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They’ll Scare Us No More: Horror Entertainers We Lost in 2014

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As 2014 comes to a close, we on the iHorror staff remember those members of the horror community who died this year.  Gone but not forgotten, their frightening work will live on in our nightmares.  This is not an all-encompassing list, but those that stick out most in my mind.

H.R. Giger

HR-Giger

Born in Chur, Switzerland in 1940, the world lost a masterful visual artist on May 12, 2014, when H.R. Giger passed from this world.  Known for his organic, reptilian artwork combining elements of anatomy and mechanics, Giger, together with Ridley Scott, designed the alien creature and set designs for Scott’s film, Alien which went on to produce several sequels.  He also directed several films and produced numerous volumes filled with his surrealist artwork.  His vision will truly be missed.

Billie Whitelaw

Billie

 

A foremost interpreter of the theatrical works of Beckett and a bit of an acting prodigy, Billie Whitelaw was an actress who never stopped working from her debut on the radio at age 11.  It was in 1976, though, that she truly made her mark in the horror world with her turn as Mrs. Baylock, the Satanic nanny who came to care for Damien in The Omen.  Her menacing performance is not easily forgotten.  She would continue to turn up in supernatural roles throughout her career, and even voiced the character Aughra in Jim Henson’s The Dark Crystal.

Harold Ramis

Harold-Ramis-Dead

 

Harold Ramis will live on in our minds forever for his dry delivery as genius Dr. Egon Spengler in the Ghostbusters franchise, but let’s not forget that he also co-wrote the films that made us all want our own containment units for the ghosts that everyone in my generation was sure lurked just around every corner after seeing the first film in 1984.

Mickey Rooney

mickey

 

Once upon a time in 1984, Mickey Rooney wrote a letter proclaiming the makers of Silent Night, Deadly Night should be run out of town for having a killer dressed as Santa Claus.  Seven years later, he would star in Silent Night, Deadly Night 5: The Toy Maker and he was over the top brilliant in it.  Rooney was a master of comedy and will be remembered by most for his films with Judy Garland, but for many a horror fan it will be Joe Petto in SNDN 5 that will live on for us.

Leslie Carlson

Les

 

The brilliant character actor Leslie Carlson had a prolific career that did not actually begin on screen until he was nearly 40 years old.  Before then, his work had been seen solely on the stage.  From early in his big screen career, though, you will find him in some of your favorite horror and sci-fi films.  He appeared in Black Christmas (1974)Videodrome, The Dead Zone (1983), and The Fly (1986) to name just a few.

Ruby Dee

Ruby

A singularly talented actress and a tireless champion of equality, Ruby Dee made only one real stop in our horror world, but you can be sure that it was one that will be remembered.  Taking on the iconic role of Mother Abigail in Mick Garris’ adaptation of Stephen King’s The Stand, Dee stole the show more than once from her co-stars.  Her talents will surely be missed.

Casey Kasem

casey-kasem-100865

When he wasn’t hosting his weekly countdown of the biggest hits in pop music, Casey Kasem was lending his voice to many iconic animated characters from the late 60s until he began to succumb to illness in 2013.  In this writer’s eyes, he will always be the one and only Shaggy in the various incarnations of “Scooby Doo” over the years and he is sorely missed.

Marilyn Burns

marilyn

If you ever come across a list of the greatest scream queens of all time and Marilyn Burns’ name isn’t on the list, move on, because the writer probably doesn’t know what he or she is talking about.  The image of her running from Leatherface at the end of 1974’s The Texas Chainsaw Massacre will forever be burned into my mind.  Her career never really solidified but she did make cameo appearances in later sequels to the original and she also appeared in the TV movie “Helter Skelter” based on the real life horrors perpetrated by Charles Manson and his followers.  Marilyn passed in August of this year.

Elizabeth Pena

pena

Sultry voiced Elizabeth Pena was the rare mixture of grace, talent, and beauty that somehow never fully adds up to mainstream stardom here in the U.S.  She remained from her earliest films an indie darling, however, and still managed to find her way into a few box office hits throughout her career.  He stunning performance in Jacob’s Ladder is a personal favorite of mine.

That concludes my lineup of the voices we lost this year.  As I said before, this is in no way a comprehensive list of those from the horror world, but just a list of those I, personally, will miss greatly.

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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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