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[Beyond Fest 2020] Review: ‘Freaky’ Is An Unlikely But Bloody Hilarious Horror-Comedy Mash-Up

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The slasher genre has existed for decades and just when it seems to exhaust itself, it manages to find new ways to revive again, like its killer stars tend to do sequel to sequel. In the case of Blumhouse, they found success in Christopher Landon’s Happy Death Day films which combined the genre with the time-loop comedy trope found in movies like Groundhog Day. Now, Landon’s returned with a new slasher mash-up, and it’s a killer!

 

Millie (Kathryn Newton, Big Little Lies) is an ordinary teenage girl who lives in the ordinary and seemingly peaceful small town of Blissfield. Despite the Norman Rockwell decor, the citizens are under siege from a maniacal masked murderer known only as The Blissfield Butcher (Vince Vaughn, Brawl In Cellblock 99) who’s picking off teens left and right. One night, the Blissfield Butcher stabs Millie with a mystical dagger he found in one of his previous victim’s possession but she’s saved at the last second, leaving them both wounded. The next morning however, they wake up to find their souls have switched bodies! Now Millie has just one day to get her original body back before the change is permanent and The Blissfield Butcher continues his killing spree.

 

Image via IMDB

 

Needless to say, this is a twisted twist on the old Freaky Friday flip where one person’s mind is switched with another’s, usually their polar opposite for additional comedic effect. The title of Freaky making it pretty evident. But this is the first time I think it’s been played for horror alongside comedy! Kathryn Newton and Vince Vaughn really shine as they switch characters and personas through a majority of the movie. The Blissfield Butcher a towering, intimidating monster, but with the mind of Millie, he becomes an awkward teenage girl in a hulking killer’s body! There are even several points where each character adjust to their new body’s newfound strengths and weaknesses. The Blissfield Butcher in Millie’s body realizing he can’t just overpower his victims anymore and utilizes cunning and speed to get the jump on his victims.

 

Which is another thing, Freaky does not hold back on the gore and kill scenes! Some complaints were made about the Happy Death Day series being a little ‘tame’ bound into its PG-13 rating, but Freaky has an ‘R’ rating and deservedly so. There are some excellent examples of inventive slasher deaths and over the top splatter via power tools and everyday items like bottles. Don’t want spoil any of them, but believe me when I say they’re memorable. My only complaint being that they feel a bit oddly paced toward the middle and end of the movie. The tempo breaks a little bit due to plot reasons, so it’s not exactly a rapid fire bloodfest, but there’s still plenty of bodycount to go around. But for the most part it does a decent job at the genre balancing act and following Millie in The Blissfield Butcher’s body and vice-versa.

Image via IMDB

 

Director Christopher Landon and writer Michael Kennedy do an excellent job of combining the tropes of the two decidedly different genres to make a bloody slasher and a fun ‘race against the clock’ movie as Millie figures out she has to get her body back fast. As well as establishing its supporting cast of Millie’s friends, family, and enemies (who tend to meet a gory demise at the hand of the Blissfield Butcher switched Millie). Even featuring a romantic sub-plot that feels organic instead of distracting.

 

I was fortunate enough to attend the world premiere at Beyond Fest’s drive-in variation of their annual festival at Mission Tiki in Montclair, California. In the wake of the pandemic, seeing a new movie on a big screen has been a joy that words alone cannot express. There were even promotional Freaky face masks taken from the poster. Freaky felt right at home in a drive-in cinema and made a fine double feature with the 2010 classic horror-comedy Tucker And Dale vs Evil chosen specifically by Landon and Kennedy.

 

Overall, Freaky is an unimaginable slasher/body swap comedy that manages to work. It’s got a lot of laughs and scenes to make you scream.

 

Freaky will be released in theaters on November 13th, 2020.

 

Image via IMDB

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Mike Flanagan Comes Aboard To Assist in Completion of ‘Shelby Oaks’

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shelby oaks

If you have been following Chris Stuckmann on YouTube you are aware of the struggles he has had getting his horror movie Shelby Oaks finished. But there’s good news about the project today. Director Mike Flanagan (Ouija: Origin Of Evil, Doctor Sleep and The Haunting) is backing the film as a co-executive producer which might bring it much closer to being released. Flanagan is a part of the collective Intrepid Pictures which also includes Trevor Macy and Melinda Nishioka.

Shelby Oaks
Shelby Oaks

Stuckmann is a YouTube movie critic who’s been on the platform for over a decade. He came under some scrutiny for announcing on his channel two years ago that he would no longer be reviewing films negatively. However contrary to that statement, he did a non-review essay of the panned Madame Web recently saying, that studios strong-arm directors to make films just for the sake of keeping failing franchises alive. It seemed like a critique disguised as a discussion video.

But Stuckmann has his own movie to worry about. In one of Kickstarter’s most successful campaigns, he managed to raise over $1 million for his debut feature film Shelby Oaks which now sits in post-production. 

Hopefully, with Flanagan and Intrepid’s help, the road to Shelby Oak’s completion is reaching its end. 

“It’s been inspiring to watch Chris working toward his dreams over the past few years, and the tenacity and DIY spirit he displayed while bringing Shelby Oaks to life reminded me so much of my own journey over a decade ago,” Flanagan told Deadline. “It’s been an honor to walk a few steps with him on his path, and to offer support for Chris’ vision for his ambitious, unique movie. I can’t wait to see where he goes from here.”

Stuckmann says Intrepid Pictures has inspired him for years and, “it’s a dream come true to work with Mike and Trevor on my first feature.”

Producer Aaron B. Koontz of Paper Street Pictures has been working with Stuckmann since the beginning is also excited about the collaboration.

“For a film that had such a hard time getting going, it’s remarkable the doors that then opened to us,” said Koontz. “The success of our Kickstarter followed by the on-going leadership and guidance from Mike, Trevor, and Melinda is beyond anything I could have hoped for.”

Deadline describes the plot of Shelby Oaks as follows:

“A combination of documentary, found footage, and traditional film footage styles, Shelby Oaks centers on Mia’s (Camille Sullivan) frantic search for her sister, Riley, (Sarah Durn) who ominously disappeared in the last tape of her “Paranormal Paranoids” investigative series. As Mia’s obsession grows, she begins to suspect that the imaginary demon from Riley’s childhood may have been real.”

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New ‘MaXXXine’ Image is Pure 80s Costume Core

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A24 has unveiled a captivating new image of Mia Goth in her role as the titular character in “MaXXXine”. This release comes approximately a year and a half after the previous installment in Ti West’s expansive horror saga, which covers more than seven decades.

MaXXXine Official Trailer

His latest continues the story arc of freckle-faced aspiring starlet Maxine Minx from the first film X which took place in Texas in 1979. With stars in her eyes and blood on her hands, Maxine moves into a new decade and a new city, Hollywood, in pursuit of an acting career, “But as a mysterious killer stalks the starlets of Hollywood, a trail of blood threatens to reveal her sinister past.”

The photo below is the latest snapshot released from the film and shows Maxine in full Thunderdome drag amid a crowd of teased hair and rebellious 80s fashion.

MaXXXine is set to open in theaters on July 5.

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Netflix Releases First BTS ‘Fear Street: Prom Queen’ Footage

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It’s been three long years since Netflix unleashed the bloody, but enjoyable Fear Street on its platform. Released in a tryptic fashion, the streamer broke up the story into three episodes, each taking place in a different decade which by the finale were all tied together.

Now, the streamer is in production for its sequel Fear Street: Prom Queen which brings the story into the 80s. Netflix gives a synopsis of what to expect from Prom Queen on their blog site Tudum:

“Welcome back to Shadyside. In this next installment of the blood-soaked Fear Street franchise, prom season at Shadyside High is underway and the school’s wolfpack of It Girls is busy with its usual sweet and vicious campaigns for the crown. But when a gutsy outsider is unexpectedly nominated to the court, and the other girls start mysteriously disappearing, the class of ’88 is suddenly in for one hell of a prom night.” 

Based on R.L. Stine’s massive series of Fear Street novels and spin-offs, this chapter is number 15 in the series and was published in 1992.

Fear Street: Prom Queen features a killer ensemble cast, including India Fowler (The Nevers, Insomnia), Suzanna Son (Red Rocket, The Idol), Fina Strazza (Paper Girls, Above the Shadows), David Iacono (The Summer I Turned Pretty, Cinnamon), Ella Rubin (The Idea of You), Chris Klein (Sweet Magnolias, American Pie), Lili Taylor (Outer Range, Manhunt) and Katherine Waterston (The End We Start From, Perry Mason).

No word on when Netflix will drop the series into its catalog.

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