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Revisiting Halloween 3: Why It Actually Doesn’t Suck

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halloween 3 subjectsI love Halloween, and I love Halloween. But I have a confession to make. Despite being a bona fide horror fan, I have not seen all of the Halloween films. I had seen most of them, but not all, and especially not Halloween III: Season Of The Witch, because that one doesn’t even have Michael Myers, so, I mean, come on! And from what I had heard growing up, it was just a lame movie about some deadly masks. How silly, right?

Wrong! Throughout my perusing of the Internet over the last few years, I have come across a clip from Halloween 3. You probably know it, but here it is again. [youtube id=”ssS4T_OcltU” align=”center” mode=”normal” autoplay=”no”]

The mask basically dissolved that kid’s head, and all kinds of creepy crawlies spewed out from underneath. THAT’S FUCKED UP! I kept wondering how a movie with such a horrifying scene could be considered a blemish on the Halloween franchise, and the horror genre itself. So I decided to finally watch it. I was not disappointed. halloween 3 mask deathHalloween III is not about Michael Myers. Once you acknowledge this, and the expectation shifts away from watching people flee from a Shatner-masked slasher, you will have a fine horror experience. This time, the story revolves around a mysterious company called Silver Shamrock, whose national TV commercials advertising their masks and the upcoming Halloween holiday are inescapable. A man named Harry Grimbridge is admitted to the hospital grasping a mask and warning that “they” are going to kill everyone; he is promptly killed by an emotionless goon in a dapper suit. Our hero, Dr. Challis, chases the man into the parking lot, where the goon kills himself in spectacular fashion. All kinds of mysteries shroud these events. Why was Harry so frightened? Who was after him? Why did his murderer kill himself? When Challis meets Harry’s daughter, Ellie, they discover that Harry had visited the Silver Shamrock factory in Santa Mira just days before. The two set out to the small town in search of answers. halloween 3 shopWhen they arrive, it is clear that this is no ordinary small town. A surveillance camera follows their car as they drive in, and the local motel manager has only high praise for Mr. Cochran, the owner of Silver Shamrock—as if, were he to say anything unsatisfactory about Mr. Cochran, his life would be in danger. Later, we watch as the town shutters itself at six o’clock for curfew. This place just isn’t right.

As Ellie and Challis continue to dig deeper into the secrets of Silver Shamrock and its ubiquitous jingle (set to the tune of “London Bridge is Falling Down”), the film builds an ominous sense of dread. Something awful is on tap for Halloween night, and we are constantly reminded of the approaching doom by the countdown presented by the advertisements as the days wear on (“Eight more days ‘til Halloween, Halloween, Halloween! Eight more days ‘til Halloween, Silver Shamrock!”). [youtube id=”WJa8WtoSWVE” align=”center” mode=”normal” autoplay=”no”]

So what of the villain, now that we don’t have Michael Myers? Instead of one knife-wielding boogeyman, the villain is an omnipotent company run by a man with a taste for old-school Samhain sacrificing, which is just as terrifying. Michael Myers may be more timeless, but don’t discount Silver Shamrock; with its dastardly uses of surveillance and mass communication, the movie may have been ahead of its time with this villain. halloween 3 cochranAfter watching this for the first time, I can only imagine that it received so much hate simply because it didn’t feature Michael Myers. That may have been understandable when it was released in 1982, but now we have gotten plenty more Halloween films with Michael Myers, so in a way we can have our cake and eat it too. The bottom line is, when viewed as a stand-alone horror film, Halloween III delivers. Give it a(nother) chance.

[youtube id=”zKNIqG9J2KU” align=”center” mode=”normal” autoplay=”no”]

 

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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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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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