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Now Streaming: ‘The Blackcoat’s Daughter’ is Atmospheric and Haunting

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By now, many horror aficionados have witnessed and basked in the quiet, eerie glory of Oz Perkin’s I am the Pretty Thing that Lives in the House. The film, released straight-to-Netflix last year, took just about everybody by surprise; there was seemingly no promotion for the film whatsoever. One day, it was just there. It was a true Halloween treat if I’ve ever seen one, and I became an immediate fan of Perkins.

What many don’t know, however, is that Pretty Thing is actually the director’s second film. His first, The Blackcoat’s Daughter, wrapped up filming in 2015. It took over a year until it got US distribution, and was finally shown in the States this February. Two years after the film’s completion, I’ve finally seen The Blackcoat’s Daughter – and what I’ve seen is nothing short of amazing.

IMDb.com

The film, starring Emma Roberts, follows two girls left alone in a private school. At the same time, a mysterious girl (Roberts) is on a mission to get to the school for reasons unknown. To say any more of the plot would be spoiling it, as it is a film that holds many surprises. What I can say, however, is it deals with numerous cliches of the horror genre and turns them on their heads. This is mainly a movie about possession. Make no mistake, however; another clone of The Exorcist this is not.

Much like Pretty Thing, The Blackcoat’s Daughter is drenched in atmosphere. Yet there is a heavy amount of contrast between the two films. Whereas Pretty Thing is ethereal and hauntingly beautiful, The Blackcoat’s Daughter is drowning in blackness and dread. Roberts’ performance here is stellar. Her character is enigmatic and intriguing, and though many may be turned off by her presence due to a dislike of her previous work in Scream Queens and American Horror Story, to think the actress’ inclusion of the film would hamper the effect is nothing short of foolish. Her performance in Perkins’ film proves that she has the chops to take on much more than fun and campy television.

Kiernan Shipka and Lucy Boynton both give great performances as well as the two girls left in their desolate Catholic school, but their story becomes all the more compelling given the factor of Roberts’ parallel story. Why does she want to get to the school so bad? What connection, if any, does she have with these girls? And will she ever even make it to the school, or will something happen to her beforehand?

IMDb.com

Rest assured, these questions will be answered by the end of the film. I can tell you this much, however; it’s most definitely not what you’d expect. I was certainly taken off-guard by the conclusion. It ends on a powerful and thought-provoking note – The Blackcoat’s Daughter is in no rush to spell things out for you. What this movie means and what actually occurred will take a small amount of analyzation. It’s nothing as vague as something from the mind of David Lynch, but it is incredibly smart in its effort to “show, don’t tell” nonetheless.

The Blackcoat’s Daughter is now streaming on Amazon Prime. It is highly recommended. Ambient, dark, and spooky, this isn’t a film for everyone. Yet if you give it a chance, you might walk away satisfied.

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Brad Dourif Says He’s Retiring Except For One Important Role

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Brad Dourif has been doing movies for nearly 50 years. Now it seems he is walking away from the industry at 74 to enjoy his golden years. Except, there is a caveat.

Recently, digital entertainment publication JoBlo’s Tyler Nichols talked to some of the Chucky television series cast members. During the interview, Dourif made an announcement.

“Dourif said that he’s retired from acting,” says Nichols. “The only reason he came back for the show was because of his daughter Fiona and he considers Chucky creator Don Mancini to be family. But for non-Chucky stuff, he considers himself retired.”

Dourif has voiced the possessed doll since 1988 (minus the 2019 reboot). The original movie “Child’s Play” has become such a cult classic it’s at the top of some people’s best chillers of all time. Chucky himself is ingrained in pop culture history much like Frankenstein or Jason Voorhees.

While Dourif may be known for his famous voiceover, he is also an Oscar-nominated actor for his part in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. Another famous horror role is The Gemini Killer in William Peter Blatty’s Exorcist III. And who can forget Betazoid Lon Suder in Star Trek: Voyager?

The good news is that Don Mancini is already pitching a concept for season four of Chucky which might also include a feature-length movie with a series tie-in. So, Although Dourif says he is retiring from the industry, ironically he is Chucky’s friend till the end.

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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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Movies

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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