview with TV Globo. “Our priority is to continue investigating to identify other family members and gather more information regarding this loan.”

If convicted Nunes could be facing jail time on charges of fraud, embezzlement, and desecration of a corpse.

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